BeatBoxBetty interviews Kirsten Dunst from Bring It On!

Written By: BeatBoxBetty
August 2000

It doesn't matter if you love 'em or hate 'em... one thing's for sure - everybody's got a cheerleader story.

I wasn't a spirit freak or anything, but I'll admit it, I was a rah-rah girl for a nanosecond. Unfortunately I was suspended for punching the captain of our squad after she made a racial slur. But a Betty's gotta stand up for what she believes in. Right?

Well KIRSTEN DUNST'S "Bring It On" doesn't go that deep. It's actually a comedy. But it does manage to show that racial lines can be drawn with pom-poms just as easily as with words.

Recently I caught up with Kirsten and asked her how she felt about chicks in skirts with far too much energy. Here's how our conversation went...

KIRSTEN DUNST

"I'm sexy, I'm cute. I'm popular to boot. I'm bitchin'.
Great hair.
The boys all like to stare!"

KIRSTEN DUNST & GABRIELLE UNION IN BRING IT ON
Photo © Copyright Universal Pictures

BETTY: Before this movie, what was your honest perception of cheerleaders?
KIRSTEN: I was a cheerleader in 8th grade so I knew the terminology they were using in the script. But I wasn't in competitions or anything like that.

BETTY: It's interesting how your Caucasian squad is pitted against a minority squad. Were there any fine lines you had to walk to be politcally correct?
KIRSTEN: With my character [Torrance] she really doesn't understand where these people are coming from. She thinks she can get a check from her daddy and they should take it and feel fine with it. Finally, cheerleading isn't being just portrayed as white, blonde-haired girls. Torrence really learns a lot from Isis [Gabrielle Union] and I think there's a mutual respect in the end.

BETTY: What separates "Bring It On" from all those other cheerleading flicks?
KIRSTEN: We're breaking boundaries. And we're not doing the same old little cliché of, "Oh, cheerleaders are dumb, so let's make fun of them." These girls are such hard working athletes; they're dancers and gymnasts. And they work all year long for one competition.

BETTY: What made you want to take this role?
KIRSTEN: I always choose to do things a little different because I don't want to be trapped in that grouping of teen movies. The thing that really made me want to do it was Peyton [Reed] the director. I knew he would bring a freshness to this movie that it didn't have in the script. The script was good, but another director could've made this movie terrible. Since this was his first really big film, I knew he'd put his heart into it.

KIRSTEN AND THE SQUAD
Photo © Copyright Universal Pictures

BETTY: There's that great opening scene when your character has a nightmare that she's cheerleading nude. Ever have a dream like that?
KIRSTEN: No. I don't know why I haven't had any dreams of me being naked in front of crowds! [Laughs] I've always had the really creepy kinds of dreams.

BETTY: It looked like a blast shooting that scene.
KIRSTEN: Yeah. Except that you have to have these little things over your boobs. One shot had like a hundred extras having to look at me with little pasties over my boobs - - that was not fun.

BETTY: Did you get to wear anything on the bottom part of your body?
KIRSTEN: Yeah...

BETTY: [Jokingly] And can you tell me, slowly please, what you did next?
KIRSTEN: [Laughs back] Hey now!

BETTY: Kidding. What was the biggest challenge doing all the routines this film called for?
KIRSTEN: Having the drive and the energy. Because my character is so energetic. She was always stressed about something. So sometimes it was hard to go back to work in that mode again. Plus, all the other girls had three weeks to learn the routines, and I had to learn all of mine in a week.

BETTY: What about television. Ever want to work on a TV show?
KIRSTEN: Well, I might be doing a "Sex and the City" episode in October!!

BETTY: Oooooh. Do tell!
KIRSTEN: That Jessica Parker, baby, I love her. And it's my favorite show. Hopefully it's gonna happen.

BETTY: Do you know the character you'll be playing?
KIRSTEN: I have no idea what they're going to do with me. I met Sarah [and the show's writer] at the Screen Actors Guild Awards and I told her how much I loved the show. They know that I would do anything for the show.

BETTY: What about it really appeals to you?
KIRSTEN: It just keeps you on your toes and it's so hilarious. The writers are brilliant. I think it's one of the wittiest shows and it just leaves you hanging.

BETTY: What's up next for you?
KIRSTEN: "Getting Over Allison" will be coming out in January - which is a fun film I just finished shooting in Toronto. It's also set in high school but it's way different from anything else you've ever seen.

BETTY: What's it about?
KIRSTEN: This guy is getting over his ex girlfriend (Allison) who just dumped him. He'll do anything to get her back and I kinda help him. It's a hilarious movie. I get to sing and dance in the movie, so I feel like an old Hollywood actress. I love it.

BETTY: Ever think of recording an album?
KIRSTEN: Maybe. You never know!

NICE HAIR KIRSTEN.
GOING FOR THE PRINCESS
LEIA LOOK?
Photo © Universal Pictures

BETTY: Does playing "the teen" ever get old?
KIRSTEN: Well, I'm not that far from it. I just graduated high school.

BETTY: Really? It's so hard to believe that. I've watched you grow up. I guess it's because you handle yourself so well and are so mature.
KIRSTEN: Wow. Thanks.

BETTY: Was it weird working with all these big studios and famous people and then going back to school and dealing with stuff like Math?
KIRSTEN: Yeah. I love school because I love my friends and I got to go to prom and graduation...but I liked going away to do movies. And only having - oh - three weeks of school. Math is my least favorite class.

BETTY: Well, I think you're doing just fine.
KIRSTEN: Thanks!

CHECK OUT THE
OFFICIAL WEBSITE FOR "BRING IT ON"