IN CONVERSATION WITH ISABELLA BRIGGS
interview by JANA LETONJA
Isabella Briggs will star in the highly anticipated third and final season of ‘The Summer I Turned Pretty’, premiering on Prime Video on 16th July. For her breakout role as Stella in Paramount+’s ‘Fatal Attraction’, she earned praise for her emotionally complex portrayal. She continued to build on that momentum in Apple TV+’s ‘Sugar’, sharing the screen with Colin Farrell and Amy Ryan.
What was your initial reaction when you booked the role of Denise for the final season of ‘The Summer I Turned Pretty’?
I was truly over the moon. My boyfriend was sitting right next to me when I got the call and he gave me the biggest hug. I called my parents immediately afterwards. My mom had helped me run through my lines in preparation for all of my callbacks, so she was extra excited for me.
How was it stepping into a universe with such a passionate fanbase and established dynamics?
I truly feel so fortunate to be involved in something that brings people so much joy. The fans are so passionate and invested in the story being told and the world that Jenny has created. To get to play a part in that means so much to me as an artist. The cast and crew were both so welcoming. I knew Lola from school and I had actually met Sean a few weeks before filming, so when I stepped on set, I already had this sense of familiarity. And in the early days of filming, Jenny hosted this wonderful game night and by the end of it, I already felt like I was a part of the family.
Can you tease a bit about who Denise is, and what fans should expect from her journey this season?
We first meet Denise as an employee at Breaker Capital, Adam Fisher’s VC Company, working alongside Steven and Jeremiah. She is an incredibly hard and passionate worker, with a bit of a sardonic edge. You’ll begin to see this workplace rivalry form between her and Steven. However, as the show progresses, you’ll get to see more of her vulnerability and understand the root of the initial opinions she holds in the beginning of the show.
You’ve been described as a “layered performer” with a magnetic screen presence. How do you typically approach building a new character, especially one like Denise, who didn’t exist in the original book series?
Every time I go about crafting a character, I always approach the process differently. For me, it’s almost as if each new character is a door that has its own unique key which opens it. My main “in” to Denise was through journaling. Even though she isn’t a part of the books, Jenny, Sarah and the rest of the writers provided me with a rich background on Denise and her upbringing that gave me plenty of material to work with in my exploration. I started journaling about her home life during the audition process, while also researching the VC world, what her role is in it and figuring out why she chose that career path. Then, while we were filming, every time I would receive a new script I would go to this cafe by my apartment, park myself at a table for like 3-4 hours, and dive in. It felt appropriate that I was approaching her in this way. I feel like script analysis, thorough research and lots of writing is very “Denise”.
You earned strong praise for your emotionally nuanced performance as Stella in ‘Fatal Attraction’. What did that experience teach you about navigating complex characters?
‘Fatal Attraction’ was great because it was my first professional gig after graduating conservatory. It really allowed me to put to work everything I had been learning over the past 4 years. I was fortunate enough to have a wonderful scene partner, who is now one of my best friends, Alyssa Jirrels. We worked together a lot throughout filming, dissecting our characters' relationship. I learned a lot from her, how she approached her character Ellen, the questions she asked and the curiosity she had. And through my own character, I learned to lean into her complexities, even if I didn’t initially understand or relate to them. Because the more you lean, the more will give way to a breakthrough.
Was there a moment growing up, or during your time at Carnegie Mellon, when you knew you were meant to act professionally?
I always loved performing as a child, and when I finally had all of my motor and speech skills, I would constantly be singing, dancing and coming up with characters to entertain myself and my parents. When I was around 3 years old, I watched ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ with my family, and it sort of clicked in my head that the thing I loved doing was something I could actually pursue in life. I begged my parents for years to let me act and finally, at the age of 6, they agreed to put me in an acting class. They said if I was able to stick with the class for a year and I still wanted to do it, they would allow me to act professionally. A year passed and the rest is history.
Beyond acting, you also trained in writing and directing. Are you looking to explore those creative avenues in the near future?
Absolutely. I love both writing and directing, they allow me to express my creativity in a different way than acting does, which excites me. During my time at college, I wrote and put up some of my own work and even directed a student written show during my senior year. I’m currently a part of a non-profit production company based in NYC, Dartboard Productions, that me and a group of classmates from Carnegie Mellon started post-graduation. We’re all incredibly passionate about creating original work and making theatre and performance media accessible to the general public. I’m very excited to continue to grow my directing, writing and producing career alongside my acting career.
How do you balance the emotional intensity of your roles with the need to recharge or stay grounded off set?
For me, it’s pretty easy to release the emotions I carry while I act after I stop playing the character and go home for the day. When I experience their emotions - sadness, elation, outrage - I experience them only through the lens of the character and their given circumstances. If I’m crying in a scene, it’s because what’s happening to my character in the moment is affecting me in that way, if that makes sense. So when we stop the scene and the moment is over, I’m back to the person I was before, who isn’t experiencing what my character just went through. Almost like an on/off switch. I don’t typically like to draw on personal experiences or go deep into method acting when I perform, I find those things actually take me out of the moment. The only time I do find that there’s a bit of a come down is when my body’s heavily involved. If I’m hyperventilating, shaking, jumping or exasperating myself in any way, after all of that, it’s important for me to rest, do my breathing exercises and drink lots of water. The brain can tell what’s real and what’s fake, but sometimes the body cannot.
What kinds of roles or stories are you hoping to explore next?
Oh gosh, I mean as many as they’ll let me. I love anything off the beaten path. Julio Torres really intrigues me as an artist, his work always feels very surreal which is a realm I would love to play in. I also would love to be in a Damon Lindelof miniseries. Very specific, but the way he crafts a story is so satisfying and I think he writes ensemble casts brilliantly. Jane Schoenbrun is another person who I would love to work with. They have a beautiful artistic voice and a fresh perspective that’s really exciting to watch. One of my two dream theatre roles is Stevie in ‘The Goat, or Who is Sylvia?’ by Edward Albee. Huge Edward Albee fan, will probably have to wait 15-20 more years before I can play that role. And the other one is Sally Bowles in ‘Cabaret’.
CREDITS
photography ACKIME SNOW
makeup DANI PARKES
hair GEO BRIAN
styling MAREN TAYLOR
styling assistant DOMINIC TURICZEK
