The ‘Christmas With You’ Scene Freddie Prinze Jr. Was ‘Nervous About’: ‘I Wanted It to Be Perfect’
Christmas With You is the latest holiday movie from Netflix. It stars Freddie Prinze Jr. and Aimee Garcia as two singles who find love over the Christmas holiday.
Prinze recently talked about how much fun he had on set. But he also revealed that there was one particular scene he was “nervous” about filming because he needed it to be “perfect.”
Netflix’s ‘Christmas With You’ is Freddie Prinze Jr.’s first rom-com in over a decade
Prinze was a popular rom-com hero in the late ’90s. He appeared in several hit films, including She’s All That, Down to You, and Boys and Girls.
Christmas With You is Prinze’s first romantic comedy in over a decade. The Netflix project comes from director Gabriela Tagliavini and writer German Michael Torres.
The film tells the story of single dad and music teacher Miguel (Freddie Prinze Jr.), his teen daughter Cristina (Deja Cruz), and world-famous pop star Angelina (Aimee Garcia). As Cristina prepares for her birthday, she sends Angelina a message via social media asking her to come to visit her.
Angelina is under pressure from her record label to make a new holiday song and to connect more with her fans. So she decides to surprise Cristina, and brings her manager, Monique (Zenzi Williams), along for the ride.
Through Cristina, Angelina meets Miguel. The two begin to connect over music and family and develop a romance over the Christmas holiday.
Freddie Prinze Jr. was nervous about one scene in ‘Christmas With You’
Prinze has been in dozens of popular projects over the years. But when filming Christmas With You, the 46-year-old father of two was admittedly nervous about filming one specific scene.
When talking to Tudum, the actor revealed that he knew his daughter — whom he shares with his wife Sarah Michelle Gellar — would watch the movie. So he knew he had to get the father-daughter heart-to-heart scene between Miguel and Cristina just right.
“My daughter’s 13 and old enough to get all the messages,” Prinze said. “That scene with myself and Deja Monique Cruz was special. Miguel’s letting Cristina knows how proud he is of her, and how her mother would’ve been proud of her. That was a big scene for me.”
“I remember being nervous about it,” he continued. “It was the only time I’ve been nervous since I Know What You Did Last Summer. I would prep that scene over and over. I wanted it to be perfect.”
Freddie Prinze Jr. says his scene with co-star Deja Cruz was his favorite
Prinze and Cruz shared sweet father-daughter scenes in Christmas With You. And Prinze noted that while filming, Cruz’s commitment to the role made those scenes feel more raw and relatable.
“I still call Deja ‘Bambi’ to this day because she looks up and she has those eyes like when Bambi loses his mom,” he told Tudum. “Right away I was like, ‘Everything I planned I’m just going to throw away and live in this moment with this little girl and see what happens. If she breaks you down then she breaks you down.'”
The actor noted that he developed a great admiration for Cruz. And he revealed how much he enjoyed that heartfelt scene between their characters.
“It ended up being my favorite scene in the whole movie,” Prinze shared. “I love that girl to death. I thought she did a great job.”
Christmas With You is currently streaming on Netflix.
