Haim fans lucky enough to see the group perform live in the pre-pandemic era know that Alana and her oldest sister, Este, are, hams. Between songs, the two compete to see who can make the audience laugh the most. “It was really just me and Este comedy hour,” she revealed, noting that it was the most “acting” experience she had ever had. Licorice pizza. “Paul really knows that, under pressure, I can try to make people laugh, and I think that’s what really made it possible for me to know how to act this part. He let me run free.” It was this level of mutual trust that gave Alana the confidence to not only explore a new medium but also take risks, including some completely improvised memorable lines. “I had a lot of ideas. A lot of them appeared in the movie, which is shocking. I mean, ‘What does your penis look like?’ was an improvisation,” she shared. Another memorable line, “You’re talking about the pinball machine, and I’m a politician,” was also an original by Alana Haim.
Alana’s on-screen presence is so comforting that many viewers will be shocked to learn that she did so little to prepare for the lead role. However, that’s not a sign that she has an innate work ethic. She explained: “I have been practicing guitar since I was 9 years old. “I put in 10,000 hours of work, playing guitar and playing shows. So I feel very comfortable in that sense.” But when it came to acting, which was completely new, Alana was actually encouraged by Anderson to take professional lessons. “Paul really just guided me through this. Every day, I would say, “You know, I’ve never done this before,” and he would say, “I know.” And then we would continue filming, but I kept asking if I would get fired,” she said.
