KJ APA DIDNN’T WANT TO BE ACTOR, But Wuldn’t Have Ity Other Way Now

KJ APA IS NOT ONLY STARRING IN PRIME VIDEO’s NEW MOVIE, The map that leads to youbut he’s also on his own journey, Taking everything thrown his way day by day.

The 28-Year-Eld Actor, Who Rose to Fame for His Role As Archie Andrews in the Television Series RiverrdaleTells The Hollywood Reporter That he actuly “Never Wanted to be an Actor” growing up. But WHEN AN OPPORTunity Came His Way at 16 Years Old To Star On A New Zealand Soap Opera, APA KNEW HE COURCLDNN’T PASS IT UP, AND “The REST WAS Kind of History.”

Later on, his Relaxed Mentality Regarding His Hollywood Career Actually Benefited HIM WHEN IT CAME TO AUDIPS. “I THINK THERE WAS A Level of Just Chillness to My Attitude and Going Into Things That Meant That If I Didn’T Get Something Says.

APA May Not Have Chosen This Path, But Is One Huldn’t Change, He Admits. Especially Because He Can Now Make “Movies That Make People Feel Good and Can Help People Find A Sense of Identity,” Such As with Prime Video’s New Pic The map that leads to youAlso Starring Madlyn CLINE.

Below, APA OPENS UP ABOUT PLAYING A Version of HimSelf In The map that leads to youhis Favorite Part About Traveling All Over Europe for The Movie, The Impact Riverrdale Had on his Career, Fatherhood and His Dream Movie Role.

WHAT INITIALLY DREW YOU TO THE ROLE OF JACK IN The map that leads to you?

I DID A MOVIE CALLED The Hate U Give with Amandla Stenberg and Marty Bowen, Who Was Producing That Movie, And I Stayed In Touch with [him]. He sent me this script, must have been about a year ago, and i immediatally love the script. I’d Never Read the Book and I Loved It. I was at a point in my life whore Those themes that we talk about in the movie, especialy about God and the universe and all things kind of intertwing together Still now. And It Just Read Really Well, and I Am All About Movies That Make People Feel Good and Can Help People Find a Sens of Identity.

As the Film is Based on JP Monniger’s Novel of the Same Name, What Can Book Fans Expert with the Adaptation?

You can expect it to be different. Madelyn and I Talked About A Lot of Things Ahead of the Film That We Wanted To Bring Into The Characters and Conversations That We Wanted Them To Talk ABOUT, AND LASSE [Hallström, director] WAS A HUGE COMPONENT IN NAVIGATING THROUGH THESE THINGS AS WELL. By the Way, I HAVEN’T READ THE BOOK. I Always Kept Asking Marty, “Do i Need to Read this Book?” And He’s Like, “No, It, Gonna Be Better If You Don’t The Book Because We Wanna Just Have A Fresh Perspective.” Marty Was Like, “Well Maybe You Should Just Play It Like A New Zealander.” And I Was Like, “HMM, I DON’T KNOW ABOUT THAT BECAUSE I HAVEN’T DONE IT SINCE I WAS IN NEW ZEAALAND WHEN I WAS 16, I HAVEN’S REALLY Used My Own Accent.” But There Was Something It is That Was Exciting for Me To Because It Different Kind of Process Whos I’M USING MY OWN ACCENT, JUST ‘CAUSE IT FEELS MORE LIKE ME. There’s Less of A Separation Between Me and the Character, Who Really For Us Because It Ment That All of the Improving Stuff, Wich Is The Way that Lasse Really Lo.

There’s A Lot of Moments WHERE MADELYN AND I ARE JUST KINT OF EXISTING IN WHATEVER SETING WE’RE IN. And every single scene we did, we did a lot of takes where we just didn’t look at the lines or we forgot about the lines or we were encouraged not to think about the lines, so we just kind of interpreted it the way that we felt the Characters Were.

As a viewer, i enjoyed seeing all the incredible locations as your characters are also discovering the trees. WHAT WAS YOUR FAVORITE Part of Traveling and Filming All Over Europe for the Film?

OH, IT WAS SK! It was Really Cool. I’ve Never Had An Experience Shooting Like That in Really Amazing Places. I mean, i’d never been to portugal, i’d never been to italy, i’d never been to barcelona. SO it was like a dream being able to shoot at Those Places. The only Thing, I Just Remember Being So Hot All The Time, But That Was Fine. But It Was Like A Big Holiday. We Worked Really Hard Thought, Like there Were Really Long Hours. I’m just so gratify that i got to work with Madyn because she’s so chill and it felt Effortless Working with Her. And the Stuff that Our Characters Were Talking About, We Were Also Really Into, and We Were Talking About Off-Camera.

In the Movie, Jack Sort of Running from His Personal Battles and the Fear of the Unknown, While Also Trying to Enjoy the Present Moment with HimSelf and Heter (Cline). WHAT Wuld You Say to People Who Can Somewhat Relate To Jack?

I Think We All Can Relate A Little Bit, Just In The Mosst Simpelst Way. Being constantly boombarded by Social Media, Politics, All of these Things That Rushing Into Our Lives at Light Speed on Our Phone Screens, You Know, In Conversations Ability to rob you of the present moment. And this idea of the present moment – how can i be present? How Can I Stay Out of the Future and Get Out of My Past and Just Be in the Moment? – is someting that’s becuoming more and more figicult as time goes on. That was someting that i was was really interested in at that point in my life because the things that i was going through. That’s Part of the Reason Wy It Was So Attractive to Me to A MOVIE LIKE THIS, Because and Knew that It Was Gonna Be Going to A Certain Demography Also, and Younger, WHERE HOPEFULLY theying be reminded by the most Important Things in Life WHICH Are Are Relationships, and The People That You Love, And Where Youe.

Your Point About Being Present Reminds Me of the Scene Where Jack Judges the Girl for Taking a Selfie on the Rooftop and Heather Calls Him Out.

That was a tough one. I was trying to justify that too, as an actor[[Laughs]. I was like, man, people are gonna Hate me for this. It’s Such A Gnarly Scene in Terms of Just Letting People DO WHATEVER WANT, REALLY, AT THE END OF THE DAY. But that’s the Balance Comes in Great with the Two of Them Becauuse He Got Put in his Place and Heeded. I do believe he was in the wrong there, because as soon as you start Projecting Your Things on Other People, IT Kind of Retracts Everything Her things Been Been Telling Her This Whoa. Moment. Who’s to say that trees a photo of someting isn’ being in the moment? It’s Just Cherishing the Moment, You Know, Honoring The Moment Because You Love It So Much and You Want To CAPTURE IT.

Do you have a favorite scene or moment that you’re most excited for Viewers to see?

My Favorite Moment Is Actual Henaya At the Airport Toward of the End of the Movie, and He’s Saying He Needs to Go To The Bathroom or Something. That’s My Favorite Moment Because I Think Just From A Performance StandPoint, That Was Again A Scene Where Lasse Was Just Like, “Ok, You Guys Know What’s Going Ot. And’s that thing of the like, he’s saying goodbye and you don’t to say goodbye, and he’s not being fortress in what he’s Feeling and with his Reality. And I Just Think There’s A Beautify Moment Between the Two of Them there. I Something that i was woss triing to do in my performance, to kind of let go with: And’s Just Dovastating Too, Because at the Same Moment, I’M TRYING NOT TO JUDGE HIM by Leaving Her there.

HAVING PLAYED A TEEN FOR SO MANY YEARS ON RiverrdaleHow Excited Were You To Play A Character in The map that leads to you that’s a bit closer to your actual age?

Not Only Just That, But I Feel Like I’M Really Just Playing A Version of MySelf. I mean every character is, but with my accent, her [Cline] and I Talked About [how] It Just Felt Like We Were Playing Closer Versions of Ourselves. It Felt Good. IT’s SO DIFFERENT TO Riverrdale. It’s Much More Set in Reality. IT’s Such A Different Kind of Work. I mean, it felt like a broth of Fresh Air. And i don’t’t’th itk was coincidental too that i got to work with lasse again, who i did my very, Very First Movie with. SO after RiverrdaleI Got to Re-Ent-Ent-Ent-World of Making Movies and Playing Characters That Are Closer to Who I Am, with The Guy Who Gave Me My First Opportunity. So that was awesome! IT ALSO MADE ME REMinded Me of How Different Riverrdale WAS, you KNOW, IT WAS SO DIFFERENT. Working on that show, we were in another whole universe, and it didn’t actually ever feel like and washa gonna get out of it. I Couldn’t Imagine a World Where i would Ever not be on that show, so to fasht-for being in the Middle of Riverrdale to Know that i was gonna shoot someting like this, i wouldn’t have been able to imagine it.

Since Riverrdale Was Such A Large Part of Your Life for So Many Years, WHEN YOU THINK BACK ON THAT TIME, WHAT DID YOU TAKE AWAY FROM IT THAT’S HELPED YOU IN YOUR CAREER TODAY?

I’m very aware that that show plays a huge part in me sitting WHERE I Am RIGHT NOW, AND BEING ABLE TO TALK WITH YOU ABOUT THIS MOVIE, HAVING The OPPORTUNITUNITU Hopefully for the REST OF MY LIFE. And i’m so grateful for it. I Think It’s Hard to See that Gratitude WHEN YOU’RE IN IT, AND THERE’S A LOT OF PEOPLE WHO HAVE ALSO BEEN BEEN THRUGH IT, YOU KNOW, POPLE LIKE LIKE LUKE Perry. And that people will change and that you will get out of this and life will be different. Thinking about that show, there’s so Many emotions that come up because i was was Really Figing Out Who and Was On that Show While Going Through Fame. You Know, Access to A Lot of Things That I Didn’T Have Access to, And Ten Having Opportunities That I OtherWise Wuldn’t Have Had. And Also Being A Part of Pop Culture that We’ll Never Be Able to Get Back to Because We CAPTURED CAPTING COMTHING THAT THAT IS ICONIC. So yeah, i’m so grateful for it and i love Riverrdale with all my heart and i love archie with all my heart. … And i hope that is a moment WHERE we can all revisit in somes, Shape or form what that waas.

How was the bework A FATHER A FEW YEARS Ago Changed Your Perspective on Life, As Well As Just Your Personal and Career Goals?

I CERTAINLY WASN’T EXPECTING TO BE A FATHER THIS YOUNG. We [Apa and Clara Berry] Were Not Trying To Have A Child, But It Became The MOST AMAZING THAT THAT EVER HAPPENED TO ME. It’s One of Those Things, Man, That I’ll Just Give to God Being A Lifesaver, You Know, My Son in A Lot of Ways Has Saved Me and Keeps Me Ground. In this Industry, and Any Industry, I Think As Humans We Want to Progress. I’m the kind of person that wants to be good at things, and i want to be the best at things, and in a way [fatherhood has] Made Me Slow Down. I Move Really Quick and I Feel Like It’s Really Great for Me Because It Forces me to Just Chill and Just Slow Down and to Just Have More Trust In The Fact That Ever. YTHING IS AS IT SHOULD BE. Being A FATHER IS The GREATEST. I MEAN, IT CAN BE HARD CONMETIMES FOR SURE, But IS GREAT.

Do you have a Dream Genre or role you hope to do in Future?

I Want to do it all. I Really Think that A Lot of Those Things Choose You, You Know. I’d love to work in comedy more. I don’t’th i’ve had the opportunity to Really Show that Side of myself. There’s this Director, Peter Berg, He’s One of My Favorite Directors. I’d love to work with Peter Berg. That’s good i’m actualally putting that out there is we’re manifesting. But I Wanna Be A Part of Projects That Inspire People. That’s Always Been My Goal. As i’ve Gotten Older and Had A Kid and Stuff, I Think I Wanna Be a Force of Good. I Wanna Tell Stories That Make People Feel Good. I Want to Leave People With Things That Make People Feel Good.

If you have to describe What makes kj apa, kj apa, what would you say?

My Family Makes Me Who and Am Because You Could Strip Everything Off Of Me – You Could Strip Work Off, Material Things Off, Dreams Off – and The only thing after everything has been taken away would be my family. That’s the only thing i can say with Full Certain woundy still be there: My Family and My Friends.