MANILA, Philippines - As someone who has starred in her fair share of romantic comedies, Kate Hudson has had to pucker up to her fair share of hunky leading men, from Matthew McConaughey to Jon Hamm. The 35-year-old actress now topbills Wish I Was Here with Zach Braff.
Kate plays Aidan Bloom’s (played by Zach) beleaguered wife Sarah. For Kate, choosing to sign on to Wish I Was Here was an easy decision. She and Zach have known each other for years and have searched for the right opportunity to work together. “Braff has been a friend of mine for many years now,” Kate says.
“When he started to get this project going. I read it and I connected so much to the story and the script. It felt like some of it was a slice out of my own life. It was one of the best things Braff has ever written, and I’ve read pretty much everything that he’s written. Braff had been a fan of his leading lady for some time.”
“When I saw Kate in Almost Famous , my jaw dropped,” he remembers. “I had that excitement you feel when a new giant talent has been discovered. I’ve been trying to work with her ever since.”
Zach also knew that this comfortable relationship with Kate would translate to the screen. “We became friends some years back,” she recalls, “We have fun friendship and a fun repartee, and it was great to dive into a movie with that already and not have to fake it. I love Kate and she genuinely makes me laugh. I knew that would come across the characters and in the relationship.”
“Sarah is supporting the family. She’s the one with the steady job, and she’s miserable,” Kate says for her character, “And yet she loves her husband, but she realizes she has been supporting his dream, which is not really happening.”
“When you are trying to keep things afloat and you’ve got all these plates spinning, the struggle starts to beat you down,” Kate says of Aidan and Sarah’s relationship. “You don’t have time for each other . You don’t have the opportunities to connect like you wish you could. It can be difficult. Sarah backs up and let’s Aidan take the reins to see how he can be responsible for the kids. Any parent will find the story relatable. This is the real version of a family.”
Wish I Was Here, released and distributed by Captive Cinema, is now showing in theaters nationwide.