Anna Faris and Dan Fogler say "Take Me Home Tonight"

She is that funny, talented blonde from House Bunny and the early Scary Movie films (okay, she was a brunette in those). Anna Faris, who is married to Take Me Home Tonight co-star Chris Pratt, plays a smart gal who needs to make a life-altering decision in the film. 

He is the ever-funny star of Balls of Fury, Taking Woodstock and has voiced characters in Kung Fu Panda and Horton Hears a Who. Dan Fogler will also soon be heard in the animated Mars Needs Moms. In “Take Me Home”, Dan’s character in is a straight arrow car salesman who goes beyond wild…for one night.

In this raunchy, funny and romantic film, we blast back to the free-living and great music 1980’s where older teens and 20-somethings are partying for the last summer before figuring out what do to with the rest of their lives post school. To say they party hearty is an understatement.

We’re meeting up with the actors in the hills above L.A. at a gorgeous house much like the posh party crib in the film. Anna is wearing a bee-u-tee-full black and gold silk blouse by Karen Zambos and black slacks topped off with her precision-cut platinum blonde bob hairdo.  Dan, is all dapper/GQ in a suit.

Let’s go retro…

TeenHollywood: Dan, your crazy dance moves in this movie, did somebody choreograph that or was it freestyle?

Dan: I choreographed it. They gave me the song beforehand which was [singing] ‘You can dance if you want to’ and I just did a whole routine in my condo apartment and it had a lot of wild moves in it but I had to pare it back. It was too elaborate I guess. They said ‘You have to look like you’re not a good dancer’.

Anna: I said earlier that it looked like you were having a choreographed seizure. [laughter]

TeenHollywood: When you were in high school, what group did you guys fit into?

Dan: I was a theater geek.

Anna: I was a theater geek too.

TeenHollywood: Did people like them at your school or was it outcast time?

Dan: I went a school where [people were] into sports and jocks, alpha males and cheerleaders. Well, I definitely liked the cheerleaders but I wasn’t in their crew. They only gave praise to you in and around the performance that you did. That’s really the only time they talked to you. ‘Good job on the show. I can’t be seen with you’.

Anna: At my school, you couldn’t be more of a social outcast. We were called the Bat Cavers [laughter] and nobody saw our shows but our parents.

Dan: That’s really bad!

TeenHollywood: Well, they are seeing you now! Anna your character Wendy is at a crossroads in choosing between furthering her education and a career or marriage. Have you been in that situation?

Anna: Yeah. Embarrassingly enough, I did go to the university I went to because of my first boyfriend and he broke up with me. It’s so “Felicity”. Then I graduated and was going to go to London to pursue marketing. I wanted to be an actress but thought there was no way that was possible. Then, at the last minute I was ‘You know, I should give L.A. a shot. If I’m miserable and working at Starbucks in a year, then I’ll think about marketing and moving back to Seattle’. But, then I booked a classic called Scary Movie! [laughter] and my parents were so proud.

TeenHollywood: You met your husband actor Chris Pratt in this movie, right? So, was it love at first sight?

Anna: Yeah, but we didn’t start dating until after the movie was rapped but we were both from the same hometown [in Washington state] and I was really impressed with his acting and we all became really close as a cast. I think he was dating a couple of ladies at the same time during the making of the movie [Dan is wiggling his eyebrows in an ‘ooo la la’ funny manner]. There were a couple of background actresses.

TeenHollywood: It was a while between getting this film made and its release. How good does it feel to get it out there?

Anna: I don’t think I ever felt that nervous about it not coming out.

Dan: There was a moment there when there was a transitioning from someone’s hands who was like [makes a negative funny noise] about it to someone who was ‘Yay!!’ about it.

Anna: Yeah. But the climate has changed so much with something like The Hangover. And we had a few uphill struggles so it’s great it’s found a home with a lot of enthusiasm behind it. It feels like it’s a good time for R-rated comedies right now. [Note: The film is rated R for some drug use and brief topless shots].

TeenHollywood: How do you feel about the setting? Do you think this could have been set in modern times or it needs to be the ‘80’s?

Dan: I think it’s relevant right now with a lot of people getting out of school and not having a purpose and not having a job to go to. It’s very relevant. So it could have taken place now but I love that it took place in the ‘80’s. That was my formative years so it was great to go back and relive that at an older age when I could go back and re-live the insanity of it.

Anna: Yeah. I think Topher [Grace, actor and producer of the movie] talks a lot about how he wanted to make sure this wasn’t a spoof of the ‘80’s because I think it’s hard to be invested in the characters’ journey if you are also mocking them.

Dan: Or their hairdos!

Anna: [laughs] So I think it’s a bit of a timeless story over the last maybe four decades.

TeenHollywood: Did you guys do any period research to make sure you got it right? I guess our teens could just ask their parents.

Anna: I showed up to a [wardrobe] fitting.

Dan: I think there were a stack of ‘80’s movies to watch and I watched all of them and I really wanted to make an homage to certain people and certain scenes like the very quick talking Anthony Michael Hall in bathroom stalls. It was very specific and da, da, da ,da [fast].  I wanted to master that. I love the idea of like a Bruce Willis in Blind Date where he starts off [having it all] together and by the end of the movie he’s [wasted]. I liked staying wound tight at the beginning and finally being able to let loose was a lot of fun.

TeenHollywood: How much improv did you guys do?

Dan: They let us play. We always did what was on the page then they gave us time to play. It was about 50/50.

Anna: You were amazing.

Dan: Well the [drug] scene in the bathroom, I think there was one line in there and then it became like a monologue. ‘Do I do this? I don’t know’. The one line there was ‘Blammo’ and that was it. And all this dialogue on the dance floor ‘I’m growlin’ at you! I’m a lion’. That’s not in there at all.

TeenHollywood: Which scene was your favorite?

Dan: I loved stealing the car.

Anna: And he doesn’t drive [in real life].

Dan: I’m like ‘I know what I’m doin’.

Anna: We didn’t have quite the budget to crash that convertible.

Dan: I came so close. It’s like she’s in this car [he grabs my two recorders and pretends they are toy cars and demonstrates]. Errrrrrrrk. ‘Test drive!’

TeenHollywood: Anna, your character is really into the car stealing too.

Dan: Yeah. I think she has a very combative relationship with both Matt [Topher’s character] and Barry [Dan’s character] and she has always been maybe one of the guys a little bit in that relationship so I don’t think she’d be one to come down on them necessarily. She wants to be part of the fun.

TeenHollywood: What is your favorite, definitive ‘80’s jam?

Dan: I loved the whole [Michael Jackson] ‘Thriller’ album.

Anna: Oh yeah!

Dan: We would stay in from playtime. I was in like 4^th grade, and everyone would opt to stay in and listen to the album and dance. It was crazy.

Anna: I loved Cyndi Lauper’s album. I think I’ve gotta go with ‘Time After Time’. I remember being like ten years old and crying.

Dan: And I listened to that song by L Debarge about a million frickin’ times. ‘The Rhythm of the Night’.

Anna: Oh yeah! [Dan starts singing it.]

TeenHollywood: Someone said this was a little like a John Hughes movie. Any favorites of that era?

Dan: Oh yeah. I loved The Breakfast Club. That was one of my favorites.

Anna: And Pretty in Pink.

TeenHollywood: Anna, you’ve done some great comic work but was it refreshing to have more of an emotional through-line in this film?

Anna: It was really rewarding to play a character that’s a little more intelligent than the characters I normally play. It was a relief and nice to be part of such a strong ensemble and figure out my place in that and just a character that had a little bit more bite to her, ore brassiness. She’s complicated. I think she’s also really deeply unhappy. Thank you. That was a nice reward for me.

TeenHollywood: Anna, you and Topher play twins in this. Did you two work on that relationship?

Anna: We weirdly have sort of a combative energy that’s kind of sibling-like naturally. I don’t know where it came from but we tease each other a lot.

Dan: They have similar coloring too. You guys look like you were twins.

Anna: We have sort of a know-it-all, bossy attitude about us I think.

TeenHollywood: So do you say the same thing at the same time?

Anna: Yeah, sort of.

TeenHollywood: Is there a genre or a director that you would love to work with?

Anna: I hope I keep continuing to do comedy. I’m really interested in playing messy women as opposed to the type “A” women we’ve seen a lot in the romantic comedy zone. I want to play the loser [laugh] and I hope there is an audience for her so I’m working on some loose ideas.

TeenHollywood: How do you feel about your now husband Chris’s crying scene at the end of the film?  Did you help him with that?

Anna: Mike [the director] really wanted him to break down and it was like six o’clock in the morning and we were so exhausted. He was having some trouble getting there. Then, the craziest thing happened. We took a break, he came back and he just was slobbering. I think everyone on the crew, including myself, was just like ‘What is this? This is so confusing. What we’re seeing is hysterical and tragic and it’s disgusting and amazing’. I don’t know. It was love [laughs].

TeenHollywood: Did you find out what he did during that break?

Anna: No. I think he just really put the pressure on himself, went off. I think everyone’s process is different. Some actors can do it immediately and some actors need a minute or two.

TeenHollywood: What few words represent the ‘80’s for you?

Dan: I’d say like ‘bright neon’ or ‘Miami Vice’.

Anna: ‘Excess’ and I feel like there was something very naïve wrapped up in the excess.

Dan: [British accent, announcing an imaginary rock band] We’re Naïve Excess!

Anna: [also British accent] Thank you guys for comin’ out tonight!

TeenHollywood: [we’re laughing] Was it hard shooting something that was an era you lived through?

Anna: I never shot anything that was shot [way back].  I think this,1988, was the farthest back I’ve gone.

Dan: Yeah. It was great because I was in Taking Woodstock and we went back to the ‘60’s and I felt like ‘Am I ‘60’s enough right now?’ There was a freeness, more of a stilted vibe that was more fluid and if you didn’t catch onto that, you looked kinda weird but ‘80’s was easier.

TeenHollywood: What’s next for both of you?

Anna: I’ve got a movie coming out in September called What’s Your Number?  It’s a romantic comedy.

Dan: I’ve got a movie called Mars Needs Moms coming out. It’s motion capture. It’s very different than this character. It’s a big 3-D Disney thing. I play Gribble, this guy who has been cast away on Mars for 20 years and all he knows is the ‘80’s actually.

TeenHollywood: Mars needs women!

Dan: Yes, exactly, human women!  And I’m directing this movie called Don Peyote that’ll be out this time next year probably.