Autumn Reeser (Hawaii Five-0, Last Resort) takes on the lead role in the upcoming Hallmark movie Midnight Masquerade premiering on October 18, 2014 at 9pm ET/PT. The film’s a gender-bending twist on Cinderella, and Reeser, a veteran of Hallmark productions, was happy to take on the lead in a project that spins the classic tale.
During the 2014 Summer Television Critics Association press tour, I chatted briefly with Reeser about what audiences can expect from this upcoming romantic film.
The Midnight Masquerade Plot:
A beautiful young businesswoman’s life takes a turn when she inherits a billion-dollar candy company. On Halloween night, she shares a dance with a handsome and mysterious “prince” at a masked costume ball and yearns for the love and romance her life has been missing. Meanwhile, a plan is hatched to swindle her out of her fortune. Will she find love with her mysterious “prince,” and will he be able to save her from losing her fortune?
Autumn Reeser Interview
How would you describe Midnight Masquerade?
Autumn Reeser: “It’s a reverse Cinderella story. My character is the CEO of a candy company and she meets a prince – shall we say – at a bar, and then she can’t find him.”
Does he leave a piece of footwear behind?
Autumn Reeser: [Laughing] “Sort of, yes. There’s a thing with shoes and there’s a thing with a missing object. I don’t want to spoil things.”
What kind of person is she before she meets the prince?
Autumn Reeser: “She’s just taken over for her father. She’s a professional woman who has sort of had to undertake more responsibility than she’s had in the past and is getting used to running a company.”
How long was the shoot?
Autumn Reeser: “It was about two and a half weeks. I was in Canada with my husband and both of our babies and our nanny in tow. [Laughing] When I travel now it’s like traveling with an entourage of people. It’s an entire production in and of itself because the babies are so small. My youngest was four months when I shot the movie.”
Speaking of Entourage, do you show up in the movie?
Autumn Reeser: “No.”
What do you think happened to your character after the series ended?
Autumn Reeser: “She moved her way up. I have no doubt that Lizzie Grant was successful in Hollywood. She’s a shark.”
Have you ever worked as fast as this shoot?
Autumn Reeser: “I did another movie a couple of years ago for Hallmark called Love at the Thanksgiving Day Parade, so I had worked on a similar time frame.”
How did you get involved in this particular film?
Autumn Reeser: “They sent me a script and asked me if I’d like to do it. And I liked the sort of feminist take – if you will – on the Cinderella story. I thought it was an interesting way of retelling it. I had such a great experience working with Hallmark in the past that I wanted to work with them again. They take great care of me and my family, and I had a wonderful experience on the movie.”
Is it a well oiled machine now?
Autumn Reeser: “I think every one is different. I don’t think you can compare one to the other. This one, I had a great time. There were a lot of really nice people. I went to a part of Canada that I’d never been to before, so I really enjoyed that.”
