Harry Macqueen’s Supernova is an intimate romance set against the grand backdrop of the U.K.’s historic Lake District, a meditation on love and loss that requires a lived-in chemistry from its leads. Luckily for Macqueen, he has Stanley Tucci and Colin Firth, two of cinema’s most beloved stars who just so happen to have two decades of friendship under their belt. But even after Tucci and Firth signed on to play Sam and Tusker, Supernova’s perennial partners, it wasn’t exactly smooth-sailing—at some point during production, the pair decided they should switch roles, with Firth as Sam, and Tucci as Tusker. As The A.V. Club learned during a recent press junket for the film, the announcement of the role swap initially had their director a little nervous, but it didn’t take too much convincing to get him on board. In our interview with Harry Macqueen and Stanley Tucci, they recalled what it was like when Tucci broke the news, and the two also discussed how the atmospheric beauty of the Lakes District help set the tone for the film, which you can watch in the video above.
Supernova comes to select theaters beginning January 29, and will be available on digital platform on February 16.