“Cruel Intentions”' John Harlan Kim Tried to Tell Reese Witherspoon He Was Cast in TV Reboot But Faced '200 Security Guards': 'She's Royalty' (Exclusive)

The Australian actor, 31, tells PEOPLE it was a "real privilege" to star in the Prime Video reboot series of the "iconic" 1999 film

John Harlan Kim tried his best to have a moment with Reese Witherspoon before he joined the Cruel Intentions reboot series, but the actress was just out of his reach.

The 31-year-old Australian actor, who plays Blaise in the Prime Video series, which premiered Nov. 21, worked with Witherspoon, 48, previously, but not close enough to be able to bond with her over the project they'd come to share.

"The week before I was due to come [on set], I was on a red carpet," Kim tells PEOPLE. "Reese Witherspoon was my boss on a previous show, and so I was going to be like, 'Hey!' But there was about 200 security guards between me and her."

Related: Cruel Intentions Series Merges 1999 Film's Salacious Step-Sibling Love Triangle with Modern-Day Greek Life: See the Trailer

"I got through 199 of them," he jokes. "As I said, 'Cruel Intentions,' and then, [I got] the hand over the mouth."

He's not holding any grudges over it, though. "She's royalty. I get it."

Kim, who has starred previously on 9-1-1, the CW's Nancy Drew and Jennifer Garner's The Last Thing He Told Me — where he overlapped with Witherspoon — says that being part of the reboot series is "a real privilege" given how iconic the original 1999 movie was at the time — and still is.

"I think when you have something that's so iconic and as beloved as Cruel Intentions, to be invited into that world and to try and carve a little slice of your own part of that out has been a real privilege," he says.

Related: Sarah Michelle Gellar Celebrates Cruel Intentions' 25th Anniversary: 'Everybody Still Loves You'

"We've timed it well, I think. 25 years later on is the perfect amount of time passing. You still have the original fans out there lurking, and you have a whole generation of people who have never even heard of it, which makes some people feel old. But I think we've timed it well."

Speaking to what it was like taking on the role of Blaise, a major player in a fraternity being investigated for a hazing incident the previous year who has a close relationship with Scott (Khobe Clark) that evolves throughout the season, Kim teases, "We go on this wild journey where there's a twist and turn in every episode, and you think it's good, then it's not, then you think it's bad, then it's not."

"To go on that ride with Khobe was a true joy," he says of his costar. "I had a great time on the show."

The reboot series takes place at an elite college outside Washington, D.C., where the offspring of the nation's richest and most powerful are always up to no good.

Like the original film, it centers on the unorthodox relationship between step-siblings Caroline Merteuil, played by Sarah Catherine Hook, and Lucien Belmont, played by Zac Burgess. The siblings will do anything to keep their spot at the top — and when the daughter of the Vice President of the U.S. enters the picture (Savannah Lee Smith), there's nothing off-limits.

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. 

Cruel Intentions is now streaming on Prime Video.