So all the things that you go, Okay, this is something worth fighting for.
Kidman revealed that she immediately zeroed on Wang to lead the effort after viewing her 2019 filmThe Farewell.
I sawThe Farewelland was completely enraptured by it, she recalled.
Nicole Kidman on the panel for ‘Expats’ on SundayRich Polk/Deadline via Getty Images
I saw it and went, There she is.
Theres our creator, so we have to pursue her.
Subsequently, she then took the piece and said, Okay, heres the book.
Now I want to make it mine.
Theres huge aspects to each storyline that I want to change and grow.
And she is the voice of all of us.
Wang appreciated the freedom she was given to shape and mold the source material.
This is a show about, as Nicole said, perspective, so many different perspectives, said Wang.
So I didnt necessarily approach the writers room thinking, Okay, it has to be all women.
And I wanted Janice, who wrote the book, because she lived this experience.
Theres no one better to turn to and go, Hey, is this okay?
Or If you were to expand these characters that you wrote, how would you do it?
So it just felt like an invaluable resource.
And we were really lucky that we had great chemistry.
We needed somebody who had both the vulnerability as well as this mask, right?
Im an adult, Im a grownup.
Ive got my life under control.
Im buying $8 lattes.
I can definitely afford it.
And so when we saw Ji-young, she brought all of that…
This incredible vulnerability that was so beautiful and tender and we just thought, God, thats it.
Thats what we need.
I worked with Aquafina onThe Farewell.
I love comedic actors and I often feel like thats the range that you need.
You need that lightness.
Thats just one of the things that Im really committed to.
Check out the panel video above.
