Exclusive: Miranda Cosgrove Reveals How "iCarly" Prepared Her for Her New Show "Mission Unstoppable"
Seven years after the end of iCarly, Miranda Cosgrove is going back to her television roots. This time, she's in a role that finds her seemingly more connected to her iconic character, Carly Shay, than ever before. While it's not an iCarly revival, an episode of her new show, Mission Unstoppable, sure feels like you're watching her back in action as she talks about scientists in the field and encourages young girls to pursue a career in STEM fields.
And for those thinking that it's odd that Miranda made her television return in this series, it's actually not as farfetched as you'd think. After the end of iCarly in 2012, Miranda started college at the University of Southern California (USC), where she ended up switching her major three times until she found her one true love: psychology. But her STEM roots don't start there, in fact, she's always had a love for the STEM fields as she grew up and tried to figure out what she wanted to do in her life. And so, it's like a full circle moment for her as she starts to inspire other young girls on their journey to becoming ladies in STEM.
In honor of National STEM Day, Seventeen got the chance to talk to Miranda about Mission Unstoppable, her hopes for the future of women in STEM, and her journey in figuring out what she wanted to study despite her initial plans for something else.
17: What made you want to get involved in Mission Unstoppable?
Miranda Cosgrove: When they first approached me about hosting this show, I was excited because when I went to USC to college, I ended up majoring in psychology. I actually took part in some different experiments and stuff for extra credit and also through my psychology classes. So STEM ended up being a big part of some of those experiments and that was really the first time I kind of understood more about STEM and kind of got into it. But that was all the way in college. So when I found out about this, I just thought it was a really cool idea. It was something that I knew young girls would be seeing and that maybe they realize all the different job opportunities that fall under STEM since there really wasn't a show like that for me when I was little. It just happened at just the right time when I had just been learning kind of more about it and then I was also excited just hoping that young girls will get to see it and realize the different opportunities they have.
17: Why was it important for you to be a part of this show?
MC: For so many years, I was on a kid's television show and on a kid's television network. I think it really excited me to be doing something so positive for young girls. Because, when I was little, I didn't have a show like this. Also, I feel like, even though it hasn't been that long, I just feel like there's a lot more shows now that have all different kinds of people and they're showing, not just girls, but boys that too. It's just really nice to be able to turn the TV on and be able to see like such a different array of people and personalities. That's something that I really love about 2019. It's just like an exciting time and to get to be a part of that in any way is like amazing.
17: What about the show has surprised you thus far?
MC: It's really fun getting to host because every time I go in, I get to learn about all of these really cool women. Some of them I've heard of, but most I'm hearing about for the first time and it's crazy just all the different things that they do. One of my favorites was from one of the first episodes, Robyn Sue Fisher, who created a machine that makes ice cream in 90 seconds and I love ice cream so I really thought her segment was cool. And the fact that she actually says in her segment how so many people were like, 'You're crazy. What are you doing like trying to make this machine? Get a real job.' People made fun of her and told her it wasn't going to work out. And now she has several really successful ice cream shops called Smitten. I really want to try one some day. She was super cool. There's another lady named Diana Trujillo, that's going to be in an episode coming up, and I haven't seen her segment yet, but I actually knew of her and I'm really excited that's she's going to be on the show. She's from Columbia and she's head of the Mars Rover program and she's just so cool. So yeah, it's awesome to get to be a part of this show with so many awesome women.
17: Why do you think young girls don't really see themselves in STEM fields?
MC: Well, even for me, as I watch this show, I was thinking, 'wow, there are so many things that I tried to pursue that I didn't really even know about.' Hopefully, for young people that see this show, once they're starting college or going into high school, they'll already have these ideas in their minds and they'll be able to explore them more. When I was little, I really wanted to be a veterinarian. That was like my big dream and I'm just realizing that falls under the STEM umbrella. It's just crazy how many different things you can do with it and I think people just don't really know. I was one of those people. I didn't really understand how many different opportunities fell under STEM. I think that just for people to realize that, it's gonna open up a lot of doors for young people. And I'm not really sure why don't realize. I go on Instagram all the time and I guess you just don't see that much about it. Just the fact that this show exists, I hope that it's the step in the right direction.
17: How has hosting the show inspired you personally?
MC: It's funny cause one the show they have this segment where it's kind of like you can do your own experiments at home. After I do my little hosting part of the show, I'll go in later and i'll do the voice overs for those and it's been really fun doing those. I didn't really do that many experiments when I was younger in school with homeschooling and it's just been fun getting to like learn about the different things you can do. One of them was just even a simple experiment where you make an egg go down a water bottle and I had never done that before. I know a lot of different easy experiments now that I never knew about before.
17: Have young girls reached out to you since the show started airing about how they've been inspired to be in STEM?
MC: IF/THEN is this initiative with Lyda Hill Philanthropies and they're a big part of the show and their whole thing is that they're trying to show young girls through media [all the things they can be]. They want to put different characters into TV shows and get it out that there are different fields in STEM, just like these women we're showcasing that have different jobs and show people, 'hey, you can be like that.' Because they're just trying to make sure that girls see themselves on TV and that there's a version of everybody out there. Since that's like a really big part of what they do, I went and I got to do a little Q&A with them and with the show and then a bunch of people came and actually watched the first couple episodes. There were a bunch of little girls there and it was really cool cause it was really my first time having anyone see the show and talking to anybody about it. And a few young girls, I think they were maybe like 13 or 14, came up afterwards and they were saying how like in school, when they tell people that they want to pursue STEM careers, that people are always like 'oh, why don't you do something else?' or like these people didn't really understand what it was. They were saying how they were excited because they wanted their friends at school to see this show and they were hoping more people understood what they were actually trying to do. I think a lot of people just hear the word STEM and they think, 'oh, science, math, and this' and they're not really all about that. They get kind of scared. They were saying how they were really excited that this show was coming out and I thought that was really sweet hat maybe it could bring some more awareness and then people understand how cool it really is.
17: How has the transition from acting to hosting been?
MC: It's kind of funny 'cause when I was on the show iCarly, we pretended to be hosts basically, so it's sort of funny now that I am hosting something. It's kind of silly and wacky like that too. Even though I'm a lot older now, it's fun to get to do all the different fun and lighthearted segments on the show. I'm definitely enjoying it and I don't feel like it was too much of a stretch, even though it really is my first time hosting.
17: You were initially planning to major in film, but then you switched to psychology. What made you switch and how did it shape your college experience?
MC: Yeah, I can relate to people that are trying to figure out what they want to do, 'cause I did change my major three times. When I first started at USC, I was gonna be in the theater program and I had just went to the orientation and I was like, 'I can't do this.' It's kind of funny, but I'm really not good on stage. I love to act, but I get nervous when it comes to being on stage, like being in a play or something. That was mostly what the theater program was, which makes no sense why I applied for that. I ended up changing it and then I did film and I actually really loved doing film, but I didn't really want to direct or write, I just love movies, so I was like, 'I don't know, what I'm doing here.' So then I ended up switching to psychology and I really found something that I really and truly was interested in. I love all the classes. It really makes such a difference when you really are enjoying your major. When you really find something that you actually love, it made like doing the work so much easier. I should've done that from the start, but I guess everything is a learning experience and I'm glad I got there.
17: Was there was anyone in particular that inspired you when you were trying to figure out what you wanted to study?
MC: I definitely had different teachers in my different classes that were especially interesting or got me excited about it. But, it was kind of funny, it was sort of like I just went to the first psychology class, before I declared it as my major, and I was like thinking about it and I just went in and everything that they were saying just interested me. It wasn't really like that with the other classes I had taken and it's it just clicked for me and I really enjoyed it. I loved telling people the different stuff I was learning in the classes afterwards. I think I just got lucky and realized it was the right thing for me.
17: Do you have any advice for anyone who might be a little hesitant in getting into STEM?
MC: Even though I'm not in the STEM field, I still feel like I experienced a lot of the things that people in it experience and what makes them scared to dive into it. Like when I was talking about how I wasn't really sure about what to major in and it feels like such a big decision what you choose. It feels like that's going to be the thing that makes your entire life and that's not really true. You can pick a major and you can still do other things in your life and even now, when I watch the show and I see that. Like there's a lady who is an architect on the show and she has a little building and you can learn to build things there, so she has young girls come and they build stuff. When I was watching that I was like, 'I want to try that out.' I really want to go try even though I'm probably not gonna be an architect. I think it'd be really fun to learn to build something. So I just feel like life is all about learning new things and don't be scared to try whatever your heart leads you and whatever you feel like interests you and would be fun. Don't be scared to try it.
17: How is it working with Geena Davis, who is an executive producer, and has made big strides for women in media?
MC: Yeah, I actually got to meet her during the little Q&A I was telling you about that I got to when they screened the first two episodes of the show a few weeks ago. Geena Davis is so nice and I love everything that she is doing. I think that it's incredible and it was really cool to listen to her speak that day about all of the work she's done and all the work that she's continuing to do just to help young girls and she seems like she's just so dedicated. Like, she really wants to make a difference and she has. I'm really excited to get to be in the company with her. It's pretty awesome.
17: What is the ultimate takeaway that you want girls to have when they watch Mission Unstoppable?
MC: Well, even if one or two people see this show and it changes something, something in their life that makes them realize like what they can achieve, that would be my biggest dream for the show or hope. One of my favorite segments is at the end of the show, where sometimes they'll show the people that were in the episode and they go through each person and they ask them like the different trials and difficulties they faced while trying to reach their dreams. And it really seems like every single person that's been on, no matter how successful they are now, several people told them that they weren't gonna make it or that it wasn't a good idea the dream that they were trying to achieve. Even for me, even though I'm not in STEM, it's similar with acting. You go on so many auditions and you don't get the part and it's like a lot of the time it's easy to kind of get down on yourself cause you hear no so much. So I really related to that and I hope that other people, young girls when they see it, I hope they realize like it doesn't matter if people don't believe in you, believe in yourself because it can definitely happen. So, yeah, that would probably be my main hope for it. Don't listen to the people that say no, just tell yourself yes.
You Might Also Like
