Our Marvelous Mrs. Maisel Is Closer Than Ever To Achieving Her Dreams

Maisy Stella And Megan Park Loved Working With Aubrey Plaza

"I just remember there was a YouTube video of her that you showed me," says director Megan Park. "I don't know which one it was, but...this is, I think, where the kiss idea of the touching the ass [the scene that mentions the movie's title] came in because you were like 'God, she's so hot.'"

"Working with Aubrey was truly the coolest thing I'll ever get to do," Maisy adds. "I'm such a huge fan of her and have been forever. And so when I found out it was her doing it, I think I did a standing backflip."

Even though Aubrey Plaza was only on set for a week or two, she was able to form a real connection with Maisy, which is the mark of "the most genius actors" for Megan. "They didn't have a lot of time together, but they were so good at the time they did have together, just really being open and vulnerable and building that chemistry really quickly," she says. "Maisy has an older sister, Aubrey has younger sisters. So there was a kind of a natural dynamic that they fell into and you have really similar energies and similar senses of humor that just were such a great match."

During their conversation, Aubrey Plaza's Elliot gives Maisy Stella some serious life advice, and the movie really got Maisy and Megan to consider what advice they would give their younger selves. (They both adamantly express they don't want to know the future).

"Just to be a little more like alert and more present," Maisy says. "I think as a kid, I was like super unaware and in a way that was like beautiful but also like, I wasn't really seeing, I was kind of just looking around. Honestly I would tell my younger self what Aubrey told [my] Elliott in the movie."

"The message of the movie and that time goes by so quickly — it's not forever, everything changes all the time," Megan says. "Just a gentle reminder. But also I think it would be beautiful to go back and meet your younger self. That's such a therapeutic thing and just be reminded of the pace of your life back then."

"Not to be a monster, but I would definitely be like 'invest in Apple!'" she jokingly adds. Megan's sense of humor totally shines through the movie, and it can be summed up in the scene that shows us Elliot's youngest brother has a wall completely covered in photos of Saoirse Ronan.

Maisy Stella And Megan Park Spill On That Justin Bieber Dance Sequence

"You know, it's funny, now I'm like, 'I want to put pictures of my kids,'" Megan says. "I have a new baby so I'm in very mom mode. Just obsessed with my children. I've been away from them a lot for work, so I could gladly live in a bedroom just smothered of photos of my children all over every square."

"Maddie Ziegler," Maisy says when I ask who she'd dedicate a wall to. "Maddie Ziegler is literally my answer...Yeah, I could go into who I would have on my wall, but I'm going to keep it at that." (ICYMI, Maisy seemingly went Instagram official with The Last of Us star Bella Ramsey in September).

Another hilarious moment comes when Elliot starts imagining a Justin Bieber concert...with herself as Justin. But has the global sensation seen the video?! "I've been waiting for my phone to ring and it hasn't yet," Maisy jokes. "I actually, like, never want him to see it. Ever. I know his team had to approve of it, but I don't know if he approved of it. It could have been them on his behalf, he's a busy man."

But with moments of levity comes serious and relatable issues that mark this movie as a coming of age film: family pressure, financial stress, and devastating relationships. The story is impactful as a viewer, but even more so for the team involved in making it.

"The months after [filming] my whole life had just kind of shifted and everything kind of rose to the top," Maisy says. "It changed so much of how I think and how I actively live, and I feel like it kind of did that for a lot of the people that were on the set honestly, just because it was such a like specific experience with such a loud message and so much nostalgia that I really took it all and kept it inside."

"It set the bar pretty high, both personally and creatively, in terms of what I want that next set experience to be like," Megan adds. "Working with people that you really care about that [become] like family. It really was a beautiful, hopefully not rare, but it was a really therapeutic, wonderful, just like ego-less environment that was so creative and so fun and healing."

Where can I watch Cruel Intentions TV show?

Cruel Intentions Release Date

All eight episodes of Cruel Intentions drop on Prime Video November 21, 2024. That means you can watch them all in one sitting (and then watch them again...and again) or you can spread them out over Thanksgiving week. Is there anything better than watching a new TV show with a cranberry cocktail? I think not.

Did they remake Cruel Intentions?

Cruel Intentions Plot

Yes, the Cruel Intentions TV show is a remake of the 1999 movie! This new adaptation takes place at a prestigious college in Washington, D.C. Step-siblings Caroline Merteuil and Lucien Belmont are determined to stay on top of the food chain — especially after a dangerous frat hazing threatens to eliminate the school's Greek Life. The best way to keep the sororities and fraternities on campus? Seduce the most unexpected sorority sister: Vice President's daughter Annie Grover.

Who's in Cruel Intentions?

Cruel Intentions Cast

Prime Video's new Cruel Intentions is full of standout actors, and I can't wait to see their moment in the spotlight! The cast includes Sarah Catherine Hook as Caroline Merteuil, Zac Burgess as Lucien Belmont, Savannah Lee Smith as Annie Grover, Sara Silva as Cece Carroway, John Harlan Kim as Blaise Powell, Khobe Clarke as Scott Russell, Sean Patrick Thomas as Professor Hank Chadwick, and Brooke Lena Johnson as Beatrice Worth.

The original Cruel Intentions movie stars Sarah Michelle Gellar, Ryan Phillippe, Reese Witherspoon, and Selma Blair. While there's no word on whether any of the OG cast will return, I'd love nothing more than to see Reese make a cameo! Selma told Variety on October 24 that even though she hadn't been asked to join the series, she'd love to make an appearance. "Maybe there will be a cameo or something," she says. "I’m excited to see it.”

​In which episode does JJ die?

JJ dies at the end of Outer Banks season 4 episode 10, "The Blue Crown" after rescuing Kiara from his father Chandler Groff. "I feel mad, betrayed, disappointed and heartbroken to say the least," Bruder adds. "JJ went through a lot of crap through the show and he was the one character who deserved his happy ending the most. When the series first came out, people fell in love with JJ and [Kiara]."

While the cast obviously found out about the ending while filming, fans are frustrated with how they chose to promote the show. "Obviously the cast can’t spoil a character death, but to blatantly lie and mislead fans by saying that Jiara was 'evergrowing' and fans would be happy with how the season plays out?" Bruder says. "Jiara fans deserved so much better than what we got, ESPECIALLY when they knew they were killing JJ off."

Why are Outer Banks fans so upset?

The show is the kind of phenomenon that made instant stars out of its cast, but it also made waves because of how the first season portrayed issues like classism, substance abuse, and domestic abuse. "As someone who has been around domestic abuse, I think the handling of the character JJ was detrimental culturally," another fan (who would like to remain anonymous) says. "The character suffered abuse at the hands of a man who was not even his biological father, and the writers almost framed it as if that was okay because in the beginning, his father loved him. Instead of telling a story to victims of abuse about hope and making it through trials, the writers went the opposite way. I also find it interesting that they stated this was a planned death. I think writing a character who is suffering from anxiety and clear mental health issues as well as abuse who is very young like JJ only to let him fall in love and kill him right when he starts to feel happiness doesn’t necessarily make a lot of sense narratively."

Another viewer adds that ending JJ's story that way felt "disrespectful...especially when in an interview following the episode, one of the creators literally referred to his death as pointless." She even says "it feels almost like the show died along with him."

Actress Madelyn Cline (Sarah Cameron) called JJ the "heart of Outer Banks"and for a lot of fans, JJ also became a beacon of hope, a reminder that you can endure, persevere, and come out stronger on the other side. Since the first season of the show dropped during April 2020, it's been one consistent, fun thing for TV fans since the COVID-19 pandemic began, which makes the loss feel even greater.

"Seeing him die at the hands of another abusive father was honestly kind of sickening," the viewer adds. "It’s also unfortunate that his death didn’t seem to mean anything. A character death like this would be one thing if it meant something. If he had died protecting his friends or actively protecting Kiara, rather than having already saved her and then getting killed afterward, it might’ve be easier to get past."

"It’s like a connection to something good and steady was just broken," X user @onlykiep4l says. "Killing a character that has literally gone trough so much trauma and was finally happy just doesn’t make sense. It’s not just the character that’s gone — it feels like a part of the show has ended too."

Why does JJ get killed off?

Rumors have been circulating for years about behind-the-scenes drama between actors Rudy Pankow and Madison Bailey, which has fans believing Rudy asked to be written off the show(for the record, Outer Banks creators Josh & Jonas Pate and Shannon Burke have said it was the plan from the beginning). With Rudy's exit, the writers had a difficult choice in front of them. JJ isn't the kind of guy to abandon his friends, meaning the writers obviously felt like killing him was the only option. But according to an additional viewer, "Outer Banks hasn't been that type of show."

"To attempt to turn this fun, summer, boat show into some dark, depressing story where the heart of the show is gone destroys everything that the show started out as," she says.

Another anonymous fan calls the choice "a character assassination," adding other moments from the season that feel like a different character than the one fans have come to love: barely reacting to John B. and Sarah's pregnancy announcement, or to the fact Rafe had come to talk to Kiara — especially after his reaction to Rafe catcalling Kie in the first season is a moment that led fans to ship them in the first place.

The fan continues by calling JJ's treatment a "lack of respect" toward the character. "The fact that the writers tried to make us dislike him, to soften the blow of him dying. It didn’t work. It has everyone distraught because many people’s favorite character ended up dying after 'finding happiness' for about 10 minutes in Episode 10."

​Does Sarah get pregnant in Outer Banks season 4?

But JJ's death isn't the only moment that has fans reeling. In addition to the fact viewers are saying the Pogues barely reacted to the death of their lifelong best friend, Pope is now a murderer and Kiara makes an absolutely chilling vow to get revenge on Groff — a far cry from the characters we fell in love with in season 1.

"Outside of the JJ of it all, a lot of plot lines/dynamics in part 2 felt off," one of our anonymous fans continues. "Sarah’s pregnancy plot line, especially when coupled with the quote from a creator about ‘giving her a baby specifically because she wasn’t ready’ feels incredibly tone deaf given the current state of things here in the US. The fact that there wasn’t even a conversation of if she wanted to continue with the pregnancy felt very icky. Overall, episodes 1-4 of this season did feel like Outer Banks, but everything after that felt like it was from an entirely different piece of media."

However, some fans are excited to see where the show goes from here. "JJ was such a strong character and his presence will obviously be missed, [but] I am excited to see how the Pogues react and what they do to get revenge on Groff," Virginia McGrew says in an email. "I also think that the scene of JJ dying with Kiara was extremely well done and emotional, making his passing even sadder. I ultimately believe that JJ’s passing serves as a reminder of the themes the show."

"JJ made the group even more aware of friendship, the importance of chosen family, and loyalty, which was seen throughout the season and especially in the finale," she continues. "Now that he is gone, the other Pogues will have to step up even more, creating a shift in their dynamic. While many believe that Outer Banks might not be worth watching after this finale, I truly think that it is only going to get even deeper and more interesting."