April 14, 2025 • 39 mins
Brulian’s reunited and it feels so good! Austin Nichols joins Sophia and Rob to answer all your fan questions. He reveals what he really thought of High-Five-Gate, which OTH character he’s teaming up with when zombies attack, and why he was so nervous working with the Olsen twins in Holiday in the Sun.
Plus, a surprise proposal that took the Drama Queens by complete surprise!
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
First of all, you don't know me.
Speaker 2 (00:02):
All about that high school drama Girl Drama, Girl, all
about them.
Speaker 1 (00:06):
High school queens. We'll take you for a ride. And
our comic girl sharing for the right teams.
Speaker 2 (00:12):
Drama Queens jis go up girl Fashion, but your tough girl,
you could sit with us.
Speaker 1 (00:17):
Girl Drama, Queens Drama, Queise Drama, Queens Drama, Drahn The
Queens Drama, Queens Drama, Queen's friends and fam We have
none other than our very own Austin Nichols. Should we
bring him in here? Hey buddy, Hi buddy, Welcome back
to the show.
Speaker 3 (00:35):
Pal.
Speaker 1 (00:35):
Are you Are you at home in Texas at the moment?
Speaker 4 (00:38):
Yeah, I'm in Austin and it's gorgeous. It's a beautiful
day in Paradise. It's spring and it's not hot yet
and it's green. It's awesome.
Speaker 1 (00:46):
Oh my goodness, that's so fun. Are you, like, are
you doing stuff on the lake? What's keeping you busy?
Speaker 4 (00:53):
Yep, I've been out on the water getting ready. I'm
going to Peru to do this surf trip that I've
wanted to do, like for twenty years, going and I'm
finally finally going. It's this wave that's like three kilometers long.
It's just this thing I've always wanted to do. And
I finally said, what am I waiting for?
Speaker 1 (01:10):
Yeah?
Speaker 3 (01:11):
So is the idea that you you ride the wave
for three kilometers? Is that the goal or the whole?
Speaker 4 (01:18):
Well, you don't have to, I mean, I think that's
part of the attraction to me. Is to do something,
is to catch something, catch lightning in a bottle, something
that's unattainable and natural in the in the world, in nature,
and harness it for as long as you can without
having to have a machine.
Speaker 3 (01:35):
So is the goal? Then? Is this like an operation
where you and at least one other buddy, you like,
park a car down approximately where the wave ends, and
then you drive back up to the top.
Speaker 4 (01:45):
Well, I've done something like that, but this is better
because there's a booat and there's actually going to be
drones and cameras, and it's there's eight people and basically
we just tow each other into the wave and then
you try to ride it all the way in and
then you get picked up in the boat and you
go back out.
Speaker 3 (02:04):
Oh that's so cool. Is this what I saw? I
sawn your Instagram? You were doing wall sits.
Speaker 4 (02:11):
I'm trying to get my legs strong because the thing
I'm doing, like you're up for so long that your
your quad's just just get out.
Speaker 3 (02:19):
Yeah sure, Oh cool.
Speaker 1 (02:23):
I'm so glad to know. I mean, obviously you are,
You're a very prepared person and you're an athlete, but
I'm so glad to hear you talk about the fact
that you are training for this. I did a dumb,
cocky thing that really reads a theater kid who knows
nothing about her body. A couple of years ago. I
was like, ski season, didn't get to go last year,
(02:43):
Let's hit it and went up a mountain I've skied
a hundred times, not having skied in essentially two years
because I'd skipped a season, hadn't been in the gym,
hadn't done shit like all three Thanksgiving over the holidays,
And halfway down my first run, I was like, my
(03:05):
squads are going to explode. I'm gonna die. I'm like,
I want to die on this mountain just because I
forgot that I needed to, like, I don't know, do
some squats before I tried to do this again. Yeah,
it was very humbling and deeply embarrassing for me.
Speaker 3 (03:21):
I committed the same party foul. I was asked to
go on this. It was sort of like an interview show,
but the whole thing was like you taught you do
the interview on the chair lift, and then you snowboarder
ski all the way down the mountain. I was like,
I was like, can you snow where? I'm like, yeah, man,
I snowboarded in high school. Mind you. I snow word
like four times in high school. And when we shot this,
I was thirty five years old. It didn't occur to
(03:42):
me until I was getting off the lift that I
was like, oh, farts, I haven't done this in like
eighteen years, And like you, I paid the price.
Speaker 4 (03:53):
It probably made a bunch much better show.
Speaker 3 (03:56):
It did. The falls were more dramatic, sure, just the flailing.
The language was more colorful.
Speaker 1 (04:01):
Yeah, so cool. Basically, what we've learned so far today
is that Austin will be the one on the wave,
and Rob and I would likely be the friends on
the beach with the beers waiting for you, and you're.
Speaker 3 (04:13):
Dad, dude, I'll be holding that big towel for you
with a chair roh or a corn dog, whatever you're into.
Speaker 4 (04:19):
I want to be there too.
Speaker 1 (04:21):
Great. We love it well.
Speaker 3 (04:24):
We asked fans for questions and they did not disappoint.
So if you'll allow it, how about we just jump
right in.
Speaker 4 (04:32):
Let's jump in.
Speaker 3 (04:33):
Okay, First one, what did you steal from set? If anything?
Speaker 4 (04:38):
A fake Eames chair? Well we did.
Speaker 1 (04:42):
Yeah, we put that thing right in the back of
my audie that rob ed Hardy bombed one time.
Speaker 4 (04:47):
Yeah, so in last season, like I think, so if
you tell me if I'm wrong, But it was maybe
like there was maybe two one or two shooting days left. Yeah,
and we knew that the Brooks House was getting wrapped. Yep,
we've done shooting in there, and we were like, we
got to get that chair. Those chairs are so expensive
(05:08):
and the like I wouldn't never pay for one.
Speaker 3 (05:11):
No wait, so who got the chair? You stole it together?
But who got the loot?
Speaker 4 (05:15):
I think I carried it? Did I carry it? And
we put it Who's truck?
Speaker 1 (05:19):
We put it in the back of my car in
the little hatchback station wagon. I don't know how we
even got it in there, but we made it work.
Speaker 4 (05:27):
That was a good some good fever.
Speaker 1 (05:29):
It was fun and it's nice to be like a
gentle thief and feel like you're in a buddy cop
movie because the two of us were like running and
then hiding behind a wall and then running, and then
Austin would be like, I'll go duck, and you know,
we like made it all the way through the stages
with these two pieces of furniture, the chair and the ottoman,
and by the time we got in the car, I
(05:50):
was like, well, that's going to be my favorite part
of this whole thing, just the caper of it.
Speaker 4 (05:55):
Absolutely.
Speaker 3 (05:55):
Yeah, it was the adventure.
Speaker 4 (05:57):
Yeah, made a little documentary. I think I definitely got
clothes over the years. But that's kind of that's so
that's sort of normal. What about you did, Rob? Did
you steal anything? Man?
Speaker 3 (06:11):
Same as you. I close. But then the only I
could think of was I still have to this day
some Fortitude cards Clay Clay's business card, So talk about
being a gentle thief. While you guys were stealing large
pieces of designer furniture, knockoff, knock off, I was stealing
about five or six business cards.
Speaker 4 (06:32):
Hilarious.
Speaker 1 (06:33):
I love that I still have business cards from Good Sam.
So I have these business cards that say I'm a
cardiothoracic surgeony make me feel very smart.
Speaker 3 (06:45):
So if I would ask you what you stole from set?
But I know you have a storage unit full of
multiple boxes of things from the show, so you don't
have the time for that, do we No.
Speaker 1 (06:53):
I probably have like four plastic bins of stuff from
over the years. But honestly, the funniest thing is we
we capered a chair and an automan together. And the
most like large stuff I've quote stole from set I
stole for Hillary, like I took her. I took this big,
(07:15):
beautiful like maroon silk lamp shade with tassels and the
standing lamp, and then this really cool like I think
they called them telephone tables, a chair with like a
little attached side table from the fifties that your phone
would sit on. Uh, And they were from Red Bedroom Records.
And when we wrapped out the sets, obviously she wasn't
(07:35):
with us, and I was like, this is bullshit, I'm
taking her stuff, and so I had to. I had
to get the chair and automan out of the tiny
station wagon to then go back and lift the rest
of the stuff for her.
Speaker 3 (07:48):
Nice you did some damage, Sofia I did well done.
Speaker 1 (07:51):
But listen, I own it. Here. We are that's the
same here.
Speaker 3 (07:56):
It's also funny that the idea that you guys even
were trying to be sneaky about it, because no one
would have said boo.
Speaker 4 (08:03):
But you don't feel like that in the moment you
feel like you're gonna get busted. Yeah, sure, totally.
Speaker 3 (08:08):
But you're right.
Speaker 4 (08:08):
I don't think anybody would have said no.
Speaker 3 (08:10):
The crew liked you. Wait, I mean, come on, yeah,
I know you guys would have been fine.
Speaker 5 (08:14):
Right.
Speaker 3 (08:15):
Did you know from the beginning that Brooke was going
to be your endgame?
Speaker 5 (08:18):
Oh?
Speaker 4 (08:19):
I think I kind of did, but I'm trying to
remember how things went down. It was like, you're gonna
we're gonna explore the past with Peyton, and then you're
gonna be Brooks new love interest and then yeah, I kinda,
but I didn't know it was gonna go four seasons
and end in marriage and kids. I didn't know that.
(08:40):
I don't think.
Speaker 1 (08:41):
Yeah, I don't think we really could have, you know,
especially because when you came in season six, we didn't
really know what was going to happen with the show,
and then we wound up getting the seven and eight
pick up together, which had never happened before, and to
get two seasons picked up at the same time is
(09:03):
so surreal. So yeah, I guess I wonder if maybe
the reason by the middle of season eight they had
the characters get married was because everybody thought we were
going to be done at the end of eight.
Speaker 4 (09:17):
Yeah, we weren't sure about doing nine. Remember, I think
we weren't sure.
Speaker 3 (09:20):
No, yeah, I remember they came to the cast and
were like, Hi, how would you guys feel about a nine?
And people were like, how about half a season? Yeah,
And so I think that's why we did the truncated thirteen, right.
Speaker 1 (09:33):
Well, you know what I remember, And I was really
proud of us all, like we grew up on the show,
you know, especially those of us who had been there
since we were twenty one. I remember just not knowing
anything about the business, and by the time they came
to all of us to be like, Okay, if you're
all into a season nine, let's talk about it. What
I loved And I have this memory of all of
(09:55):
us being like, it feels cool. We don't feel like
we're ready to be done done, but we also know
we're all going to need to get jobs after this,
So how about we wrapp by the end of December
so we can have the next pilot season free. And
then it was like it was like summer camp, because
(10:16):
you're never going to book a show between July and December,
at least in the traditional network world. And so we
were like, wait, we get to go do thirteen more
episodes and dink around with our friends and then like,
I guess we all start auditioning again. Oh my god,
what a time. But I like that we had that foresight.
Speaker 4 (10:36):
Yeah, that's good.
Speaker 3 (10:38):
I had never seen and we'll get into the we're
going to talk about this on the episode recap as well.
But I had never seen your guys of stuff from
season six. I had only I knew of it from
listening to the podcast before I joined. So it was
so fun. And the flashback montage, yeah, of Julian and Brooke.
It was so cool because like Austin, I knew your
(11:00):
hair got cut too high on the back when you
got there, and so as I was watching, I was like, Oh,
there is the actual haircut he was talking about, and like,
here's the edge you're Julian, And it was it was
so fun to watch.
Speaker 4 (11:11):
That yeah, I agree. That montage made me emotional because
you see all these iconic moments, like the one that
that it gets me is when. So if you help me,
remember it was that outside the USO concert when I
first got there. No, no, when was this? It was
when you said I'm finally ready to let someone in.
Speaker 1 (11:33):
I think that's when. Isn't that when Brooke goes to
see Julian on his movie set.
Speaker 4 (11:37):
That sounds right because it's all lit and it looks.
Speaker 1 (11:39):
Like, Yeah, it looks that's what it is.
Speaker 4 (11:42):
That's my favorite moments me too.
Speaker 1 (11:58):
Catching up, somebody wants to know what does a day
in the life of Austin look like? And if I may,
I kind of want to add to that because you
have just completed this movie that you have been working
on for so long that you're so excited about, and
(12:21):
I know you're about to open a film festival in
Dallas with the Salamander King, So I I want you
to talk to the fans about what a day in
the life of making this movie has looked like for you.
Speaker 4 (12:35):
Oh my god, Okay, yes, I'm so excited and proud
it's finally finished and we're going to Dallas at the
end of April. It's so good to like finish something
and you know, see it all the way through from
beginning to end. But you know, there was three years
of just talking and sending people a pitch or a
(12:58):
script or just get a phone call her a zoom,
and nothing happens. And about a year and a half ago,
I guess, Jennifer, my producer, came on, Jennifer Kuchai and
she that was the moment where the ball started rolling,
and so thankful to her. And we raised the money
pretty quickly for a small indie, and we shot it
(13:23):
in Austin in last June, and post took me all
the way to I guess about a month ago when
I finished the sound mix and we're in a festival
and like that feels it's a year sounds or just
under a year sounds slow, but it was fast. Like
(13:46):
I can't believe we're already done, and you know, in
a festival and now we're looking to you know, go
sell it to buyers, and I you know, I'm kind
of rambling here, but I just I've never felt this
feeling of sort of pride in completing something and just
starting and completing something that feels just so hard. It's
(14:08):
like the Sissifian task of rolling, you know, the boulder
up the mountain and yes, man, and then I just
can't wait to do it again.
Speaker 1 (14:15):
I just can't wait, oh, buddy.
Speaker 3 (14:18):
And so often what we do is that we're either
joining something halfway in or we're just doing the starting
stuff and then handing off to someone else. So it's
so cool that, I mean, you saw this thing through
from inception to premiere, Like, that's awesome. That is a
huge accomplishment. Man, you should be proud of yourself.
Speaker 4 (14:38):
I'm so happy. And had so many great people. By
the way, Peter Kowalski was my DP, oh lucky, our
DP on One Tree Hill. For some of you may
not know his name, but he was such an important
part of One Tree Hill. And I was so lucky
to have such a crack team because Peter was working
(14:58):
on a TV show in Austin and I went and
directed that and then I got all that crew to
come and they'd been working together for four years. So
I just had this team that was just so dialed
into each other. Yeah, that was that was part of
why you ran so smoothly. We didn't have problems. Every
day was everyone just laughing and having fun. And I
(15:21):
never thought I would my first movie would be a comedy.
Never I'm going to make some dark, indie, crazy.
Speaker 1 (15:28):
Darling deep bartsy thing.
Speaker 4 (15:32):
And the first thing I makes a comedy, and I
just want to keep making comedies now. It was just
so fun and it's funny the way life happens to
you in that way, and you something you didn't expect
becomes maybe your next you know path. But to get
Leaven a little bit more specific about.
Speaker 1 (15:51):
Like my day, I mean, yeah, what does a day
look like as a director?
Speaker 3 (15:54):
Love?
Speaker 4 (15:55):
I love to I wake up early. I love to
have some coffee. Sometimes I'll go to the coffee shop
on South Congress and have a little social time with
some local Austin coffee stop. Not the I call myself
a coffee slut, but these local coffee connoisseurs. There's this
little group and we gather and drink and talk in
(16:16):
the morning early and then I go home. And I
don't do this every day, but I like to exercise
in the morning if I can, and then I get
into writing and I'll sit down and I'll write for
a while. And then writing is weird because the schedule,
like everyone's writing habits are different. I like to write
in the morning, get some done, and I like to
(16:37):
move and walk or do something, take a break, have lunch,
get out, get away from it, and then come back
to it later, whether that's in the afternoon or at night,
and that helps. I don't know, there's something about like
flow state, and like, I don't know how it all works,
but getting the blood pumping and stepping away and then
coming back is really helpful. If I can't write all day,
(16:58):
it just for sure crazy.
Speaker 1 (17:00):
Yeah, that totally tracks. I was talking through something with
my therapist about just like, you know, when what are
tools for resilience when time is so jammed like March
For whatever reason, I felt like I was working twenty
four hours a day, just like meeting to meeting to
meeting to meeting, and it was making me feel nuts.
(17:22):
And he was like, I'm telling you, I want you
to start setting thirty minute timers and if you have
to be on a zoom or in a thing for
an hour, set a timer for an hour and then
just go on a walk for five minutes and then
you can come back. And I started just trying to
reclaim minutes in certain spaces and like, I feel you
(17:42):
when you say that helps your flow state. It felt
like it brought me back down to earth, Like I
was so high strung from the stress and then it
like just five minutes here and there and I got
right back into my body and was like whoa.
Speaker 4 (17:58):
Yeah. And the one thing I also discovered by accident
was the little coffee group friend thing in the morning,
saytates my community societal thing, and I don't have FOMO
the rest of the day. M So if I can
be social talk to some people for a little while,
then I can go focus and I'm not like wondering
what everyone else is doing.
Speaker 3 (18:19):
That's brains out, like let's check let's check Instagram for
a false sense of community.
Speaker 4 (18:23):
Yeah, yeah, exactly.
Speaker 3 (18:25):
Well it's funny. It's like I remember someone just saying,
like go touch grass, and it was that same thing
where it's like just go outside, yeah, get away from screens,
go out, take your shoes and socks off, walk around
in the lawn for a little bit, and it's like
it's the truth. Though. Man, it is such a good reset,
all right, So another question here, says uh. Sophia said
(18:46):
she rewrote her wedding vows herself. Did you rewrite or
punch up Julian's.
Speaker 1 (18:52):
I did come on Austin's laughing because mine were trash
like what we saw in the script. We both were like,
you gotta be kidding. Made Brook Davis wait eight seasons
for this and the fans are so amped and like
we're doing call and repeat with like the traditional vows.
Everybody does know, and so I had to and I
(19:15):
had to open with a joke because it felt right
for her.
Speaker 4 (19:19):
Well, I thought you did a great job, but it
was it was really well well done, and glad you
fought for that, you know, I think, you know, I don't.
There's no there's no blame or throwing any into the
throwing anybody under the bus. But we thought that maybe
the church was weird, the location was. We wanted to
do something outside with lights and like trees and you know,
(19:40):
something a little more magical, you know, with you know
how it is with shooting, like it's expensive and locations
and money, and you get to season eight and people
are not as don't have the energy they had and
like that happens, and you know, that was my one
thing was really the location. Yeah, kind I kind of
(20:01):
wanted something a little more magical. I guess I.
Speaker 1 (20:04):
Think we wanted it to feel like that scene you
brought up from the montage, like when Brooke and Julian
meet on that soundstage and it looks like they're in
the park and then all the lights go on, Like
we wanted that for the wedding, and then we got,
you know, no shade, but like we got brown wood walls,
and we were like, oh, no.
Speaker 3 (20:24):
Liking shade. It's fair because also before you lost the company,
Before Brook lost the company, you guys were at this
stupidly palatial estate with like a never ending fucking go
what do you call that? A garden maze? So it
is a little weird that you guys went from that
to being like a church.
Speaker 4 (20:43):
No, they would have spent some money. Brooke wants the
dreamy wedding. And you know, I will say this because
I was watching it going and watching it knowing that
and how we felt about it then, and I was
going to watch it with fresh eyes and go, how
does it play now? And truthfully it bothered me a little,
but what was happening cut through it well enough. The
(21:03):
emotion cut through well enough that I went, that's what's important,
and that's what I'm in an audience is hopefully connecting
to and not the location. So watching it with fresh eyes,
I was I was happy to see that, Like, there
was emotion and there was something meaningful there and that
was what took center stage over the beauty.
Speaker 3 (21:24):
And having because I didn't know you guys had an
issue with that. So I was truly watching this with
fresh eyes. I didn't bump at all.
Speaker 1 (21:31):
Good, Yeah, that's good.
Speaker 3 (21:33):
You guys did a great job. I wasn't paying, to
be honest with you, I maybe noticed the church and
the master, and then after that I was I was
along for the rider. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (21:42):
Well, and something else that I think helps. I mean,
first of all, you and I collaborating creatively on the
language I thought was so important because there's you know,
things that you say that Julian says that Brooke then echoes,
and the kind of call and response to two people
(22:03):
who've been through a lot together who are on this
sort of shared road. Now. I liked that we personalized
it and didn't just do the repeat after me. I Brooke,
take you Julian like womp womp, and the other thing
that played so well about it for me, given that
(22:25):
we didn't get to do the sort of exterior nighttime,
beautifully lit you know, fairy tale thing was the montage
that you referenced, because the whole walk down the aisle
to marry me, you actually get to see all those things.
You see us on the scooter and with the lights,
and you know all the adventures these two have had together.
(22:47):
So the room just kind of being a box still
felt bigger because they used that device, and I thought
it was really smart.
Speaker 4 (22:55):
Yeah, absolutely, yeah.
Speaker 3 (22:56):
I think if if had all of those things that
worked as well as they did, there would have been
and more room to pay attention to the setting. But
like I said, I didn't notice it.
Speaker 4 (23:06):
There was so much emotion in this episode, like with
with you and Joy yeah, Brooke and Haley with Victoria, yeah,
Jamie in the beginning is so cute, and then some
one knocks it out of the park in this episode,
like he wanted funny and so good in this episode.
It made me giggle watching it now so funny.
Speaker 3 (23:29):
Okay, I'm gonna cherry pick a little bit here. I
like this one. This is a little uh kind of
go back in time perhaps, who do you wish Julian
would have picked as his best man. This is assuming
I guess let's just say Jamie's not available. It's not
that you don't like Jamie, but let's say he was
unavailable that day.
Speaker 4 (23:48):
Yet a prior. Yeah, great question. You know, the whole
thing was weird to me because this joke of like
Julian not having guy friends was which was funny and
it worked. I'm trying to think back to like, was
there ever anybody that Julian got close with?
Speaker 5 (24:07):
There was a guy?
Speaker 3 (24:09):
I wish that you and I would have had more stuff,
because yes, we were the two quirky, kind of offbeat guys,
and I just feel like I could have had such
a cool, fun nerdy bro thing.
Speaker 4 (24:22):
Yes, I pick you, Hey, yes, hold on, hold on,
hold on, Clay. Yeah, I know we haven't talked in
a while, but like back, you know, I always liked
you and I thought we had, you know, like a
great connection, and it's happening. I I don't know, I
just feel like we're kind of on the same page
with a lot of things, and I really, I really
(24:42):
would you consider being my best.
Speaker 3 (24:44):
Yes, I'll marry you. Oh oh your best man? Yeah? Yeah,
I'd love to be your best man totally.
Speaker 5 (24:47):
That's what.
Speaker 3 (24:48):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, a thousand times. Yes, this is gonna
This is great because I've written so much fan fiction
about this that now it finally is going to pay off.
Speaker 1 (24:56):
I love it. Okay, wait, if we're going to cherry
pick something, cherry pick Wait. This is a really fun
one because it jumps around in our shows and I
like this alternate reality stuff. Who would you take? I
think it needs to be a character. Who would you
take from One Tree Hill into The Walking Dead? And why?
Speaker 5 (25:15):
Oh my god?
Speaker 4 (25:17):
Well, you know, actually it's funny because like Hillary went on, Yeah,
Floris was on, there were some other people that were
on one Trio that were in The Walking Dead too
lead to.
Speaker 3 (25:26):
The Walking Dead. Yeah that's awesome.
Speaker 4 (25:28):
Yeah, who would I take from one trio? Well? Okay,
so I would answer it as like a survival ant,
like who who would be the most like hmm my
gut reaction is James Lafford. It is Nathan because he's
an athlete and he's strong, and he's big, and he's
he's lead. He's a leader. He's humble. People will follow him,
(25:51):
not like greedy and power corrupt Nathan is such an
honorable man. He would be such a great leader in
the zombie Apocalypse.
Speaker 3 (26:00):
I feel like, yeah, my knee jerk was Dan, But
then I immediately shot that down because Dan would stab
you in the back of.
Speaker 4 (26:05):
The well, and that in that world would probably be
really good for a while until hes you in the back.
Speaker 1 (26:12):
Till he ruins your life. Okay, and this is a
related question. Another person asked, do you think Julian would
have lasted longer than Spencer in The Walking Dead?
Speaker 4 (26:22):
Well, it's so funny because both of these characters were not,
uh what, neither of them would do well in the
Zombie Apocalypse. So I would have to say it's a
it's a tie, like they both would do equally horrible.
Speaker 3 (26:36):
I love it.
Speaker 4 (26:38):
Julian be like, case, should we have a play? Can
we stage a play?
Speaker 1 (26:42):
People need to be entertained, you know, we should? We
should entertain them?
Speaker 5 (26:46):
Yeah?
Speaker 3 (26:59):
What or your thoughts on the whole high five gate
with Julian?
Speaker 4 (27:05):
Okay, I may have said this before, and forgive me
if I'm being repetitive, but it's one of those things
that you hate in the moment and you feel like
you're such an idiot and you feel like you're being
taken advantage of and you're being made fun of. Then
you find out years later that it's one of the
most remembered moments that fans love and they ask for
(27:27):
a high five in person. It's still kind of embarrassing
when it happens, but it's also sweet that people remember
something and it makes them laugh. Yeah, so I was.
I've always been. It's always been a tug of war
of like, god, that was so dumb, but oh my god,
it's like it caught on. And sometimes I say this
(27:50):
a lot. I've said this when I'm directing now, when
I say to actors when they'd feel weird about something,
I go, sometimes the cheesiest stupid stuff is the is
the best stuff.
Speaker 1 (28:00):
Well, this came up recently. I'm trying to think Rob,
you might remember who was on with us.
Speaker 3 (28:06):
Was it?
Speaker 1 (28:08):
I can't remember if it was Steven or someone. Somebody
had joined us for an episode and we were talking
about some of that like embarrassing whatever that they gave
to Julian, and whoever was with us was like, yeah, man,
this idea that they wanted to, you know, emasculate the
(28:29):
swaggy movie director from La backfired so hard because Austin
is so frickin likable and so charming and committed with
his whole chest. So he doesn't look silly, he looks
fucking adorable.
Speaker 3 (28:45):
That's me. Yeah, it was just me. Every time we talked, Yeah,
every time we talk about you, buddy, I always said,
I'm like, to me, it's it is the best thing
because it was. Listen, I agree. I think everything you
felt in the moment to me is accurate. Like you
were kind of being taken advantage of. You were definitely
being made fun of. It was an attempt to masculate you,
but because you played it so earnestly and you leaned in,
(29:11):
it completely backfired. And the thing that's funny is had
they given you cool guy leading man lines, I still
do not think Julian would have ended up as lovable
as he did from you turning their crap into gold.
Speaker 4 (29:27):
Thank you. That's I mean, I don't even know what
to say.
Speaker 3 (29:29):
That's so it's just a testament to like how likable
you are. Like I say this all the time, Like
you are infinitely likable as Julian, thank you, And so
it's so funny to me, that's like all of these attempts,
I'm like, Wow, what what you were hoping to undermined?
You inadvertently built up?
Speaker 1 (29:45):
Yeah.
Speaker 5 (29:46):
Wow.
Speaker 1 (29:47):
And the willingness to commit to a story like no
matter where it's going to go is it's kind of
our job. But I think, especially as young actors, it
can be hard. You don't want to feel stupid, you
don't want to you don't necessarily want to be the
butt of a joke. And then I think you get
older and you're like, oh my god, it's the best
(30:08):
thing to be the joke in the scene. Yeah, but yeah,
watching it back, we are always just like, God, he's
so charming. It doesn't matter what you It doesn't matter
what you do or what they gave you. Like, you
just crushed it.
Speaker 4 (30:21):
Man.
Speaker 1 (30:22):
So anytime you're having a bad day, you just FaceTime
me and Rob and we will tell you you're perfect.
Speaker 3 (30:28):
I worked with this director one time, and I remember
there was some issues with the script or something, and
she said to me, she went, I'll get my revenge.
I'll shoot their script. And I love that, And to me,
that's kind of like what you did. You were like, Okay,
I'm actually not going to try to make this cool
at all. I'm going to do it exactly as written
(30:49):
and how to turn out, it was not emasculating. It
was wildly endearing.
Speaker 4 (30:52):
That's interesting.
Speaker 1 (30:53):
Wow, yeah, it was great. Okay. I actually think this
transitions into this next question really well, because you're obviously
reflecting on this character that you built. What do you
think you share with Julian? What similarities do you have
to that character?
Speaker 5 (31:11):
You know?
Speaker 4 (31:12):
I was actually I was doing a little jog this
morning and I was thinking about this while I was jogging.
This is kind of an answer, it's not exactly the answer.
But when I was a young actor, I wanted to
act and I wanted to play characters, and I wanted
to like change everything and we're wigs and just be
different and not be me and like always just transform.
(31:36):
That was what I thought was interesting. And I remember
when I got the call to do Montree Hill, I
had to get on a plane and go to Wilmington
so fast. I was like, there's no time to create
a character. And I remember saying to myself for the
first time, I said, I'm just gonna be myself and
this will be an experiment to see what happens and
(31:57):
lo and behold It was the first time that I
had an audience really connect with me. And I don't
know if that you know, really answers that question, but
it was such such a big lesson because I actors
want to act and they actually need we need directors,
we need other people to help us. Because sometimes the
(32:21):
difference between an actor who thinks they're doing something really good,
but then somebody steps in and says, all I need
you to do is just like not kind of be
so excited. And if you just if you just actually
just use your voice instead of like you're you're dropping
into this like voice, you know, if you just actually
(32:42):
just talk like you right now, I'm going.
Speaker 3 (32:45):
To cry less, Batman more, Bruce Wayne, thank you, thank you.
Speaker 4 (32:50):
Yeah. And I learned that on One Tree Hill. I
learned that playing Julian because I committed to just being
Austin in that role. And look, you know, the question
is what's similar. I mean, certainly there are things that
are different one hundred percent, but the overall the from
forty thousand feet it was like, I'm going to go
(33:10):
to work and speak from my heart every day.
Speaker 3 (33:14):
Yeah, it comes across. I mean knowing you personally, I
think like isn't that what we do? I mean, I
don't know. Some people have like big old methods. I
bring a lot of rob to everything I do, like
where it's applicable one hundred percent.
Speaker 4 (33:26):
And that's why you're so good and why people connect.
It's all about connection. Yeah, and when people I see
this so much now, when someone is trying trying to
do something, there immediately is a barrier between the audience
and them. And that's why you always it's so annoying
(33:49):
because I was always an actor who was trying to
do something and that director was always like less less less, No, no,
don't do that, less less less less less. Yeah, And
it took me so many years to understand what that
meant because nobody ever said the audience isn't going to
connect with you. No one ever said that, right, Yeah,
they just said, don't do that.
Speaker 5 (34:09):
Do us.
Speaker 3 (34:09):
That's a great Josh Brolin story where I guess he
was a big like process actor when he was doing
Goonies when he was very y saw this and I
guess he was like taught like it was when they
were like going through a cave, and I guess he
went up to is it, George?
Speaker 4 (34:22):
Was it Spielberg.
Speaker 3 (34:23):
Yeah. He went to Spielberg and was like, so is
the cave, like, is it like a metaphor for like,
am are we coming out of the womb? And Spielberg
is basically like, how about you're a kid walking through
a tunnel and say you're line and say your line?
Speaker 4 (34:38):
Yeah, So genius a perfect example.
Speaker 1 (34:43):
Perfect, It is a perfect example. And I have to
and this is perfect because we are talking about movie making.
I have to tell you we got great questions from
the fans for you and I were barely scratching the surface.
But one of the questions we got the most, the
most was that they are so desperate for details on
(35:05):
an early filmic project of yours, Holiday in the Sun.
They want to know what it was like working with
the Olsen twins, and more than twenty people asked if
you were nervous to kiss Ashley and I feel like
we've got to give the fans what they.
Speaker 4 (35:17):
Want, you know, happy to I learned pretty quickly when
I was in One Tree Hill that there was a
similar audience from those movies yeah Nashally movies to One
Tree Hill, and there was a lot of overlap there.
So people say stuff a lot I was definitely nervous
(35:38):
because Mary Kate was fifteen and I was I think
eighteen or nineteen or maybe even twenty, I don't remember.
But I was old and it felt weird and it
felt wrong, and you know, I looked very young. So
watching the movie, I don't think you noticed. I'm real
tall and skinny and like nerdy, but I don't think
(35:58):
you can tell there's a big age difference. But from
my brain, I was like, she's fifteen, this is not
this is weird. So I remember talking to you producers,
and I remember talking to even her dad was there,
and I just wanted everybody to like. I was like,
is this okay with you guys? Like, and they were
all like, oh, don't worry about it. Nobody was, you know,
(36:19):
nobody seemed concerned, and I was very concerned. But it
turned out fine. It was all very g rated.
Speaker 1 (36:28):
Yeah, But I think that really speaks to your character though,
because listen, they'd been acting since they were little. It's
not like a fifteen year old girl was going to
have her first kiss ever, you know, with a guy
five years older than her. But the fact that as
the older actor in the room, you were like, hey,
(36:49):
how are we going to address this, because yes, this
is our job, but also we got to acknowledge what's
happening here.
Speaker 4 (36:58):
I and I they're children.
Speaker 1 (37:00):
Yeah, and I really just like I respect that.
Speaker 4 (37:03):
About you so much, Thank you, thank you. It was
in a way, it's one of those things. It's similar
to the high five moment where when you're young and
you're trying to make your career as an actor and
do all these cool projects and you have this one
that you feel is maybe a little silly, And I
(37:24):
had to give that up years ago because people love it.
And I had to put away my crap and my
all my junk in my head and go, people like
this thing, And why am I being a jerk about it?
Like it's only it's only paid me back a million
(37:44):
times with love. Like So that's another lesson I've learned from,
you know, doing what we do is you know, sometimes
it's the same thing. Sometimes those things that you don't
think maybe aren't like super cool or hip, a lot
of people love them.
Speaker 1 (38:00):
Yeah I love that.
Speaker 3 (38:03):
Yeah, well you heard it from Austin Nichols. Sometimes the
cheesy stuff is the best stuff, that's right, Austin, You're
one of my favorite people I don't get to see regularly,
So thank you for making the time.
Speaker 4 (38:15):
Oh, thanks guys. I miss you guys, and I know.
Speaker 1 (38:17):
We missed you in Wilmington.
Speaker 4 (38:18):
I know I miss you guys too. I saw pictures
and I was really sad. But there'll be another and
there will be another other again.
Speaker 1 (38:26):
Yeah, and you got to go take that movie to
a festival. I can't wait. Where can people follow that, Austin?
Where can they get info on the movie?
Speaker 4 (38:34):
So I would I would look at follow my Instagram
Austin Nichols for now until we get closer to like
a sale and a release. Okay, it doesn't have its
own social media yet. Yeah, you know buyers, sales agents
and buyers distributors. They get weird when you do too
much early totally, so we got to kind of wait.
All right, yeah, and I'll put it out there on
(38:55):
my Instagram.
Speaker 1 (38:56):
Okay, thanks for joining us today, but thanks for yeah, hey,
thanks for listening. Don't forget to leave us a review.
You can also follow us on Instagram at drama Queens
O t.
Speaker 2 (39:08):
H or email us at drama Queens at iHeartRadio dot com.
Speaker 3 (39:13):
See you next time.
Speaker 2 (39:15):
We all about that high school drama Girl, Drama girl,
all about.
Speaker 4 (39:19):
Them high school queens.
Speaker 1 (39:21):
We'll take you for a ride at our comic Girl
cheering for the right teen
Speaker 2 (39:26):
Drama queensise my girl, up girl fashion with your tough girl,
you could sit with us Girl Drama Queens, Drama Queens,
Drama Queens, Drama Drama Queens, Drama Queens
First of all, you don't know me.
Speaker 2 (00:02):
All about that high school drama Girl Drama, Girl, all
about them.
Speaker 1 (00:06):
High school queens. We'll take you for a ride. And
our comic girl sharing for the right teams.
Speaker 2 (00:12):
Drama Queens jis go up girl Fashion, but your tough girl,
you could sit with us.
Speaker 1 (00:17):
Girl Drama, Queens Drama, Queise Drama, Queens Drama, Drahn The
Queens Drama, Queens Drama, Queen's friends and fam We have
none other than our very own Austin Nichols. Should we
bring him in here? Hey buddy, Hi buddy, Welcome back
to the show.
Speaker 3 (00:35):
Pal.
Speaker 1 (00:35):
Are you Are you at home in Texas at the moment?
Speaker 4 (00:38):
Yeah, I'm in Austin and it's gorgeous. It's a beautiful
day in Paradise. It's spring and it's not hot yet
and it's green. It's awesome.
Speaker 1 (00:46):
Oh my goodness, that's so fun. Are you, like, are
you doing stuff on the lake? What's keeping you busy?
Speaker 4 (00:53):
Yep, I've been out on the water getting ready. I'm
going to Peru to do this surf trip that I've
wanted to do, like for twenty years, going and I'm
finally finally going. It's this wave that's like three kilometers long.
It's just this thing I've always wanted to do. And
I finally said, what am I waiting for?
Speaker 1 (01:10):
Yeah?
Speaker 3 (01:11):
So is the idea that you you ride the wave
for three kilometers? Is that the goal or the whole?
Speaker 4 (01:18):
Well, you don't have to, I mean, I think that's
part of the attraction to me. Is to do something,
is to catch something, catch lightning in a bottle, something
that's unattainable and natural in the in the world, in nature,
and harness it for as long as you can without
having to have a machine.
Speaker 3 (01:35):
So is the goal? Then? Is this like an operation
where you and at least one other buddy, you like,
park a car down approximately where the wave ends, and
then you drive back up to the top.
Speaker 4 (01:45):
Well, I've done something like that, but this is better
because there's a booat and there's actually going to be
drones and cameras, and it's there's eight people and basically
we just tow each other into the wave and then
you try to ride it all the way in and
then you get picked up in the boat and you
go back out.
Speaker 3 (02:04):
Oh that's so cool. Is this what I saw? I
sawn your Instagram? You were doing wall sits.
Speaker 4 (02:11):
I'm trying to get my legs strong because the thing
I'm doing, like you're up for so long that your
your quad's just just get out.
Speaker 3 (02:19):
Yeah sure, Oh cool.
Speaker 1 (02:23):
I'm so glad to know. I mean, obviously you are,
You're a very prepared person and you're an athlete, but
I'm so glad to hear you talk about the fact
that you are training for this. I did a dumb,
cocky thing that really reads a theater kid who knows
nothing about her body. A couple of years ago. I
was like, ski season, didn't get to go last year,
(02:43):
Let's hit it and went up a mountain I've skied
a hundred times, not having skied in essentially two years
because I'd skipped a season, hadn't been in the gym,
hadn't done shit like all three Thanksgiving over the holidays,
And halfway down my first run, I was like, my
(03:05):
squads are going to explode. I'm gonna die. I'm like,
I want to die on this mountain just because I
forgot that I needed to, like, I don't know, do
some squats before I tried to do this again. Yeah,
it was very humbling and deeply embarrassing for me.
Speaker 3 (03:21):
I committed the same party foul. I was asked to
go on this. It was sort of like an interview show,
but the whole thing was like you taught you do
the interview on the chair lift, and then you snowboarder
ski all the way down the mountain. I was like,
I was like, can you snow where? I'm like, yeah, man,
I snowboarded in high school. Mind you. I snow word
like four times in high school. And when we shot this,
I was thirty five years old. It didn't occur to
(03:42):
me until I was getting off the lift that I
was like, oh, farts, I haven't done this in like
eighteen years, And like you, I paid the price.
Speaker 4 (03:53):
It probably made a bunch much better show.
Speaker 3 (03:56):
It did. The falls were more dramatic, sure, just the flailing.
The language was more colorful.
Speaker 1 (04:01):
Yeah, so cool. Basically, what we've learned so far today
is that Austin will be the one on the wave,
and Rob and I would likely be the friends on
the beach with the beers waiting for you, and you're.
Speaker 3 (04:13):
Dad, dude, I'll be holding that big towel for you
with a chair roh or a corn dog, whatever you're into.
Speaker 4 (04:19):
I want to be there too.
Speaker 1 (04:21):
Great. We love it well.
Speaker 3 (04:24):
We asked fans for questions and they did not disappoint.
So if you'll allow it, how about we just jump
right in.
Speaker 4 (04:32):
Let's jump in.
Speaker 3 (04:33):
Okay, First one, what did you steal from set? If anything?
Speaker 4 (04:38):
A fake Eames chair? Well we did.
Speaker 1 (04:42):
Yeah, we put that thing right in the back of
my audie that rob ed Hardy bombed one time.
Speaker 4 (04:47):
Yeah, so in last season, like I think, so if
you tell me if I'm wrong, But it was maybe
like there was maybe two one or two shooting days left. Yeah,
and we knew that the Brooks House was getting wrapped. Yep,
we've done shooting in there, and we were like, we
got to get that chair. Those chairs are so expensive
(05:08):
and the like I wouldn't never pay for one.
Speaker 3 (05:11):
No wait, so who got the chair? You stole it together?
But who got the loot?
Speaker 4 (05:15):
I think I carried it? Did I carry it? And
we put it Who's truck?
Speaker 1 (05:19):
We put it in the back of my car in
the little hatchback station wagon. I don't know how we
even got it in there, but we made it work.
Speaker 4 (05:27):
That was a good some good fever.
Speaker 1 (05:29):
It was fun and it's nice to be like a
gentle thief and feel like you're in a buddy cop
movie because the two of us were like running and
then hiding behind a wall and then running, and then
Austin would be like, I'll go duck, and you know,
we like made it all the way through the stages
with these two pieces of furniture, the chair and the ottoman,
and by the time we got in the car, I
(05:50):
was like, well, that's going to be my favorite part
of this whole thing, just the caper of it.
Speaker 4 (05:55):
Absolutely.
Speaker 3 (05:55):
Yeah, it was the adventure.
Speaker 4 (05:57):
Yeah, made a little documentary. I think I definitely got
clothes over the years. But that's kind of that's so
that's sort of normal. What about you did, Rob? Did
you steal anything? Man?
Speaker 3 (06:11):
Same as you. I close. But then the only I
could think of was I still have to this day
some Fortitude cards Clay Clay's business card, So talk about
being a gentle thief. While you guys were stealing large
pieces of designer furniture, knockoff, knock off, I was stealing
about five or six business cards.
Speaker 4 (06:32):
Hilarious.
Speaker 1 (06:33):
I love that I still have business cards from Good Sam.
So I have these business cards that say I'm a
cardiothoracic surgeony make me feel very smart.
Speaker 3 (06:45):
So if I would ask you what you stole from set?
But I know you have a storage unit full of
multiple boxes of things from the show, so you don't
have the time for that, do we No.
Speaker 1 (06:53):
I probably have like four plastic bins of stuff from
over the years. But honestly, the funniest thing is we
we capered a chair and an automan together. And the
most like large stuff I've quote stole from set I
stole for Hillary, like I took her. I took this big,
(07:15):
beautiful like maroon silk lamp shade with tassels and the
standing lamp, and then this really cool like I think
they called them telephone tables, a chair with like a
little attached side table from the fifties that your phone
would sit on. Uh, And they were from Red Bedroom Records.
And when we wrapped out the sets, obviously she wasn't
(07:35):
with us, and I was like, this is bullshit, I'm
taking her stuff, and so I had to. I had
to get the chair and automan out of the tiny
station wagon to then go back and lift the rest
of the stuff for her.
Speaker 3 (07:48):
Nice you did some damage, Sofia I did well done.
Speaker 1 (07:51):
But listen, I own it. Here. We are that's the
same here.
Speaker 3 (07:56):
It's also funny that the idea that you guys even
were trying to be sneaky about it, because no one
would have said boo.
Speaker 4 (08:03):
But you don't feel like that in the moment you
feel like you're gonna get busted. Yeah, sure, totally.
Speaker 3 (08:08):
But you're right.
Speaker 4 (08:08):
I don't think anybody would have said no.
Speaker 3 (08:10):
The crew liked you. Wait, I mean, come on, yeah,
I know you guys would have been fine.
Speaker 5 (08:14):
Right.
Speaker 3 (08:15):
Did you know from the beginning that Brooke was going
to be your endgame?
Speaker 5 (08:18):
Oh?
Speaker 4 (08:19):
I think I kind of did, but I'm trying to
remember how things went down. It was like, you're gonna
we're gonna explore the past with Peyton, and then you're
gonna be Brooks new love interest and then yeah, I kinda,
but I didn't know it was gonna go four seasons
and end in marriage and kids. I didn't know that.
(08:40):
I don't think.
Speaker 1 (08:41):
Yeah, I don't think we really could have, you know,
especially because when you came in season six, we didn't
really know what was going to happen with the show,
and then we wound up getting the seven and eight
pick up together, which had never happened before, and to
get two seasons picked up at the same time is
(09:03):
so surreal. So yeah, I guess I wonder if maybe
the reason by the middle of season eight they had
the characters get married was because everybody thought we were
going to be done at the end of eight.
Speaker 4 (09:17):
Yeah, we weren't sure about doing nine. Remember, I think
we weren't sure.
Speaker 3 (09:20):
No, yeah, I remember they came to the cast and
were like, Hi, how would you guys feel about a nine?
And people were like, how about half a season? Yeah,
And so I think that's why we did the truncated thirteen, right.
Speaker 1 (09:33):
Well, you know what I remember, And I was really
proud of us all, like we grew up on the show,
you know, especially those of us who had been there
since we were twenty one. I remember just not knowing
anything about the business, and by the time they came
to all of us to be like, Okay, if you're
all into a season nine, let's talk about it. What
I loved And I have this memory of all of
(09:55):
us being like, it feels cool. We don't feel like
we're ready to be done done, but we also know
we're all going to need to get jobs after this,
So how about we wrapp by the end of December
so we can have the next pilot season free. And
then it was like it was like summer camp, because
(10:16):
you're never going to book a show between July and December,
at least in the traditional network world. And so we
were like, wait, we get to go do thirteen more
episodes and dink around with our friends and then like,
I guess we all start auditioning again. Oh my god,
what a time. But I like that we had that foresight.
Speaker 4 (10:36):
Yeah, that's good.
Speaker 3 (10:38):
I had never seen and we'll get into the we're
going to talk about this on the episode recap as well.
But I had never seen your guys of stuff from
season six. I had only I knew of it from
listening to the podcast before I joined. So it was
so fun. And the flashback montage, yeah, of Julian and Brooke.
It was so cool because like Austin, I knew your
(11:00):
hair got cut too high on the back when you
got there, and so as I was watching, I was like, Oh,
there is the actual haircut he was talking about, and like,
here's the edge you're Julian, And it was it was
so fun to watch.
Speaker 4 (11:11):
That yeah, I agree. That montage made me emotional because
you see all these iconic moments, like the one that
that it gets me is when. So if you help me,
remember it was that outside the USO concert when I
first got there. No, no, when was this? It was
when you said I'm finally ready to let someone in.
Speaker 1 (11:33):
I think that's when. Isn't that when Brooke goes to
see Julian on his movie set.
Speaker 4 (11:37):
That sounds right because it's all lit and it looks.
Speaker 1 (11:39):
Like, Yeah, it looks that's what it is.
Speaker 4 (11:42):
That's my favorite moments me too.
Speaker 1 (11:58):
Catching up, somebody wants to know what does a day
in the life of Austin look like? And if I may,
I kind of want to add to that because you
have just completed this movie that you have been working
on for so long that you're so excited about, and
(12:21):
I know you're about to open a film festival in
Dallas with the Salamander King, So I I want you
to talk to the fans about what a day in
the life of making this movie has looked like for you.
Speaker 4 (12:35):
Oh my god, Okay, yes, I'm so excited and proud
it's finally finished and we're going to Dallas at the
end of April. It's so good to like finish something
and you know, see it all the way through from
beginning to end. But you know, there was three years
of just talking and sending people a pitch or a
(12:58):
script or just get a phone call her a zoom,
and nothing happens. And about a year and a half ago,
I guess, Jennifer, my producer, came on, Jennifer Kuchai and
she that was the moment where the ball started rolling,
and so thankful to her. And we raised the money
pretty quickly for a small indie, and we shot it
(13:23):
in Austin in last June, and post took me all
the way to I guess about a month ago when
I finished the sound mix and we're in a festival
and like that feels it's a year sounds or just
under a year sounds slow, but it was fast. Like
(13:46):
I can't believe we're already done, and you know, in
a festival and now we're looking to you know, go
sell it to buyers, and I you know, I'm kind
of rambling here, but I just I've never felt this
feeling of sort of pride in completing something and just
starting and completing something that feels just so hard. It's
(14:08):
like the Sissifian task of rolling, you know, the boulder
up the mountain and yes, man, and then I just
can't wait to do it again.
Speaker 1 (14:15):
I just can't wait, oh, buddy.
Speaker 3 (14:18):
And so often what we do is that we're either
joining something halfway in or we're just doing the starting
stuff and then handing off to someone else. So it's
so cool that, I mean, you saw this thing through
from inception to premiere, Like, that's awesome. That is a
huge accomplishment. Man, you should be proud of yourself.
Speaker 4 (14:38):
I'm so happy. And had so many great people. By
the way, Peter Kowalski was my DP, oh lucky, our
DP on One Tree Hill. For some of you may
not know his name, but he was such an important
part of One Tree Hill. And I was so lucky
to have such a crack team because Peter was working
(14:58):
on a TV show in Austin and I went and
directed that and then I got all that crew to
come and they'd been working together for four years. So
I just had this team that was just so dialed
into each other. Yeah, that was that was part of
why you ran so smoothly. We didn't have problems. Every
day was everyone just laughing and having fun. And I
(15:21):
never thought I would my first movie would be a comedy.
Never I'm going to make some dark, indie, crazy.
Speaker 1 (15:28):
Darling deep bartsy thing.
Speaker 4 (15:32):
And the first thing I makes a comedy, and I
just want to keep making comedies now. It was just
so fun and it's funny the way life happens to
you in that way, and you something you didn't expect
becomes maybe your next you know path. But to get
Leaven a little bit more specific about.
Speaker 1 (15:51):
Like my day, I mean, yeah, what does a day
look like as a director?
Speaker 3 (15:54):
Love?
Speaker 4 (15:55):
I love to I wake up early. I love to
have some coffee. Sometimes I'll go to the coffee shop
on South Congress and have a little social time with
some local Austin coffee stop. Not the I call myself
a coffee slut, but these local coffee connoisseurs. There's this
little group and we gather and drink and talk in
(16:16):
the morning early and then I go home. And I
don't do this every day, but I like to exercise
in the morning if I can, and then I get
into writing and I'll sit down and I'll write for
a while. And then writing is weird because the schedule,
like everyone's writing habits are different. I like to write
in the morning, get some done, and I like to
(16:37):
move and walk or do something, take a break, have lunch,
get out, get away from it, and then come back
to it later, whether that's in the afternoon or at night,
and that helps. I don't know, there's something about like
flow state, and like, I don't know how it all works,
but getting the blood pumping and stepping away and then
coming back is really helpful. If I can't write all day,
(16:58):
it just for sure crazy.
Speaker 1 (17:00):
Yeah, that totally tracks. I was talking through something with
my therapist about just like, you know, when what are
tools for resilience when time is so jammed like March
For whatever reason, I felt like I was working twenty
four hours a day, just like meeting to meeting to
meeting to meeting, and it was making me feel nuts.
(17:22):
And he was like, I'm telling you, I want you
to start setting thirty minute timers and if you have
to be on a zoom or in a thing for
an hour, set a timer for an hour and then
just go on a walk for five minutes and then
you can come back. And I started just trying to
reclaim minutes in certain spaces and like, I feel you
(17:42):
when you say that helps your flow state. It felt
like it brought me back down to earth, Like I
was so high strung from the stress and then it
like just five minutes here and there and I got
right back into my body and was like whoa.
Speaker 4 (17:58):
Yeah. And the one thing I also discovered by accident
was the little coffee group friend thing in the morning,
saytates my community societal thing, and I don't have FOMO
the rest of the day. M So if I can
be social talk to some people for a little while,
then I can go focus and I'm not like wondering
what everyone else is doing.
Speaker 3 (18:19):
That's brains out, like let's check let's check Instagram for
a false sense of community.
Speaker 4 (18:23):
Yeah, yeah, exactly.
Speaker 3 (18:25):
Well it's funny. It's like I remember someone just saying,
like go touch grass, and it was that same thing
where it's like just go outside, yeah, get away from screens,
go out, take your shoes and socks off, walk around
in the lawn for a little bit, and it's like
it's the truth. Though. Man, it is such a good reset,
all right, So another question here, says uh. Sophia said
(18:46):
she rewrote her wedding vows herself. Did you rewrite or
punch up Julian's.
Speaker 1 (18:52):
I did come on Austin's laughing because mine were trash
like what we saw in the script. We both were like,
you gotta be kidding. Made Brook Davis wait eight seasons
for this and the fans are so amped and like
we're doing call and repeat with like the traditional vows.
Everybody does know, and so I had to and I
(19:15):
had to open with a joke because it felt right
for her.
Speaker 4 (19:19):
Well, I thought you did a great job, but it
was it was really well well done, and glad you
fought for that, you know, I think, you know, I don't.
There's no there's no blame or throwing any into the
throwing anybody under the bus. But we thought that maybe
the church was weird, the location was. We wanted to
do something outside with lights and like trees and you know,
(19:40):
something a little more magical, you know, with you know
how it is with shooting, like it's expensive and locations
and money, and you get to season eight and people
are not as don't have the energy they had and
like that happens, and you know, that was my one
thing was really the location. Yeah, kind I kind of
(20:01):
wanted something a little more magical. I guess I.
Speaker 1 (20:04):
Think we wanted it to feel like that scene you
brought up from the montage, like when Brooke and Julian
meet on that soundstage and it looks like they're in
the park and then all the lights go on, Like
we wanted that for the wedding, and then we got,
you know, no shade, but like we got brown wood walls,
and we were like, oh, no.
Speaker 3 (20:24):
Liking shade. It's fair because also before you lost the company,
Before Brook lost the company, you guys were at this
stupidly palatial estate with like a never ending fucking go
what do you call that? A garden maze? So it
is a little weird that you guys went from that
to being like a church.
Speaker 4 (20:43):
No, they would have spent some money. Brooke wants the
dreamy wedding. And you know, I will say this because
I was watching it going and watching it knowing that
and how we felt about it then, and I was
going to watch it with fresh eyes and go, how
does it play now? And truthfully it bothered me a little,
but what was happening cut through it well enough. The
(21:03):
emotion cut through well enough that I went, that's what's important,
and that's what I'm in an audience is hopefully connecting
to and not the location. So watching it with fresh eyes,
I was I was happy to see that, Like, there
was emotion and there was something meaningful there and that
was what took center stage over the beauty.
Speaker 3 (21:24):
And having because I didn't know you guys had an
issue with that. So I was truly watching this with
fresh eyes. I didn't bump at all.
Speaker 1 (21:31):
Good, Yeah, that's good.
Speaker 3 (21:33):
You guys did a great job. I wasn't paying, to
be honest with you, I maybe noticed the church and
the master, and then after that I was I was
along for the rider. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (21:42):
Well, and something else that I think helps. I mean,
first of all, you and I collaborating creatively on the
language I thought was so important because there's you know,
things that you say that Julian says that Brooke then echoes,
and the kind of call and response to two people
(22:03):
who've been through a lot together who are on this
sort of shared road. Now. I liked that we personalized
it and didn't just do the repeat after me. I Brooke,
take you Julian like womp womp, and the other thing
that played so well about it for me, given that
(22:25):
we didn't get to do the sort of exterior nighttime,
beautifully lit you know, fairy tale thing was the montage
that you referenced, because the whole walk down the aisle
to marry me, you actually get to see all those things.
You see us on the scooter and with the lights,
and you know all the adventures these two have had together.
(22:47):
So the room just kind of being a box still
felt bigger because they used that device, and I thought
it was really smart.
Speaker 4 (22:55):
Yeah, absolutely, yeah.
Speaker 3 (22:56):
I think if if had all of those things that
worked as well as they did, there would have been
and more room to pay attention to the setting. But
like I said, I didn't notice it.
Speaker 4 (23:06):
There was so much emotion in this episode, like with
with you and Joy yeah, Brooke and Haley with Victoria, yeah,
Jamie in the beginning is so cute, and then some
one knocks it out of the park in this episode,
like he wanted funny and so good in this episode.
It made me giggle watching it now so funny.
Speaker 3 (23:29):
Okay, I'm gonna cherry pick a little bit here. I
like this one. This is a little uh kind of
go back in time perhaps, who do you wish Julian
would have picked as his best man. This is assuming
I guess let's just say Jamie's not available. It's not
that you don't like Jamie, but let's say he was
unavailable that day.
Speaker 4 (23:48):
Yet a prior. Yeah, great question. You know, the whole
thing was weird to me because this joke of like
Julian not having guy friends was which was funny and
it worked. I'm trying to think back to like, was
there ever anybody that Julian got close with?
Speaker 5 (24:07):
There was a guy?
Speaker 3 (24:09):
I wish that you and I would have had more stuff,
because yes, we were the two quirky, kind of offbeat guys,
and I just feel like I could have had such
a cool, fun nerdy bro thing.
Speaker 4 (24:22):
Yes, I pick you, Hey, yes, hold on, hold on,
hold on, Clay. Yeah, I know we haven't talked in
a while, but like back, you know, I always liked
you and I thought we had, you know, like a
great connection, and it's happening. I I don't know, I
just feel like we're kind of on the same page
with a lot of things, and I really, I really
(24:42):
would you consider being my best.
Speaker 3 (24:44):
Yes, I'll marry you. Oh oh your best man? Yeah? Yeah,
I'd love to be your best man totally.
Speaker 5 (24:47):
That's what.
Speaker 3 (24:48):
Yeah, yeah, yeah, a thousand times. Yes, this is gonna
This is great because I've written so much fan fiction
about this that now it finally is going to pay off.
Speaker 1 (24:56):
I love it. Okay, wait, if we're going to cherry
pick something, cherry pick Wait. This is a really fun
one because it jumps around in our shows and I
like this alternate reality stuff. Who would you take? I
think it needs to be a character. Who would you
take from One Tree Hill into The Walking Dead? And why?
Speaker 5 (25:15):
Oh my god?
Speaker 4 (25:17):
Well, you know, actually it's funny because like Hillary went on, Yeah,
Floris was on, there were some other people that were
on one Trio that were in The Walking Dead too
lead to.
Speaker 3 (25:26):
The Walking Dead. Yeah that's awesome.
Speaker 4 (25:28):
Yeah, who would I take from one trio? Well? Okay,
so I would answer it as like a survival ant,
like who who would be the most like hmm my
gut reaction is James Lafford. It is Nathan because he's
an athlete and he's strong, and he's big, and he's
he's lead. He's a leader. He's humble. People will follow him,
(25:51):
not like greedy and power corrupt Nathan is such an
honorable man. He would be such a great leader in
the zombie Apocalypse.
Speaker 3 (26:00):
I feel like, yeah, my knee jerk was Dan, But
then I immediately shot that down because Dan would stab
you in the back of.
Speaker 4 (26:05):
The well, and that in that world would probably be
really good for a while until hes you in the back.
Speaker 1 (26:12):
Till he ruins your life. Okay, and this is a
related question. Another person asked, do you think Julian would
have lasted longer than Spencer in The Walking Dead?
Speaker 4 (26:22):
Well, it's so funny because both of these characters were not,
uh what, neither of them would do well in the
Zombie Apocalypse. So I would have to say it's a
it's a tie, like they both would do equally horrible.
Speaker 3 (26:36):
I love it.
Speaker 4 (26:38):
Julian be like, case, should we have a play? Can
we stage a play?
Speaker 1 (26:42):
People need to be entertained, you know, we should? We
should entertain them?
Speaker 5 (26:46):
Yeah?
Speaker 3 (26:59):
What or your thoughts on the whole high five gate
with Julian?
Speaker 4 (27:05):
Okay, I may have said this before, and forgive me
if I'm being repetitive, but it's one of those things
that you hate in the moment and you feel like
you're such an idiot and you feel like you're being
taken advantage of and you're being made fun of. Then
you find out years later that it's one of the
most remembered moments that fans love and they ask for
(27:27):
a high five in person. It's still kind of embarrassing
when it happens, but it's also sweet that people remember
something and it makes them laugh. Yeah, so I was.
I've always been. It's always been a tug of war
of like, god, that was so dumb, but oh my god,
it's like it caught on. And sometimes I say this
(27:50):
a lot. I've said this when I'm directing now, when
I say to actors when they'd feel weird about something,
I go, sometimes the cheesiest stupid stuff is the is
the best stuff.
Speaker 1 (28:00):
Well, this came up recently. I'm trying to think Rob,
you might remember who was on with us.
Speaker 3 (28:06):
Was it?
Speaker 1 (28:08):
I can't remember if it was Steven or someone. Somebody
had joined us for an episode and we were talking
about some of that like embarrassing whatever that they gave
to Julian, and whoever was with us was like, yeah, man,
this idea that they wanted to, you know, emasculate the
(28:29):
swaggy movie director from La backfired so hard because Austin
is so frickin likable and so charming and committed with
his whole chest. So he doesn't look silly, he looks
fucking adorable.
Speaker 3 (28:45):
That's me. Yeah, it was just me. Every time we talked, Yeah,
every time we talk about you, buddy, I always said,
I'm like, to me, it's it is the best thing
because it was. Listen, I agree. I think everything you
felt in the moment to me is accurate. Like you
were kind of being taken advantage of. You were definitely
being made fun of. It was an attempt to masculate you,
but because you played it so earnestly and you leaned in,
(29:11):
it completely backfired. And the thing that's funny is had
they given you cool guy leading man lines, I still
do not think Julian would have ended up as lovable
as he did from you turning their crap into gold.
Speaker 4 (29:27):
Thank you. That's I mean, I don't even know what
to say.
Speaker 3 (29:29):
That's so it's just a testament to like how likable
you are. Like I say this all the time, Like
you are infinitely likable as Julian, thank you, And so
it's so funny to me, that's like all of these attempts,
I'm like, Wow, what what you were hoping to undermined?
You inadvertently built up?
Speaker 1 (29:45):
Yeah.
Speaker 5 (29:46):
Wow.
Speaker 1 (29:47):
And the willingness to commit to a story like no
matter where it's going to go is it's kind of
our job. But I think, especially as young actors, it
can be hard. You don't want to feel stupid, you
don't want to you don't necessarily want to be the
butt of a joke. And then I think you get
older and you're like, oh my god, it's the best
(30:08):
thing to be the joke in the scene. Yeah, but yeah,
watching it back, we are always just like, God, he's
so charming. It doesn't matter what you It doesn't matter
what you do or what they gave you. Like, you
just crushed it.
Speaker 4 (30:21):
Man.
Speaker 1 (30:22):
So anytime you're having a bad day, you just FaceTime
me and Rob and we will tell you you're perfect.
Speaker 3 (30:28):
I worked with this director one time, and I remember
there was some issues with the script or something, and
she said to me, she went, I'll get my revenge.
I'll shoot their script. And I love that, And to me,
that's kind of like what you did. You were like, Okay,
I'm actually not going to try to make this cool
at all. I'm going to do it exactly as written
(30:49):
and how to turn out, it was not emasculating. It
was wildly endearing.
Speaker 4 (30:52):
That's interesting.
Speaker 1 (30:53):
Wow, yeah, it was great. Okay. I actually think this
transitions into this next question really well, because you're obviously
reflecting on this character that you built. What do you
think you share with Julian? What similarities do you have
to that character?
Speaker 5 (31:11):
You know?
Speaker 4 (31:12):
I was actually I was doing a little jog this
morning and I was thinking about this while I was jogging.
This is kind of an answer, it's not exactly the answer.
But when I was a young actor, I wanted to
act and I wanted to play characters, and I wanted
to like change everything and we're wigs and just be
different and not be me and like always just transform.
(31:36):
That was what I thought was interesting. And I remember
when I got the call to do Montree Hill, I
had to get on a plane and go to Wilmington
so fast. I was like, there's no time to create
a character. And I remember saying to myself for the
first time, I said, I'm just gonna be myself and
this will be an experiment to see what happens and
(31:57):
lo and behold It was the first time that I
had an audience really connect with me. And I don't
know if that you know, really answers that question, but
it was such such a big lesson because I actors
want to act and they actually need we need directors,
we need other people to help us. Because sometimes the
(32:21):
difference between an actor who thinks they're doing something really good,
but then somebody steps in and says, all I need
you to do is just like not kind of be
so excited. And if you just if you just actually
just use your voice instead of like you're you're dropping
into this like voice, you know, if you just actually
(32:42):
just talk like you right now, I'm going.
Speaker 3 (32:45):
To cry less, Batman more, Bruce Wayne, thank you, thank you.
Speaker 4 (32:50):
Yeah. And I learned that on One Tree Hill. I
learned that playing Julian because I committed to just being
Austin in that role. And look, you know, the question
is what's similar. I mean, certainly there are things that
are different one hundred percent, but the overall the from
forty thousand feet it was like, I'm going to go
(33:10):
to work and speak from my heart every day.
Speaker 3 (33:14):
Yeah, it comes across. I mean knowing you personally, I
think like isn't that what we do? I mean, I
don't know. Some people have like big old methods. I
bring a lot of rob to everything I do, like
where it's applicable one hundred percent.
Speaker 4 (33:26):
And that's why you're so good and why people connect.
It's all about connection. Yeah, and when people I see
this so much now, when someone is trying trying to
do something, there immediately is a barrier between the audience
and them. And that's why you always it's so annoying
(33:49):
because I was always an actor who was trying to
do something and that director was always like less less less, No, no,
don't do that, less less less less less. Yeah, And
it took me so many years to understand what that
meant because nobody ever said the audience isn't going to
connect with you. No one ever said that, right, Yeah,
they just said, don't do that.
Speaker 5 (34:09):
Do us.
Speaker 3 (34:09):
That's a great Josh Brolin story where I guess he
was a big like process actor when he was doing
Goonies when he was very y saw this and I
guess he was like taught like it was when they
were like going through a cave, and I guess he
went up to is it, George?
Speaker 4 (34:22):
Was it Spielberg.
Speaker 3 (34:23):
Yeah. He went to Spielberg and was like, so is
the cave, like, is it like a metaphor for like,
am are we coming out of the womb? And Spielberg
is basically like, how about you're a kid walking through
a tunnel and say you're line and say your line?
Speaker 4 (34:38):
Yeah, So genius a perfect example.
Speaker 1 (34:43):
Perfect, It is a perfect example. And I have to
and this is perfect because we are talking about movie making.
I have to tell you we got great questions from
the fans for you and I were barely scratching the surface.
But one of the questions we got the most, the
most was that they are so desperate for details on
(35:05):
an early filmic project of yours, Holiday in the Sun.
They want to know what it was like working with
the Olsen twins, and more than twenty people asked if
you were nervous to kiss Ashley and I feel like
we've got to give the fans what they.
Speaker 4 (35:17):
Want, you know, happy to I learned pretty quickly when
I was in One Tree Hill that there was a
similar audience from those movies yeah Nashally movies to One
Tree Hill, and there was a lot of overlap there.
So people say stuff a lot I was definitely nervous
(35:38):
because Mary Kate was fifteen and I was I think
eighteen or nineteen or maybe even twenty, I don't remember.
But I was old and it felt weird and it
felt wrong, and you know, I looked very young. So
watching the movie, I don't think you noticed. I'm real
tall and skinny and like nerdy, but I don't think
(35:58):
you can tell there's a big age difference. But from
my brain, I was like, she's fifteen, this is not
this is weird. So I remember talking to you producers,
and I remember talking to even her dad was there,
and I just wanted everybody to like. I was like,
is this okay with you guys? Like, and they were
all like, oh, don't worry about it. Nobody was, you know,
(36:19):
nobody seemed concerned, and I was very concerned. But it
turned out fine. It was all very g rated.
Speaker 1 (36:28):
Yeah, But I think that really speaks to your character though,
because listen, they'd been acting since they were little. It's
not like a fifteen year old girl was going to
have her first kiss ever, you know, with a guy
five years older than her. But the fact that as
the older actor in the room, you were like, hey,
(36:49):
how are we going to address this, because yes, this
is our job, but also we got to acknowledge what's
happening here.
Speaker 4 (36:58):
I and I they're children.
Speaker 1 (37:00):
Yeah, and I really just like I respect that.
Speaker 4 (37:03):
About you so much, Thank you, thank you. It was
in a way, it's one of those things. It's similar
to the high five moment where when you're young and
you're trying to make your career as an actor and
do all these cool projects and you have this one
that you feel is maybe a little silly, And I
(37:24):
had to give that up years ago because people love it.
And I had to put away my crap and my
all my junk in my head and go, people like
this thing, And why am I being a jerk about it?
Like it's only it's only paid me back a million
(37:44):
times with love. Like So that's another lesson I've learned from,
you know, doing what we do is you know, sometimes
it's the same thing. Sometimes those things that you don't
think maybe aren't like super cool or hip, a lot
of people love them.
Speaker 1 (38:00):
Yeah I love that.
Speaker 3 (38:03):
Yeah, well you heard it from Austin Nichols. Sometimes the
cheesy stuff is the best stuff, that's right, Austin, You're
one of my favorite people I don't get to see regularly,
So thank you for making the time.
Speaker 4 (38:15):
Oh, thanks guys. I miss you guys, and I know.
Speaker 1 (38:17):
We missed you in Wilmington.
Speaker 4 (38:18):
I know I miss you guys too. I saw pictures
and I was really sad. But there'll be another and
there will be another other again.
Speaker 1 (38:26):
Yeah, and you got to go take that movie to
a festival. I can't wait. Where can people follow that, Austin?
Where can they get info on the movie?
Speaker 4 (38:34):
So I would I would look at follow my Instagram
Austin Nichols for now until we get closer to like
a sale and a release. Okay, it doesn't have its
own social media yet. Yeah, you know buyers, sales agents
and buyers distributors. They get weird when you do too
much early totally, so we got to kind of wait.
All right, yeah, and I'll put it out there on
(38:55):
my Instagram.
Speaker 1 (38:56):
Okay, thanks for joining us today, but thanks for yeah, hey,
thanks for listening. Don't forget to leave us a review.
You can also follow us on Instagram at drama Queens
O t.
Speaker 2 (39:08):
H or email us at drama Queens at iHeartRadio dot com.
Speaker 3 (39:13):
See you next time.
Speaker 2 (39:15):
We all about that high school drama Girl, Drama girl,
all about.
Speaker 4 (39:19):
Them high school queens.
Speaker 1 (39:21):
We'll take you for a ride at our comic Girl
cheering for the right teen
Speaker 2 (39:26):
Drama queensise my girl, up girl fashion with your tough girl,
you could sit with us Girl Drama Queens, Drama Queens,
Drama Queens, Drama Drama Queens, Drama Queens
Hosts And Creators
Bethany Joy Lenz
Sophia Bush
Robert Buckley
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