Troian, I'm starstruck a little bit. I was a huge "Pretty Little Liars" fan for its full run.
Bellisario: Thank you!
Going from that show where you played a teenager for so many years, what was your experience like in this movie, playing someone in a very different phase of her life?
Bellisario: It was a real pleasure, particularly because once you ... I had the great good fortune of being on a show that was beloved and embodying a character that was very beloved. The world got to experience me in a very specific way, like Spencer, but it was truly my friends — like Cheryl and like Will [Greenberg] and Arron [Shiver] and Chris [Pine] and Ian [Gotler] — all of the people that were the village that made this film happen ... They know who I am, and they got to see me become a mother the first time, and they got to see me be a woman in the world.
The best thing was ... Whereas I didn't really have that opportunity in the industry because people were still viewing me as Spencer, as a high schooler, as this younger [version] of myself, the people within my friends group were only supportive in saying, "Oh, no, you can absolutely do this. This is much closer to who you are. This is much closer to how we experience you." Any fear that I had about taking a different step or embodying a different character was completely thrown out of the window because I had the support of one of my best friends behind the camera every step of the way, saying "You've got this" and lifting me up and supporting me the entire time.
That's amazing. I love hearing how close these relationships are behind the screen as well. That's wonderful.
Nichols: Troian's actually marrying me and my fiancé. She's going to be the spiritual guide.
Bellisario: I'm going to be their spiritual guide. It's not a throuple.
Nichols: No, not marrying each other.
Bellisario: I have to explain that to people because I keep on saying I'm marrying Cheryl and Arron.
Nichols: And they're like, "Congratulations."
Bellisario: I'm like, "It's new," but ...
Nichols: We're doing a thing. We're modern.
Bellisario: Yes, we're very modern. No — they asked me to officiate the wedding, to be a spiritual guide. Look, since making "Doula," I've inserted myself in their love life, so it only feels right.
Nichols: It's true. It's awkward. We have a co-dependence.
Bellisario: It runs deep.
Nichols: It's very deep.
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