Amanda Bynes - Robots

AMANDA BYNES GETS ANIMATED.

Amanda Bynes - Robots Interview by Paul Fischer in Los Angeles.

Amanda Bynes is part of that new crop of teenage star that continues totake Hollywood by storm balancing successful careers on both the big andsmall screen. The attractive young actress rose to fame on Nickelodeon as apreteen starlet and moved on to the WB network for her teenage years. In1996, she became a regular cast member on the kid's sketch comedy show AllThat, which first earned her a growing fan base of adoring admirers.Sticking with Nickelodeon-style broad comedy, she was a panellist on thegame show Figure It Out as well as host for the popular variety show TheAmanda Show, which won several Kid's Choice awards. After lending her voiceto the long-running cartoon Rugrats, Bynes made the big switch from the PGworld of Nickelodeon to the more mature world of the WB with a part on theshort-lived series The Nightmare Room, narrated by author R.L. Stine. Thenext year she made her feature film debut in the comedy Big Fat Liar as thebest friend of fellow young superstar Frankie Muniz. In 2002, she launchedthe WB sitcom What I Like About You, playing a comedic younger sister whomoves into the trendy Upper West Side apartment of her straight-laced oldersister (Jennie Garth from Beverly Hills 90210). Widely released one dayafter her 17th birthday, the romantic comedy What a Girl Wants marked herfirst major starring role as Daphne, a girl who goes to England in search ofher father (Colin Firth) and finds romance.

Fans of the actress will next hear her as an energetic and colourful robotin Robots. Set on a world populated entirely by robots, this is the story ofa young genius, Rodney (Ewan McGregor), who wants to make robots capable ofmaking the world a better place, but he finds his dream challenged by acorporate tyrant and a master inventor, while also being seduced by a sexycorporate robot, Cappy (Halle Berry).

Paul Fischer : So Chris Wedge [director] said you have the perfect voicefor an animated Character?

Bynes : He did? I wonder why?

P.F: Was it offered to you or did you have to fight for it, was it easyto get?

Bynes : No, I was very lucky they sent me the script and they wantedme to be Piper so.

P.F: So lets talk to you about the script. Did you laugh right away whenyou read it, what was it?

Bynes : You know I loved; I loved the story, which is shine nomatter what you made of. It's like it doesn't matter where you came from orwhat you look like but if you have goals and if you want to be something orwhatever it is you want to do the only person who can stop you is yourself.

P.F: Now were you disappointed that you, I mean, every one is in the sameboat, do you get disappointed when you don't get and a chance to work withan amazing amount of people that are in this movie, I mean, you don'tactually work with Robin Williams you get to work with all these guys ---

Bynes : Yeah I mean it's definitely odd that I'm in a movie with allthese talented people and yet I haven't met them until today. You know, itit's definitely different but it's exciting. I mean I'm so lucky to be ableto be a part of this movie.

P.F: How do you deal with the voice? I mean what do you try to do alittle bit different?

Bynes : Well it depends on what you're doing. For this they wantedit to sound like me so I was kind of lucky. I got to have it easy so I justsort of did a younger version of my voice.

P.F: A younger version how old are you now?

Bynes : I'm eighteen.

P.F: A younger version?

Bynes : Yeah I just, you know.

P.F: A higher, higher?

Bynes : Yeah just sort of a little squeakier and also it is a robotso, you know, it has to be a little different.

P.F: Did they send to you pictures of what she was going to look likebeforehand?

Bynes : Yes.

P.F: Did you get the feeling of the animation also?

Bynes : Yes they sent me pictures before I signed on to do it ofwhat it was going to look like; rough ideas, so I definitely thought itlooked very cool.

P.F: What were some of your growing up favourite animated movies and didyou like watching them?

Bynes : Well I love all the Disney movies, because when I was youngthere really weren't any..

P.F: Well what were some of the classics you loved?

Bynes : Well I loved Beauty and the Beast that was always one of myfavourites and like The Little Mermaid.

P.F: You spend a lot of time drawing and painting yeah?

Bynes : Yes, I love.I love to .

P.F: What kind of things do you draw? Do you ever see yourself evermoving into this sort of design element or something like that or is actingstrictly what you want to do?

Bynes : Do you know I want to do there's so much that I want to doin my life I don't know. I mean I love to draw and I love to paint so Idon't know if I'll ever do it professionally but I definitely enjoy doingthat right now.

P.F: What else do you want to do in your life Amanda? You would want todo a lot more in your life like what?

Bynes : I mean there's not like one specific thing I want to just doanything that's good, you know, like I just want to work for a long time so.

P.F: Beyond acting?

Bynes : Ah yeah. I might either want to direct one day, I might,want to you know, do a play on Broadway I hope.

P.F: A play on Broadway? Are you looking for anything?

Bynes : I always have one eye opened.

P.F: Is there a particular play that you want to do?

Bynes : I would love to do My Fair Lady one day, you never know.

P.F: Well as much as you want to do how do you find time to juggle itbetween this, or doing films and a TV show.

Bynes : Well I am lucky because on the show there's a hiatus, youknow there is always a good period of time where I could squeeze in a movie.Like this summer I did a movie called "Love Wrecked" which I think will becoming out in spring, so I kind of always have little pieces of time .

P.F: What's "Lovewrecked"?

Bynes : It was directed by Randall Kleiser and I'm very excited.

P.F.: Who else is in it?

P.F: Chris Carmack from the OC yeah and, Jamie Lynn DiScala whose fromthe Sopranos. I play a girl Jenny Taylor whose obsessed with this pop starlike a Justin Timberlake of her time or whatever in this movie and she andhe get stuck on this island together. She's followed him on this yacht andhe gets sick and so he falls over and she jumps after him, so throughoutthis they get stuck on this island and become stranded. So he has brokenhis leg, so she has to get food for them and so one day she like goes to thetrees and she hears la little kid scream, follows the noise and she seeslike somebody being hit with a beach ball it turns out they're actually onthe other side of a resort. She goes back to tell him and, you know, she'srunning and he goes "Jenny" and he hugs her and she say's "wait I havesomething to tell you" and he goes "I just want you to know that if I couldhave been stuck here with anybody I'm so glad I'm stuck here with you." Andso she doesn't let him know. She, she leaves out like he says "what do youhave to tell me?" And she's like "nothing", you know, it's one of those, Imean wouldn't you when you get to be stuck with the person of your dreams?So she decides she wants to get to know him a little bit letter so the liegets a little sicker and sicker and she comes back wearing like, you know,lipstick and full hair and make-up because she keeps going back to thelittle resort market. He's like "are you, are you, you know, wearingmake-up" and she's you know has to come up with berries. it was a really funmovie to make, and one that I would want to see myself, so it was reallyfun.

P.F: Did you shoot it in Hawaii or where did you shoot it?

Bynes : The Dominican Republic actually.

P.F: What are the challenges of being an eighteen year old, youngattractive actress in Hollywood where there's a kind of a group of youcompeting and for the best roles around. I mean is it tough that you competewith each other?

Bynes : No I think I mean some people do compete. I've never beenthe type I've never been, you know, the cut throat type. I mean I've alwayshad my mind set that in this business there are so many movies to make, sothere's room for all of us. I mean if there was only me I'd be exhausted.

P.F: You seem very aware of your fan base in that, that you are aninspiration to younger kids of either sex. Do you ever think of yourself aslike okay now I'm eighteen can I grow out of this, can I get away from theNickelodeon image and?

Bynes : No I mean I am so lucky that kids like what I've done and,you know, I'm growing up but .

P.F: So you are looking for grown up role I guess .

Bynes : I don't think anybody's trying to stop me from growing up.No I mean I'm looking for roles that are right for me at the time I am doingthem and everything I've done has been true to myself and I've never doneanything that I haven't loved and I'm, you know, always true to myself.

P.F: So how do you feel about some of the images that younger girls arebombarded with and Christine Aguilera kind of thing where they mature and itbecomes this real dirty kind of thing how do you feel about that sort ofimage.

Bynes : I mean it's just not me but it's, you know, everybody hastheir own thing, you know people grow up differently, you know, ChristineAguilera, you know, grew up, you know, she was sort of on I think she was onthree, I mean the, the Disney shows, so I mean, you know, everybody wants tofind their own, you know, everybody rebels so.

P.F: Yeah that's what I'm asking you before like if you would, if youwould be asked to light up a cigarette or strip or, you know, like NataliePortman or some of these younger actresses are growing up in a, in a filmscript would you do that or at this point in your career would you say no?

Bynes : Well at this point in my career I definitely wouldn't do anyof that but that's it and that's where I am right now. I don't think Iwould ever do anything like that because I don't really enjoy watching thatmyself, so you know but.

P.F: What do you enjoy watching?

Bynes : I love movies that have a good story. I love movies thatmake you feel good about yourself but I also love movies make you walk awaythinking about them. I like things that have you know something to them.

P.F: And I take it you're not doing what a lot of the other teenagersactresses are doing at the moment and recording an album at any time soon?

Bynes : No definitely not.

P.F: Can you sing?

Bynes : I, can and I've actually started doing musical theatrethat's what I started before I did TV so I definitely, you know, enjoysinging .

P.F: So nobody's ever come up to you with an album idea?

Bynes : Well I mean I, it it's definitely something that I don'twant to do but, you know, everybody always wants to make money off ofanybody talented and, you just have to stay true to yourself.

P.F: What are you doing for your next hiatus? You've got another hiatuscoming up?

Bynes : Well I have two movies that are in the works.

P.F: Can you talk about any of them?

Bynes : I can't.

P.F: None of them? What are they.

Bynes : One is sort of a, a mystery type comedy and then the otherone is a comedy.

P.F: What about, what about college and, and other aspirations do youhave any desire to?

Bynes : Yeah I mean I would love to go to college and I definitelywill at some point in my life but right now I'm, you know, I'm doing a show,I'm you know, doing press for me to be in school I just couldn't be fullythere and I want to really be there.

P.F: What would you like to study?

Bynes : Well I mean I love and fascinated by psychology so thatwould be something that I would like to learn more about so anything thatwould help me in my life and I am so lucky to be doing what I love, youknow, for a living so I would love to learn something that would just sortof help me have my best, you know.

P.F: Will you study outside of California would you like to go to an eastcoast?

Bynes : Yeah I might, I mean, I love New York and I have alwaysloved, you know the energy there so I might go there but you know I'm notready yet so we'll see.

P.F: You seem to have a pretty grounded sense of yourself which is one ofthe things that I have noticed the couple of times I have met you, where didthat come from do you think?

Bynes : I think it's sort of something that you're born with Ireally believe that, you know, there's a lot you can learn from being withpeople I mean I learn so much from my parents I think they have so much todo with who I am, but you sort of you are kind of who you are from like youcan kind of tell from five years old who you are going to be, if you'regoing to be shy or you're going for things.

P.F: But this industry can change that I mean that can make you it cangive you ego it can .

Bynes : . grounded wise definitely my parents they get all creditbecause they, you know, every day are just, you know, they're wonderfulpeople and I think I, you always look to your parents and I think people whohave problems later on in their life always sort of goes back to things thattheir parents didn't do or you know what I mean that sort of, you know,that's your core so I'm really lucky.

P.F: What else is happening how much longer are you going to be doing theTV show for?

Bynes : We're in our third season now, I hope to do a fourth seasonand then I think I will move on.

P.F: So the fourth season could be the last one?

Bynes : Yes.

P.F: Is that all your contracted for .

Bynes : . I can't talk about that.

P.F: Why did you want to do television in the first place, I mean was it ordid it represent a degree of stability in your career? I mean you weredoing fine you were starting to break out in the movies and....

Bynes : Well I really wanted to do something that was a little bitolder than my other TV show for, you know, teenage girls and young adultsjust to sort of, just because I was growing up I wanted to do something likethat and, you know, I, I love, you know, watching those sorts of shows so Iwanted to do it and then there's no rush in other work any movies at thetime so that was a good show I said why not?

P.F: How do you relax?

Bynes : I try to get like massages, facials, I need to have a thingin that nature, you know relax, meditation type things but I love to go tothe movies and, you know, go out to eat with my friends.

P.F: What are you going to do this summer coming, you know, thinkingahead this summer what's do like concerts you want to see, any books youwant to read or any movies you want to go to or something like that?

Bynes : I don't know I know thinking about it, I know I've got toget a list going nothing yet.

ROBOTS OPENS ON MARCH 24