Monica Barbaro on Hot Rachel's Shady 'UnREAL' Reveal

From ELLE

As tonight's episode of UnREAL revealed, Yael, the contestant often known as "Hot Rachel," has been holding on to a big secret. The character, played by actress Monica Barbaro, is actually a reporter trying to uncover whether the reality show depicted on the Lifetime series is deadly to its participants. (That explains all those nosy inquiries, the burgeoning relationship with Jeremy, and, oh yeah, the pocket-size tape recorder. Cue the collective DUH.) It's another shocking revelation in a season of very dark moments, which included an eerily timely police shooting with the fictional Everlasting's first black bachelor, Darius (B.J. Britt). Here we chat with Barbaro about Yael's big reveal, dealing with race on the show, and why she refuses to actually watch The Bachelor.

When you auditioned for the role did you know this would be Yael's arc?

They didn't tell people auditioning. It wasn't in the character breakdown. But when I went in I read the scene once and casting director told me, 'Okay, great job. Just so you know, she's a reporter doing an article.' They basically told me she was trying to get the inside scoop. They didn't want the secret out, but they told me because it was important for what I would play in the scenes. It, of course, makes a huge difference because her intentions are so different. None of the other actors knew until it came out on set, although of course, Shiri and Constance [Zimmer] knew the whole storyline.

So this explains a lot of her behavior over the season.

Oh, absolutely. It was hard to do interviews early on because the fashion blogger storyline–that whole thing–isn't true. She's not really a fashion blogger; she's a reporter. So everything I was playing as far she's concerned is this scheming character. She's sneaking around and she wants attention from Darius because she wants to win. If she wins this, her editor is telling her it will be a huge story and get tons of attention. So she wants attention from Darius, but she's not falling in love with him like the other girls are. Throughout she's been trying to deliver performances for production, crying, trying to create fights with the girls. She instigates some drama because she wants the producers to be happy with her and let her in. The exciting thing about having a secret on any show is the idea that fans can go back and watch the show again and see it in little places where the character is featured.

Was she actually shocked by the police shooting in last week's episode?

I don't think anybody expected that to happen. As far as Rachel's character is concerned, I think that was part of the issue. She didn't see how out of hand it would get, nor did Coleman [Michael Rady]. These girls are in a back seat of this car not thinking about the circumstances with the cops and the way Darius and his cousin could be treated by the cops. They don't realize it until it gets way out of hand.

How do you feel about the way UnREAL handled the portrayal of a racially motivated police shooting?

It's a really complicated issue. I can say that filming it was tough. It was really intense. It was incredible to work with B.J. and Gentry [White, who plays Darius' cousin Romeo]. They were in such good spirits throughout it, and we were all putting our best effort to make it as real as it could possibly be because you can't half-ass that scene. I had never been a part of filming anything that traumatic and the way it was handled on set was well done. The people who played the cops, B.J., and Gentry-we all were sitting together and talking about the circumstances a little bit and being as honest as we could be with that situation. I think it's appropriate how each character realizes what is going on when they do. You see Romeo and Darius understanding exactly what is going on well before the girls do. They understand they're dealing with cops and this is not a safe situation for them and the drama at the mansion is nothing compared to the reality of this situation. The show did it as true as they possibly could.

It still seems so crazy that a fictional show has a black suitor, but no actual reality show like The Bachelor does.

Oh, it's unbelievable. You would think a show with such a huge fan base would maybe have interest in using that toward something good. And yet the show itself isn't showing the best characters in humanity. They manipulate people and the fun of it is watching people often being humiliated. That's what the show is. I guess we can't expect them to look at real issues in the world and try to tackle them in a grounded and loving and all-accepting way.

Do you watch The Bachelor or The Bachelorette?

I don't watch them. I watched a bit for this to prepare. You can probably tell from my standpoint on the way they depict humanity that it's not for me. I like some reality TV. I like Project Runway because I love people creating things. I like those kinds of shows, but reality television as a whole... I just feel like dating is such a personal experience and that's why I cringe at watching people go through that. Those uncomfortable moments and having those conversations. Especially with those shows, for me, it's like 'No!' I'm not a kiss-and-tell kind of a person.

Based on your experience with Yael, do you think a reporter could actually infiltrate one of those shows?

Yeah. I think she could. I think she would be sued out of existence, but yes. That could happen. You'd have to build a very heavy façade. And that was the exciting thing of playing this, having moments of playing her a little bit like she's playing the game. She's aggravating other girls. But she also likes Ruby as a person so much in the beginning. I think she would see eye to eye with her if she could tell her the truth.

It's fun to think about how the girl everyone's been calling "Hot Rachel" is actually much smarter than she looks.

You have to see the way she goes about this reporter business and decide whether you want to call her "smart" or not. But that was an interesting to me from the very beginning. She's very manipulative herself. There's more than just her looks and her background that makes her similar to Rachel. She's interested in telling a certain kind of story and getting what she wants. She's happy to manipulate people to get the answers she wants, including Jeremy. They're similar in that respect to and I think that was intentional.

Why does it seem important to have a show like UnREAL on TV right now?

Right now there is a lot of attention on things like The Bachelor. People want to pay attention to people who are not the best examples, or to lifestyles that are not realistic. I think it's important to see the behind the scenes of the way a lot of media is made and shed light on that aspect of this industry. It's so much for ratings and attention. Celebrities are having battles over Twitter and there's so much of a focus on that drama façade... It's a reminder that [reality shows] are a production being made to entertain you and to shock you. These are just people underneath it all and it's important to see that. UnREAL does shed light on that.