Following the premiere of the Netflix film You People starring Lauren London, Jonah Hill, Nia Long and Eddie Murphy, London opened up about her Jewish heritage, filming in Los Angeles and motherhood in an interview with PEOPLE Everyday podcast.
London stars as Amira Mohammed in the romantic-comedy centered around two cultures coming together for the sake of love. Jonah Hill plays London’s fiancé, who has a hard time being accepted into her Muslim family, as she has the same experience with his Jewish parents. What now makes the film seem even more personal, is that London has Jewish roots in real life.
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(L to R) Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Shelley, David Duchovny as Arnold, Lauren London as Amira, Nia Long as Fatima, Eddie Murphy as Akbar and Jonah Hill (Writer-Producer) as Ezra in You People.
Tyler Adams/Netflix © 2023.
“My dad is Jewish, my mom is Black,” London revealed to the podcast about her background. “I just grew up with my mother in my household. I didn’t grow up with my dad living with us. My parents divorced when I was really young. I was three, so my experience is of my mother’s experience, because I just grew up with a single black mom.”
Directed by Kenya Barris, the film is full of Los Angeles scenery, fashion and music — which is all too familiar to the Hollywood star. The movie even pays homage to the late Nipsey Hussle — London’s long time partner — with his music and Marathon clothing store.
“What felt personal was shooting in L.A.,” the 38-year-old shared. “And some of those areas that we shot in and some of the places that we shot in … I liked that they were Jewish, ’cause it was also some stuff that I got to learn via being in the movie that I didn’t know.”
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You People. (L to R) Jonah Hill (Writer-Producer) as Ezra, Julia Louis-Dreyfus as Shelley, Lauren London as Amira and Eddie Murphy as Akbar in You People.
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Cr. Parrish Lewis/Netflix © 2023.
Speaking to working with the incomparable Eddie Murphy and Nia Long as her film-parents, she described the experience: “It was really a masterclass watching Eddie and Julia and David and Nia and even Jonah. Jonah’s an improv master and so was Eddie.”
Describing the production of You People as “fun,” she added: “It was a lot of laughter, Eddie and Julia talking about their SNL days, and I’m asking Nia about Boys in the Hood because I grew up watching that stuff. Those are my favorite days. It was cool.”
Aside from getting back into the groove of acting, the ATL lead is a dedicated mom to two boys; Kameron, 13 and Kross, 6.
Speaking on motherhood, London told the podcast: “I’m a single mom, so I want to be very realistic with them. Life is tough. I don’t wanna cushion everything for them. I want them to be prepared for life. I think I’m a balance because sometimes I think I may be going too soft, but I have times where I’m like, ‘Hey, hey, hey, y’all, come on now. Let’s get this together.’ I think I’m an old-school mother.”
She added, “My kids are healthy, they are happy, and I am healthy. I’m here. I have an opportunity to make it a good day. And so I would have to say that every day. My intention is to make the best out of what I have. I don’t wanna ask God for too much.”
Take a listen to the full podcast episode with Lauren London and PEOPLE Everyday below.
