Jake Borelliknows you hate Valentines Day.
To be honest, hes not the biggest fan either.
Ive never had a boyfriend on Valentines Day, which is a little sad, theGreys Anatomystar admits.
Parrish Lewis/Freeform
This is not trying to be anything else.
This one doesnt deal with coming out at all.
It doesnt deal with really shame at all.
Parrish Lewis/Freeform
Whats it been like to make that leap from one to the other?
It has been wild from beginning to end.
When I got offered this movie from Peter Paige, my mind was blown.
Parrish Lewis/Freeform
It felt like all these doors were opening up that I didnt believe at one point could.
Theres definitely a hunger for LGBTQ rom-coms because there have been so few.
Its not something that Ive ever seen with queer leads.
When I sat down to read the script, I was just flipping through it.
I read it all in one sitting.
We need them so much.
Was there something particularly refreshing or exciting about the script to you?
Thats a really beautiful relationship that the movie touches on.
That was just super-massive and new to me.
Sam has been out since high school, while Harry has just recently figured it out.
Did you relate to one of those stories more?
He was pitching this version of a character and she apparently said, Oh, like Jake Borelli!
And Peter was like, Wait, yes, like Jake Borelli.
Then he finished writing the movie with a version of me in mind.
So once I was reading it, it was already pretty in line with how I am.
Youre from the Midwest, and it looks like you shot most of this on location in Chicago.
What was that like?
Did you have a favorite place you shot at?It was so fun.
We shot all around Chicago.
Its great because Chicago is quite a character in the movie too.
I love that city.
I go all the time because my brother lives there.
We went out to the Boystown area.
She did Sunday brunch like every weekend, and so we all went and saw her one weekend.
What about that road trip?We filmed it in Chicago, but in a soundstage.
Its an LED screen, so youre watching it.
It felt like a Disneyland ride, but youre not moving.
There was this guy with a wooden plank to make the car rock.
It made me so dizzy, to the point where in between scenes I had to close my eyes.
But we both had to work on Valentines Day.
We decided to meet super-early and watchThe Notebookand make pancakes, because he eats pancakes in that movie.
But what Im super-excited about this Valentines Day is to watch this movie.
Ill be doing that with all my friends on the weekend.
This movie engages with an age-old question: Can friends be successful lovers?
Where do you fall on that?I fall on either side any given day.
But in various real-life experiences Ive had, it always becomes a little tricky.
How did your own friendship with Niko Terho develop on set?
Did you have a particularly funny or awkward moment while filming?Hes so cute, right?
I love Niko so much.
Hes such a goofball.
Hes a professional soccer player.
Before the movie started, Peter Paige had Niko teach me how to play soccer.
I almost busted a window.
But we were in this swanky hotel in Chicago playing soccer.
That was your bonding activity?Yeah, and it pretty much worked.
Hes so much like the character too so chill, so laid-back.
Hes a great dude.
Sam has some epic fails in his attempts at online dating.
Whats your most cringe-worthy date story?Oh God, with online dating?
A lot of its pretty cringey.
Thinking back, it was really not regulated.
I fell in love with him.
It was so sweet.
We would Skype every night.
It did not work out well.
It was my first heartbreak, for sure it was online.
Whats your favorite rom-com?27 Dressesis my favorite rom-com.
I forced my mom to go see it with me.
So I remember loving the Bennie and the Jets scene with James Marsden.
At that age, I couldnt put a finger on why I loved that scene so much.
Literally I almost had a heart attack.
This article has been edited for length and clarity.
