BINGE’s new series, Mix Tape, follows the love story of a teen couple, Daniel and Alison, who reunite after over 20 years.
As fate would have it, the actors who play the characters – UK leading man Jim Sturgess and Australian star Teresa Palmer – also reunited for the show after nearly 20 years since their last encounter.
As Palmer told Rolling Stone AU/NZ, she auditioned for the role opposite Sturgess in 2008 heist film, 21, which eventually went to US actress Kate Bosworth. But the connection between her and Sturgess was instant.
“From what I remember of that day, [Sturgess] was already cast and they were bringing girls in to read with him, which is so funny because none of the girls on the day actually got it. They just offered it to Kate Bosworth, who was having a big moment at the time,” Palmer recalled.
“I remember just doing a bunch of scenes together and having a lot if banter. We were laughing a lot and getting to know each other.”
Sturgess added: “They put you through it in those chemistry reads. You do, kind of, spend the whole day with each other. It wasn’t a quick audition, it was a full screen test, chemistry thing. So they want you to be around each other for a period of time.”
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Spanning from 1989 to 2015, Mix Tape follows teenage Alison and Daniel (played by Florence Hunt and Rory Walton-Smith), who fall in love over their bond of music. Two decades later, they now lead different lives – Daniel is a music critic in Sheffield, while Alison lives the seemingly perfect life as a mother and author in Sydney. A chance encounter brings them together as they again are connected by love and music.
The similarities in the story and reality are not lost on Sturgess and Palmer. Sturgess went on to star in a number of big projects like The Way Back and Cloud Atlas, while Palmer has had as string of notable roles in local and Hollywood projects like Bedtime Stories with Adam Sandler, The Fall Guy and fellow BINGE show, The Last Anniversary.
Palmer described she and Sturgess reuniting for Mix Tape as “serendipitous”.
“We were both at the very beginnings of our career,” Sturgess said.
“It was great because I’d always remember Teresa from that time and just watched her go into all the films she did and go, ‘She’s done great.’ When I found out she was involved, we both started texting each other.
“The first scene we shot was us, kind of, connecting again. It played out beautifully because we hadn’t really had a huge amount of time to properly catch up and being nearly 20 years and being thrown into this scene where we’re reconnecting after all that time, it’s really cool.”
Mix Tape is airing now on BINGE. Keep an eye on Rolling Stone AU/NZ for the full interview.
