Chloë Grace Moretz Talks About Her New Film ‘If I Stay,’ Her Favorite Movies And More! [EXCLUSIVE]

Gayle Foreman's best selling novel "If I Stay" is being adapted into a film starring Chloë Grace Moretz (“Carrie,” the “Kick-Ass” films) in the lead role. The film — which is slated to release nationwide on Aug. 22 — follows the life of Mia Hall, whose life is turned upside down after a fatal car accident leaving her family dead and her own life on the line.

"Mia Hall thought the hardest decision she would ever face would be whether to pursue her musical dreams at Juilliard or follow a different path to be with the love of her life, Adam (Blackley)," teases the synopsis of the film. "But what should have been a carefree family drive changes everything in an instant, and now her own life hangs in the balance. Caught between life and death for one revealing day, Mia has only one decision left, which will not only decide her future but her ultimate fate."

Actress Chloë Grace Moretz (@ChloeGMoretz) spoke with Latin Times about her role, her favorite movies and more.

Latin Times: What made you want to be a part of this movie?

Chloë Grace Moretz: The story drew me in — the familial love, the love for music, and the first love, young love. The film really encompasses a time in your life which is so traumatic, and kind of confusing. On the other side of that, this huge catastrophic tragedy happens for the character. So along with being confused with being a young adult, she has this monumental weight put on her shoulder. I think it's a beautiful story and a really sweet story.

LT: How do you prepare for such a complex and emotionally driven role?

CGM: For a role like this, I think you just have to take it one step at a time. It was a lot of emotion I had to take on so I wanted to make it raw and real and translucent. Because music is a big part of my life, it wasn't hard to become Mia and just display the emotions Mia would feel.

LT: What is your favorite part about this film?

CGM: My favorite part of the film was the Juilliard scene — it was a beautiful scene and very well done. I think the other scenes I liked were the silly little moments of Jaime and I running around in the rain and skateboarding. It's only 30 seconds but I think that it really captured what young love is — the playfulness — in that moment.

LT: Were you a fan of Gayle Foreman’s book before you took the role as Mia?

CGM: It was simultaneous for me. All my friends had read the book and as was I reading the script, I was reading the book. I really fell in love with the story, her writing, and the rawness and realness of it. In the end, I really wanted to implement everything she wrote in the story into the movie and really be genuine about it.

LT: You're familiar with acting both on television, on stage and in the movies, do you have a preference of medium?

CGM: I would say film is my number one medium just because you can accomplish a lot with it and you can view a lot of really interesting things in films and it's exciting. My second favorite would be stage just because the spontaneity of it is exciting. Even though I've been acting for twelve years, it pushes you and forces you to relearn a part of acting. And that's nice because you can become inspirationally stunted at times and I think that is really reviving.

LT: As an actress, what is your favorite genre to act in and as a consumer, what is your favorite genre to watch?

CGM: As an actress, I prefer drama because I enjoy the darker and meatier roles, which I can do more with. For watching, I'll watch anything but I mostly enjoy really quirky, mockumentary style movies.

LT: Is there any book you've recently read that you would want to see turned into a movie?

CGM: One that can be really interesting — if it's done the right way — is "The Bell Jar."

LT: If you could tell fans one thing about this movie — what they can expect — what would it be?

CGM: A very emotional experience where you get a perspective on your life that you haven't seen yet or haven't seen in a while. It's going to make you feel grateful for the life you lead and make you want to tell everyone in your life that you love them and having them in your life. It'll make you want to live every day like it's your last because you never know at what moment you'll walk outside and get hit by a car or get impacted by something sudden and tragic.