Netflix's new supernatural series I Am Not Okay With This is out and if you haven't watched it, we're encouraging you to do so!
The show is not just about the "great responsibility" that superpowers may bring a person, but it also shows the problems that arise when the person that acquired it isn't really a superhero material. In fact, the show's main protagonist, Sydney, already has a lot on her plate navigating her teenage life.
Luckily, there are people who somehow gives Sydney the pat on the back that she would always need, given her circumstances. One is her weird neighbor Stanley, and the other is her best friend Dina, who despite dating the popular school jock Brad Lewis, continues to be there for her.
In a rountable phone interview with the local media, Sofia Bryant who plays Dina in I Am Not Okay With This talked about the new show and the role that she plays. Check out the highlights of the interview below (Warning: spoilers ahead).
Q: What was it like starring in a series that tackles important issues like bullying and sexuality?
Sofia: I think it's important because we're responsible for representing everyone as authentically as we can and so, it was really important for me to accurately depict that and make sure that I'm representing and including everyone. Not only having it be relatable but have it be relatable to everyone, and make sure that it's represented authentically.
Q: How is your real-life friendship with Sophia since it looked so genuine in the show?
Sofia: I feel like we all have such a great chemistry off-set, and it really just translates into the work because we're also comfortable around each other. Especially shooting in Pittsburgh, it was really up to us to hang out with each other and have fun because we were shooting in Brownsville and there's not a lot of stuff to do there all the time so if we wanted to have fun, we'd all hang out.
Q: In the production notes, it says that Dina was meant to be the "quintessential best friend", how did you approach this role?
Sofia: I actually am lucky enough to have a Dina in my own life so I was able to kind of go and use my real life experiences and relationships [during] shooting, and kind of draw from that. It really helped me to step into her shoes. It was also really great, because we were shooting in such a small town. It really made it feel authentic, like the second we arrived in Brownsville, it was really easy for me to instantly understand and kind of grasp the environment they live in and where they go to hang out, and how they live their daily lives.
Q: What do you think is the difference between Dina and Stan on how they treat Sydney as a friend?
Sofia: I think that what's really beautiful is that Stan and Dina do have that thing in common where they are both an outlet for Sydney to feel comfort and feel welcome. But what is so nice and different about them is that they are two outlets in different ways. In Sydney, we can see [that she] starts liking Dina a little bit differently and Stanley is really there to help her with her superpowers.
Q: In the romantic aspect of the show, who are you rooting for to be with Sydney? Is it Dina or Stanley?
Sofia: For me what I really want, relationship wise, is for everyone to really be happy. I think that they're still in a period of time where everyone is evolving and everyone is really figuring out what they like and how they show emotion and how they are in relationships. So this is really such a learning process and that's not just because of their age, it's [also] because it's finally the time where they're starting to realize the feelings that they have. So honestly, whoever is right for the other is who I would really be rooting for. I know that a lot of people are going to be rooting for Stan and a lot of people are going to be rooting for Dina, but I don't see it as a competition, I see it more as who's really happy with the other.
Q: What are the lessons viewers can take away from the show?
Sofia: What's really important is to understand that what you feel makes you stand out or makes you different or weird or awkward, is actually what just essentially makes you who you are and you aren't any less than, or any different from anyone else. Sure, people deal with things at different times, but it's never easier for [someone] else. We all still have to go through the same trials and tribulations of growing up that just come naturally because we're all human. So I think that's the biggest lesson that we want to come across.
Q: What do you think are three words that will describe what the viewers would be feeling after watching the first season of the show?
Sofia: I would hope "heard", "represented", and "hungry"– hungry for answers.
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I Am Not Okay With This comes from the producers of Stranger Things and the director of The End of The F***ing World, and was based on a graphic novel by Charles Forsman. Also check out our interviews with the show's director, Jonathan Entwistle and Sofia Bryant's co-stars Richard Ellis, Wyatt Oleff, and Sophia Lillis.
The seven-episode series is now streaming on Netflix. For more updates and information, you may follow the show on Twitter and Instagram.
Homestream image from I Am Not Okay With This Twitter page.
