UncoveredAll the Behind-the-Scenes Secrets You Didn’t Know About ‘The Perfect Date’

The movie was inspired by a book.

It turns out, the new Netflix rom-com is actually inspired by a book! The 2016 novel was written by Steve Bloom and it’s called The Stand-In. And although the movie follows the same story line as the book, there are a few major differences.

For example, in the book, Brooks is determined to get into Columbia University instead of Yale. Not to mention that he plans on using the money he earns from his app to hire a tutor to help him with his audition process, rather than just use it for his tuition. Plus, in the book, he offers his services only to wealthy woman, rather than to everyone.

Zac Efron almost starred in the movie.

The writer of the book revealed back in 2016 when it first came out that he’d been working on it for almost 10 years. And get this — before Netflix decided to turn it into a movie, Warner Bros. considered it first. And they had a totally different cast in mind.

“Although a succession of fairly big name actors and directors – including Zac Efron, Shia LaBeouf and Garry Marshall — were attached to the script over the years, it never quite got over the hump and got made,” Steve told Masslive.

Say what?! Did he just say Zac Efron? Um, wow. How epic would that be?

The movie was originally called ‘The Stand In.’

You may be surprised to learn that the movie almost had a totally different name! Like the book, it was actually going to be called The Stand In at first. We’re not sure why they decided to call it The Perfect Date instead, but both sound good to us!

The movie was produced by the same guy who produced ‘To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before.’

It turns out, The Perfect Date was produced by the same guy who produced another one of our favorite Netflix movies — To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before! Yep, that’s right. His name is Matt Kaplan, and he’s clearly a legend.

Camila Mendes never auditioned for her role.

The producer revealed to Entertainment Tonight recently that the Riverdale actress didn’t have to audition for the role of Shelby. And that’s because they had her in mind from the beginning!

“Camila is obviously a talented actress. We needed someone who could hold her own with Laura, and they felt different but both have such strong qualities that she was the perfect casting,” he explained. “It was a wish list and Camila is a very busy person with Riverdale, so we had to work around schedules but when we were able to make it work, I think everybody — from Chris Nelson (the director), to myself, Noah and Laura — were really excited to have her.”

She’s seriously perfect for the role.

There’s a major ‘Austin & Ally’ Easter egg in the movie.

Fans already know that both Laura and Noah appeared in Austin & Ally together oh-so-many years ago. And you may not have noticed it but there’s a total tribute to the iconic Disney Channel show in the movie!

“One of the things we did on Austin & Ally was awkwardly dance together, which, not planned at all and very coincidental, we do in The Perfect Date. So, it was really fun kind of making that come alive again,” the actress gushed to Entertainment Tonight.

The cast even revealed that they watched a ton of episodes of the show during their breaks on set! How cute?

Laura Marano and Noah Centineo played a ton of pranks on set.

Although they worked pretty hard, Laura revealed she and Noah definitely made some time to have fun on set.

“We once snuck into our production office at 2 a.m. because we were convinced it was haunted,” the actress told Elle Magazine. “We’re also the worst pranksters, but we decided to pull a prank where we put a chair on top of a table and we were like, ‘Oh, they’re going to be so freaked out, they’re going to think it was a ghost.’ And then no one ever said anything. We were like, ‘Wow, we’re legitimately the worst pranksters… well done.'”

LOL. Nice try guys!

Laura Marano’s character was inspired by Jennifer Lawrence.

Laura revealed to Elle Magazine that she used the Hunger Games actress as inspiration while playing Celia.

“I watched a bunch of Jennifer Lawrence interviews and got into character by watching Jennifer Lawrence,” she said. “On the days that we were filming, I felt like it actually became quite easy for me to kind of step into her shoes and be her.”

Laura Marano has a new song in the movie.

If you listen carefully while watching the new flick, you may notice that Laura’s got an original song in the movie!

“After I did the movie, I wrote to a producer about a song my friend and I wrote called, “A Little Closer.” And the producers loved it, she told Channel 24. “I was so excited and incredibly thankful.”

“A Little Closer” is played during Celia and Brook’s epic fake breakup scene.

“It’s the first time I ever put out a body of work for my music,” she told In Studio. “It’s something I’ve always wanted to do. We’re in such an interesting time with film and television and with music, when it comes to consuming. In music, it’s a little bit more of a singles-based economy, but there’s something so special about having a body of work that’s cohesive and there’s a story there.”