In Greenroom Confidential, reporters and editors at TODAY.com share a look at what actors, authors, performers and more guests told us behind the scenes at TODAY.
Plenty of celebs came through TODAYโs Orange Room on their way to Studio 1A, including Emily Ratajkowski, Tony Goldwyn and more. Discover some of the best moments right here.
Tony Goldwyn Talks ‘One Small Step’ Campaign
Tony Goldwyn stopped by TODAY July 17 to discuss his latest endeavor: a conversation with someone on the opposite end of the political spectrum.
As part of StoryCorps One Small Step initiative, Goldwyn sat down for a 45-minute conversation with a man named Ben from Wichita, Kansas. Goldwyn told TODAY.com all he knew beforehand was that they had different political beliefs. And while the conversation is billed as “One Small Step,” things got deep.
โWe got right to it. We talked about our backgrounds, we talked about religion, we talked about politics, we talked about family and community, really,โ Goldwyn said. โWe really connected. And I felt like I wanted to hang out with him for the rest of the day.โ
The goal of the StoryCorps conversation series is to bridge divides through simple conversation.
“What most surprised me was instantly how open and curious he was, and also how there was an absolute absence of conflict in the conversation,” Goldwyn said.
Emily Ratajkowski Says ‘Too Much’ Redoes the Other Woman Trope
Emily Ratajkowski was eager to work with her longtime friend Lena Dunham on her new show, “Too Much.”
“Lena and I have known each other for 10 years, which is crazy, and so we’re kind of constantly in communication about different things,” Ratajkowski told TODAY.com in the green room.
In the show, Jess, the protagonist played by Megan Stalter, is reeling after her ex gets engaged fast to his new girlfriend โ the seemingly perfect model Wendy Jones. But Jess and Wendyโs relationship evolves in an unexpected way.
Dunham wrote the part of Wendy Jones in “Too Much” with Ratajkowski in mind, and Ratajkowski made tweaks to the part. Instead of a lawyer, for example, Ratajkowski made her character a model with a knitting hobby.
Wendy turns the “rom-com archetype of the other woman on its head,” Ratajkowski said.
Eric Bana Calls Filming in the Wilderness for โUntamedโ the โBest Job Everโ
Eric Bana, who plays federal agent Kyle Turner in the new Netflix murder mystery series โUntamed,โ raved about the chance to film the show in such โfantasticโ terrain.
โI love riding horses. So getting to do it in summer, up in (British Columbia) literally every day โ Lily (Santiago) and I would be on the horses together. Iโd be like, โLily, we are getting paid to do this. Best job ever,โโ he told TODAY.com in the Studio 1A green room.
The show takes place in Californiaโs Yosemite National Park, but Bana explained the filming occurred in the wilderness of British Columbia, Canada. Though some shots had Yosemite as a backdrop and used computer-generated imagery for moments like the opening rock climbing scene, Bana said, โWhenever you saw us in the landscape, that was in British Columbia.โ
โThe weather was spectacular. We had a great run with the Canadian summer, and it was beautiful,โ he continued, adding that even the crew, many of whom live in British Columbia, โwere in awe of how amazing it was.โ
Lola Tung Talks ‘The Summer I Turned Pretty’ Easter Eggs
Lola Tung, the star of Prime Video’s “The Summer I Turned Pretty,” stopped by TODAY July 17, the day after Season 3 officially premiered on the streaming platform with two new episodes.
After the episodes dropped, viewers immediately spotted Easter eggs to other works in the “Jenny Han universe,” referring to the books and adaptations of author Jenny Han’s stories.
In the first two episodes of Season 3, Tung’s character, Belly, had a photo on her wall of her and boyfriend Jeremiah Fisher (Gavin Casalegno) dressed up for Halloween as Lara Jean Song-Covey and Peter Kavinsky, the main couple of Han’s “To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before” book and film series. Then during a wintry day in Cousins Beach, Belly and Conrad complete a crossword puzzle together, and one of the clues referenced Han’s 2015 book, “P.S. I Still Love You.”
“Being part of the Jenny Han universe, you always see little Easter eggs,” Tung said. “And I think it’s so fun and cool that that movie exists in that world.”
“It was very fun to dress up as Lara Jean,” she added.
