Emily Bader Shares Emily Henry’s Tips for Bringing Characters to Life on Vacation Sunsets

Emily Bader (left) and Emily Henry.
Credit :

Kayla Oaddams/WireImage; Mike Coppola/Getty

NEED TO KNOW

• Emily Bader credits author Emily Henry with valuable advice for her and *People We Meet on Vacation* costar Tom Blyth.
• The actors portray Poppy and Alex in the upcoming film adaptation of Henry’s 2021 bestselling novel.
• Bader remarked, “She was really supportive, and set us free with her approval in some way,” in an exclusive interview.

Author Emily Henry has offered sound advice to actress Emily Bader and her co-star Tom Blyth, who plays alongside her in the film adaptation of Henry’s bestselling 2021 novel, People We Meet on Vacation. The film follows the story of Alex (portrayed by Blyth) and Poppy (Bader), college friends who embark on an annual vacation together. After a disastrous trip leads to years of estrangement, Poppy invites Alex on one last journey together.

Bader, 29, revealed in an interview that the author’s involvement helped ease the pressure of embodying beloved characters. “She was really supportive, and set us free with her approval in some way,” Bader said. “She came to set, and I think she was involved [in] pre-production a lot with [director] Brett [Haley] and Yulin [Kuang], who wrote the script. She basically showed up and said, ‘I’m happy with this decision. You guys are them. Have fun. Be yourself.’”

From left: Brett Haley, Emily Henry, Emily Bader and Tom Blyth at a Dec. 8 screening of People We Meet on Vacation in Chicago.

Barry Brecheisen/Getty

Bader noted that Henry’s encouragement is akin to receiving a gift from the original creator of the characters. "I think that is such an amazing thing to have," she shared. Although Bader did not read the novel prior to her audition, she immersed herself in Poppy’s character during the casting process, drawn by the narrative’s friends-to-lovers storyline.

"I’m such a big fan of romcoms," Bader added. "I think there’s elements that I miss about some of the early 2000s, ’90s romcom genre, and I felt like this had a little bit of that. There’s something grounded about these two characters’ slice of life. It was exciting to get to read that."

Bader was particularly enamored with Poppy’s lively personality, which allowed her to explore new aspects of acting. “It’s my first time doing comedy at this extent," Bader noted. "I was the straight woman in a previous show, but this was really fun. I could just fall on my face with this character.”

Emily Bader and Tom Blyth in People We Meet on Vacation.

Daniel Escale/Netflix

Bader further explained, “I knew I had to make some very silly decisions and follow my gut. That’s a fun way to film a movie. I had a great time.”

Blyth, 30, also found the filming experience enjoyable, particularly after previously taking on serious roles, including his portrayal of young Coriolanus Snow in this year’s The Hunger Games prequel, The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. “I was just eager to do a romcom,” he said. “I wanted to do something light and fun, and a bit sexy. I realized what a big deal Emily Henry was, and I wanted to get onboard the Emily Henry train.”

People We Meet on Vacation premieres on Netflix on January 9.