Chasing Life returns for its second season this Monday, July 6, at 9PM on ABC Family. A few weeks ago, we spoke with the cast of the show about what we have to look forward to in Season 2, and today, the spotlight falls to the series lead, Italia Ricci, who plays April Carver on the show.
Italia spoke about the responsibilities of playing April, her own charity work, and hints about what’s to come for Season 2, including April’s engagement.
You can see the interview below, and if written interviews are more your thing, we have that here for you too. Our apologies for the strange “prison cell”-looking background. Enjoy:
Here’s the written interview.
KSITETV’s CRAIG BYRNE: When the show left off, April is now engaged. Can you talk about that?
ITALIA RICCI: Well, I was really excited when I read it, especially because they didn’t leave the answer as a cliffhanger. I was like, “Okay. Good. Everybody can just take a minute and think about what’s going to happen next.” I’m only five episodes in to Season 2 [at the time of the interview] so I don’t know everything, but you get to see what happens right after, how Dominic reacts to it… you get to see how she starts planning it, and what this means, to be getting married. She was as surprised as the audience was, so it’s exciting.
Scott Michael Foster is attached to a different project now. Should we worry about Leo?
I don’t know. I ask that every day. [Laughs]
Can you talk about April’s work situation, and how she gave up her job?
She did, and I think that that’s a very special element of Season 2, because you see all through Season 1, she takes so much pride in being a journalist, and a very good one, and she’s worked so hard to get where she was. It sort of defined her as April, and now that she doesn’t have that, I think it’ll be very interesting to see how she goes about figuring out who she is now.
April is going to be facing some health challenges again. Is it different this time around with her mother and her sister?
A lot of things are different this time around. You see how the family is stressing out when it comes to when the medical bills start piling up, because now that she doesn’t have a job, she doesn’t have insurance, and she doesn’t have the money to be paying for her treatments, so that’s an issue that I think is very relevant, and it’s addressed, which I think is well done.
We left the season with Grandma still dating, so the dynamic is just a little different, and we get to see how things are going there, and what’s going on with Brenna. She meets some new people. Yeah. There’s so much going on this season already, and I’m only five episodes in!
You’ve lent your name to publicizing certain health-related charities. Can you talk about that?
I’m an ambassador for Stupid Cancer, Stand Up To Cancer, and the American Cancer Society, and I work closely with the Children’s Hospital L.A.. Those are sort of my “family” of foundations that I work with, and they’re all so incredible for different reasons.
Stand Up To Cancer is doing crazy, crazy research to hopefully find a cure, and they raise an incredible amount of money and they have so many incredible people on their teams. It’s just such an inspiring organization. And then Children’s Hospital is obviously the hospital, which also does research. Same with American Cancer Society and their fundraising and relays. All of their events are fantastic.
Stupid Cancer is a little bit different, because it doesn’t actually raise any money to fund research. They raise money to provide programs and support for people dealing with cancer, to help make their lives suck less, and to help them get busy living, which I think is really important, too. You can go to their website and it’s just like “I’m pissed off” and you click it, and they have ways to help you deal with that. Or “I need a lawyer, or a doctor,” or something… they just have so many resources, and I think that that’s really important for people to find. A common ground, and people who understand them.
Speaking of being pissed off, can you can talk about April being able to bash in that empty hospital room at the end of Season 1?
That was a tough scene, but I think that it was really representative of how a lot of people feel.
I was at an event this weekend called “Cancer-Con” by Stupid Cancer, and it was with all survivors, and I heard a story after they showed that clip. A woman came up to me and said they had to reconfigure her steering wheel, because after she was told her news, she had shaken it so hard that she couldn’t drive her car home. So, you put it on the screen how all of us feel, and so many of us wish we had a sledgehammer in that moment. They wrote it perfectly. It was such a charged moment, and it’s how a lot of people have felt when they’ve been told – not even just about relapse; just about being sick. A lot of people are like “there’s nothing we can do.” People have heard that, and that sucks too.
It’s not just about cancer. I feel like people get really pissed off about a lot of things, and want to let it out. So if you can cry with April, and that’s going to relieve some of what you’re doing, then I’m happy to help.
How is Dominic going to react to April’s engagement?
I can’t tell you, but you’ll see!
What excites you the most about Season 2?
Seeing what’s going to happen with the wedding, I think, is exciting, also because I’m planning my wedding in real life. So, it’s like “oh, is that how that’s supposed to be done? Okay, noted.” I’m learning as April’s learning, which is cool.
So April definitely has some happy “wins” this year?
Yeah. Absolutely.
Season 1 had a lot of really cool big-name guest stars. Can you tease any that we might see in the second year?
So far, I’ve worked with John Billingsley from True Blood; Amber West from Greek; and Krys Rodriguez from Smash, who was recently diagnosed with breast cancer, and she is going through chemo. She’s got her real bald head in the show, and she rocks it. She’s just such a strong, inspiring woman. I’m so grateful to be able to work with her.
What was your reaction upon getting this role? Were you intimidated by the subject matter?
At first, I was just happy to book a job! That’s what it was, because as an actor, that’s what you’re hoping for. So, I was so excited. It wasn’t until I saw the pilot and we had been picked up that it hit me that I was going to be sort of the poster child for young adults battling this disease.
I still feel like “who am I to represent them? I’m not anybody.” And so, I hope I can keep doing them justice, and I hope I can keep standing up for them. I want Chasing Life to go on forever, but even if it doesn’t, I’m so proud to have been introduced to these people, and I hope I never let them down.
Come back to KSiteTV soon for more Chasing Life interviews! Photos from the season premiere can be found here.
