Amandla Stenberg, Nick Robinson, Anika Noni Rose Talk ‘Everything, Everything’ At NY Premiere

Have you ever felt trapped?

For Maddy (Amandla Stenberg), she is constantly trapped by her illness. Yet, Olly (Nick Robinson) is determined to bring the rest of the world to her, in the newest romance film Everything, Everything out May 19.

The tragic, yet intense romance between two young lovers unravels a story about the magnitude of our choices. Would you choose love over life?

We sat down with the some of the cast of Everything, Everything at a special VIP screening at the Metrograph in New York City to discuss what it was like to play such characters.

How do you prepare yourself to play the role of such a complex character?

Amandla Stenberg: What’s really special about my character is her innocence because she hasn’t actually experienced the world. I think she has a perspective that’s a lot smaller than the average person’s, but in that way it’s kind of like a child’s. And that it’s very wise. So I think that she has a levity to her and an energy that is very light, very joyous. When preparing for it I was thinking those terms. We wanted to make the movie feel very naturalistic, but it’s also a fantasy. And so we didn’t want to make it too depressing. If we were to place this story more in reality, it would be really sad. We wanted to make something that was in the same tone of the book, which is very light. When it comes to Maddy, we made her reflect that.

Amandla Stenberg

How did you find a little bit of yourself to put into the character?

Nick Robinson: Olly is a very naturally curious person. He is someone who is always looking for a new adventure, a new thing, a new person to meet. I think him and I have that quality that we share. We are trying to be more open to life.

Are you open to love at this age?

Nick Robinson: Yes absolutely, I think love can find you at any age.

What brought to a romance genre, versus the plethora of different movies you played in so far?

Anika Noni Rose: It’s interesting because for me it’s not a romance. It’s the romance between a mother and daughter. It’s the love between a mother and her child. I have yet to do a romance. What brought me to it is that the story is very interesting. I think it’s much more multilayered than we think it is. At the same time it’s also very tender, and very intimate. Yet, without focusing on the physical.

Anika Noni Rose

Did you use your relationship with your mother as inspiration for the role?

Anika Noni Rose:   “No because I think it’s very, very different, but I think that the things we take form our parents we always carry with us. And that informs how we mother, whether its fantasy mothering or real life mothering. So I am sure there are bits of her in there somewhere. My mother and I, we talk everyday. So it’s somebody that I know. And I have always been free to speak to my mind and be myself. I am very thankful for that.”