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CNN Live Today

Interview with Nia Vardalos

Aired August 29, 2002 - 11:37   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: Well, if you haven't seen it, I understand it is a must-see. "My Big Fat Greek Wedding" is the sleeper hit of the summer. The little movie that could opened in April, and just recently cracked the box office top five. The movie is all about a Greek-American who marries outside her culture, much to her family's chagrin.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hi.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Hi. Did you want to see some brochures?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: How embarrassing. Well, the movie is based on the one-woman play by Nia Vardalos, and Nia joins us this afternoon from Los Angeles -- or morning. Oh, it is still morning for you too -- hi there, Nia.

NIA VARDALOS, "MY BIG FAT GREEK WEDDING": Hi, how are you?

WHITFIELD: Well, lots of funny things about this movie. A movie and, I guess a set of episodes that really could apply to all weddings, that is what so many people are saying, Jewish weddings, Italian, Catholic, you name it.

VARDALOS: Yes, that's been my favorite thing, actually, the amount of people that have come up to me on the street and said, I'm Irish, and you are talking about my family. We had this moment too, where a Chinese family came to our table in Montreal and said, we are from Detroit, my dad -- my mom is just like your dad.

And I just thought, it is this thing, everybody can relate to it. Anybody who has ever tried to plan a wedding or a funeral, has been through this family situation, and I guess that's why people like the movie. I don't know.

WHITFIELD: And I guess that's why you also got the attention doing this as one-woman play, and then Tom Hanks and his wife, Rita, happened to see it and say, wait a minute, we definitely have something here, and somehow they convinced you, I'm sure it wasn't difficult twisting your arm on this one, to then do a movie about it?

VARDALOS: Yes. I actually couldn't even believe they where talking to me. You know, after the show, when they said, this should be a movie, I was like, OK, whatever you want. And I handed them this screen play that I had written, and that was it.

WHITFIELD: Because we just can't get enough, let's take another peek at perhaps one of the first encounters between you and the groom to be.

VARDALOS: OK.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Toula, on my wedding night, my mother, she said to me, Greek women, we may be lambs in the kitchen, but we are tigers in the bedroom.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Ew. Please let that be the end of your speech.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: OK, perhaps not the meeting but instead the advice from the mother. Hilarious. I mean, is this something that you kind of extracted from your own personal experience?

VARDALOS: Yes, I have this really great, crazy family. And if you spend five minutes with us, you would get an idea for a movie too. Like when I was growing up, my grandma knew I was talking to this boy on the phone, and she said to me, Were you talking to that boy? And I said, Yes. And she went, You know, you can let a boy kiss you, and you can let the boy touch you down here, but never, never let them touch you down there, because once he feels it, he wants it."

WHITFIELD: OK.

VARDALOS: This is what I grew up with. How could I not write a movie out of it?

WHITFIELD: No kidding. Well, the funny thing about this, too, is you really didn't have very much to make this movie happen, $5 million, and no money for advertisement, and now, here, so many months later after opening, you are getting all kinds of free advertisement, so to speak, especially by word of mouth. Did you expect that this was going to be such a great hit?

VARDALOS: No, I did not expect it at all. I remember opening weekend, I was just so very happy that we were in the theaters, and then all of a sudden, it just started selling out, and I just thought, Is this possible? And then, there was no way we had the budget for a big advertising campaign. So the only way we cracked the top ten was by word of mouth, so I would just like to thank every single person out there who saw the movie and told their ten first cousins, thank you. Thank you very much.

WHITFIELD: And it seems like the most embarrassing moments are the ones, of course, that make it all so funny that bring this comic relief. We saw the advice from the mother. Is that how you kind of, you know, tried to -- I guess put all of the most embarrassing moments, whether it be some of your own, or perhaps some of your friends, put it all together in this movie and know that it would touch everybody in some kind of way, shape, or form?

VARDALOS: I'm pleased that it has been touching everyone, but that's a surprise to me. It has almost been a bit of therapy to find out that everyone has some sort of disastrous wedding morning. I have had women come up to me on the street and say, I am you, listen to this, and tell me some horrible thing that happened to them that is comparable to my big zit that I got on my wedding morning, that my brother burst into my room and took a Polaroid picture of it. At the time, I was like, Out, out. And then later, I went, hmm, and wrote it into the movie.

WHITFIELD: That is kind of good. That is good material. OK. So what have been the reviews from Tom and Rita, since they were so much pulling for you? Have you heard from them since?

VARDALOS: Yes, they have been pretty great, pretty positive and really excited, and I said to Rita the other day, you must feel like a genius, like that she found this little play in the middle of Los Angeles and thought this would make a movie, and now we are in the top five. It is just incredible.

WHITFIELD: All right. We are going to take another quick peek at -- this time, a clip at the dinner table.

VARDALOS: OK.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Ian, are you hungry?

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: No, I already ate.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: OK, I make you something.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: OK.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Now, Toula, we have to have (UNINTELLIGIBLE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

WHITFIELD: Another one of those roll the eyes kind of moments there.

VARDALOS: Yes. My dad, actually -- the list was so big for the wedding, and my dad said to me, OK, OK, I cut the list down. One of the people I cut out was your mother." She had been tattling (ph) on him.

WHITFIELD: What also is so funny when you try to bring these families together, here you and your groom have this great relationship, and you just kind of cringe at the idea of these families coming together, but of course in the end, you know, everyone kind of gets along, et cetera. Were you afraid that you might get a little flak for poking fun at some of these moments too? VARDALOS: No, I have this great family that has the ability to laugh at themselves. They also know it is not a documentary, so I'm kind of safe there, and I disguise people's names so no one can really recognize themselves. But I just thought, why not tell the story. Everyone kind of feels this familial and societal pressure to get married, and it is so hard to find your soul mate in this world, and they are not going to be the same shade of brown or pink as you are, it's too hard. So I realize now that everyone is relating to it, because, you know, you try and find this guy, you bring him home, and then what happens, is, I guess, what everyone can relate to.

WHITFIELD: Well, Nia, all of these great disasters made for a great movie. Thanks so much for joining us, and best of luck to you in your future film and comedic efforts.

VARDALOS: Thank you.

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