The first ever British Original series heading to Disney+ is “Wedding Season”, which is a genre-busting series tells the story of Katie and Stefan who fall for each other at a wedding and begin an affair, despite Katie already having a fiancé. Two months later at Katie’s wedding, her new husband and his entire family are murdered. The police think Stefan did it. Stefan thinks Katie did it. And no one knows for sure what the truth is… The series is an action-packed romp across the UK and the US as Katie and Stefan go on the run, all while trying to prove their innocence.
“Wedding Season” stars Gavin Drea, who I recently got to speak to regarding this upcoming British Disney+ Original.
Check out the video interview below:
What attracted you to the role of Stefan?
It’s just one of these perfect roles that come along where I just felt really connected to the role. He just made sense to me as a character. It’s fairly inexplicable, but it’s really fun because you get to play everything as Stefan. You do a bit of action, a little bit of comedy. It’s a little moments of improvisation with the cast and then these really heartfelt, dramatic moments as well. So for an actor, it’s ticking all of the boxes as I read it. It was just like getting to flex all of your muscles as a performer.
What was it like working with Rosa with this series?
Amazing. Yeah, she’s so talented and she’s so passionate and we had a really good dynamic I think, which hopefully comes across on screen, but yeah, it was just really fun. The whole production, the whole crew was really lovely, and the writer and all the other actors and stuff. So we just had a blast. Yeah.
Which of the locations did you like working at the most?
I mean, they’re all…we had a beautiful day filming on a lake in Scotland, which the weather actually turned out great in the end, which we were very lucky. That could have been a really horrible day of filming. It turned out to be one of the best days of filming. So that was really nice and that was right at the beginning. So I think it set a really nice tone for the production, but shooting in Vegas, I mean, there’s nothing more cinematic than that. And even in LA as well, but most of it was in Manchester and I have to say, it’s really beautiful city. I hadn’t been there much. So it was nice to live there and just get to know people there. And it had a really nice vibe as a city, so everywhere. Yeah.
What was the best thing about working on this series?
I think just working with everybody on it. It was a real collaborative effort and the writer’s team were fantastic. And if you had ideas on the day, you could do that as well. And the director, George and Laura, they were just brilliant and they’re all dear friends now. And it was great. I think all the action sequences were a lot of fun for me. It was first time doing stunts and things like that. So that was definitely a highlight, but also bringing the comedy. I mean, at the end of the day, I think it’s hopefully a show that’ll make you laugh. And that was very fun for me just trying to enjoy the day and make each other laugh and catch each other off guard in scenes and make it feel very natural. So, yeah.
Did you get to do the wire stunt of jumping from building to building?
I did, yeah. Yeah. Five or six times, which was great. And then of course, apparently paparazzi showed up and the stunt guy did it one time and that was the photograph they took. And I was like, I did, I swear. They didn’t get a photograph of it, but it’ll be in the show. I promise. But it was great. And Gordo did the stunt, he was the head of stunts. He was brilliant. And you felt in very safe hands, but they were great because a lot of times nowadays, with insurance and safety and stuff, they can be overly cautious, but they were great. They let us try things and do things. And so it was really fun. Yeah.
I’ve got to ask, have you actually ever crashed a wedding?
Have I crashed a wedding? No. I don’t think I’ve ever crashed. No, I’ve never crashed a wedding. No, no.
How much of an impact did the pandemic have on filming “Wedding Season”?
It was tough. You were terrified of not getting COVID during production, particularly when you were one of the lead actors and you have everyone working really hard on the show. The last thing you want to do is catch it and stuff. So as tempting as it was being in Manchester to go watch a football match, I couldn’t go to an 80,000 seater stadium. But it was fine. I think you just adjust and it was harder for the crew. You just had to feel for them because they had to wear masks all the time and it’s a challenge for sure. But I think working on a film set and television set, it’s always a challenge in a way. So we just knuckled down and it’s kind of something that everyone’s unfortunately gotten a little bit used to now on set as well.
What’s it been like the difference working on “Wedding Season”, when compared to some of your previous projects like Cyber Punk or Assassin’s Creed?
Right. Yeah. I mean, I think the comedy side of it, I’ve been doing a lot of drama and some really funny moments I was in Cyber Punk and stuff, which I really enjoy, but I think it’s the comedy element of it, which I’ve always gravitated towards, but for whatever reason, my career I’ve been doing more dramatic roles in theater and film. So to get to bring that side of it is a real pleasure.
Is there going to be a second season of “Wedding Season”?
Yeah. Well hopefully, yeah. Fingers, fingers cross. Yeah. We’ll have to wait to see. Yeah. I’m saying nothing.
Would you like to work on any other of Disney’s franchises?
All of them. Yeah. Sign me up. Yeah. No, it’s really great. And theirs content’s really great. I watched Prey the other day, I thought it was brilliant. Yeah. I think they’re making really, really fun stuff. I think what’s great about this show is I feel like we’re bringing a new tone to some of the kind of Disney shows. Obviously, it’s very family oriented, the stuff that they have when they started. So this is more for maybe for adults and people in their thirties and stuff. So a little bit edgier, maybe, which is nice. So yeah. I mean, hey, fingers crossed.
What has been your favourite Disney plus original so far. You mentioned Prey, any other ones?
Obviously, big Star Wars nerd and fan. I’ve been watching Obi-Wan during the summer and things like that, that I enjoyed. So probably it would probably have to be that. Yeah. And then I’ve started Under the Banner of Heaven, which is interesting. Yeah. And I mean, true crime dramas and stuff, you just eat those up don’t you? So they’re very watchable and a few of the documentaries actually I have to say, I really enjoyed the one about the Zodiac killer that came out recently, which is really good. I was glued to that. So yeah. Some great stuff.
How does it feel for the series to be part of Disney+ Day?
Yeah, it’s so exciting. And obviously, we’re the first of the UK productions that Disney is making to get finished first and get released first, which is exciting and nerve-wracking and stuff. So hopefully, we set a nice bar for everything else after that, but it’s great. And I hope that audiences all over enjoy the show because I think it is quite it’s very UK comedy, British comedy, but at the same time, it’s got a real international feel to it and a very universal feel. I think the story, the contemporary romance in it feels I think, quite universal. So yeah.
The eight-episode series premieres exclusively on Disney+ Day on Thursday, September 8th 2022 on Disney+ around the world and on Star+ in Latin America and Hulu in the U.S.
Roger Palmer
Roger has been a Disney fan since he was a kid and this interest has grown over the years. He has visited Disney Parks around the globe and has a vast collection of Disney movies and collectibles. He is the owner of What’s On Disney Plus & DisKingdom.
Email: Roger@WhatsOnDisneyPlus.com
Twitter: Twitter.com/RogPalmerUK
Facebook: Facebook.com/rogpalmeruk
