Florence Pugh calls Māori pōwhiri welcome for 'East of Eden' shoot ‘so beautiful’

“You're immediately full of this power and love. It was a very special way to shoot," Pugh said

Florence Pugh has opened up about a traditional Māori pōwhiri ceremony that welcomed the cast and crew of Netflix’s East of Eden to New Zealand, describing the experience as “so beautiful”.

Pugh discussed the ceremony while appearing on Late Night with Seth Meyers, recalling how the production began its New Zealand shoot with the traditional welcome.

“We started the shooting schedule with this incredible ceremony,” Pugh said. “You're immediately full of this power and love. It was a very special way to shoot.” 

The actress filmed the seven-part adaptation of John Steinbeck’s 1952 novel at several historic locations in Auckland and the Coromandel Peninsula. The production transformed Heritage New Zealand properties into settings representing early 20th-century California, despite the series being set in the Salinas Valley. 

Filming took place at Alberton and Highwic in Auckland, as well as the Thames School of Mines on the Coromandel Peninsula. Around 150 crew members worked across the locations, making East of Eden the largest production Heritage New Zealand had hosted at the sites.

Heritage New Zealand Auckland properties lead Tanya Wilkinson said the organisation was “delighted and honoured” that the three properties had been selected as locations for the series. She also praised the production team’s professionalism.

Pugh stars in the series as Cathy Ames, the complex central character whose story becomes intertwined with the Trask family across generations. The adaptation was written by Zoe Kazan, with Christopher Abbott playing Adam Trask and Mike Faist portraying Charles Trask. 

The series takes a fresh approach to Steinbeck’s novel, with Pugh’s portrayal of Cathy placing greater emphasis on the character’s background and humanity. Pugh has previously spoken about the challenge of playing a character traditionally viewed as one of literature’s major villains. 

East of Eden began streaming on Netflix on October 1, with all seven episodes of the limited series now available globally.