"Sometimes you gotta fake it till you make it," she tells PEOPLE while promoting the new rom-com costarring Regé-Jean Page
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NEED TO KNOW
- Halle Bailey’s real-life experiences influenced her You, Me & Tuscany character
- The 26-year-old plays Anna, a cook squatting in an abandoned villa, in the rom-com alongside Regé-Jean Page
- She described both herself and Anna as “young women trying to figure out life.”
Halle Bailey's own experiences influenced the character she plays in You, Me & Tuscany.
The new rom-com, which debuts in theaters on Friday, April 10, stars Bailey as Anna, a free-spirited cook who's squatting in an abandoned Tuscan villa opposite Regé-Jean Page's Michael, the homeowner's cousin.
With family being an important theme throughout the film, PEOPLE asked Bailey, 26, how she brought her life to the part while attending the movie's premiere at the Lincoln Center's Rose Theater in New York City on Wednesday, April 8. "I think it's all about just using your real life experiences to influence the character and connecting with the character," she explains, adding that she feels similarities between herself and her character as "young women trying to figure out life."
Credit: Giulia Parmigiani/Universal Pictures
"Sometimes you gotta fake it till you make it, but you get through it, and you get back up. And I love that about Anna, and I hope that people love that about her too when they go watch the film," says Bailey, who recently opened up about how her "village" helps her out as a working single mom to son Halo, 2.
On Wednesday, Bailey also shared that she learned a lot of cooking skills — particularly with regard to chopping — while out filming on location along Italy's Amalfi Coast.
She had kind words to say about her co-star Page, 38, too. "He's a cool guy and he likes to run in the mornings," she gushes. "He likes to work out."
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Credit: Giulia Parmigiani/Universal Pictures
PEOPLE previously spoke to the pair at a special screening of You, Me & Tuscany earlier in April, when they discussed how they first met at the 2025 Met Gala shortly after the film was announced.
Page recalled looking across the room and seeing Bailey "shining" in "the most glamorous diamond-studded outfit" and described the event as a great opportunity for them to meet. "It's a pretty magical meet-cute. You can't ask for much more than [that]," he said.
Back in November, Bailey told PEOPLE that she was "very intrigued by Anna's storyline" and her "vision and passion that she has and the wants and goals for herself."
Page added, "It's getting to hang out in this aspirational world with Halle Bailey and just live through being in love in this removed environment where you get to go discover yourself away from your everyday life. And the moment you meet [Bailey], you want nothing but good things for her, so there is no better vessel for that journey."
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