Speaker 1: Hey guys, welcome to I've never said this before with
Speaker 1: me Tommy di Dario. Since starting this show, I have
Speaker 1: never had a guest on more than once until today.
Speaker 1: Because this actor means so much to so many people,
Speaker 1: and with this show Young Royals officially finished after the
Speaker 1: final season dropped a few weeks ago, I just had
Speaker 1: to have him come on so that we could celebrate
Speaker 1: an incredible run. Of course, I am referring to the
Speaker 1: brilliant actor Edvn Riding so by now hopefully you have
Speaker 1: heard my interview with the show creator Lisa and with
Speaker 1: Edvn's equally brilliant co star Omar So this just felt
Speaker 1: like the missing puzzle piece as we send off such
Speaker 1: an important show. Edvan has played Prince Wilhelm of Sweden
Speaker 1: over the last three seasons, and we have followed his
Speaker 1: journey with fellow student Simon and Erickson and all of
Speaker 1: the wild, messy, beautiful drama that they're story brings. It's
Speaker 1: one of the strongest representations of queer love in all
Speaker 1: of television, which is one of the many reasons why
Speaker 1: so many people have fallen in love with this show,
Speaker 1: and to me, that deserves a celebration so let's see
Speaker 1: if today we can get EDVN to say something that
Speaker 1: he has never said before. Edvan, my man, it is
Speaker 1: so good to see you. How you doing.
Speaker 2: I'm good, Thank you. It's good to see you too.
Speaker 1: I'm so happy that we could do this. I know
Speaker 1: you've been on a whirlwind and so much has been
Speaker 1: going on, but it's always a good time to stop
Speaker 1: and celebrate young royals.
Speaker 2: Right, yeah, of course, man, Like you said, it's been
Speaker 2: a whirlwind, but I'm happy and it's beautiful and every
Speaker 2: day I still see like the reactions to this last
Speaker 2: season and it's just nice. It just makes you realize
Speaker 2: how blessed you are to be able to be a
Speaker 2: part of this.
Speaker 1: I have to say, I've been seeing you all over
Speaker 1: the gram and in fashion spreads. I feel like you
Speaker 1: are in your fashion era. Yes, you're doing the coolest
Speaker 1: things with your style. You got the cool haircut. I mean,
Speaker 1: is this just your time to experiment with it all?
Speaker 2: I think so? Yeah. I mean I was, I dyed
Speaker 2: the hair blonde, and that like catapulted me into a
Speaker 2: lot of different stuff when it comes to fashion. You know,
Speaker 2: I've started experimenting with it. I think you saw me
Speaker 2: in Paris. I was wearing the hair with like spikes
Speaker 2: in this hole. Yeah, it's good. I think I have
Speaker 2: very very supportive people around me, which makes it like
Speaker 2: a safe space for me to be able to experiment
Speaker 2: this much. But I like it. I like it.
Speaker 1: Well, you're looking good. I like that You're having fun.
Speaker 1: It's so much fun to follow. All Right, we've got
Speaker 1: to get down to business. So I imagine this is
Speaker 1: probably one of your last interviews that is going to
Speaker 1: be talking about young royals and depth. Is that correct?
Speaker 2: Yeah? I think it is. It's crazy to think about
Speaker 2: like three or may like four years coming to an end. Yeah,
Speaker 2: it's it's actually insane.
Speaker 1: So how have you been processing that? Have you been
Speaker 1: going through a grieving phase? Has it been weird for you? Like,
Speaker 1: how has it been going?
Speaker 2: It sounds like such a cliche, but it truly has
Speaker 2: been like a roller coaster of emotions. I've been Like
Speaker 2: it was like ahead of shooting season three, I was
Speaker 2: pretty like I felt kind of sentimental and kind of
Speaker 2: like I had all these emotions about like, Okay, this
Speaker 2: is the last time I need to, you know, think
Speaker 2: about that. Da da da dah. But then like during
Speaker 2: the course of the shooting, I was pretty good at
Speaker 2: removing that from my mind while you know, being in
Speaker 2: the process, thankfully, Otherwise I don't really know how I
Speaker 2: would have been able to do this last season because then,
Speaker 2: like when we were done, I was crying my eyes
Speaker 2: out and I was so so like, not sad, it
Speaker 2: was more emotion. I was feeling so emotional that this
Speaker 2: beautiful thing that I've been so lucky to be a
Speaker 2: part of was coming to an end. But then I
Speaker 2: went straight into the next project and I haven't really
Speaker 2: been too emotional about it since until we had this
Speaker 2: fan screening here in Stockholm, because then everything just like
Speaker 2: collapsed to everything. I was crying so much, but it
Speaker 2: was beautiful. It was happy, happy, beautiful tears.
Speaker 1: I imagine being in a room full of super fans
Speaker 1: cheering you on and watching the series through their eyes
Speaker 1: through their lens must have been pretty damn special, huh.
Speaker 2: It was one of the craziest things I've ever experienced.
Speaker 2: It was so beautiful. Also, like for us, we've been
Speaker 2: wanting to have like a premiere with an audience that
Speaker 2: is not just like the cast and crew for so long,
Speaker 2: and to finally be able to get that, and to
Speaker 2: be able to do that with the fans in particularly,
Speaker 2: not just like people from the same industry, just for
Speaker 2: real fans flown in from all across the globe there
Speaker 2: to show their love and to be able to like
Speaker 2: show the final chapter with them and with the cast
Speaker 2: and crew as well. It was monumental. Honestly, it's it's
Speaker 2: we were all We were so emotional when we got backstage.
Speaker 2: It was actually it was beautiful.
Speaker 1: Did you have to take a minute backstage to collect
Speaker 1: yourself after that?
Speaker 2: Yeah, definitely. I had to like collect my mind and
Speaker 2: hug everybody to just like try to get through the night. Yeah,
Speaker 2: it was. It was a special moment. I won't forget it.
Speaker 1: Well, it was a special moment for so many people too, because,
Speaker 1: as you know, with this character is so important to
Speaker 1: so many people who have watched and followed this show.
Speaker 1: For you, over all the years playing Willhem, what has
Speaker 1: been the best part experiencing life in his shoes?
Speaker 2: It's hard to answer, is in a way we've grown
Speaker 2: into the same person, me and this character, Like we're
Speaker 2: so connected in so many ways. But for me, I
Speaker 2: think it's more of like what the process is meant
Speaker 2: for me? Like I've learned so much professionally as an actor,
Speaker 2: but also privately, like on a personal level, I've met
Speaker 2: so many amazing people, and I've grown up during the
Speaker 2: course of this show, and it's taught me so much
Speaker 2: about like who I am as an actor and as
Speaker 2: a person. I mean that goes for the character as well,
Speaker 2: like him developing. I've learned some stuff about myself as well,
Speaker 2: but that goes for like almost every character I play.
Speaker 2: It's more of like it's almost like you sacrifice something
Speaker 2: when you go into the character, and then you come
Speaker 2: out on the other end, and you've like double your money,
Speaker 2: do you know what I mean? Hopefully, I mean that's
Speaker 2: the goal at least, but I really feel like I've
Speaker 2: done that with this, with this show and this characters
Speaker 2: such a like important chapter in my life. I probably
Speaker 2: will never forget it until I die.
Speaker 1: Yeah. Well, especially because, like you said, you went into
Speaker 1: the series as a boy, right, and then you're leaving
Speaker 1: it as an adult, as a man, so to speak.
Speaker 1: So I imagine throughout all those years there were kind
Speaker 1: of lines that were blurred between is this the character?
Speaker 1: Is this me? Is it both of us?
Speaker 2: Like?
Speaker 1: Who am I? Through this character, right.
Speaker 2: Yeah, Yeah, it's been crazy. I've had a couple of
Speaker 2: these moments. Like it's been like during the course of
Speaker 2: these three years with everything that's been going on like
Speaker 2: around the show, with our audience and us like traveling
Speaker 2: around the world to meet these people, and I've had
Speaker 2: like moments where I'm just like stopping and being like, whoa,
Speaker 2: this is exactly what Wilhelm is experiencing. Like it's been
Speaker 2: so like meta in my head. But it's a blessing
Speaker 2: too to be able to Not everybody gets to experience that,
Speaker 2: So it's been very helpful.
Speaker 1: Is it true that at the beginning of this season
Speaker 1: you wrote a letter to your future self as the character?
Speaker 1: Did you do something like that?
Speaker 2: Yeah, it's a pretty important like plot point. During this
Speaker 2: last season, they have what they call like a future
Speaker 2: week at the school. So and I did this too,
Speaker 2: Like when I started high school. It's a pretty common
Speaker 2: thing here. Didn't you write a letter to your future self?
Speaker 2: That a letter that you will read like when you graduate.
Speaker 2: And Lisa asked us all to or she asked all
Speaker 2: of us who play like first year students to write
Speaker 2: a letter to our future selfs for like the character,
Speaker 2: So so I did that. I spent some I spent
Speaker 2: like an hour or two trying to come up with that,
Speaker 2: but it was it was nice. I found that letter
Speaker 2: like a week ago or something, I think, and it
Speaker 2: threw me back to when I read my own, like
Speaker 2: my private letter, because you know, when I started high school,
Speaker 2: none of this Young Royals thing was ever like I
Speaker 2: had no idea would ever come or that it existed
Speaker 2: or anything. And then when I graduated, we had done
Speaker 2: two seasons, so I got like thrown back. It was
Speaker 2: another one of those like meta moments.
Speaker 1: Do you remember, what's something you put in your own
Speaker 1: letter as Edvin and then in the letter as your character.
Speaker 2: I wrote like, I hope you made it through, like
Speaker 2: in regards to I hope you didn't quit because of work,
Speaker 2: like I hope you made it through high school. And
Speaker 2: it just made me think about how difficult it was
Speaker 2: to like balance school and work at the same time.
Speaker 2: But also like, I hope you're still doing this. I
Speaker 2: hope you're still like acting and telling stories to move people.
Speaker 2: That hit pretty hard. And for Wilhelm, I remember, I
Speaker 2: think I am going to post this full letter in
Speaker 2: a while. I don't know if I'm gonna if I'm
Speaker 2: like ready to do it yet, but maybe in a
Speaker 2: week or so or two. But I remember one thing
Speaker 2: I wrote there. It's about Wilhelm's relationship to his mother
Speaker 2: and his parents, about how he hopes that they're actually
Speaker 2: at a place where they can understand each other and
Speaker 2: where they feel like a deeper connection than what they
Speaker 2: do now, and he hopes that like she's actually his mother,
Speaker 2: that that's what he feels first and foremost, not just
Speaker 2: that she's his boss. And spoiler alert for those who
Speaker 2: haven't seen the last episode yet, but they actually end
Speaker 2: on a very happy note. Villain and his parents, they
Speaker 2: end on a note that is like, okay, his mother
Speaker 2: and his father understands really's decision to abdicate and to
Speaker 2: choose to be like free. It's very beautiful the way
Speaker 2: that that line is like connected in the end.
Speaker 1: Man, if I found both letters, once to myself and
Speaker 1: once its someone I was playing, I would be a
Speaker 1: mess like that. That what an emotional experience to see
Speaker 1: those and read those again.
Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, yeah, definitely.
Speaker 1: That's really really cool. Thank you for sharing that. Is
Speaker 1: there anything when you think back on your time on
Speaker 1: the show, in any of the different seasons that you
Speaker 1: look at and say, man, that was a challenge for
Speaker 1: me and I did it like I did it and
Speaker 1: I'm proud of that moment.
Speaker 2: Well, I mean each season has been challenging in its
Speaker 2: own way. I think Season one was very much in
Speaker 2: the beginning was very much like me being pretty scared
Speaker 2: and lost and trying to navigate through playing my first
Speaker 2: lead character and all of that, and then moved on
Speaker 2: into like working double I was shooting another TV series
Speaker 2: at the time and going to school, so like trying
Speaker 2: to stay like somewhat balanced through that was that was
Speaker 2: pretty hard. And I remember when we wrapped that first season,
Speaker 2: I was I was feeling very emotional because of that,
Speaker 2: Like Okay, I managed, I pulled through like it was possible.
Speaker 2: And season two was pretty challenging in a way where
Speaker 2: it was I was feeling a lot of pressure. It
Speaker 2: was from myself essentially, because I was like imagining all
Speaker 2: of the expectations that we had from our audience, and
Speaker 2: that came with a lot of like, yeah, I will
Speaker 2: performance anxiety or like I was feeling very like pressured,
Speaker 2: not by anybody else, by myself, I think. But that
Speaker 2: was a challenge too. And this last season was it
Speaker 2: was probably the easiest to shoot because everybody was so
Speaker 2: focused on just like enjoying it, enjoying that it was
Speaker 2: the last time we would ever get to do this.
Speaker 2: But it had its challenges too with shooting double again
Speaker 2: and all of that. But I'd say like, as a whole,
Speaker 2: doing this show with everything that's happened in my life
Speaker 2: at the same time has been I feel proud of
Speaker 2: myself for making it. It was also like it's hard
Speaker 2: to describe because it was easy in a way too,
Speaker 2: because I had so great, so many great people around me,
Speaker 2: and it was such a happy and creative environment so
Speaker 2: that you you were able to have fun every day.
Speaker 2: That's probably the most important thing.
Speaker 1: It seems like a really familiar and family like environment
Speaker 1: on set, which is always nice to see as a
Speaker 1: viewer of a show, and you feel that through the screen.
Speaker 1: I think that just makes the experience all the more better.
Speaker 1: The last season now we're going to get into some
Speaker 1: very specific spoilers, so I'm sure by the time this
Speaker 1: episode is out, everyone has seen it. So and if
Speaker 1: you haven't, then what's wrong with you? Go watch it exactly,
Speaker 1: turn off, go watch it exactly. So that final scene,
Speaker 1: is that what you expected? Did you expect the series
Speaker 1: to end how it did?
Speaker 2: I didn't know, Like I was in a way, yeah,
Speaker 2: this is going to sound so like weird, but in
Speaker 2: a way, yes, that's what I expected, because it was
Speaker 2: like to me, like I fell through Wilhem that it
Speaker 2: was like written in the star, you know what I mean,
Speaker 2: Like for him there was no other option than leaving
Speaker 2: the royal family or like leaving that part of his
Speaker 2: life to be able to be with Semou, because that's
Speaker 2: the most sustainable way for him to live his life.
Speaker 2: But I did wonder a few times what Lisa was
Speaker 2: going to come up with for the last scene and
Speaker 2: for the ending, But I'm happy it turned out the
Speaker 2: way it did.
Speaker 1: So there was never a moment you thought, oh, they
Speaker 1: might not be end game.
Speaker 2: I got admit when I was reading the scripts for
Speaker 2: the first time and reading like the end of episode
Speaker 2: five and all that, I was like, oh, how are
Speaker 2: we gonna make this work? How we're going to get
Speaker 2: back from this? But I think somewhere inside myself I
Speaker 2: always knew that that they were endgames.
Speaker 1: Where do you think they went after that final scene?
Speaker 2: I remember we talked about this. I don't know if
Speaker 2: like on set or if it was like before shooting,
Speaker 2: even like in a meeting or something, but I remember
Speaker 2: us talking about them driving until the car ran out
Speaker 2: of gas, like them just driving south to like Denmark,
Speaker 2: maybe into Germany. I don't know. They just kept driving, probably,
Speaker 2: And I'm pretty happy with like not knowing what happens
Speaker 2: next for them. I feel like I'm like very comfortable
Speaker 2: with letting them go and do their own thing.
Speaker 1: It's such a romantic moment, and it's there's something so
Speaker 1: to me, you know, sexy and comforting and in just
Speaker 1: letting people live and experience life on their own terms.
Speaker 1: And I just I don't know, it's just it's beautifully romantic.
Speaker 1: Are you a romantic person? Are you like going through
Speaker 1: all these motions and saying, oh my god, I love
Speaker 1: this so much I feel it, or you're kind of
Speaker 1: not so much.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I'm a pretty I'm a pretty romantic person.
Speaker 1: Yeah.
Speaker 2: I love accordy ending, I do, but.
Speaker 1: Very import beautiful and important to be.
Speaker 2: Poor like a negative way. I made it in like
Speaker 2: this like super cute, like being sixteen being in love
Speaker 2: that kind of passionate love.
Speaker 1: Yeah. Yeah, passionate. I love that so much. What do
Speaker 1: you see your character doing in his now non royal life, Like,
Speaker 1: did you ever think about that in letting him go?
Speaker 1: Is that something that crossed your mind?
Speaker 2: Not really, Like I I've I've always felt like what
Speaker 2: needs to be told about Wilhelm is what we're telling
Speaker 2: during these like three seasons. So I've never felt like
Speaker 2: that acute need to determine, like what happens next, what
Speaker 2: happens after they leave hillis gay? But I mean I
Speaker 2: can imagine, like I remember doing like the when I
Speaker 2: when I was doing my prep for this character ahead
Speaker 2: of season one, I was writing down like his his
Speaker 2: dreams and goals in life, and it was kind of
Speaker 2: sad because I realized, like he's not allowed to live
Speaker 2: out these dreams and he's never allowed to let them
Speaker 2: be anything more than just like interests. But there was
Speaker 2: a lot of like him being pretty like interested in
Speaker 2: fashion and those creative kind of stuff. Like we know
Speaker 2: he's always been like kind of interested in like music,
Speaker 2: Not that's what he does probably, but like he's he's
Speaker 2: been a creative person. You've seen like little hints of
Speaker 2: that throughout these these seasons, and I think that's maybe
Speaker 2: the path that he I hope that's the path he
Speaker 2: continues down on.
Speaker 1: That's really cool that you kind of are able to
Speaker 1: let him go and let him to feel satisfied with
Speaker 1: what was written in the script all the different seasons.
Speaker 1: You know, it's not like you left the series being like,
Speaker 1: oh man, I felt like we didn't get to explore.
Speaker 2: X, Y and Z exactly. But that's that's thanks to
Speaker 2: like Liza being so like certain with the three seasons
Speaker 2: and that's the way we're supposed to tell the story.
Speaker 2: And then it's thanks to us being able to do
Speaker 2: three seasons, and that's thanks to the fans and their support,
Speaker 2: and it's just, yeah, it's it's not everybody gets to
Speaker 2: experience that, So I'm very grateful for that.
Speaker 1: Speaking of Lisa and the team that created the show
Speaker 1: and wrote the show, there are so many powerful moments
Speaker 1: throughout this series that has stayed with me, has stayed
Speaker 1: with fans, and will stay with fans for quite a
Speaker 1: long time. For you, is there a scene specifically that
Speaker 1: really impacted you that you kind of were going through
Speaker 1: as Edvin and it just affected you in such a
Speaker 1: strong way, and maybe you still think about sometimes a
Speaker 1: conflict or a love scene or anything. Was there something
Speaker 1: that really impacted you?
Speaker 2: Well, one answer is the lake scene in episode six
Speaker 2: of the third season. It's very it's very beautiful, and
Speaker 2: it was such a like free space for us too
Speaker 2: as actors to do that, and it was just like
Speaker 2: saying everything we haven't gotten to say yet as the
Speaker 2: characters to each other as v and similar and that
Speaker 2: was really beautiful. But I gotta say, like the whole
Speaker 2: storyline between Wilhelm and August like throughout the seasons has
Speaker 2: been pretty I think those scenes are very powerful, partly
Speaker 2: because Mauth is a very talented actor, but also because
Speaker 2: of like like I enjoy working with him, but also
Speaker 2: because of like those characters, like what they come from,
Speaker 2: the relationship they have when we see them for the
Speaker 2: first time in season one, like with them like competing
Speaker 2: against each other for the attention of Rich and they're
Speaker 2: different views on the whole family and traditions and history
Speaker 2: and all of that, and monarchy and the way that
Speaker 2: their storyline has like developed through the seasons and where
Speaker 2: it ends. I think that's really strong. I think those
Speaker 2: those kinds of things where it's like it's family and
Speaker 2: it's really uncomfortable conversations, but they managed to solve it.
Speaker 2: That's that's yeah, that's powerful for me.
Speaker 1: I know for certainty through talking to you throughout the
Speaker 1: years and through today and through seeing your face and
Speaker 1: how proud you seem and just reflective on everything, that
Speaker 1: you're really gonna miss this experience. And oh yeah, that
Speaker 1: must be such a great feeling to have. So what
Speaker 1: will you miss the most?
Speaker 2: Well, first of all, you're so right, it's I am
Speaker 2: going to miss this experience so much. Like I feel
Speaker 2: so privileged to have been able to work with so
Speaker 2: many like young, talented, ambitious people and having periods of
Speaker 2: each year where I get to spend almost every day
Speaker 2: with them and work with them and be creative with
Speaker 2: them and learn so much. I wouldn't be surprised if
Speaker 2: that doesn't come around again. And I hope I've made
Speaker 2: as much as I can out of this time and
Speaker 2: learn as much as I can from these people. A
Speaker 2: lot of these people are like some of the closest
Speaker 2: people to me, and I learned so much from them
Speaker 2: every day. And we are going to work together again,
Speaker 2: some of us, but not like everybody at the same time.
Speaker 2: And that's pretty it's it's you get kind of sentimental
Speaker 2: when you think about it. But it's been a privilege
Speaker 2: to surround myself with these people. I think that's what
Speaker 2: I'm gonna miss the most.
Speaker 1: And speaking of working together, I had Omar on my
Speaker 1: show and he teased that the two of you are
Speaker 1: cooking up something, that you're working something, and he didn't
Speaker 1: say much more. Is there anything else that you can
Speaker 1: share about what the two of you might be up to?
Speaker 2: It's so exciting that we've been like starting to tease
Speaker 2: this thing. I don't know, No, I wouldn't say it's
Speaker 2: too much more. It's it's it's a project that we've
Speaker 2: both been been working on for like more than a
Speaker 2: year now, and we're very excited. It's been it's been
Speaker 2: a fun process throughout the whole thing, and we're very
Speaker 2: excited to tell the world what it is.
Speaker 1: When might that be happening?
Speaker 2: I wouldn't dare say, but I people won't have to wait.
Speaker 1: Too long, fair enough? And I presume it's not related
Speaker 1: to Young Royals.
Speaker 2: No, unfortunately, not Young Royals. Is it's a closed chapter,
Speaker 2: but it's supposed to be that way.
Speaker 1: I think, Okay, all right, Well we look forward to that.
Speaker 1: I think we're we're eagerly awaiting, So I can't wait
Speaker 1: to see. Although I do have a guess, but I'm
Speaker 1: not going to give it.
Speaker 2: Okay, no, don't do that because I won't be able
Speaker 2: to hold my face.
Speaker 1: Okay, fair enough, I will not guess. But that's awesome
Speaker 1: and it gives people something to look forward to. But
Speaker 1: let's play for a minute. So it's not Young Royals related,
Speaker 1: but let's say there was a spin off down the line.
Speaker 1: What would you want to see happen in that.
Speaker 2: Personally, I would want to see something that has nothing
Speaker 2: to do with realm. But that's just because I feel
Speaker 2: like his story is done. If I have to answer something,
Speaker 2: maybe it's a prequel of the early years of the Queen, You're.
Speaker 1: Like, with a different actor and character, totally different. Yeah,
Speaker 1: that's funny. That's cool, and you know what, you never know,
Speaker 1: there could be something there. But what's so cool is
Speaker 1: I I've talked to Lisa as well, and she really
Speaker 1: hopes to work with all of you all again in
Speaker 1: some different capacity. And again that just shows me what
Speaker 1: a beautiful experience this was. So I can't wait to
Speaker 1: see if something there might happen down the line as well.
Speaker 2: I hope so, I hope so that that would be
Speaker 2: a dream.
Speaker 1: So it seems like three seasons beautiful ending. It's told
Speaker 1: the story that needed and was intended to be told.
Speaker 1: Would you have done more seasons or you feel like
Speaker 1: it was kind of the perfect time in your life
Speaker 1: to wrap up this role.
Speaker 2: No, I think like for various reasons, Like partially because
Speaker 2: I trust Lisa when she says, like, three seasons is enough.
Speaker 2: Three seasons is what it's supposed to be. I trust that.
Speaker 2: I also feel like within myself that I have no
Speaker 2: need to say anything more about this character. But also,
Speaker 2: as you say, like, I think I'm in a stage
Speaker 2: in my life right now where I'm ready to take
Speaker 2: on other projects and play other characters and do different things.
Speaker 2: That's what I'm focusing on now.
Speaker 1: And I think it's always good to go out on
Speaker 1: a high where you leave people wanting more, right, And yeah,
Speaker 1: you feel like, oh man, if we had one more season, Yeah,
Speaker 1: be so excited because that shows that you all have
Speaker 1: done the job that you were meant.
Speaker 2: To do exactly. And it's the beautiful thing is that
Speaker 2: we have an audience that will continue to tell the
Speaker 2: story and it's like in their hands. Now it's their
Speaker 2: imagination that can run freely. I've already seen some like
Speaker 2: I don't know if some of them. I think some
Speaker 2: of them are like jokingly written, but it's fun to read,
Speaker 2: like what happens next, what happens in the future for
Speaker 2: these characters.
Speaker 1: Yeah, there's so much fan fiction out there, so you
Speaker 1: do check some of it out.
Speaker 2: I do, I do. I try not to. I don't
Speaker 2: think it's good for me to like stay invested in that,
Speaker 2: but it's fun to read.
Speaker 1: Yeah, the number one fan question I've seen about you
Speaker 1: that people are dying to know when your character removed
Speaker 1: the nail polish, right, did that represent to you?
Speaker 2: Well? I remember when we shot that scene. I think
Speaker 2: that nail polish was a really beautiful plot point. But
Speaker 2: in the end, I think he removes it because he's
Speaker 2: very very This is like a point in the show
Speaker 2: and in his life where he's very affected by the
Speaker 2: news about his brother and his like confusion and was
Speaker 2: his brother going to approve of him the way he
Speaker 2: is and all of that, And I think that gets
Speaker 2: to him in that moment, so he doesn't dare to
Speaker 2: like show his love for Semon that publicly in that way,
Speaker 2: because he's like very affected by not only by like
Speaker 2: his brother and all of that, it's more like him
Speaker 2: being affected by the traditions and the expectations from like
Speaker 2: the royal family and the history that he comes from,
Speaker 2: which has been such an important part of his story
Speaker 2: throughout these seasons. And this is like a moment where
Speaker 2: he feels very low, I think, but it's also like
Speaker 2: necessary because it guides him towards the decision that he
Speaker 2: ultimately makes, where he chooses to let go of these
Speaker 2: expectations in this history to actually be free and to
Speaker 2: be with Simon. Yeah, but it's a strong scene, Like
Speaker 2: it doesn't happen that much, but it's it hits hard
Speaker 2: and I've noticed.
Speaker 1: Yeah, yeah, it's a scene that ically talked about quite
Speaker 1: a bit. And again, it's got such a powerful and
Speaker 1: beautiful message. So it's pretty cool that you got to
Speaker 1: be a part of that. The other thing I keep
Speaker 1: seeing a lot of fans wondering is if there's any
Speaker 1: way you would dub the show in English, right, like
Speaker 1: we want like why aren't they doing it? Like has
Speaker 1: that ever been a conversation?
Speaker 2: Uh? Yeah, no, we we dubbed season one and sorry,
Speaker 2: I dubbed season one and two in in English. I
Speaker 2: did the English version as well, but for this third season,
Speaker 2: I was at a point in my life where I
Speaker 2: had shot four different projects in a row and I
Speaker 2: was feeling very, very tired and needed some rest. And
Speaker 2: we tried to make it work. We tried to like
Speaker 2: push the the deadline for the for the English dubbing,
Speaker 2: but we couldn't make it work, unfortunately. But I think
Speaker 2: I haven't watched the English version actually, but from what
Speaker 2: I've heard, I think the guy did a did a good.
Speaker 1: Job, you know what, yes, uh huh. But but I think,
Speaker 1: you know, the fandom would have enjoyed you. So who
Speaker 1: knows that in the future there'll be another version.
Speaker 2: I mean maybe, like throughout the years, as I meet
Speaker 2: the as I continue to meet the audience, if they
Speaker 2: can ask me to like say these lines in English,
Speaker 2: I can say a couple of them at a time,
Speaker 2: and then eventually they'll have the full.
Speaker 1: We'll just keep piecing them all together exactly exactly. That's incredible.
Speaker 1: That would make one really fun TikTok.
Speaker 2: I'm just yeah.
Speaker 1: Also, you see me like aging throughout You're like ninety
Speaker 1: years old saying that last line of season three.
Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, you really over me.
Speaker 1: You know what, I'm gonna be in charge of spearheading
Speaker 1: that project. So perfect, let's go, let's go. Can you
Speaker 1: strike me as someone who can be a very off
Speaker 1: the cuff person improving? Like, do you enjoy doing improv?
Speaker 1: Was there a lot of improv in season three?
Speaker 2: Uh? Yeah, there was quite a bit. I enjoy it,
Speaker 2: and like I enjoyed being in the moment and doing it.
Speaker 2: I enjoy like having the opportunity and being in that
Speaker 2: mindset where I'm like so connected to the character into
Speaker 2: the story and there's like an environment between me and
Speaker 2: the other actor where we can just like bounce off
Speaker 2: of each other. That's like the best thing, honestly, and
Speaker 2: we got to do that a few times this season.
Speaker 2: There are a few moments that are improvised that are
Speaker 2: really beautiful, and that's a huge thanks to the to
Speaker 2: our directors who makes that possible for us, because it
Speaker 2: takes a pretty good director to create that environment.
Speaker 1: Was anything in the final scene improvised because it felt
Speaker 1: like it was or was that just you guys being
Speaker 1: so authentic in the given text and dialogue?
Speaker 2: Now I think that scene is pretty much as it
Speaker 2: was written, but the lake scene that comes a few
Speaker 2: minutes before that's that's a lot of that is improvised. Yeah,
Speaker 2: and that's huge thanks to Linear Roxam, who directed that episode,
Speaker 2: because she she prepped us really good. And that was
Speaker 2: like our last shooting day too, so we were all
Speaker 2: we were already kind of like emotional, and she was like,
Speaker 2: this is your chance to say everything you haven't said yet,
Speaker 2: like make connections, make like do little like parallels, do
Speaker 2: whatever you want, stay true to each other and to
Speaker 2: your characters, and we'll see what happens. And it was
Speaker 2: like two or three like eight minute takes. I think
Speaker 2: that we did.
Speaker 1: You guys worked so much and you were in so
Speaker 1: many scenes throughout all three seasons of the show. I
Speaker 1: imagine it is hard to remember exactly what you did. When.
Speaker 1: Have you gone back and watched the whole series or
Speaker 1: not yet?
Speaker 2: Yeah? I have. I've watched the first two episodes a
Speaker 2: couple of times. I think I've watched season episode three
Speaker 2: at least once, and I think I've watched episode five
Speaker 2: like three times, maybe because that's a brilliant episode. But
Speaker 2: see episode six, the last episode I've actually only watched
Speaker 2: it twice. The first time I watched it, it wasn't
Speaker 2: done yet, it wasn't like fully graded or sounded it.
Speaker 2: So like the first time I saw it like in
Speaker 2: its final form, was was at that screening here in
Speaker 2: Stockholm with the fans. So that made me like even
Speaker 2: more special because it felt like we were on the
Speaker 2: same level almost like I knew what was going to happen,
Speaker 2: but but I didn't know like how it would feel
Speaker 2: to watch it.
Speaker 1: So it's not weird for you to watch watch yourself
Speaker 1: back like you you can get through it, yeah.
Speaker 2: I can, but it's it's always like it's always a
Speaker 2: hassle to go through because you you analyze yourself like
Speaker 2: no other human being can. I think about like the
Speaker 2: way I'm moving my eyebrows or like the tiniest little
Speaker 2: like muscle contractions, or like the length of different like looks.
Speaker 2: It's yeah, it's it's horrible, but I think it's a
Speaker 2: necessary part of being an actor too, to be able
Speaker 2: to watch yourself and to learn from that. And uh,
Speaker 2: it depends on what kind of setting it is, too,
Speaker 2: Like at that screening with the fans, it was a
Speaker 2: lot of I was just trying to like enjoy that
Speaker 2: moment and and taken the the aura in the room.
Speaker 1: I think for me it would be pretty funny and
Speaker 1: kind of weird to see myself making out so much
Speaker 1: on a big screen. Like was that something you had
Speaker 1: to get used to?
Speaker 2: But yeah, I've gotten pretty used to it. I know
Speaker 2: now that it's it's uh, it's what it is, And
Speaker 2: I remember what it felt like like you always like
Speaker 2: you when you're shooting those kinds of scenes. It's it's
Speaker 2: always very uh, it's so like staccato. Oftentimes it's so choreographed,
Speaker 2: and it's it's so like like you don't, you don't.
Speaker 2: I don't get too uncomfortable watching those.
Speaker 1: Is there something from set that you took that nobody knows?
Speaker 2: I don't know. This is such a burning question. Everybody
Speaker 2: wants to know this.
Speaker 1: Everybody.
Speaker 2: Let me think what I have. Actually, I have two
Speaker 2: snow globes. I have the broken one that's the one
Speaker 2: that I threw in the trash, and then I have
Speaker 2: a whole one that's not broken that I got as
Speaker 2: a rap gift. And then I have the Hilish cassuit.
Speaker 2: I have like little artifacts from like different kinds of
Speaker 2: props like I have a Hilish coffee mug and I
Speaker 2: have you know, those kinds of things. And actually some
Speaker 2: clothes from other characters as well. I won't say who,
Speaker 2: but they had like an outlet sale of every character's wardrobe,
Speaker 2: and I remember like looking through the other actors' wardrobes
Speaker 2: and I was like, huh, maybe this could work for me.
Speaker 2: It just snatched it.
Speaker 1: Well, if we see you walking around town in these outfits, well,
Speaker 1: now you.
Speaker 2: Know what, one day it's gonna happen. It's gonna happen.
Speaker 1: That's amazing. And then you are so accomplished. You've done
Speaker 1: so much in your career already. It feels like you're
Speaker 1: always working and you deserve all the success that has
Speaker 1: come your way. What do you hope to accomplished in
Speaker 1: the future, Like, do you have any burning desires and
Speaker 1: goals that you haven't mentioned yet?
Speaker 2: I've said this before. Sorry, it's like the opposite of
Speaker 2: your podcast title. What I have said before is that
Speaker 2: I want to do this for like so long, and
Speaker 2: I want to do this until I'm like ninety, and
Speaker 2: like that includes me working like overseas and working in
Speaker 2: other countries and Essentially, what it comes down to is
Speaker 2: I want to tell stories that move people, and I
Speaker 2: want to work with talented people. And I've been privileged
Speaker 2: enough to be able to work with some of these
Speaker 2: people now, especially during this last year. And what I
Speaker 2: hope is like short term is to work with these
Speaker 2: people again, and long term is to just like continue
Speaker 2: to evolve and do loads of other characters and different characters.
Speaker 2: I want to I want to like show my register,
Speaker 2: I want to play characters. People should look at my
Speaker 2: project and be like, huh, that's an interesting choice. That's
Speaker 2: that's what I want to accomplish.
Speaker 1: Well, I have no doubt you will, I believe. Last
Speaker 1: time we spoke, I referenced the BuzzFeed article that compared
Speaker 1: you to a Meryl Streep, and you will have a
Speaker 1: career much like her. So I think you're on the
Speaker 1: right track, my friend.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I hope, So, I hope so. Yeah.
Speaker 1: And you lead your life with gratitude, And that's another
Speaker 1: thing I really enjoy about you. I've spoken to hundreds
Speaker 1: and at this point probably thousands of people in my career,
Speaker 1: but you always strike me as someone who truly is
Speaker 1: grateful for everything that's come your way. And the work
Speaker 1: that you've done. And I really think that's a beautiful
Speaker 1: message to put out among many other messages like the
Speaker 1: importance of your mental health. And you've been so open
Speaker 1: and honest about that, And in fact, prior to us
Speaker 1: hopping on this, you said out, I have my therapy
Speaker 1: appointment for an hour and can't talk to you after.
Speaker 1: And you're so in touch with that side of who
Speaker 1: you are. For anybody listening today who might be struggling
Speaker 1: or having a tough day, what advice can you give
Speaker 1: about how you go through your life.
Speaker 2: One of the most important things that I've I try
Speaker 2: to remind myself of is that, like all emotions are valid,
Speaker 2: what matters is what you do with them. So if
Speaker 2: you feel lost or scared or angry or whatever it
Speaker 2: may be, that's fine, that's like, that's so normal. People
Speaker 2: have no idea. It's everybody goes through these emotions. What
Speaker 2: matters is what you do with them, and that you,
Speaker 2: like take responsibility to learn about them and learn about
Speaker 2: yourself and set boundaries and learn what your needs are.
Speaker 2: And for me, what has helped is therapy and talking
Speaker 2: about it. That might that may not be the case
Speaker 2: for all people. But I'd say at least like give
Speaker 2: it a try, and at least don't be ashamed and
Speaker 2: contain this these emotions, like talk to people about it
Speaker 2: because everybody's going through it. You're not alone, I guess.
Speaker 2: Is what I'm trying to say, is.
Speaker 1: That something that shocks you a long time to really
Speaker 1: believe that you are not alone.
Speaker 2: Yeah, it's taken me a long time. I think I'm
Speaker 2: still struggling with it in some ways, but I've come
Speaker 2: a long way. And I think it's also like it's
Speaker 2: funny because I'm twenty one, but I feel like I've
Speaker 2: come a long way and I probably have a long
Speaker 2: way ahead of me. But that's I look at that
Speaker 2: with like excitement, Like I know I'm going to go
Speaker 2: through a lot of different things and it's going to
Speaker 2: be tough at times and it's going to be good
Speaker 2: at times. But I'm like every day learning like what
Speaker 2: I need to continue and what I need to evolve,
Speaker 2: and so i can look towards the future with excitement
Speaker 2: and I'm really happy about that and I'm happy that's
Speaker 2: where I'm at in my life.
Speaker 1: Well said my friend, and a good reminder that there's
Speaker 1: absolutely no shame in taking time to take care of ourselves,
Speaker 1: our minds, our body, our spirits, all of it.
Speaker 2: Definitely.
Speaker 1: Well, it's that point of the show show where I
Speaker 1: ask all of my guests the burning question based off
Speaker 1: the title of my show, which is I've never said
Speaker 1: this before, So well, I feel like this interview you've
Speaker 1: definitely spoken of that a lot of things that you
Speaker 1: haven't said before. I'm wondering, is there anything else, whether
Speaker 1: it's silly or deep or whatever comes to mind, that's
Speaker 1: something you haven't said.
Speaker 2: Before, something that I've been thinking about, Like, I keep
Speaker 2: coming back to it because it's a great quote, and
Speaker 2: that is dream big, live bigger. And what that means is,
Speaker 2: like you, you always hear like dream big and and
Speaker 2: for the stars, YadA yadi. But it's important to try
Speaker 2: to like live big as well, like collect experiences and
Speaker 2: try those things you've never tried before, and like throw
Speaker 2: yourself out there because as my therapist usually says, people
Speaker 2: can handle a lot more than you think. And that
Speaker 2: goes for like yourself as well. So don't be afraid
Speaker 2: to throw yourself out there and live big. That's where
Speaker 2: I'm going to leave you.
Speaker 1: With, Live Big. I couldn't love that more. That's a
Speaker 1: beautiful sentiment as we wrap up today, and I have
Speaker 1: to tell you you are the only person that has
Speaker 1: been invited on my show twice now, out of everyone,
Speaker 1: I'm telling you, you are the only on your view
Speaker 1: to air twice.
Speaker 2: Wow. That's a huge honor. Man, Thank you, Telly.
Speaker 1: I am thrill to have you on. Like I said,
Speaker 1: I so believe in who you are as a person
Speaker 1: and what you stand for. And it goes without saying
Speaker 1: your brilliant amount of talent and you know capabilities that's
Speaker 1: going to continue growing further and further in your career
Speaker 1: for decades to come. But I just I really smile
Speaker 1: when I see people killing it who deserve to be
Speaker 1: killing it. So it's truly an honor. And I'm so
Speaker 1: glad we got to hang out and talk today.
Speaker 2: Me too, man, Me too. I'm glad we could make
Speaker 2: it work.
Speaker 1: Me too. And I hope you have a little vacation
Speaker 1: or R and R in store for you. You need some downtime,
Speaker 1: so take some time for you, will. I will, all
Speaker 1: right until we meet again.
Speaker 2: Yes, take care, man.
Speaker 1: I've never said this before. Is hosted by me Tommy Dedario.
Speaker 1: This podcast is Executive produced by Andrew Piblisi at iHeartRadio
Speaker 1: and by me Tommy, with editing by Joshua Colaudney. I've
Speaker 1: Never Said This Before is part of the Elvis Duran
Speaker 1: podcast Network on iHeart Podcasts. For more, rate, review and
Speaker 1: subscribe to our show and if you liked this episode,
Speaker 1: tell your friends. Until next time, I'm Tommy de Dario