"Ginny & Georgia" Star Sara Waisglass Just Wants Max to Be Loved
*Major spoilers for season 1 of Ginny & Georgia below!*
For all the twists and turns that Ginny & Georgia takes its viewers, there's nothing bigger than the burst of energy felt in every second of Sara Waisglass' portrayal of Max in the series' first season. But don't call her a breakout star. Sara has proven herself time and time again, especially recently with her role as Frankie Hollingsworth in the iconic YA series Degrassi. Many actors probably want more screen time for their character, but all Sara is asking for is for Max to finally be loved in the way she deserves and we couldn't agree more.
Seventeen got to talk to Sara Waisglass about bringing Max to life, her hopes for Ginny & Georgia season 2, and Max's love life.
17: Was there something in particular that made you want to play Max?
Sara Waisglass: The thing that immediately drew me to Max was how brave she was and how unafraid she is to speak her mind. Degrassi does an incredible job making characters that they write for us once we're on the show. It felt a lot more normal. But is very, very out there. That was a huge challenge [for me] and super fun. Every single day [getting to play Max] was just the best day of my life.
17: This show has a lot of secrets. How hard was hiding all the twists and turns?
SW: When I was shooting it, my family would ask, "How was work?" And I'd be like, "It was literally the best ever, but I can't tell you anything. You're gonna have to wait until it comes out and then you're gonna freak out." I couldn't wait for them to see it.
17: Max is the first person who genuinely wants to be Ginny's friend. What do you think Max saw in her?
SW: The first thing she experiences with Ginny is seeing her take down this teacher who's doubting her. Ginny puts on this incredible front and she's this rebellious, outspoken girl. Max immediately latches on to that, because she admires people who are outspoken and she sees someone with some bite to her. She's immediately in trance. I love that she takes Ginny under her wing immediately. She doesn't even stop to ask, "do you want to be friends?" Instead it's, "we're friends now. And this is how it's gonna be." I adore that. I love friendships like that. That was another reason I loved the script.
17: MANG was such a fresh air, especially since it's a four-way female friendship made up of women who try to be there for each other as much as they can. What was it like building that relationship on set?
SW: The interesting thing is Toni [Antonia Gardner], who plays Ginny is not from Toronto, but Katie [Douglas] and Chelsea [Clark], who played Nora and Abby, both are and so am I. We kind of knew each other loosely and before we went in for our audition, we all got together and just sat around, talked and we got really close. So when Toni came in, it was exactly like it was on the show. We were all friends and then we kind of just took her in.
The thing I love the most about their friendship is that it just feels so real because we we truly were having the best time. Every scene with MANG is so much fun to watch because we're bouncing off of each other with this big energy and that's not fake. We so enjoyed getting to play around with each other and I think that's what makes it fun to watch.
17: It's also great to see that no one really questions her sexuality. Ultimately, Max is just a person who wants to be loved.
SW: I feel like Max is universal in that way. Everyone wants to be loved and loving and being loved is human nature, right? I think that her story, especially her wholesome first love, is so adorable. Even in the early episodes, when she has a crush and she kind of gets rejected, that's really tough to deal with. Yet, she takes it in stride, and she pushes onwards because she just so badly wants love. I'm so honored to be able to play someone from the LGBTQ community. I feel it's so important for representation right now and I hope I did her justice, because she genuinely is just such a ball of fun. I love her and love.
17: Even with a lot of the stuff that happens with Georgia, when it comes to relationships in the series, it all still feels very normal. Especially Sophie and Max's breakup.
SW: I think what was super impressive. It didn't ever feel forced. Most of the things that happened on the show, I just went "This is life." I look around and this is what's happening to me and my friends. I remember that Sarah Lampert, the show's creator, had a lot of conversations with Toni, Mason [Temple], and all of these people to make sure that the stories we were telling were truly authentic. I think that's what reads really well. People can see themselves in these stories, because they're just so brilliantly, authentically written. It makes my job super easy, because I just come in and I read these beautiful words, and the whole thing just takes on a life of its own. Working with Humberly is such a dream, because she is just so open, so vulnerable and just unbelievable.
17: There's also Max's relationship with her brother. Despite butting heads and their big fights, there's still a lot of love there.
SW: Felix [Mallard] is another fantastic find. When I first met him, we started playing around like brother and sister within seconds. He just brings such a playful vibe everywhere he goes and is so easy to goof around with him. I can be a little mean to him, he could be a little mean to me, but there's a serious love underneath. It really genuinely did not even feel like acting with him. We were just giggling and playing around, and it just felt so natural and easy. A couple people have commented on that dynamic and I owe so much of it to him being so open and willing to play.
17: Max's family uses sign language around the house. Did you learn beforehand? And how was it bringing that language onto the screen?
SW: The was another one of my favorite parts of shooting. The was my first introduction to ASL [American Sign Langugae]. It's such a beautiful language. I feel like we should all be learning it in school, to be honest. I didn't know much beforehand. I knew how to like sign my name, but that was pretty much it. Then Chris [Kenopic], the guy who plays our father, was the one who would teach us the whole alphabet and other signs. We also had side coach who would come in and teach us. We all got so into it that by the end of the season, other actors who weren't even in the sign language scenes really wanted to learn. We'd all be teaching each other and have these little conversations. I would be signing to someone from across the room. It was just amazing to be able to incorporate that and I feel like a lot of people are going to feel very seen. I don't normally see enough Deaf representation on TV. It was amazing to to get close to Chris and to learn about that whole world that I just had no idea about.
17: Throughout the season, we see Max go through a lot of highs and lows. Depending with who she is with, she is either very strong or ends up breaking down all her walls to completely show her feelings.
SW: Maybe my favorite thing about Max is that she kind of reflects life. There are some insane highs in life and there are some insane lows. You kind of have to ride both of them with the same grit. Max is a ball of energy. She's super hilarious and positive. But she's also dealing with these hard things. And yet, she pastes on a smile, because that's kind of what you got to do sometimes. You've got to push through, because what's the alternative? I admire her for that. I mostly just love that this whole series weaves the good and bad in together.
17: There's so much that happens throughout Ginny & Georgia that will certainly surprise viewers. Was there something that surprised you when you were reading the script?
SW: I love everything that comes out of Max's mouth and I was definitely most excited about the musical episode. When I read that I was going to be up on stage singing to a crowd, I thought, "I haven't done that in years. Oh my god, how are we even gonna pull this off?" But I feel like it looks really good and I'm super proud of it.
17: That entire scene of you going on stage, performing Sing Sing!, and then going into the wings to fight with Ginny was so incredible. Did you get to film it in pieces?
SW: That was like the biggest challenge and the most fun that I ever had. I remember asking them, "how are we going to shoot this? Are we going to do all the behind the curtain stuff first?" They went, "No, you're doing the whole thing like every time." So that whole sequence was all happening all at once. I think they told me I did it in its entirety about 21 times, which is just insane. But, I feel like that helped. My energy my adrenaline was up and that really contributed a lot to it. Also, Toni is such a star. Acting with her is one of the greatest gifts I've ever had in my life. She is one in eight billion.
17: The ending was kind of harsh to Max. MANG is broken and so is her relationship with her brother. What are you hopes for season 2?
SW: I honestly think Max needs love. Adding in her her ending with Sophie, I feel like this just burns her that much more. Who can she actually trust? She can't trust her brother. She can't trust her friends. I think that'll be interesting to explore. How does she heal from this betrayal? But as for season two, oh god, I really just want people to love season one. I'm not even thinking about season two. I just want people to watch and just love it as much as I do, because I really think I'm the biggest fan of Ginny & Georgia on this planet.
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