The Office and Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt star Ellie Kemper stars in the new Netflix romantic comedy, Happiness for Beginners. Although it got a limited theatrical release on July 21st, it arrives on the streaming site on Thursday, 27th.
Kemper stars as Helen, with her opposite number being Yellowstone star Luke Grimes playing her love interest, Jake. Elsewhere in the cast are Nico Santos as Hugh, Blythe Danner as Gigi, Benjamin Cook as Beckett, Shayvawn Webster as Windy, Esteban Benito as Mason, and Julia Shiplett as Sue.
The new film was written and directed by Vicky Wight and is an adaptation of Katherine Center’s 2015 novel of the same name. It follows the newly divorced Helen as she joins a course promising the “adventure of a lifetime” in the hope of learning how to live and love again. Joined by a colourful cast of characters, Helen and her fellow hikers test themselves against Mother Nature. However, things become a bit harder when the newcomer Jake arrives.
“I thought it was such a well-told story of one woman’s experience in getting to know herself better,” Kemper told Netflix’s event Tudum about what attracted her to movie. “I was immediately excited about the prospect of playing a woman whose outlook on life, when we first meet her, isn’t so sunny. I’ve played a lot of optimistic rubes, and Helen was neither.”
“The cast was an absolute dream and they all became good friends during our shoot,” Wight said elsewhere. “Not only did everyone shine individually but each actor was an exceptionally generous and inventive scene partner. They were improvisational and trusting with one another and me, which added so much chemistry on-screen.”
“Ellie and Luke really set a lovely, inclusive tone and they were both a joy from start to finish,” she added.
Watch the trailer for Happiness for Beginners below.
