Sofia Carson continues her collaborations with Netflix in Carry-On. The Fort Lauderdale native has been acting for over a decade, first getting mainstream exposure on Disney Channel programs like Austin & Ally and the Descendants franchise. Carson’s career skyrocketed in 2022 after she starred in Purple Hearts, a movie that ended up being Netflix’s third most-watched movie that year.
In Carry-On, Carson stars as Nora Parisi, an airport worker in a relationship with Taron Egerton’s Ethan Kopek, a TSA agent who works in the same airport. While she’s oblivious to the surrounding events, Nora’s life is threatened by a mysterious traveler (Jason Bateman) as he attempts to blackmail Ethan into sending a dangerous package through security and onto a departing flight on Christmas Eve.
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In celebration of Carry-On‘s streaming premiere on Netflix, ScreenRant spoke with Carson to test her airport security knowledge, analyze her character’s relationship with Egerton’s Ethan, and tease her next Netflix project, My Oxford Year, a feature film adaptation of Julia Whelan’s fan-favorite 2018 romantic comedy novel of the same name.
Sofia Carson Plays “Checked Bag Or Carry-On”
The Actress Tests Her TSA Knowledge
ScreenRant: I got a little game I invented just for this junket. It’s called a checked bag or carry-on. I’m going to give you three Christmas-specific items, you’re going to tell me whether they would end up in a checked bag or a carry-on.
Sofia Carson: Genius.
We’re going in with the first one: a glass Christmas tree ornament.
Sofia Carson: I am going to say carry-on and wrapped in a lot of tissue and paper. I’ll put it in my carry-on so I can control where it’s placed and such. It’s so delicate.
Awesome. There’s no right or wrong here, your discretion. Next: 4.1 ounces of eggnog. Carry-on or checked bag?
Sofia Carson: They wouldn’t be allowed in a carry-on, so checked bag.
That one did have a right or wrong, you got it right there. And finally, an already-wrapped Christmas present.
Sofia Carson: That depends. It depends on how big of a present it is. I’m going to go with my checked bag.
Carson’s Carry-On Character is “A Fighter”
“She’s kind of the hope and the heart of the movie…”
Let’s get specifically into this film. With your character of Nora, there are a couple of moments that I found were really insightful into who she is mentally. Right after a little bit of a fight with Ethan, she immediately entertains a young child. She’s caught on security camera leaving a room crying, clearly wanting to privatize those emotions and not let the public see, not let it impact her professional life. What do you think moments like that say about who Nora is?
Sofia Carson: She is a fighter. I think she kind of always keeps moving forward and doesn’t let life bring her down. And she’s kind of, I think, like the hope and the heart of the movie. And I love that you mentioned those moments. They’re really subtle moments, but they’re so insightful into who she is.
There’s a line of dialogue I wanted to dissect with you. You have a conversation with Ethan and he talks about getting the promotion within the airport and your immediate response is, ‘Okay, and would that make you happy?’ I would just love to know the power behind that line, what a line like that means coming from Nora, and what it says about her relationship with Ethan.
Sofia Carson: I think it says everything. That conversation was probably my favorite in terms of scene work that Taron and I got to do to really tell Ethan and Nora’s story. All she wants is for Ethan to be happy, not to be something that he’s not or do something that he doesn’t want to do with his life. All that’s important to her is his happiness, because that would make them as a family happy.
I think that’s so telling into who the kind of person that she is in her heart and what she wants for her partner. Because Ethan was thinking in his mind, ‘Let me get a promotion, let me make more money to make Nora happier and to be able to support our child.’ But Nora was like, ‘I got us covered. We don’t need more of that. I need you to be happy so you can be present in this relationship and you can be happy with your life and excited to live life again.’ And that’s such a beautiful thing and also really interesting dynamic as well for the two of them.
Carson’s Next Netflix Project, My Oxford Year, Arrives in 2025
“It was such an honor to bring that story to life…”
Carry-On is the latest chapter in your kind of career partnership with Netflix, if we can call it that. You’ve done a lot of great work with Netflix over the years. You got My Oxford Year coming out at some point soon. I know you shot that film over the past fall. Fan anticipation is going crazy for it. People love the book. I would love to know your experience on set and how it felt to bring that story to life.
Sofia Carson: Oh, it was such an honor to bring that story to life. I know it’s such a beloved book and I remember when we announced it, I was so overwhelmed by the response of so many people that were lovers of the book and so excited to see it brought to the screen. We had a beautiful experience.
I just finished shooting it about a month ago in London and in Oxford. My co-star Corey was just such an incredible partner in this experience. I was able to executive produce the film as well. It was beautiful. I haven’t seen it yet, but it all felt really special while we were making it. It’s heartbreaking and beautiful and also full of hope and light and life and I’m excited to be able to share it with the world next year.
More About Carry-On (2024)
A young TSA agent, Ethan Kopek (Taron Egerton), fights to outsmart a mysterious traveler (Jason Bateman) who blackmails him by threatening his girlfriend Nora (Sofia Carson) into letting a dangerous package slip onto a Christmas Eve flight. Carry-On is directed by Jaume Collet-Serra (Black Adam) and is written by TJ Fixman (Ratchet & Clank).
Check back soon for our other Carry-On interviews with:
- Taron Egerton
- Danielle Deadwyler
Carry-On
is now streaming on Netflix.
Source: ScreenRant Plus
5/10
Carry-On
Carry On is a film directed by Jaume Collet-Serra, focusing on a young TSA agent who is coerced by a mysterious traveler into allowing a dangerous package onto a Christmas Eve flight. As events unfold, he must use his wits to resolve the perilous situation.
- Release Date
- December 13, 2024
- Runtime
- 119 Minutes
- Cast
- Taron Egerton , Jason Bateman , Sofia Carson , Danielle Deadwyler , Tonatiuh , Theo Rossi , Logan Marshall-Green , Dean Norris , Sinqua Walls , Curtiss Cook , Joe Williamson , Gil Perez-Abraham , Josh Brener , Benito Martinez , Edwin Kho , Reisha Reynolds , Adam Stephenson , Michael Scott , Jeff Pope , Raymond Rehage
- Character(s)
- Ethan Kopek , Traveler , Nora Parisi , Elena Cole , Mateo Flores , Watcher , Agent Alcott , Phil Sarkowski , Jason Noble , Lionel Williams , Ron Dunn , Eddie , Herschel , Security Director Marm Bellows , Lance , Nina , Jesse , Samir , Olek , Yuri
- Director
- Jaume Collet-Serra
- Writers
- Michael Green , T.J. Fixman
