The daughters of two Hollywood icons prove they can hold their own in the wacky new comedy Yoga Hosers. We sat down with Harley Quinn Smith and Lily-Rose Depp to find out what it was like working with their famous dads.
Set in a small Canadian town, Yoga Hosers stars Harley Quinn Smith (director Kevin Smith’s daughter), and Lily-Rose Depp (Johnny Depp’s daughter) as teen besties, both named Colleen, who work the counter at the local convenience store called Eh to Zed. When their town is plagued by “Bratzies,” racist little sausage people, the Colleens use their supreme yoga training to vanquish evil.
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Depp, who is nearly the spitting image of her gorgeous French mother, actress and singer Vanessa Paradis, enjoyed getting to fight off bad guys using yoga. But she thinks the Colleens are more than positive role models for teen girls.
“They are role models for anyone, young boys and young girls. It’s cool to see two 15-year-old girls in a position of power. We save the world in the movie and it’s not to get the guy at the end. It’s 2016, so it’s gotten to the point where I don’t think we even need to talk about the fact that it’s women kicking ass. Women are f***ing badass,” said Depp.
Smith agreed. “So many women have risen to power, so it should just be a natural thing. But it’s still so talked about because it’s shocking to some people that women could have the same position as men in this industry, but thank God it’s changing.”
For Smith, getting to work with her father was a real bonding experience. “We got to connect with each other and it was eye-opening — it led to a totally new understanding of my dad. It’s crazy that we get to come here as a family and show our family project,” she said. Kevin Smith debuted his first film Clerks at Sundance 22 years ago.
Depp also enjoyed getting to act in scenes with her own father, who plays Guy Lapoint, an offbeat writer in heavy prosthetics with facial moles that seem to move around on his face from scene to scene. “I’ve grown up going to his sets and everything, so to be on one together and be collaborating, it was really fun,” she said.
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But Depp was surprised by the fast pace of the shoot. “When we shot with my dad, it was really, really quick. Kevin works really fast because he’s an editor, so he knows exactly what he needs. All of my dad’s scenes were shot in a week.”
While both Smith and Depp are beautiful and talented, they admitted they also have insecurities, just like other teenagers.
“In my experience,” said Smith, “I’ve realized that not everybody is going to like you. There’s good and bad to everything, but just realize that the bad is so minimal. Some people will think you’re the most beautiful person in the world and some may think you’re ugly. I’ve had people tell me I’m fat to my face. But what you are on the outside comes so secondhand to what you are on the inside. If you feel good about yourself on the inside, that you’re a good person, doing good for the world, it doesn’t matter what you look like on the outside. No one should be judging you on that anyway.”
Depp agreed. “Every single person in the world is going to have their off days and insecurities. I’m sure even Beyoncé has days where she doesn’t feel her best. I remember when I was little, looking up to these beautiful actresses and thinking they probably don’t have any insecurities, but they do.”
Social media, according to Depp, can often fuel insecurities. “People tend to feel isolated when they’re attacked by people on the Internet and think, ‘Oh, I’m the only person dealing with that insecurity.'”
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Smith agreed. “There are nasty people on the Internet that sit there all day and type away, because they’re hidden behind a virtual screen. We live in a world now where screens are such an important part of everyone’s life, and there are a lot of advantages to that, like Instagram, and that’s fun. But some people are going to type bad things about you. You have to realize that they don’t know you, you don’t know them. You should just carry on being your awesome self. Don’t let anyone’s negative, stupid opinions define you.”
Depp says it’s easy to forget that we all have control over what information gets to us. “If you’re getting too many negative comments on Instagram and it’s pissing you off, delete your Instagram account! You have control over what you surround yourself with. People feel they need to stay on social media to stay in the loop, but if it’s getting to you and making you feel insecure, just don’t be on it.”
Depp made headlines in August of 2015 by participating in a campaign for the Self Evident Truths Project. On Instagram, Depp stated that she was “sexually fluid,” but thinks some people misinterpreted her message.
“The reason I did that campaign was not to come out. A lot of people took that as me coming out, but it wasn’t at all. I did it to say the opposite, to say that you don’t have to label your sexuality. If one day I decide to do something different, I’m comfortable with that, with whomever I happen to like. I’m just saying to kids today: It’s becoming more acceptable not to label your sexuality, to not say I only like boys, or I only like girls. It’s something that’s so fluid and not set in stone. You might think you’re straight for 50 years and then decide that you’re gay, or vice-versa. It can change. It’s a spectrum, and everybody is somewhere on the spectrum. Like whoever you want to like and feel whatever you want to feel.”
In terms of the future, Smith said she looks forward to doing some writing. “I really admire people who act in their own stuff. I saw Amy Schumer’s movie Trainwreck, and that’s what I want to do.”
For Depp, she clearly wants to follow in her parents’ footsteps. “I’m having a really fun time acting right now, and I want to keep working hard. This is what I love to do.”
Yoga Hosers premiered at Sundance on Jan. 24.
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