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Lily Brooks O’Briant is excited about the holiday season. There are decorations, cookies, gifts—oh, and the premiere of The Big Show Show holiday special on Netflix. The fourteen-year-old actress plays Mandy Wight on the sitcom, which follows the day-to-day life of retired wrestler Big Show and his family. GL caught up with Lily ahead of the special’s premiere to get all the deets. Scroll on to learn more about the special, her fave holiday traditions and how she's giving back. 

Girls’ Life: Without giving too much away, what can you tell us about The Big Show Show holiday special?

Lily Brooks O’Briant: We filmed ten episodes, and this is the last episode releasing. It’s a super cool Christmas-themed episode with a lot of family fun—and some really awesome Christmas-themed activities.

GL: What was your favorite scene to film?

LBO: There was a very short scene where I had to pop a balloon, and I was so, so nervous to do it. The sound freaks me out. But I finally did it, and everyone started clapping for me because they knew I was, like, terrified! So that was kind of fun. But there are so many super-fun scenes, and the house was decorated with some really cool Christmas decorations. 

 

 

 

 

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GL: Your character on the show, Mandy, is a bit of an overachiever, whether she’s running for student body president or hosting a sit-in. Do you see yourself in Mandy at all?

LBO: Absolutely. Mandy is an incredible character to be able to play, and I feel like there’s a lot of her in myself. I mean, I am definitely as determined as Mandy is. I have a very type-A personality, just like Mandy does. In the scenes where Mandy is running for school president and she’s hosting the sit-in, I could relate to her because she had such a passion for the things that she was talking about.

GL: What are your favorite holiday traditions?

LBO: The night before Christmas, me and my sister and my mom always bake big cookies and decorate them. It’s such a fun time. We listen to Christmas music while we bake the cookies, and we’ll watch a movie—my favorite Christmas movie is definitely Elf. It’s super funny and such a great holiday movie.

GL: You played Matilda in the national tour of the Broadway production of Matilda. What was it like to switch from theater to a television series?

LBO: The Big Show Show was actually filmed in front of a live studio audience. It was a very nice transition [from Matilda] because I got to keep some of that theater element in there. I feel like the audience feedback really helped bring a lot of funniness and a lot of realness into my acting, and I’m really grateful for that. I love both film and theater acting.

GL: You’re also involved with several charities. Is there was a specific project you’d like to share?

LBO: My hometown is Memphis, Tennessee, and there’s a big hospital there called St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. They do so much incredible work for children around the world who are suffering from cancer. I was the team captain of Team ‘Young Hollywood and Broadway’ for St. Jude's WALK/RUN. We raised over fifteen thousand dollars for St. Jude, and that was just amazing. There’s more coming up that will be on my Instagram, @lilybrooksobriant.

 

 

 

 

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GL: When you’re not acting, what else do you like to do?

LBO: I do a lot of schoolwork because I just entered my freshman year of high school. When I’m not doing school, I also love to bake. It’s one of my favorite things to do, especially with my mom or my sister. Also, I love to play the guitar. I’m actually taking guitar lessons every week now and learning a lot about writing music, so hopefully that’ll be something I can do later on.

GL: Do you have any pets?

LBO: I do. I have a dog named Rebel. He’s a Goldendoodle and he is adorable. I will say he is one of the most lazy and pampered dogs I’ve known. He literally just sits on the couch all day, and he’ll walk up to us and rub his head against us so that we’ll pet him. He’s really sweet, though, and I love him so much.

You can stream The Big Show Show holiday special on Netflix starting December 9th (and start season one here). Keep up with Lily Brooks O'Briant by following her on Instagram @lilybrooksobriant.

by Bailey Bujnosek | 12/7/2020