The Summer I Turned Pretty Cast Talks Character Development, Favorite Book To Screen Scenes, and Being Picked Up For A Season 2

Every summer, Belly and her family head to the Fishers’ beach house in Cousins. Every summer is the same… until Belly turns sixteen. It’s a summer of first love, first heartbreak and growing up — it's the summer she turns pretty. Pop Culture Planet hit up The Summer I Turned Pretty yellow carpet premiere in New York City to speak with the cast of the much-anticipated Prime Video adaptation of the iconic book series by Jenny Han.

No only did Jenny Han write the books, she took on a new hat as showrunner of the series, and finding the actors to bring together her vision was no easy task. “It was difficult, but when we were finding our actors it all felt like it was clicking into place, especially with finding Lola [Tung]. That was the most important piece of the puzzle and she's wonderful,” Han told me on the yellow carpet.

Lola Tung makes her acting debut as Belly Conklin who is trying to balance who she is with who she is becoming in this pivotal summer. “It was absolutely incredible. I don't thinkI could have asked for a better first experience. Bringing Belly to life was like the best thing ever and I'm so glad I get to do it again this summer,” gushed Tung, adding more about what she learned from playing Belly: “It's really important to take that time to sort of explore and find yourself and make mistakes and learn from them. I'm definitely still doing that. I'm 19 years old. I'm doing all that stuff and it's just important to surround yourself with good people who care about you and to remember that you're only human.”

Gavin Casalegno of The CW’s Walker takes on the role of the flirty and carefree younger Fisher brother, Jeremiah. “I am just so honored and blessed to be a part of a project that already has such a strong and committed fan base. When I read the book I was immediately a fan and personally I was team Jeremiah obviously. It really made it easy to be Jeremiah on screen because I could relate to him in a lot of ways,” said Casalegno. In the series, we learn that Jeremiah is bisexual, and Casalegno shared what it was like portraying that experience on screen: I have to give the credit to Jenny [Han]. She is so amazing at updating her writing into fitting in today's world. I'm honored to be a part of the change in the film industry and I couldn't be more thankful for Jenny trusting me with that delicate part.”

Christopher Briney brings Belly’s long time crush Conrad Fisher to life and we see him struggle with one of the hardest summers of his life as he bottles up some big secrets and emotions. “It's only natural for a teenager to have trouble expressing their emotions. I definitely dealt with it. I don't want to speak for anybody, but I think most people deal with [and[ have their own mental health journey,” he shared on the yellow carpet. “So it was a blessing to represent my experience and do that through Conrad and his who he is.”

Belly’s brother Steven was featured more in flashbacks in the books, but gets his own meaningful Cousins Beach summer in the Prime Video series. We see Steven, played by Sean Kaufman, getting a summer job and even a summer romance with Shayla, a girl who comes from a wealthier background than he does. It makes him question himself and if he fits into her world. “I think a lot of people, especially kids, like 16, 17 year olds, can tend to feel that way. That sense of ‘I don't belong, I don't deserve.’ I know for myself the thing that kind of helps that is just breathing and getting through it and understanding that you are where you are and you really do deserve to be here,” said Kaufman, emphasizing: “That's for everybody at home: You deserve to be where you're at and you belong.”

While there are so many heartfelt and emotional moments of the course of the summer at Cousins Beach, the show also features iconic moments from the books that the cast couldn’t wait to share with fans. “I feel like the Belly-Conrad moment in the car after the bonfire is one that I’m excited for people to see,” shared Jenny Han, with Lola Tung adding: “The belly flop scene, which we filmed on our first day of filming. [It] was so exciting and a great intro to the summer.” Summer Madison, who plays Nicole, picked some new moments not seen in the books, teasing: “There's a cute skinny dipping scene, […] but also the deb ball scenes. Even though it's not in the book, I think people will be pleasantly surprised by what Jenny did to fill out that world.”

While we spent a lot of time with the love quadrangle between Belly, Jeremiah, Conrad, and even Cam, another highlight of the new series is the beautiful portrayal of female friendship between Laurel and Susannah and how that person can be your soulmate and the love of your life. “It's such a thing wonderful [story] to tell because so often you just see romance stories, but really your solid friendships are the pillars of your life. [They] are often the longest and strongest relationships in your life, especially for women. I was really excited to show this relationship and I have developed a wonderful friendship with Rachel [Blanchard],” said Jackie Chung, while Blanchard shared: “My female friends are some of my soulmates so I really appreciate seeing that on the screen. When you go to start a project you never know what the chemistry will be like and I adore Jackie [Chung]. I made one of my closest friends on this show and I just feel really lucky. It felt real when we were playing those friendship scenes because we did become close.”

Not only did Jenny Han deliver an incredible adaptation of her own book in her first time showrunning, she also had a very exciting cameo at the end of the season. “It was really fun and lovely because it was at the end of our shoot and everyone was dressed up and it felt like a real celebration,” said Han about that shooting day. “It was Lola's birthday. It was coming to an end and it felt really appropriate to all have that moment together.”

Lucky for us The Summer I Turned Pretty got a season two pick up before the first season even dropped — and the cast couldn’t contain their excitement on the yellow carpet. “Oh my god, it's a blessing to know that our hard work and dedication is appreciated before the show even comes out,” gushed Casalegno. “I couldn't ask for anything better and I'm just so excited to try to do this book justice because it deserves something incredible.”

“That is just the biggest feel-good feeling,” said Kaufman, with Chung adding: “I know there are so many fans of the books so I hope they can see all the books come to life.”

The first season of The Summer I Turned Pretty is streaming now on Prime Video. See more of the yellow carpet experience, below: