The stars of Beautiful Disaster were full of laughs when we spoke with them about their new romantic drama film. It follows Abby (Virginia Gardner), a college freshman trying to distance herself from her previous life when she meets Travis (Dylan Sprouse), a college student that fights in underground matches.
The two quickly fall into a routine, one that includes playful banter, bets, and learning more about each other while Abby tries to maintain a normal student life and avoid the people from her past. From parties to a road trip to Las Vegas, Abby and Travis go on a turbulent journey together.
We had the chance to catch up with Virginia Gardner and Dylan Sprouse to hear about their thoughts on the initial script, the comedy of the film, and how an on-set accident ended up in Beautiful Disaster.
Virginia Gardner on Diving Into Comedy
Many may know the actress from her role as Karolina Dean in Marvel’s Runaways or as Hunter in the 2022 thriller Fall. But, don’t think that just because you’ve seen Gardner in one role you’ve seen all she has to offer. She doesn’t like to repeat roles, instead opting to find projects that “feel fresh.” With Beautiful Disaster, Gardner saw an opportunity to stretch her comedic wings.
“I like trying to not repeat things too much and finding things that feel fresh and like I haven’t done them before and challenging myself with comedy. I really hadn’t done too much comedy prior to this film, so it was just a really fun challenge, and I like that. Whether it’s a physical challenge or a genre challenge or character what have you, I just like doing things that feel different.”
In fact, the comedy is what drew the actress to the project from the start. It reminded Gardner of the comedies of the early 2000s. While many may associate the film with similar YA romance films like the After series, Beautiful Disaster tried to focus on the comedy in Abby and Travis’ story, in addition to the action that comes with underground fighting.
“What really drew me to the script was the comedy. There was such much comedy in the script right off the bat, and action as well, and it felt sexy. It really reminded me of those ‘90s, early 2000s rom-coms that I loved so much, and there was something nostalgic about it to me, so I really enjoyed just the comedy in the script right off the bat especially.”
Dylan Sprouse on Playing an Underground Fighter
Travis is a part of several fights throughout the film, from his first introduction to trying to help Abby in the third act. To help prepare, Sprouse worked with different types of fighters, not just a stunt team. It was a new challenge for the actor as well.
“It was a lot of training. I was blessed to be working with extremely talented trainers out of Bulgaria. The stunt team was amazing. We had a team filled with real fighters, not just movie fighters. MMA fighters, wrestlers, boxers, the whole kit and kaboodle. So, it was pretty awesome in that regard, for me, because I got kind of a crash course on how to do the things Travis does in the movie. But that was one of the challenges that I was really interested in partaking because it’s very unlike me, actually.”
Like Gardner, the comedy drew Sprouse to the script. The actor also looks for a project that “blasts off the page.” He previously worked with Roger Kumble on After We Collided, the second film in the After franchise, so a simple text after reading the script set everything in motion for Sprouse to star as Travis.
“My whole judgment of when reading scripts is how fast it reads, number one, and if it like blasts off the page, which this script really did. It crosses a lot of genres. It has action, it has romance, it has comedy.
An On-Set Accident Became a Funny On-Screen Moment
In the final act of the film, audiences can watch as the two have a particularly lively encounter in a hotel room. This includes breaking several items in the room, and even one that wasn’t in the script. When describing a scene that stood out to her, Gardner discussed the “happy accident” while filming the hotel scene that made its way into the final cut.
“I think for me, I really enjoyed the Vegas scene, because we get to be so destructive and destroy this entire hotel room, which was a lot of fun. You know, Travis takes Abby and throws her on a sink, and in real life, the sink broke. It wasn’t supposed to break, but it broke, and it ended up for a funny moment that’s in the film. So that was a happy accident.”
When asked about the preparation and training Sprouse had to go through for the role, he initially joked about the “pounds of broccoli” he ate on a regular basis. The hotel scene was one of the last they filmed, so after finishing, the two ordered some fast food to commemorate the end of the actor’s daily broccoli intake, as described by Gardner.
“And then it was one of the last things we shot, and Dylan hadn’t eaten real food in a million years, so we Postmated McDonald’s to set, and we celebrated with some cheeseburgers after that scene too.”
Beautiful Disaster, from Voltage Pictures, will be available to purchase on-demand starting May 2.
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