Selena Gomez Revealed Her First Acting Role After Disney Channel was ‘Liberating’ – ‘I Knew It Was Going to be Crazy’
Selena Gomez rose to stardom on the Disney Channel, but her role in the 2013 movie Spring Breakers allowed fans to see a much more mature side of the actor. Here’s what Gomez said about working on her first acting role after Disney and how she felt about starring in a Harmony Korine-directed film.
Selena Gomez became famous as a child star on ‘Barney’ and the Disney Channel
The Disney Channel launched Selena Gomez to the heights of fame with her starring role as Alex Russo on Wizards of Waverly Place. The multi-talented star had previous acting experience working on Barney & Friends, and she was just a teenager when becoming a household name for her Disney show.
Gomez reflected on her experience as a child star while promoting her Hulu series Only Murders in the Building.
“I signed my life away to Disney at a very young age and I didn’t know what I was doing,” she admitted (via Complex). “… When I was a kid, I didn’t know what I was doing. I was just running around on set and now I just feel like a sponge and I soak up all the wisdom that I can.”
Gomez continued, “It’s just it’s really nice to be back on TV and it’s nice to be cast as my actual age, which never happens,” before adding, “So I am very happy to be doing this. I was just a kid. I didn’t know what I was thinking.”
Selena Gomez said her role on ‘Spring Breakers’ was ‘liberating’ after working for Disney
After working on the Disney Channel for years, Selena Gomez took on a far more adult role in the movie Spring Breakers. The film was directed by Harmony Korine, known for shocking audiences with works like Kids, Gummo, and Trash Humpers. Gomez’s fellow Disney star Vanessa Hudgens also appeared in the movie, along with Pretty Little Liars star Ashley Benson.
In a 2013 interview for Today, Gomez said she was “excited and enticed” about working with Korine. “When I auditioned for Harmony, we talked about how he wanted to leave my lifestyle behind and have me go on this adventure with him,” she explained. “I knew it was going to be crazy, but I was comfortable with it.”
She went on to describe how working on Spring Breakers was unlike any job she’d had before. “It was completely liberating,” she gushed. “[Until this film], everything I’ve been a part of definitely has been a bit more processed, like how many pieces of jewelry I have on, what my hair looks like. With Harmony, I never wore makeup and he never cared about my hair.”
Gomez further explained her filming experience by saying, “I feel like I did grow up shooting this. This was the first movie I shot by myself without my mom coming. It was the first time I got to improvise as much as I have.”
She added, “Harmony believed in me and pushed me to be a better actor, so there’s a special place in my heart for Harmony for sure.”
The former child star said that working on ‘Spring Breakers’ was ‘an actor’s dream’
In a 2013 interview with Collider, Selena Gomez opened up about working with Harmony Korine in the most adult role she’d ever played. She said she was “extremely excited” about the opportunity.
“I thought this was a great way to throw me into a huge acting camp, basically,” Gomez said. “Harmony was giving us opportunities to improv, and he let us play. That’s really refreshing and rare. It was an actor’s dream, in a way.”
When asked if she was happy with her role in the film, Gomez responded, “Yeah, I think it was a good character choice. It was the right role to do.” She added, “Faith was someone that I completely relate to and have this vulnerability towards. I just care about her.”
