A video of Aubrey Plaza being interviewed on “Lopez Tonight” from last week has appeared on Youtube! You can watch it below.
Janie
August 26, 2010
Interviews, Videos
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Interview: Aubrey Plaza
Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World is having a tough go of it at the box office. After being outperformed by Eat Pray Love and The Expendables in earnings last weekend, the film seems to be in need of a second wind. Aubrey Plaza, who stars in Edgar Wright’s eye-popping love story alongside Michael Cera and Jason Schwartzman, believes audiences may yet catch on.
“How can you make a movie that good and not have everyone run to the theatre to see it? Especially when it’s up against other movies that aren’t as special,” says the 24-year-old Plaza, who also stars as the deadpan April Ludgate on television’s Parks and Recreation. “It feels like a Ghostbusters, like a game-changer. It’s got heart, a message for young people and a story that even my parents could fully grasp.”
For Plaza, July 2008 is the moment when her professional career truly began. That month, she not only auditioned for Parks and Recreation and Scott Pilgrim, but she also read for the role of Seth Rogen’s love interest in Funny People, Judd Apatow’s semi-autobiographical dramedy. The actress was living in New York at the time and working with the Upright Citizens Brigade as a stand-up comic, but after the film opened, she was whisked away to Los Angeles.
“Being associated with Judd and Seth and that crew helped me gain some street cred,” says Plaza, who once dreamed of performing on Saturday Night Live. “That movie changed everything for me.”
Funny People premiered just as Parks and Recreation, a comedy from the team that brought The Office to the U.S. and starring Amy Poehler and Aziz Ansari, began its rise in the ratings. On the show, Plaza’s character shows the same sweet bored-to-death watchfulness as the other big roles she snagged in that fateful month.
“My sister Natalie is 19 years old, and whenever I go home I try to absorb her mannerisms and the way she talks and her general disinterested apathetic attitude,” Plaza says, with just a hint of a little laugh. “She’s amazing – there’s times when she’s interacting with her friends that are on a whole different level.”
Today, Plaza seems like she’s one role of away from reaching a whole different level herself. She’s currently reading scripts and writing her own material, and says she’s looking forward to leaving her Natalie-influenced performances behind.
“You put yourself out there in one way and people assume that’s entirely you, but those roles are only a tiny part of me,” she says. “I change all the time and I want to do everything, not just comedies. I don’t think people are out there writing a million scripts for me, but who knows? Maybe they will.”
From Dose.ca
Janie
August 22, 2010
Interviews
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‘Parks’ Plaza pleased with April changes
Aubrey Plaza has revealed that she is pleased with the way her Parks And Recreation character has developed.
Plaza, who plays April, told The AV Club that she was given a lot more to do in the show’s second season.
“In the first season, I did have a smaller role to play,” she said. “In the second season, I had this relationship that was kind of a motivation for April, so I think once that came into the picture, I found I had something I was fighting for, something I really cared about.”
She continued: “Up until then, [April] really just didn’t want to be there, so the comedy came out of that. But once you give her a goal, there are different choices and different things that come out of her. That was really important to me. It was really good for me to do that, because I think – I hope she’s not rolling her eyes in every scene. There’s more to her than that.”
Plaza also described the pairing of April and Andy (Chris Pratt) as “really cool”.
“I think April kind of represents a generation, in a way,” she said. “She represents this young force in the office. At first glance, you kind of write her off as this disaffected young person that is over it and doesn’t care about anything.
“But with the Andy stuff, it shows you – I don’t know. Maybe the message there is [that] there’s still something to be said about being positive and being around people that are just optimistic about life in general. That’s something young people need, or want secretly.”
Parks And Recreation is expected to return in midseason on NBC.
From Digital Spy
Janie
August 21, 2010
Interviews, Parks and Recreation
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Aubrey Plaza’s idea of method acting involves copying her 19-year-old sister
Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World is having a tough go of it at the box office. After being out-performed by Eat Pray Love and The Expendables in earnings last weekend, the film seems to be in need of a second wind. Aubrey Plaza, who stars in Edgar Wright’s eye-popping love story alongside Michael Cera and Jason Schwartzman, believes audiences may yet catch on.
“How can you make a movie that good and not have everyone run to the theatre to see it? Especially when it’s up against other movies that aren’t as special,” says the 24-year-old Plaza, who also stars as the deadpan April Ludgate on television’s Parks and Recreation. “It feels like a Ghostbusters, like a game-changer. It’s got heart, a message for young people and a story that even my parents could fully grasp.”
For Plaza, July 2008, is the moment when her professional career truly began. That month, she not only auditioned for Parks and Recreation and Scott Pilgrim, but she also read for the role of Seth Rogen’s love interest in Funny People, Judd Apatow’s semi-autobiographical dramedy. The actress was living in New York at the time and working with the Upright Citizens Brigade as a stand-up comic, but after the film opened, she was whisked away to Los Angeles.
“Being associated with Judd and Seth and that crew helped me gain some street cred,” says Plaza, who once dreamed of performing on Saturday Night Live. “That movie changed everything for me.”
Funny People premiered just as Parks and Recreation, a comedy from the team that brought The Office to the U.S. and starring Amy Poehler and Aziz Ansari, began its rise in the ratings. On the show, Plaza’s character shows the same sweet bored-to-death watchfulness as the other big roles she snagged in that fateful month.
“My sister Natalie’s 19 years old, and whenever I go home I try to absorb her mannerisms and the way she talks and her general disinterested apathetic attitude,” Plaza says, with just a hint of a little laugh. “She’s amazing — there’s times when she’s interacting with her friends that are on a whole different level.”
Today, Plaza seems like she’s one role of away from reaching a whole different level herself. She’s currently reading scripts and writing her own material, and says she’s looking forward to leaving her Natalie-influenced performances behind.
“You put yourself out there in one way and people assume that’s entirely you, but those roles are only a tiny part of me,” she says. “I change all the time and I want to do everything, not just comedies. I don’t think people are out there writing a million scripts for me, but who knows? Maybe they will.”
From the National Post
Janie
August 19, 2010
Articles
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Aubrey Plaza To Appear At Stand Up To Cancer Event
Aubrey Plaza is scheduled to appear at the 2010 Stand Up To Cancer event in Los Angeles. The telethon will be aired on September 10, 2010 at 8PM – all proceeds from the telethon benefit the Stand Up 2 Cancer Foundation. The one-hour fundraising event will be simulcast live and commercial-free on ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC, Bio, Discovery Health, E!, G4, HBO, HBO Latino, MLB Network, mun2, Showtime, Smithsonian Channel, The Style Network, TV One, and VH1.
Janie
August 19, 2010
Charity, TV Alerts
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25th Annual Imagen Awards Luncheon Ceremony
I have just added 19 HQ and MQ photos of Aubrey Plaza at the 25th Annual Imagen Awards in Los Angeles.
Janie
August 18, 2010
Appearances, Photos
1 Reply
Aubrey Plaza on Scott Pilgrim vs. the World and Why She’s More Than Just ‘That Girl Who Rolls Her Eyes’
Aubrey Plaza isn’t just a girl who spells her name with a “b” instead of a “d.” She’s the current champion of eye-rolling on TV (as sarcastic intern April on Parks and Recreation) and now film. In the comic-book adaptation Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, she plays Julie Powers, whose expletive-filled rants against Scott (Michael Cera) are one of the film’s best running gags. We spoke with Plaza about working on a movie with a cult following, seeing Scott Pilgrim at Comic-Con, and the nascent love between Parks and Rec’s April and Andy.
Where did you first see the movie?
I saw it at a screening with thousands of people at Comic-Con — they were going insane, jumping out of their seats. There was this entire mini-amusement-park that was all Scott Pilgrim–themed, called The Scott Pilgrim Experience. And they had us stationed in different areas, like helping fans make T-shirts, signing autographs, and playing video games.
Did you know about the comic book’s cult fan base before you took the part?
I was surprised. I knew the comic books were popular, but I didn’t know just how popular. I honestly didn’t know anything about the series, so I went out and bought all of them — I planned on skimming them, but I read every one in two days. I’m not really into comic books, but I really, really liked these. It was insane seeing people dressed up as different characters from the book, before the movie even came out. Michael Cera actually came in with a gorilla mask on, and so no one knew he was there. He was waiting in line for the different stations — I knew it was him because of his body language; it was pretty funny.
Did you see anyone dressed up as your character?
No, I didn’t see any Julie Powers. I guess, like, that costume would just be a ponytail, glasses, and a barista outfit. Maybe people were dressed like her, but I just didn’t notice.
How do you draw inspiration for a character that basically just curses the entire time?
When we were starting to shoot the film, [director] Edgar [Wright] and [Scott Pilgrim author] Bryan [Lee O'Malley] gave each actor a sheet of ten secret facts about our characters that were maybe not in the books. Some of them informed the characters, and some of them were just kind of silly, like, Julie Powers is allergic to cauliflower or something. And we weren’t allowed to share them with other cast members. And one of my secret facts was that Julie had a massive crush on Scott Pilgrim in college, and he never liked her. So that was helpful, ’cause I was like, No wonder she hates him.
Amy Poehler just had her baby. When do you get back to Parks and Recreation?
We already shot the first six episodes of season three in May, and we’re still on break until the last week in September. I’m excited to go back; it feels so weird and so long ago that we were shooting. It’s going to feel like, “Back to school!” We’ve done six, and so the seventh episode, watch to see if we look really different. I’m going to try to look really different. Get really tan, really fat, and cut my hair. That would make [co-creator] Greg Daniels happy, I’m sure.
One of my favorite story lines is April and Andy’s bumbling love.
You know, the writers didn’t always have that in mind. It came out of this improvised moment from the finale of season one. Andy’s trying to get everyone to go to his rock show, and he’s trying to explain what kind of music his band plays, and he’s like, “It’s like, Coldplay meets Dave Matthews, meets whatever … ” And everyone’s like, “I don’t get it, I don’t get.” And I didn’t have any lines in the scene, but we did one take where I looked at him with flirty eyes and was like, “I totally get it.” I think the writers caught that and thought, Wow, that might be something — April has a crush on him!
Are you worried about getting typecast as “that girl who rolls her eyes”?
Yeah, I think it would be frustrating if that’s all people expect of me. So I guess my job is to do more things, and do different characters. I talked to Michael Cera about it, and he gets a lot of flack for playing the same kinds of roles. It’s really hard because once you do something and you do it well, people can’t see past it.
Did Cera give you any good advice?
He told me to do as many drugs as possible and just totally lose my mind by the age of 27. Then I should drive my car into a ditch, and reemerge as a romantic-comedy lead.
From NY Mag
Janie
August 14, 2010
Interviews
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Aubrey Plaza on “Good Day New York”
On the hit TV show ‘Parks and Recreation,’ Aubrey Plaza takes jabs at a local government. Her role in the ‘mockumentary’ has gotten so much attention that Hollywood came calling. Plaza is starring in the new film, “Scott Pilgrim vs. the World.” The film comes out August 13, 2010.
Janie
August 14, 2010
Interviews, Videos
2 Replies
Q&A Sessions : Aubrey Plaza
Don’t expect Aubrey Plaza to be “on” all the time, although she might make you chuckle unintentionally. As one of the hottest young comediennes, Plaza’s mix of sarcastic, deadpan humor will make you cringe before you belt out laughing. Not only has she been tickling the funny bones of hundreds for the last two seasons of NBC’s “Parks and Recreation,” but she’s certain to have audiences rolling in the hilarious new film, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, where she plays the mean-spirited Julie Powers. We chatted with Plaza about bonding with the Scott Pilgrim crew, her secret geeky side, and being on top of the world.
nocheLatina: Do people expect you to be funny all the time?
Aubrey Plaza: I don’t know what they expect. I feel a little bit of pressure to be funny just because that’s how people see me on TV. I definitely put that pressure on myself. I usually just come across weird and people think that’s funny. I guess just being myself is funny, whether I mean for it to be or not.
nocheLatina: Were you always funny as a kid, or was this something you discovered about yourself recently?
Aubrey Plaza: Until about sixth grade I was pretty quiet and wouldn’t consider myself a class clown during those years. Once I got into middle school I was definitely one of the funny ones. I was always doing some type of weird public prank, dressing up in strange costumes, or doing characters. I was definitely a weirdo. I don’t know where it came from. It just kind of happen out of nowhere. I think if you talk to people that I went to school with they’d probably tell you I was a bit of a class clown.
nocheLatina: Are you getting recognized more now?
Aubrey Plaza: Yeah. It’s happening more and more. I think a lot of people are watching ‘Parks and Recreation’ more now. I get recognized from that a lot. I think I’m one of those actresses that people might recognize, but they don’t say anything about it because I’m not that exciting of a person to spot. If people recognize me maybe they keep it to themselves. I have friends like Michael Cera who, when he gets recognized, people go crazy because they can’t believe he’s in front of them. I don’t think I’m at that level yet. It goes unnoticed. But I can feel it sometimes.
nocheLatina: What’s one cool thing about being famous?
Aubrey Plaza: I don’t know. Am I famous? Sometimes I get really great shampoo for free. The more stuff I do the more free stuff I get, which is kind of nice.
nocheLatina: Scott Pilgrim vs. the World looks like a fun movie to be a part of.
Aubrey Plaza: Shooting the scenes was actually a bit of a challenge. I never worked with a director like Edgar Wright before. He’s very precise and it’s more different than the improv-inspired projects I’ve worked on in the past. The cast was so much fun. It’s such a great group of comedians and actors. Everyone brought their own unique energy to the set. We had a blast. It was kind of like going to the best adult camp in the world with no rules. And we’re continuing to have fun even after the movie. We all became really close. I think that’s a testament to how much of a good time we had.
nocheLatina: We’re you aware of the comics before you were offered this role?
Aubrey Plaza: I was not aware of the comics. I’m not really into comic books that much, or at least I wasn’t, but when I auditioned for the film they told me it was based on Brian Lee O’Malley’s series. So I went out and bought it, kind of half expecting to not really be into it. But I read all of the volumes I think in two days. They were so good and funny, I got into it right away. I had no idea I was going to like it that much.
nocheLatina: How would you describe your character?
Aubrey Plaza: Julie Powers! How can I describe her? She’s definitely a negative force in Scott Pilgrim’s life.She’s kind of a social butterfly, that obnoxious girl in the group who knows everyone’s business and always has an opinion you don’t want to hear. You kind of love her, but you hate her at the same time. She’s just not that much fun to be around with. Scott Pilgrim tries to avoid her, but she pops up in all the wrong places.
nocheLatina: It’s been said that Julie Powers hates Scott Pilgrim because deep down she really likes him. Do you feel that’s true in any way?
Aubrey Plaza: I don’t think you can have such a strong hatred for someone if it’s not coming from a deep-seeded love for them because she wouldn’t care enough to berate him in public like she does. That actually came from a note that Brian and Edgar gave me. They gave these secret factsheets about each character before we started shooting. Some of the facts were in the book and some weren’t. This one was not in the book and I was told to keep it secret, but I can talk about it now. One of them was that Julie has always had a crush on Scott, but he never liked her back. He does like all of her friends. She hates him so much because he never gave her the time of day and she doesn’t understand why. That’s a motivation I tried to use.
nocheLatina: Are you anything like Julie Powers?
Aubrey Plaza: Well, I used to work in a coffee shop once and I was not a pleasant barista. I had really bad customer service skills like Julie. So that’s something I relate to her on.
nocheLatina: Did this movie get you interested in comic books, video games, or anything geeky like that?
Aubrey Plaza: I can’t say honestly that I’ve played new video games since the movie, but it has opened my eyes to comic books for sure. I was never really into them, but after reading this one I’m definitely interested in checking some new ones out. But I guess the movie was just kind of nostalgic for me. I remembered a lot of the video games I played when I was a kid and how that felt. It was cool to watch the movie and remember that, but I’m not really much of a gamer. I’m definitely a geek in my own way.
nocheLatina: What sort of geeky stuff are you into?
Aubrey Plaza: I’m a film improv comedy nerd. I was really into knowing all the improvisors that were coming out of Chicago. I don’t know if that’s geeky or not, but I guess it could be to some people. And I’m really into Judy Garland. I listen to her records a lot instead of cool music. I don’t know if that’s geeky either or just really strange.
nocheLatina: Are you currently filming new episodes of ‘Parks and Recreation’ for the upcoming season?
Aubrey Plaza: We filmed six new episodes for season three in the spring and we’re currently on a hiatus. But we’re going back to shooting in September to finish the rest of season three.
nocheLatin: What’s next for you?
Aubrey Plaza: There’s nothing really I can talk about at this time. There’s definitely some film projects floating around. Hopefully I’ll be working on more movies. I’d like to do some dramatic films.
nocheLatina: Are you still doing stand up?
Aubrey Plaza: I haven’t done a show since the spring. I kind of took a break when we were shooting, but it’s definitely something I’m going to keep up. I’ve been writing some new material lately so I’m going to start getting out there soon.
Janie
August 11, 2010
Interviews
2 Replies
Aubrey Plaza on “Attack of the Show”
Parks & Recreation star Aubrey Plaza is in studio with Kevin Pereira to talk about her latest film, Scott Pilgrim vs. The World, her role as Julie Powers, her thoughts on the original comic series and more.