Verity Interviews! Dakota Johnson, Anne Hathaway, Josh Hartnett, Colleen Hoover, Michael Showalter

The high water mark has been matched, so it's just unreal. And then Verity. I just want the movie to give you the same feels that the book gave you while you were reading it. Dakota, Ann, and Josh, so nice to see the three of you again. Anyone who knows me knows that this is one of my favorite novels, and the three of you absolutely nailed these characters. I think fans are literally going to be obsessed. I was chatting with Colleen about it, but I'm going to get right into it. I love the dream sequence that Loen has where she's originally picturing Jeremy. It turns into Verity and they share that kiss, which surprised me in the best way because it's not in the novel. So what do you think that says about the complicated attraction and obsession between Loen and Verity, and what did the two of you love about doing that scene? She just can't get out of her head. I think it was so encompassing of the entire story. The obsession that Loen has with Verity, her success, her life, and then the obsession that grows with Jeremy, and then how they kind of intertwine and overlap. And it was also really funny and fun to shoot because I was, what did I say the other day? Oh, I was like a revolving door. And they were just coming, she'd scoot in, she'd scoot out, he'd scoot in, he'd scoot out. And it was like, it's a miracle none of us got sick. It worked. It was a bloody kiss though, Anne. It's exactly as Dakota just described it. It was very technical. And so it was just like, kiss, now hold on, wait, pause, apply, switch, apply the blood, okay, go back in, up, pause. Dakota, we need more blood on you. And kiss her with the other side of your mouth. And then it all gets stitched together and it's movie magic. It looked incredible. The fans are going to love that. Josh, you have very different relationships with both Anne and Dakota on screen. And what was it like finding the chemistry with each of them? And what do you think that Jeremy brings out in Verity versus what Jeremy brings out in Loen? Well, I mean, obviously working with these two, it doesn't, you don't have to really prep that much. We just kind of spent time talking to each other and then suddenly we had wonderful words to work with. And Michael's a terrific director, so it just kind of, it just worked. The chemistry was naturally there. There was a goofiness and a silliness that I thought was really nice between Jeremy and Verity at the beginning. And a willingness to kind of like break the rules and stuff like that. By the time Loen comes along, it's a little bit, he's a little bit beaten down. He doesn't really have that, but she brings it back out of him over the course of it. And sort of there's a lightness that comes back into their relationship. But at the beginning, it's based in this sort of tragic space. Yeah, it was, I mean, it was just, I forget what the question was. But it was a wonderful experience. No, all three of your chemistry was incredible. In this film, obviously, Loen spends a lot of time getting inside Verity's head, literally trying to see the world through her eyes. So if the three of you could step into each other's filmographies, is there a movie of each other's that you would have loved to have been a part of? Oh, so many. So many. Yeah. I would, for you, I would choose Virgin Suicide. That's a cool one. Like, I love that movie. That is the perfect pick, Dakota. Yes. So much. Me too. And for you, I would choose, well, we talked about Prentiss Aries the other day. Obviously. Yeah. But maybe, like, Rachel Getting Married. Yeah. Rachel Getting Married. What a good, what a good call. And what about for you? As if I couldn't love you more. Well, because I don't, I wouldn't want to take your roles, but I'd want to be in there with you. Exactly. That remains the most high-water mark film experience I've ever had. And I was just very comfortable with the idea that, like, okay, I did that when I was 23 years old or 24 years old. It was a beyond mind-blowing, perfect experience. Jonathan Demme was the director. And, like, I have had amazing experiences since then. But it's totally fine that, like, nothing can match that, because just so many things. And then The Odyssey came up there. And so, like, the high-water mark has been matched. And so it's just unreal. And then Verity. As I said, I've had so many amazing experiences. Okay. You're going to laugh at this, because there's so many I could have chosen. Obviously, Oppenheimer is, like, should be the answer. But Halloween H20. Yes. All right. I really, just because, like, the revival of the franchise being there, you were acting with two of my favorite actors, Jamie Lee Curtis and Michelle Williams. And I just would have loved to have been a fly on the wall in that. In that experience. I'm so impressed with these picks. Yes, continue. And then for you, I'm trying to give you one that I haven't. No, it's really The Lost Daughter. Because, like, to just be on that team and be directed by Maggie and getting to act opposite Olivia and then just hanging out with Jesse, like, must have been the craziest in that location. Yeah. Did you guys actually film in Greece? It was the best. Yeah. I love chatting with you and Olivia for that. You guys were, like, so fun. But honestly, I would chat with the three of you all day. Like, thank you so much for your time. And I'm so excited for fans to see Verity. My dad has my OG book, and he finished it in, like, two days last week. Your dad? My dad couldn't finish it. Really? My dad and I have an agreement. He does not need to come to this premiere. Obsessed. Thank you so much for your time. And Anne, I gave you a little gift, but I gave it to your team. Thank you. So you can open it after. Hey, everyone. Thank you so much for watching my Verity interviews. I will say the camera cut before Josh Hartnett got to answer, but he personally told me that he would have absolutely loved to have been in Anne's World and in The Odyssey, which obviously I love that, because he's worked with Mr. Nolan before. And he also said for Dakota, he wanted to be in her film A Bigger Splash, one of my favorite Dakota movies. So he did answer. The cameras didn't get it. But thank you so much for watching. Now we're going to be on to the best, Colleen Hoover and director Michael Showalter. Colleen, so nice to see you. Yes, and Michael, nice to meet you. Anyone who knows me knows that Verity is one of my favorite books of all time, and you guys absolutely nailed this adaptation. So congratulations to the two of you, honestly. Thank you. Yes. Colleen, I loved your cameo in the film. Did you have a say on where you wanted your cameo to be? You know, I honestly don't remember. I think we just discussed. We were filming at the publisher's offices that day, so I think it was just a natural thing that I thought it would be fun to do there, since they're the ones who took over and published Verity. That's the real office. That's her actual publishing office. That's so incredible. They actually filmed in their buildings. Yeah, so it was. In Pantom Press, I guess, the end of the book it would be. Yeah, but it's Hachette. We call it Hachette in the movie. I saw that, you know, it's Hachette. And then, Michael, obviously you've worked with Anne before. It's incredible you've done, you know, The Idea of You, and then Verity. They're both so, so different. What was, and I love both, but I was like, what was different with working with Anne this time around? And did you have a particular favorite scene that you were just so excited to adapt? Well, you know, working with Anne the second time, we didn't know each other when we made The Idea of You, so that movie we were getting to know each other. This time we knew each other, so, you know, kind of knew each other's process and stuff. That was probably helpful. And also, in this movie, Verity is one of three characters where it's The Idea of You, so it was interesting. On The Idea of You, Anne was pretty much in every scene of the whole movie. Yes. On this movie, you know, we meet Verity and, you know, she goes away for periods of time and whatever. I mean, there were so many. I couldn't wait to shoot everything. There was just every little moment. I pictured it, I could picture it, and for me, that's the fun of it is to try to put it on, to put what I'm picturing in my mind onto the camera. So, honestly, just like everything, everything. I mean, some of the kinkier stuff was exciting to me. There's a lot of, like, very close-up, very extreme close-ups in this movie, so the biting of the headboard or things like that were moments that sort of highlighting these details was something that I looked forward to. Yes, and I loved the kinkier stuff, too. Like, one of my favorites is the dream sequence where Loewen's originally picturing Jeremy, then it turns into Verity, and they share that kiss, which is not, obviously not in the novel, but it's, like, it's so well done. What did you think of that scene, Colleen, and, like, what did you love about giving, like, a little bit more expansion for the film world of Verity versus, you know, just your novel? Oh, I was so excited to see it. Yeah. You know, I think that I come at adaptations probably not like most authors. I understand that changes need to happen. I just want the movie to give you the same feels that the book gave you while you were reading it. It doesn't have to be, you know, everything that happened in the book needs to happen in the movie or vice versa. And so just seeing that scene and how they created something else that wasn't in the book that felt like the book and could happen in the book, yeah, it was just a great, I think, compliment to what I hope readers want to see and feel. And I also love the moment. I think it's, I think Jeremy says something that, like, O'Verity used one of Crew's diapers to jot down notes and stuff. And what's one of the craziest places you've ever jotted down a note for one of your stories? That is something that I took from my own life. Like, I think the line was, like, no surface was safe because she wrote on everything. I've written on my hands, napkins that then I get wet and don't know what I've written. I think one of the craziest things is sometimes at night I'll wake up and, because I have a thought, and I'll put it in the notes app. And I used to share those because I would wake up and they wouldn't make any sense, you know. Those are my favorite, just the middle of the night notes that I wake up and it's, like, about a chicken. And I'm like, what, what was I, how was I going to do that? And it seemed like a good idea at the time. Yeah, at the time you're brilliant in the middle of the night. Yes. But in the morning you're an idiot. Well, honestly, I would chat with the two of you all day. I loved the house and, like, your gorgeous, like, shots that you did of the lake and house. That was, like, a character in and of itself, okay? Like, and very, very, like, it just added to the book. I'm so excited for fans to see Verity. It's, like, one of my favorite films of the year. So thank you guys so, so much. Thank you. You know it's one of my favorites. There was no way that this movie was not going to make my top ten, okay? Thank you guys so much. Appreciate your time.