Kate Hudson salutes Neil Diamond at ‘Son Saint Bleu’ AFI Premiere

Neil Diamond didn’t go to Hollywood for the world premiere of “Song San Bleu,” a movie about a Milwaukee couple who formed a tribute band to the “Sweet Caroline” singer in the ’90s, but he did appear on the red carpet via FaceTime. Diamond’s wife Katie Diamond called the 84-year-old music legend to chat with the film’s stars Kate Hudson and Hugh Jackman, as well as director Craig Brewer, before the film’s premiere at Hollywood’s TCL Chinese Theater on Sunday night.

“What an honor! Getting to know Neil and Katie has been really special to me. I wish he was here,” Hudson told Variety after the call. “That’s why we make movies. We have a connection with the artists and we kind of fall in love with each other.”

About seeing the movie with an audience for the first time, Hudson added, “I’m so excited. I’m nervous. I can’t wait. I have a feeling people are going to like the way this movie feels.”

Indeed, Song Song Bleu, which is based on a true story, is a film about the power of connection. Jackman and Hudson play Mike and Claire Sardina, two chip-jar musicians whose love for Neil Diamond’s music inspires them to form a tribute band called Lightning and Thunder, as they live out their rock star dreams and overcome life’s challenges with their blended family. The special screening of the film “Focus Features” was AFI Fest’s closing night presentation, but Brewer wasn’t nervous about audience reaction or the impending critical reception.

why? He had already received rave reviews from Diamond himself.

Brewer called Diamond’s support “a dream come true.” “When I heard that Neil was watching this movie, I thought, ‘This is the only audience I really care about.’ His music means a lot to me, and my hope is that everyone who loves his music will like it. But my big hope is that I’ve been able to help grow the number of fans of his music.”

Jackman and Hudson lead an ensemble cast that includes Jim Belushi, Fisher Stevens, Ella Anderson (recently named one of Variety’s 10 Actors to Watch), Mustafa Shakir, and Hudson Hensley, all of whom have ties to Neil Diamond.

“I was in the Blues Brothers for 25 years, so I appreciate all the accomplished lyricists and musicians,” Belushi said. “I’ve always admired Neil Diamond’s simplicity of language and ability to get to the point quickly. He’s a beautiful writer and singer.”

Stevens revealed that he shares a name with a Neil Diamond impersonator from Australia. “It was a really strange coincidence that I ended up appearing in this movie because people thought I was him and called me to be in it,” he said with a laugh. Stevens grew up listening to Diamond with his father (his favorite song was “Song San Bleu”) and sang some of his father’s songs at karaoke, but he never accepted callers for gigs. “I wasn’t an authority or anything,” he joked.

But what makes the film “Son San Bleu” so powerful goes beyond Diamond’s lyrics, Stevens explained. It all depends on who Sardina is. “People who have dreams don’t share their dreams with others and accomplish them no matter what. That’s very moving,” he said. “These two characters are very unique.”

And it took a special pair of actors to play them. Anderson said of Jackman and Hudson, “They’re two great guys and I couldn’t think of anyone better.” “They immersed themselves in this story, and I saw them doing everything they could to accurately represent these people. That’s what I love to do, so being in a space where other people were passionately and lovingly working on this story, I feel like I was able to do that too.”

Belushi also praised the lead role in the movie. “Kate is a lioness of an actress. This is a very important performance for Kate Hudson,” Belushi said, alluding to the critical praise she has received for her emotional transformation so far. “Every actor needs a chance, and you can see the acting talent in Kate in this movie. Craig Brewer brought that performance out of this movie because it was always in her.” Belushi added of Jackman, “He can sing, he can dance, he can laugh. They’ve both been to balls!”

Speaking of Jackman, as Brewer and the cast introduced the screening, the singing and dancing Jackman had the final word and opened up about his conversation with Diamond on the red carpet.

“I told him maybe he could tell me that we talked, and (asked) do you have a message for everyone,” Jackman told the crowd about his conversation with the music maestro. “He said, ‘Tell everyone I love you and keep singing.'”