Madelyn Cline & KJ Apa Didn’t Have Instant Connection Before 'Map That Leads to You' (Exclusive)

“Extra” chatted with Madelyn Cline and KJ Apa about their new romantic drama “The Map That Leads to You,” which is based on the novel of the same name by J.P. Monninger. 

Madelyn plays Heather, who is on a trip to Europe with her friends when she meets K.J.’s character Jack, and sparks fly.

KJ recalled what he was going through when he got the script, saying, “When I got the script about two years ago… I was kind of dealing with some stuff in my own life and I loved reading the script because I felt like it was exactly what my soul needed,  and I felt like there was a lot I could learn from Jack as a character in terms of the way that he sees the world because of what he's dealing with and all his philosophies and stuff like that.”

KJ added, “And it's amazing when you shoot a romance movie, you get to fall in love with somebody, you know, we got to kind of in a way fall in love with our characters, with each other, and it's always beautiful. I love romantic movies.”

Cline said she was “moved” by the script, adding, “There's always a lesson to be taught. There's always, especially when you approach things with love and empathy, there's something to always learn.”

He and Madelyn also dished on their chemistry, admitting they didn’t have an instant connection at all! 

KJ said, “No. No. No. There was definitely not an instant connection. And I mean that in all seriousness because when I first met her, I thought she was a…”

Madelyn finished his sentence, “B*tch,” saying with a smile, “And I take great pride in that.”

Apa went on, “But then we got to know each other, and I think the chemistry that you see in the movie is really the chemistry that we have in real life,” but “Way more focused.”

He told her, “You're one of the most amazing people I've ever worked with. And I mean that genuinely. You're very easy to work with and you really care about what you do, and you care about the crew, and it says a lot about who you are.”

Plus, Madelyn spoke about filming the fifth and final season of “Outer Banks.”

She said, “It has been the greater part of my twenties, and it has been the most wonderful, most revealing, most joyous also one of the most painful experiences.”

Cline continued, “It's been the highest of highs and the lowest of lows and I'm really, really grateful for all of it and I'm going to miss it dearly, but I think we're all — and I think I speak for the cast when I say this — I think we're all really, really excited to see where this leads to, and we're all going to hold it so close.”

She added of shooting the final season, “We're treating it like it's special because it is.”