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The title refers to a June 4, 2024, interview with Harriet Herbig-Matten and Damian Hardung, the actors who play Ruby Bell and James Beaufort in Maxton Hall. They spoke about the show’s reception, how they prepared for their roles, building trust in intense scenes, and what they hoped for Ruby and James in Season 2. Their hopes are distinct from the season’s eventual story, which Herbig-Matten discussed in a later 2025 interview.
What did the actors say about Maxton Hall’s success?
In the June 4, 2024, Us Weekly interview, Herbig-Matten said the two-year wait between filming and the show’s premiere was longer than expected and left the cast nervous. Hardung recalled wanting to honor the character from the books for readers who already knew James.
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Hardung said he read the novel and looked at audience mood boards as part of his preparation, while also bringing his own emotions to the role. “It is my responsibility to do justice to that character especially [for] everyone who read the book,” he said.
The actors also discussed the show’s international reach. Hardung said it had been released in 19 languages, subtitled in more than 40 languages, and ranked number one in over 120 regions. He qualified the language count with “I think”; these are figures attributed to him in the 2024 interview, not independently audited statistics. Separately, Amazon’s Season 2 renewal announcement said the first season had the largest first-week global viewership for an International Original in Prime Video history and had ranked number one on the service in more than 120 countries and territories. Those are historical launch-period claims, not current rankings.
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How did James and Ruby’s on-screen chemistry develop?
Herbig-Matten and Hardung said their chemistry clicked during a later round of auditions. Hardung recalled spending a day together doing audition exercises; he said the actors’ dynamic on set sometimes followed the emotional circumstances of their characters. Herbig-Matten described trusting one another through intense scenes. The interview describes them as friends; their fictional romance is not evidence of a real-life romantic relationship.
Herbig-Matten said the emotional intensity of the work surprised her. She described talking with friends, setting boundaries, and working on herself as ways she processed it. Her advice was: “The most important thing is to talk a lot and to know your boundaries.”
What did they say about preparing for intimate scenes?
When discussing an intimate scene in Season 1, Herbig-Matten said an intimacy coordinator was present, the steps were planned, and the set was closed. Hardung said he discussed the scene’s purpose, framing, and what would be shown with the director. These are the actors’ accounts of this production, not a description of how every production handles intimate scenes.
What did the actors hope for Ruby and James in Season 2?
Herbig-Matten wanted Ruby to keep her independence
In 2024, Herbig-Matten hoped Ruby would hold on to her sense of self and ambitions, set boundaries, and maintain her female friendships—even as her relationship with James developed and class differences shaped their lives.
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Hardung wanted the Beaufort family to communicate
Hardung hoped James and his family would work on communicating with one another, ideally through family therapy. These were the actors’ hopes for the characters, not plot details confirmed at the time of the interview.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.How did Season 2’s story compare with those hopes?
In a November 6, 2025, TV Insider/Swooon interview, Herbig-Matten described the season’s opening conflict after James betrays Ruby. She said Ruby refuses to take responsibility for fixing him, and discussed how his actions and speech at a charity gala affect her. Herbig-Matten also said Ruby sees James changing and wanting to change. On Ruby’s boundaries, she said, “I think that’s an important message, especially for all the young women out there.”
Is Maxton Hall based on a book?
Yes. The German-language romance drama follows scholarship student Ruby Bell and wealthy James Beaufort at the elite Maxton Hall school. Season 1 adapts Save Me, the first novel in Mona Kasten’s series. Season 2 is based on Save You, the second novel, according to Amazon’s renewal announcement and production company RTL. Amazon confirms that Hardung and Herbig-Matten return as James and Ruby. RTL describes the new season as a more emotional and dramatic continuation; that wording is the production company’s promotional characterization.
The novels offer optional companion reading, not a prerequisite for following the series. The actors’ 2024 comments about what they hoped Ruby and James would do are best read as expectations at that point; Herbig-Matten’s 2025 remarks address Ruby’s later on-screen story.
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