Mandy Moore Shares Memories of Her Time on Set with Macaulay Culkin
Mandy Moore, the 42-year-old actress known for her role in the hit TV series This Is Us, recently opened up about her experiences during the filming of the 2004 teen comedy Saved. The film, directed by Brian Dannelly, follows a group of teenagers at a Christian high school and features a cast that included notable names like Jena Malone, Patrick Fugit, and Eva Amurri.
During an appearance on Evan Ross Katz’s podcast Shut Up Evan, Moore revealed that she was introduced to her first cocktail by one of her co-stars. This co-star was none other than Macaulay Culkin, who played the role of the oldest member of the cast. At the time, Moore was 18 years old, while the drinking age in Vancouver, Canada, where the film was shot, was 19.
“I do remember a little bit of underage drinking,” Moore recalled. “As it happened, I was like, ‘Look, I didn’t go to high school.’ I was 18.”
Culkin, now 45, had a significant influence on the younger cast members. He introduced them to White Russians, a cocktail that quickly became a favorite among the group. Moore described her reaction: “I was like, ‘Milk and alcohol? This was made for me. I love this! This is like ice cream, this is fantastic!’”
Despite experimenting with alcohol while underage, Moore emphasized that the cast was a “sweet, innocent” group. She shared memories of playful antics, such as throwing giant marshmallows off a balcony. “We were kids! We weren’t really getting up to no good,” she said.
Saved followed Moore’s previous films, including the 2001 movie Princess Diaries and the 2002 film A Walk to Remember. She compared the experience of making these movies to a “summer camp” atmosphere. “The fact that I’d had so much fun doing both of those films, namely Princess Diaries, because it was with a lot of other young people – I was like, oh, this is like summer camp!” she said.
Moore described feeling like a “cool kid” during this time. “I was like, oh, I get to sit at the cool kids table with these young Hollywood kids that are making really cool choices, and they’re a part of really great films.”
She called the making of Saved a “crazy, crazy life-changing experience.” In the film, Moore played the supporting role of Hilary Faye, the best friend of the protagonist Mary (played by Jena Malone). The story revolves around Mary’s attempt to “save” her boyfriend from being gay, which ultimately leads to her becoming pregnant.
Moore praised the script and the character, saying, “I just loved the script and the character, and I thought it was really irreverent and funny, and also like, gonna move the needle.” She hoped the film would open up new opportunities for her, allowing audiences to see her in a different light.
Moore has since built a successful acting career, starring in the NBC drama This Is Us from 2016 to 2022. Her role as Rebecca Pearson earned her a Golden Globe nomination for Best Supporting Actress in 2017 and an Emmy nomination for Outstanding Lead Actress in 2019. The cast of This Is Us also took home a SAG Award for Outstanding Performance by an Ensemble in a Drama Series in 2018 and 2019.
