Britney Young was born to be an actor .
As a child growing up in Tokyo , Young was always involved with theatre and dance . But her dream to become an actor was awakened when she stayed home sick from school and watched Raiders of the Lost Ark .
“ I remember thinking , ‘ How does Harrison Ford know exactly what to say and how to say it ?’ And then everything just snowballed from there . I started taking theatre and dance classes more seriously .”
GLOW ( Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling ) was the big moment she had been waiting for . Working as a production assistant for eight years on My Crazy Ex-Girlfriend and Those Who Can ’ t , Young always saw people getting roles and living out their dreams . When she found out she was cast as Carmen Wade , a young woman from a wrestling legacy suffering from serious stage fright , Young was in awe .
“ To finally be cast as something I was really excited about made me think , ‘ Oh my god , I can ’ t believe this is going to be my career .’ It was a moment of complete daze .”
GLOW would prove to be a whole new experience for Young . She was no longer an assistant , occasionally guest starring in an episode or two of the television series she was working on . GLOW has a more passionate cast and crew .
“ To see a group of about three-hundred people actually care and be proud of what they ’ re making and not seeing it just as a paycheck was something that was new for me .”
The production team of GLOW was not just a group of employees , it was a family who devoted themselves to the show they were creating . Another noticeable difference for Young was working on a female led set .
“ It is definitely a different energy and vibe where it feels like a creative , cohesive team .”
Coming onto the set the very first season was a little intimidating . Young had never played such a large part on a show before and was feeling self-conscious about her performance as Carmen . However , her unbelievably inspiring team members were there for her .
“ Finally , we had this meeting where I said , ‘ I just want to know if I ’ m doing a good job ,’ and we had a long conversation that just really calmed my nerves . They ( creators Liz Flahive and Carly Mensch ) told me , ‘ there ’ s a reason why we picked you , you are
Carmen . So keep doing what you ’ ve been doing because that ’ s what we love .’ It really instilled this confidence in me .”
Since that conversation , Young realized that she can experiment with her craft as an actor , and that it ’ s good to push boundaries for her character . Acting is a creative process and the freedom Flahive and Mensch sparked in her was exactly what she needed .
There is a lot of love between the cast and crew of GLOW . Throughout the filming of the series they have been supporting each other by commenting on the badassness of the wrestling scenes or stifling laughs during funny moments . On top of that , they even have a booming group chat to keep sending out positive energy to each other . “ We love each other and want to see each other succeed .” One would think that the wrestling scenes would be a challenge , but Young has proven otherwise . As someone who came from a very athletic family and had been a cheerleader growing up , Young is used to picking up women and having them fall on her . The difficulty for her was all mental .
“ I was always thinking I was going to hurt someone . I always want people to be safe and sometimes it hinders on what we ’ re doing . Our wrestling coordinators pointed it out to me and then I realized , ‘ Ok , no one is going to get hurt here , we are all trained . Let ’ s go for it .’”
After overcoming this barrier and being able to go full out in the ring , Young had so much encouragement from the rest of the cast chanting and clapping for her . Their pride in her has made it easier to get in the headspace to wrestle and has helped her evolve her moves . Being with people she loves to go to work with everyday has made performing a fun adrenaline rush .
While Young is a kind , sweet person who cares about the wellbeing of others before herself , very much like Carmen , that is not to say that there aren ’ t any differences between the two .
“ I ’ m a very confident person and I have been for a while . Carmen is still finding her own confidence and her own voice . In season 1 she ’ s stepping out of the shadow of this legacy that is her family and trying to make her own way , and she ’ s scared of going for her dreams . In season 2 she ’ s trying to figure out her own place in this group of women who just constantly want her help . In that aspect we ’ re very much different .”
Season 2 of GLOW has been a fantastic project to work on for Young , and audiences shouldn ’ t be fearful of any drop in
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