“It was important to still stay true to the character and how she was originally written when I first got the audition.”
Callie Haverda
Interview by Carol Wright | Photographer: Emily Sandifer | Stylist: Jensen Edmondson | Hair: Gabriella Pollino | Makeup: Kathleen Karridene
Hello Wisconsin! Callie Haverda is taking us back to Point Place as the lead in Netflix’s That ’90s Show, the spin-off of the wildly popular sitcom That ’70s Show. The series has already gotten renewed for a Season 2, and according to Nielsen had 1.59 billion minutes of viewing time for the week it premiered. Haverda talked to NYOTA about stepping into Leia Forman’s shoes, bonding with her castmates, working with Topher Grace and Laura Prepon, and connecting with the film Nim’s Island as a kid.
Was there a particular television show or movie that sparked your interest in acting?
I’ve been acting since I was really little and grew up with mostly animated cartoons, but I remember there was one specific movie that I grew up with, Nim’s Island, and I would always watch that on road trips. I could definitely relate to the character of Nim, played by Abigail Breslin because she was so much like me. Living on this island, she loved animals, and I just loved to watch that movie and always wanted to play a part, kind of like hers. I remember I had an audition for a film when I was really little, and I think it was the very first film that I ever auditioned for, and it was with Ryan Reynolds. It was a huge deal, and I got down to the top two girls, and even though I didn’t book that one, from then on, I was just like, this is incredible, and I want to continue doing this forever.
You play Leia Forman in That ’90s Show. How did you go about stepping into Leia’s shoes and getting into her headspace for the role?
I think during our original audition process, I definitely developed the character as much as I could because, you know, that’s the first time you’re playing the part, and you’re like; this is gonna be the decider if I get the job or not. So I put a lot of work into those auditions. I watched a lot of the original show, of course, because I’m playing the daughter and granddaughter of such iconic characters, so I definitely wanted to get the vibes of how they act. I do think that I’ve received a lot of mannerisms from my own parents, so it would make sense that Leia would have some as well. A big goal of mine was not to make her just a copy of the original show, so I took what the writers gave me and developed her from there and I developed her from the original show as well. I think what really, really helped was when I actually got to set the very first day. I had a fitting and was able to actually try on authentic clothes from the ’90s, look at myself in the mirror, see myself in Leia’s clothes, and realize that this was really happening.
Throughout the first season of That ’90s Show Leia finds herself breaking out of her shell and engaging in teenage rebellion (i.e., drinking, smoking, and raving) but at the same time keeping her innocence. How did you strike that balance of Leia being “one of the cool kids” and also very pure?
I think the writing helped me a lot with that because we just have phenomenal writers that really knew Leia as much as I did. So every week, when I’d get a new script, it was just perfectly written. I think it also comes through in the performance, so that was important to me, you know, I didn’t want to completely forget who Leia was and where she came from. It was important to still stay true to the character and how she was originally written when I first got the audition. I think Leia and I are so much alike, and I could relate to many of the things that she went through, so it was very easy to play her in those scenes and show what she went through and those experiences. Knowing the character very well helped because if I didn’t, I could have just gone, like, oh, she’s becoming this crazy person, and she’s doing these things, so she should be extra confident now, but being able to know Leia helped in those types of situations. She’s constantly evolving, but she still has the personality she’s had her entire life.
Were you able to spend a lot of time with Topher Grace and Laura Prepon to shake out the Foreman family dynamic a bit so you could play off of each other when filming?
During the week of filming an episode, we have three days of rehearsals, a day of filming, and then the live show. So that was kind of the setup for it. We had three days where we just rehearsed all of our scenes together over and over again and got very comfortable with not only each other, but for me, it was my first time up there doing anything like it, and for them, they were doing this all again. So, of course, during those rehearsal times, we talked a ton about our characters and what would be comfortable in the scene, and Gail Mancuso, our director, also helped us a lot with that. I think a really good thing that helped was we were all just very comfortable, so it wasn’t a lot of like, okay, this is how Leia’s gonna interact with her parents. It just came very naturally for all of us. Of course, Debra Jo, Kurtwood, Topher, and Laura – they played these characters for years, so it was very easy for them to fall back into place with these roles, but for me, it was a little bit more difficult, but again, it was still surprisingly easy, I think because they just made me feel so comfortable.
You were also in a unique position and got to act alongside Debra Jo Rupp and Kurtwood Smith constantly. Did they ever share advice with you on set or share stories from filming That ’70s Show?
Well, a big thing for all of us kids was that it was our very first time filming in front of a live studio audience. So that was definitely a new thing that we all had to figure out and learn together, but because Debra Jo and Kurtwood were on the original show, they were absolute legends and completely comfortable with that. They helped us through that and taught us how to balance, focusing on our work, being responsible, and working in this kind of environment, but also interacting with the audience because they’re your biggest fans, and they’re gonna keep the show going for many years, hopefully. So it was important to be able to find that balance of being a hard worker but also going up and talking to the audience and cracking jokes, and I know Debra Jo and Kurtwood would purposefully mess up scenes sometimes just to make the audience laugh. So it was really great learning from them to figure that whole dynamic out. Also, I remember, because it was my first kiss on the show, Debra Jo would talk a ton about the original show and how Mila had her first kiss as well, and we talked about that a lot, and it was just a lot of joking and fun on set.
A core part that makes That ’90s Show work is the bonds between Leia and her new friends. What did you and your castmates do on and off set to create genuine bonds?
We definitely developed very, very beautiful relationships. I feel like they’re the closest people that I know, and because we were all thrown into these circumstances, and it’s our first time experiencing something like this, we definitely bonded over that. We’re all very alike, and we’re all just a bunch of teenagers being actors and experiencing the same things on this set. So we grew really close because of that, and from being on set every day rehearsing and doing our scenes. We also did hang out sometimes off of the set. We went to Ashley’s house one time, and we went to the Roosevelt Flea Market. We went to a Van Gogh exhibit which was really cool. So we tried to hang out as much as we could off of the set, but on set, too, we would hang out in each other’s dressing rooms. I remember near the end of filming, Ashley, Sam, and I would go have dance parties. We’d turn off the lights because we had this neon glow-in-the-dark light, and we would just dance and get all of our energy out. Those days were super fun.
The cast is comprised of teens from current times who had to be transported back to the ’90s. A time when social media didn’t exist, and cell phones weren’t used as heavily. While on set, did you find peace in that change of pace and lack of certain technology?
I definitely did. It was nice having a break from talking about that because a rule on set as well was that we weren’t allowed to have our phones. So we would hide them in little places in the basement most of the time, and then we wouldn’t have them until lunchtime, so it’d be five or six hours of no social media, no internet, and no technology. It was definitely a nice breath of fresh air being able to interact without having that constantly on our minds and taking over every conversation. We got to know each other a lot better because of that, I think, and we got to just hang out and talk, and it was really nice, and I think on the show, too – I feel like when you watch it, it really highlights the fact that we can go outside and have fun with our friends and meet people and make great relationships without social media, which I think is really nice.
One of the main strengths of That ’70s Show is that it is timeless, and teenagers can relate to the characters at any stage and see their youth reflected back at them. Is there a certain storyline or episode that you particularly enjoyed filming because you knew it would resonate with viewers?
I really feel like every episode is kind of like you described because I think each of the characters, even though we are in the ’90s, each character goes through something every episode that I feel people will be able to relate to. Even though it’s a different decade, we’re still just kids and are going through the same things. In episode 2, “Free Leia,” Leia is very much overthinking everything relating to this new friend group that she’s found. She wants to be cool, and she wants to appear very cultured. She doesn’t want to bring Free Willy to the movie night because she doesn’t want to be seen as a nerd, and I think a lot of people can go through that. Even adults going to new jobs and trying to meet people, or just in everyday life, kids and adults alike are trying to make new friends and we constantly overthink that we’re saying the wrong thing. Or we try to appear very cool to new people that we meet because we want people to like us. So I think everyone can kind of relate to that episode. Also Ozzie’s episode, I can’t remember what episode number that is, maybe episode five, that one’s just really nice, his whole coming out. I hope a lot of people will be able to relate to that because even though it is a different decade, people will be able to relate because they’re experiencing the same thing as well, and a lot of episodes kind of highlight that, which is really nice, and it’s almost timeless for people to watch it.
Outside of acting, you also have a passion for writing. Could you see yourself working on television scripts or screenplays one day soon?
Yeah, for sure. I mean, I used to want to write when I was younger. I’d try to write screenplays and short films. Whenever we hung out, my friends and I would try to film short films, and I’d always end up writing them, so that’s always been something that I loved. I recently wrote a screenplay for a film that, hopefully, I’ll be able to make into something one day. I’m very passionate about writing – writing screenplays, novels, and whatever you can think of. I think people in the industry are very creative, and especially actors don’t get a lot of credit for that because people see them and think, oh, you’re just acting and looking pretty on screen, but I think the industry is very supportive of everyone going into different jobs within it. So I definitely want to develop a career in writing.
What advice do you have for aspiring actors?
There are so many great people in the world that give such good advice, but I think a really big thing that I’ve always been grateful to have is just people that really care about you and a team that will support you; because going and doing something like this all by yourself, it’s possible, but it’s so, so difficult trying to. You become a struggling actor if you don’t have people who believe in you and even your friends that don’t know anything about the industry that can tell you that you’ve got it and you’re doing well. I think that’s super important, finding your tribe and people that believe in you and can see how much you love what you do. This helped me because my family, my friends, and my whole team have helped me all of these years, and I don’t think I could have done it without them. Now also my friends on set that I’ve made – just people that get you and people that will help you along the way. I think that’s like a really big thing you need to be able to survive in this industry.