Wardrobe stylist: Elicia Jefferson
*It’s not often that when you’re cast in a Hollywood rom-com and get to craft elements of the role after yourself, but that’s just what happened with Spencer Stevenson.
The actor stars alongside Kaitlyn Dever, Sean Teale, Isabel Merced, and more in the 20th Century Studios film “Rosaline,” a comedic retelling of the classic tale of “Romeo and Juliet.” Check out the trailer below.
In this version, we see the story from the perspective of Romeo’s ex and are introduced to a few characters that weren’t the focus in Shakespeare’s original. One of those characters is “Paris,” portrayed by Stevenson. Count Paris is one of Rosaline’s best friends and attempts to help her win Romeo back.
Stevenson shared exclusively with EUR the story of his dream casting, which found him having to get his passport in less than a week for his first trip out of the United States.
READ MORE: Minnie Driver Talks Being The Voice of Reason in New Romcom ‘Rosaline’ | EUR Exclusive
The Dallas, TX native shared that he was the last to be cast for the film. He felt the cast and opportunity were initially too big of a chance to believe he would get the role.
Stevenson shared, “It seemed way ahead of me like I was like, There’s no way I’m looking this going to Italy, it’s not happening. But I saw that Kaitlyn had been cast. And then Isabela and Kyle are next. And so then I did my audition, sent it. And then, a week later, I got an email from the director and was like, Hey, let’s do a director session. And then it was another two weeks of the same thing with Karen and the casting directors. I got the offer on the last Wednesday of July, and I needed to be in Italy the following weekend. I had no passport. So yeah, it was a little chaotic.”
Stevenson also explained that he was given a lot of creative freedom with Paris. He was allowed to rewrite lines and provide insight into shaping the character.
“They gave me so much creative freedom; how would Spencer say this rather than what the writers did, because they also let me know that two cis white men wrote it and didn’t have the same experience as me. They’re phenomenal writers, and I love them so much. But they said we don’t know all from that background,” he explained. “So you can do whatever you want to do in this moment. And at the end of the day, we’ll figure out what works and doesn’t. It meant a lot. ‘Rosaline’ is my first big role. So I’m so grateful for them letting me bring my version of Paris and everyone else relating and loving him.”
Check out my full conversation with Stevenson via the clip below.
“Rosaline” is currently streaming on Hulu.
*Jill Munroe is a Los Angeles-bred entertainment journalist, producer, and host. You can follow her on all social media @StilettoJill or check out JillMunroe.com
We Publish News 24/7. Don’t Miss A Story. Click HERE to SUBSCRIBE to Our Newsletter Now!
