Gavin Casalegno is excited to reprise the role of Jeremiah in The Summer I Turned Pretty movie — but there was one story line from season 3 that left him “hesitant” at the time.
During an exclusive interview with Us Weekly at the T-Mobile exclusive unveiling at the Las Vegas Grand Prix, Casalegno, 26, weighed in on Jeremiah exploring a romance with Denise (Isabella Briggs) after breaking off his engagement to Belly (Lola Tung).
“It might be a little too early for him to be jumping back into a relationship — if Gavin was giving advice,” Casalegno quipped. “But he’s not, so whatever makes him happy.”
Casalegno supported what Jeremiah thought was best for him, adding, “Go for it but I am definitely hesitant about a relationship for him.”
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Season 3, which concluded in September, followed Jeremiah and Belly’s journey down the altar. Despite starting the season off engaged, the fictional couple called it off the morning of their wedding — with Belly ultimately ending up with Jeremiah’s brother, Conrad (Chris Briney).
Jeremiah, meanwhile, found a connection with Steven’s (Sean Kaufman) coworker and friend Denise.
“I think Denise does see Jeremiah in a different light. Belly growing up with Jeremiah, there’s like a little bit of familiarity that might have stunted things,” Casalegno noted. “Denise is more real and brings different parts of Jeremiah out of him — but I don’t know if that is a good or bad thing.”
After season 3 came to an end, Prime Video confirmed there is a movie in the works that would check in on every character.
“I don’t have a script. I don’t have anything. I don’t even know when I’m filming,” Casalegno revealed to Us. “I know I’m filming next year so I don’t even know what it’s going to be about. Your guess is as good as mine.”
Casalegno is excited to see where Jeremiah is now, saying, “I hope he continues cooking. I hope he continues pursuing his own passions — but I really don’t know. I even called [creator] Jenny [Han] the other week and was like, ‘So what can you give me?’ She didn’t give me anything.”
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While Casalegno no longer has to keep who Belly chooses a secret, the actor joked that he had fun building up the anticipation.
“I’m not going lie, I had a blast teasing everyone being like, ‘Hey, you know never know if it will be like the book,’” he recalled. “Then they start going crazy in their heads. I had a lot of fun with that. I had a lot of fun being Team Jeremiah. Honestly, I think it’s fun seeing the reactions.”
He continued: “There was definitely an expectation for [the love triangle reactions] to affect my mental health. There are so many people who can’t differentiate reality vs. fiction. But fans are just passionate about this series and that’s all I can hope for. If they didn’t care at all that would also kind of suck.”
The Summer I Turned Pretty is streaming on Prime Video.
