Abigail Pniowsky and Lucian-River Chauhan Preview New Apple TV+ Series ‘Me’ [Interview]

Apple TV+’s upcoming television series Me portrays the lives of two families merging through marriage, tackling the challenges that come with it.

On a deeper level, it delves into the unique family dynamics and the struggles Ben, a young middle schooler, endures as he manages his newfound powers of shapeshifting and keeping the secret alongside his new stepsister, Max.

I recently had the chance to speak with Lucian-River Chauhan (Avatar: The Last Airbender), who portrays Ben, and Abigail Pniowsky (Channel Zero), who portrays Max, about what drew them to the series, what it was like working alongside a cast consisting of mainly young actors, and what they took from their time on set.

Chauhan says that when he first read the script, he was immediately enthralled by the unique character development that writer and series creator Barry L. Levy explored.

“After reading the whole thing, I had to take a breath because I was too in it, and it was like a compelling book where you have to keep turning the page and turning the page to see what’s going on. You have to find out the mystery. That aspect really attracted me to the series.”

“Also, the relationship and the family dynamic between Max and Ben is really something special, and I’m glad I got a chance to portray that,” Chauhan continued.

Pniowsky says that the familial aspect at the forefront of the series drew her in instantly. Other determining factors were the suspense, mystery, and unexpected twists and turns, something she’s been able to portray in past projects.

“I agree with River. I think that it’s kind of like a book that you have to keep on reading. You can’t stop anywhere. I liked that it had a lot of intricate layers. I think that a lot of shows that are directed for everyone, as well as a younger audience, don’t usually have that. It was interesting to see how it was different from other shows like that, and I was really excited to make this happen.”

“It also dives deeper into family dynamics, with themes centered around being people and not just being in a thriller or horror show. It really talks about togetherness, family, becoming yourself, and lighthearted themes,” Pniowsky continued.

Being a show revolving around children, there aren’t many instances of extreme fighting or gore, but Chauhan spent a good amount of time working with crews to get it right for those few moments when things do get physical.

“In terms of the fight scenes and the stunt scenes, I think that was a little challenging,” Chauhan said. “But the crew and the cast made it so easy to learn and work with them. It was something that was new to me, and I’m lucky I got a chance to be a part of it.”

Compared to his time on other projects, like Avatar: The Last Airbender, Chauhan says this was one of the first opportunities to film with kids his age, and he enjoyed the dynamic on set.

“With Avatar: The Last Airbender, the VFX is incredible, and I think in that way, it’s pretty similar to this show. But you get to see more of the relationship. I know in Avatar, I didn’t have too much of a relationship with anybody my age. And so I get to explore a little bit of a sibling relationship with Abi[gail].”

Being one of the few characters that doesn’t dawn superpowers, Max is one of the people most prominently helping Ben learn to control his powers while simultaneously curbing his ego and keeping him in check.

In the event of a Season 2 renewal and Max somehow being bestowed with supernatural gifts, Pniowsky would like to see her be able to read minds or become invisible.

“I feel like she’s [Max] always kind of already reading people, so I think that mind reading [would] give another element to her character.”

As for the two in real life, Chauhan says he’d love to have the power of super speed like The Flash if given the opportunity.

“If you could just move super fast in order to stop time and get all the work done that you needed to do in the day, then unpause time, for example, and just play for the rest of the day, I think that would be really fun.”

Pniowsky, on the other hand, would take a more effortless approach. Telekinesis would be her power of choice “because even though [she’s] an active person, [she] can be really lazy.”

“Those moments where you just don’t want to get out of bed, like when I have to brush my teeth, I’d bring the toothbrush to me. That’d be really cool,” Pniowsky said.

As younger actors in the entertainment industry, the two learned quite a bit from their time on set. One of their main takeaways is that it’s okay to make mistakes and that it’s important to let people in so you aren’t trying to do everything on your own.

“As much as you try to be perfect all the time, it’s not going to happen. The perfect doesn’t exist. So, you have to learn from those mistakes and make sure that you can improve on them later on,” Chauhan said.

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Me premieres on July 12 on Apple TV+.

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