Lana Condor is opening up about her adoption story in a really big way. The beloved leading lady of To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before stole our hearts in Netflix’s hit teen rom-com, making us feel all the feels with her on-screen love interest Peter Kavinsky (AKA Noah Centineo). But it’s not just the romance that really connected with the audience – the characters went through serious family issues too. And Lana can relate.

There’s a part of the movie when Lara Jean is opening up with her father about her mother, who passed away. She later talks to Peter about losing her mom, and he shares with her that his father left and started a new family during a very real kitchen convo. Speaking to Elle, Lana shares that the diner scene between LJ and her dad really made her reflect on her own family. You see, the actress was adopted. And talking about Lara Jean’s mom made her think about her birth mother, who she never met.

The 21-year-old actress added, “The scene with my dad in the diner when he takes me out and talks to me about my mom—I could relate to that. I honestly felt like I was talking to my real dad. When I first read the scene with John [Corbett], I got really emotional because I did think of my birth mother, and not knowing who she is and where she is and what she’s doing and if she’s alive. That triggered me more than I thought it would.”

She also relates to Lara Jean because she too comes from a family made up of different backgrounds.

“I did relate to Lara Jean’s character, because she’s from a biracial family. I never considered it, but I’m from a biracial family because my parents are white and my brother and I are both Asian,” she said.

Lana went on to explain that during the emotional scene, she wasn’t expecting her real-life family story to come into her mind the way it did.

“I toned it down in the scene, but it snuck up on me. I for sure was able to use those emotions in that scene where I was talking to John. It’s funny because I don’t think about my birth mother a lot because I never knew her. Those moments are when you’re accidentally forced to bring your real life onto camera,” she continued.

She gave a truly beautiful performance in that scene and that’s something to be proud of.

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