The new romantic comedy Love Again, starring Priyanka Chopra and Sam Heughen, premiered in US theaters on Friday.
As fans get their first look at the rom-com, they’ll soon learn that Chopra’s real-life husband, Nick Jonas, does actually make a cameo appearance, in a late addition to the cast.
In the film, the actress plays a woman who is making her way back to the dating pool after losing someone she loved dearly. But before she shares a spark with Heughen, who plays Rob Burns, her character Mira Ray has to go through one of those hapless dates with Jonas.
In an interview with Entertainment Weekly, the actress revealed how Mira’s date was supposed to have her face licked, but due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic at the time of filming, this actor would have had to wait in quarantine before filming his scene.
“They wanted to cast a random actor who ended up having to lick my face during COVID, which meant he had to quarantine for 14 days and sat in a hotel room just waiting to lick my face. It was just awful,” she explained.
The perfect choice: Priyanka Chopra, 40, revealed why her husband Nick Jonas, 30, was late in joining the cast of her new rom-com Love Again
Chopra, 40, went on to explain that the Jonas Brothers star was the perfect choice to lick her face because he was already in quarantine with her.
“Nick came to help me settle in, and our director, Jim (known professionally as James C. Strouse) had the brilliant idea. He said, ‘Do you think Nick would consider that?’ And I said, ‘Yes. Yes, please!” she recalled.
The Indian native of Jamshedpur, Bihar (now Jharkhand) went on to share how her husband actually saved the day on set.
“So Nick took one for the team and he was extremely gracious and lovely,” she added. ‘He’s become so funny. It was so hard for me to pretend to be embarrassed or angry at him because I just couldn’t stop laughing.
All those laughs made for a fun time on set that led to the shoot for their not-so-great date.
“One time Nick said something or did something and we were in the cab and the crew outside was laughing out loud that we had to take another shot,” she recalled of their time together.
Written and directed by Strouse, 46, Love Again is an English language remake of the 2016 German film MS für Dich, which in turn is based on a novel by Sofie Cramer.
The story follows Mira Ray (Chopra) as she struggles with the death of her fiancé who inadvertently sends a string of romantic messages to his old cell phone number.
Written and directed by James C. Strouse, Post COVID: Love Again was filmed during the COVID-19 pandemic, which meant there were many new health regulations and restrictions in place
How Nick got the role: During filming, the director asked Chopra if she thought her husband Nick Jonas would consider playing the role of a man who has a bad date with her where he licks her face: “Yes. Yes, please!” she recalled the idea
Save the day: Nick Jonas was asked to play the role of a bad date licking his real wife’s face to avoid hiring a random actor who would have had to spend 14 days in quarantine
“Mission accomplished: So Nick took one for the team and was extremely gracious and lovely,” Chopra said. ‘He’s become so funny. It was so hard for me to pretend to be embarrassed or angry at him because I just couldn’t stop laughing.
Chemistry: Outlander star Sam Heughen, 43, plays Rob Burns, the later love interest of Chopra’s character Mira Ray
Debut: Celine Dion, 55, plays a fictionalized version of herself in her debut film role
It turns out Rob Burns was given the old phone number for his job as a journalist.
Drawn by the frankness in Mira’s beautifully written lyrics, Rob tries to find a way to meet Mira in real life to win her over and eventually seeks the help of famous singer Celine Dion after being commissioned to direct a feature film to write about her her.
The real Celine Dion, 55, portrays a fictionalized version of herself in her very first film role.
The cast also includes Russell Tovey, Steve Oram, Omid Djalili, Sofia Barclay, Lydia West, Arinzé Kene and of course Nick Jonas in his memorable, awkward date scenes.
On Friday, the day of the film’s premiere at AMC Lincoln Square in New York City, Chopra took to her Instagram page and shared a few photos of herself along with family members who were there to support her.
‘Family… to everyone who came out in support. I love you.. none of this is possible without you. @loveagainmovie #afterparty @sonanewyork,” she gushed in the caption for the post, which includes Chopra, Nick Jonas, his older brother Kevin Jonas, his wife Danielle Jonas, and Nick and Priyanka’s moms.
Family support: Chopra shared on Instagram some family photos taken during the film’s premiere at AMC Lincoln Square in New York City on Friday; Chopra and Nick Jonas are pictured with his older brother Kevin Jonas, his wife Danielle Jonas, and Nick and Priyanka’s mothers
Stark: The couple has been married for more than four years
Promo Mod: The actress shared pictures of the cast as part of her promotion
Kudos: The leads both raved about the experience of making Love Again
Out Now: Love Again is now in US cinemas after its debut on Friday
Promo push: Chopra also shared a clip titled 5 Reasons to See Love Again
She also shared some behind-the-scenes photos she took while filming the film in another Instagram post on Friday.
“Best time with the best people. @loveagainmovie In cinemas today!!’ the actress wrote as she bagged the film’s premiere on Friday.
In another publicity push for the production, the mother-of-one released a video titled “5 Reasons to Watch Love Again.”
“The time to love again is NOW! @loveagainmovie opens in US theaters today!! Go watch now,” she shared in the caption.
Priyanka and Nick Jonas have been married for more than four years and are the proud parents of 16-month-old daughter Malti, who came to us with the help of a surrogate.
Love Again is now playing in theaters across the United States.