There's no doubt that Happiest Season is making the yuletide gay!
It seems like everyone's talking about Hulu's latest Christmas-themed, lesbian romantic comedy, and for good reason! Like taking a sip from a hot cup of cocoa, it's a stunning, heartwarming, feel-good film that is sure to get your queer feels in a flurry.
Just ahead of the movie's premiere, PRIDE virtually sat down with stars Kristen Stewart, Mackenzie Davis, Clea DuVall, Dan Levy, Aubrey Plaza, Alison Brie, Mary Steenburgen, and Mary Holland to discuss the film, girl crushes, memes, and the power a heartwarming LGBTQ+ rom-com can have on viewers.
In the days since it premiered, Abby and Harper's relationship has become a hot topic among viewers, with some claiming Harper is "the worst" and others arguing that they shouldn't have ended up together at all. During our interview, PRIDE asked DuVall about the controversial character, because while she was beautifully written, all her terrible decisions made us want to scream at her through our TV screens.
"Her character was the most difficult character to write," DuVall reveals to PRIDE. "She is a character who is doing something that you wanna be like, 'What are you doing? Stop doing that!'"
She continued:
"You do get mad at her, but then you want the audience to also be able to empathize with her because it is an experience where people need to be gentle with themselves. We need to be gentle with people because you don't know what's going on inside of someone else and the struggles they're having. Really humanizing that character, having empathy for her and allowing her to succeed was really important."
Making the role accessible also came down to the casting of Mackenzie Davis.
"In casting that role, I was just like, 'God, who are we gonna get that is gonna play this role where the audience doesn't just want them to break up in minute two?'"
Since many viewers did want Abby to ditch Harper for Riley (played by Plaza), it seems she wasn't entirely successful in that regard. Alas, Davis "has such a warm, bright presence and she's such a talented actor. I really just thought that she would be able to capture all the nuance of Harper and bring her to life in a very human way. I think she just does an extraordinary job. It's the hardest work and she is just a knockout here."
What say you now, Harper haters?
Happiest Season is streaming on Hulu now! Watch PRIDE's full interview with the cast and director below.
