Lucien Laviscount, Sophie Cookson BlackBox Multimedia
Valentine’s Day is upon Us — and Lucien Laviscount is sharing why his new film This Time Next Year is the perfect watch on the annual day of love.
“It’s two people who have to find each other,” Laviscount, 32, told Us Weekly exclusively. “And I think that no matter what anyone’s going through in the relationship, there’s always room for each other to grow and to allow each other to grow. I think anyone that watches will come away with a smile on their face.”
Laviscount plays Quinn in the romantic comedy — which is based on the novel by Sophie Cousens and now available on The Roku Channel — a 20-something business titan caring for his mentally ill mother (Golda Rosheuvel). He runs into the endearingly-awkward Minnie (Sophie Cookson) on New Year’s Eve. The pair quickly realize they were born one minute apart at the same hospital and strike up a friendship. But as their bond grows deeper, they are forced to reevaluate if they were meant to be more than just platonic.
While Laviscount — who is well-versed in the rom-com world after coming off of three seasons of Emily in Paris — is one of the undeniable standouts of the project, the actor believes the magic also lies in director Nick Moore, the man who edited two of his “favorite classics,” Love Actually and Notting Hill.
“He’s an OG in my eyes,” Laviscount gushed. “I think that’s what people forget so much of the movie is in the edit. Whatever happens on the dance floor, happens on the dance floor. But on that cutting table, that’s when a movie really comes to life. So being able to work with Nick on this, and him just knowing exactly what he wanted and where it was gonna go was incredible.”
Laviscount said he’d “never worked” with a director who had such a clear vision before. The backdrop, it turns out, wasn’t too shabby, either. “We shot the majority of it in Rome,” he explained. “Rome for London, which was kind of crazy in itself, but beautiful.”
This Time Next Year has all the puzzle pieces to draw in any rom-com lover, but what stood out for Laviscount was how complex Quinn was as a character. There’s much more to his life than showing up as the main character’s love interest.
“The process for me was really getting to the root of [Quinn’s] relationship with his mom as much as anything,” he told Us. “And his drive with work, his passiveness on finding what matters in life and of being able to share his life with someone and have someone that can share the weight with him.”
There’s a lot to love about Quinn and Minnie — who’s last name is Cooper, like the car — as well, diving deep into the idea of serendipity and believing two people are fated to collide at just the right time.
“It’s just beautifully done within the script and within the book as well, how they find each other,” Laviscount said. “They literally bump into each other. He opens the toilet door. It’s really interesting. I think a lot of movies play out in the sense of, ‘This is just love at first sight.’ These [two] are really dealing with their own problems and they’ve got a lot of housekeeping to figure out before they can allow each other to fully be in each other’s lives.”
But did starring in Netflix’s romantic fantasy Emily in Paris as one of the titular character’s love interests help him prepare for the role of Quinn?
“I think it helped me get the offer. I’ll tell you that,” Laviscount said with a laugh. “I think that definitely helped.”
But as for who they are at their core, Aflie and Quinn couldn’t be more different. “I approached [Quinn] differently,” Laviscount continued. “This kind of character, he’s dealing with a lot of stuff at home, with his mother. He’s been her carer for a long time, and he has put himself second to a lot of things. As opposed to Alfie who just left the country and ran off with a girl that broke his heart.”
There’s one more difference: “I got the girl on this [movie], which is great.”
This Time Next Year is available to watch on The Roku Channel now.
