The new Moana. The 20-year-old wunderkind filmmaker. The multi Tony Award winner. The 鈥淪aturday Night Live鈥� comedians. The next generation of Emilys. And the Australians at the heart of one of Sundance鈥檚 biggest hits.
There鈥檚 more than a few up-and-coming talents to get excited about in The Associated Press spoke to 11 ones to watch.
Catherine Laga驶aia, 鈥淢辞补苍补鈥�
Catherine Laga驶aia (鈥渓ung-uh-aye-uh鈥�) found out she got on a school day. It was around 8:15 a.m. and she鈥檇 just heard the best news of her life after a very stressful year of auditioning. But the celebration would have to wait: It was swimming carnival day and she was on deck for the 400-meter backstroke.
鈥淚 guess, like, the water vibes carried through,鈥� said Laga驶aia, 20, laughing.
Laga驶aia, who is one of eight children, grew up around acting in Sydney, Australia. Her father played Captain Typho in the 鈥淪tar Wars鈥� prequels, she went to a performing arts high school and a lot of her siblings are in theater. Two of her sisters even auditioned for 鈥淢辞补苍补鈥� alongside her, but she was just the right age at the right time, she said.
The animated film meant the world to Laga驶aia, who is of Samoan heritage, and she鈥檚 acutely aware of the big expectations for the live action film (out July 10) 鈥� she has them for herself too.
鈥淚 felt a fair bit of impostor syndrome stepping into it,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 think we鈥檝e made some great changes, and we鈥檝e kept a lot of the stuff that holds the heart of the film the same.鈥�
Joe Bird and Stacy Clausen, 鈥淟eviticus鈥�
Teenage boys Ryan (Stacy Clausen, 21) and Naim (Joe Bird, 19) are drawn to one another in their backwater Australian community in 鈥淟eviticus,鈥� the 鈥渃onversion therapy鈥� horror that It hits theaters on June 19.
鈥淚t is about growing up queer and how the fear of growing up queer can block someone mentally from acting on their desires, and physically,鈥� Clausen said. 鈥淏ut I think that there is something in it for everyone, like whether you鈥檙e LGBTQIA or not, it鈥檚 about love.鈥�
They knew they had made something special, but it鈥檚 been affirming to see it resonate with audiences. When the trailer posted on YouTube, Bird noticed one commenter who wrote that they wished they鈥檇 had this film when they were younger.
鈥淚t just takes one person to be inspired, or you know say, 鈥極h, I wish I had a film like this鈥� to know that you鈥檝e kind of done your job,鈥� Bird said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 all about connecting.鈥�
Kara Young and Mallori Johnson, 鈥淚s God Is鈥�
Aleshea Harris chose a two-time Tony-winner, , and a relative newcomer, Mallori Johnson, to anchor the big screen adaptation of her Obie-winning play 鈥淚s God Is.鈥� The story is centered on twin sisters searching for their abusive father, who burned and scarred them as babies.
plays Racine the Rough One; Johnson is Anaia the Quiet One. After fending for themselves their entire lives are set on an epic road trip and a journey of revenge and reckoning. It鈥檚 in theaters on May 15.
鈥淎naia depends a lot on Racine to protect her,鈥� Johnson said. 鈥淚 think that they鈥檝e set up a dynamic since they were children 鈥� they have this kind of codependent relationship.鈥�
And although both Young and Johnson are in different phases of their careers, their enthusiasm for the material, and getting to be part of it, is identical.
鈥淕etting into the world of 鈥業s God Is鈥� feels like an ancestral calling in some wild, beautiful, almost like indescribable way,鈥� Young said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 an epic road trip. It鈥檚 a Greek tragedy. It鈥檚 a love story between two sisters 鈥�. I lost my train of thought because I just got so hyped.鈥�
Kane Parsons, 鈥淏ackrooms鈥�
Kane Parsons was a teenager when he was signed to direct his first feature, based on his viral YouTube series 鈥淏ackrooms.鈥�
The concept was inspired by an internet creepypasta that imagined never-ending expanse rooms and hallways full of fluorescent lights, old carpet and monotonous yellow paint; He took that idea and ran with it, creating unnerving videos from his bedroom with the help of the open-source 3D graphics software Blender. Soon both James Wan and Shawn Levy鈥檚 companies were interested in taking it to the next level.
In the film, out May 29, Chiwetel Ejiofor plays a struggling furniture store owner who seemingly slips out of reality. Renate Reinsve co-stars.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 think of this as inherently horror-driven; it鈥檚 definitely not a building full of monsters,鈥� Parsons, 20, said. 鈥淚鈥檝e always been more interested in the sort of man looking in the mirror version.鈥�
The bachelors, 鈥�72 Hours鈥�
鈥淪NL鈥� cast members , 27, and , 30, play a couple of Gen Z guys on a bachelor trip, with Marcello Hern谩ndez, groom-to-be Mason Gooding and a middle-aged ad exec (Kevin Hart) who was accidentally added to the group chat in the new Netflix comedy 鈥�72 Hours鈥� (streaming July 24).
鈥淚t was the most fun you could possibly have shooting a movie,鈥� Marshall said.
Between goofing around in a mansion in New Jersey and hanging in Miami with Hern谩ndez, it was, Patterson said, like summer camp. And Hart was their de facto counselor. They teased Gooding about never having his shirt on, Marshall for being so uniquely bad at jet skiing and Patterson for that time someone left him with one of the production assistant鈥檚 walkie talkies and for 5 minutes he had an open mic to the entire crew. That energy continued when the cameras were on too.
鈥淚 don鈥檛 think we said one word that鈥檚 actually in the script,鈥� Marshall laughed.
Patterson chimed in: 鈥淣ot at all. We take that script and threw it out the window.鈥�
The new assistants in 鈥淭he Devil Wears Prada 2鈥�
Call them the new Emilys. Or, maybe don鈥檛. But there鈥檚 a new batch of smart, young things manning the desks at 鈥淩unway鈥� in (now in theaters).
, of 鈥淏ridgerton鈥� fame, is Miranda Priestly鈥檚 first assistant Amari, who screenwriter Aline Brosh McKenna didn鈥檛 want to be Emily 2.0.
鈥淲ith Amari the comedy comes from, like, flick of the wrist kind of sassiness and her quiet confidence,鈥� Ashley, 31, said. 鈥淢e and Aline kind of had this inside joke that Amari is like secretly the next Miranda.鈥�
Comedian Caleb Hearon, 31, is Miranda鈥檚 second assistant, Charlie, who is not allowed to leave his desk. Ever. But he鈥檚 not mad about it: This is literally the dream.
鈥淚 really thought a lot about a guy like Charlie and what it would mean to him to be in this office and why he wouldn鈥檛 mind staying at the desk all day,鈥� Hearon said.
And finally, there is Helen J Shen, 26, who after breaking out on stage in 鈥淢aybe Happy Ending鈥� makes her big screen debut as Andy鈥檚 assistant, Jin.
Shen said she 鈥渨as excited to see that the dialogue was so silly to me, but Jin doesn鈥檛 find it silly.鈥�
鈥淚 felt like that was a fresh take on someone who knows exactly what they鈥檙e trying to do,鈥� Shen added. 鈥淪he has a lot of wonderful things under her belts, intelligence wise, and she鈥檚 just trying to like, show that and be as helpful to Andy as possible.鈥�
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