Before you read this interview, there is some bias that needs to be put out in the open from the interviewer: I was pretty sure I would like The L.A. Complex before I even saw a frame of footage, as I knew it starred Cassie Steele, who played one of the most popular characters, Manny Santos, for nine seasons on what was then called Degrassi: The Next Generation.
The fact that the show was actually good — and very good, at that — was just a bonus.
KSiteTV has had the opportunity to interview members of the cast of The L.A. Complex to be rolled out this week as the show sees its United States premiere on Tuesday night, April 24 at 9PM (ET) on The CW. That’s Ringer’s old slot. With the current crowded TV landscape, this show is be worth making an effort to check out, so stop what you’re doing and write a reminder to yourself to tune in.
….okay, you’re back now, right?
What is The L.A. Complex about? Basically, it’s about a group of young people who have come from around the world, attempting to make it in the entertainment industry in L.A.. They want to be actors, comedians, singers, musical artists… but with coming to L.A., there’s also the rejection. The inconvenience. The worry that the next job might not come in to pay the bills. Although some promos make the show look like Melrose Place, it’s not… and it’s certainly a better show than Melrose Place 2009 was.
Cassie Steele plays the lead character in The L.A. Complex, an aspiring actress named Abby Vargas. Abby is determined to make it in L.A. despite the hardships that seem to come flying her way at a rapid pace. She has a boyfriend back at home, but new relationships are soon to come her way. So what brought Cassie into this project? “Being a job is really the thing!” she laughs, seemingly channeling her Abby character, before giving a more serious answer, revealing that it was the character and how a lot of it relates to her being what was attractive about the project. She also reveals that she knew about the project in its early stages.
“I also knew about the project from a few years back, because it was inspired by Degrassi Goes Hollywood originally, and then obviously it turned into something really different. I still had an attachment, even though it transformed so much. The writing and the characters, they just really caught me,” she says.
“I think for anybody from there moving down to L.A. for pilot season, it’s going to be really relatable. Especially with auditioning, which Abby really wants to do. She wants another audition, and you have to do it a lot… and when you do, you get brought up, and then you get knocked down. And then you get brought up, and you get knocked down. I think that’s really nice to see [on the show], because sometimes it feels like you’re the only one not getting anything. Like you’re the only one who doesn’t get a call. Everybody goes through that. Everybody feels that pressure, and that anxiety,” she explains.
As we will see in the series pilot, Abby seems to run into not-so-comedic calamity wherever she goes. Has Cassie had similar experiences? “Those are self-inflicted,” she laughs. “That’s her fault. I don’t think that’s L.A.” Cassie has had her own bad luck in Los Angeles, however. “They’re just things that happen in life. My car breaking down – which, oh right, that happens to Abby. It broke down on the 405, and basically, I didn’t have a car for a really long time. I got hit with a surf board in my neck. So those were some pretty bad ones,” she says.
“I think everybody is taking a risk, coming down for pilot season,” she says of any actor who journeys from far away to Los Angeles looking for jobs. “If this is something that you want to do, then you have to go for it. You’re not going to be a scientist without going to school. You have to do certain things to get what you want, and to get there, and to achieve your goals and your dream,” she explains. Such moves may also require sacrificing relationships back home. For Abby, it might mean cutting the cord on a relationship she has with a boyfriend back in Canada. “I think she has to end the long-distance relationship. I think any relationship at that point in her life… when you’re that age, the relationship shouldn’t matter, and if it does, they should understand, because you want what you want, and you shouldn’t let somebody dictate your life,” she says.
This no-relationship thing might have some hurdles when Connor Lake enters Abby’s life. “When Abby meets Connor, sparks fly! They have an immediate chemistry, and an explosive one,” Cassie teases. Viewers will see how explosive that chemistry is as early as the series premiere. But in addition to Connor, there’s another character with eyes for Abby… aspiring stand-up comedian Nick Wagner. 
Are there sparks there too? “There are!” Cassie confirms. “They’re just kids. You know. Boy and a girl. Put ’em together. Yes, definitely. I think Nick is very, very cute in the way that he is. He’s funny, and he makes her feel good about herself, and he’s kind of learned to survive in L.A. on the bare minimum, which is something that you have to learn as you grow up. You can’t just buy everything that you want, and sometimes you have to settle with a little bit less. I think Abby doesn’t know it at first, but her and Nick are really compatible,” she says.
There are some platonic relationships between Abby and the other characters in the “complex” as well. “Tariq is one of Abby’s really good friends from back home. They’re really alike because they’re really headstrong and driven. Even though we don’t see them together a lot, there is a comfort level there, and they really relate with one another, because they know that their work and making it is their top priority. Raquel is a really interesting character. I love Jewel [Staite]. She’s so amazing. I was a big fan of hers before she actually came on the show. Her character is going through a transition that you can only go through once in your life, and you don’t know how to prepare for it. It’s just kind of a bridge you have to cross when you get there. Connor is really great, because he doesn’t have anybody to talk to, and he’s battling himself, which is just really sad and interesting. I’m sure a lot of people feel that way. And some relationships, and the tensions that they have, trying to conceal and trying to be somebody different in the public eye… that’s really interesting,” Cassie says.
The third and fourth episodes of The L.A. Complex reunite Steele with her Degrassi co-star Stefan Brogren, who at the time played Manny Santos’ Media Immersion teacher and stepfather to Manny’s best friend, Emma. This time, the interaction was behind the camera as Brogren directed those two episodes. He is also a Co-Executive Producer on the show. “I’ve known Stefan for so, so long,” she says. Eleven years. He’s really grown as a director. Obviously when we first met, he was just acting, and his writing, everything has just – it’s just so amazing for him, and just watching him direct. He does a lot of Degrassi now. He just keeps getting better and better, and I’m so proud of him,” she says.
Degrassi is something that hasn’t escaped Cassie, and now, her younger sister, Alex, is one of the new characters on the series. Is Cassie watching her sister, and would she ever be open to a return appearance as Manny? “I have seen her episodes, like, a million times. I think she’s amazing, and I would love to come back and work beside her,” she says.
Beyond acting, Cassie is a singer and recently had a new track “Shifty” released on iTunes. Is she going to be singing on The L.A. Complex? “Yes! Yes I am!” she teases. “We’re going to see Abby sing a little bit more. I don’t know if it’s gonna be good or not, but I hope so.” We’ll see Abby’s first musical number in the second episode.
Cassie’s character Abby, as you will see, seems to have a misfortune to kick off every single episode. Is this is a trend that will continue? “Well, yes,” Cassie explains, before explaining why that’s actually a good thing. “What’s really nice about that, is if you’re face down on the ground, the only way to go is up. I think that’s really nice about it. It’s kind of dismal if it was the opposite way, and that kept happening every episode. I think it’s a really nice encouragement for anybody going after their dreams. You will always get knocked down, but you can always fix it. You can always make yourself better. You can always turn things around. Which, for me, is really inspiring.”
Heard enough? Before we go, why not hear how Cassie would “sell” the show. “I would say it’s like soft porn, with a great storyline!” she jokes. “No. It’s very sexy, and it’s very fun, and it’s very character-driven. I feel like every character is not only so real, but they kind of have a niche about them. I’m saying they’re so charismatic – well, we try to make them that way. I don’t know if we succeed, but they each have a spark, and they each have a dream, and I think some of them are good role models. Some of them aren’t. But hey – it’s life. Watch it!”
Here’s a trailer courtesy of The CW. Come back to KSiteTV tomorrow for another L.A. Complex interview, and be sure to watch on Tuesday night!
