Denny Love discusses turning John Green’s popular book into a Hulu limited series, saying, “Everything [the fans] love is already in the show, but it’s also some new stuff I think people will fall in love with.”
00:07I'm Tiffany Taylor for The Hollywood Reporter,
00:09and I'm here with Denny Love.
00:11He plays the Colonel in Hulu's new miniseries,
00:13Looking for Alaska.
00:14Yeah.
00:15So what made you want to take on this part?
00:17When I got the first audition for the episode,
00:21or for the series, I was just so taken away by the story.
00:24And actually, at the time, I just was,
00:27I had this feeling that something big was on the horizon.
00:30You know, I was like, I think I'm going to book like a series this year.
00:33I was super excited about it.
00:34I was writing it down in my journal every day.
00:36Then once I got the audition, I remember telling a friend,
00:39I was like, I think I just found my next, that project.
00:42And they were like, oh, what is it called?
00:44I'm like, it's called like, Trying to Find Alaska.
00:46Something about Alaska.
00:48And they were like, is it Looking for Alaska?
00:50Oh my God, I love that book.
00:52Then I was like, oh, okay.
00:53So I instantly went to Barnes & Noble, got the book.
00:56I read it in like, a day.
00:58And at that point, I was like, this story is something I have to be a part of.
01:01As you said, the book means a lot to a lot of people.
01:03Definitely.
01:04And also, it took 14 years to get the story from the book, yes, onto screen.
01:09So while you were making it, did you feel pressure to do right by the fans,
01:12but also by the people who put so much time into it?
01:15Yeah, definitely.
01:16It was a beautiful thing, I think, that everybody was so passionate about the project.
01:21Not just the actors, but the crew.
01:22I mean, I think I was lucky to not know how big it was.
01:26So I was just able to approach it with like, you know, just a passion I would bring to any project.
01:31But I did understand the weight of it.
01:33The only time I felt a crazy amount of pressure was when John Green came to set.
01:38It was the first day on set I had to, the viewers would know the scene where I had to spell out coffee table.
01:44It's in the book.
01:45It's really just a random big part of it.
01:47And I could not spell table right.
01:50I think I spelled tabelle like three times.
01:52Because I was like, I cannot talk and John's here and move my hands.
01:57It was overwhelming.
01:58But once I got past the fear of John, then I was able to just like, dive into the work.
02:04What's up, scrub?
02:05You grow the summer bud?
02:06You have to excuse them, Pudge, if they had everything in life handed to them.
02:09Looks like we're going to war.
02:11And now your character, the Colonel, is a really deep and layered character, I would say.
02:14Yeah.
02:15Because he's sarcastic and funny, but also really smart and comes from this tough upbringing.
02:19Definitely.
02:20So how did you try to portray all those layers?
02:22Well, when I first read it, I did feel like the Colonel was the comic relief of the book.
02:27But I felt that, where does all of that come from?
02:32That was where I was diving into, because usually humor is a mask for more deeper rooted things that people deal with.
02:38And I was super interested in that, because if you read him on page, he just seems like a funny, angry guy.
02:44I think you will really get to see the heart of who this character is, because we get to dive deeper into his story.
02:50Ooh, hot damn. I didn't think you could look any more handsome.
02:54The Colonel really took Pudge under his wing right away and immediately made him a part of the crew.
02:59Definitely.
03:00Have you ever had a time in your own life when someone took you under their wing or vice versa?
03:04Definitely. Definitely. I grew up playing sports, so I had so many coaches that, you know, took me under their wings and made sure that I felt included.
03:14And they were kind of my role models in a lot of ways, because I don't know if y'all can tell by this chair, but I am small.
03:19Okay? So a lot of times, we had like A and B teams. The A team was always the good kids, the B team was like the kids that weren't always that good.
03:29But somehow I always made the A team, and I don't think I was supposed to be on it, because I only ever won like, you know, the Team Spirit Awards.
03:39Like I had the Team Spirit, which basically means you're not that good, but we love having you around.
03:44I'm short too, but...
03:45What are you, about five? Five?
03:47Do you want to guess?
03:48Five four, five five?
03:49I'm five three, I'm five three.
03:50Okay, yeah, you in the short family?
03:51Yeah, see, we're here.
03:52Yeah, team.
03:53Did you do...
03:54I did a whole thing.
03:55You definitely...
03:56We made up a handshake just now.
03:57Did anybody see that? I wasn't there for it, but I saw you.
04:00It just happened, I just didn't even think about it.
04:02Who's that?
04:03Alaska Young.
04:04Alaska?
04:05My reputation precedes me.
04:07Now, in the show, it's all a whole cast of young people, and it seems like you guys had so much fun on screen.
04:14Oh man, we had a ball.
04:15Now, speaking of the cast, I want to play a little game of who in the cast is most likely to.
04:20Okay, okay.
04:21I'll give you all my honest answers.
04:23Please do, please do.
04:24Okay.
04:25Who in the cast was most likely to keep everyone laughing and in good spirits on set?
04:28Charlie Plummer.
04:30Charlie Plummer.
04:31Or Christine too.
04:33Christine is hilarious.
04:34Charlie got mad at me once because I did an interview and I said Christine was the funniest person on the show.
04:39He's like, what?
04:40I'm like, they battle.
04:42It depends on your sense of humor, but Charlie and Christine.
04:45Most likely to forget their lines.
04:47Ooh.
04:48Probably me, because I improvise a lot.
04:52So that's, I'm always like throwing stuff in when I should just say the lines correctly.
04:57Like I'll just be, it's probably me.
04:59Most likely to laugh during a scene.
05:02Christine, for sure.
05:04Christine, for sure.
05:07I feel like you would be the one making her laugh.
05:09Exactly, yeah.
05:10And most likely to organize a cast hangout or outing.
05:13Landry Bender.
05:15Landry is always down to have a little sporad, have a kickback.
05:19And she's really good at starting those group chats, organizing, making sure everybody knows where to be, what to bring.
05:24Landry, for sure.
05:25You always need that person, the corral everybody.
05:27You do.
05:28You do need the corraler.
05:29Is that a word?
05:30Corraler?
05:31We're making it one.
05:32Corraler.
05:33Alright, we back at it.
05:34See, I got it that time.
05:35Ooh.
05:36Now we have it down.
05:37We have a thing.
05:38All the short people in the world.
05:39That's our thing now.
05:40Well, Denny, thank you so much for talking to me.
05:41Yeah, thank you.
05:42And make sure to watch Looking for Alaska, which is now streaming on Hulu.
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