INTERVIEW: Olivia Holt and Chiara Aurelia Take You on a Suspenseful Journey to the ’90s With Their New Series ‘Cruel Summer’

Olivia Holt (Kate Wallis) and Chiara Aurelia (Jeanette Turner) star in the new hit psychological thriller, Cruel Summer, executive produced by Jessica Biel and airing each Tuesday at 10pm ET and 7pm PT on Freeform. The pair star alongside Sarah Drew (Cindy Turner) and Andrea Anders (Joy Wallis), who play the mothers of the two girls, Harley Quinn Smith (Mallory Higgins) and Allius Barnes (Vince Fulleras) who play Jeanette’s best friends, as well as Froy Gutierrez (Jamie Henson), Kate’s boyfriend, and, well, Chiara’s too. Yes, you heard that correctly. 

Cruel Summer follows the disappearance of the town’s popular girl, Kate, and the suspicious social climb of Jeanette. Jeanette goes from an awkward nerdy teen to living as Kate and essentially taking her spot, including her best friends and boyfriend, who surprisingly allow it to happen. Jeannette has left her old crew behind, who are super disgruntled that she has this newfound status and popularity, and they aren’t shy about letting her know.

The series spans three years in the ’90s showing you the transition each character experiences along the way. As the story unfolds, you try to piece together what could have become of Kate and wonder how Jeanette made all of these ‘glow up’ moves. It’s not your typical coming of age story and includes some really dark twists and turns. You really need to fasten your seat belts for this one.

The series launched with a two-hour premiere, including the first two episodes on April 20, and it already has fans guessing on who’s really to blame for the disappearance of Kate. Olivia and Chiara spill a little bit of what you can expect from the series, some behind-the-scenes tea, their love for ’90s trends, and why you need to buckle up and tune it. Read on to hear what they had to say.

GLITTER: Congratulations on your new series. There are so many twists and turns in the first two episodes. Cruel Summer isn’t your average coming of age series, and you both had to portray different versions of yourself. Chiara, what was it like to transform into these different versions of Jeanette Turner?
CHIARA: It was incredible; I mean, it was an amazing experience between the wardrobe and the hair and makeup and set design and everything that was involved with making a year change. I mean, it wouldn’t have been possible without the crew and the creatives and the other actors. It was wonderful. It felt like I was building these worlds and these mindsets that were so different. And once they were created, it was almost fun to tap in and out of them. And sometimes we’d go into a day and start in ’95 and then go to ’93 to ’94, and then I’d be Chiara. I’d be having lunch with my friends, and then all of a sudden we’d be back in, which was crazy but incredible all around and super fun, and like nothing, I think I’ll ever experience again in my life.

GLITTER: Olivia, what were some of the challenges of playing a character like Kate Wallis and moving from popular girl to victim and everything in between? 
OLIVIA: Sure. Lots of highs and lows. I think something that’s important for the audience to know is that Kate is not a mean girl. She might be popular, but I don’t think that there is any maliciousness in her body. I think she is very kind, and I think that she has compassion for everyone around her and is really trying to figure out what her identity is and where she feels most comfortable and where she fits in just like everybody else in this show, and cut to ’94 Kate, where she has experienced some really intense trauma and gaslighting and a version of her that I don’t think any of us were expecting to see.

It’s really sad and heartbreaking, but also very honest and real. Then cut to ’95, Kate, where she is this rebellious, angsty teenager. She has completely owned this version of herself and really embraces it. I think it’s real, it’s what all of us go through, especially in those prominent teenage years that really change us every year, so distinctive, but because of what she goes through and every single year, it makes her change even more. And just the even identity portion trying to figure out who she is, I think that’s something that we all go through, and I think it’s important for everyone to know they’re not alone going through that.

GLITTER: Chiara, what attracted you to Cruel Summer initially?
CHIARA: I mean, so many things, between the strong females that we had behind the camera, as well as the opportunity to co-lead with two amazing female characters in a show like this, in something that had never been seen before, jumping in time and shifting perspectives in a psychological thriller with young actors and actresses with incredible, immense talent, was the best experience ever. I found it to be an opportunity for learning and growth as a human being and as an actress. And I feel fortunate to have been initially drawn to this project as well as to have been a part of it in the long term.

GLITTER: Olivia, What were some of the highlights of working with Jessica Biel?
OLIVIA: Jessica was so cool. I obviously am such a fan of her work, but to know her personally now is such a dream and honestly so surreal. She is such an incredible coworker, and she is obviously an amazing actress, but as a producer, she’s just so involved. I am so grateful to work with somebody who just has such a vision for creativity and somebody who really made her presence known on set, even if she wasn’t there, and just an all-around spectacular human being. She is really cool. 

GLITTER: Chiara, what can fans expect, and why should they be tuning in?  
CHIARA: What can fans expect? Fans can’t expect anything. You have to expect the unexpected. It is a twisty, wild, insane ride, and you have no idea what’s coming. I think they should tune in because, to me, those are the best kinds of shows, the ones where you have no idea what’s coming. I hope that people are enthralled and excited by this story just in the way that we were when we read it and how, you know, how much joy and love and passion went into this project from everybody involved. 
OLIVIA: Fans should tune in because Chiara is in it… (laughing)
CHIARA:  Because Olivia Holt is in it….(laughing)

GLITTER: The show has a ’90s time stamp, of course. What was it like to be engulfed in that time period?
OLIVIA: Like the best ever. I’m obsessed with that era. I keep saying I’m so bummed because I was born in the late ’90s and didn’t actually get to experience what it was like living through the ’90s. I didn’t actually live through it. So I think it’s such a cool era. I mean, from the music to the fashion to even just the way people live. I feel like there was just such a specific vibe that was just so laid back, and I think you really feel that in our show, I think watching it, you really are transported back into the ’90s, and we made it a point to make everything very detailed when watching this show. Every single detail that you see from the hair makeup to the wardrobe to the props, the set dressing, even down to the location. If we were filming on location in 2020 or 2021, we had to make sure that we made it look like it was in ’93, ’94, or ’95.
CHIARA: There’s so many good trends from the 90s. I mean, between the wardrobe, the hair and makeup, the music, movies. I mean, all of it was honestly incredible. I think that’s kind of just being able to be transported out of 2020 was all-around, or oh my god, we are in 2021. I’m sorry. I totally forgot. Being transported out and getting the opportunity to experience an era that I didn’t necessarily live through was wonderful. And just learning more about it and feeling a little bit about what life was like back then was great.

GLITTER: What are some of your personal favorites? 
OLIVIA: I will forever just say high-waisted jeans. 
GLITTER: High-waisted; that’s what we’re going with? (laughing) I agree. 
CHIARA: I like those wedge Steve Madden shoes so much. You know what I’m talking about?
OLIVIA: You own a pair, don’t you?
CHIARA: I do own a pair, and I wear them so regularly, which is why they’re my favorite trend by far. I have them. They must be like on my floor somewhere in here. Literally, the chunky wedges are fabulous in every way.

GLITTER: Olivia, I know this is such a dark series, but are there any fun behind-the-scenes moments you can share?
OLIVIA: There were a lot of heavy moments in the show, but Chiara really has made this a very interesting experience. (laughing) She is the ultimate prankster.
CHIARA: Wait, do you remember the last day of filming, because I remember the last day of filming.
OLIVIA: I had to get revenge. (laughing)
CHIARA: Olivia Holt stood behind a curtain for twenty-five minutes so that in the middle of a rehearsal with all of the crew members in the room, she could jump out and scream, and I literally jumped out of my skin across the room. (laughing)
OLIVIA: But let’s not forget that like two months prior to this, Froy and I were in the middle of doing our best take…
CHIARA: No, no, no…I had the director and the producers on my side. They were ready. They said you guys were done with the scene. I would never jump jumped out if I didn’t know. I did jump out from behind the bush, though.
OLIVIA: It was really funny. We were filming on location. Froy and I were shooting a scene where we were walking out of a mall. Chiara was hiding behind a bush and jumped out. I screamed at the top of my lungs.
CHIARA: But my favorite part is that Froy screamed so much louder than you. (laughing)
OLIVIA: He did. (laughing)

GLITTER: Well, thank you both. You guys look amazing, by the way. I look forward to seeing the rest of the series. Thank you for taking the time out. 
CHIARA: Thank you. 
OLIVIA: Thanks, Zoe. 

Be sure to check out Cruel Summer on Freeform here. For the full interview watch below or on Glitter’s Youtube.