SEATTLE — The most trying times can define relationships - and that's the basis of the new drama Our Friend.
The film is inspired by the true story of journalist Matt Teague, and his wife Nicole’s cancer diagnosis. During her two-year battle, their mutual friend Dane moved in to help the family cope.
Dakota Johnson plays Nicole, Casey Affleck plays Matt, and Jason Segel plays Dane.
Entertainment reporter Kim Holcomb talked to the cast about their roles, their own friendships, and the joys and difficulties of tackling such painful subject matter.
HOLCOMB: “I’ve had trouble crying since the pandemic hit, which I know sounds counter-intuitive. But this movie got me.”
SEGEL: "I hope it was a really good, long one that was embarrassing and your face looked just bizarre.”
HOLCOMB: “The ugliest of cries.”
SEGEL (laughing): “(I hope) the neighbors called.”
HOLCOMB: "What is it with you and making sad movies, Casey?"
AFFLECK: "I don't understand it myself. I have tried to do movies that were fun or funny and I guess no one saw them."
HOLCOMB: "I was wondering - in certain roles as an actor, you can learn new skill sets to play that character that could be applied in real life. Does that same thing happen with emotional parts?"
AFFLECK: "It's probably the only way I've learned any emotional skills. It's true, some actors they get a lot out of playing a fireman and they get to go train as a fireman or playing a chess genius and they get to go learn chess for a few months. I end up doing these movies about people dealing with tragedies and their life is in crisis, and maybe I've learned how to deal with tragedy and crisis. And that's as important a skill as any, especially right now."
HOLCOMB: "When you are dealing with something based on a true story about people who will be watching it, and also bearing the burden of this kind of pain and joy and all of these feelings, do you have to decompress after shooting a film like this? What does that look like for you?"
JOHNSON: "Especially with this movie, we all really fell in love with each other. We loved making this and it was just a beautiful time. It was a little bit like mourning the loss of the film when we finished it. But the thing I guess that was the most difficult was playing a person who was so vibrant and knowing that she's no longer alive, and that there are so many people who have lost their lives, and even especially now it's really difficult to think of the number of people experiencing immense loss."
HOLCOMB: "What is your personal definition of friendship?"
SEGEL: "The people who reach out for no reason, who just send the text or make the phone call that says, 'Hey just checking in,' has meant everything. Those little connections of, ‘I am not alone in this,’ even if I'm sitting alone, goes a really long way."
Our Friend is now playing in select theaters and streaming via Amazon Prime and Google Play.
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