top + trousers. Cecilie Bahnsen
sculpted hoop earrings. Christina Caruso
A peek at Geraldine Viswanathan’s filmography reveals the kind of range that many actors could only dream of. 2025 alone has seen her grace the screen in a Sundance breakout Sophie Zucker’s whip-smart rom-com ‘Oh, Hi!’, as well as a much-anticipated studio blockbuster, Marvel’s ‘Thunderbolts*’, both of which garnered rave reviews from critics and audiences.
The leap from intimate indie fare to a large-scale action thriller feels entirely fitting for an actor who has built her career on intriguing, genre-defying projects. From her starring role in 2024’s road-trip comedy ‘Drive-Away Dolls’ to her part in the surreal anthology series Miracle Workers, Viswanathan has consistently delivered performances that are both sharp and irreverent, showcasing impeccable comedic timing and plenty of charm.
In ‘Oh, Hi!,’ Viswanathan stars alongside her longtime friend Molly Gordon, and their real-life friendship brings a warm, lived-in chemistry to a very offbeat rom-com. When Gordon’s character Iris faces an unexpected twist in a romantic getaway with Isaac (Logan Lerman), she quickly summons her best friend Max (Viswanathan) for help, resulting in unhinged plans and plenty of chaos.
‘Oh, Hi!’s’ tight-knit cast, which also includes John Reynolds as Max’s boyfriend Kenny, spent a month in upstate New York during the making of the film, which takes place almost entirely in an idyllic countryside home. “It was really cool for me to see Molly grow so much as an artist and take on these new roles,” Viswanathan says of her friend, with whom she previously starred in the rom-com ‘The Broken Hearts Gallery.’ “And Sophie, who’s a dear friend as well, just watching her make her dream come true. It’s so hard to get a movie made, and to get to watch her do it and to be a part of it was really cool.”
Viswanathan spoke to Schön! about making ‘Oh, Hi!’, jumping from indie comedies to the MCU, and her ambitions behind the camera.
From its Sundance premiere to its theatrical release, what has it been like seeing the reception to ‘Oh, Hi!’?
It’s been so wonderful. It’s been through and through such a delightful process. We were all friends, and we just went up to this house upstate. I’ve loved the script for years, and I’ve been attached for years. It was exciting when it all came together very quickly, and they brought in Logan, who’s such a dreamboat.
Then to go to Sundance with it and have this theatrical release feels really charmed, and it’s definitely not lost on me how cool it is to get to celebrate the movie and experience people receiving it. Especially in the rom-com—with an emphasis on the “com”—space, and after COVID and the wringer that Hollywood has been through, it’s really nice to have something that feels like we’ve gotten to fully enjoy it. I love that people are responding to it.
romper. AKNVAS
sandals. AQUAZZURA
earrings. PATOU
opposite
dress. Giambattista Valli
top + trousers. PRABAL GURUNG
mules. AQUAZZURA
earrings. Alexis Bittar
And being attached to the script for years, was it just you and Molly Gordon for a while?
Molly and Sophie wrote it during COVID, and that’s when Molly and I became really close. She sent it to me and was like, “I’d love for you to play this part.” They were writing the Kenny role with John Reynolds in mind, and we’re all big John Reynolds fans. It was the three of us for a long time.
The missing link was really that male lead part, because it needed to be somebody that people would be excited to see in a movie, and is also willing to be tied up to a bed and be emasculated a little bit in that sense. It was quite jarring as Molly and I were talking about potential people and going through the list of male actors who could really push the movie over the edge in terms of getting it made, and also just crush that role. It’s a really fun part, but also a challenging part. A lot of people were just not into that.
I feel like it makes Logan [Lerman] just that much more special, for being game to be tied up to a bed for this very female movie: female director, female writers. He’s a king for that.
tule dress. AKNVAS
shoes. AQUAZZURA
flower earrings. Alexis Bittar
opposite
romper. AKNVAS
Did you and the rest of the cast improvise on set?
Absolutely. From the get-go, I think Molly and I have a friendship where we are kind of creative soul sisters, and it’s a very special relationship in this industry. I think we wanted to capture that as much as we could. It’s probably the most myself I’ve been in a role. We landed on me getting to be Australian, which was exciting and added to the stakes of the film, with [my character] getting possibly deported.
I am kind of a witchy-ass bitch. We’ve gone to Joshua Tree and done mushrooms and rituals and all kinds of things. I’m like, “Molly, have you meditated today?” We wanted to infuse that as much as possible in the movie, which meant that it was a really free and natural work environment, which was really refreshing. I filmed ‘Oh, Hi!’ right after I did ‘Thunderbolts’. It was really like night and day. We were never stressed about locations, so we really were free to improvise or bring ideas or move around. It was mostly one camera, so it was very fluid.
What was it like pivoting from a massive blockbuster to an indie film within such a short period of time?
It was funny. I guess that’s more my roots, the indie comedy space. It felt like a homecoming, and it was so different. ‘Thunderbolts’ was the most incredible trailer I’ve ever seen in my life, and then, on ‘Oh, Hi!’, we did not have trailers. We were all in a barn together in between takes. That was our green room. It really lent itself to the creative process, and that story, where it really was like we were just friends making something, and we were always in it. Versus, something on such a scale like ‘Thunderbolts’, where it’s so massive and you do need that time in your trailer to get ready for these major scenes that you’re a minor but important part of.
top + trousers. PRABAL GURUNG
mules. AQUAZZURA
earrings. Alexis Bittar
opposite
top. Huishan Zhang
Do you have a favourite memory from the Oh, Hi! set?
We were really into the Sabrina Carpenter album. When I think of that time, that is the sound that I’m hearing. “Bed Chem” was constantly playing. I think we drove Logan and John insane because we just could not get enough, and we were making a thousand TikToks. They were just like, “What is happening?” It was really quaint; we ordered from the same sandwich place every day and would go to the farmer’s market on the weekend, pet goats and have donuts. It was just a really beautiful summer with this group project in between. We laughed so much.
Do you have any plans to write and direct your own work in the future?
For sure, yeah. That’s what I’m working on, and it’s exciting. I think we all have this capacity for so much more. There’s no better experience than being on set, and you have a great vantage point as an actor, but it’s always been my plan to branch out as much as possible and keep creatively pushing myself and seeing what I’m capable of. I think you just keep trying new things and learning. I’m a Gemini, and I get bored very easily. So keep it moving!
dress + heels. Giambattista Valli
crystal + starburts stud earrings. Nicole Romano
photography. Julia Sariy
fashion. Tatiana Cinquino
talent. Geraldine Viswanathan
casting. Emma Fleming
hair. Lacy Redway
make up. Mia Jones @ The Wall Group using Ilia Beauty
video. Kevin Kim
photography assistant. Lindsey Cosgrove
studio. Loupe Studios
interview. Juliana Ogarrio
