Cazzie David and Ray Nicholson.Photo:FilmMagic; Phillip Faraone/Getty
FilmMagic; Phillip Faraone/Getty
Ray Nicholsonwas willing to go to some dark places for his latest role.Cazzie David, 30, and her co-director and co-writer Elisa Kalani recently spoke with PEOPLE about collaborating with Nicholson, 32, onI Love You Forever, the pair’s directorial debut. The drama follows a young woman named Mackenzie (Sofia Black-D’Elia) whose seemingly perfect relationship with Finn (Nicholson) crumbles as Finn’s abusive and toxic personality traits begin to rise to the surface.“We talked to a lot of guys and a lot of them were not up for the task of portraying this toxic guy, because they don’t wanna be seen in that light,” David says. “There’s so many reasons, but he was brave enough to be like, ‘Oh no, I’m so game.’ We just had a lot of respect for that.“I Love You Foreverblends humorous commentary on today’s dating world with harrowing scenes showing the disturbing underbelly of the lead characters' picture-perfect relationship. In those troubling scenes, Ray evokes something akin to his fatherJack Nicholson’s performance in the 1980 classicThe Shining.“Truly, most guys did not want to do this role even though it’s such a great role for an actor, but he was so game and that was really awesome,” David adds of casting the challenging role. Her longtime friend and filmmaking partner Kalani notes that other actors may not have wanted to feel associated with the character.Sofia Black-D’Elia and Ray Nicholson in I Love You Forever.courtesy of Entertainment 360 and Utopia"I just remember thinking, ‘Whoa, that guy’s energy is really magnetic,’ like there’s just something about him,” David says of meeting Nicholson."[Ray] was like ‘Oh, I know people [who] have lived through this guy,’ " she says. “He was able to have this look in his eye that I was like ‘Yeah, he has it.’ I think he’s such a movie star.“Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.Sofia Black-D’Elia and Cazzie David in I Love You Forever.courtesy of Entertainment 360 and Utopia"To have someone who came in with a knowledge or like an eagerness to learn more about it, that was super important because there’s just so much complexity to the topic,” she adds of Nicholson’s devotion to his performance. “And he was really like, ‘I wanna read books on this,’ and he really went for it.“I Love You Foreveris playing in select theaters and streaming now.
Ray Nicholsonwas willing to go to some dark places for his latest role.
Cazzie David, 30, and her co-director and co-writer Elisa Kalani recently spoke with PEOPLE about collaborating with Nicholson, 32, onI Love You Forever, the pair’s directorial debut. The drama follows a young woman named Mackenzie (Sofia Black-D’Elia) whose seemingly perfect relationship with Finn (Nicholson) crumbles as Finn’s abusive and toxic personality traits begin to rise to the surface.
“We talked to a lot of guys and a lot of them were not up for the task of portraying this toxic guy, because they don’t wanna be seen in that light,” David says. “There’s so many reasons, but he was brave enough to be like, ‘Oh no, I’m so game.’ We just had a lot of respect for that.”
I Love You Foreverblends humorous commentary on today’s dating world with harrowing scenes showing the disturbing underbelly of the lead characters' picture-perfect relationship. In those troubling scenes, Ray evokes something akin to his fatherJack Nicholson’s performance in the 1980 classicThe Shining.
“Truly, most guys did not want to do this role even though it’s such a great role for an actor, but he was so game and that was really awesome,” David adds of casting the challenging role. Her longtime friend and filmmaking partner Kalani notes that other actors may not have wanted to feel associated with the character.
Sofia Black-D’Elia and Ray Nicholson in I Love You Forever.courtesy of Entertainment 360 and Utopia
courtesy of Entertainment 360 and Utopia
“I just remember thinking, ‘Whoa, that guy’s energy is really magnetic,’ like there’s just something about him,” David says of meeting Nicholson."[Ray] was like ‘Oh, I know people [who] have lived through this guy,’ " she says. “He was able to have this look in his eye that I was like ‘Yeah, he has it.’ I think he’s such a movie star.”
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
Sofia Black-D’Elia and Cazzie David in I Love You Forever.courtesy of Entertainment 360 and Utopia
“To have someone who came in with a knowledge or like an eagerness to learn more about it, that was super important because there’s just so much complexity to the topic,” she adds of Nicholson’s devotion to his performance. “And he was really like, ‘I wanna read books on this,’ and he really went for it.”
I Love You Foreveris playing in select theaters and streaming now.
source: people.com
