Hunter King Tells All on 'Hidden Gems,' Filming in Hawaii, & The Surprise Visitor on Set (Exclusive Interview)

Hunter King‘s new Hallmark Channel movie Hidden Gems is airing this weekend and we caught up with her to learn all about what went into making the rom-com.

Hidden Gems is kicking off Hallmark’s “Summer Nights” series for June 2022 and you can catch it on Saturday night (June 4) at 8/7c.

The film follows Addie (King), who loses her grandmother’s ring in the waters of Hawaii while prepping for her sister’s wedding. She hires sailor Jack (Beau Mirchoff) to scuba dive with her to find it and rediscovers her love of the sea.

Hunter filmed the movie on location in Hawaii and she told us about the most memorable parts of filming there, the A-List celeb who visited the set, and how the sister relationship in the movie mirrors her relationship with sisters Kelli and Joey King.

Click inside to read our full interview with Hunter King…

Check out our interview below!

Just Jared: What was the most memorable part of being in Hawaii to film Hidden Gems?

Hunter King: Getting to film in Hawaii was hands down one of the coolest experiences I’ve had. My second day there I was driving to a wardrobe fitting and I missed my freeway exit and suddenly there wouldn’t be an exit for 11 miles. So for 11 miles I was driving through the mountains surrounded by jungle and I just started laughing. It didn’t even feel real! I’ve never been lost in a more beautiful place and I was just feeling so grateful and giddy to be lucky enough to be where I was. But having family and my best friends come visit me was definitely a major highlight for me.

JJ: The movie follows your character going to Hawaii for her sister’s wedding. How does your real-life relationship with your sisters differ or relate to the relationship between the characters?

HK: I’m extremely close with both of my sisters, so it comes as no surprise that one of the things I loved so much about this story is the relationship that Addie and her sister Kate have. It reminds me so much of the relationship I have with my sisters cause we really are the best of friends. As soon as I met Eliza who plays Kate, I felt an instant bond with her. She’s actually become one of my best friends and is kinda like another real life older sister to me. Art imitating life!

JJ: What was the funniest moment that happened while filming?

HK: On our first day of filming, a group of us had to film a car montage in an old Jeep that was a stick shift. Our leading man, Beau, was tasked with being the driver but it had been a minute since he’d dusted off his stick shift skills. The Jeep wasn’t super kind to him and we kept getting trapped between 1st and 2nd gear – it would stall out every 2 minutes and shake so violently that we all had to grip onto the seats and by the time we were done filming we were all in tears from laughing so hard – poor Beau did his best but he’ll never live that day down.

JJ: Tell us one unexpected thing you learned about co-star Beau Mirchoff while working with him.

HK: About a week into filming I gave Beau the nickname Beau-tato chip…So I’m really hoping that’ll stick. But besides his new name, I think people would be surprised to know that Beau is actually scuba certified!

JJ: We heard there was a special guest on set during filming. Tell us more!

HK: So Beau and I were in the middle of filming a scene where our characters had just gotten done with a dive. We had our wet suits halfway pulled down with our swimsuits underneath so Beau jokingly grabbed some of the air tanks from the scuba gear and started curling them to get a bicep “pump”. Next thing we know Beau spots Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson watching us from the beach! Eventually he came over to say hello and told Beau he saw him using the scuba gear to get a pump and he was “taking notes”. It was so funny and such a surprise to see him watching us on set.

JJ: If your fans want to visit Hawaii, what would you recommend they do based on everything you experienced during your time there?

HK: Hawaii is such a beautiful place. I still can’t get over that I was lucky enough to film there. If anyone wants to visit Hawaii I would definitely recommend spending a day at the North Shore. There’s so much to do there between going to the beach and watching all the surfers to visiting the cute little shops and having shaved ice (that’s a must). There’s also this cute little outdoor cafe near by called Farm To Barn that has the BEST bagels. Not to mention all the hikes that Oahu has to offer. Can’t go wrong with any of them!
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Watch Hidden Gems on Hallmark Channel on Saturday (June 4) at 8/7c.