I came away from that set [ Hail, Caesar !] super inspired, and like I said, it ruined all future endeavors. I'll never have as good an experience as that.

[Gigi Does It show] flew so drastically under the radar. I kind of hold it in my back pocket as this thing that I got the opportunity to do that no one really knows I did and that I'm really proud of.

In fact, one of the funny stories from that set [of Hail, Caesar!] is we were shooting my scene, and around lunchtime, Terrence Malick shows up on set. He was uninvited and no one knew who he was. But I knew, just looking at him. I was like, "Holy moley, that's Terrence Malick!" So I went and told the PA, "Hey, Terrence Malick is here, and I think he wants to see the Coen brothers. He wants to talk to Joel and Ethan." He just showed up unannounced, uninvited, and I guess they spent their lunch hour with him.

Still, at the end of the day, I was really proud of [ Gigi Does It]. I wish more people had seen it. I wish it was more available, so people would see it now.

[10 Things I Hate About You] keeps popping up, and it's become a go-to film specifically for adolescent girls who are trying to find their voice, which is a really important thing, and the characters in the film, the two sisters played by Julia Stiles and Larisa Oleynik, they became archetypes for young teenage girls to look up to and emulate.

The play I was doing [on a Broadway ], I was playing an obnoxious, outspoken kid, so [the director James Lapine ] saw me do the play, and he was like, "That's what I'm looking for." I tested for the part [in Life With Mikey]. Back then, I used to do screen tests. I mean, they still do every once in awhile, but it was a big deal.

There's this cornucopia of potential, and it can't be realized until someone works their ass off for it. Even on a Nickelodeon sitcom.