Forget all you know about Ellie Kemper’s joyous portrayal of Kimmy Schmidt and get ready to see a different side to her… with a little help from Yellowstone’s Luke Grimes.
The two actors star in Netflix’s romantic dramedy Happiness for Beginners, in which Kemper’s character Helen is miles away from the infectious, ever-smiling Kimmy.
An adaptation of the novel of the same name by Katherine Center, the film sees Helen reset her life after a divorce and go on a survival course on the Appalachian Trail.
There, she reunites with Jake (Grimes), her younger brother’s best friend, who reminds her that life doesn’t stop after a bad break-up. And, since it’s a rom-com we’re talking about, Helen is guaranteed to find more than she bargained for when she realises she may actually like him.
Disillusioned with life, Helen was an “interesting” character to portray for Kemper, as she told Entertainment Weekly.
“I liked that Helen is a grump,” the Bridesmaids star said.
“She’s a little pessimistic. She’s going through a really tough time and she doesn’t really believe in the goodness of things,” she continued.
“It felt like that would be fun to play because it is so different from the optimistic, funny, bright-eyed women that I’ve played in the past.
“I wasn’t intentionally speaking up for something like that, but once I read this script, I thought, ‘Oh, this is, this is really interesting to me.'”
Kemper also weighed in on her palpable chemistry with Grimes, which you can get a taste of in the trailer.
“With Luke, we did all these chemistry read and he was great from the start,” she revealed.
“He’s not only a phenomenal actor, but he’s really laid back and low key in real life.”