Fans are waiting on the edge of their seats for Disney+’s upcoming flick Stargirl to come out. Based on the fan-favorite young adult novel by Jerry Spinelli, the movie stars Grace VanderWaal, Karan BrarGraham Verchere, Shelby Simmons and more, and is set to premiere on the streaming site on March 13, 2020.

Well guys, J-14 just got a chance to chat with Shelby about the the coming-of-age flick, and it sounds like it’s definitely going to be a must-see once it premieres!

J-14: Can you tell us about Stargirl? What’s it about?

Shelby Simmons: Stargirl is about a girl that comes into a real cookie-cutter type town and through her movements as a person, she inspires other people to step outside their boundaries and really explore who they are who they could be.

J-14: Who do you play specifically? Can you tell us about your character?

Shelby: I play a girl named Hillari and although some people may tell you differently, she is not a bully. She is a girl who uses her influence as the popular girl to show people how they can be happy. She does that the best that she can. When Stargirl comes in, it’s this direct conflict between my character, who really strongly believes in the social norms because they are what has worked, and Stargirl who believes in stepping out of those norms because there’s so many possibilities. It’s actually a really beautiful conflict that they end up having in the movie. I love the added layer that my character brings to the movie because she’s not just your average mean girl. She’s not in the movie just to be mean, she’s there to show you that even bullies have a story.

J-14: Do you relate to her at all?

Shelby: In some ways, yeah, I really do. It’s more indirect — everything Hilary does is intentional. She wears the clothes that she wears and she even dates the guy that she dates because the only thing that she feels she’s good at is leading. I really relate to that in the sense that I’m an actress and I want to use my talents to help other people and to further other people’s lives. I feel like we are the same in that way.

J-14: Are there any fun behind-the-scenes stories or secrets that you can share?

Shelby: We had this one scene that we did, it was actually pretty epic. It was like this six-hour scene. It took us six hours to film this scene and it was really cool because we were all super emotional, up until this part we had never done anything like really emotional, all of us together. It was so cool because we all had to get in this mind set, we literally didn’t talk to each other for six hours, and then right afterwards it was like, ‘Woah.’ It was super crazy coming out of it.

J-14: Were you and your costars close when the cameras stopped rolling?

Shelby: I wasn’t close with everyone but I definitely had my people. We were all very friendly with each other but I definitely bonded with certain people more. I was very close to this girl who plays Stargirl’s friend, her name is Allison [Wentworth]. I don’t think she has any lines in the movie but she was really the sweetest girl there. She had such a nice heart and she was so lovely to be around. I really enjoyed being around her and I’d say I bonded most with her.

J-14: What was your all time favorite scene?

Shelby: I really love my last scene. Without having to spoil it, Hilary comes to some realizations. I’m sitting at the table and it used to be filled with all my friends. I used to be the popular one and I’m not anymore. I’m sitting alone. The last person to leave me is the guy that I’m dating. Throughout the film, we were with each other in every scene so we became actual friends, and so it really hurt when he left, like seriously. I really love that scene and after that, this other guy comes in. He comes and he shows Hilary kindness, despite all that she’s done and all that has happened. Everybody else has left her but this one random kid, he was just a kind kid and he noticed me and showed me kindness and I thought that was a really beautiful moment.

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