All Episodes

February 9, 2021 • 62 mins

On the season finale of Let's Get Into It, Alex Aiono is joined by his Finding Ohana costars Kea Peahu and Lindsay Watson, as well as Director Jude Weng, for an in-depth look at the making of their film! Alex, Kea, Lindsay and Jude talk about what it was like to film in caves and behind waterfalls, the time Alex got sick from his underwater shoot and had to be nursed back to health by his castmates, and the moment they first felt like ohana (family) to each other. Download the season finale now to hear convos with the Finding Ohana team that you won't hear anywhere else... and check out Finding Ohana on Netflix!

Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mark as Played
Transcript

Episode Transcript

Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
My name is Alex and last week I was in
the number one movie in the world on Netflix. No
mob Alright, No Alright, Moby al Rights Forever, No the
alr liviell Right, noy al rights ever. What's up, y'all?

(00:24):
This has been the craziest week of my life. I'm
recording this at Super Bowl Sunday. My heart's racing as
I'm talking about this. If you don't know, you don't
follow me on social media because I've been posting NonStop
about it. But I start in the movie Finding Ohn
on Netflix, and this last week it is reached the
pinnacle of of peaks for a movie in the world.

(00:46):
Today there's no movie theaters, so the number one streaming
service happens to be Netflix, and um as of what
was it on Wednesday? We were the number one movie
in the world on Netflix. Uh. And so it's just
been an absolute whirlwind. But I don't really you know,
you really have a story for you guys. But we're
gonna just get into it because my favorite people are
here with me right now. So it got me thinking,

(01:09):
we've done so many interviews for this movie. What haven't
we talked about is let's get into it. I'm alex Iono.
This is my podcast where we talk about absolutely everything.
And most of the time it's like insecure things or
things that I'm like still dealing with, or their problems
in the world. But today it's just a celebration. This
is the season finale, this is the big shebang at

(01:32):
the end, and it's been a big shebang of a week. Uh,
and we're gonna be talking about that. And by we,
I mean the people who made this movie. Just a
few of them though, like we'll get into the weeds
of all of that, but a few people who really
made my special um, and I'm going to introduce you
to them right now. First and foremost, we have our

(01:52):
fearless leader, the absolute tone center for this movie, the
vision ary behind so many amazing moments that you hopefully
have watched on finding Ohana, our director, and I'm very,
very very lucky to get to call her my friend now.
Jude Wang, Dude, how are you not an answer that's

(02:15):
a that's appropriate for how are you? But I think
we can take it, we can make a new meaning
out of it. I'm so happy that you're here. I'm
so happy to talk to you. I have a ton
of questions for you and uh and we're gonna be
getting into that in a bit, but also with us.
I have two of my castmates, two of my now
Ohana my family, like literally my people, one of them

(02:35):
being the love interest for Youan and my character in
the movie. She has become one of my favorite people
to tell jokes too. She keeps me on track when
I say things wrong in Hawaiian and UH and all around.
Is a great friend. The one and only Lindsay Watson.
I want you. I'm you. Just literally got back from

(02:56):
Palm Springs maybe five minutes ago, literally five minutes ago. Well,
I'm glad you're here. I'm grateful you're here. We're gonna
have to talk about this whole super Bowl timing thing,
but we'll get into it later. Last, but not least,
It's crazy how I've my whole life. I've thought I
had three sisters, and then out of nowhere in Um,
I added a fourth. She has become sometimes a mini me,

(03:18):
sometimes my protege, sometimes my sense a like literally it says,
she has become an incredible just human in my life.
She's gonna be an absolute star in this industry, and
I'm just happy that I get to be your big
brother on and off camera, the one and only kap
who what is up? Dog? Um? So I'm happy that

(03:40):
you're all here, and I'm gonna tell you how we
do this podcast. We have three different segments, and I'm
gonna be kind of singling out Jude for the first segment.
We're gonna be talking about the director's view of this movie.
And then after that we'll take a break, and then
we'll get into you and me and kaya Lindsay. It'll
be the three of us and we'll be talking about
the cast process through the movie. And then, last but

(04:00):
not least, I'm calling it, the segment of this segment
is going to be called look at me now. Because
our movie literally has become the number one movie in
the world and its first week of being out to
the public. Dad is going to be so mad at
me for being this cocky. But man, if I don't
feel amazing about this, like and and it's okay, And

(04:21):
sometimes we've talked about this. Sometimes you've got to be
your own biggest fan and you've got to go wild
and appreciate the fact that you guys have the number
one movie in America. And then the number one movie
in the world the next day, it's just wild. Um.
But it's time for us to get into it. And
the first thing that we do to kind of get
ready for it is, Uh, you guys answer a question
that I've asked every single one of my guests this season,
and that question is what are you doing this week

(04:43):
to better yourself? For me, I'm out here in Hawaii
and Uh, I'm working on another project and everybody thinks
that it's the sequel already, but we'll get into talking
about that later. UM lots to talk about this podcast episode,
but since I've been out here, you're seeing nothing but
shirtless people. So it got me so motivated to get

(05:04):
right back into summer bought anthem. Um. So I have
been absolutely dedicated to my fitness this week and and
that's what I've been doing this week to better myself.
Let's see who looks like that. Jude looks like you
look like you have an answer? I do. I do.
In fact, I was just talking about it with my
family today. UM. We were talking about how, you know,

(05:25):
was quarantine and everything. It's just created the sense of
like not really wanting to go out, and we realized
we really need to be. My husband and I we
need to be better models of health and fitness for
our kids. So we agreed that. Um. In fact, my
husband sitting outside with the kids right now figuring out
what their workout regiment is going to be for the week,
something that they can maintain and feel good about, but

(05:47):
also scheduling time for the family to do more group
walks and hikes together. I love that. I mean, one
of my favorite things about your Jude is you almost
forget that you have like a whole life. You are
so dedicated to being a director and your art like
that you forget that you're a mother, and you are
an awesome wife and an amazing chef and like the

(06:09):
whole nine. So the fact that you amazing wife probably
at the bottom of the list. I think. I think
I'm a very dedicated director and a very dedicated mom.
We'll get We'll get Greg to We'll get Greg to
chime in on that one. Okay, lindsay what you got

(06:29):
from you? Oh, hands down, and say, I was just
talking to my roommates about this. I'm going to be
better at planning and organizing my week because, I mean,
since the movies come out, there's been an influx of
just things, interviews, so many things, and constantly I'm racking
my brain like trying to remember what's next and what
I have to get done. So this coming week is

(06:51):
the week of organization and writing things down because I've
been a mess, all right, I'm liking it. I'm liking it.
It's been a craze easy week. So it's very very
valid to to feel like it's not put together because
it has been mad and we have new press looks
coming out and videos left and right, and share wanting
to share everything. So a schedule is definitely useful. Okay,

(07:13):
what you got for me? So I guess you could
say this week. But just in general, I think I
want to like figure out who I am as a
person a little bit more like I want to start
doing new things and getting into like new hobbies besides
just like dancing and acting. So one of them. I
don't know what it is, but I always go through
like these weird phases are not weird for like just
these different phases, And right now I want to start
like doing how to play the electric guitar, so like

(07:36):
my moment andy like looking for some muctric guitars for me,
and I want to start playing it a little bit.
That's that's just exactly your answer. That was exactly the
reason why you're sometimes my sometimes you're my like little protege,
and then sometimes you're my mentor is because when I
was thirteen years old, I was making out with Jamie
Arrato in the in the gym locker bath, like the

(07:57):
back room of the Jim Lockers, and you're here trying
to figure out who you are. I'm I'm equally impressed
and upset. But we'll look at us awesome. I thought
you were saying it was awesome to meet Jude, that
I was making out with Jamie Urano. I want to
take the credit for it. It was nice. I didn't
I didn't know that it was going to be such
a monumental moment for me in life. Al Right, guys,

(08:19):
let's let's get into it. Lindsay Koe, we'll talk with
you in a bit, but Jude, it's time for us
to go one on one. Um. So we've done so
many interviews in the last two weeks or three weeks,
like so many, and and everybody asks you, I've because
we are artists. We love seeing all of the response.
So I feel like I've read every interview you've done,

(08:40):
so I'm trying. I like literally spent an hour and
a half thinking, like what questions have you not been
asked that I want to? Like, really, you know this
episode again, there's so much press If you haven't checked
it out, make sure you check it out, because this
episode alone is not going to be enough for you
to learn about the movie or the process. Like this
is more so a after hours behind the scenes me
hanging out with three of my new closest friends and family.

(09:03):
So I got some interesting questions for you. And it's
going to start off with this was your first feature film,
and you came from working with absolute stars in television.
You've done episodes of Shameless, You've done episodes of of
Young Sheldon and of Fresh off the Boat and all
of these like big shows, like these huge shows, and

(09:26):
then you stepped into this new role of of being
a director. And I've been very, very lucky to hear
your story of how you came across finding Ohana. Just
you know, you took a DNA test, you found out
that you actually had a part Polynesian in your blood,
and it really kind of inspired you to want to
tell stories that that that included heavy representation and stories

(09:48):
that you can relate to as a person. And the
script of Finding Ohana came your way and you read
it and it had everything you love. It had family,
friendliness and at adventure. It was comedy, it was representation,
it was all the above. And that's if you read
any interview of Jude, it's like, it's a most beautiful story.
You'll have more details, but I hope that I I
covered that because I don't want to lose our time

(10:09):
by saying things that we've already said in other places. Yeah. No, no,
you captured that perfectly. That's right. So that being said,
crossing over, regardless of the movie, from TV into being
a film director, what's the biggest switch? What was the
biggest change for you? You know, the biggest switch, honestly
is some really kind of morning stuff, which is the

(10:30):
tempo of the day is so different in television. We
moved so fast in television. We're frequently filming five, six, eight, ten,
eleven pages a day, like on Shameless just recently that
I did in December, we were filming eleven pages a day.
That was the norm, and on a on a feature
film on Finding Ohana, we were doing two and a

(10:52):
half three maybe four pages a day, Like four was
a lot for us. Now, obviously it's a very different infrastructure.
Right on a TV show, you already have the lights up,
you have standing sets, and where we were going. We
were filming in some really exotic remote places where just
the setup of just like getting a light into a

(11:12):
cave system was a big deal. And so what you
can accomplish in a day is so different from what
you can accomplish a day and television, and so I
really had to keep reminding myself, you know this, this
is scheduled exactly the way it needs to be. You're
gonna do less per day, but you're gonna actually but
as you guys remember, it still was a sprint every

(11:34):
single day even though we were doing this few pages
because of the amount of set up and kids having
you know, they're pumpkin ing right, which means they had
a limited amount of time which they can film on set.
So it's interesting that you're doing less, but at the
same time the stakes are so high because like filming
in kan chon Bury at the waterfalls, we drove three

(11:57):
hours outside of Bangkok to go to that set, you
know we're never going back there again, so you better
get everything in that you need, right, right, is it?
So the steaks are so different and so high. So
these are the kinds of examples that you know, I
don't think, uh, I really thought about as I was
preparing to direct my first movie. So my next question

(12:18):
is going to take us into casting. But before we
get into the story talking about how you cast this film,
there's a lot that happens before that, from day one
when you say this is the script or when you
sign on to be the director of that film too. Casting,
talk to me about the timeline of that. Talk to
me about what what did you have to do to
get ready to so you can get to the point

(12:39):
where you're like, Okay, now we need to figure out
who's going to be our Peely, who's going to be
our eo Ona, who's gonna be our Casper and our Hannah? Right,
there's so much pre production that goes into preparing for
a film, right, Um, there's just a lot of logistical stuff.
For example, working with Ian Bryce, a wonderful producer, he
had to set up a production entity specifically for this film, um,
you need look and scouts, you need to start figuring

(13:01):
out where you're going to film, because the infrastructure that
they then need to build in order to make sure,
you know, we can do our day smoothly requires so
much advanced effort. You know, there's some really boring stuff
like you know, insurance and paperwork, but that there's all
these people involved in taking care of all these tiny
little steps to do advanced work so that when it's

(13:22):
time for us to start really making the movie, everything
can happen very smoothly. I recently posted on my own
Instagram where I wanted to give a shout out to Ian,
Bryce and j j or u PM and Irene and Katie,
you know, very excellent. Producing is frequently invisible, right Like
when it's done well, nobody even honestly people take it

(13:45):
for granted, like, oh yeah, this is this is how
smoothly it's always supposed to run. Oh yeah. We showed
up in the middle of nowhere in crab by these
caves where nobody ever films. Had close to three twenty
people on our crew, had a mini city set up
with bathrooms and food and craft service and catering all
and medical support and snake wranglers. All this stuff is

(14:06):
taken care of, But who took care of that? You know,
there's so much that we take for granted so easily,
and so I feel like great producing is so invisible,
and unless you're really paying attention, you're not really recognizing
all the people and all the steps it takes to
make really great shooting. And just to give the listeners

(14:27):
who don't really fully understand the process of making a movie,
this movie came out January one. Was the beginning of
you working on finding Ahna? What day? What? What time
frame are we talking about? Just so they know how
long it takes to make a two hour movie? Right, Well,
I will say our film and our entire process was
absolutely accelerated. I know people who have been working on

(14:49):
their film for five six years and then finally find
a distributor and then it's finally when it's all sudden done,
it's been like an eight year process. For us, it
was relative really fast. So um I met Christina Strain
in March of eighteen. We started talking about working together.
We sold the script to Netflix in October eighteen. I

(15:12):
interviewed and met with Ian Bryce December, and then we
were scouting and starting our early pre production in February
and then we were filming by the end of August nineteen. Guys,
that's actually incredibly fast. But you're right, I mean, you know,
all said and done. I mean really starting from March

(15:33):
until January. I was gonna say, I know that you
said that that was fast, but that seems like, oh
my gosh, that's three years for for for two hours
of film work, you know, And it's just it's such
a it's such a process, and you haven't even even
the process to getting to casting, right, And that's where

(15:53):
we kind of are going to lead this next question
into let's talk because my audition it and come until
March of twenty nineteen, So we're talking about a year
of work before you even figure out the visual of
who is going to be playing these characters that you had. Right,
So Lindsay and care are going to give a little

(16:13):
bit more of their stories. But if you watch any
of the interviews or read any of the interviewss all
kind of the same for us. You know, actors are
very commonly used to not hearing any feedback, and we're
just kind of if no news is bad news, and uh,
and if you don't hear anything, it's it means you
didn't get it. Just keep moving. On our side, we
never really fully even talked about it. You know, we've
had little murmurs on set about the casting process of

(16:35):
how you knew that k I was going to be Peely,
and how you knew Like I would be on a
and how you knew Lindsay would be Hanna and Casper
for Owen. But how does the casting process work when
you are a director of a film. I'm really glad
you asked this question, Alex. Nobody has asked me this question,
so I'm really excited for the chance to talk about this. Well.
One number one, you get a casting director when you

(16:57):
start working on a movie and they become your wonderful
partner throughout the whole process until you've cast your entire film.
And we were so lucky to have someone like Leslie Woo,
who is our casting director. This is a true story,
and she is such an unsung here in this whole process.
When I first interviewed her, this is before we even
hired her. At her general meeting with me, we sat

(17:19):
and had coffee and we talked about, you know, just
getting to know each other a little bit, and then
finally we were getting down of brass tacks and I said,
you know, I don't want to pressure you, but like,
do you even have anybody in the back of your mind?
I mean, this is a movie with Hawaiian leaves, Like
in my mind, I imagine this is gonna be really
tough to cast. And to her credit, she is a

(17:40):
real deep diver of people's instagrams and social media platforms.
So this is a really important lesson for all of
your listeners who are aspiring actors. You should be really
thoughtful and careful about what you put on social media
on a public platform, because guess what, I did a
deep dive on each of you guys before I even

(18:02):
met you. So at this general meeting, Leslie said, well,
you know, I've been following this kid named Kapaahu and
this YouTube singer alex Aiono, and um, you know, one's
a dancer wants a singer. They've never acted before, but
they have so much charisma and so much personality that
really reminds me of Pealely and Eo Wanning. And then

(18:26):
and then as we started to go deeper into the
process than Lindsay's name came up, and I did the
same thing with Lindsay. I did a crazy, crazy deep dive.
I was already reading articles about you, Lindsay, you know,
being a command may A graduate from Maui, you know,
and do a musical theater moving from l A. I
was already reading about that. So that's why. And you know,

(18:46):
I won't name names, but there are some people who
were on that initial casting list. After doing a deep
dive on them on social media, some of them were
just a little bit too thirsty for my liking, you
know what I mean that, And that's a that's a
voice to anybody, not even in an acting game, like
obviously in the acting game as well from this experience,
but I think it's a it's always a great reminder

(19:09):
overall that what you post lives forever, and and even
if you delete it, it's still going to be found
somewhere or screenshot it at some point, and you've gotta
be you gotta be cautious of that. And you think,
even those who think that they're safe from the clutch
of social media and and it's and it's a way
of showing who you really are, you're never safe from that.

(19:29):
So I'm glad that you said, because it's definitely a
huge piece. So, you know, looking at all of your socials,
like I felt like you guys were kind of posting
stuff that was very much in line with your characters already.
And you know what they say about casting, right, like
casting is like three fourths of the job to get
a really fantastic actor, like you get somebody who's very compatible,

(19:51):
who's already innately and organically has a lot of those
characteristics that you're looking for. So I've been listening to
all of your interviews and listening to you eyes talk
about how actually I was kind of similar to my character.
I didn't really I just had to learn the lines,
but I was kind of being me. Well, so now
you kind of know why we chose you guys. You
guys were so perfect for each of the roles that

(20:13):
we chose you when if anything you were you know,
many people on set would say, uh, like these actors,
they're born to be in this role. Like people would
say Lets was born, Ben was born to be and
also was born to be Io wanting, And again, I
think we got to give a huge shout out Leslie Woo.
She's not only was an incredible casting director for this.
I know that this movie was one of her first,

(20:34):
like huge projects. So Leslie, if you're listening to this,
we all love you so much. We love you, we
love you. So you cast this movie. We start going.
I remember we did the chemistry read the same day
as Avengers Endgame coming out, because as excited as I was,
I gotta be honest, as excited as I was to
be there, I was like, man, I really hope that

(20:55):
this this chemistry read doesn't go to the point where
I can't go to my midnight premiere of End Game.
That sounds like, by the way, sounds like the most
ungrateful thing. And I don't mean it, but like it
was Endgame. I mean, we're we're what do we talk about? Um?
I remember at a moment, you know, there's a lot
of roadblocks and and speed bumps that you have to
go through. We're originally going to film in the Dominican
Republic instead of Thailand, and then things change and you

(21:18):
have to you have to change plans on the fly
and and things are moving. What would you say was
the biggest obstacle that you had to overcome in filming
this film? One being in production like something like having
to change locations or losing a day or any of that. Uh.
And the other one being just a personal one. I
know that you and I have been very I have
been very lucky to get to have personal conversations with

(21:39):
you about overcoming yourself a lot of times. Uh. And
so I would love to hear your answers for both
of that. Yeah, the wonderful questions. And you're right, no
one's asked me those questions. UM. I would say, what's
most logistically challenging is sometimes we're confronted with some scenes
that you know, take more time. They need more time
than to man more time so that you can do it,

(22:02):
and there's just never enough time. So, for example, when
we started filming some of the Robinson Brown and Monks scene,
you know, Mark Ivan Jackson, Chris Parnell and Ricky Garcia
worked their tushies off to work on this really elaborate
choreography for this massive fight scene. Um, there are actually
two big fight scenes, and you know, um, they put

(22:25):
so much effort into it, and I wish I had
more time. I wish I had more time to just
fill more angles because action sequences they cut together really fast.
You need more angles, and you need more takes. And
even now, when I watched the movie, and I love
this movie so much, I've watched it in its entirety
nine three times um for various reasons, for you know,

(22:46):
dealing with my notes, watching it down with the editor,
dealing with Netflix's notes, rounds and rounds of visual effects.
Like I've watched this movie down so many times, and
there's only one moment in the film where I'm like, oh,
I wish I had one more hour to film. That's
actually my next question. My next question was if you
could go back and change one thing, what would it be,

(23:07):
So continue elaborate, please, I would say it's probably um,
between the fight scene, it would be that. Plus it's
also when you kids discover the treasure for the first time.
I wish I had more time around that moment um,
you know, the the that's such a penultimate moment in
the movie, right, finding the treasures so aspirational. We had

(23:28):
so much fun. But if you guys remember just the
logistics of filming in that cave was so difficult that
I had to make a lot of, you know, very
difficult decisions about how much time to slot for different scenes.
We had a lot to get done. And yeah, I
always felt like I was racing, racing against the clock.
The clock always felt like my enemy. But you know,

(23:49):
everybody works so hard to you know, make it what
it was. Sometimes you look at it what it is
and you're like, you're gonna get what you get and
you're not gonna get upset. It's just gonna get you
get up. You are walking me, you you're literally walking
me into every question that I have for you. Um,
because you had mentioned how many people it takes, you know,
people at a time on a set. The amount of

(24:11):
people if you watch the credits up to me is
like my favorite thing is watching the credits and being like, Wow,
this many people made this too out this many people
and years and years and passion and sweat and all
of this kind of come together to make this movie.
And here you are, and whether you you're you're way
too humble to admit it, but you're kind of like

(24:32):
the captain of this ship, Like your job is to
like lead this ship there. And the thing that I
think I admire about you most, Jude, is your demeanor
as you lead. Um. You, I don't know if i've
ever heard you speak louder than five decibels, like, I
don't know if I don't know. You are so calm
and the only time I can remember anybody yelling was

(24:54):
either when there's one time when Ian had to quiet
everybody down on set Um and then the second time
was when um when that tay p A ended up
breaking his walk and talk to you directly in front
of which was wild. But as my second to last question,
because I do have one more after this, your demeanor
is so calm and the way that you lead is
so effortless, and you don't demand respect. Your demeanor itself

(25:18):
like just makes it impossible to not follow and respect you.
I remember talking to you about it one time in
a cave about how you lead and and how you
never get too loud or yell and you don't feel
the need to yell. It's not something that you feel.
Is you have to have in your arsenal to be
a great leader, And I would love for you to
speak a little bit more about that. Yeah, you know,
I think it's possible to lead with kindness and empathy

(25:40):
and understanding. But also you know, I'm a mom, and
if I yelled at my kids all day long. Oh
my god, it would absolutely lose its impact. Right. So
when I yell at my kids, you know, I mean business.
So I try to feel like in filmmaking, same thing.
You know, Number one, it's a profession environment. Nobody ever

(26:02):
you know, if I'm yelling, it's because there's something dangerous happening,
or yelling for effect. Like one time I was talking
to Lindsay and I was actually trying to describe an
intensity that I was hoping that you know, Hannah could
get to. And as I was describing it to her,
I raised my voice to give her an example of
the intensity. And because there were a lot of Thai

(26:23):
people who did not speak English, a lot of them
did not understand that moment between me and Lindsay. They
thought I was yelling at her, and they became afraid
of me. They were so afraid of me, like before
everyone's like Sabodika Sabody. They were so scared of me.

(26:44):
But but the point is, look, I think Hollywood historically
has been mostly male directors, and there's a stereotype of
the autour filmmaker, who you know, knows what they want
and they're very demanding and they're going to be intense
about it. Um, I almost feel like I work from

(27:04):
a very different standpoint. I feel like people are at
their best when they feel heard and when we're collaborating
that it's a conversation. Sometimes we're busy. You don't always
have time and patience for that, you know, level of
like conversation. But when you can. In an ideal world,
if everybody is invited and feel confident about sharing their ideas,

(27:28):
that to me, is the most ideal film set. Everybody's
gonna want to be their best. They're going to be
motivated to bring their ideas. And if anything, I'm not
the only idea generator. I am a shepherd of great ideas.
I'm a shepherd of your great performances. And when I
see you do something really cool, or I see you
guys take a risk with something creatively, I'm there to

(27:50):
shepherd and guide. Oh I love what you did there.
Could you try that again? But try it this way now? Right?
So you know? Sure, I have a vision. But if
I don't keep my eyes open and if I'm not
hyper present with all the wonderful ideas that are occurring
in front of me on set, that I feel like
I'm really missing out on an opportunity. So for me,

(28:12):
it's kind of machiavellian almost. I operate from this standpoint,
not just because I want to be liked and I'm
a nice person I had. I genuinely think it is
for the best of the film to create that kind
of environment where everybody just wants to bring their best
and have fun. And by the way, I hope you
guys feel this way. But even when I watched the trailer,
which I know it's just a tight little example of

(28:34):
what the film is. So many of those lines were
improvised by you guys. Some of the best lines in
our movie were improvised by you guys. Christina Strain wrote
a great script, a wonderful foundation, but from there we
all played and great ideas came from all kinds of people.
And so for me, it's a perfect example of like
really harmonious collaboration. Yeah, I mean, well, it's thanks to

(28:58):
your leadership. And again you're a city. You and I
have talked about it in this last week about your
ability to be able to play and be willing to
try new things and get you know, vulnerable and open.
And as I talked to the to my castmates. In
just a bit, I hope you'll see even more so
how how big of an impact that had on us.
Um But my last question is is going to be

(29:18):
regarding something that your you thought was really important about
the film, and it's something so important about the film
today is the representation the fact that you are giving
young you know, I'm I'm out here in Hawaii and
and and meeting people and meeting little girls who are
feeling and seeing them feel like they are seen and
they're heard. How how amazing does that feel to know?

(29:42):
You know, I've been texting you guys all week long, Like,
just got recognized at them all for the fifteenth time
and they called me eoan A. They don't even know
my real name, like it was. It's really you know,
around the world, it's so important. But I feel so
lucky to get to be here at the absolute focal
point of the culture of our movie. And I love

(30:02):
sharing that with you, and I hope that it feels amazing.
And I just wanted to know from your perspective whatever
feelings you're having about being really you know, a trailblazer
in representing the beautiful Hawaiian culture. Uh yeah, I mean
I will not lie. There was a day last week
where I saw somebody post something on TikTok and she

(30:25):
was like, is this what representation feels like? Because I've
never seen anybody that looks like me be in a
big movie before, and I've seen variations of that on
TikTok and people posting on Instagram and other social media
platforms up the overwhelming gratitude, uh, the appreciation for the representation.

(30:48):
For me, it's the best part of this movie. I mean,
you know, when when our movie became number one in
the world, it was really exciting and I knew, look,
this is the nature of films, right There's always a
new movie coming out, and everybody's going to take their
turn at the number one spot. But my husband was like, actually,
not really. There's plenty of films that came out in
the last month that never got to the number one spot.
So that tells me not only is the Hawaiian and

(31:11):
Asian Pacific Island community responding, is people around the world
responding like they're enjoying seeing that representation. And so, if anything,
what I really hope audiences take away from watching our
movie is that it is never too late to connect
to your culture. You know, America is not a homogeneous place.
Everybody comes from somewhere at some point in time. Everybody's

(31:33):
family member or grandfather or great grandmother, they were immigrants, right,
And so for me, I hope that this movie is
a reminder of it's never too late to get connected
to your culture and to have that type of appreciation
and understanding for your ancestors, and to honor your family
by understanding where you really come from. And so the

(31:55):
fact that the Hawaiian and the Asian Pacific Island community
is historically underrepresented in media, that we get to make
a movie like this in this place and time means
the most to me, even if we were never the
number one movie in the world. The fact that Hawaiians
and Asian Pacific Island communities are saying, wow, we stand
behind this movie. This movie reflects genuine of the Aleno

(32:19):
language right, uh, the pigeon right, and and our values
that people are talking about the concept of. You know,
I've been seeing posting about people who said that after
seeing this movie, it reminded them that family was more
important than your bruised ego. And I've read stories about
families reconciling past hurts and reuniting because this movie inspired

(32:42):
them to do that. And you know, that is the
highest compliment for any film, is that the film moves
you emotionally, but it also leads you to take action.
And so for me, I feel like this is something
for all of us to celebrate absolutely, and I think
it's incredible. You know, we've broken past I feel like
with this movie, we've broken past the first tier of representation,

(33:04):
We've broken past the and with love. I'm very happy
because it took these trailblazing films like Moana, like movies
that The Rock has done, Taiko y t t films
where we just kind of sprinkle things in or we
throw all of the Polynesian cultures into one and kind
of make it a film. The thing that I love
with this film specifically is that we break past that
tier one and now we're in tier two where it says, okay,

(33:24):
now that we know, now you guys know what Polynesian
people are about. Let's specifically talk about this culture and
and it and it made me excited as a Samoan
boy and as a as a Maulti boy that while
there's a bunch of multi movies that were made in
New Zealand that never really crossed over here. It opens
up the possibility that we can talk about, Okay, cool, well,
what is what's the multi version of Finding Ohana? What's
the Samoan version of Finding Ohna? And you can you

(33:46):
can really twist and turn. So again, while we're not
the first people to make a movie about Polynesian people,
this one got to specifically celebrate a very finite piece
of culture in this world. And I hope that it
inspires a lot of other film makers just like you
to do the same thing and not be afraid to
tell us specific story about a specific group of people. Because,

(34:06):
as we've seen in this last week, and we'll celebrate
with the last segment, it does matter. People care a
lot about learning about other people if you give them
the opportunity to so, Jude, I'm so lucky that you're
my friend, Like, it's so amazing being your friend and uh,
and I'm excited to talk with you on this last segment.
We're gonna take a quick break and when we come back,
I'm talking to my cast mates and it's about to
just get insanely silly movie right there, all right, we

(34:33):
are back. This is let's get into it. And we
got my cast mates with us, Lindsay and Kaya. The
three of us have talked so much about how we've
been asked the same questions over and over again. So
this segment is truly going to just be just like
goofing off and talking story about about how everything unfolded
in the movie. So first question, first impressions, It's got

(34:53):
to be a real first impression, like a real, true
first time we met each other. We're all sitting there
at the casting office and Hollywood first impressions go, Lindsay,
give it to us. You said honest, right, honest, you
can honestly and and I know, I think, because this
is affiliated with the movie, we have to keep our

(35:14):
language clean. But absolutely roast me. No, no, okay, Let's
start with Kaya first of all, because I met Kia first,
and Kaa cracked me up because I tell her to
this day. She walked into the casting office and I've
gone to auditions a thousand times in l A and
it's very prim and proper and everyone trying so hard.
And Keia, when I knew they were looking for Hawaiians,

(35:36):
I was like, let's see how legit. This is I
grew up in Hawaiian knew Kaya walks in with her
Tata slippers and her socks. So I mean, anyone from
what he knows what that is. It's just socks and
slipper kind of idea. And I and I think her
shirt was like inside out also or like backwards because
Sonoy didn't like the print, and I was like, I
was dying inside because I was like, oh, this is true,

(35:58):
Like that's real Hawaii. I don't even need to talk
to her. You don't have to open her mouth because
I know she's from Hawaii. And I obviously I met
Tonnoy at the same time, so that was a whole
another story. Anyone who knows Tonnoy knows you know everything
about her within the first five minutes. So Keia, it
was awesome to meet her and know that we had
a real Hawaiian going for the role. I mean, and
from what I read of Pealely, she just without even

(36:20):
open her mouth, I knew she had the vibe of Pealely,
so it was so cool to see that. And then
reading with her was perfect. I mean, the other actors,
they were super talented, super capable, but reading with her
was something else. And then I will say when you
walked in, we didn't even meet outside. We met when
you walked into because I got to say high nothing.

(36:42):
You walked in, They're like go, and I will say,
like I was kind of like, I'm not sure what
was going to happen, and I will give you all credit.
It was awesome, Like the first scene we read together,
I felt so good As an actor. I always kind
of like have an image of how I planned my
audition or chemist she reads to go, and it wasn't

(37:03):
really lining up at first, and then when you walked
in and we started reading, I was like, this is
what I wanted, Like, this is how I broke down
the scene, this is how I imagined it flowing. And
we killed it, and then obviously just immediately jumped into bickering.
I'm sure at one point already yeah, yeah, okay, okay,
give it to us. Okay. So I'll go with Alex first.

(37:26):
So I don't know people know about this story, but
I listened to Alex, like his music, and I watched
his YouTube videos. So I remember going there and I
was really nervous, like I was really excited, but I
was really really nervous, and then I knew Alex and
Lindsay were in the room. Well, I didn't know, like
I knew people in the room, but I didn't know
it was Alex and Lindsay. And I remember I recognized you,

(37:48):
Alex from your voice, so I remember I don't know
what line it was, but you know, Lindsey were acting
and you said something and I was like, why does
she sound so familiar? And I was talking to my mom.
I was like why, I don't know what it is.
I just and I looked like I looked literally for
a second, and it was like this the door was
cracked this open, and I seem like this much of

(38:10):
his face and I was like, oh my god. I
think that's what I said. I see when I was like,
oh my god. And I was trying to start not
to scream because I knew I had to be really quiet.
And I was like, mom, because Alex, She's like what
And then I showed her his videos and I was
like freaking out. But then like even though I was nervous,
to me Alex, I feel like when she started acting,
I felt like he was already like my brother. So

(38:31):
like my nervous kind of went down, and then I
remember like finishing the acting with him, and then him
and my mom were like talking about barbecues and like
how like they were barbecue together and make all this food.
And I was like, I can't believe this is actually
happening right now. And I was just like on the
chain on my phone. I was like, I'm trying not
to freak out so hard, but I'm like I couldn't
believe it. And then with Lindsay, I remember um first

(38:53):
acting with her, I feel like she was what I imagined,
like Hannah Bean, and like I was like, this is
my first chemistry that I've ever done, so like going
into it, I didn't know what to expect. But when
I acted Lindsay, I felt super comfortable and I was like, Okay,
whether I get p or not, she has to get Hanna.
Like I feel like every way that I thought she
was gonna like. You know how sometimes even when like

(39:15):
people read the script to you're like okay, I didn't
expect them to read it like this. I felt like
she read it even better than I expected. So it
was she made me feel like really comfortable to get
into character. Yeah, I think I think for me, it
was the exact same. I remember coming into the room,
like you had said, Lindsay, was you and Kia, and
I was coming in after you guys had already kind

(39:35):
of done a couple of lines together, and I remember
we did the scene at the time. It was the
scene where the backpack is stuck in the cave and
the script is there, and I remember getting in there.
I had never been in a chemistry read before. I
remember first, and I have to shout out my boy
Kalama Epstein, who was the other chemistry read. It's been
awesome having such a like supportive people who were even

(39:57):
a part of the casting process. I remember hearing him
yell and I remember saying to myself like, if he
yelled at this little kid, I'm gonna scream at this
little kid, Like I'm gonna with this little kid. So
I come in and I see you and I'm like, dang, dude,
she's so innocent looking. I can't tear up. And I remember.
So we get into it and we're doing that scene
and I remember it's like, yeah, I remember what it said,

(40:18):
and I go, Okay, what did it say? And I'm like, oh,
of course, like the trust her, she said you know,
and then I do my like, no, you weren't like
you think you're a treasure hunter. And we went into
this and I just remember there was a moment and
as as a new actor to the game, I remember
being like, oh my gosh, this is what it feels
like to like give yourself to something and it was
only because you were there to give yourself to it,

(40:40):
and lindsay you were there to give yourself to it,
which reminds me of the second scene that we did,
which is where we're singing and we're like fake walking
around the audition room as we're singing all the ways
with each other, right um, And I remember we get
to the end and I've never been into chemistry before,
so like in that scene originally in that scene, Hannah

(41:01):
kisses EO on it it's not a hug, it's a kiss.
And I remember getting down and being like, Okay, get
ready to like pretend she kissed you. And you like
the fact that you were like dedicated, you full on.
I'd never met you in my life and you just
went in for the kiss right there, and I was like, dang,
this girl got like this girls passionate about getting this
role and I remember both of those and that's when

(41:21):
I from the jump I I said the same thing,
And I love that all three of us had this idea,
which is like, I don't know if I got my part,
but these two got their part because at the time,
I Win was cast remotely and I just remember thinking
the same thing. I was like, look, I really don't
know if I'm going to get this role, but I
could tell you that little kid with the slippers in
the sox is gonna get it. And that girl Lindsay

(41:41):
who decided to kiss a stranger in the middle of
an audition. I was like, that's dedication. But we ended
up being a cast, right like, we had this whole
movie together, and I think it was it was crazy.
You can hear and again I want to jump through
because we don't have a ton of time together, but
we got to rock climb together before we did we
did more actual arts. We did um We danced, and

(42:02):
we sang, and we did all these things that kind
of made us get to know each other and be
comfortable with each other before the movie. But it wasn't
until we were there that I remember specific moments. And
I'll start so that you guys have time to think
where I remember us being like, wow, we're really family,
like we actually are gonna be family. I think for me,

(42:22):
the biggest one was Kia's birthday. Sonoy, her mom booked
out a whole water part for Kia's twelfth birthday, um
and I just remember being there and you know when
you go to a birthday party and you don't know
anybody and you feel like, oh my gosh, like I
don't know anybody here, Like I just kind of like, hey,
oh nice, nice to meet you. It was crazy how
so many people were there and the whole time Sonoy

(42:45):
was there being like bro, like I want you to
meet my aunt, I want you to meet my cousins,
I want you to meet this And it was just
like I remember being like a weird feeling because I
was like, we're here to work and I feel almost
bad about how much fun I'm having right now and
how enjoyable this process is. And so for Kaa, I
remember that, Lindsay, we were just talking about it today.
I remember we were in Thailand and we're filming the

(43:07):
drowning scene and because I was drowning, fake drowning down
into the ten and fifteen feet deep waters. That's when
the water pressure changes and it can really mess up
your ears. And I got um pressure sickness. I lost
my equilibrium and me, being the tough guy, wanna be
that I am. I didn't tell anybody. And then we
get in the car and we're driving back from set

(43:28):
to the hotel and I was I look at Lindsay.
I was like, you know, I'm not well, like I'm
not doing well, and Lindsay's like web MD, googling everything,
like okay. And then I go up to my room
and Lindsay's like, yo, what room are you? Like, I'm
gonna come drop something off, and came and dropped off
like just a ton of pharmacy like drugs, like this
one's for like motion sickness, this one's for this, this

(43:51):
one's for that. And I remember being like, yo, this
is sick, Like this is not just a bunch of
people who I happened, because at the end of the day,
you guys are like my co workers. If if if
nothing else, you guys are just my coworkers, right, And
a lot of people work with people that they're like,
I'm never going to see you again. And a lot
of people work with people who are like, I like you,
but I'm never going to see you again. And then
a lot of people work with people who are like,
I really like you and I'm not gonna ever see

(44:13):
you again. And we created this this family moment right of,
like of immediately after we finished. We spent every day
together for three months, and the first thing we did
when we got back was like, Okay, so when are
we hanging out? Like when it's like, when are we
having a barbecue? When are we doing this? And I
had never felt that, and I just thought it was
so cool how we really became friends and family and
and we had these just we've been able to create

(44:35):
such rich relationships off of doing something like this. So,
are there any memories that kind of make you feel
a nice little walk down memory lane that that reminds
you of when you know, specific moments that made us
feel like we're family. I have one little moment that
it's so small, but it's stuck with me, And it
was actually about Kia. And from the whole start of

(44:57):
this kids was she was really sweet, but really quiet,
like she kind of didn't let us in fully, like
didn't show us her super crazy side, like she was
kind of like there was still a lot of fear.
And then I don't know if you remember this, Alex,
but it was one of the first nights we were
there in Hawaii, and it was we're at the Prince
and we're all like, let's go to the pool one night.
And we went to the pool and it was the

(45:19):
three of us and we were swimming and she was
kind of chill, and then the moms were like, hey,
we're gonna be back, can you guys watch her for
a bit. And as soon as they stepped away, Ka
like lit up like a light and she was this
new person and then like there was just energy and
creat I mean, I think there was a moment we
loved at each other like who is this kid we're
sitting with right now? We're like, who is this? And

(45:40):
the next day I think we looked at each other
next morning we're like, oh my god, we love her,
Like she came a leg and from Marco Polo. Marco.
We played Marco Polo. I had never played Marco Polo
more than one round. And then we're like, this is
the dumbest game in the world, and we somehow played
Marco Polo for three hours. Yeah, I remember they shut

(46:01):
the pool down. They kicked us out of the pool.
Do you remember you kept pretending to be like a
sea monster thinking or I don't know, you're like chasing us,
You're Jason. We're like chasing each other. And it was
the time where it was like us like see people
and it was crazy, but okay, for me, it was
so funny. I feel like there's so much. But I
remember this one specific time where we're in the car

(46:24):
and then I think it's like my mom driving, but Linda,
I think you're in the front seat and you're filming
and me and you, Alex, you're just like blasting music
and then like singing our lungs off, even though I
don't sing, like I wasn't even trying to do good,
Like you're just like singing. I was like, wow, like
this is like real family stuff. And like every time
we went to do something and I just I felt
like so comfortable. And then when we acted, I felt

(46:45):
like I could get into character so well. So I
don't know, there was like so much times us becoming
family shows a lot more on camera, you know. We
had we had a lot of challenges that we had
to overcome while we were filming the movie personal and
as a group. You know, I think I think back
a lot of the times. Even after the film, we
ended up recording My Time with You, the Keena Grannis
and David Choy song Shout Out y'all, and I remember

(47:06):
we like I forced Ka to sing and it was
something that you've never done and you're super not You
weren't comfortable with doing it and it wasn't something fun.
You overcame that I had to cry in that final scene,
which like, if it wasn't for you guys being there
and saying like, yo, try this, try that, like think
about this, think about that. It's okay vulnerable, it's okay
to feel like that. It's really become you know, a

(47:27):
scene that a lot of people are like, wow, that
seems awesome, and I think to myself, I totally wouldn't
have happened if it wasn't for you guys, and lindsay
you're just a chicken. Overall, we from scared of heights
to this and that it's it was a lot. I Oh,
that's another thing. When you guys were genuinely worried about
me doing the free fall stunt into the water with

(47:47):
pang um Okay has stunt double. I was like, Yeah,
these guys care about this is the family stuff. They
care about me. But it's just been an amazing opportunity.
And I know that this segment is probably the shortest
out of all of them, but it's just been how
much fun getting to become friends with you. And you
can hear if you're listening to this and you want
to hear more of us all just fooling around with
each other. Uh. There's every interview across the board, from

(48:10):
you know, FBE to to Variety to CNN all of that.
We've done some incredible stuff, which is exactly what we're
gonna talk about for the last segment. We're gonna take
a quick break. We'll be right back. Alright, we are back.
This is let's get into it. I'm alex ion No
and now we got the full squad. We are in
full effect. We got not only Kea, not only Lindsay,

(48:32):
we also got our fearless leader, Jude. Jude, it's time
for you to loosen up a little bit, get a
little get a little crazy with us, because this is
what I like to call boom. Look at me now,
a look at me? Now, oh, number one movie in
the world. That's us, that's literally us, and that's insane.
That's absolutely insane. That's the wildest thing. A bunch three kids,

(48:54):
and including Owen, who was a super experience, but the
three of us, having never booked a movie before, Jude Wang,
having never directed a feature film before, made the number
one movie in America and then the next day the
number one movie in the world. That's absolutely insane. My
first question for all three of you, guys, what is
the craziest thing that has happened to you that you've

(49:17):
that's been said to you, that just made you go,
dang man, we really are that right now? What is that?
What is that moment? For me? I was walking I'm
staying here in Waikiki on Oahu, and I walk oft
into the Alumuana Mall and I remember walking in the
mall and by the way, it's pandemic time. I'm wearing
a mask. I've like I got my full ppe. I'm
staying socially distanced from people, and I couldn't walk five

(49:40):
steps without somebody pointing me out, waving to me, saying something,
asking for a picture. It's it's wild. I'm gonna be honest. Sorry, Chelsea,
I don't know if I'm allowed to say this, but
like to me, I was kind of like, like, it's
only popular because Netflix is like wants it to be
a popular movie. They're just like stat passing and then
we're out here and they're asking for pictures or you
look up to Twitter, like if you just searched the

(50:01):
words finding Ohana, like not the hashtag, not the apt
you just look it up just to see what people
are tweeting about it. You're talking about thirty to forty
beautiful comments, meaningful comments about this. To me, like that
was the moment when I was walking through the mall
and then I checked Twitter. I was like, ha, ha,
what's happen? This is us talk to me nice baby.

(50:21):
So dude, what was your what was your moment that
made you really go wow, Like you got to step
away from expectations or hopes for the movie and go
we did it, like we did it. If there's anything
to say, you've done that, is it okay? Guys? Again?
Tons of like TikTok videos, people crying in gratitude, so

(50:43):
happy about the representation. But when you really feel like
a massive pop cultural trend is when people maybe these
videos on TikTok, like somebody did a lip sync with
Io Wanes line, Um, you know I'm not as strong
as I'm Like I went, I went to one CrossFit class.
It wasn't free, tra I'm say, I'm so sorry, Like

(51:06):
it's just some fan out there who was so charmed
by that line that he's doing that impression of Io
wanna just for this little tick talk. So it's when
I see people and by the way, this isn't anybody famous,
and that those are actually the ractions that I love most.
Like today on YouTube, I think I set you guys

(51:27):
a link. It's this couple who has, you know, a
small following on YouTube, and they review movies and they
talk about movies and they're I think they're like nerd
Safari's what they're called or something like. They don't have
a big following, but their adoration for the movie is
so genuine and so sincere, and they spent so much
time really talking carefully through all the points of the

(51:50):
movie that coincidentally are the points that we care about.
It just goes to show you, like when the movie
takes on a life of its own for other people,
that is such an enjoyment, like so enjoyable for me
to experience, Like, yeah, that's awesome. Make that your own
about Alex Lindsay, you guys are so social media savvy.

(52:12):
I love how you connect with people out there and
connect with fans and can you do all those what
are those called on TikTok when you're like dancing next
to somebody like yeah, I mean, do you know how
much that means to fans? Like that means so much
to people, And it's just awesome that you guys respond
in this way, you know, so anyway, I'm really enjoying

(52:33):
that aspect of it. I love that. Um, Lindsay, you
win the award for most followers added. Since the movie
came out, you have You've become literally everybody's like heart.
You have become like the new basically the new Kelly
who after The Scorpion King came out. Like that's literally
where you are right now, minus the like super scandalous
um like metal bra that that she wore in the

(52:54):
Scorpion King. If you're too young to know what I'm
talking about, I apologize, Um, what's that been? What's the
moment for you? I mean you literally been shouted out
by Megan Trainer. You've literally you've gotten the whole nine
since this movie came out. But what's the moment that
you said yourself like, Okay, Gottle looks a little little
sauce on me right now. Well, obviously geek out moment

(53:17):
for share was when Megan Trainer called me a queen. Um.
That was just something I never expected. And like you said,
it's been super amazing. It's it's hard to choose this
the following that's come with this, and they're just such
positive people, I mean from all around the world. Just
thousands of messages a day. I mean, people doing fan art.

(53:38):
I mean I think just starting period that I have
fans now, like that's just such a foreign concept to me.
And having people constant, I mean they're pouring their hearts
out to me on the daily, just saying how much
they love the movie, how they love me, they can't
wait to see other projects, and so it's just a
weird world to jump into. And yeah, I mean, okay,
blue check marks and and followers. I mean, it's been

(54:01):
weird and getting into it, but it's been awesome because
of response. But I mean, I think for me, the
moment was when Megan Trainer called me a queen, and
and um, you know, it's kind of a moment as
somebody who has also been recognized at one point by
Megan Trainer, I got a big moment for it's a
big moment for it's a big moment for anybody in America.

(54:21):
Um No, it's been it's been so sick getting to
watch you, uh, watch your followers just like just skyrocket,
like absolutely skyrocket. Next thing you know, you're gonna be
doing teeth whitening, brand deals. That's how many followers you've got.
It's a very easy answer for you. You actually you're
actually from the island. Um and obviously Lindsay's from Maui,
but you're from the island that we filmed on, so

(54:42):
you had family that we're coming to set stopping by
you for flying people out. Obviously it's meaningful to you
that the movie came out in general and that you
got to be the star of the movie. But you
also got to celebrate this like by that when you
get back out here, I know you're I think your
mom said that you're planning on coming. I'm literally gonna
I think I'm a go see her tonight, but your
mom said that you guys are planning on coming out

(55:03):
the end of February for her birthday. And I'm just
so excited for you to come out here and feel
what I feel because I feel it. I'm not even
from here, Like people are like, where'd you grow up?
And I'm like, Arizona. Uh So the fact that you're
gonna come out here and you're gonna get to like
just enjoy the things that I enjoy, but you also
get the pride of it being your home. It's amazing.

(55:25):
What has been your moment that you go, wow, like,
this is really I'm the star of the number one
movie in the world. You can't tell me nothing this week. Yeah.
I think it's kind of similar to Jude Dancer, like
all these like TikTok's and videos. I remember this one
specific time. I was on Instagram and I tried to
post as much as I can, and I remember seeing

(55:45):
this like kid or not, this kid like this younger
girl kind of someone like my age, and I rememly
she's like filming yourself watching the movie and I was like, oh,
that's so sweet, and she like zoomed out and it
was like her whole family watching it and like all
these people like see them, and then it's like they're
having barbecues. Like some of my friends, like they post
on their TikTok they have like barbecues with their family.

(56:07):
So it's like a lot of people and it's on
like the projector, and I mean seeing all of that,
it's like really inspiring and it's like when it really
hits me the most, like wow, like we really did that.
And also another time when so when it first came out,
my mom had a mini premiere party and when we
were watching it, I remember like I had to do
a little speech towards the end, and I got up

(56:28):
and I turned around and like seeing everyone and that
was like, oh my god, like wow, like it's really real.
I don't know. There's so much moments. It still happens
till this day, and my mom FaceTime me with her
friend and like all of her kids were like hi,
and I was like Hi, it's crazy and it's only
going to it's only going to grow from here um
and and it's so it's been so amazing seeing this

(56:49):
last week, Like I feel so good. And at first
I kind of was like, oh, like be humble like
I was like, oh, be humble, like you know whatever.
And by the end of the week, I was like,
you know what humbles for Monday, Baby, I'm going crazy
this week. I'm going wild this week. Um. I have
one last question before we get into our wrap up,

(57:09):
and that question is big question. Have you question you
might not have an answer, sequel. I think that is
a good question. I think all of us, I don't know.
I don't know anybody who doesn't want a sequel. Everybody
I talked to once a sequel, the cast, the crew, fans.
I would love a sequel, um. And I hope it's

(57:30):
in the stars. And I think, you know, I think
Netflix is gonna probably look at you know, our viewership,
and I'm sure they also have you know, the rest
of the slate to look at what that, what else
they have coming up and so but fingers crossed, that
would be a dream come true. Lindsay kaa trying to

(57:50):
run it back. We're trying to do it again times too. Yes,
I love for real. If you're listening to this, the
way that we can continue to uh strengthen our argument
to have a sequel is about you guys continuing to
watch it, rating it um all across the board, whether
it's on Rotten Tomatoes, whether it's on IMDb, creating account

(58:11):
makes and cheer rate it. Um. We we got a
we got a really nice, strong rating right now, and
we gotta keep that going. And by the way, if
fans want a sequel, I think not only everything you
said um and posting about it, it's really about the
word of mouth. That word of mouth is so essential, right,
So if you love the movie, you tell somebody else,
Oh my god, you've got to see this film. Hopefully

(58:31):
that's already happening. Um. So I don't hopefully, you know,
we don't need to ask, but I think that's what's
it's going to take in order to get a sequel. Yeah,
download O. By the way, Jude's got the movie on
the background. It's my crying scene. I'm feeling like I'm
feeling I know that it's just a crying scene, but
I'm feeling like Leonardo DiCaprio and the Revenue Your tears

(58:53):
fell so perfectly like at the right, and it was
to shout outs to the tear stick for putting that
putting that menthol in my eyes and making me drop
those babies. Uh, thank you, thank you for for for
pulling up and and and being on the podcast. You
guys already, you guys know how I feel about you.
I'm so lucky that I've been able to create not

(59:16):
just friendships, but full blown family relationships with with all
of you guys, and and really get to know that
I can not just rely on you guys, but I
can come to you guys if I need anything, and
we can celebrate each other's winds and and be there
for each other, uh in our lows. So I really
love each and every one of you guys, and I'm
so grateful, and I'm so hyped um for whatever comes

(59:36):
next with us, whether it's a sequel or it's just
the careers that follow this awesome movie. The last bit
that we do, it's called shameless promo. I used to
call it not so shameless promo, but then I realized
it is shameless. We are shameless about it, So it's
shameless promo Time is where I want you to shout
out your social media. Lindsay you're not allowed. You've gotten
too many followers this week. Shout out your social media

(59:58):
is something that you're working on, whatever you want where
people can find you. It's time for you to just
be shameless and promote yourself. Kaya. I think you've got
a good grip on this, so tell us where we
can find you. You can find me anywhere. Basically, you
could just search up my name. Who you can find
on Instagram, TikTok, Facebook, Twitter, So if you just search
up my name, then you'll be able to find me,

(01:00:19):
all right, Lindsay. Yeah, apparently you can just search up
my name Lindsay Watson, and I think of you. Just
say her name three times, it just automatically pops up
on your series. It's great. It's like beatle Juice. I'm
primarily on Instagram, but I'm trying to learn how to
do Twitter. Very confusing, by the way. Um and then TikTok,

(01:00:40):
I'm coming free you. I got a million views on
a TikTok. Yeah you were wild. You have viral on
a little TikTok. I was in it. So I'm I'm
gonna be there with you, like I'm gonna celebrate it
like we're there together. Jude Jude Wang. My favorite thing
you post is filmmaker female filmmaker Friday's It's It's absolutely incredible.
Representation matters, not just in culture, but also in in

(01:01:02):
across the board all genders, all sexualities, all people, and
you continue to fight for all of that. Where can
we find you so that we can see more of
your female filmmaker Fridays. My name is so easy to spell,
Jude wayge w E n G. And you can find
me on Twitter and Instagram and um. And what I'm
doing next is actually I'm working on a movie for Amazon,

(01:01:22):
which we'll'll be doing with our wonderful ian Bryce are
wonderful producer. Uh. It's going to start Aquafina and Karen
Jillen uh and figures cross. Hopefully we'll go into pre
production this year. And then I'm also directing a couple
of episodes of a new Netflix series called God's Favorite Idiot,
and that's with Ben Falcone and Melissa McCarthy. So I'll

(01:01:43):
be going to Australia in a few months to go
do a couple of episodes of that. You're an absolute star.
You're just it's just amazing. It's incredible, Like the fact
that I get to be like I have, like just
the fact that I have your phone number. That's really
wild to me. Like I could just call you. I
can just call you. You know where you can find
me at alex ion O A I O n oh

(01:02:05):
the best part about having a weird last name. But
more importantly, make sure you rate this podcast. This podcast,
this is the season finale. Might be a little encore
action you never know, but this is our season finale
episode and I wouldn't want to share it with anybody
else than my favorite people of and my favorite People one.
I mean, we're just continuing the vibes. Make sure you
listen to our podcast. You go back and listen to

(01:02:26):
the episodes you haven't listened to give it a rating.
Like it. You can subscribe to it. You could tell
your friends about it. It's gonna be amazing. But more importantly,
make sure you watch Finding Ohana on Netflix and tell
your friends all about it as well. I love you, guys.
I'll talk to you guys next time.
Advertise With Us

Popular Podcasts

On Purpose with Jay Shetty

On Purpose with Jay Shetty

I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!

Stuff You Should Know

Stuff You Should Know

If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.

Dateline NBC

Dateline NBC

Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com

Music, radio and podcasts, all free. Listen online or download the iHeart App.

Connect

© 2025 iHeartMedia, Inc.