Speed Date: Brie Larson Loves Girls Bathrooms, Hates Abbreviations
Brie Larson had a spectacular then.
Then being the not-so-distant 2013, a year that found the 24-year-old appearing in no less than three acclaimed films, "The Spectacular Now" and "Short Term 12," both of which hit DVD and Blu-ray this week, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt's "Don Jon."
The roles have landed her all kinds of accolades, most prominently a Best Actress nomination from the Critic's Choice Awards for her role as an emotionally vulnerable foster care worker in "Short Term 12."
Larson is sheepish about it all, to say the least: "Is that good? I just wake up in the morning and I've won things and I've lost things."
She's not used to being recognized for things: "I didn't even go to a regular high school graduation," she says. What else we learned about the sublimely dry Larson in Yahoo Movies' latest round of Speed Date: She thinks girls bathrooms are a source of comedic gold and will never go out with a tow-truck driver again.
1. Where did you grow up? Sacramento, California.
2. Did your parents have another name for you if you turned out to be a boy? I do know that the other name that they had for me was Saven, which I kind of wish was my name. I think it's a better name than Brie, but whatever.
3. Did you have a nickname as a child? Brie.
4. Is your full name Brianne? Yeah.
5. When did you realize you wanted to become an actor? 6.
[Related: The 13 Biggest Breakout Stars of 2013]
6. What was the first movie you ever saw? I believe in the theater it was "Snow White," the Disney film. Then after that I wanted to watch everything, and my favorite movie as a kid was "Gone With the Wind."
7. Did you memorize parts of movies as a kid? Yeah. "Gone With the Wind" in particular. I'd have the [southern] accent and go, "Ashley, Ashley."
8. Do you have any pets? I do, I have two dogs. Bowie and Jonathan.
9. What is your biggest pet peeve? People who abbreviate in text messages.
10. What's the worst job you've ever had? I've always been an actor, so anytime it's been a bad job it's been like a really horrible set. One time I was an A.D. on an industrial commercial, and I thought that the soundstage was pretty weird and then I discovered it was a porn studio. It was sketchy. And then when the owner of the place is giving me his card I got really scared.
11. What is your favorite holiday? I love Halloween.
12. Do you dress up? Oh yeah. I love the girls' bathroom [on Halloween]. Or even at Coachella, the Port-A-Potties. It's always the most fascinating thing watching girls obsess over themselves and get ready and girl talk and pass tampons around. Then, on Halloween it just takes it to a whole other level. You can't believe the stuff that's in there, it's just pure gold.
13. What's your sign? Libra.
14. Are you a typical example of that sign? I guess you're supposed to be balanced? I try to be. But I'd be boring if I was perfectly balanced.
[Related: Catch up with all our past Speed Dates]
15. What do you never leave home without? I try to not leave home without my keys but sometimes I have to go back into the house to grab them. I always need a book and index cards and pens. I write everything on index cards and I have file cabinets and I file everything.
16. Do you watch sports? No. I don't think I really believe in them.
17. Do you believe in ghosts? I don't know what I believe. I would've said for sure 'no,' but it's a very complicated subject matter. I guess recently a study came out that scientists have decided that mediumship is an actual real state of being. So now I'm just confused … People swear by it. I've never personally had a paranormal experience, so it's tough to say. But maybe through this conversation I'm beckoning the ghost to come visit me tonight.
18. What is the worst date you've ever been on? Well, it started off good and then it went bad. I got a flat tire a couple of years ago. I called a tow truck company and the guy who came to change my tire - I ended up thinking he was pretty funny. We went on a date afterwards, but he Googled my name and then kept asking me about movies and stuff. And I was like, well, that defeats the whole purpose of dating a tow truck driver. It ended after that.
19. What would you cook on a date? Probably chili. Something I didn't have to actively work on. I would probably not do meat. But I would maybe cook some meat on the side so if that person ate meat they could have some.
20. Are you a vegetarian? Um, sure? I don't care to classify my eating habits.
21. What would you say was your big break? My first job, when I was 7 years old and I got to do a fake Barbie commercial on Jay Leno. I showed up and they put my name on the door, and I really thought that I had made it. Nothing has really lived up to that experience.
22. What is the best part of being an actor? I feel like I have a pretty good theory of mind, and I'm very curious about other people. It gives me the rare opportunity to get into other peoples' skin and try and think from other's perspectives, and I think that's just invaluable.
23. What is the worst part of being an actor? That your face is on camera.
