Last year marked the premiere ofBrett GoldsteinandWill Bridges’s longtime passion project,All of You, a sci-fi romance that imagines a world where everyone can take a test tofind their true soulmateand focuses on two friends with an unspoken love that they only start to realize once one of them is matched with someone else. It made its debut at the Toronto International Film Festival to strong reviews and an 83%Rotten Tomatoesscore, marking the culmination of over a decade of work by theTed Lassostar and the director to bring the idea to life. Now, with Apple TV+ set to release their work for audiences this September, we’re excited to include the long-gestating title as part ofCollider’s Exclusive Previewevent for fall movies. In a conversation withMaggie Lovittfor the event, Bridges, Goldstein, and co-leadImogen Pootsdetailed how Bridges' feature directorial debut evolved over the years and how it keeps viewers grounded in its sci-fi elements.
The story ofAll of Youbegins back with the release ofFor Life. After working together to co-write the superhero mockumentarySuperBob, Goldstein and Bridgesstarted discussing the idea of soulmatesand conceived of their 2013 short film — also directed by Bridges and starring a pre-Roy Kent Goldstein alongsideLaura Haddock— which followed the same premise of everyone in the world having only one person they were scientifically meant for. It also centered on two friends, with Goldstein’s character helping Haddock’s pay for the soulmate test and agreeing to accompany her to the clinic. On the way there, they begin questioning their relationship and why one lent the other money for the test in the first place. There was less room for Goldstein and Bridges to flesh out the idea, butit planted a seed that they wanted to see flourish once they each had the opportunity.
Filming ‘All of You’ Brought Out the Best in Goldstein and Bridges’s Script
Both of them eventually found enough success to finally create the movie they always envisioned. Goldstein would become a two-time Emmy winner anda hot commoditywithTed Lasso, and Bridges would prove his near-future sci-fi prowess through Netflix’sBlack Mirror, even helming one of the show’smost beloved episodes, “USS Callister.“In the intervening years, they also created a more sweeping story that spanned many years and life milestones, showing how the love between the two friends begins complicating the path that “destiny” laid out for them. According to Bridges, the story was ever-evolving thanks to Goldstein’s role as both co-writer and co-star, as well as their new co-lead,Vivarium’s Poots, who inspired even more changes once cameras were rolling.
“Yes, it is very useful having one of the lead actors of the movie also be your co-writer on the movie — and also Imogen is such a talented and experienced actresswe would rewrite scenes and even add scenes after rehearsals in pre-production based on what we were getting from her, and even add or change scenes during the shoot,” the director said. “So the movie was constantly evolving, we were very lucky in that sense.” Goldstein echoed that sentiment, adding how the act of shooting a film often opens new doors that are impossible to see when just looking at a script. While there were no sweeping changes, the process was all about making the story “perfect” in their eyes. Goldstein told Collider:
“My favorite thing about filmmaking is how things evolve once you start shooting. In my experience, you begin filming thinking the script is perfect. BUT then something shifts. As you watch the chemistry between the actors and start to feel the story on its feet, rather than just in your head,new possibilities begin to reveal themselves. If you stay open and follow the signs, you realize there’s more there than you initially saw and the film starts to show you what it wants to be. We didn’t make huge changes along the way, but there were moments we added as we went. And as we approached the ending,I felt strongly that one of the final lines needed to change. And now, it feels perfect to me.”
‘All of You’ Grounds Itself in Relatable Life Events
The introduction ofsci-fi into the romantic dramais light but impactful. However, what further complicatesAll of Youis its penchant for time jumpsthroughout Simon (Goldstein) and Laura’s (Poots) lives. While moving through the story in leaps and bounds could be jarring, the use of those significant life milestones, celebrations, and tragedies is how Bridges believes it keeps viewers in the loop as to where the friends are in their journeys. It’s also how the story makes itself more relatable to viewers, even if a real soulmate test doesn’t exist. Bridges explained:
“We used familiar milestones in people’s lives to help the audience get a feel for where we were landing in Simon and Laura’s journey. A work celebration. A wedding. A funeral. We didn’t want to be explicit with the timeframe, just suggest that time has passed since Simon and Laura last saw each other. People are smart, we knew they would work it out from the little clues we were giving in the dialogue or the situation we just dropped them in each time.”
For Goldstein, using those context clues to piece together how much time has passed is part of the enjoyment. “The fun of the film is that the audience only sees the moments when Simon and Laura are together,” he continued. “So with each new scene,you are playing detective. What have you missed? Where are they in their lives now? We kept things as simple as possible, leaving space for the audience to fill in the gaps.” The purpose of the time jumps also goes beyond relatability, encouraging viewers to think of situations they’ve been in and craft the story around Simon and Laura from experience, Goldstein continued:
“By not showing every detail of their lives, I think it helps audiences connect more deeply with the characters. It invites them to project their own experiences and emotions onto them. Despite all the time that passes, and the life events we glimpse (or don’t), the story remains simple at its core: two people who can’t stop loving each other.”
An important aspect that Poots emphasized was ensuring that the couple’s behavior always felt consistent with the feelings they have towards each other. She agreed that it was a challenge “making sure the audience knew where they were,” even if there were milestones to cite, but there wereother aesthetic waysto depict the passing of time. “That’s where the hair and make-up and costume helped us,” she told Lovitt. “In terms of Laura and Simon’s dynamic, despite the passing of time, they remain magnetized to one another. The look of the characters helped to determine time and place, enabling us to keep the feelings and behavior of Laura and Simon towards one another unchanged.”
Who Else Stars in ‘All of You’?
Joining the main duo of Goldstein and Poots on-screen is a solid supporting trio ofZawe Ashton,Steven Cree, andJenna Coleman. The performances are some of the highlights ofAll of Youin the eyes of Collider’sRoss Bonaime. Inhis review, he specifically praised the leads, saying “Brett Goldstein and Imogen Poots boast excellent chemistry,” while also giving some props to the script’s surprising humor at times, courtesy of Bridges and Goldstein. Whatever audiences feel about the film, though, it’s a feature debut that both Bridges and Goldsteinare immensely proud of and thankful for after so many years trying to make it work.
All of Youwill arrive on Apple TV+ on September 26. Stay tuned here at Collider for more from ourExclusive Previewevent over the coming weeks.
