Latest / Hallmark Mysteries & More / Stepping into Aurora Teagarden's Shoes: A Chat with Skyler Samuels

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Stepping into Aurora Teagarden's Shoes: A Chat with Skyler Samuels · Hallmark Mysteries & More

0:00
Eric: This podcast was created by fans or fans and is not affiliated with or sponsored by Hallmark or the Hallmark Channel.
0:07
Eric: This is Eric and this is Hallmark Mysteries and more Okay everybody.
0:24
Eric: You'll notice we had a little intro to our podcast that we haven't had before, got a little note from the Hallmark lawyers and we now have to do a little disclaimer before our podcast.
0:36
Eric: So hopefully that doesn't distract any of you guys, but not a big deal, i understand.
0:42
Eric: Okay, so today is a super exciting day.
0:46
Eric: We are talking to Skyler Samuels and she is the new Aurora tea garden and The upcoming Aurora tea garden mysteries.
0:55
Eric: A new beginning.
0:56
Eric: We talked to Madison Smith last week and Today we are talking with Aurora.
1:03
Eric: So this is awesome.
1:06
Eric: A lot of you know I haven't been the hugest fan of the Aurora Teagarden franchise, but I'm really confident that this one is going to Swing me around and bring me on board.
1:20
Eric: I Think it just looks absolutely fantastic.
1:24
Eric: I think the cast is fantastic.
1:26
Eric: Skyler, i think, looks absolutely perfect and if you read the books, you know that she actually is the age that Aurora is supposed to be.
1:36
Eric: Cameron was a lot older than the actual Aurora tea garden.
1:42
Eric: Aurora tea garden is supposed to be late 20s and that's exactly what Skyler is.
1:47
Eric: So I think it's this gonna be great.
1:51
Eric: She also.
1:52
Eric: She just looks like a sleuther.
1:55
Eric: So today's cocktail is the Aurora.
1:57
Eric: Yes, i know, i went out on a limb there with the naming of it, but it's a red, vivacious drink, just Aurora Teagraden is.
2:07
Eric: So to make this, you need some vodka, some elderflower liqueur, prosecco, basil and, finely, strawberries.
2:19
Eric: And What you're going to do is you're going to take yours, about a handful of strawberries, dump it into a tumbler, put in another handful of basil leaves and just mash it, smash it, smash it, smash, get it all nice and mashed.
2:35
Eric: Then you want to go ahead and add some ice, your vodka, about a Shot and a half of vodka, a shot of elderflower liqueur, and Put that in with some ice and give it a big shake, shake, shake, shake, shake it all around, shake your booty, all right.
2:58
Eric: Then you want to strain it into a glass with some ice and You're going to top it off with that Prosecco.
3:08
Eric: And it's very light, it's very refreshing, it's got those bubbles, so it's a lot of fun.
3:15
Eric: So there you go.
3:16
Eric: There's the Aurora and, speaking of Aurora, let's hop into it and talk to Skyler Samuels, the new Aurora tea garden.
3:26
Eric: Here we go.
3:27
Eric: We are so excited.
3:28
Eric: We have Skyler Samuels with us today, the star, the legend already, of the new Aurora tea garden movie.
3:37
Eric: Hello Skyler, how are you?
3:39
Skyler: Hi, eric, i'm good, how are you?
3:42
Eric: I'm okay.
3:42
Eric: So just so you know, i have a co-host, sydney, and she is on her honeymoon in Paris and Wow was going to try to still make it on here and call in from Paris and I am not seeing another person.
3:56
Eric: So I am thinking that she is enjoying the Paris nightlife a little too much, because she's.
4:03
Skyler: She should be absolutely, absolutely.
4:05
Skyler: I'm like live it up.
4:06
Skyler: I would be upset if she were here.
4:07
Skyler: She should be like basking in her Parisian honeymoon glory.
4:11
Eric: Well, she's been in London for a week and now she just yesterday went off to To Paris but she said it's gonna be midnight, she would be finishing up her dinner and everything else and she was gonna try to hop on.
4:23
Eric: So if all of a sudden another face Hop sound in the middle, you can go ahead.
4:27
Eric: And yes, you can.
4:29
Skyler: What are you?
4:29
Eric: doing get off here.
4:30
Eric: Exactly but it just shows you how excited we are to be talking to you.
4:36
Skyler: So oh, thank you.
4:39
Eric: So I'll preface this off by letting you know that she is a huge Aurora tea garden fan, where I have been less than an Aurora tea garden fan.
4:48
Eric: So you've got me.
4:49
Eric: Today, however, i am so excited for the prequel.
4:53
Eric: So don't worry, you do not have it too bad.
4:57
Eric: All right, good to know so we talked to Madison Smith, one of your co-stars, last week as well, so he gives a little.
5:06
Eric: He gives a little bit of dirt about you, which maybe oh boy, i hope he said nice things.
5:12
Eric: He said only the nicest.
5:13
Eric: All right, so just first thing, so you're a little bit younger than the typical Hallmark viewer.
5:20
Eric: However, when you got cast as this and you went home and I told your mom, your grandmother or something like that, like did they just go absolutely crazy, like and saying, oh my god, i'm able to brag to all my friends, like my daughter's starting.
5:33
Skyler: It's so funny because I Feel like I have a cohort of girlfriends who are about my age.
5:39
Skyler: You actually love Hallmark and it's like they're guilty pleasure, like when they're home, you know, like if their kid is home sick, like they spend the day watching Hallmark together or like at Christmas time.
5:50
Skyler: My girlfriend, christina, is a diehard Hallmark fan and she's my age and she's literally got her Hallmark closet at home Where she's got like hot cocoa blankets, like all their stuff, like especially for the holiday movies, like they get all dressed up to watch holiday movies on Hallmark, but it's a whole thing.
6:06
Skyler: So she was really excited when I told her about this, but for sure, my 80-year-old grandmother, who has been begging me to do a Hallmark movie for the better part of I don't know 1015 years, was Extatic.
6:18
Skyler: She was like, finally, i've been begging you to do one of these.
6:21
Skyler: So she was, yes, very happy and grandma was thrilled.
6:25
Eric: No, no.
6:26
Eric: Was she a one of the mystery fan, or was she more into the rom-coms?
6:30
Skyler: I think she's across the board.
6:31
Skyler: I think she probably leans towards the romance, but given that I'm in the mystery, i think I can get her over to the, you know, the mystery side of course.
6:42
Eric: I think she'll probably watch it So.
6:44
Skyler: I think so she's.
6:46
Skyler: You know she's learned to use an iPhone, which is pretty impressive at 80 years old, and she's like I have an alarm set on my phone.
6:52
Skyler: I told my sister we're having a watch party.
6:55
Skyler: She's so excited.
6:56
Skyler: It's very precious Yeah.
7:02
Eric: So you've worked with a couple of the giants in the industry right now, with Mary Lou Hunter, as well as Jamie Lee Curtis, so who just?
7:11
Eric: I think she won a little award that I'm not quite sure what that was, but, um, so tell me something like maybe working with some of these legends, what's something that they've taught you, and how to be a better actor, or maybe just how to be in the industry.
7:26
Skyler: Sure, i mean, i've learned a lot from All the different people I've had the privilege of crossing paths with.
7:33
Skyler: You know, with Mary Lou.
7:34
Skyler: We hadn't met each other prior to this project, and so when we got to Canada To film the movie, just before we filmed, we got together and had lunch and probably just spoke for like two or three hours about anything and everything, and it was so fascinating listening to her talk about, you know, her career and also just like Being a mom on the road with her sons and like all the places She would take them while she was doing all these Broadway shows, and just the adventures that she's had in the scope of Her career is really incredible.
8:05
Skyler: And so I think Mary Lou is a great example of Just resilience and like constantly changing it up.
8:13
Skyler: Like that woman is pure variety, which I love because She's never bored and she's always doing a myriad of different things, and she's still as enthused about doing the job now Or she was, however many you know, years ago when she started and so that's really inspiring to see that you can keep a Zest for the job and it's always changing, even if it's something you do for decades, and Jamie Lee Curtis is just a Boss.
8:40
Skyler: I mean, she's just the best.
8:42
Skyler: I absolutely love her and I cried when she won an Oscar.
8:46
Skyler: I was so proud of her and so excited and she deserved that more than most anyone I can think of.
8:52
Skyler: And She had so much sage advice, especially when it came to navigating maybe More difficult or like turbulent times in a professional setting.
9:03
Skyler: You know, as a woman sometimes you've got a lot you're up against trying to navigate and she just had really Very sage advice about how to kind of just get through the waters And the thing she always taught me was light and polite as kind of your armor to get through anything And I loved that and I've taken that with me and you know the ten years since right Now Absolutely hilarious in real life.
9:35
Skyler: Oh, she's so funny It's like doesn't even do a justice.
9:37
Skyler: She's absolutely hysterical and sometimes I wonder if she missed her calling as a stand-up comedian, because that woman's wit and Observation are just so sharp.
9:48
Skyler: But she's got the biggest heart and is so, she's so engaged with everyone that she meets and talks to like.
9:58
Skyler: Something that I loved was Regularly when we filmed scream queens, like all of us, we'd come into our trailers and they were just be like a stack of books And a note from Jamie Lee.
10:08
Skyler: She's an avid reader and she would write us little notes about Why she thought each of us would like reading this particular book at this moment in our life And it was just always so thoughtful and wonderful and so I've got my collection of you know, jamie Lee books to this day and they're just so precious.
10:23
Skyler: You know, like that's just someone who's so funny and engaged and, you know, just leave such a special and passion on your heart.
10:31
Eric: Now, did you like Madison told us he did this when you were talking to Mary Lou and you found out about that little special skill She has with her memory Did you like start asking her like what did she do on your day You were born?
10:43
Eric: or?
10:44
Skyler: yeah, but it's so funny because I'd asked her like what day was?
10:49
Skyler: you know, my birthday is April 14th 1994 and She was like oh, that was a Thursday and I thought I don't even know if it was a birthday.
10:56
Skyler: I have the fact that I don't even know if that's right.
10:59
Skyler: I mean of course it was, but it was pretty wild.
11:02
Skyler: Her ability to recall and I think that's what was so interesting Talking to her about, just kind of her experience thus far in her career, is that she quite literally remembers it better than most anybody in her age range or just her peers in general.
11:18
Skyler: Like she has this like stunning, elaborate memory of everything she's done and all of those productions and like down to Individual shows.
11:28
Skyler: You know she would do hundreds of performances Doing a Broadway play but she could single out a single performance and we call what happened and things that went wrong that night Or whatever it might have been, and it's just amazing.
11:40
Skyler: She has an endless fountain of stories and it's just so fun.
11:44
Eric: Are you a crime or true crime person yourself?
11:47
Eric: Do you like watch ID channel?
11:49
Eric: Doesn't true crime podcast?
11:51
Eric: are you into like this whole mystery thing or just kind of like hey, this is the acting you got got because both screen screens and this are both.
11:59
Eric: You know mysteries and It's true.
12:03
Skyler: Yeah, there is a little bit of an overlap.
12:04
Skyler: I will say, when it comes to Skyler in real life, i definitely prefer the mystery rather than the murder.
12:12
Skyler: So, I do love a who done it and trying to figure that kind of thing out.
12:15
Skyler: I'm definitely a Queasy stomach when it comes to the blood and guts and gore and some of the other things that sometimes are Involved, so that's not my favorite bit about it, but I do like the mystery and suspense of trying to puzzle together.
12:30
Skyler: You know a crime or a crazy incident that happened, and so I think what I like about Aurora is It's really more mystery than murder.
12:39
Skyler: I mean, murders are involved, but we're really censored around the mystery like problem-solving process, which I think is the most fun for the audience too, because you know They're trying to sort of solve it in real time, as Aurora is solving it in real time, so I'm lucky.
12:54
Skyler: I think Aurora and her mystery skills suit me pretty well for the genre.
12:59
Eric: That's perfect.
12:59
Eric: That's me too, my wife's all-in-the-id channel and all of that, and I'm into my cozy mysteries on Hallmark.
13:06
Eric: So, I'm on my line there with you too.
13:09
Eric: Okay a little bit different question here.
13:13
Eric: So if I were to go and grab your phone and hijack and look at your Spotify, what would be the most embarrassing song I would come across?
13:20
Skyler: Oh, my gosh.
13:22
Skyler: You know what I think I would say.
13:26
Skyler: I Just listened to I'm one of my favorite podcasts.
13:30
Skyler: The other day they interviewed the Jonas brothers, who I grew up and loved and It had been like years since I really heard interviews with them or anything And it was really fun kind of listening to them like recount some of their hits and things and it just was very nostalgic Listening to the interview.
13:48
Skyler: So we had some Joe Bro throwbacks from my middle school years because you know I was like that was a great song.
13:55
Skyler: Why did I stop listening to that 15 years ago?
13:57
Skyler: I should go revisit it.
13:59
Eric: All right, that's good.
14:01
Eric: I mean, i'm a kid of the 80s, so I go back and I listen to my 80s all the time, so it's okay.
14:06
Eric: You got all those good memories from, from that music.
14:08
Skyler: Yeah, there's something about going back where it's almost funny, but it does like a vocal.
14:13
Skyler: Just that's the nostalgia.
14:15
Skyler: It's kind of fun to go back and listen to those.
14:19
Eric: All right.
14:19
Eric: Well, that's kind of a little close to where I'm gonna go next.
14:22
Eric: I was gonna ask what your take is in the boy bands, because when I talked to Madison I found out that he's a huge boy band Fan and you're a little more like, you're a little bit younger, but you're still that whole, you know, in sync.
14:35
Eric: You know new kids in the box, boys demand and stuff, so but you got your Jonas brothers, like he said, they're still boy band.
14:42
Eric: So where are you at in the boy bands versus what you know?
14:45
Eric: what your taste in music these days?
14:47
Eric: I mean.
14:48
Skyler: I feel like I got to live through most of the golden era of the like most recent boy bands, so that was pretty fun And I love them.
14:57
Skyler: I mean, when I was in college, i literally took a class on fandoms and it was an English class and we just wrote about like different fan cultures and I had like a 20 page mini dissertation on one direction because I was so fascinated with like their success and They are a crazy example of a boy band because they were assembled by fans when they were on I think it was X Factor UK that they did and then fans would organize concerts that they did.
15:28
Skyler: Like it was Crazy and you know, they obviously have become one of the most iconic boy bands of all time.
15:35
Skyler: So I love them.
15:36
Skyler: I can't get enough, even now, at 29 years old, and like keep them going, guys.
15:40
Skyler: I love it.
15:41
Eric: So so were you back in the day.
15:43
Eric: Were you a Harry or a Zach fan?
15:45
Eric: I?
15:48
Skyler: Think I was pretty true to Harry, although I always had a soft spot for Nile Gotta.
15:53
Skyler: Love him on the guitar and that little Irish voice of his just so delicious.
15:58
Skyler: It was hard not to love them all.
16:00
Skyler: But yeah, i think I, definitely I I aired toward Harry Styles and it's been so fun now seeing him become his own icon right.
16:10
Eric: Right, I guess that would probably be the closest thing would be the in sync with Why am I going?
16:16
Eric: Justin Timberlake how he?
16:17
Eric: yeah it became big.
16:19
Eric: So so now get back to your acting career.
16:21
Eric: Now We asked those really tough questions.
16:24
Skyler: I hope.
16:24
Eric: By the way, i hope you got an A in that class because it does not sound like the toughest class.
16:30
Skyler: I mean, you know, I went to a very tough school, but I think, I went to Stanford, and so I've heard of them.
16:38
Skyler: Yeah, a little school up in Northern California but it's so funny because they would have these classes where You almost had like a little bit of free reign of kind of what you wrote and it seemed like deceivingly easy.
16:50
Skyler: But it was kind of up to you to make it Academic and intellectual and interesting.
16:55
Skyler: So I had to pitch really hard to like make one direction be Academia worthy.
17:01
Skyler: And I remember a little hesitation from my classmates, like you're really gonna spend three months studying one direction, and I said yes, and it's gonna be worth it, and in the end it ended up being so much fun and people were really interested.
17:14
Skyler: But you know, i tried to bridge the worlds of academia in one direction and I think I succeeded so with that school, stanford is I.
17:24
Eric: I think they have a decent academic reputation.
17:27
Eric: But remember when my daughter was going through, we were going through Her college tours and we went to Stanford It was.
17:34
Eric: It was a trip because the the kids given the tour and we're walking around and then he starts talking about How everyone gets like it's sort of an academic advice or not like necessarily academic, but some Academic person who's assigned to them.
17:46
Eric: It's like, oh yeah, we were over there And he had one of his other friends over and they're just talking about their Nobel Prizes and and I was going back to my college where I went to University of Arizona and I'm pretty sure none of my teachers were having like parties with Nobel Prize You know winners and stuff.
18:05
Eric: But it was such a trip walking around that campus and listening to the story about all the faculty and yeah.
18:10
Skyler: It's so real.
18:11
Skyler: It was the first college I saw and Immediately was like I have to go here.
18:15
Skyler: And my parents were like, okay, well, it's really hard to get into and it's the first one we've seen, so we shouldn't put all our eggs in this basket.
18:22
Skyler: And I was just, you know, 17 and starry eyed and blissfully naive because I was like no, no, no, this is my place.
18:29
Skyler: I gotta come here.
18:30
Skyler: I just loved it.
18:31
Skyler: And it was a surreal four years on campus because, like Mark Zuckerberg or Mark Zuckerberg rather would just like come by, like he'd be around, like you just look around and see these Very prolific people would just drop into classes or walk around campus.
18:47
Skyler: And I just kept thinking like, is this real life?
18:50
Skyler: Like how do I actually go to school here?
18:52
Skyler: It was such a wild experience, but some of the best years of my life, for sure.
18:58
Eric: Now swinging back a little bit to the acting.
19:00
Eric: So when was it when you had that realization of okay, you know I'm an actor and I'm doing my things, but I actually This can be my career, i like I can be successful at this.
19:12
Eric: When did you have that realization?
19:14
Eric: Was there any particular role or just a epiphany you had?
19:17
Eric: I?
19:19
Skyler: Feel like.
19:19
Skyler: You know it's interesting because I started acting when I was really young, so I started at about seven years old.
19:25
Skyler: You know, i've had my sad card for over 20 years now, which is crazy to think about, but when I was little I think it was just a hobby, it was something I just really enjoyed doing and like that was my happy place.
19:36
Skyler: You know, like to go and play, dress up on a big scale.
19:40
Skyler: But you know, go and play, pretend and do that.
19:42
Skyler: But I think it was when I did my show, the Nine Lives of Chloe King.
19:50
Skyler: I was about 16, 17 years old and I was playing a title character for the first time and It was the first like real heavy-duty TV job I had had.
20:02
Skyler: I had been on a series once before as a regular, but not to the scale that I was on this one, and It was such hard work.
20:11
Skyler: But it was also so exciting and I was challenging myself and doing crazy stunts and going to all these different Locations and really just so immersed in this big kind of mythical show.
20:23
Skyler: And I think that's when I realized like, oh, i think I have to do this forever.
20:28
Skyler: You know there was a certain addiction to just the energy of being on a set and, you know, playing make-believe, and especially in a world like that where we had supernatural creatures and all kinds of things going on.
20:39
Skyler: It was just so exciting and I just felt like I'm in the place I'm supposed to be like.
20:45
Skyler: I think this is my lane and I've committed to that ever since.
20:51
Eric: So that's interesting that you've then had it when you were 16, but then you still decided to go to Stanford versus just going full-fledged right, you know, basically straight from high school into it.
21:02
Skyler: You decided still to do the yeah, i definitely did it the harder way.
21:06
Skyler: There's no doubt about it.
21:08
Skyler: It would have been easier and probably a lot less expensive, but I Done it.
21:14
Skyler: You know differently, but growing up, my parents always had this rule where they would say you know, i'm a student actor until I'm done with college.
21:22
Skyler: So it was never not on the table for me to go to school and a lot of the people that I, you know, looked up to when I was coming up where you know, people I'd meet as directors when I was a kid, who were former child actors or whatever it might have been They all went to college and I think it instilled in me this idea that, like You still have to have something that is your own outside of this job, and an education is just that.
21:49
Skyler: Like You have a lot of highs and lows in the entertainment industry, particularly as an actor, but your education is yours forever.
21:57
Skyler: So to have something that's truly yours that no one can ever take away, and it's just very empowering and you know it makes you more interesting as an actor.
22:07
Skyler: It exposes you to different stuff and Definitely a lot of the things that I had the opportunity to learn about in college I've since seen come up professionally.
22:17
Skyler: So it's kind of fun to be able to draw on some of those experiences as I've gotten older, because I had that college experience.
22:25
Eric: Yeah, but I bet your parents are kind of like damn it, why didn't she just go like Cal, state, northridge or something like that, instead of Stanford, which is going to be an actress?
22:34
Skyler: Yeah.
22:35
Eric: I went for it.
22:36
Eric: They were excited.
22:37
Skyler: They were very, very excited, okay all right.
22:42
Eric: So You are going into this or a tea garden, which is a pretty darn established Hallmark franchise with 18 movies and you know people know the characters for the most part like it.
22:54
Eric: There's obviously new ones, like Madison's characters is you know a new character.
22:59
Eric: But Like, did you go back and watch them to sort of get any feel for like Candice and how she was doing it, and you wanted to keep sort of those, some of those things, or like What were you doing to stamp it and say nope, this is going to be Skyler's character.
23:18
Skyler: I Definitely watched some of the originals just to get a sense of the world and kind of understand Everyone's relationships and dynamics around Aurora.
23:27
Skyler: Because you know, we've got Sally, her best friend, iida, her mom, and then of course Arthur, who's really like her friend and confidant as an adult.
23:36
Skyler: But we get the sense that maybe they had a thing back in the day that we don't really know about, you know.
23:41
Skyler: So, just trying to get a lay of the land for who she is and the people in her life, and It's definitely important to me that, stepping into a role that already has such an established and loyal fan base, to make sure that I carry on some of the elements From Aurora that people know and love.
24:01
Skyler: But I think what I did was I sort of boiled down what I thought was most essential about Aurora And then I sort of reverse engineered it into okay, but what would she be like in her early mid-20s?
24:11
Skyler: You know what would that look like.
24:12
Skyler: And so I think what's fun about it is we've sort of Deconstructed Aurora in a way and put her back together where she will feel new but also a little familiar to the audience.
24:23
Skyler: So I think it will feel like they're returning to a franchise They know and love, and yet it will be a very new and exciting experience for them.
24:32
Eric: Well, what's interesting is, if you go to the actual books, aurora's 28,.
24:36
Eric: So she actually is your age, right?
24:39
Eric: Yeah, so the movies Aged her, but you're taking her back in the prequel, which is going back in time.
24:46
Skyler: So it's just kind of a weird little Matrixy type thing Yeah that's all going on, but Alright, it's also a funny concept to go back in time, quote unquote, to 2008, as if that were so long ago.
24:59
Skyler: But really, you know it's funny because in a world of mysteries, you know, nowadays people are just like whipping out their iPhone and they're googling or doing whatever like.
25:08
Skyler: In 2008 We had flip phones and those little slide worms where you could just barely text on the world's tiniest keypad, you know, so it's kind of funny.
25:16
Skyler: It's like incorporating the old tech.
25:18
Skyler: When you're watching Aurora try to solve these mysteries, because if she needs to do research She has to get to a computer after library look it up.
25:26
Skyler: You know it's not the speed and ease with which we can today, but that was kind of a fun component to incorporate in this movie.
25:33
Eric: Well, i'll tell you, i actually was.
25:34
Eric: You know, based on my Aged heck I was before there was even going to the internet.
25:39
Eric: You have to go to the Dewey decimal Card cad log thing and go get the actual book, which Aurora should know about, being the librarian that she is.
25:47
Skyler: She does.
25:48
Skyler: Although it's not the most efficient system.
25:50
Skyler: It's definitely not the fastest way to go about things.
25:53
Eric: So this takes place in 2008.
25:55
Eric: Yes okay, okay, i thought it was in the 90s, but it's 2008.
25:59
Eric: Okay, perfect, all right.
26:01
Eric: So now we're gonna get off Aurora for a second again and I'm gonna compare you again to Madison.
26:07
Eric: So what's your favorite ice cream flavor?
26:11
Skyler: Oh, i would say my go-to is chocolate, chocolate chip, lots of chocolate, that would be my fave, yeah okay, i'm a rocky road, so I can live with the chocolate.
26:25
Skyler: Yes, excellent choice.
26:28
Eric: Okay Now, this is a very important question.
26:30
Eric: Okay what are you ordering on your pizza?
26:35
Skyler: Ooh, i am a like cheese pizza, with extra cheese for sure, and lots of basil.
26:43
Skyler: I love fresh basil on a pizza.
26:45
Skyler: That's my fave.
26:47
Eric: Okay, you're a good one, Cause when I talk to Madison he was down with the pineapple pizza, the Hawaiian.
26:55
Skyler: I could have guessed that If you had asked me what I thought Madison was about.
26:59
Eric: I would have said that Him and I already have this tension because I'm mad at him for his movie where he was the killer Lascaux around And I thought he was just a terrible guy.
27:11
Eric: So then when he dropped on me that he likes the Hawaiian pizza, i was like, oh Madison, you didn't help your case.
27:17
Eric: So now where do you stand on the pineapple pizza?
27:20
Eric: You think there's kind of a character flaw, right?
27:24
Skyler: I mean teach their own.
27:25
Skyler: It's not my go to.
27:27
Eric: It's pineapple.
27:28
Skyler: I mean, if it makes you happy, I guess I don't think too much about it as a character flaw, but it definitely wouldn't be my go to.
27:38
Eric: Yes, i'm with you.
27:38
Eric: I'm a cheese guy too.
27:41
Eric: Okay, we're back on Aurora.
27:44
Eric: Just had to get those questions out there.
27:46
Eric: So there are a lot of skeptics out there, because one of the interesting things about Hallmark is the fans of Hallmark Rom Combs are fanatical and love their shows to go crazy about them, but then when you take them into the mysteries, they're even 10 times that, because there's characters that are developed over the series of episode after episode after episode.
28:12
Eric: So they feel like they know these characters And so you're stepping into kind of a tough situation where you have this whole we talked about this whole franchise before and you have all these loyalists who are all into it and are upset that it's not continuing.
28:28
Eric: They were going back in time and all the skeptics.
28:30
Eric: I am not one of them.
28:31
Eric: I could not be more excited.
28:33
Eric: I think this is the best thing to happen to RRT Garden, in my opinion.
28:36
Eric: But what would you tell people to get them all excited for this one?
28:40
Eric: Like, what is it that's so cool about New Beginning?
28:46
Skyler: I mean, i think what's cool about it is exactly that It is a new beginning And I think that what we've done is really try to differentiate this Aurora and her world from the original movies.
29:00
Skyler: You know, like I was saying before, there's definitely elements that carry through and we get to see a lot of characters who are, you know, established in the original movies, kind of get their origin stories in the early movies.
29:12
Skyler: So I think that part will be really satisfying to the audience that has been along for the whole Aurora ride.
29:18
Skyler: But you know, i think what's exciting about this new Aurora chapter is it looks and feels completely different than the other movies in a way that I think is really exciting.
29:32
Skyler: So there's a very cinematic aesthetic to this new Aurora world and it's really cool.
29:39
Skyler: We've got very special lenses that we use in the color palettes, really moody, and some of the camera shots and the way that the camera moves in the movie the camera almost feels like its own character, which is kind of fun when you're in a mystery, like who is this watching?
29:54
Skyler: It's got this like voyeuristic kind of cool feel to it And I think it really adds to sort of the love affair that Aurora has with mystery and solving crime and kind of the world she finds herself in.
30:07
Skyler: It's a more like interactive experience watching Aurora in this new chapter, you know, and I think that will be really exciting for the audience, especially people who might be a little unsure.
30:19
Skyler: It'll be different but I think, in a way that will be really exciting and enticing to people.
30:25
Eric: Awesome, very I'm excited.
30:26
Eric: Can you share any funny behind the scenes stories that happened?
30:31
Eric: I know that there was something between you and Madison that you had Some he said absolute huge break where you were cracking up.
30:39
Eric: He wouldn't tell me what it was because he said it would ruin the something.
30:43
Eric: That's surprised me.
30:44
Skyler: Oh my gosh, i completely forgot about this until you said it now.
30:51
Eric: So I guess after the movie I'll find out what it was.
30:53
Eric: But can there's something you can tell from behind the scenes?
30:56
Eric: that was just funny, that happened.
30:59
Skyler: Well, i think what Madison's referring to and I'll try to address it without giving anything away is he and Sally have a pretty intense heart-to-heart moment at the end of the movie And while they're rehearsing this scene I was like snacking and I've been working all day, so I'm sort of multitasking.
31:19
Skyler: And I came in and I've just got this very matter of fact line And I sort of interrupt them in this moment And for whatever reason.
31:26
Skyler: However, i said this line, they both looked at me and I completely ruined their emotional intensity And we all broke out into giggles.
31:33
Skyler: So then when we went to film, every time I came into the room we are all trying to not look at each other out of the fear that if anybody made eye contact we were going to start laughing before we got any words out.
31:43
Skyler: It was just contagious giggles And that was really quite funny.
31:50
Skyler: But that was sort of how it was when we made the movie.
31:52
Skyler: It was a really lovely group of people.
31:54
Skyler: We had a lot of laughs.
31:56
Skyler: It was very lighthearted for a movie that's about murder.
32:00
Skyler: The behind the scenes was very lighthearted and fun And it was such a joy to make it with all of them.
32:06
Skyler: It felt like summer camp.
32:07
Eric: So how was it, though, having all of you guys who are new to this, and then Mary Lou, who has been through it multiple times?
32:17
Skyler: Yeah, i mean Mary Lou is a great resource because she was there for all of them And, my god, does she remember everything that's ever happened, ever?
32:24
Skyler: So she's your resource, literally Like questions about relationships between different characters or some of the different story lines they did in the movies before.
32:34
Skyler: Whatever it might be, she was a literal encyclopedia to go to And that was really helpful and wonderful.
32:42
Skyler: But she was just as excited as we were, i think, to sort of reinvent it and come back to these characters at a very different point than the audience has known them, and she's very playful and was on board to kind of jump in with the rest of us and sort of start something new.
33:00
Eric: So what are you planning on doing?
33:01
Eric: Or are you having a watch party?
33:04
Eric: What do you got going on tomorrow night?
33:07
Skyler: Yeah, i would probably have some family and friends come watch, and because that's always fun to do, especially my girlfriend Christina, the one with the Homer closet She's particularly excited, so hopefully we'll get to link up and watch it all together.
33:22
Skyler: But it's fun.
33:23
Skyler: It's really interesting.
33:24
Skyler: There's been a few projects that I've done that span such a wide audience And so it'll be kind of fun to watch something that my grandparents and my friends are both watching.
33:36
Skyler: I don't think I've had that overlap before, so that'll be fun.
33:40
Eric: All right, so you said this is 2008,.
33:42
Eric: Right, yeah, so what kind of fashion do you have going?
33:45
Eric: I don't remember.
33:46
Eric: I lived it, but I don't remember what I was wearing.
33:48
Eric: I remember when you're talking about the phone I had.
33:50
Eric: It was an envy.
33:51
Eric: I don't remember who made it, but that was my little slider phone where you could text and everything, and it was awesome because it had the full keyboard versus having to do the 777-666-333, just spelled everything with the old flip phone.
34:08
Eric: It actually had the keyboard, so I know about that part.
34:10
Eric: But as far as the fashion and the clothes, what were you wearing in this?
34:15
Skyler: I mean, 2008 was a world filled with low-ride, skinny jeans Now we weren't doing high-rise yet, everything was low-rise and riding boots with skinny jeans and bright colors lots of color blocking.
34:30
Skyler: So you have bright green and bright pink and orange and yellow and belts Lots of belts were happening.
34:35
Skyler: It was so funny to look at this and think, who ever dressed this way?
34:39
Skyler: And then I realized, oh, i totally dressed this way, we all did it, just you forget, and so it was kind of fun to revisit that point in time.
34:48
Skyler: And Kayla Heller, who plays Sally, my best friend in this movie she and I were laughing a ton because her character was wearing those sneaker wedges which were all the rage in 2008.
35:00
Skyler: Like, is it a high heel?
35:01
Skyler: Is it a sneaker?
35:02
Skyler: What is it?
35:03
Skyler: And just kind of funny, bringing back certain trends that we all probably tried to forget about, but getting to go back and dress up in them was nostalgic and really fun for everybody on set.
35:14
Eric: Now, were scrunchies still around in 2008?
35:17
Eric: Or were scrunchies gone by then?
35:19
Skyler: I think scrunchies have stood the test of time.
35:21
Skyler: I've got one in right now, i think scrunchies are forever.
35:24
Eric: They've come back, that's true.
35:27
Skyler: I don't know if they had quite made their resurgence.
35:29
Skyler: At that point in time.
35:30
Skyler: Lots of flowers in the hair and accessories and clips, I think, were still all the rage, But it was the teeny, tiny low-tech cell phones and blackberries.
35:41
Skyler: So if you were really fancy you had a blackberry, But that was so fun.
35:47
Eric: I guess the question now, my last one, the second last question is so how was the set of this because it was still, you know, fairly all young people a little bit, you know, in their late, late 20s, versus scream queens, which you guys were all back in your like early 20s or late teens, right For that?
36:06
Eric: So how are the sets different?
36:07
Eric: because it's all kind of seems like just I don't want to say a fraternity, sorority type thing, but it seems like if they be just a very fun, silly, crazy set.
36:19
Skyler: I mean those two sets couldn't be more different?
36:23
Skyler: I mean I think it was deceiving because there was more age variety on scream queens that people realized.
36:31
Skyler: You know, we were all playing college age and I in fact was in college while we were making that movie, so I was pretty true to the timeline.
36:39
Skyler: But you know, with this movie on Aurora most of us are either like engaged or married but, like you know, a little more low key and sort of like enjoy going out to dinner after work but like nothing crazy.
36:54
Skyler: You know, it's a little more mellow, i'd say.
36:58
Skyler: But we also had this incredible crew And this is on like any job I've ever worked on.
37:04
Skyler: This crew has all worked together literally hundreds of times making homework movies on Victoria Island and Canada And I think what's so cool about that is it's like being on tour with a band that's been together for like 20 years.
37:17
Skyler: You know they just have this synchronicity and dynamic that's so fluid and flawless because they've all worked together so much.
37:24
Skyler: And so getting to be a cast of new people working with a crew that knows each other so well really made it so easy to have such a pleasant work experience and so much fun and, you know, get to know the island and really see Canada and like take it in, and they just made the experience so special.
37:42
Skyler: It was the most unique group of people I've gotten to work with.
37:46
Skyler: It was really such a joy And I hope I get to go back and see them because I love them all.
37:51
Skyler: They were the best.
37:52
Eric: Well, we know that there will be more Aurora tea gardens that are coming out.
37:56
Eric: We got to have at least 18, right.
37:59
Skyler: At least yes, a quick 18.
38:02
Eric: Yes, Well on homework schedule.
38:04
Eric: You could have that done by well now we got the writer's strike, but otherwise I say you could have that done by the end of the year.
38:10
Eric: With how fast they shoot those movies.
38:14
Skyler: Yeah, give or take a couple of strikes.
38:16
Skyler: Our timeline might be a little off, but you know, in due time we'll be back on schedule, i'm sure.
38:22
Eric: My last question for you is just what do you get next?
38:24
Eric: What's coming up next for you?
38:27
Skyler: I have another movie coming out this summer August 3rd and 4th respectively called The Meg 2.
38:33
Skyler: It's the sequel to Jason Statham's.
38:36
Skyler: Yeah it's the sequel to the Jason Statham Big Shark movie Couldn't be more different than Aurora for sure.
38:42
Skyler: It's like on the complete opposite end of the spectrum.
38:45
Skyler: It's like big and absurd and funny and crazy and the best way And we had such a great time making that movie.
38:53
Skyler: That's such a fun group of people And it's like the perfect summer popcorn movie and like really a movie that is meant to be seen big Like the shark is big, the creatures are big, the action and the explosions are big, Like it's all just big and larger than life and so much fun.
39:11
Skyler: So I'm very excited for that to come out this summer And it's a very different type of character than I've gotten to play.
39:17
Skyler: So I think there will be some twists and turns that people will be surprised to see me in that kind of role.
39:23
Eric: Okay.
39:24
Eric: Well, all I have to say is a good thing we ended with that, because I have a shark obsession.
39:30
Eric: I am convinced that is going to be my demise.
39:33
Eric: So I have just obsessed with sharks.
39:36
Eric: And if we had started with this, that's all we would have talked about.
39:40
Eric: We wouldn't even got to Aurora Tea Garden.
39:42
Skyler: So I mean to be honest, i also my whole A, for no particular reason, had a fear of being eaten by a shark.
39:49
Eric: I heard a story once when I was eight.
39:52
Skyler: Yeah, as a very impressionable third grader I had a teacher who would tell us stories about people who got eaten by sharks.
39:57
Skyler: What the point of that story was, i have no idea, but it was certainly scarring and stayed with me And my parents were like you know, you really don't go in the ocean that often.
40:06
Skyler: It's very hard to get eaten by a shark if you are not in the ocean.
40:09
Skyler: I really don't think this is something you have to worry about.
40:11
Skyler: But lo and behold, i made this movie and I said mom and dad, i'll show you.
40:16
Skyler: It looks like that shark can be dangerous after all.
40:19
Eric: It's a very, very valid fear to have.
40:22
Eric: So mine was the very first shark we came out.
40:26
Eric: I was on vacation in Hilton Head and I was watching it, And so I was like whoa, it's all fascinated by all these sharks and doing all their attacks.
40:34
Eric: And then the next day we went and rented a wave runner, things, or you know jet skis and we're going and all of a sudden we're cruising along in these dorsal fins started coming up And I just freaked out.
40:46
Eric: They turned out to be dolphins, which were fantastic.
40:48
Eric: But from that point on I've just been convinced they're out to get me.
40:52
Eric: So it doesn't matter if it's like one in a million chance or one in two billion, I will be that one.
40:58
Skyler: So I'm afraid I don't go in the ocean.
40:59
Skyler: I try to keep my respectful distance with the sharks.
41:02
Skyler: Like you, I'm.
41:02
Skyler: Like you know what.
41:03
Skyler: I'll give you your space, You give me mine, It'll be okay.
41:06
Skyler: But I'll tell you, you know, even filming the Meg you know so much of the movie is done in post with visual effects and all of that I didn't have a sense of how big the shark was or what it looked like until we were doing some of our ADR and later edits.
41:22
Skyler: And when I saw it in scope, compared to the size of the humans in this movie, I just thought thank God I haven't encountered one of these in real life, Because if I did, I'd probably have a heart attack Like the Meg is larger than life, enormous, And I just thought I'm so happy I haven't had to see one of these in person.
41:39
Skyler: I don't think I could take that in real life.
41:43
Eric: Okay, I know we're supposed to be wrapping up, but I do have to ask.
41:45
Eric: So what is it like shooting in that kind of environment when you are essentially just like pure green screening everything?
41:50
Skyler: right, Something that was really cool about that experience was our director, ben Wheatley, who's incredible and very funny.
41:59
Skyler: He had basically animated the entire movie before anybody went to set to shoot, and so they almost looked like the Sims versions of all of us.
42:09
Skyler: You know, those kind of like rudimentary cartoons.
42:11
Skyler: But what we would do is we'd watch the animated version so we could see kind of the blocking of where we were compared to, like where the shark is in space, and it would kind of give us this visual to keep in our heads as we were literally acting with tennis balls or, you know, blue screens and that kind of thing.
42:28
Skyler: So we had this little template to go off of, which is quite funny because it's, you know, very basic animation, but it gets the point across.
42:34
Skyler: But that was how we did that.
42:36
Skyler: But seeing it come together now and the final edit of the movie, it is jaw dropping and scary because it looks so real.
42:44
Skyler: It looks even realer than I could have imagined.
42:47
Skyler: It's wild.
42:49
Eric: But I imagine that has to be a test of your acting ability, because you don't have like things really to go off of and react to.
42:56
Eric: You're having to react to what you watched there.
43:00
Skyler: Yeah, you definitely rely on your imagination, Like it's a completely different type of challenge.
43:05
Skyler: But I think sometimes it works well because, especially if it's like a surprise attack and you're not supposed to know this giant thing is coming, you really look surprised because you are completely oblivious when the shark sneaks up and, you know, snatches you up.
43:18
Skyler: So sometimes it works to your advantage.
43:22
Skyler: But it was definitely so much fun and getting to see it all put together now It's just actual movie magic seeing how they've composed that whole thing.
43:30
Skyler: It's so much fun.
43:33
Eric: Okay, all right, we're going to wrap up and I'm going to say I hope you survive the mag and you're not one of the victims.
43:40
Eric: I know you can't tell me, but I will have to watch you.
43:43
Skyler: You'll have to overcome your fear.
43:45
Eric: I will I watch every shark thing out there.
43:47
Eric: I just won't go near the water.
43:50
Eric: So I look forward to that as well.
43:52
Eric: But this Friday I am, like I say, could not be more excited.
43:56
Eric: Are you going to be live tweeting?
43:58
Skyler: I think we'll be doing live something, whether it's tweeting or on Instagram.
44:02
Skyler: we'll be, you know, tuning in, So definitely.
44:07
Eric: Okay, Well, I'm hoping it.
44:08
Eric: the Dancing Detective on there.
44:10
Eric: everyone absolutely loved it.
44:12
Eric: It went over fantastically, So I'm hoping you blow that one away event and it's a smashing success.
44:18
Skyler: Here's hoping things, eric, i appreciate it.
44:21
Eric: Thank you very much for talking with me And, once again, sydney is very disappointed.
44:26
Eric: She wasn't able to make it because she really wanted to talk to you.
44:29
Eric: She's a huge fan, so but Well, tell her.
44:31
Skyler: I hope she's having a great time in Paris on her honeymoon.
44:34
Skyler: I'm ecstatic for her.
44:35
Skyler: I think that's great.
44:37
Eric: I know it won't compare to talking to you, but she'll have to deal, so, okay, we'll have a great day.
44:42
Eric: Thank you very much.
44:44
Skyler: You too Bye.
44:45
Eric: Bye.
44:46
Eric: That was absolutely wonderful and amazing.
44:49
Eric: So you guys obviously this is the podcast you're listening can't see, but she was wearing this like scoop neck T-shirt with suspenders.
44:58
Eric: It looked absolutely adorable, super cute outfit.
45:01
Eric: But just talking to her was completely delightful.
45:04
Eric: I think she is going to nail this role.
45:08
Eric: She just has that sleuther look, that sleuther attitude.
45:12
Eric: I think I got to figure out where her grandmother lives and go hang out with her grandmother and watch some Aurora, t-guard or grandmother sounds like you know my total kind of person, so that was absolutely awesome.
45:25
Eric: And then the mag Oh, my gosh, sharks.
45:28
Eric: That is my thing.
45:29
Eric: I don't care.
45:31
Eric: I am convinced I'm going to be at some point in my life, the end of my life, eaten by a shark.
45:37
Eric: I've had this conversation with my other wife, who's completely afraid of flying, and I've told her I'm like, don't worry, it's not my fate to end by dying in a plane crash.
45:50
Eric: Don't worry about it.
45:50
Eric: She's like what if we crash into water?
45:54
Eric: I'm like, oh great, so the plane will crash, i'll survive that, and then the sharks will come get me.
45:59
Eric: She made me even more excited for this movie.
46:02
Eric: Listen to the cinematography and what they did there.
46:06
Eric: I'm really curious because one of the things that's been kind of cool about some of the movies so far this year has been the fashion right.
46:14
Eric: So in Jane Mysteries and Dancing Detectives it just had such great fashion And in this one I think the cinematography may be that hero.
46:25
Eric: So it's going to be pretty darn cool looking forward to it.
46:29
Eric: And when we talked to Madison he was talking about what a great script it was.
46:34
Eric: I was going to call her Aurora.
46:35
Eric: See, she already has just has that down.
46:39
Eric: But Skyler was just, you know, giving some little hints about how she's making the character her, and I really think she's, she's going to do it.
46:50
Eric: You know the thing I'll have to say.
46:51
Eric: I've seen a lot of messages, and some people send us messages about the same, saying nope, they're not going to watch it, just don't want to see anything new, don't want to see a RRT garden with anyone but Candace.
47:04
Eric: And what I have to say to that is you know what It's just like with your kids when they're growing up And you say, hey, try those Brussels sprouts, try that asparagus.
47:15
Eric: You may like it, you never know.
47:15
Eric: You at least have to try it.
47:18
Eric: Give this new one a shot, watch it.
47:22
Eric: If you don't like it.
47:22
Eric: Great, but at least you tried right.
47:27
Eric: And if it's not your thing, it's not your thing.
47:30
Eric: But I have a feeling, after talking to her, how you cannot just totally love what she's bringing to this character.
47:38
Eric: I don't understand, because I guess she is completely delightful And the rest of the cast looks fantastic.
47:47
Eric: I know Madison, who we talked to.
47:49
Eric: He is a wonderful actor, but he's even a better person.
47:53
Eric: He's just such a cool guy And I think the energy that they're bringing to the set is just going to make this movie fantastic.
48:01
Eric: So give it a go.
48:03
Eric: Don't say I'm not going to watch it just because Candace isn't in it.
48:08
Eric: You know, all these franchises tend to evolve.
48:11
Eric: Look at James Bond How many James Bond there have been.
48:14
Eric: Or when you look at Batman, there's been several Batman's.
48:19
Eric: You know everything, from Michael Keaton, george Clooney, christian Bale, the Twilight guy who I never remember, robert Patterson, i think, or something like that.
48:31
Eric: That's his name.
48:31
Eric: So it just it evolves And you know, give this one a chance to evolve.
48:35
Eric: You never know, you may really like it.
48:38
Eric: There you go.
48:40
Eric: That's my little soapbox.
48:41
Eric: Now I'll hop off, but, as usual, go ahead, and we'd really appreciate it if you would, if you like this podcast, if you tell a friend, it's really fun seeing it grow.
48:53
Eric: You know we've grown so much that we've gotten on the radar of the home mark lawyers.
48:57
Eric: So, you know, got to be doing something right there, or wrong, i guess, i don't know.
49:00
Eric: Whichever way you look at it, i'll view it as something right Because we're getting, you know, pretty popular And we have a lot of fun doing it.
49:07
Eric: And one of the things also I'd encourage you to do is we you know we talk about following us on Instagram, but really engage with us over there at Home Mark Mysteries and more.
49:16
Eric: And, you know, tell us what you like, tell us what you'd like us to do, tell us what you don't like, for that matter, you know, engage in the content, help us, you know, guide where we go with the show, send us DMs, comment on the post, do whatever, just, but you know, communicate.
49:31
Eric: One of the great things about Home Mark is it is a community and we love hearing from you guys And you know we've made some, you know, really good relationships with some of you who have been enjoying the podcast.
49:44
Eric: So we really really appreciate it And we really want you to engage with us because we really like it being a dialogue and, you know, communicating with everybody.
49:53
Eric: All right, that's it.
49:57
Eric: I don't think I was too transparent in how excited I am for this one tomorrow night, but it's on nine o'clock, eastern eight, central six over here on the West Coast.
50:08
Eric: Give it a go.
50:09
Eric: If you can't watch it on Friday nights, give it a record.
50:13
Eric: Also curious, go ahead and comment or DM us.
50:17
Eric: What are you thinking about all the mysteries being on Friday nights?
50:21
Eric: It's a little bit different.
50:22
Eric: You know, usually they're on Sundays and they've switched to Fridays this year And we'd love to hear what you think of it.
50:30
Eric: Ratings have been a little bit down and I'm not sure if it's a result of the Friday nights.
50:36
Eric: I'm guessing it is.
50:37
Eric: But when you look at the, the peacock replays and the whole thing, the ratings are actually fairly consistent and good.
50:46
Eric: So I guess you have to look at the totality of it.
50:48
Eric: Oh there goes my dog.
50:50
Eric: I think my dog wants me to get off.
50:52
Eric: I had a lot of fun talking to Schuyler.
50:55
Eric: I think it's going to be great, but it's time to say goodbye.
51:00
Eric: Make sure you tune in record it if you have to, but give Aurora Tea Garden a shot.
51:07
Eric: All right, everybody See you later, excited to head Sydney back for the next episode when we actually review the Aurora Tea Garden.
51:17
Eric: A new beginning, oh, exciting.
51:19
Eric: All right, take care, bye, bye.