The First Time is a modern and realistic look at the angst and excitement of young love. Dave (Dylan OâBrien) is a high school senior who meets Aubrey (Britt Robertson), a junior, one night at a party and a casual conversation sparks a connection that keeps drawing them back to each other. From writer/director Jonathan Kasdan, the film also stars Victoria Justice, Craig Robertson, Joshua Malina and Christine Taylor. For more on the film, here's the trailer.
At the filmâs press day, actor Dylan OâBrien spoke to Collider for this exclusive interview about what drew him to this story and role, how relieved he was with the positive response as the film started to screen at film festivals, really staying in the moment as an actor, and how memorable the entire experience was. He also talked about what it was like to make The Internship with Vince Vaughn and Owen Wilson, and how director Shawn Levy is going for a more PG-13 family feel, that theyâll return to shoot Season 3 of his MTV series Teen Wolf in December, with 24 episodes now, how he has no idea whatâs to come for Stiles, and that he has no idea what Stilesâ first name is. Check out what he had to say after the jump.
Collider: How did you come to be a part of this film? Was it just an audition, or was it something you specifically pursued?
DYLAN OâBRIEN: It was an audition for me, like any other thing. The only thing that separated this film was that it was something that me, my manager and my agents all just really loved and really thought that I was right for it. For me, the script and subject matter was so personal to me. This was all still very fresh in my mind, too. I was 19 years old and this had all just happened to me, two years prior. So, it was really refreshing, in that sense, and in the sense that itâs entirely different than any other script I was reading or going out for. Itâs a teen comedy, but none of it was raunchy or tasteless. It was really classy and really sweet, and a really true, honest, endearing story. Jon [Kasdan] changed a lot with the script and was writing the whole way, but he has such an understanding of relationships and how people communicate with each other. Itâs fascinating because I donât [have that]. Itâs really incredible when somebody has such a beat on it.Â
Doing an independent film is always a bit of an iffy proposition because you never know how it will turn out or if it will ever get distribution. Did you breathe a sigh of relief when you finally screened the film and audiences really responded positively?
OâBRIEN: Itâs weird because I knew that this could be good and I knew that I wasnât just doing this for no reason. I was trying to make it good. I want everything that Iâm doing and putting my life into to be good. We all felt that way. But, what was amazing was that it never became about that. Thatâs what helped it come out okay. We always had a quiet confidence that it would be good, and just a genuine love for doing it. I could have shot the movie forever, or three months. We didnât have that budget, so it was five weeks. But, we genuinely loved coming in every day and doing the scene and talking about the scene and talking about the movie. It was something that became really personal to all of us. Even the whole crew was great. It was a really nice shoot. We had a really amazing time. Me, Britt [Robertson] and Jon [Kasdan] were really close, the whole way. The movie had a sense of comradery about it. Everybody wanted it to be good, and everybody thought it was so cute while we were doing it.Â
The friendship between Dave and his friends was so great. Was that part of the appeal of this?
OâBRIEN: Yeah, thatâs such a great part of the movie. [Craig Robertson and Lamarcus Tinker] are so good, and itâs such a good buddy friendship. Itâs such a good threesome of friends. Itâs exactly what it should be. Itâs so real and so how friends would be. Theyâre three people who are kind of opposite to who each other are, but have this grounded love for one another. Itâs who they turn to. I think Aubreyâs parents (played by Joshua Malina and Christine Taylor) are like that, too. Itâs a different kind of relatable part to the story. Theyâre reactions to her antics in the scenes are such classic parenting. It feels like what parenting would be like. So much of the movie is what things are like. It makes you laugh because itâs like that, and itâs funny to portray it the way it is.
It seems like this performance really depended on both you and Britt Robertson being in the moment. Is that something thatâs easy for you, as an actor, or do you catch yourself acting and have to adjust for that?
OâBRIEN: Yeah, it depends. Thatâs such a good question because thatâs such a relevant thing, as an actor â committing and not being distracted by any kind of technical awareness, or whatever. You do have to block things out sometimes, and sometimes itâs easier than others. For instance, when we were shooting the sex scene for 12 hours, that was actually the easiest thing to do in the world. Youâre never thinking about where the camera is, and youâre never thinking about anything else. Youâre so directly and physically involved in the scene that youâre very much in it. Itâs easier, in that sense.  Something like the alleyway scene, where itâs like a mini one-act play and you run the whole 18 pages of it, itâs so much easier to get lost in it. Thatâs why actors love doing theater so much, I guarantee you. Itâs refreshing to be able to do something where you donât have to be stopped every two seconds, and you can just play it out and itâs done. Iâm very technically aware. I always know what itâs looking like and what the camera move is. Itâs hard for me to block that out and become actor-y and be in the moment. I think it helped that I connected to the material so much and that I connected with Britt so much and that I loved the movie so much. I just felt so comfortable in it.Â
What was it like to do The Internship? Was that an entirely different experience?Â
OâBRIEN: Oh, it was completely, leaps-and-bounds different. We all had so much fun. It was this big ensemble cast and we all just fell in love with each other, which was a really lucky thing. Iâve never been on such an inspiring set, in the sense of just being blown away by everybodyâs performance in the movie. Vince [Vaughn] and Owen [Wilson] are amazing, obviously. We all joked about how much fun we had on that movie, and that it didnât even feel like we were working, really. It was like a summer camp, especially because it was such a big production and there were so many big production weeks. The First A.D. would be on a mic and youâd just hear your name from the heavens going, âDylan OâBrien, time for coverage,â and youâd get up and run. But, it was a very supportive group. It was an amazing thing that Iâve never seen before, on anything else. Literally, the whole cast would tuck behind the monitors to watch someoneâs coverage, and love it. Everybody genuinely just enjoyed each otherâs performances and what everybody was doing. It was really an amazing thing. It has to be funny. Thereâs no way [itâs not]. The people in that movie blew my mind.
Would you say that the film is leaning toward an R rating?
OâBRIEN: No. I think the really smart thing that Shawn Levy did with it â and I could be wrong when it comes out R and is the raunchiest thing in the world â is that he has such good taste and heâs very classy in his taste and heâs very family-oriented, and he really did the right thing and leaned toward the PG-13 family feel. Box office is not what Iâm referring to with this, but just as a movie, I think itâs the right call. I think you can take the most away from the movie with the lighter version. We donât need the fucks and the shits and the cocks. Itâs about the group coming together. Itâs a total family feel, so it has to have [a rating that reflects that]. I think it will be good, and I think it will be sweet, too.Â
Who is the character youâre playing?
OâBRIEN: Iâm a very cynical dick, at first, who eventually comes around to love the group. Iâm very kept in about my feelings and who I am, and not open, in any way.Â
Have you talked to Jeff Davis at all about Stilesâ storyline for Season 3 of Teen Wolf?Â
OâBRIEN:Â I literally just texted him last night, telling him that we needed to get dinner and I needed to hear about my character for the season âcause I donât know whatâs happening.
OâBRIEN: We start shooting in December. And what I do know is that thereâs going to be a four month gap that goes by, between seasons. We also have 24 episodes this season, so weâll see how that goes. Itâs quite a lot. I donât know how that will go. I think 12 episodes was enough for us to handle on the budget that we have.  It will be interesting. Weâve gotta squeeze it into one calendar year, too.Â
Have you thought about where youâd like to see your character go? Are you rooting for Stiles to remain the non-supernatural character throughout the series, or would you like to see him get more involved?
OâBRIEN: I donât know. I donât think about that stuff. I feel like itâs not my place to decide where my character goes. I definitely weigh in, heavily, with stuff. But, Iâm as entertained as everyone else is, by finding out what my arc for the season is going to be and what Iâm going to get to play. If itâs presented to me and I think itâs barbarically wrong and not, at all, anything that Stiles would be doing, Iâll say something about it. But, I really admire what Jeff does for everyoneâs characters, and not just mine. He puts it out there for you and gives you the opportunity to play a great arc, over the course of a season. I just let him do his thing. You donât disrupt genius at work. I think we just have a good balance, with the way he writes it and the way I play it, and the way I understand it and the way he perceives it. It is very collaborative. We do talk about it a lot. Weâll talk a bunch at this dinner, about everything â about whatâs gone on in these four months, about where Stiles is what, about whatâs going to be happening for him and whatâs going to be changing. With the supernatural stuff, I personally think it would be silly if Stiles was turned into anything. But, if weâre in Season 5, sure, weâve gotta do something. At that point, maybe it could even be funny. I was joking with somebody recently about how funny it would be if Stiles finally did get a superpower, but he was really cynical about it because he was Frog Man, or something. He did have a superpower because he could leap and jump really high, long and far, but it was essentially useless and embarrassing. I thought that would be funny. But, I donât think something like that will happen.
Will there continue to be a bit of a bromance triangle, between Stiles, Scott (Tyler Posey) and Isaac (Daniel Sharman)? Where will Scottâs friendship with Isaac leave Stiles?
OâBRIEN: That will definitely be something thatâs tested this year, absolutely, with the nature of Scott and Stiles and how strong their bond is. Theyâre both growing up and having to go different routes, and that may or may not disrupt their friendship. It will be a test.Â
Do you know what Stilesâ first name is?
OâBRIEN: Oh, no, I donât. Thereâs no first name. There just isnât one. Thatâs just the joke. I donât have one. I think the original Stiles was Rupert Stilinski, or something like that. There was one episode where they showed half of the name on a paper. I donât remember what it said. The fans get really angry when you tease them with that stuff. I see it as being a comedic story point. I thought it was funny because you couldnât see it, but people were outraged. Jeff is so funny because he spends a lot of time on Twitter. He gets so into it that he reads everything. People threatened him about Sterek, being like, âI swear to god, if you donât let them be together, I will come to your house and kill you.â Jeff actually plays into this stuff. He sent me and Tyler Hoechlin an email that said, âYou guys, I know that this is insane, but remain calm and donât acknowledge any of it, no matter what you do.â But, we donât go on Twitter, so we donât read any of this and didnât know what was going on, at all. It cracked me up. But, I canât wrap my brain around that. Do they really want us together, on the show?!
The First Time opens in limited release this weekend in Southern California, New York City, and Phoenix, Arizona. If you're in NYC or Los Angeles, it's playing at these theaters:
- AMC Burbank Town Center 8
- AMC Broadway @ The Santa Monica Promenade
- AMC Orange 30 @ The Block
- Loews Village Theater 7
- AMC Empire 25 Theaters