When Sofia Barclay sent in a tape to audition for rom-com Love Again, she knew it was something special. At one point, she got notified that the director wanted to Skype with her, not knowing what the call was about. “They were quite taken with my tape, and it was enough for me to get into the film. So that’s how it all worked out!” the 34-year-old exclusively tells GRAZIA USA.
In the flick, which released on Friday, May 12, the brunette beauty plays Suzy Ray, who is Priyanka Chopra‘s (Mira Ray) little sister. Mira sends a series of romantic texts to her late fiancé’s cellphone, though she doesn’t realize it was reassigned to journalist Rob Burns (played by Sam Heughan). Rob becomes enthralled with Mira’s messages, and as he’s writing an article about Celine Dion, she helps him to meet Mira in person.
“When I spoke to the director, James C. Strouse, we talked about how much we adore Nora Ephron and Nancy Meyers‘ movies. We all love rom-coms, and they make us feel good,” she says.
Playing Suzy was also easy for Barclay since she has an older sister herself. “It came very naturally to me. My character tries to help guide Mira, who is going through something really tragic. It was a fun part and getting to play this part was really special,” she shares.
While Barclay didn’t have any scenes with Dion, she couldn’t help but gush over her time with Chopra. “I got the job after one tape and a Zoom call and suddenly I am in this movie, and it’s fabulous! I was a bit intimidated because Priyanka is super well-known, and she’s so gorgeous and everything. Before we started shooting, we did a read through of the whole script, so we met briefly, and she asked the director for my number and reached out and said, ‘Can we talk about playing sisters and how we can make that our own?'” she recalls. “She invited me over to her house. She’s like, ‘Come over and we’ll chat about this stuff.’ That really set the tone for the rest of the movie. I got to her house and she has this chef, but we sat on the carpet together and had our hummus and just chatted about what it would be like to play sisters. Those things were important to us.”
“She’s done so much and is unbelievably talented and experienced,” she adds. “I have much more of a theater background, and when I wasn’t getting my light, she would move be and be like, ‘Get your light like this.’ She taught me things and was very generous with her time. She also turns up to every single scene and tries to make it better. It was a dream experience to play her sister because she’s beyond sweet.”
Working with Chopra was a dream come true since she always looked up to her growing up. “She went from Bollywood to Hollywood, which is so cool. I always said I would love to meet her. It’s so delightful to meet someone who you respect and then realize is incredible in real life,” she gushes. “She’s a very genuine person.”
Chopra’s husband, Nick Jonas, even makes a small cameo in the film. “He’s hilarious,” she says. “He’s a total dream, and I think he’s a secret comedy genius.”
Overall, getting into the mindset of Suzy was never too challenging since she’s such a “fun character,” Barclay says. “It never felt like a reach. The only insecurity I had was that it’s a big American movie with a lot of big names in it. The thing I learned is that you don’t get a lot of rehearsal time compared to theater. You really have to take care of your own and create your own rehearsal time.”
“Everyone was amazing, and James was so supportive. He really let me improv if you wanted to. We also shot during COVID, so it felt really insular,” she says. “I am someone who will always turn on a rom-com when I need comfort or inspiration. I hope people feel that elevated experience when they watch it. I hope people walk away feeling a bit brighter, shinier and a bit happier.”
Barclay doesn’t only appear on the big and small screen, as she is also a writer and performs her own original sketches and stand-up. “Acting has always been such a love for me, and I think writing was something I always did for myself. It was sort of late in the game when I realized, ‘This is something I can do out in the world.’ I was in a period of time when I had a dry spell, and I realized, ‘I need to be creative otherwise I will go insane.’ So now I am writing a TV show with someone and a movie — both of them have already attracted developers. They’re fun,” she shares.
“But what’s beautiful I didn’t intend to start them off as commercial products,” she admits. “They were both there because I was writing what would make me happy and feel good. It’s now given me a sense of autonomy because I am now realizing that there’s such a power in being able to create your own stuff versus as an actor you have to wait for someone to make a decision for you. I am really grateful for it. I’m keen to keep going.”
Barclay started by doing stand-up, and she quickly realized she could write her own sketches. “I didn’t put two and two together and then it evolved naturally,” she notes, adding it still feels surreal that people are interested in her stories. “It’s reminding me that I used to do this when I was a little kid and validation can be quite good sometimes. It brings me closer to myself.”
As for what Barclay is working on now, she’s co-writing a TV show about sex positivity with Isla Van Tricht and working on her first feature film script: a divorce-comedy/spy-thriller titled Murder Squad. “There’s this job in the U.K. Foreign Office called the Murder Squad. If there’s a murder of a British citizen anywhere in the world, you get this number and call this person; they will help you figure out what to do. It’s really grim. I thought to myself, ‘Who is that person? Who has to deal with these strange things?'” she states of her idea. “That was always in the back of my head, and I was going through a breakup and divorce and was dissatisfied with the typical divorce storylines on TV. I thought, ‘I want to write something that explores that kind of breakup — not just exploring the typical good or bad guy.’ It merged and became about someone going through a divorce as well as being in the middle of a big thriller.”
Growing up, Barclay wanted to be a singer, but her mom actually pushed her into acting. When she went to all boys’ boarding school in London, they had a beautiful theater, where she was able to practice and try out different roles.
From there, her career blossomed, and she hopes to continue on the acting and writing route. “I have two writing projects I am working on, and I would love to see them come to life. I want to have that moment where I can see them in the world detached from me — that would be a real triumph moment for me,” she says. “In terms of acting, I want to keep working with amazing people. I’ve worked with some incredible people, and it makes the experience so much better. I want to work with people who challenge me so I can keep learning.”
Some people that come to Barclay’s mind include Stanley Tucci and Greta Gerwig. “There are so many!” she exclaims. “There’s also so many directors. More to come!”
Love Again is now out in theaters.
