“Kiss, kiss.”
Halfway through a recent telephone interview with child actor Lia Frankland, she put her love bird Twinkie on the line to send kisses.
“I’m teaching Twinkie to be bilingual,” says Lia, who speaks English, Spanish, French and Greek.
The 10-year-old also chats excitedly about her love for her “cousin” Apollo, the same regal standard poodle that graced the Courier’s Year of the Dog cover this past February. It was Lia who supplied the crown Apollo wore for his photo session.
But at that time the Courier had no idea the crown’s owner was the same person who plays a major role in the Hollywood film Tully, starring Charlize Theron, directed by Jason Reitman and written by Diablo Cody, who won an Academy Award in 2007 for her Juno screenplay. In Tully, which opened nationwide May 4, Lia plays Sarah, Theron’s eldest child.
Tully follows the story of Marlo, (Charlize Theron) who's about to give birth to her third child. Seeing that his sister is feeling completely overwhelmed, Marlo’s wealthy brother hires a night-nanny named Tully to help out. Marlo soon learns to appreciate Tully and forms a special bond with her new, life-saving friend. Marlo’s husband Drew is played by Ron Livingston while her son Jonah is played by Asher Miles Fallica. Lia can also be seen in several clips from the official Tully movie trailer.
Lia was happy to be reunited with her Hollywood family at the April 19, premiere of Tully in Los Angeles. The film was shot in Vancouver in 2016, when Lia was just eight-years old.
“It was lots of fun and Charlize was super nice and looks exactly the same as she did before the movie,” says Lia of the star-studded premiere. “She had to gain like 50 pounds for the movie and it’s only been two years and she looks amazing.”
At the event, Lia also had the chance to practise her Greek while chatting with Nia Vardalos, lead actor and screenwriter of the popular movie My Big Fat Greek Wedding.
Lia’s favourite scene in the movie is the one during which she and Theron rock out while singing karaoke at a birthday party.
“It was my dream to sing in a movie,” says Lia, who belongs to a local choir. "And that finally came true."
Lia adds the hardest scene for her to play was the one with her onscreen little brother, who in the movie lives with autism spectrum disorder.
“I had to yell at Asher and it was sad,” says Lia. “But he was really good.”
Lia’s other film credits include playing the bullied outsider Avery in the Lifetime movie Betting on the Bride, for which she won best principal or supporting actress in a TV movie (age nine to 18) at the 2017 Joey Awards held in Vancouver. The Joey Awards recognize young Canadian performers through awards and also educate parents and caregivers on keeping young performers safe in the hectic world of show business. Lia has also appeared on the superhero TV series The Flash, as well as the supernatural series Dead of Summer.
When asked if she has a favourite male actor she’d like to one day perform with, Lia immediately names Asher.
“But I’d also like to act with Jacob Tremblay who has done a lot of work in Vancouver,” Lia says of the award-winning child actor who starred as Jack Newsome in the 2015 movie Room, which was nominated for four Academy Awards.
When it comes to a favourite female actor, Lia would like a chance to perform beside Emma Watson of Harry Potter fame or Anna Kendrick, whose many acting credits include starring in Jason Reitman’s comedy-drama Up in the Air.
Lia says her friends, teachers and family are extremely supportive of her acting career.
“They’re very proud of me,” says Lia. “And so is my Aunt Vivian.”
sthomas@vancourier.com
@sthomas10
