Vacation Friends Press Conference Tidbits
Coming out this week from 20th Century Studios is the forthcoming comedy feature Vacation Friends, debuting August 27 streaming globally as a Hulu Original in the U.S. and a Star Original on Star on Disney+ in select international markets.
Directed by Clay Tarver, the film stars John Cena, Lil Rel Howery, Yvonne Orji, Meredith Hagner, Robert Wisdom, Andrew Bachelor and Lynn Whitfield. “Vacation Friends” is 20th Century Studios’ first film to have a global release on the Hulu and Disney+ streaming platforms.
In this raw and raunchy comedy, straight-laced Marcus and Emily (Howery, Orji) are befriended by wild, thrill-seeking partiers Ron and Kyla (Cena, Hagner) at a resort in Mexico. Living in the moment, the usually level-headed couple lets loose to enjoy a week of uninhibited fun and debauchery with their new “vacation friends.” Months after their walk on the wild side, Marcus and Emily are horrified when Ron and Kyla show up uninvited at their wedding, creating chaos and proving that what happens on vacation, doesn’t necessarily stay on vacation.
During a press conference with moderator Grae Drake, the cast talk about their roles and they may relate to them
So, John, let's start with you. Talk about Ron, and tell us how much you may be like him in real life.
John Cena: I think as performers, we always try to take either extensions of ourselves or possibly the opposite of our personality. Now if you see Ron and you see me, Ron's probably not gonna wear a waist coat and a half Winsor. I think the characteristics that I find in Ron is the ability to be present, the ability to be in the now, and the ability to enjoy the-the journey of life. And I think he's very emotionally connected to who he is. He's not ashamed to be who he is. And he certainly is the captain of the ship when it comes to having a good time.
Yvonne Orji: Emily is fun; not as reserved as Marcus, but she just wants things to go well. She might be a little bit of a people pleaser, which I identify with. I'm currently undoing a lot of that in therapy as we speak. She's trying to please him, her father, her mom, and have everything go off without any problems. As we know in the movie, lots of problems ensue.
Andrew Bach: Well, I would say for Gabe, the only competitive, yes. I am competitive, and I think just growning up doing sports that's what made me competitive. Gabe loves his family. He loves his sister, Emily. He's there to protect her, so that's why he doesn't like when Marcus gets involved.
Robert Wisdom: Well in reality, I'm just like that guy; I'm a stuffed shirt. I'm very full of myself. I don't like too many people. I love my son and daughter though.
Clay, what is it that you think about this movie is the most relatable, out of a million relatable things?
Clay Tarver: Well, I think we all go on vacation. You meet somebody and you get close with them for a week, maybe a little too close. And then when you return to light of day, you're like, “wait were we friends or were we not friends? How close friends were we?” You sort of have this freedom to go a little bit out of your comfort zone because you think you're never gonna see them again. This is a movie where the premise is what if you do see them again?
If you met a Ron and a Kyla, what would your real-life interaction be? What would your response be?
John Cena: I just think to take the experience in. I believe that respect is a boomerang and you get what you give. So I don't think there's anything truly disrespectful about the two of them. They just operate under a construct that doesn't necessarily adhere what we think is structural society. They're fast and loose and they really enjoy the present and that's a very rare commodity. I've met people like them in real life and had a blast. I don't know if I'd ride that wave. I don't know how far I'd go with 'em, but I certainly would enjoy their company.