Mamma Mia! star reveals the special advice Norman Lear gave him before his death

Sometimes, the right words come at exactly the right time.“Mamma Mia!” star Juan Pablo Di Pace is revealing the advice Norman Lear gave him before the late screenwriter’s death in 2023 at age 101.Lear is credited as an executive producer on Di Pace’s upcoming film “Before We Forget.” In addition to starring in the movie, Di Pace also co-wrote and co-directed it.“In the process of editing, I remember there were all these opinions flying around,” Di Pace, 45, exclusively told The Post.“He point-blank said to me, ‘Listen, Juan Pablo, you and Andrés [Pepe Estrada] should do the film you want to make.

Don’t listen to anyone.Because at the end of the day, it’s your legacy, and it’s your film.”Pepe Estrada, editor of the 2022 Oscar-nominated international feature “Argentina, 1985,” wrote and directed the flick alongside Di Pace.The “Fuller House” actor explained that he and Pepe Estrada were introduced to Lear through Brent Miller, another executive producer on “Before We Forget.”“It was an incredible thing to be walking alongside Andrés with the blessing of Norman Lear,” Di Pace said.He added that Lear was a “really wonderful presence” and said the advice the “All in the Family” creator gave him “changed [his] whole perspective of the process.”“That might be a simple thing to hear, but coming from him — and especially when you are doing a piece that is so personal and that you want it to have your voice — for a debut, first-time director, it was very special to hear it from him,” Di Pace concluded.Di Pace is known for his role as Fernando, Kimmy Gibbler’s on-again, off-again lover, in “Fuller House.”He also portrayed Jesus in NBC’s “A.D.: The Bible Continues,” Petros in the first “Mamma Mia!” film, and he finished fifth on Season 27 of “Dancing with the Stars.”The actor-turned-director makes his feature debut with “Before We Forget,” a nostalgic, years-spanning story of queer first...