Team Gavin Casalegno

Summary

Podcast Summary: "Not Skinny But Not Fat" – Episode: Team Gavin Castellano

Host: Amanda Hirsch
Guest: Gavin Castellano
Release Date: July 22, 2025

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Introduction: Homemade Margaritas and Happy Hour Woes (00:04 - 05:04)

Amanda Hirsch kicks off the episode alongside her co-host Regina, diving into their latest segment, "Things We Need to Talk About More." The duo shares their passion for crafting homemade margaritas as a savvy alternative to the increasingly expensive happy hour prices. Regina laments, “My biggest thing that we need to talk about more is how expensive happy hour is nowadays” (01:05), emphasizing the financial strain of dining out and the benefits of mixing drinks at home.

Amanda adds, “Making margaritas at home… you don't need to be a bartender” (01:22), highlighting the simplicity and enjoyment of creating their favorite cocktails. They discuss Regina's upgrade to a "spicy margarita" with jalapeños and tajín, showcasing their evolving cocktail repertoire.

Love Island Finale and Fandom Dynamics (05:04 - 14:35)

Transitioning from mixology, Amanda shifts the conversation to recent pop culture events, particularly the "Love Island" finale. Regina shares her thoughts on the winner, Maya, noting the strong fan support: “People love Maya so much that I feel like they're not going to even state the obvious” (02:11). They discuss the dynamics between contestants, including Team Gavin Castellano and other couples like Leanne and Miguel from the last season, pondering their future stability.

Amanda reflects on past contestants, expressing skepticism about others rekindling relationships: “I thought it was a little bit forced just because, like, hey, his connection obviously was sent home” (03:00). The hosts delve into the intense fandom, comparing it to the fervor seen in "Twilight" with Team Edward and Team Jacob, illustrating the passionate and sometimes polarized nature of show followings.

Interview with Gavin Castellano: Journey to Stardom (26:22 - 60:38)

Early Beginnings and Struggles (26:22 - 35:07)

Amanda welcomes Gavin Castellano, a prominent figure from "The Summer I Turned Pretty," to discuss his path to fame. Gavin recounts his early life, sharing experiences from his childhood modeling career starting at age four. “I started modeling right off the bat… JCPenney's and all that” (27:02), he reminisces about balancing school with acting commitments.

He opens up about the challenges he faced before landing significant roles, including periods of near homelessness while trying to break into acting. “I didn’t have any projects or anything, and I was posting three times a day… that was the only way that I was able to afford rent” (16:08), Gavin explains, highlighting the financial instability often accompanying aspiring actors.

Breakthrough and "The Summer I Turned Pretty" (35:07 - 48:23)

Gavin details his persistence in auditions, sharing a pivotal moment when a Western pilot role reignited his passion for acting: “It was a dream. This is perfect” (37:35), he enthuses about collaborating with renowned actors like Jared Padalecki and Lindsay Morgan. This resurgence led to his casting in "The Summer I Turned Pretty," a role that cemented his status in the industry.

Discussing the show's impact, Gavin emphasizes its depth beyond typical reality TV dramas. “Someone who had lost his mom and really just struggled with cancer… that story’s really touching people” (47:57), he reflects on the emotional resonance and meaningful storytelling that has connected with audiences on a profound level.

Fandom and Character Connection (48:23 - 60:38)

Amanda probes into the intense fan dynamics surrounding the show, specifically the fervent support for Team Conrad versus Team Jeremiah. Gavin navigates the topic with grace, stating, “It’s a marker of a great franchise… the writing is relatable” (46:27), acknowledging the passionate engagement as a testament to the show's quality.

He shares personal anecdotes about fan interactions, such as receiving heartfelt messages from viewers affected by the show's portrayal of serious issues like cancer. “It was really cool… seeing the impact that art can have on people's lives” (47:57), Gavin notes, underscoring the positive influence of meaningful narratives.

When discussing his character, Jeremiah, Gavin explains his personal connection: “I relate to him so much more… I think the nice guy is always underrated” (51:25). He contrasts his real-life values with the broody archetype often seen in love triangles, advocating for deep, friendship-based relationships as the foundation for lasting love.

Gavin also shares insights into his personal life, revealing that he is married at 25, a topic that resonated deeply with the hosts and audience. “Marriage is so great… I’m just so super grateful” (55:26), he expresses the fulfillment and emotional depth that his marriage brings, drawing parallels to his character's journey in the show.

Closing Thoughts: The End of an Era and Future Endeavors (60:38 - 61:07)

As the episode nears its conclusion, Amanda and Gavin reflect on the impending end of "The Summer I Turned Pretty." Gavin expresses mixed emotions of gratitude and sadness, recognizing the project's significance and the collaborative spirit that fueled its success. “It's been a great project to work on… it's been so fun” (50:45), he remarks, highlighting the personal growth and connections forged throughout the series.

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Notable Quotes:

• Regina on Happy Hours: “My biggest thing that we need to talk about more is how expensive happy hour is nowadays” (01:05)

• Amanda on Homemade Margaritas: “Making margaritas at home… you don't need to be a bartender” (01:22)

• Gavin on Early Struggles: “I didn’t have any projects or anything, and I was posting three times a day… that was the only way that I was able to afford rent” (16:08)

• Gavin on Fan Impact: “Someone who had lost his mom and really just struggled with cancer… that story’s really touching people” (47:57)

• Gavin on His Character: “I relate to him so much more… I think the nice guy is always underrated” (51:25)

• Gavin on Marriage: “Marriage is so great… I’m just so super grateful” (55:26)

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Conclusion

In this episode of "Not Skinny But Not Fat," Amanda Hirsch and guest Gavin Castellano offer an engaging exploration of navigating the highs and lows of a Hollywood career, the complexities of passionate fandoms, and the profound impact of storytelling in television. Gavin's candid reflections on his journey from struggling actor to beloved TV star provide valuable insights into perseverance, personal growth, and the importance of meaningful connections both on and off the screen. Listeners are treated to an authentic and heartfelt conversation that encapsulates the essence of hanging out with friends in the Hollywood scene.

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Note: This summary excludes advertisements, intros, outros, and non-content sections to focus solely on the substantive discussions and insights shared during the episode.

Transcript

[Unknown]

The following podcast is a Dear Media production.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Welcome back to the Not Skinny But Not Fat podcast. I'm your host, Amanda Hirsch, and I still can't believe that I get to chat with some of my favorite stars on my very own podcast, where you'll feel like you're just talking shit with your best friends in your living room. Hi, everybody, and welcome back to our new segment, things we need to talk about more. Oh, there she is. There she is. There she is. Way too excited about this limelight. Hi, guys.

[Regina]

Hi, grandma.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Welcome back to our segment. Last week we. We made regular margs with a straw tequila, which is my favorite tequila. And this is housemark Summer, you guys, this is drink with your friends at home kind of vibes. And you were just telling me.

[Regina]

My biggest thing that we need to talk about more is how expensive happy hour is nowadays. I love to go to happy hour before, like, I go to dinner with my friends and like, these happy hour prizes are crazy. Like a drink that's 20 bucks going down to 15 wild. I would rather make marks at home with my friends and then go to dinner.

[Amanda Hirsch]

I know, and you've gotten so good at it. And by the way, a straw is not only delicious, goes down so smoothly. Wait, look at this bedazzled bottle I got hooked up with. I love it. Which, like mine. Making margaritas at home. You don't need to be a bartender. You don't need to be, like, one of those people that like, you don't need to be Tom Sandoval. Okay, Regina. Okay. Okay. There she goes. So today, because Regina felt like such a pro last time, just making the mark, today, she's going to make a.

[Regina]

Little bit of a. I'm one upping.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Myself and making a spicy mark.

[Regina]

Yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Well, you brought jalapenos. Yeah. And tagine.

[Regina]

One more time, please. One more time, please, for my culture, Tahin.

[Amanda Hirsch]

All right. Talk about. Well, Love island finale.

[Regina]

Yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Oh, do you want to tell the people?

[Regina]

No. Like, obviously she won. They didn't win.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Yeah, Maya. Brian's like, what? Like, I'm along for the ride kind of vibes. But you know what? It's like people love Amaya so much that I feel like they're not going to even state the obvious. I'm sure there are a few people on TikTok being like, he doesn't even really like her, blah, blah, blah. But, like, when America's love goes strong, America's love goes strong. So they love a Maya too much to be hating on Brian. But listen, these couples like leanne Miguel, by the way, from last season are going so strong, and they were kind of an end of the season revelation as well. So I'm a little bit. I could be optimistic about this. By the way, what do you think.

[Regina]

About Nick and Alandra?

[Amanda Hirsch]

So I thought it was a little bit forced just because, like, hey, his connection obviously was sent home. And then they were like, hey, let's try this again. Even though we said it was weird last time and we're better as just friends. Exactly.

[Regina]

That's why.

[Amanda Hirsch]

That's what was weird. But I think, like, we'll see if they stand the test of time. They do seem to have good chemistry. You know what I mean? I really liked her the whole. I think that, like, Nick ruined her for me because. No. What ruined her for me? Oh, that. That. No, that mean girl moment that the girls had. No, but again, where the whole world flipped for Huda. It's like, I am sick of the world flipping. Who was, like, loving Huda? Numero uno. You don't even remember who Jeremiah is now. You guys, you remember how you were behaving? You want me to shake?

[Regina]

I'm so excited for you to shake.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Ready?

[Regina]

Look at her.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Is that good?

[Regina]

Yeah. Are you excited?

[Amanda Hirsch]

I am.

[Regina]

I love a skinny spicy. I think all the couples are fake. I think Shelly and Ace actually, like, liked each other enough.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Even I forgot about them.

[Regina]

Wait, also, did you see that Shelly said that she, like, knew a bunch of the people beforehand. No, like, in an interview, she was like, me and my. Like, I had met Amaya a couple years ago, so, like, it wasn't surprising.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Oh, wow.

[Regina]

So I don't get it. I think casting needs to do a better job.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Okay.

[Regina]

I don't know. I love Amaya. Like, I would never not love Amaya, but I think Amaya won and, like.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Maya won, which, like, we love. We love when we all come together. Give me that. Give me that mark. Okay, well, cheers.

[Regina]

Hopefully it's not too spicy.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Yum. Regina, make a freaking spicy marg in your house. Put on Love island and get with the program.

[Regina]

Weekend plans.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Weekend plans.

[Regina]

I mean, there's 36 episodes. I can binge.

[Amanda Hirsch]

So cheers. Cheers. So what did you use to make the mark so people that are listening. And out.

[Regina]

So basically it's the same recipe as last time, but we'll repeat it.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Repeat it, repeat it.

[Regina]

Bringing jalapenos. So we're going to be doing tequila, ice, maple syrup, because that's what Amanda.

[Amanda Hirsch]

I like it a little sweet. Yeah.

[Regina]

Ideally, you'd want to do like a little Tajin rim. Or if you like, like the Tajin inside of the mixture and then you muddle. You have to make sure you muddle the jalapenos. And you know what's a really good recipe? Jalapenos and watermelon. It's so good. We need to make that next time.

[Amanda Hirsch]

And we use a straw Tequila.

[Regina]

Austral Tequila is so good because again, like, my favorite thing about it is that it's like such neutral flavoring.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Yeah. I also love that it's affordable. And you saying that going out to the bars is so expensive.

[Regina]

Definitely.

[Amanda Hirsch]

House Mark Summer is here. You guys go to www.austral tequila.com to find a straw near you. And don't forget the line. Please enjoy responsibly. Austral tequila, 40% alcohol per volume. Diageo, New York, New York. Hey, guys. Happy Tuesday. I have to say, last week was eventful and not for me. Yeah, not for me. For the world. And for interesting headlines, Here are my 2 favorite from last week. So first of all, this piece of news actually brought me back to the good old days. And in my reaction to it, my genuine me being alone at home reaction being. I miss that. I miss those reactions because I just feel like there has been nothing that would make me shriek to myself recently, you know, with the love island of it all and the just like boring celeb, just, you know, you see Orlando Bloom and Katy Perry splitting up like that. I'm not shrieking. What other happened recently that I did not trick? Just not shriek worthy, you know. What was shriek worthy, you guys? Pete Davidson becoming a dad. Yes, Pete Davidson and his girlfriend Elsie. Which, by the way, I, I'm. I got so obsessed with her so quickly after she posted the, the pregnancy announcement that I was like, why is mine name not Elsie? And in my mind, I'm literally thinking for like 27 minutes about what a cool name Elsie is. And, like, how would you not turn out cool? Like your name is Elsie. That's so fucking cool. She's so cool and so pretty. Anyway, shrieked. Shrieked at the announcement because out of left field, not something, you know, this isn't like a couple that's married, you know, oh, they're pregnant. All great, great. Oh, good. This is Pete Davidson that's in yet another relationship that we know about. I mean, he's been like 17, you know, since we were introduced to him and maybe four in the past year. Like Meline Klein, Chase Sui wonders. I mean, you know, and I think we just thought, okay, he's Dating this Elsie girl, she seems fun. I think if I'm not wrong, she was like a play boy bunny or something anyway, and, and now he's gonna be a dad. And I feel like we like collectively assume like he's gonna be such a great dad. I think it's partly, you know, he lost his dad on, on 911 which is obviously so terrible and sad and I think that all of us are thinking the same thing, like this is going to be so healing for him. But I think apart from that, he just seems like such a fun guy. The Midnight said fun guy remembered how like how open he is about all his different mental health issues. And I'm like, he just seems like such a fun, happy go lucky. However, normalize, normalize the mental health issues. You could still be a great parent and also, you know, if he's taking care of himself and he could be there for his kids. So all good. But I'm just so happy. I'm just so happy. And listen, today in age, things are different. You don't need to be a couple, a married couple, you know, waiting to have kids together. Like sometimes you're in a short term relationship, you have a surprise. Who knows, maybe it wasn't a surprise. Maybe they were trying to have a kid. And it's just, I love unique circumstances and I'm just happy for him and I think it's great and I'm ecstatic. So that was a great news story. Then this Coldplay viral shit. Okay, when I first saw this video, and if you missed it, I don't know where you're living, but it was Coldplay does a kiss cam. They saw on the kiss cam at the concert, there's this couple hugging. They immediately pull away. The guy literally ducks. The girl covers her head, turns, turns away from the camera. Literally. Chris Martin is like, they're either having an affair or they're shy. Obviously people found out who these people are and they are having an affair. It's Andy Byron who is the CEO of New York based AI firm called Astronomer. So and the woman was like nhr, which is wild. And I think the other woman that then they zoom in on her and her face is like what? Just seven. She's also from the company. Anyway, crazy. And you know what? I saw Tinks posted something so true they wouldn't have been caught if they just acted normal. Which I wonder if she's 100% right or if there is kind of a 2% chance that people would have still looked these people up. But people did look them up because of obviously the extreme reaction to being filmed. And, and listen, I even debated posting it or reposting it because I said to myself, this is awful for the families, for the kids, for the whatever. But then I was like, I mean, this is so much bigger than you. Like, do not try to be a good person right now. This is crazy. And it's just a crazy story of public, public interest. So I feel like we got a few good, a few good ones this week. Another good one, if we're already in on a positive, positive note is Jax Taylor announced he won't be returning to the valet because he's going to be working on himself, which is code for they made him leave. They heard the people say, no more. No more with this guy. He's too toxic. It's too toxic. I am sad that the Valley has, I feel like not been performing as well. I think the ratings went down and I think in general, people that I know that are watching have kind of fell off because it's just not as good as it was last season. And last season, it really, it really exceeded our expectations. Let me tell you what show is back with a vengeance because it came back and it came back so good. So the Summer I Turned Pretty is back. It's a cult followed show. Okay? This is crazier than Love island and any Bravo show combined. Okay? The world go wild. Are you team Jeremiah or are you team Conrad? I mean, this is as big as Team Edward or Team Jacob. And by the way, this is a discovery I made in the middle of my interview with one of the stars of the show. Gavin Castellano, who plays Jeremiah is here today. We talk about the show getting this role, how he was almost close to homeless before working on a show like this, having this being the last season. If he's Team Conrad or Jeremiah, does he get offended when people are Team Conrad? And you guys won't believe me, but I don't know. I don't know what team I'm on because I feel like of course there's that part of me that you know is Team Conrad that wants the unavailable guy and the one that, you know, doesn't always show you what you need or doesn't always show up for you. But I have to say, at 37 years old, married with kids, I've matured, you guys, and I want emotionally available and Jeremiah is okay. So part of me is Team Jeremiah, like it or not. By the way, fans of the show are cray cray. And the show had to Put out a, a warning that if you're not nice on their page, on their social medias or to any of the cast, you will be blocked. There's a zero tolerance policy for this, so. You know what? There's a zero to tolerance policy from me too. No, I'm just kidding. Of course you're going to be freaking nice to Gavin. To this six foot two or four blue eyed, charming guy. Okay. Anyway, enjoy my interview with Gavin Castelleno from your favorite show, the Samurai Joan Brady.

[Unknown]

They'll reach out to me one day.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Maybe you can get who?

[Unknown]

Fujifilm.

[Amanda Hirsch]

What do you want from that?

[Unknown]

They're so hard to get a hold of.

[Amanda Hirsch]

What do you want? What partnership are we looking?

[Unknown]

I just want a partnership with them. Yeah, I, I only take photos with Fujifilm. Like all my Instagram is all Fujifilm.

[Amanda Hirsch]

I do tag. Do you hashtag?

[Unknown]

No, I do. I used to. Oh my.

[Amanda Hirsch]

She's trying to get me to buy that camera.

[Unknown]

Possible. My wife wanted one and it. She literally had to buy one on Facebook Marketplace from Arizona here, get creative.

[Amanda Hirsch]

I don't even know what it is and she wants me to buy it.

[Unknown]

It's a. It's a great camera but for.

[Amanda Hirsch]

For me that doesn't like for. For a photo.

[Unknown]

No, no, it's. It's the. Probably the most user friendly. Like you don't have to touch the settings at all out of the box and it'll take great photos.

[Amanda Hirsch]

You made your wife get it. You made your wife.

[Unknown]

No, she was, she was like on the hunt for it.

[Amanda Hirsch]

She. But it's like $800.

[Unknown]

Yeah, yeah. And it's impossible to find because TikTok blew it up.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Oh, you can't get the real one really hard. Like she wanted to save the money. No, you just actually can't get the real.

[Unknown]

Just can't find it. It's sold out.

[Amanda Hirsch]

So were you doing like Instagram stuff, pictures, content, lifestyle stuff before you were acting. I know you like started as like at 4, but I'm saying before the, the big.

[Unknown]

Yeah, no, I did a lot. I was, I was super active on social media. It actually probably took over my life. I was on Tik Tok all the time. I was posting like two, three videos a day. I was just like. I. I didn't have a job. I had a job scooping a bowls and.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Scooping the what?

[Unknown]

Asia bowls. Like, like. Yeah, yeah. Everyone. Yeah, yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Do people say. I say everything wrong? People say. I mean, you were scooping them. You probably know how to say, right?

[Unknown]

I just. Everyone Calls it assayables.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Wait, just scooping them.

[Unknown]

I was just making bowls for people, so I was like. It was kind of like. Like any kind of juice bar, like, making those bowls and juices and stuff. And it just. It was minimum wage and so I wasn't able to afford rent. So then I would start, like, going really hard on social media and TikTok and making stupid videos that I now regret.

[Amanda Hirsch]

How stupid?

[Unknown]

Just, like, really stupid. Just cringy. But. But the thing is, I'm not, like, ashamed of it because it was the only way that I was able to afford rent in one of the most expensive cities in the states. Yeah. And so it allowed me to stay there auditioning. Not even really that. It was just, like, through, like, different programs and stuff, able to, like, make a couple hundred bucks here and there. And it was what allowed me to live in LA for a while before I then moved.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Were you living with roommates?

[Unknown]

I was, yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

How many?

[Unknown]

Just one. Because my buddy, his name is Tristan, and we have such a sick spot in Sherman Oaks. It was so cool. And he's gone off to, like, make insane animation and things like that and doing a lot of YouTube and stuff. And then I had to move back home because I was like, I can't afford rent, so.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Oh, really?

[Unknown]

Peace out.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Okay, first of all, everybody.

[Unknown]

Hi, everybody. We just jumped right into this. What's going on?

[Amanda Hirsch]

Hey, Gavin is here.

[Unknown]

Yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Thank you for coming. Thanks for having me in your busy schedule. A video came up for me, one of the interviews you did that. That they asked, I think, Chris, like, who is the worst at not spilling. And I think he said. I think he said you.

[Unknown]

That's surprising.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Does that make sense?

[Unknown]

No, I. I can understand how he came to that conclusion. I understand the power of words. And I know that if I say, like, I. I will articulate something to say that will. That people will read into and then they'll be like, oh, my gosh, he just said this. And in reality, I didn't say anything.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Oh, I know you said something recently.

[Unknown]

Oh, did I? I don't remember.

[Amanda Hirsch]

You said. I think you were at. Well, fan. Let's put it on the fans. This is not your problem. This is the fans problem. But you said you're happy with, like. I think they were like, how are you feeling the show? You know, you wrapped filming, like, and you just said you feel happy, you feel like you're good, Feel like Jeremiah seems to be content. I don't know what exactly you said, but fans are taking it, like, if you're happy. That must mean you end up with Valley, you know. No, I know. You're not going to. I'm saying what fans are saying. Yeah, okay. I'm not even trying, by the way. I don't want a spoiler. I'm not trying to get a spoiler. I would.

[Unknown]

I haven't even told my mom, so she's.

[Amanda Hirsch]

She.

[Unknown]

She probably.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Is she. Is she trying to get it out of you?

[Unknown]

Oh, for sure, yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Wow.

[Unknown]

Yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

And friends and stuff, too?

[Unknown]

Honestly, not so much friends. A lot of my friends. A lot of my friends don't watch.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Don't watch?

[Unknown]

Yeah, it's kind of weird because, like, a lot of people have a hard time different reality and, you know, TV and entertainment and so it. It gives. Like. Yeah, they just typically won't watch their friend's stuff. Like, obviously, music is another thing where they, like, listen to their songs and stuff. But as far as acting goes, really.

[Amanda Hirsch]

You'Re not like, you watch my. Me being leading man, I haven't watched.

[Unknown]

Most of my own stuff.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Really?

[Unknown]

Yeah, absolutely.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Is it hard for you to watch yourself?

[Unknown]

I think it used to be really hard. I used to be very critical of everything and. And I had an actor tell me, oh, my gosh, who was it? Oh, he played my dad in Walker. He was like, none of us know what we're doing. We're all just get to work and we just, like, pretend that we know what we're doing.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Right.

[Unknown]

And it gave me a lot. It gave me a lot. Yeah, it gave me a lot of peace. I was like, oh, my gosh. You know, there's such a. There's such a pressure as an actor to have the perfect process and the perfect script material and the perfect, like, have a routine for everything and a ritual in the morning and all these things. And. And. And when he's like, dude, we none of us know what we're doing, I was like, oh, okay, great. So y' all are all feeling the same way I am. Yeah, but you're just. Have come to terms with it, and now you're. Now you're just doing work and you're doing what you love. And so now I just do what I love and hang out and.

[Amanda Hirsch]

And were you getting a bit of what people call imposter syndrome?

[Unknown]

No.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Okay.

[Unknown]

No, no. I. A lot of my friends have had a hard time with that. But, dude, I've been doing this since I was four. Like, I've been. I've been really. I've. I've been at the bottom and I've been at the top and, like, at least in my own life.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Right. But now I realize I was saying wrong.

[Unknown]

I was like, you know, staining fences with my buddy John and. And doing landscaping and. And all the things. And so I've. I've. I've had a lot of different flavors of life and.

[Amanda Hirsch]

And how old? You're only 25.

[Unknown]

Yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Flavors of life. And he's only 25.

[Unknown]

That was right off the dome. So I felt. Felt good about that one.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Wait, so. So you were doing these TikToks and Instagrams and you got up to, like, how many followers by the time you. Oh, like, were you.

[Unknown]

When I was. So I didn't have any projects or anything, and I was posting three times a day, and I was going live an hour a day, and I'd probably make, like, $75 an hour on Live. And so I just go live for an hour a day because that was that. That the money that people would gift me is the money that I would use for food that day.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Wow.

[Unknown]

And sometimes it wasn't. Sometimes, like, 75 was usually pretty good, but sometimes it was like 15. And so then I'd use, like.

[Amanda Hirsch]

What would you do on the lives. What were you saying?

[Unknown]

I would just listen to music and then, like, respond to questions and just hang out and just.

[Amanda Hirsch]

This is on TikTok Live, because that's where the.

[Unknown]

Okay, yeah, yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

How did that make you feel? Like, weird that people were kind of, like, giving you money. I know people do this on TikTok Live.

[Unknown]

You know, I didn't really think about it that much because I was like, yeah, pretty much what you give me is what I'm going to be. Food. So, yeah, I'd be really great.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Damn. Good for you.

[Unknown]

It was a rough. That was definitely, like, a rough season of my life where I'm grateful I went through it. I think I'm a big believer. I think everyone needs to do, like, a serving job in the food industry or, like, a retail job. I think everybody needs to, because it really puts your life in perspective and puts people's hard work and, like, all these different things. Like, there's so many little nuances that you don't understand, especially with social media. People are just getting millions of dollars and not even having a job, and they lose touch with reality. And I'm just super grateful for having gone through that, having nothing, like, genuinely having someone else buy me a plane ticket back home, because I just couldn't even afford that. Like, I just had nothing. My parents Couldn't help me either. So even though they wanted to, but yeah, it was just, it was an interesting part of life.

[Amanda Hirsch]

I'm great. Wow.

[Unknown]

Yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

We'll be right back after the break. I like to give weekly reminders to my listeners and my followers about not getting a bob because it grows out after one minute and then you're left with the, like, weird length situation. You know, you're in this era of it, like growing out and taking time and then poof, you have long hair. So my hair is super long right now. And I feel like part of it is that I've been so consistent about taking my neutrophil ever since I gave birth because I really am hyper aware of all the hormonal changes that happen postpartum and that I was super serious about taking my neutrophil postpartum to kind of combat that. Neutrophil is the number one dermatologist recommended hair growth supplement brand. It's trusted by over one and a half million people. And listen, anything truly worthwhile takes time and effort. So if you're going to give Neutrophil a shot, you need to give it around three to six months and you will see thicker, stronger, faster growing hair with less shedding. This summer, stop worrying about your hair and start making memories. For a limited time, Neutrful is offering my listeners $10 off your first month subscription and free shipping. When you go to neutrful.com and enter the promo code not skinny10. Find out why neutrful is the bestselling hair growth supplement [e-mail] it's spelled n u t r a f o l dot com. The promo code is not skinny10. That's neutrophil.com promo code, not skinny10. Okay, you guys know that I'm always online shopping. Like me at a store. Actually, this does not occur. This is my cardio. Okay, but what if I told you that you could actually get money back for spending money? That's the dream, is it not? Enter Rakuten. It's literally free to sign up. And when you shop through their cider app, it places you're already shopping. I'm talking Sephora, Ulta, Nike, Saks, whatever your vibe is. Rakuten gives you cash back. Real money. Not points, not vibes, Cash. Rakuten is the real deal. You know how I know? Because I got a check to my house. It was $21 and it was magical because I bought a pair of Adidas sneakers through Rakuten and then Got that cash back. I could also have it deposited directly into my paypal, but I want it to be dramatic and have a physical check. Now it's become part of my routine. I want to buy something, I check. If it's on Rakuten. It is. I buy it through Rakuten because why not get cash back, you guys? They also have exclusive deals and coupon codes, which you know, I live for. And you can see stack them so it's not just cash back. It's like deals on top of deals. Download the free Rakuten app or go to rakuten.com to start saving today. That's spelled R A K U t e n rakuten.com.

[Gavin Castellano]

Hi, guys. It's Jordan from the Balance Blonde Soul on Fire podcast. On my show, we go deep on all things astrology, awakening, motherhood, channel, channeling, healing, and so much more. A few years ago, I was diagnosed with chronic Lyme disease, and the healing journey I embarked on at that time set me on the path to radical awakening. Let's just say I had no choice but to change my energy, and that opened me up to the most beautiful healing of my life. On my show, you can expect to feel like you're sitting in my living room chatting with old friends. Tune in every Wednesday to connect and hang on the balance wand. Soul on fire.

[Amanda Hirsch]

And we're back. So give us now a little bit of the trajectory. Four years old, you're doing some stuff, right? Because people are like, wow, what a beautiful boy. He should be a model. Is that how it works?

[Unknown]

Something like that. I was at. It was that. It was at church. I grew up going to church, and I think a youth pastor or someone was like, have you ever thought about getting your kid into modeling? To my mom, and she was like, no, but I'll see what happens. And we. She got an application or whatever. How? She took photos, headshots, sent it to an agency, Campbell Agency, which I was there for, like, 15 years. And I started modeling right off the bat. Like, kids books and the whole. The whole thing. JCPenney's and all that.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Really? Yeah. Do you remember it? Like, I don't have memories.

[Unknown]

Oh, yeah. I have photos. I have photos of all. Like, a lot of the modeling gigs that I did back then. And I remember having a blast.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Really?

[Unknown]

Yeah. Yeah. It was so fun. Like, you're getting to skip school, not do homework, get paid. I'm. I'm having a job that's paying me more for, like, a couple hours of work than.

[Amanda Hirsch]

No, but what do you know about money when you're nothing? You're like, how much was that put in the bank?

[Unknown]

Yeah, yeah, I have no idea. I'm like, I just want a Happy Meal, man. Like get his Pokemon card or something.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Like, do you remember starting to like see like, oh, maybe I could act or maybe when you were a little older.

[Unknown]

Honestly, no, it was a, there was so there was a Sony commercial and way back when it was old school camera nowadays, but they pretty much were like, just run around and we're going to film you and yeah, let's have a good time. And I was like, that was like my first commercial. And I was like, this is acting easy. I can do that.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Yeah.

[Unknown]

And so I just naturally kind of found myself wanting to do more of that. And then by the age of 10, I booked a movie. It was a, it was an independent film, million dollar budget. It was super. The best way to enter into the film industry. It's called I Am Gabriel and I'm still friends with a lot of the producers and.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Oh, really?

[Unknown]

Yeah, yeah, they're awesome.

[Amanda Hirsch]

So how old were you when you did that?

[Unknown]

10. Turning 11.

[Amanda Hirsch]

10. Turning 11.

[Unknown]

And I was number one on the call sheet. Was in every single page.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Wow.

[Unknown]

Working my butt off. Yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Are you proud of that film? Like you watch it now and you're like, look at me. I was me.

[Unknown]

You know, it's, it's cool being able to watch one of the first things you did and, and see like. I think the reason that I am big into acting now is because I realized the impact that, you know, film and television entertainment has on people.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Yeah.

[Unknown]

I still get DMs and messages. It was a faith based film and I get, I get messages from people or people will come up to me being like randomly like. And it's kind of a nice surprise when it happens, but they're like, hey, like, that movie changed my life. And you know, we started going back to church or whatever it is and, and I made me want to pray more, whatever. Whatever it might be. And it like really like seeing the impact that art can have on people's lives was so special. And especially for something like the summer I turned pretty too, like with the whole, the cancer element and those things. And that's a real struggle that people deal with daily, you know, a lot of people. And to be able to kind of tell that story as well and really kind of try to capture the heart of what that is and the struggles that happens in people's lives is so fun. It's Beautiful. And it's very serious. It's weighty.

[Amanda Hirsch]

So you did Gabriel when you were 10 or 11?

[Unknown]

Yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Did you go to normal elementary, middle, high school?

[Unknown]

Yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Okay.

[Unknown]

Yeah. That's funny. I didn't tell anybody that I was acting or modeling, because I was like, if they do, they're all gonna make fun of me and stuff.

[Amanda Hirsch]

You thought you would get bullied for it?

[Unknown]

Oh, yeah. And I did. Eventually. I did definitely get bullied for it. But it's cool, because I was like, you know what's funny is, as I used to say this, and it sounds bad. I was young, but I was like, y' all can go to your house parties and your birthday parties and whatever. I know when I'm older, I'm gonna be partying on a yacht, so peace out.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Oh.

[Unknown]

Because I would get bullied just relentlessly.

[Amanda Hirsch]

And so you were like, no, I'm doing this.

[Unknown]

Yeah. I'm gonna make it like, yeah, I'm gonna. Like, you can have your funhouse parties now. But I'm. I'm saving up for.

[Amanda Hirsch]

And you know what? That. Manifesting something like that. No, for reals. That's what you were doing.

[Unknown]

Well, you know what's funny is literally yesterday I was on the Tonight show, and. And the room that they had me in was the yacht room, and each room had, like, a different theme.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Oh, wow.

[Unknown]

The room they had me in was the yacht room.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Look at me now.

[Unknown]

I took a photo of it because I was like, oh, my gosh. Like, whoa. That's just such a. That's such a full 360 moment of, like, you know, it was really special.

[Amanda Hirsch]

That is so cool.

[Unknown]

Yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Do you want those friends from high school to see you? Like, are you a little bit happy that you're like, no.

[Unknown]

I mean, I don't have any. I don't have any negative feelings, I think. Yeah. But bullying built character for me, and so it forced me to kind of have thicker skin. And especially in the industry, like, you hear a hundred million no's before you hear first. Yes. And I think that kind of helped me get more into it. And I wasn't super popular in high school.

[Amanda Hirsch]

You weren't?

[Unknown]

No, not at all. I was a nerd. I played Super Smash Bros. My life.

[Amanda Hirsch]

This is like, how are we supposed to believe this? No, you weren't.

[Unknown]

No, seriously. I knew everyone's first and last name. Like, I was, like, acquaintances with everyone.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Yeah.

[Unknown]

But I was never in the popular group. I was never in the sporty jock group. I was just kind of like, but.

[Amanda Hirsch]

How you're tall and handsome.

[Unknown]

Because I was not that tall or handsome when I was growing up.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Really?

[Unknown]

No, no. I was still, like. I think I was, like, five, like, five, six, five, seven until, like, sophomore year. And then I was like, like, six foot two. Like, just shot up.

[Amanda Hirsch]

So even by the time you were a senior, you weren't popular?

[Unknown]

No, I also did on after. So after about two weeks in public school, I pretty much was like, this is insane. And I was already working with adults, and I was just on a maturity level, emotionally. Maturity levels, like, all these things. I didn't relate to anybody my age anymore. And so I started doing online school, and I graduated. I took some extra classes, and I graduated it, like, a year early. A year.

[Amanda Hirsch]

So when did you start doing this?

[Unknown]

Sophomore year.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Oh, sophomore year.

[Unknown]

So you, like, second week of sophomore year, I left.

[Amanda Hirsch]

So you left your sophomore year?

[Unknown]

Yeah. And then graduated early. Oh, yeah. Yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

What was that a big decision to make? The, like. Was it?

[Unknown]

Yeah, I was honestly over it at that point. Like, high school is such a. Such a. It's so much drama and gossip and who's dating who and who hooked up with who. And I was like, guys, like, I'm just. I'm trying to have a career and, like, makeup.

[Amanda Hirsch]

You were taking this very serious.

[Unknown]

I was like, I'm not. I don't care about all the little things happening of which teacher. You don't. Like, like, get over it. Life is. High school is such a blip of your existence. Like, it shouldn't be your whole life. And that was kind of.

[Amanda Hirsch]

But do you feel now that you. Is there any part of you that feels sad that you missed out on some of it?

[Unknown]

No.

[Regina]

Okay.

[Unknown]

Yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

I mean, you got a taste of it. You got the taste of those, like, I did.

[Unknown]

But honestly, there's something. There's something that I live my life based on. It's an eternal significance. Like, what's going to have a significance in eternity and staying in public school is not gonna matter. Like, I want to live for something much more, greater and bigger than me, and I don't want to get caught up in the little, like, gossip and drama and stupid.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Yeah.

[Unknown]

Like, stupidity that we, like so many high schoolers fall into. And I just. I don't. I don't want to.

[Amanda Hirsch]

You felt like you were over it?

[Unknown]

Yeah. Yeah. I want to live for something bigger than me. I don't want to just keep living in, like, who do I. Like this week? You know?

[Amanda Hirsch]

So were you not dating girls in high school?

[Unknown]

I did. I did date. Yeah. I had a girlfriend in high school, but it wasn't like, serious, you know, like, high school relationships were never super.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. So, okay, so you're already taking this so seriously. You want to finish. You want to finish high school online? You do that. Do you move to LA after?

[Unknown]

Moved to LA at the end of my 17th year of living, so I was about to turn 18, like, a month after I moved. So I moved right after high school to LA by myself. My mom helped me move in for, like, a couple weeks, which was super. Thanks, mom. Love you. Which is super great. I needed that. But, yeah, I was young, 17, moving out there. I was like, Acting is in LA. I'm gonna go here, right?

[Amanda Hirsch]

And yeah, and then where do you start?

[Unknown]

Where do I say? And what. What do you mean?

[Amanda Hirsch]

Like, you. You land. You just start going on a lot of auditions.

[Unknown]

Yeah, tons of auditions. I did a pilot for something in. Is a very interesting pilot. Didn't get picked up, which I'm like, all right, cool.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Yeah, that happens.

[Unknown]

Yeah. Yeah. I'm not. Not mad about it. And then I kept trying to audition, and I honestly didn't really book anything. Living in la. I did a lot of modeling. I worked for Hollister and different things like that. Yeah. Which apparently they said they're Team Conrad, so now I'm just, like, not wearing Hollister anymore. A little bitter about that one, but, yeah. So I really didn't book any.

[Amanda Hirsch]

So what age did you get, Jeremiah? 25. Now we're in 21.

[Unknown]

Yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

So there were like three kind of dry years.

[Unknown]

Big time. Didn't book. I didn't book anything. It was. It was actually crazy. Like, I was this first. It was a year and a half in, and I was living in Burbank with a friend, Matt Cornett, who is so funny. We were like, best friends, but also look super similar and going on, like, all the same auditions.

[Amanda Hirsch]

My God.

[Unknown]

Or homies. And it was super cool. And that doesn't happen always, but, yeah, we were like homies back.

[Amanda Hirsch]

And you would get the same auditions.

[Unknown]

Yeah, all the time.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Did he audition for Jeremiah?

[Unknown]

I don't know. I don't know, actually. I don't know. I never talked to him about that. But yeah, there was those moments in LA where I was literally like, God, like, I'm not gonna be able to afford next month's rent and it's in a week. Like, I need you to come through. And I literally remember, like, vividly where I was saying that prayer and not even Five minutes after I say, like, amen. Like, finish it.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Yeah.

[Unknown]

I get a call from my manager of an audition that I did, like, a month and a half ago. Like, I was like, definitely didn't book that out of the. Like, you. When you don't audition for things, it's like, whatever.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Yeah.

[Unknown]

I get a call a month and a half later being like, hey, the main guy backed out. Would you want to. Would you want to be a part of this project? It's filming in Arizona for, like, a month, two months.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Yeah.

[Unknown]

And I was like, no way. Like, had gave me the money to pay for rent. I was out of this. I was working as different things. It was really great. So there's a lot of stories like that that happen. Yeah, for sure.

[Amanda Hirsch]

The last minute, you get, like, kind.

[Unknown]

Of like, yeah, keep me sustained. And then I moved out. I had nothing. Like, probably, like $4 in my bank. Couldn't afford a plane ticket, Was barely affording food.

[Amanda Hirsch]

We were doing the TikTok lives.

[Unknown]

I was trying. Yeah. And all that just to kind of prolong my stay out there and just really felt like, you know, it wasn't. It wasn't sustainable.

[Amanda Hirsch]

It wasn't.

[Unknown]

I had to go back home. So I went back home. Right. Like a month before COVID hit.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Okay.

[Unknown]

A month. Which I'm so grateful because Texas didn't really close a whole lot, so I was still able to, like, go to coffee shops and stuff. And. And then I started. That's when I did landscaping and retail and just kind of, like, I kind of dipped on acting. I was like, peace out. Like, I don't really.

[Amanda Hirsch]

You gave it a shot.

[Unknown]

Yeah. I was like, you know what? Whatever. Coming home kind of a little bit with my tail between my legs and just like, I'm just gonna work hard. I did construction for a little bit. I had, like, two construction jobs and a landscaping job. Like, the next day I got home. Yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

And then I'm like, at that time.

[Unknown]

I know, right?

[Amanda Hirsch]

And then.

[Unknown]

And then. And then I did that for a few months, and I. My manager sent me this. Or my agent. I forgot. They sent me this audition for. Oh, yeah. It was my. It was my friend slash agent, Joe Chavez. He sent me this audition, and it was for a western. And they're like, hey, would you want to be, like, this Romeo Juliet character? It's a western. You'd shoot guns, ride horses, and learn how to lasso and then be, like, the love interest. And I was like, you kidding me? Like, that's. That's a dream. Role.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Yeah.

[Unknown]

I'm so down.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Flashy. Would have said yes to, like, anything? No, not really.

[Unknown]

I was overacting at that point. If it was anything else, I probably would have said no.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Really?

[Unknown]

Because just seemed. And it was filming in Texas, so I know I could come back and visit my family. I was like, this is. This is a. This is gold. This is perfect. And so I say yes. It filmed with Jared Padalecki and Lindsay Morgan and some people that I, like, really looked up to in the acting world. And I just had a great time.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Oh, and it brought you back into it.

[Unknown]

It really made me be like, man, like, I feel like I'm made for this. And then the very next audition was the summer I turn pretty. And I didn't. What's funny is I. I was like, the audition wasn't super weird. It felt, like, very personal to me. I was like, this is like. I feel like this character is so me, especially, like, back then when I was a teenager. And so I did the audition at like 2 or 3am and I was just like, I'll see what happens.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Oh, you sent in a tape?

[Unknown]

Sent in a tape. And then they pretty much got back and were like, hey, you down for a chemistry read? And I was like, oh, with Lola? Yeah, Yeah. I remember there's this funny story I was wearing because Jeremiah's like, summer beachy. Like, you know, all this stuff. And even in one of the scripts, they said, I think it was, like, shirtless. And I was like, I don't really want to. I don't know about that.

[Amanda Hirsch]

You thought to maybe send in the tape shirtless?

[Unknown]

So I sent in a tape, but I didn't do it shirtless. I did it with, like. I did it with a button down that, like, went pretty low.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Okay.

[Unknown]

And. And the first thing that Jenny's said was like, hey, do you mind, like, buttoning that up? And I was like, oh, yeah, of course. And I was like, I'm so embarrassed. I'm like, oh, my God.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Like, I didn't come in without.

[Unknown]

Yeah, right. It would have been so funny.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Oh, my God.

[Unknown]

But. But that kind of started Jenny and I's relationship, and I love her so much.

[Amanda Hirsch]

She's.

[Unknown]

She's so. She's so amazing. One of the best, like, bosses and co workers. She's great. And so, yeah, it was just a. It was a funny time and we ended up.

[Amanda Hirsch]

And you got it.

[Unknown]

Yeah, it was weird. I also couldn't remember. I. I wasn't good at zoom because I really wasn't doing A whole lot of zooms and I was like. Did a half and half screen.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Oh, cuz the chemistry read. Lola, the chemistry read was on zoom too.

[Unknown]

Yeah. So I did a. With like my face was here and Lois face was here and I was like looking between our faces on the chemistry read and I was like, this is. I don't know how to do it was really funny. It was great.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Yeah. And you got it.

[Unknown]

Yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

And did you. Where did it film?

[Unknown]

North Carolina. Wilmington.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Okay, so you had favorite places in the world, so you had to move there.

[Unknown]

Yeah, move there for a couple months. Big beach town. Like beach town. Everything's like coffee shops everywhere. It takes 15 minutes to get anywhere. The weather's amazing. The oceans are like, the beaches are beautiful. I've really fallen in love with that place and it was a great place to film. Yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

We'll be right back after the break. Okay, moms, parents, people who've ever tried to change a baby in the middle of the night while half asleep and basically blind, this one is for you. Let me introduce you to Magnetic Me, a brand that straight up changed the game when it comes to baby clothes. Because instead of tiny buttons or impossible snaps or zippers, they use magnets. You just line it up and it closes like magic. It's so satisfying. It's like asmr, but for parents. Honestly, I've literally sold my soul for these during those newborn blowout days when you're just changing them up the wazoo. It's not just the magnets though. These clothes are so soft. Like, Noah also has Magnetic Me pajamas. And Lenny also has a pair of Magnetic Me pajamas that he's not even fully only in those footies anymore. This is like a short sleeve set. That's so adorable and so soft. He's in it like every day. I think it has like duckies on it. Just so cute. Magnetic means clothing makes changing time quick and easy. All the clothes use magnetic closures. No zippers or buttons needed. Do what I do. Order Magnetic Me today to make changing time easier for you and your little one. And also these make great gifts for family or friends with babies. New customers get 15% off your first order when you go to Magnetic Me dot com. Don't wait. Order today at Magnetic Me dot com. Back to school means new schedules and a long list of to dos. Check wellness off the list with Ollie, the number one kid supplement brand that offers effortless solutions for your fam kids. Multiplus Probiotic is a tasty essential that kids love. Make bedtime a Breeze with kids sleep gentle support to help them rest. Ollie has parents back with multivitamins that support key nutrients for their immune system. And more need help shutting it down at night Sleep gummies help you rest peacefully. Let Ollie support you and your crew this season. [e-mail] or retailers nationwide. These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, prevent any disease. You guys, if I needed to get a new phone plan right now, I would go to one place. In one place only, I'd go to Mint Mobile. With Mint you can get the coverage and speed that you're used to in other wireless plans. But for for way less money. Don't you want to get the best deal? They got it. For a limited time, Mint mobile is offering three months of unlimited premium wireless service for $15 a month. So while the rest of your friends are sweating over data, overages and surprise charges, you'll be chillin. So say by your overpriced wireless plans, jaw dropping monthly bills and unexpected overages, Min Mobile is here to rescue you. All plans come with speed data and unlimited talk and text because duh, like we're in 2025. Use your own phone with any Min Mobile plan and bring your phone number come with all your contacts too. So ditch overpriced wireless and get three months of unlimited service from Mint Mobile for 15 bucks a month. This year is skip breaking a sweat and breaking the bank. Get this new customer offer and your three month unlimited wireless plan for just 15 bucks a month. Mint mobile.com/not skinny. That's mint mobile.com/not skinny. Upfront payment of $45 required equivalent to $15 a month limited time new customer offer for first three months only. Speeds may slow above 35 GB on unlimited plan taxes and fees. Extra cement Mobile for details. And we're back. And you are now the star of a huge show.

[Unknown]

Something like that.

[Amanda Hirsch]

People are so obsessed with they need to be warned. Can we talk about this warning that was sent out by the show to fans? Yeah, there was a. The. The. The summer I turned pretty send out kind of a warning to fans saying we're coming back. Everyone needs to be nice. This is a no bullying zone. And if you bully. You didn't know about this?

[Unknown]

No.

[Amanda Hirsch]

And if you bully any of the. The cast, the. The crew. Even though who's bullying the crew, let's be honest, then it won't be tolerated. You're going to be blocked from the page.

[Unknown]

Wow.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Yeah, it's Zero tolerance policy. So what is happening? Like, we see how crazy it gets because I posted that it's back on and that I'm watching it and I already seen my DMs, moms. Okay. Being like, I woke up at 5:00am and I. And I was like, oh, my God, like, people are crazy. Or it's like, team this, Team this. And you know what? I don't know if anybody's made this comparison. I might just be a genius, but this is giving Team Edward. Did you watch Twilight ever?

[Unknown]

Oh, yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

This is Team Edward, Team Jacob. Like, that's the level that we're at. Which till this day, I mean, Twilight is 15, I don't know how many years ago, but this is where we're at. Yeah, it's that intense. The fandom is that crazy. Which means amazing things for the show and for its success. Yeah, but how intense does it get out there?

[Unknown]

Pretty. Pretty intense. Well, it's cool. Karen Rosenfeld was actually, I believe, one of the producers and writers, one of the producers for Twilight. And so we actually do have. She's so smart. She's so smart. Great businesswoman. And.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Oh, it's all Karen.

[Unknown]

Karen's great. Karen's great. I mean, there's a huge team. But yeah, it was awesome working with Karen. Cause she kind of knows the worlds.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Of the world of the teams.

[Unknown]

But no, I mean, it definitely has been crazy. It's funny. A lot of people will, like, take a photo with me and then be like, by the way, I'm Team Conrad. And they'd be like, peace. And then walk out.

[Amanda Hirsch]

How do you. So how do you be honest?

[Unknown]

Okay, do.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Does it hurt your feelings a little bit when somebody is Team Conrad? Like, do you take it personally for Jeremiah because you're him? Seriously?

[Unknown]

No.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Yes. We were just mad at who? Samsung? Were we mad at Sony? Fuji? Who are we? Who said that? Hollister.

[Unknown]

Oh, Hollister.

[Amanda Hirsch]

They were mad at them now.

[Unknown]

So funny. Well, I mean that I've worked with them for like, four years. And so that's.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Oh, that. You were like, yeah, come on, guys.

[Unknown]

Yeah, but. But no, I don't really have any. Like, it's that just. It's a. It's a marker of a great franchise. It's a marker of a great. Like, you know, Jenny did a great job at creating a series that people are so passionate about. And so to be able to see. To be able to see, like, people passionately for one character, the other is. Is, like, good. That means you're doing something right. That means the writing and it's, it's relatable and it's, you know, there's so many great things. And Chris is a fantastic actor. Lola's a fantastic actor.

[Amanda Hirsch]

What is the craziest thing a fan said to you on the street?

[Unknown]

Craziest thing a fan said to me. I don't really remember. I, I probably don't. There was one experience where I had of, of someone who, he lost his mom to cancer and they came up to me and just gave me a hug.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Aww.

[Unknown]

And yeah, someone who had lost his mom and really just struggled with cancer. And that was a really, that made me be like, whoa, this story's really touching people. It's not just a fun, awesome, drama filled love triangle, but it's actually got a lot of depth and meaning to it. And I think that is one of the things that's impacted me the most and really made me love the story we're telling.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Yeah. It means a lot to people. And I think even though you're like, the, the, the cancer story was very moving. And then there's the love triangle, which is a little, you know, more teeny. Whatever. It's still. I, I, I was watching the two first episodes and I was like tearing up and I was like, this means so much to people because it's like, about first love.

[Unknown]

Yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

You know, and that's why, you know, it's not some Cinderella story. Something that's not relatable. Like, people can relate to this and be like, that's how I felt with my one true love or my unrequited love.

[Unknown]

Totally. Or even people relating to like, like, Jenny based a lot of cousin speech on, like, Martha Vineyard and things like that. And so, like, I, I have actually my stylist Fiona. She was like, I grew up in Martha's Vineyard and the show reminds me of home and like, different things. And so I think they, they just did a really great job at thinking of all angles that people can, like, relate and love.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Right.

[Unknown]

Yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

I don't know how people find it so easy to be a team because, like, Jeremiah obviously loves Belly so much, you know, and he's so good to her, aside from how this season started, but whatever. But Conrad isn't even there. Like, Conrad isn't even there emotionally. So all these team Conrad people let Conrad grow up and get there. You're so scared to talk about teams because you're scared I'm gonna try to get the ending out of you. I am not trying to get the ending out of you. You're like, he'll never break me. What do you think is gonna happen to people at the end of this show? Like, first of all, this is the end of the show. Like, you announced the final season. How does that make you feel?

[Unknown]

Grateful and sad at the same time. I mean, similar to what Chris has said in the past. Like, we only just wish to tell the full story and character arc of all these characters and this love and this, this magical place, Cousins beach. Right. And so we only just hoped, like, four years. Was it four years ago now, I don't remember, like four years ago now, to like, be able to tell the whole story in all three books. And so that's been really fun to just kind of really go into depth and, and really tell their stories and see the growth of the characters. But it's also sad, you know, like, this is such a, this has been such a great project to work on and it's been so fun. Like, even the, even the crew is awesome and all the directors have been amazing and yeah, we've just gotten to work with some really amazing people. So it's been, it's been great.

[Amanda Hirsch]

It's like an end of an era.

[Unknown]

Yeah, it feels like it. Yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

But I have a question. Maybe you want it, but like, there are books out there, so can't people know how it ends if they read the books?

[Unknown]

I'm going to defer to Jenny's comment.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Oh, what did she say?

[Unknown]

She said that, that.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Defer. Defer.

[Unknown]

Yeah. I'm going to butcher this because I'm paraphrasing it, but essentially she said that it's, there's, there's changes from the chance it's not going to be the same as the books.

[Amanda Hirsch]

So I would, I didn't even, like, look it up because I don't even want to know what the book says and what is real. You said that you really connected with Jeremiah from the beginning. Since you read the script, you were like, I'm this guy, so what are you, what are your similarities with him?

[Unknown]

Very, like, I would say, like, high energy, positive. I love, I love making people feel seen and I think that's something that Jeremiah is pretty good at. And, and obviously there's a lot. Like, as far as maturity goes, I would say Jeremiah is probably who I was when I was like 14 or 15. Right?

[Amanda Hirsch]

Oh, really?

[Unknown]

Yeah, just like, just. I have a lot more years under my belt now. But yeah, I would just say, like, mainly just the very happy, go lucky, positive, energetic, just wants to bring life and light into the room.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Yeah.

[Unknown]

He wants to be light. Right. And. And isn't there a. Isn't there. Someone says he's like Apollo, like the God of the sun. Isn't that what Susanna. I think Susanna has said that before. It was in the script somewhere. So I don't know.

[Amanda Hirsch]

And what are you different than him?

[Unknown]

Different? I would just go. I'd say, like, maturity.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Oh, maturity. Feel like he's immature.

[Unknown]

I mean, everyone has their mature and immature places in their life. But I think. I think Jeremiah had a lot to learn. He's a lot to learn. I think in season three, you really get to see a more mature version of him than in the past and.

[Amanda Hirsch]

More and more layers. Right?

[Unknown]

Yeah. Yeah. Because you get to see. I mean, you've been with these characters for years now, and now they're in college and like, as you know, there's. There's a lot that happens in college and different things, like.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Right. You know, so if you had to make the case of why you think Jeremiah is the guy for Belly, what would you say?

[Unknown]

I. I'm a big believer in marrying your best friend.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Yeah.

[Unknown]

I think. I think you can have a spark with anyone. You. That's. It's true. You can have a spark with anyone. You can find something attractive about everyone. Right. But it's the people that. That you're friends with that. It's friendships that last a lifetime. It's not a spark.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Right. It's so true.

[Unknown]

And eventually those sparks can turn into friendships. Right. Like, we've seen that tons of people are married and can. Can attest to that. But I think ultimately, like, the friendships are the deeper and more fun and.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Layered relationships, and that lasts the test of time.

[Unknown]

Yeah, exactly. So that's. That's. That's what I was.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Your case.

[Unknown]

Yeah, for sure.

[Amanda Hirsch]

We talked a lot about relationships and getting married and all the. And you're married. You're married.

[Unknown]

Heck, yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

At 25, you're married.

[Unknown]

Darn right.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Which is giving Jeremiah, because at the end of episode two, he just proposed. That also happened.

[Unknown]

Yeah, well, that happened in two. Oh, my gosh. Yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Yeah. I'm telling you, you guys, I was on a roller coaster.

[Unknown]

That's so nuts.

[Amanda Hirsch]

So that's. So you're similar to Jeremiah in that way that you're both.

[Unknown]

Well, I think there's. There's a lot of different scenarios and circumstances, for sure. Yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

You got married at what age?

[Unknown]

25.

[Amanda Hirsch]

25. Young.

[Unknown]

Yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Did you always want to get married young?

[Unknown]

I want to be a young dad. Like, I Want to. You know, I had the, you know, awesome circumstance of, like, my. My parents were really young. I think they even had me, like, 25, 26 or something. And so I. Some of my favorite memories with my dad are, like, him bouncing on the trampoline with me and being young enough to be able to do that and healthy enough or, like, playing soccer with me or, like, different things. And so I always had dreams just to be similar to, like, my dad in that circumstance of being able to, like, live life with your kids, you know, it's such a fun. Be their best friend. And so that's kind of like, as far as getting married early, that's also like, I want to. Like, I don't want to waste my time. Like, if I know who I want to marry and I know this is the one, then why waste time?

[Amanda Hirsch]

Why waste time?

[Unknown]

Yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

How long were you with your wife before you proposed?

[Unknown]

Good question. I think, like, over a year. Somewhere over a year. I don't really remember. The.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Lots happened the last two years and you surprised her. She didn't know.

[Unknown]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. She had no idea.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Was she like, what are you doing? We've been dating for a year.

[Unknown]

No, no, we both. Yeah, absolutely.

[Amanda Hirsch]

You're both in the same head space.

[Unknown]

Like, if you know. If you know who you want to marry and it's your life partner, that's. That's the most important. Like, your marriage is. Is one of the most important decisions you'll ever make in life.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Yeah.

[Unknown]

More so than the show or the life or whatever jobs. Like, your marriage is the most important thing. And for me, that's. That's the case.

[Amanda Hirsch]

What changed after being married? In the relationship? Anything.

[Unknown]

What changed, like, as far as you.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Feel, like, different now that you're a married man, is it like. Oh, it feels the same.

[Unknown]

It's awesome. Yeah. Marriage is so great. Like, there's. There's a kind of love and nearness that you will never feel until you're married. And it's. It's true. Like, and, yeah, I'm just so super grateful, like, to have. I mean, she's amazing. She's so great. She's so patient with me. And we have a crazy industry that we work in, and she's.

[Amanda Hirsch]

She's also in the industry.

[Unknown]

No, no. So she's actually a nurse. And then is now. She was always kind of passionate about fashion, and so she is moving more into, like, the fashion space of things. And she's been really loving it. I'm really proud of her.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Oh, that's amazing. Are you living in LA still?

[Unknown]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Okay. Okay.

[Unknown]

Yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Because I could see you kind of maybe one day going back to a more quieter.

[Unknown]

Oh, for sure. I want to be off the grid and live on a ranch and, like, not talk to anybody, really. Neighbors. Oh, my God. Yeah. Kidding me. Not have any horses and cows and.

[Amanda Hirsch]

That'S hanging out with some chickens.

[Unknown]

Absolutely, yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

So you have two siblings, right?

[Unknown]

I do, yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

And you're the oldest.

[Unknown]

I am the oldest.

[Amanda Hirsch]

So it's giving Conrad, not Jeremiah.

[Unknown]

No, no, no, no.

[Amanda Hirsch]

It's still a Jeremiah at heart, for sure. And your younger sister, I saw, she's also, like, in the. She's acting or something.

[Unknown]

She used to do acting. She was like, this ain't for me.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Oh, she didn't like it?

[Unknown]

Yeah, no, no. But it was cute. I think she was just kind of following in my footsteps. My brother did acting as well. He did like a. He started. Did it for a few years and then was like, yeah, this is not for me. I'm pretty much the only one that stuck with it. But she. Now, my sister is doing, like. She wants to be a vet and she wants to do, like, large animal stuff, like horses and cows and things. And so, yeah, I'm proud of her.

[Amanda Hirsch]

What would you want to do if you weren't acting? Because he said he went back home. You were doing, like, the landscaping and the. But if you.

[Unknown]

I would want to do real estate. I think real estate's super fast. I love it. I love it so much. I probably want to do real estate or either, like, pro volleyball or just surf and hang out. Like, I don't know. I'm super. Not high maintenance at all.

[Amanda Hirsch]

And you're, like, outdoorsy.

[Unknown]

Yeah, yeah, big time.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Have you met any, like, actor or actress since you've started that, like, really were, like, fanboying over? You couldn't contain your excitement.

[Unknown]

Couldn't contain my excitement. The only encounter that I ever had where I felt that way because ultimately everyone is just a human being. Right. So we're all flawed and broken people. But I was 12 and I met Emma Watson and she introduced herself to me in her accent, and I was like, I. I'm in love. This is amazing. And I was. I was fanboy.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Was that. And that was probably, like, around Harry Potter coming out. No. How old was she in Harry Potter? Maybe that was even before.

[Unknown]

No, it wasn't before. It was like, 2012 when we started filming. Maybe earlier. Yeah, 2012. So I don't. I don't. I don't know the timeline with that, but.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Yeah, I love that you're sticking to that.

[Unknown]

She's so sweet. She was so sweet. Like, she's one of the kindest people I've met. Like, going out of her way to make me feel comfortable and. Yeah, it was, it was really cool.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Oh, that's awesome. I hope you get like, more stories.

[Unknown]

Yeah, me too.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Or keep saying Emma Watson forever and it'll be the sweetest thing.

[Unknown]

She's pretty up there.

[Amanda Hirsch]

She's really up there.

[Unknown]

Yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Do you ever read like fan theories edits about the show?

[Unknown]

No.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Okay. You stay away from that.

[Unknown]

Four minutes a day on social media and I. What do you mean you have like, I have it locked. Like it locks itself after like four or five minutes.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Why?

[Unknown]

Because I don't want to see. It's a. That's a. It's a. It's a black hole. You just. You find yourself doom scrolling for four hours and you're like, I'm super grateful. I have seen some really funny, like, Jeremiah edits. Typically, like my mom or my sister will send them to me.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Yeah. Usually my sister sending you the good stuff. They're sending you the good stuff or.

[Unknown]

The stuff that like roasts me and that's, you know, it's always humbling. Like, what was the one where it's like Jeremiah, like waking up next to Jeremiah and had like the crazy blue eye filter. She's like, hi, good morning. It was really fun.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Wait, what did you send me? That someone was like, give him brown eyes but like, like they can look at you. Yeah. Someone said put brown guy.

[Unknown]

Yeah. Yeah. Hey, I wanted the soul. I'm listening.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Those. I. What are people complaining about? I don't understand. Okay. Be honest.

[Unknown]

Oh.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Now that we're. We're wrapping up and my final question to you, you have to be honest about this.

[Unknown]

Okay.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Team Jeremiah.

[Unknown]

I knew it. I knew it, I knew it. I knew. It's like, sorry, it's not in my contract, but it pretty much.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Pretty much is.

[Unknown]

Plus, like, you know, I just relate to him so much more. I don't. I don't.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Jeremiah, you're choosing.

[Unknown]

Yeah, I don't. And I don't necessarily relate to the more broody. The broody archetype of.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Yeah.

[Unknown]

Of. Of those love triangles.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Yeah.

[Unknown]

Just not. It's just not me or who I am. And so, yeah, I think you should always. I think the, the nice guy is always underrated and every, Every love triangle. And so like even. Even Jacob and Taylor.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Right.

[Unknown]

You know, like.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Right.

[Unknown]

Yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

So it's true.

[Unknown]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Amanda Hirsch]

You and Jacob. You and Taylor Lautner need to do that. You need to do that. Spider Man.

[Unknown]

I love him. Oh, dude, that would be so funny.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Funny.

[Unknown]

You should do something together in New York, like, me know. Yeah, that would be awesome.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Well, thank you so much for coming. I can't wait to watch the rest of the season.

[Unknown]

Thank you. I. Me too. Yeah, I don't know what's going to happen.

[Amanda Hirsch]

What up?

[Unknown]

Yeah. Yeah. For real.

[Amanda Hirsch]

Thank you guys so much for listening to this episode of Knots Kenny, but not fat. Follow me on Instagram at Not skinny, but not fat. Subscribe to the podcast so you don't miss any episodes. Rate the podcast that you love so much on Apple Podcasts and write a little review. If you tell me you did, I'll give you a big virtual smoocharoo. Thank you guys so much for listening and I'll see you next Tuesday.

[Regina]

Please note that this episode may contain paid endorsements and advertisements for products and services. Individuals on the show may have a direct or indirect financial interest in products or services referred to in this episode.