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But Howard is driven by twin addictions: to basketball and to his girlfriend.
Julia Fox, a longtime friend of the directors, plays a beguiling 20-something devoted to Howards skeevy charm.
Love is greed is a gem is basketball.
Howard and Julia have their share of street squabbles, but mostly shes by his side.
Sitting together at the Crosby hotel, Garnett and Fox reflected on their first gigs as actors.
I love being in front of the camera.
Garnett, however, is a little less certain of his future on set.
I cant say that [acting is] on the top of the list, but it was fun.
I want to start pretty generally.
Did you audition?JF: I had to do a screen test.
They said they auditioned like 300 girls and I stood out.
Its like a miracle really.
And then they didGood Time, so I was like, Is it happening?
Is it not happening?I didnt realize what this movie meant, you know.
I didnt understand [at the time].
I was just like, Sure Ill be in your movie and if it doesnt happen, whatever.
It was only when they went to retired players that I was brought up.
KG: It was just great synergy.
They said, Yeah, were going to give you this.
I was just like, Okay.
JF: And its crazy because nobody else could have played [Kevins] role.
I cant even picture anyone besides Kevin.
Just like how I cant picture anyone besides Adam.
You have that much energy.JF: So much.
KG: Ah, man.
So we were just sharing and everybodys kind of
JF: Hes the most entertaining person ever.
It was cool when the wheels were in motion and we were all just perfect.
You come into a new situation, something that you havent done, youre going to have some nervousness.
But I was prepared for what I had to say.
Everybody was just about helping each other and it wasnt a stressful time, none of it.
JF: It was like 12 pages.
KG: When I first saw that I froze, like, Are you serious?
And they were saying, No, say it how you would say it.
What was it like shooting those jewelry scenes?
For me it felt like, yeah, Ive been in here before.
Ive been in a jewelry store.
It felt like that.
But when youre inside it feels so real.
They destroyed the set at the end.
They just completely demolished it.
I remember being like,What?
How could they do that?But its a set, like, thats what you do.
Like I tell everybody, once you win a ring, thats the real one.
Like, whichever one you have on is the real one?JF: No one knows.
KG: You won it, you know?
They cant take that away from you, is the point.
Julia, can you tell me more about the movie-Julias relationship with Howard?
He always cleans up the mess, and hes just very charming.
I think they trust each other.
They take care of each other.
Theyre very ride or die.
I think that Julia loves Howard unconditionally whereas Dinah [played by Idina Menzel] loves him conditionally.
Howard and Julia, theyre both flawed and they really accept each other for who they are.
This is a question for both of you, since youre essentially playing versions of yourself.
How are you similar to these characters, and how are you dissimilar?JF: Im pretty close.
The TV would be gone, the couch shit would have been trashed.
Like, its not going to be that easy.
Other than that, were similar, like any 20-something-year-old girl from New York.
And Kevin?KG: I thought I was myself.
People were like, Yo, youre doing such a great job!
If its something that I want, I go for it.
[Imitates bidding] Yeah.
But for the most part, everything that was in the movie was me.
Do you gamble?KG: No.
I will say this: You cant catch me at Caesars [Palace] on the blackjack table.
[Imitates getting down on one knee to shoot dice like every black uncle in American history.]
But to go into a thing thats made for you to lose?
No, Im not a casino guy.
We have to talk about the actual gem itself.
Do you believe that objects can have a mystical power?
Are either of you very superstitious?KG: Im an athlete.
I think everybody has them.
Women may have, like, jewelry
JF: Lucky panties.
Superstition comes into it.
Listen, in sports, its about you believing it and then having confidence in it.
Thats really what it is.
I really lost myself in that scene.
I could have kept going the whole night.
I was really feeling all those things.
Even when I woke up the next day, I felt hungover.
Insidewith the Weeknd hes such a chill dude.
Hes super humble, so easy to get along with, so talented.
KG: Abel is cool people.
Ive known him for a while.
Obviously you both have careers outside of acting.
I could be baking a cake and Ill do it a certain way.
If youre just a creative person, itll come out no matter what.
I think this was just another expression of that for me.
Like Jules said, creatively, if its in you, its going to come out.
This was a good outlet.
It was just funny.
Ten years in the making.
I didnt even know the Weeknd was going to be in there, you know?
I didnt know who was going to be in the movie!
Then you start seeing Trinidad James.
Its a perfect story, seeing where [Gems] came from to where its at.
