Danny Pellegrino Got Acting Advice from “Twilight'”s Ashley Greene for Hallmark's “Deck the Walls”: 'I Felt Spoiled' (Exclusive)

Pellegrino also tells PEOPLE of how he reacted when he learned that Wes Brown, "the cream of the crop for the Hallmark hunks" would be joining the project

Danny Pellegrino isn't afraid to take notes from millennial icons like Ashley Greene!

In an exclusive sit down with PEOPLE, the Everything Iconic host, 39, opens up about his Hallmark debut with Deck the Walls and working with seasoned veterans like Green and Wes Brown on the LGBTQ+ rom-com he wrote, produced and starred in.

"I absorbed a lot from them. Ashley is such a great dramatic actress," he says, recalling how he'd pay close attention to her performances. "I would pick her brain afterwards and say, 'Okay, were you listening to music before? How did you get in that zone?'"

"Just whoever would give me any sort of tip, I was like, 'Okay, I'm going to write that down or remember it,'" he adds.

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According to the film's official logline, Deck the Walls follows the story of Rose (Greene), a "Chicago-based interior designer, whose brother Sal [Pellegrino] is responsible for a Christmas Charity House Flip back in their suburban Ohio hometown."

"When a budget crisis puts this important project in danger, Rose reluctantly returns during the holidays to try to save the day," the synopsis reads. "Not ready to face the ghosts of her past, Rose’s plan is to get in, get it done, and get out ASAP. But before she knows it, she is face-to-face with Brysen [Brown], her brother’s best friend, contractor and who just so happens to be the bane of Rose’s youth."

Along the way, Rose "discovers unexpected love and deeper purpose" with the help of her family and friends.

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Pellegrino tells PEOPLE, that he was "over the moon" when he learned that Greene would be attached to the project. Not only was he thrilled because of his "millennial connection" to the actress' iconic performance as Alice Cullen in the Twilight movies, he also says, "I just was so excited to see what she would bring to the role."

"When they told me Wes Brown was playing the other male lead, I was thrilled because, as a Hallmark movie junkie, I know that he's the cream of the crop for the Hallmark hunks," he smiles. "And so, I knew that he was going to bring something special to it."

The podcaster also admits he was "worried" about "keeping up" with Greene and Brown on his "first big" acting role.

"I wanted to impress them because I know that they've worked so much, and they were just so patient and kind and all of the things," he says. "I just felt really lucky that they were cast. I felt spoiled by it because it was my first big project like this, and I just couldn't believe how kind everyone was."

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While working on set of Deck the Walls, Pellegrino recalls growing emotional as he saw his passion project come to life,

"In-between shots, I would just start crying," he laughs. "I know that makes me sound so crazy, but I would get so overwhelmed looking around because the sets, what the crew does to these sets is unbelievable."

"There was one scene on a porch where I was acting alongside Wes Brown, and in the scene, we're wrapping lights around the porch. It felt like I was living in a dream," he gushes. "To be alongside this guy who I've watched in Haul Out the Holly and all these other Christmas movies ... I can never really properly express how trippy it was, but in the best of ways."

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Deck the Walls premieres on Nov. 29 at 8 p.m. ET on Hallmark.