On a chilly December afternoon, Nico Parker pops into Milk Beach, an Australian restaurant on an industrial alley in northwest London. As she takes off her coat to reveal her “Reading Is Sexy” shirt, she enthusiastically tells us that she grew up here near a cozy café. “I mean, I’m not really mad about it,” she jokes. “There’s a very strong sense of community.”
Parker is a typical Gen Z 18 year old. She’s obsessed with Phoebe her Bridgers (singer her song her writer sad girl anthem was a staple of her 2022 Spotify Wrapped). real I.D. (“I’ve never had a fake”), and she turns to astrology charts for guidance (musician Lucy Dacus once told her she had the “most interesting big 3” signs ). “She knows very well how young 18 is,” says Parker. “But it scares me too, because it feels like it means you’re an adult.”
As we grow older, we have more work for adults.Most people will recognize her from her feature debut in Tim Burton’s 2019 live-action remake dumboParker plays an important role this year Last of UsHBO’s adaptation of the blockbuster video game that defined a generation.
Zombies have long dominated the pop culture space, Last of Us — a narrative that examines the grief wounds left unhealed thanks to the horrific apocalypse, and prioritizes narrative as much as it does gameplay — better than most. She plays Sarah, Joel’s daughter. Those familiar with her opening in the game’s devastating cold will know that her character casts a huge shadow over the story as a whole. We met them during the Bush years and Sarah went to school in what could be recognized as Texas right after 9/11, with the American flag hoisted high. The concept of freedom is loudly discussed in the classroom. However, a strange virus soon begins to infect the community and chaos ensues.
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Photo: Olivia Rifangula
The father-daughter bond between Sarah and Joel is the basis for the paternal responsibility Joel feels towards his future partner Ellie, played by Vera Ramsay. Forging a family relationship with Pascal was a natural fit for Parker. “I didn’t feel like I really needed to do anything other than chatting and spending time together,” she said, sipping a cup of tea for warmth. “But even then, it didn’t feel like work.” Parker has a catch-up session with Pascal via FaceTime every few weeks, so the friendship continues after filming. He’s really one of my best friends.”
Expectations for live-action adaptations of video games have never been higher. “There was some tension knowing that this was something people would see and resonate with right away,” Parker admits.. When the posters for the series were unveiled, the reaction from the game’s die-hard fan base was generally positive. However, Sarah, the character played by Parker, was originally written as white, and casting a biracial black woman in the role of the series caused a racist backlash on internet message boards. “There are people who are incredibly attached to the game and want it to be as accurate as possible in their portrayal of the TV show,” Parker says. If that’s your opinion, I never really appeal to you so I don’t give it much thought. , Hispanic people, etc., I don’t give those opinions much value.”
Nonetheless, viewers must have been impressed — HBO reported 4.7 million viewers tuned in to the series premiere on Jan. 15, and critics said the weekly airing We continue to admire the live-action renderings of the beloved game.
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Photo: Olivia Rifangula
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Despite her entertainment powerhouse parents — actress Thandiwe Newton and director Ol Parker — acting wasn’t always top priority for Parker. She clearly remembers being escorted off a movie set with her older sister. retreat, a British horror film starring Newton, Cillian Murphy, and Jamie Bell that distracted his mother with a particularly gruesome death scene. she laughs “Her scars were already drawn on her head, but we were so small that neither of us understood why. We thought she looked stupid.
On getting inspiration from her director father, she said Mamma Mia!here we go again In Croatia, she learned how to rig lights on top of cranes and scoured call sheets to time Meryl Streep and Colin Firth to visit when needed. Known for directing comedies, would she ever star in it herself? how to lose a man in 10 days“Romantic comedies are just joy in cinema.”
Nepotism is an inevitable topic when talking to the children of two Hollywood parents.The last few months have been hotly debated online as descendants of famous families from Lily-Rose Depp to Zoe Kravitz have each denied and defended the benefits of their privilege. Throughout our conversation, Parker speaks candidly about being Newton and Parker’s daughter, and the shortcuts such a position afforded her. Last of UsFor example, creator Craig Mazin asked his father his height in a DM.
Parker is well aware of the “nepo baby” debate, feeling he may be “minimizing” how much he tries to stay within the industry after stepping into it. “But I think it’s very important for your parents to realize that it’s a lot easier to get into the room now that they’re trending in the industry.” “It’s so important to know how many people dream of being in that room and how lucky they are to be there…especially when you’re starting out.” Your parents know people, and you’ve known people since you were little and they want to give you a chance because they like you. It’s a reflection.”
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Photo: Olivia Rifangula
Parker’s next project will be sun coastStarring Woody Harrelson and Laura Linney. Marking her first lead role, she says filming Laura Chin’s coming-of-age drama in South Carolina last fall was “the dream part”. I was doing it,” she recalls. “My brother’s scream at play fortnite Downstairs was more miss than I thought.
By the end of our time together, the teapot is empty and the sky darkens before 4pm, a typical British winter. Parker heads for a fitting with Rebecca Corbin Murray. (“So simple but effortless”), there’s Camille Rowe. “She knows how to dress herself—I’m slowly but surely trying to figure it out,” adds Parker.
For young performers now, fame is a paradoxically familiar but distant concept.Of course, she’s witnessed how it affects her parents’ lives, but it’s still “alien” to her. Last of Us It was going to be huge, but it didn’t hit her until filming was over. Last of Us logo. “Are you involved?” he asked anxiously. Parker panicked and denied it. “I was too stressed to admit it!” she says. It remains to be seen if awkward run-ins with video game fanatics will be more frequent, but she’s okay with what the future holds. It’s possible that I’ll be able to relax alone around Sainsbury’s,” she says. “That’s all you really want.”
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