Blake Lively on being thrown an 'uncomfortable' curveball by 'Another Simple Favor'

AUSTIN, Texas — Any concerns that the recent ineligible wrangling involving prima Blake Lively mightiness overtake the satellite premiere of “Another Simple Favor” astatine SXSW were tucked distant good earlier the movie began connected Friday. Lively bounded into the Paramount Theatre and greeted friends successful the aisle and posed for pictures with fans, a information defender kneeling down her to enactment retired of the shots. Lively past took her spot among the remainder of the film’s formed and crew, with co-star Anna Kendrick sitting a enactment successful beforehand of her.

The movie is simply a sequel to “A Simple Favor,” which was a humble deed erstwhile it was released successful 2018 but has grown successful popularity since owed to its availability connected streaming platforms. In the archetypal film, directed by Paul Feig from a screenplay by Jessica Sharzer, Kendrick played Stephanie Smothers, a widowed parent who strikes up a relationship with glamorous Emily Nelson, who draws them some into a communicative of intrigue, murder, cocktails, mendacious identities, progressively analyzable backstories and fantastic hair.

In introducing “Another Simple Favor,” Feig said: “I don’t usually marque sequels due to the fact that I’m terrified of them, due to the fact that astir sequels aren’t great. And it was truly scary, but we conscionable benignant of thought, ‘I conscionable emotion these characters truthful much.’”

Feig, dressed successful an elaborate western-themed outfit, implicit with boots, chapeau and fringed jacket, added: “It conscionable felt similar there’s thing much to beryllium done with these characters. But if you don’t privation to repetition the archetypal movie, what tin we do? Well, let’s instrumentality them to Italy. And truthful that’s what’s going to hap with this film. So I deliberation you’ll person a large time. We had truthful overmuch amusive making it.”

From a screenplay credited to Sharzer and Laeta Kalogridis, the caller movie opens with Kendrick’s Stephanie nether location apprehension successful Capri, accused of murdering the caller hubby of Lively’s Emily. The movie past flashes backmost to amusement Emily, seemingly freed from prison, reinserting herself into Stephanie‘s beingness and acceptable to pitchy disconnected to a glamorous wedding successful Italy to a mysterious, handsome and affluent suitor Dante (Michele Morrone).

With Stephanie erstwhile again uncertain of Emily’s existent motives, she takes successful the gorgeous surroundings and finds the enigma deepening erstwhile she meets Emily’s parent (Elizabeth Perkins) and aunt (Allison Janney). When Dante ends up dormant hardly an hr aft marrying Emily (and having impulsively acceptable his prenup connected fire), someway Stephanie is blamed for the murder. And things lone get much analyzable from there.

After the screening, Feig came backmost onstage with Kendrick and Lively, on with Perkins, Morrone and chap formed members Henry Golding, Andrew Rannells, Bashir Salahuddin and Alex Newell.

Lively said: “I emotion this quality truthful much. It’s astir apt my favourite quality I’ve ever been fortunate capable to play. And truthful erstwhile Paul asked america to travel back, I was truthful excited. I was truly tense connected the archetypal 1 due to the fact that we didn’t cognize if we were making a play oregon a comedy. And erstwhile we asked Paul, helium said ‘Yes,’ which is not truly an reply to the question. But it worked out. So I was like, ‘OK, nary nerves. I cognize what I’m doing this time.’ And past close earlier shooting helium said, ‘I person a small spot of a curveball idea.’”

Without giving distant 1 of the film’s large twists, Lively added: “It decidedly upped the ante. It was precise uncomfortable to ticker successful the theatre with you guys.”

On returning to her character, Kendrick added: “Stephanie is, arsenic the kids say, addicted to not serving. So I was like, ‘Can I conscionable beryllium not precise good dressed but comfortable?’ I was truly excited to play Stephanie, but successful sneakers.”

Kendrick spoke astir however she had precocious rewatched “Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang” earlier shooting and based immoderate of her show connected the blasé cognition to execution and mayhem of Robert Downey Jr.’s character. As she noted, “I deliberation connected this 1 I was like, ‘OK, if I’m going with her into definite peril, I deliberation possibly I commencement retired conscionable not taking immoderate of it that seriously.’”

Throughout the Q&A Kendrick and Lively were cautious astir explicitly talking astir immoderate of the story’s bigger twists. When Feig pointed retired that the assemblage had conscionable seen the movie, Kendrick countered that determination were countless cameras successful the audience.

“There’s this happening called the internet, Paul,” Kendrick said to a large laughter from the crowd.