‘Summer of 69’ star Sam Morelos pushes Filipinos to the forefront

Following the film’s release last month, JoySauce spoke with Morelos about crafting Abby and the lessons they learned from their co-star and director. 

This interview has been edited for clarity and length.

Rendy Jones: What was the jump like going from the television format to lead in a feature film for the first time?
Sam Morelos: That 90s Show was the first time I did TV. So, everything was a first. There's a different intimacy and scale that single-camera movies have, compared to a multi-cam sitcom. It was also scary at first because to do a single-cam comedy, no one's allowed to laugh on set while you're acting. Whereas, in multi-cam sitcoms, you get that instant gratification of that studio audience laughing in the background. In film, you have to trust that you're doing okay. The jump was intimidating, but it was an exciting new medium to explore. 

RJ: The transition from That 90s Show to Summer of 69 is a complete 180 in terms of character. Tell me about how you found your personal comedic rhythm.
SM: Nikki and Abby are two very different people. Nikki is very sarcastic and straightforward. She knows what she wants, who she is, and is very snappy. Abby's comedy came in with this wide-eyed naïveté. Her innocence carried the comedy. She still has some zingers, but the things that Abby said hardly meant to dig at someone.

RJ: Since this was also Jillian Bell's first feature, did you feel safe knowing that both of you were on your first newfound career ventures?
SM: We were both in this place of learning, growing, and being super spongy to the experience. It was actually similar to Abby and Santa Monica’s storyline, where it was a coming of age for two different age groups. It was the summer before I started college. That was also my first time being out of LA for a long time. Jillian was also taking this huge new step in her career. She was someone who was so willing and brazen about when she didn't know things. That openness of, "I don't know everything. This is my first time doing this," made me feel a lot safer. I love Jillian so much. 

RJ: What was it like finding that emotional and comedic balance with Chloe Fineman?
SM: Chloe is as funny as she is onscreen and on Saturday Night Live and in her work, as she is in her personal life. She's just this magnetic presence. It also helped that I found out that not only is she a New York University alumna, but she's also in the specific studio that I was about to go into. She was really a big sister to me and was my mentor when I was starting school. I feel like you don't really get that much by happenstance.

Also, as a comedian and my scene partner, I learned a lot from her. We had alt-lines, which meant every take, you have a new joke that you can try out. She had different alt-line options that she and her dad wrote on her notes app and workshopped before she came to set. It showed me what preparation and what that work looks like. I've brought that trick into the next project I did. 

RJ: You have a fearlessness in your performance that requires so much humility and awkwardness. What inspired your portrayal?
SM: When I got the role, I first thought about my personal stereotype of awkwardness. Awkward has always equated to quiet and shy, which I didn't think Abby was. Abby is a colorful, vibrant soul. She doesn't know how to translate it into a social situation. She's clunky but never reserved.

I also played with physicality. Something that helps me discover a character in general is going outside in how a character takes up space. To me, Abby, at the beginning, doesn't take up much space. She tries to make herself as small as possible. Then, as the movie progressed, I thought, "How does her spine sit in space now," as markers. When she starts getting more comfortable, she grows a little taller and her shoulders are down, and she is looking up instead of at the floor. I wanted to take care of Abby. She reminded me so much of me when I was in high school. 

RJ: Tell me about the Risky Business homage sequence. Was it improvised? I can only imagine that you had to do that several times in front of a crowd.
SM: Many, many times. The choreography was helmed by our amazing choreographer, Travis Wall. It was a collaboration between me, Travis, and Jillian. The week that we shot at the strip club, I got COVID. So I stayed home until I was healed. When I was bedridden, they sent me videos of different, disjointed dance moves. When I was finally negative, we sewed them together and chose our favorites. We ran it and stitched together on one of the lunch breaks the day before, and the day after, until it was time to shoot it. For the first few takes, Travis was sitting beneath the stage, yelling out. By the end, I had mostly gotten it down, but it's nerve-wracking.

I come from theater, so I'm not new to performing in front of an audience. But the feeling right before you go on stage is like, "AH!" That happened every time we did a take.

RJ: What are the types of stories that you personally are interested in telling for the future, whether it be choosing projects or something that you want to make on your own?
SM: I think my passion project would be in theater. There's a real intimacy, immediacy, and urgency to relaying a story and a message to a live audience. There's something electric about being on stage.

Something that I added in That 90s Show and also in Summer of 69, my characters have been and always will be Filipino, and that's something that will never go away. Filipino is the lens that I am filtering every single character through. That is the body, the vessel, and the skin. There's no taking that off, and I don't want to. Pushing Filipino stories to the forefront is something that's important to me. Something that uplifts my community is something important.

And also, uplifting queer and trans stories and filmmakers and storytellers is an important thing to me as someone in love with a trans person and someone who is gender-nonconforming. I am non-binary. Trans joy is critical to me in a day and age where people are actively trying to take it away. The fact is that we're trans, and we matter, and we can exist with joy when no one wants us to. Those stories are important to me.