This content is an interview with actress Lauren Graham discussing the experience of returning to play Lorelai Gilmore in the Netflix revival series Gilmore Girls: A Year in the Life after a significant hiatus, reflecting on the emotional journey, the creative process, and the enduring impact of the show.
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[Applause]
I'm Jessica Shaw I'm so happy to be here
with Lauren Graham I mean I was I um
anyone else watch all four in a row like
the second they drop yeah okay I was
like by Family responsibilities all four
in a row and time well spent um so
Lauren welcome thank you and just I mean
how does this feel it's done this is
like they're out people are watching
them this has been so many years in um I
mean I was lucky enough to be on set so
I saw you while you were shooting um and
you know of course the the seven seasons
of the show and then the time off and
then coming back for this and
now how does it feel first of all thank
you all so much for coming out on such a
miserable miserable night um
uh h i it's been so hard to describe how
it feels that um I wrote about it
because there's no simple answer but the
I guess the short one is it feels
amazing and and um and also we have a
candle which I do you know about the
candle I there's a candle that burns
winter spring summer fall and you smell
a different smell for each season so I'm
still wrapping my mind around doing the
show and and having that experience and
then people are sending me things about
a candle so it's it's very real I guess
shout out to the Netflix marketing
department I I I don't know did you get
one no of course
not what was your first day likee onset
for the
movies I was shaking I mean it it just
was um
uh we'd waited so long we'd been asked
this question uh for years and years um
the the deal making process was um
haphazard as they always are and so
there was kind of no time
between understanding that this was
going to happen and then the first day
of work um it was a matter of days in
fact and um so walking on to set just
felt very shaky um because I kind of
didn't know what to expect we I hadn't
been there I hadn't walked the set you
know we'd had table reads and one quick
fitting but um I hadn't been in the
house I didn't know how it was going to feel
feel
um and then and then very quickly it
normalized and it and it felt like old
times um but I like and it's it's
visiting your college campus it's seeing
a great love you haven't seen in a long
time it's it's that kind of anticipation
and then you kind of eventually relax
and when you spent so many years playing
this character who has these very strong
bonds with different people whether you
know with with her mother Emily or her
daughter Rory or Luke or you know
whoever it is how did you and by the way
thank you everyone who submitted
questions I'm going to try to get to all
of them um but shout out these questions
from you guys oh that's nice yeah not
all them my
on but it's always in something like
this where it's actors I'm always
interested in what people want to hear
about you know because we've been
talking about the sort of more General
thing and I think it's a very act it's a
very actor actory show yeah no
absolutely but when you spend all all of
that time and you build up that
relationship and you're like you know
playing scenes against these people then
you take all this time off how was it to
refine that
intimacy it's you know as any of you
know who've done a play over a period of
time and then maybe been asked to do it
again or something it's you it's just in
it's in your blood and um there are very
particular dynamics that I spent so many
years in that it's a physical uh um kind
of state you know there's a certain way
I feel when I walk into my mother's
house you know it's like you know
there's a certain kind of like what okay
I'll sit down you know there's just
things that were born out of all those
years of playing that Dynamic and of
course there's variation in it but it
takes on almost it it um it takes on its
own being you know and so that all of
that was very very
um very easy did you go back and watch
any episodes from the original series
before you started this one I uh don't
learn anything from watching
myself um and uh but in I I
did have to because I wanted in in the
book to be able to compare kind of the
experience the first time which was I
was pretty brand new in town nobody knew
season to season if we were going to be
back it sort of slowly got a a group of
you know got a following we were on a
little Network um we you know back in
those days we were shooting on film a
regular day was 16 hours um so it's a
blur a little bit and 22 Episodes a year
for seven years so I kind of like fright
you know afraid for my life went back
started and um here I have a um an old
Roku box which I don't even know how to
work so you know it wasn't like the
seamless Netflix streaming experience
and um and I kind of started going
through them more to just see if it
jogged my memory for anecdotes and you
know over the years the internet has
ranked the show you know it's you don't
need my like 10 best snack foods on
Gilmore you know but but I did want to
feel like where was I at the time and
kind of what was going on and um so so I
went through it that way by the way when
Lauren's referencing her book it's
talking as fast as I can and it's out
now so and it's amazing I've read it and
and and it's um it's about your life but
also there's a lot like for Gilmore fans
there's so much fascinating stuff in
there um that I love sorry go ahead no
go the idea I I wanted the second time
to H be more present in the experience
because I could because we were back
kind of you know by popular demand and
that's such a different experience than
starting a project you have no idea if
anyone will ever care about and and I I
was aware of all the questions I've been
asked over the years and didn't have an
answer for you know what was your
favorite scene what did you take from
set and and and so this time they always
want to know what you took from
set um as if we're all a bunch of
Thieves but believe me I took stuff from
set this time so that I'd have an answer
but purely so that I'd have an answer
nothing I took a pink tin Flamingo I was
like I've loved you for years Flamingo I
I didn't but but um so I just you know I
kept a diary also we had so many
incredible guest stars and and really
some magical things that happened the
whole thing felt really touched you know
I I did um I hope this isn't like you
know betraying some secret or whatever
but when I was on set and I got to see
you riding around on your cute little
bike that has a
Braverman little like bike license plate
now was I was like my worlds are
colliding imagine what it was like for
me um I always ride bike a bike on the
on the back Lots because you know they
provide a van for you and I I just never
I like the experience of just having a
moment to kind of be by myself and uh I
had this old bike on the show that by
the end of the show was completely
rusted trashed like I had to just like
Let It Go and then our our wrap gift on
Parenthood were these beautiful bicycles
and I considered for for again
my sanity I was like do I leave the
Braverman license plate on there I get
you know and then I did and I I I I was
biking by one day and a crew guy in
another show was like same bike and I
thought wow I've been here a long
time I was like different bike the same
character you know so um I I did want to
ask you you mentioned like what it was
like to walk on to you know the set and
seeing the sets very lovingly recreated
and and some even from from pictures and
from watching the show pictures there
were no measurements no one kept it's
not like the flats of a you know of a
theater where they they're just going to
repaint it or something they were
completely gone so they all had to be
recreated from photos right and and and
the show from the show and it would be
things that like you all had been used
to you know oh I I know I can walk this
far up to the bar or up to a table and
then oh wait there's actually like three
more feet there and you know and I know
uh it was it was jarring but I jaring um
I think most of all and something that
um you know is so moving then you see
this huge portrait of uh of Richard
Gilmore of Edward Herman and and um and
I remember sitting with you on said and
kind of with that picture right there um
and I know it was it was just you know
as much as it was you were reunited with
so many people his his absence was felt
tremendously felt tremendously he gave
me so much and he he was an actor I was
aware of from a very young age just his
presence is so specific and the way he
looks and his voice and and um he just
took such he had such love for that
character for that world and he was so
great to me and he told such great
stories and he would have loved coming
back so much um you could feel him I
mean you could feel the whether it was
him or the lack of him you could you
know he was there and then you have the
giant thing with his face on it and that
was another day where you know we walked
on and it was
just uh you know just so I mean all
these days were I'm GNA have to take
like a month in a home somewhere because
it was there was just so much you know
so much emotion around coming back and
around who was there and who wasn't
there and um so we tried to honor him I
guess as best we could well you
definitely did did you shoot this in
chronological uh with this no oh no so
one of the uh difficulties of of
everything having to come together was
we had a very limited time on the back
lot and of course that's our town and
when we started Grease the live musical
was there um and so we didn't there was
nothing and you know these are these
kinds of these ghosts that the day the
show got cancelled I had to go back to
the lot to do some ADR or something and
everything was gone like it's gone that
fast um and when we got there this time
no gazebo no nothing grease you know
they had like I don't know uh Ferris
wheels and stuff you know and then
suddenly you'd come back and it was snow
on the ground and but they had to do
them all you know you can't have snow on
the ground one day and then and then
it's springtime so we we had to shoot
the back Lop first and shoot each season
in so it was really all over the map in
terms of where we were in the story and
then kind of after that was done we went
and did all the Interiors I like the nod
at the beginning of this first episode
that everyone just saw of like wow it
feels like we hav been you know it feels
like it's been a while was that the
first scene that you that you two shot
together no um part of that sequence
part of the walking walking and talking
was but um that was uh a little a little
later but it's still I was very aware
aware
of you know very aware that this is the
first time you see this character very
aware of kind of you know I haven't seen
Rory in a long time um so it was it was
a big day anyway but how as as an actor
do you kind of I mean you talked a
little bit about you know that there
have been so many years of anticipation
like press people asking about how do
you just wipe that from your head when
when you made Gilmore years ago it was
like like you said it was on like this
you know the WB it was it was no one I
think the original plan was for to be on
Thursdays even against friends were On
th yeah for like a minute yeah and it
was uh you know and and now it's like
the planet was waiting for it you know
it's just it's a different level of does
that is that going in your head only at
the grocery store um where you know uh
people would come up to me and it was
actually really helpful um and say you
say I smell snow right and I think at
that point I'm not sure if I did and and
so I came into work and I was like I
think I have to say I smell snow you
know and but there's so many things
because all these years of people
watching it and rewatching it they know
it in a way in most ways certainly
better than than I do um but we tried to
take that in and there was one morning I
I woke up and I thought I don't know if
I'm drinking enough coffee am I drinking
enough coffee you know I have to let's
put more car like so just things so that
it felt seamless and familiar enough you
know to to to us but to the audience as
well um but really the way you get rid
of all that is kind of the moment I
turned the page because this was not
only cooking for the people who were
hoping to see it again or us it was
really cooking for our writer for our
writers and she you know she had been
thinking about it and kind
of uh hoping or you know working on it
in a way for so long and and that it
didn't feel to me thin it didn't feel
like unjustified you know to to be back
it just felt
like come all the things are so sappy
but it's true it just felt like kind of
coming home and that was this was always
such a certain kind of fit for me that
of all the things I love um and it
struck me even more this time how kind
of theatrical the show is you know it
really you could lift these scripts and
do them on stage they're they're a
little heightened and they're a little
the language is is so important so that
that just like calmed it all down do you
remember the the um your audition for
Laura Li and was was there like a
specific scene that you had to read from the
the
show uh I had to read the first scene
where um the guy mistakes
me and Rory for friends and um and I
remember and back then I was I had
mainly done a lot of half hour comedy
and um the way I'd gotten most jobs was
to kind of kind of improvise a little
around it and you know especially when
you're starting out you're auditioning
for these kind of small parts that don't
have a lot of detail or Texture and so
I'd kind of throw something in you know
and and so I went in and tried to give
my thing and she was like um could you
do it as
written and I was like okay but um you
know and and that was that was the first
day I learned I was in a very different
world because that was every word is
written every um every you know nothing
and once you give into that there's
incredible freedom and once the the more
I got to know Amy the more I just heard
I could hear what she wanted you know I
could hear what she's hearing when she's
writing it and we we have a great kind
of mind meld that way and what was
interesting to me is Parenthood was a a
much more improvisational show and there
was a relief in that I was like ah
finally I could make stuff up like I
always did and then I mean it was
written but there was more freedom but
so having done that for a while I craved
this thing I craved the the structure
again and the sort of athleticism of of
having to you know hold a longer
sentence and so it was kind of a
perfect um exper you know sort of last
10 years to have and and and just and
the Cadence I mean the like you know
you're like going all in I mean I one of
the questions was someone was wondering
about getting back to that point of like
speaking that fast and and it just you
know it's it's like um if you play the
piano or something you're not going to
play piece of jazz the way you play some
musical theater you know it because the
music tells you and and so no matter how
what you put into it it's kind of there
for you to you know be creative but you
have the the map to follow and that's
what this is too there's no I don't
necessarily have to adjust again this is
something I I felt a strong connection
to the minute I read it and um and it
tells you you know you just have to
listen there's a really beautiful moment
that I that I won't spoil cuz it's not
in the first episode I'm pretty sure
it's in the fourth I mean like I said I
watched them all in a row so they're all
sort of Blended together but uh where
Laura Li calls Emily and tells a story
about uh about her father and it's it's
one of those and I think everyone who
has seen all four when you look back on
the four movies you think this is one of
the moments of them and it is so
beautifully acted and and really and I
was wondering um if you can just talk
about that I I was I was at the table
read when you read it for the first time
and it was there wasn't a dry eye at a
table table read which are like real
depressing rooms guys like this was just
like no windows water lined up um but
yeah well the so back on the old show uh
Amy and I talked about kind of one
unique thing about the show and we did
you know page count p 11 page scenes you
just don't have that in most TV shows
and and in fact rather than finding that
um annoying I always said we should just
you know push that on push whatever this
is that makes it unique wouldn't it be
great to I don't know you know do a
crazy speech or whatever but that has
nothing to do with the
um there's something that happens in
this episode where I mess up and to me
what what she gave me was the the the
perfect Arc like the perfect answer to
this Rift between Laura Li and Emily um
but the danger of course you know is
it's like it's like killing in dress
rehearsal well the New York Times wasn't
there so um you know and that's how like
the table read felt it was those rooms
were very emotional you know and um and
then you know on the day you had have to
just be uh available you know and um do
you do a lot of takes of something like
that my Hope on that was to not do very
many takes and I have so I have a very
long speech and and it's very it's sort
of stream of Consciousness sounding the
way Amy stuff sounds but that's not how
it's written and um so I did something
I'd never done before which was I just
taped it very flat like no acting I just
taped the words in on a you know voice
thing and in the car I would just play
it because I didn't want to have to call
for line I didn't want to have to do too
many takes I just wanted to really get
there you know sometimes with an
emotional thing you kind of ramp up or
you know everybody has their own way
they kind of come at it and this I just
felt really particular or like I just
felt very
um I felt that this was the the right
way to to do it without like squeezing
it dry and and and sort of torturing it
and we
did two takes
wow but that's nothing don't be to you
know it's just because I knew you know
there's there's an e the kind of a
casualness you can get sometimes in TV
because you know they can cut because
you know you can go back because
somebody can give you the line and
they'll cut it together as if you know
so I prepared this just more the way you
would apply I guess I you're being being
modest I will say you also have like a
reputation of being like you can give
you like a like a mile long page of
dialogue and you memorize it and you're
kind of I recited poetry as a child to
company and I'm sure they hate it every
minute but um yeah I I can I can pick it
up pretty fast but again that's the good
music of it you know the the the it just
makes sense and and um but uh once she
learned that early on in the show the
pages got longer and longer and longer
she was like oh we can just give it to
them at the last minute they'll be fine
so it was a mainly a blessing but
sometimes a curse I think so much is is
um talked about the way Laura I spoke
and everything and I wanted to ask you
about the physical side of her because
there it's something that um I loved
seeing in these movies and there's
there's a scene that that always stuck
out for me from the original series
where it's it was an open um to the show
and Laura Li and Rory are doing their
morning routine of you know making
coffee and putting whatever toast in the
in the toas r and there are no words
which is so rare for this show and it's
one of the finest moments um it's such a
beautifully choreographed um moment and
and it's like laurelai in in exactly you
know just in her physical self and it's
so uniquely her um and I always love
that moment and I and and I think like
that you got some moments like that in
this also like tell us about like kind
of finding that her movement and the way
she walks and I mean you know the way
I'm slumping right now because I'm
nervous is like never never she doesn't
she doesn't sit that way everything's up
you know everything's sort of like oh
look over there oh wow I know here let's
come over here it's sort it's all sort
of like a fun kind of you know thing and
um and also she finds lots of things
funny um and you know and then I got
given some f wonderful material of like
this is in this episode right I wake up
and and have to and I don't want to give
the speech uh I know they're all blurred
okay um do I fall down in this
one do I okay um spoiler alert she falls
I know anyway she gives me great stuff
to do and you know I I kind of grew up
Idol ing like you know Lucille Ball Mary
Tyler Moore and then like Katherine
heurn so somewhere in there and I and I
you know somewhere in there is just what
I what I like and and um but definitely
part of the language part of the energy
becomes physical too and is that like
something that you kind of found was
that like a direction thing is that
the you know it's it's I think probably
why I got the part um just because it
was kind of what she saw you know what
she envisioned um I don't know I think I
think again I go back to the language
the language sort of dictated who this
person was and um and again it's very
theatrical there's some scenes in this
you'll see that are literally theatrical
there's you know that and I kept
thinking this show is like a musical
theater people could break into song and
they do and um so you know you just
bring a different kind of physicality to that
that
uh Jennifer uh asked a a real spoilery
question so uh about the four final
words without which are you know these
kind of legendary uh Amy sort of uh
don't worry we're not saying not saying
anything um had this idea for What the
how this the series would end she wasn't
on season s so this was she was going to
get her chance to do it and she told you
uh what they were without spoiling
anything can you give us
um maybe like three adjectives of how
Laura life felt after hearing them um
I'm not even going to do that I think
because I think it's a bad idea in case
um there's the internet is already
ruined all lots of things so um I I
won't necessarily talk about that but I
but I do I didn't know there were final
four words I didn't know that was the
thing um I didn't know what they were
and we just somehow never talked about
it and when she told me I
was I was surprised I guess and then
after a minute it made complete sense so
that was my reaction when when Amy told
me but to tell you what lur I thought is
a different a different story but how
many did you do multiple takes of
Laura's re reaction well I asked for she
Amy had a very specific idea of what she
wanted um and you know there something
wonderful to have the writer directing
because there's no question they know
what they want and um I asked to give
her some variations I'm sure she didn't
use them because she knew what she
wanted but just in Casa you know I
thought maybe You' get there and I don't
know you'll feel like but the whole
thing this time was much more
collaborative you know we've been
friends now for a long time when I first
started it was my first big job and it
was really fun to be able to to say
things like that once in a while you
know like oh maybe I don't let's try
this you know and and and to have that
kind of reception I'm getting the sense
you haven't watched these yet have you
no no will you not for a long time um
I'm so I'm honestly so proud of it it
was such an incredible experience that's
all I need you know and again I don't I
I think they're wonderful actors who
learn a lot by viewing themselves I've
just learned I'm not one of them and um
so I you need some time like when I went
back and watched the old episodes it's
long enough ago that I could be a little
bit objective but the experience was so
incredible it's for now it's like more
than I could have hoped for did it give
you this this like desire to like oh I
need to play this character again like I
want to go back for more episodes or
movies um there's it gave me um it was incredibly
incredibly
gratifying at this stage and I've had
such nice opportunities
I feel fairly sure I'm not I don't want
to poison any possibilities I guess but
I feel fairly sure I'll never have this
good a match again in terms of what I
love to do what this language is and and
just the aspect of putting something
kind of positive and hopeful out there
in the world I wasn't aware of that I
wouldn't have thought of that as a young
actor but now I'm it's something I'm
proud of and and kind of could wouldn't
want to do any other kind of thing MH
so yeah I mean I could do it every day
for the end of time but then you have to
consider the piece and is that good for
the piece and do you start to somebody
said to me in an interview is it gonna
be like Christmas on Walton [Music]
[Music]
Mountain younger people you don't know
what that
means The Waltons was a beloved TV show
and they'd come back and do you know
movies perhaps I guess this journalist's
opinion was perhaps beyond the point
where anybody was really I disagree
completely they were amazing but what I
love about this so I think we're not
there yet in terms of asking those
questions really um
but the this model of 90minut episodes
she wanted to do because of Sherlock and
down Abbey in those British shows that
they do two they do four they do a
Christmas special on Sherlock they went
back in time you know it's could be
there's no kind of set and on something
like Netflix there's no um you know she
got to make up the format of what you
wanted to do so it's possible but I I I
yeah I don't know when you have that
kind of role that you feel like you
connect with so strongly I mean here you
are you're you're you're you've written
a couple books um you You' wrote this uh
uh talking as fast as I can someday
someday maybe it's amazing if you
haven't read Lauren's book and and
you're your uh you optioned another
you're doing another TV thing um from
the other side of it do you have that I
mean as an actor or do you feel like oh
I need to find my next role like I'm no
you don't have no I feel extremely
fulfilled by doing this I and and I feel
like I accidentally went to writing
School between the two shows um and have
been able
to do some things on my own you know
it's an incredible thing to be part of a
team an ensemble of an acting company
and then it's kind of been this really
interesting Revelation to just be in an
office by myself with a computer and um
so I don't again it was so I feel like I
just had the greatest meal what am I
going to do now like go to McDonald's
you know like I I just you know I I
don't there's nothing I crave which is a
strange place to be because the way I
kind of feel I got anywhere was i' get
to one little place and then I'd picture
okay what's like the next how can I get
to the next you know okay I can get one
line maybe I can get five lines maybe I
could get a you know very gradual um
and I don't I don't have I don't have a
vision for what comes next for all the
actors in here um who haven't given up I
I feel like I've read over the course of
you know years like in saying that you
were at one point um a mascot yes you um
you were like SAT prep with a head yeah
you did like SAT prep you were way like
kind of like all was there a moment
where you almost gave up and then you
were like no I'm going to stick it out
I'm going to get this job a thousand a
thousand I mean every day you know um
there was a very long period of time
when I didn't work at all um I went
to I I got into a graduate program um
that was a nice sign and but there been
a lot of struggle before that then when
I got out I got a agent with a small
agency that was a nice sign but then I
didn't work for a really long time and I
kept thinking she's going to drop me you
know I'm not making any money
and I thought of giving up all I didn't
have any money you know it's all the
stuff we've all gone through and and
really it I started to get a little
indication um pretty for actors you know pretty
pretty
Lish and um and even then you know so I
was on a sitcom I I was on another one
they kept getting cancelled you know
every time you raise the bar there's a
new one to to kind of get to and I
thought I'm just going to be the person
and in fact I remember when I got this
pilot there was an article in like Time
magazine or Newsweek or something and I
and I just flipped it open and I saw my
face and I I was like oh I'm in this
magazine and it was it was an article
that was something like ever wonder why
TV is the same old boring thing every
year it's I know it's because these same
actors keep it was like it was like a
little thing about like show killers and
I know I know which which is one of you
know one reason number five million
thousand why I don't read anything ever
ever ever um because the good stuff will
find its way to you the bad stuff you
just don't need to see and that's you
know harder in today's world but um so
that was the year I got that pilot and
of Gilmore Girls and I thought it'll and
then and I write about this in the book
but then we went to upfronts and one of
the executives said o your time slot and
I was like why what's the time slot they
said 8:00 on
Thursdays which against against friends
and all these huge shows of the time we
were almost canceled you just never know
you know I I do believe
I do believe there should be enough
signs that you don't feel like you're in
a bad relationship with acting you know
like there should be enough where you
feel like the guy is calling you back
literally um because otherwise it you
start it really can take a toll and and
there are ways to be creative that you
know there's certain things that get
validated in today's world I don't know
are they really the the best parts of us
I'm I'm not sure but I I do believe cuz
I I have some I saw friends stay longer
than it was making them happy you know
so it's just stay as long as it's making
you happy another interesting uh thing
that I that I thought would be helpful
to to actors also was someone told you
um I read once that someone said don't
take the role of Laura Li because you
don't want to play a mom everybody said
don't take the role of laurelai every
peer of mine um probably agents at the
time there was a because IMDb didn't
really exist yet so that your age was
not on anything and you could lie about
it in fact Bruce fretz I lied to you
about my age Bruce is here who's an
entertainment uh writer is that the
right way to say it okay um who's a
who's a very intelligent TV writer who I
also went to 7th grade with who um used
to work for a TV Guide okay and you
tried to get my age out of me or you
tried to get me to say it meanwhile you
knew because we're in seventh grade
together and I said like can you just
please say 30ish you know so that was a
big thing at the time and everybody said
you're going to play a mom of a teenager
that's the end you'll never you know you
you can't be young and whatever ever
again and I just never I never that it
didn't occur to me like it I just
connected to it and I thought this is
fantastic and I didn't have a kind of
like Vision about you know what this was
going to do or not and then the flip
side of that was there a piece of advice
I guess that you got that actually you
listen to and you were like yeah that's
great advice I'm going to pass that
along again so much
um you know because on the other side of that
that
is we we we have our yeses and we have
our Nos and I think at times I would
take a job out of complete Panic not
because it was right you know some of
those failed sitcoms I could have told
you they were probably going to fail but
I was like that somebody wants me and a
job that pays money like I can't believe
it and I think you that's I can't
dictate what that is for anyone but I
didn't sometimes maybe I could have said
no a little bit more and and believed in
myself but you know on the other hand on
the other hand it's tough out there
so um I do want to get to some questions
because you all wrote Such amazing uh
thoughtful thoughtful questions um uh
Ashley asked was it hard not to overlap
who you were in Gilmore with who you
were in
Parenthood well yes I think because to
me when I read Parenthood again and this
right or wrong it bore no resemblance to
Laura lie to me in the tone of the show
and in the language and that was another
one where people were like are you going
to play a single mom again you know and
I and I kind of thinking of that Laura
experience I was like that doesn't
matter it's but in way and I love that
show love it and had an amazing time but
all these characters we play are to some
degree and I mean stock characters in
the best sense you're going to have your
leading lady you're going to have your
clown you're going to have your you know
and and the single mom is going to be
dealing with dating and maybe she's
going to date her daughter's teacher I
did that twice and maybe she's gonna you
know Medina some some of the and and
Jason Ritter too you know but some of
the Dynamics and the stories are just
going to be the same and I felt
frustrated at the beginning because I
was so used to playing this woman who no
matter what else was never a victim was
NE you know NE didn't she she was a
business owner she envisioned herself
you know as a real kind of she had a lot
of confidence even even though she was
vulnerable and and Sarah would frustrate
me and so I I think I started to bring
some trying to lighten it up or you know
I I um so I mean and obviously you're
using yourself it always it always
overlaps to some degree but that's that
was a little bit of that process Marley
wanted to know what characteristics do
you and lauraa Gilmore
share um I just I am very verbal I was
attracted to poetry as a child I was a
uh voracious reader and still am um even
though that's more sort of Rory's thing
you know they try to give me like a
magazine on set sometimes and I was like
why can't I read books like Rory can you
know and um so uh but generally hopeful
and um positive I think and I I love
this question from Taylor winstein said
what was your biggest pinch me this
can't be real moment you had while
show well
well
uh I I don't want to tell a story I've
told before but I this this was the
biggest one it was on the first day um I
couldn't figure out what to wear because
first days are always like you're so
tense and and it wasn't we weren't
shooting the first scene but it was
still my first day and you know I always
want her wardrobe to be fun and
interesting and exciting and I have
great people who help me do that but I
just was fussing and I didn't like the
outfit and you know and and um they
brought in like a whole rack of stuff
and was trying things and pulling things
off the thing and then finally the they
said you know we're ready so I was like
okay fine I'll just wear this blue
blouse and and I put it on it was kind
of baggy and so my um onset dresser just
kind of you know she pinned it in the
back and you're like running I got on my
bicycle and like going to set and and I
got there and there was something like
kind of bugging me in the back and I was
like hey Sasha is there like a pin here
or something and she came and she said
oh we didn't take the tag out so she
pulled the tag out and the whole day
went by you know long long day and at
the end of the day this's a woman I've
been working with the whole time on the
show and she knocks on the door and she
said I I have something I want to show
you I I kind of can't believe it and I
was like what and she hands me this
thing and it was the tag from the shirt
which is a Diane von fenberg shirt why
why am I plugging Diane V fenberg and
the shirt has a name and the shirt is
two now it's one letter spelled
differently but it's I was I I was just
like what are the odds and it's the
laurelai too too I couldn't believe it
and I I put it up you know and the whole
thing already felt kind of like magical
and surreal and I put it up on the wall
above the like sink in my dressing room
because to me it was it was so many
things but it was just a reminder like
Val you know this is a big cool thing to
get to do and and uh you know let it be
you know sometimes you just look into
some it's like a relationship like
sometimes you just wow it's all going
great I don't know you know and and that
was a big sign how was it walking away this
this
time oh it's always just a misery I mean
it's always the day is longer than they
thought it was going to be and the party
started but you can't get there and you
know i' I'd been so emotional the whole
time that I was kind of like all right
well I don't have any tears left I uh
you know to pass the hush puppies I you
know you just kind of go numb it's just
like an odd um it's hard to say goodbye
and I think as performers we we say
hello and goodbye all the time and you
make these strong connections and then
and then they're gone you know and I
mean this is a group of people I will
probably be joined with to some way in
some ways for a long time but um yeah it
was not
eventful yeah I um there was uh Shelly
asked about you and Alexis uh developing
uh chemistry both initially and and
finding it now and we talked about that
a little now and just another plug for
your book I thought it was really
interesting in the in in your book when
you talk about that you were both cast
like they didn't they wasn't like oh let
me test Lauren with like five young you
know Young no time and here's one of the
things about saying no although I was
helped in saying no I was attached to
another show and they wouldn't I I got
sent the script um but they wouldn't see
me on it because I was attached to
another show and they kept auditioning
they kept auditioning they kept
auditioning and then finally they they
decided to bring me in anyway and then I
didn't want to come in because I was
like why why am I going to go audition
for a job I can't even do and the other
show was maybe going to get cancelled
but they weren't sure and I was in here
I forget where I am I was in New York
and doing some I don't know just the
whole the way it worked out was it
wasn't until a couple of days or a week
or something before they needed to start
shooting which happened to also be my
birthday um that they were like we don't
care we'll fly her in just come you know
they didn't have anybody they they
hadn't found the you know and so that's
boy if you can ever just walk in at the
end and close be that pitcher who closes
like because you know they'd already
seen all the people they wanted to see
because there's a real thing they do
with process here you know if you like
go in first sometimes they're like
you're the most amazing person we've
ever seen however we're going to need to
see 37 other people just to be sure you
know and you can't time that either you
know but but it just happen to kind of
um work that way and Alexis was already
in Toronto we shot the pilot in Toronto
she was already there so they couldn't
read us together um so we met in Toronto
like the night before we played mother
and daughter for 75 years I know and did
did Amy like sit the two of you down
about like all right get to know each
other real
fast no I mean Alexis was 18 or 19 then
it she'd never had a speaking role in
anything she'd done a little tiny bit of
of modeling and you know she was more
discovered in a way and she always tells
the story when she came came in she was
sick you know she's very naturally sh
quiet or shy or person but she was sick
that day and she had to kind of project
a little bit more and um you know that
was sort of a a fluke um but you know we
just we con so there was no like what's
your craft and how are we going to do
this you know there was none of that
kind of thing I I could just see she was
like I don't know what this is you know
and especially can you imagine as your first
first
job and walking and talking and things
so you know and I've I've said this
before but I would just clamp us
together because if we didn't you know
if we didn't land on our Mark we're
going to do it seven more times and and
also she was lovely and we always
connected and we're really kind of Yin
and Yang you know um personality wise
but I think quite similar in in who we
are sort of inside and and so I just
clamped her to me and and um you know
and here we are and here we are well
Lauren thank you so much um this was
such a
pleasure I like all of you need if this
is like the first one you've seen like I
I have your plans for the rest of the
night like go home and watch the other
three because it's uh it's wonderful
these movies and and everything you've
done thank you so much thank you thank
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