WAMG Interview: Three of the Stars of EVERYBODY WANTS SOME!!

Twenty-three years after the beloved cult classic DAZED AND CONFUSED was released, writer/director Richard Linklater is giving us a spiritual sequel in the form of EVERYBODY WANTS SOME!! which opens in theatres April 8th. While DAZED AND CONFUSED gave us a very slice of life look at High School in the 70s at the end of the school year, EVERYBODY WANTS SOME!! gives us a brief glimpse of College in the 80s at the beginning of the semester for a group of freshman. Set in 1980, the film follows the hilarious shenanigans of a Texas college baseball team during the weekend before class starts. We Are Movie Geeks caught up with three of the cast members ahead of the movie’s release. Blake Jenner (Jake), Tyler Hoechlin (McReynolds) and Ryan Guzman (Roper) sat down with Tom Stockman to talk about their film and what’s it’s like working for Richard Linklater.

Interview conducted by Tom Stockman April 4th, 2016

We Are Movie Geeks: Congratulations on EVERYBODY WANTS SOME!! It’s excellent and I think a movie that’s gonna live on for a long time.

Blake Jenner: Thanks a lot.

Ryan Guzman: Yes, we’re excited about it.

WAMG: What does everybody want? What does that title mean?

Tyler Hoechlin: I think it means that, when you first go off to school, there’s never a time where you more want a piece of the world for yourself. It’s a time in your life when you’re sort of naïve but you’re full of enough arrogance that you think you can do anything.

BJ: Yes, there are so many options about what you can do and who you can be. You kind of use the excuse that you’re finding yourself as an excuse to do whatever the heck you want.

WAMG: Was that the title of the film while you were filming it?

TH: No, THAT’S WHAT I’M TALKING ABOUT was the title while we were filming it.

WAMG: But that’s not a van Halen song.

RG: But the title we chose has two exclamation points so that makes it special.

WAMG: You guys have great chemistry in the movie. How did that work? Did you guys all live together?

BJ: Yes, we lived in this cabin all together for about two weeks. Bunkbeds and everything.

WAMG: Who was the most obnoxious to live with?

BJ: Tyler!

RG: Tyler, yes! What a prima donna that guy is!

WAMG: Who was the class clown?

BJ: Everybody had their moments.

TH: You can tell we don’t take each other seriously.

WAMG: How did you guys get cast in the film.?

RG: There was something of a three-round process. First there was an interview where we had to figure out who we were in high school and college. Then there was some videos of us to see if we could play baseball. Things like batting cages and pitching contest.

WAMG: Were you guys fans of Richard Linklater’s films before you heard about this project?

TH: Oh yes, but I rewatched all of his films when I was going to audition.

BJ: Yes, I think BOYHOOD is just an awesome film.

WAMG: What was the most interesting thing that you guys learn about the 1980s from making this film?

RG: How short the shorts were!

TH: Yes, those left nothing to the imagination! It’s like Rick said on the set; ‘the more things change the more they stay the same’. Other than the clothes and some of the music, to him it was just a universal, timeless thing of guys being guys and getting to know each other.

BJ: That type of camaraderie isn’t much different today than it was back in the 80s. But Rick is the one who had the background on the 1980s.

WAMG: Was there a lot of improvisation?

BJ: Not really, Not in the sense of the written word. But there was some improv during rehearsal, and of course that eventually made its way into the script but by the time we were filming we stuck to the written word.

TH: The three-week rehearsal was kind of a workshop. We could improvise and try things out and if we liked that it may or may not have ended up in the script. There are only a couple of moments in the final film that I would say are improvised.

WAMG: What do you guys think about the positive reception this film has received?

BJ: We’re very humbled.

TH: Yes, it’s great.

WAMG: What were your college experiences like compared to your characters?

TH: I don’t remember. It’s all a blur! Ryan and I both did play college baseball so a bit of it was going back to the glory days and reliving that life but I got to have a different kind of fun for this one.

RG: I was always hyper-aware of the consequences of partying like that in college. This experience reminded me of all that.

BJ: I didn’t go to college. I went straight from high school to LA to pursue acting so making this movie was like the freshman experience for me. But I did have a lot of experience playing football and basketball

RG: Blake is deceptively strong. You can’t tell but he has massive muscles under that shirt.

WAMG: Was there a mustache wrangler on the set?

BJ: Yes I think Tyler’s mustache had so much personality that it needed its own SAG card!

WAMG: What’s next for you guys?

TH: Well, just this press tour but I think I’m in a good spot where I can wait for my next project. But this has been such a great experience, being part of a project that I can truly believe in.

RG: I have a couple of offers and projects up in the air right now I just need to see were one lands. I just shot a pilot for ABC about the true story of Wendy Walker and Mike Geragos who used to work for Michael Jackson. It’s about his trial. I’m also working on a project about Robert Guerrero, the Mexican American boxer who won four different titles while his wife was suffering from cancer.

BJ: I shot a movie for producer James L Brooks called EDGE OF 17. And I’m working on a project that I wrote called BILLY BOY.

WAMG: Congrats again on EVERYBODY WANTS SOME!! And good luck with all of your future projects.