Young and Hungry starring Emily Osment (Gabi) ) as a young food blogger who gets a job as a personal chef to a young tech executive Josh (Jonathon Sandowski) is one of the new shows on ABC Family. I had the opportunity to interview the cast at a fun round table breakfast last week and boy, what a cast. Along with Emily Osment, I chatted with Rex Lee (Josh’s assistant Elliot Park), Aimee Carrero (Gabi’s best friend Sofia Rodriguez), Jonathon Sandowski (Josh Kaminsky) along with creator of the show David Holden.
Emily Osment (Gabi Diamond)
Emily Osment has certainly come a long way from her role as a sidekick on Hannah Montana but not really. She is still using her comedic chops as the lead on ABC Family’s new show Young and Hungry. Emily arrived at our interview all smiles and looking quite adorable which is funny since she admitted that she is a “jeans and t-shirt” wearing Californian owning up to having over 40 pairs of flips-flips in her closet. And because she is a casual kind of girl, she has a stylist pick out her clothes for her. Don’t you love her candor?
I was surprised to learn that she had been auditioning like mad during pilot season. In between taking college classes, she was auditioning every 3 hours for roles. And was thrilled that she was chosen for the lead in Young and Hungry because she gets to actually play her age which is 22. She intimated that she has no idea how old she looks because she gets turn down for roles because she is either too old or too young looking.
Emily plays a chef on the show so the big question is, can she cook? She does actually cook in real life but nothing too fancy, mostly salmon and rice to stay healthy. The one thing she did want to hone up on was being able to use a knife the way chefs do, to ensure she brings authenticity to the role. Fun fact: The actress she wants to work with most is Tilda Swinton. And why does she own 40 pairs of flip flops? Because her dogs eat them.
Rex Lee (Elliot Park) @Rex_Lee
Photo Credit: ABC FAMILY/ Craig Sjodin
I have been a big fan of Rex Lee from his Entourage days playing Ari Gold’s put upon but brilliant assistant Lloyd Lee. Rex is as you can imagine, a gracious and fun interview. Talking about what attracted him to the role of Elliot Park on Young and Hungry, he really liked the comedic elements of the script but that it also had heart. Although the show just launched in June, he mentioned that as the season continues you will see the “family” side of the story and learn the back story of how he came to work with his boss Josh. I think that so many of us think that once that you are on hit show, it’s a piece of cake to get the next job. I found it refreshing that Rex was so honest that in show business, you need to always be thinking about the next gig. He is one of those 10 year overnight sensations but offered up that he has always wanted to be in the entertainment business but started going to music school to play the piano and then took an acting class and voila, the urge to act. Fun Fact: His dream directors to work with are Kimberly Pierce (Boys Don’t Cry) and Woody Allen and favorite actress to work with is everyone’s favorite Oscar winner, Cate Blanchett.
Aimee Carrero (Sofia Rodriguez)
Aimee Carrero is just as adorable as she is on the show. I bet you think that Aimee is like so many young stars, been acting since birth. Well, she breaks the mold. Although she took theater in high school, her dad advised her to get her degree which she did. She has a degree in International Relations from Florida International University. Don’t you love that? Aimee’s first job in Hollywood was a big one, getting cast on Emily Osment’s former show, Hannah Montana. Not bad.
Now she is playing the witty and wisecracking sidekick which she finds so much fun to play. This is one of the reasons she loved the script and what she finds so exciting about the show plus she finds the experience such a collaborative effort. I loved her quote that “comedy is music” which is perfect since she does get some of the best lines on the show and as any actor will tell you dramatic roles are easy but comedy, now that is hard.
As a side note, this young actress talked about her support system, her family in keeping her brand separate from her personal life. Smart girl, I say. Fun fact: Her dream director to work with is Wes Anderson and favorite actress is Tilda Swinton for her boyish style.
Jonathon Sandowski (Josh Kaminsky)
Photo Credit: ABC FAMILY/ Craig Sjodin
Jonathon may not seem like his character on Young and Hungry but he admitted he does have some tendencies like being goal oriented and meticulous but not as nerdy. The best part of the week for him is performing in front of a live audience where you get that instant gratification of the audience.
This is probably not a spoiler but Jonathon told us that one of the reasons he liked the show is that it is very family oriented in a new kind of way (Hey, isn’t ABC Family’s tag line “ A New Kind of Family”) and that as the season continues you will get the back story of how Elliot and Yolanda (Kym Whitley) all starting working for him and why they are such a tight knit family. Fun fact: Jonathon is a magic nerd. Didn’t see that coming!
David Holden (Creator of Young and Hungry)
Photo Credit: ABC FAMILY/ Craig Sjodin
Admittedly, I was not aware of Mr. Holden’s previous shows which include one of my daughter’s favorite shows “Shake it Up” and was interested how the story of Young and Hungry came to fruition. Interestingly enough, he was approached about developing a show based on the Gabi Moskowitz’s blog “Broke Ass Gourmet” but didn’t really see a show in the blog. At some point, they went with a different concept but still kept the food blogger as the lead character. It is notable that as they were developing the show he wanted the show to have an element of fun and sweetness but without the snark.
Young and Hungry on ABC Family
“Tune in at 8:00pm ET/PT on ABC Family. Jesse McCartney will be guest starring on this Wednesday’s (7/30) episode
Stay social with Young and Hungry on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. #YoungandHungry
Disclosure: NYC Single Mom was provided a trip to the Los Angeles for a Disney, Marvel, DreamWorks ABC Family hosted press event. Opinions are 100% my own. #GuardiansOfTheGalaxyEvent, #100FootJourneyEvent, #ABCFamilyEvent.
