Noah Beck, Host, and Baywatch Stars on Reminding Hollywood of Los Angeles' Filming Power, and TikTok Star's Acting: 'When You Wear That Red Swimsuit, There's a Big Responsibility'

Exclusive: According to the show's host, the rebooted Baywatch 'reminds the wider Hollywood community that filming in Los Angeles has many advantages.' Matt Nix claimed: 'We forget our own peril' that the TV and film business began in Hollywood, while debate continues over the number of shows changing production, although [...]

EXCLUSIVE: The Baywatch reboot "reminds the wider Hollywood community that shooting in Los Angeles has many advantages," according to the show's showrunner.

Matt Nix claimed that "we've forgotten at our peril" that the TV and movie business took off in Hollywood, as the debate over how many shows are changing production continues, although a new federal tax credit could help things along. Baywatch itself received $21.1 million (40%) in tax credits from the California Film Commission late last year.

"As much as Miami Vice shaped a generation's idea of Miami, Baywatch created a vision of Los Angeles and California," Nix says.

Nix said that filming in Los Angeles was "a big part of what drew me to this project." He added, “I was aware of the challenges of producing in Los Angeles, but I would like to remind the wider Hollywood community that there are also many benefits to filming here. People say it's impossible to shoot in Los Angeles, but it's not.

Nix added: "Shooting in Hollywood still has natural advantages." "Los Angeles is where the actors are. We can bring in great guest actors who might not even travel across the country for a day's work," he added. Another point is that the beach is the beach. Los Angeles has the same kind of essential place value.

Nix is a native Californian who spent the opportunity to photograph there. Things were different for Amell, who was born in Canada but vividly remembers walking into her seventh-grade class the day after CJ Parker's (Pamela Anderson) world-famous running sequence and "everyone talking about what they saw on TV the night before."

Amal thinks Baywatch's lasting impact can't be understated and says it's one of the main reasons I ended up moving to California after high school.

When you watched the show as a kid in Toronto in February, you wondered if this was a real place. Can you really go there and live? It created an aspirational vision of California, Amel added.

"David Hasselhoff's performance has endured for a quarter of a century and remains an indelible part of pop culture," Amell said.

To avoid pressure, Amell said that Nicks and producer Mike Horowitz "made it easy for me and said, 'This is a father-daughter show set against the backdrop of Baywatch.'

He approached the role by considering "three versions" of Hobby, "Captain Hobby", "Hobby off duty" and "Hobby as father", "a framework that allowed me to focus scene by scene, day by day on the work scene".

"When I saw the stuff we're introducing at MIPCOM, that was probably the first time I thought, 'Wow, it's Baywatch,'" Amell said.

"There's a great responsibility when you wear those red shorts."

During filming, she met her co-star Beck, whose journey on the show has been an unusual one.

Beck got into acting through TikTok, where he started working in earnest during the pandemic (he's also a former soccer player).

While Beck is too young to remember the original series, he said he "understands the morphology that goes with it."

"When you put on those red shorts, it's a big responsibility," he added. "It was almost like putting on superhero armor every morning."

Beck, who also lives in California, loved filming Baywatch and hopes the role will help open acting doors, stressing that her background in content production hardly gives her a natural advantage (Nix says she didn't realize Beck was a TikTok star when she cast him).

"I know my followers can get me into a room, but they don't keep me there," Beck added. I grew up playing sports and missed the camaraderie of a team. I found this in acting. It takes a village, and I consider it a privilege to be a part of such a large production. "I fell in love with acting by accident and I hope it continues."

Unfortunately, Beck and Nicks won't be able to make it to Cannes this year, but Amell, his co-star Brooks Nader, and the executives are out in full force.

Amal is positive about the future of the reboot, saying that thoughts are already turning to Season 2. "I focus on working step by step."

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