Netflix’s comedy-drama Ginny and Georgia has kept its fans on a wild ride, chasing after the Millers and all of their endless antics. However, a standout aspect of the show is the careful handling of its supporting characters, making them just as complex and layered as the titular ones.
Playing the angsty high school teenager Matt Press is actor Damian Romeo. Romeo has been acting for years prior to his Netflix debut in Ginny and Georgia. In 2020, he starred in the television series The Expanse and the independent movie Cult of Nightmares.
In addition to his life on the screen, he is an avid traveler and speaks candidly about his experiences traveling around the world. Romeo expressed in our exclusive interview, “I ended up traveling over 35 countries— solo backpacking through 35 countries.
“The unique thing that travel gifts you is that, when you’ve seen as much as I’ve seen, you start to realize that human beings are kind of all the same. No matter what country we’re from or what else defines us. Our core beliefs are all the same. Like our needs and our wants. We all want to be happy, we all want a healthy family, we all want to feel loved. This is what’s at the core of every human being.”
The actor shares his travels passionately across his social media accounts, encouraging his followers to engage in conscious traveling — truly inserting themselves into the communities they travel to, and learning about the different cultures and customs around the world.
Damian Romeo was generous enough to take time out of his busy schedule to chat with Monsters and Critics about the creation of his Ginny and Georgia character Matt Press and some important lessons that he’s learned through his worldly adventures.
About Matt Press
Romeo joined us over video chat and shared that he is currently resting while he rides out the strict Covid-19 lockdown in Ontario, Canada.
He told us that the last thing he’s watched was the movie Promising Young Woman, and other than that, he hasn’t done much binge-watching this quarantine. Although being a Marvel fan, he has yet to see WandaVision or The Falcon and the Winter Soldier and he avoids Twitter for that reason.
Unlike his character Matt, Romeo is very warm and welcoming to speak with, and he gave us some great insight into the background work he did to portray his character.
Matt was a very specific character; he didn’t have many lines throughout Ginny and Georgia, and he was one of the few characters in Ginny’s life that didn’t have a noteworthy backstory to explain his motives. But Romeo didn’t let that keep him away from diving into his character’s psyche.
He placed his full trust in the work of Ginny and Georgia’s showrunner Sarah Lampert. Sharing with us his Matt Press playlist, Romeo cited that he threw it back to the early-2000s, listening to a lot of “My Chemical Romance and Good Charlotte” to help prepare for character. He would get so excited to get back into his groove that he would be one of the firsts on set, despite having a later call time.
When we asked if there’s anywhere specific he’d like to see his character go next in the now-confirmed Ginny and Georgia Season 2, he expressed, “I’m happy for the character to go where the showrunner sees fit.”
Cracking a smile, Romeo shared the friendly cast dynamics during filming and the close bond he was able to form with his castmates as they played video games (“Mario Kart— but not Mario Party because the levels take too long”) before and between rehearsals and takes.
About his time spent traveling
Our conversation diverted into Romeo’s “public life,” where he avidly shares images and anecdotes about his travels. He offers such a unique perspective on the subject, one that breaks the mold surrounding traditional influencer travel guides, and he regularly encourages fans to take the jump and explore beyond “all-inclusive resorts.”
Ending the conversation, we spoke a bit about Romeo’s experience with fame. One of the last notes he shared was, “I’ve been acting since I was very young, and it wasn’t until G&G where I just got this huge amount of following and it’s really strange. I haven’t changed, I’m still the same guy, But the world around me has changed. The way people see me has changed.”
“And it’s just — it’s such a unique feeling.”
Check out our conversation about traveling and Romeo’s transition to fame below.
Ginny and Georgia is currently streaming on Netflix and was just renewed for a second season.
He’s so hot and tall