Chloe Bennet: Just Jared Spotlight of the Week (Exclusive!)
Chloe Bennet: Just Jared Spotlight of the Week (Exclusive!)
Chloe Bennet is seductive as ever in this exclusive photo from the latest edition of the Just Jared Spotlight of the Week series.
The 21-year-old scene stealing Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. actress sat down with Just Jared to chat about her fan favorite new television show, being a pop star in China, and having a pet squirrel!
“I can’t tell you! I wish I could, but the episode hasn’t aired yet!” Chloe teased when asked about her favorite prop that she’s used in S.H.I.E.L.D.. “But I’ve gotten to drive some pretty cool cars, I’ll say that.”
Click inside to read our exclusive interview with the gorgeous Chloe Bennet…
Chloe Bennet Interview – JustJared.com Exclusive
Just Jared: Congrats on Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., how crazy is your shooting schedule?
Chloe Bennet: It is insane! It’s good fun though, because it’s Marvel stuff so I get to do bad ass things all day, so not much to complain about. It’s a good busy!
JJ: What’s your favorite on-set moment?
CB: I’ve gotten to do some pretty fun stunt work, which I can’t disclose much information about because of strict Marvel security rules. But getting to know my cast members has been really cool, and being apart of the Marvel Universe is just awesome! I grew up with six brothers and I didn’t have that many Disney Princesses around, so it was always sports, and Marvel, and comics books. So now being apart of it is like my version of a normal girl’s dream to be a princess.
JJ: What’s your favorite prop that you get to use on the show?
CB: I can’t tell you! I wish I could, but the episode hasn’t aired yet! But I’ve gotten to drive some pretty cool cars, I’ll say that. I love the car Lola. I know that’s a really big prop, but that’s really fun, I got to sit in it and fake fly so that’s cool.
JJ: Can you give our readers a teaser for some of the upcoming episodes?
CB: It is a Marvel show, but it is super sexy, there’s definitely some romance coming up. Marvel is mostly male driven, so for me I’m really excited to see my co-star Brett take his shirt off more! I don’t know if the ladies will all agree with me, but I think they will. So that’s very exciting (laughs) no, I’m just kidding. It’s funny because every week I read each episode and we’re kept in the dark until we shoot it, so we really don’t know what’s coming up next. It’s so great to see all the episodes tie together. Some things you think are a stand alone story concept, but everything gets tied together in a really nice way. Lots of questions are answered but then other doors are opened, so it’ll keep the audience on their toes.
JJ: What was it like being a pop star in China?
CB: To me it feels so normal at this point. It’s almost like this weird high school job that I had, that I’m kind of embarrassed about in way. You know, I was 15 and I got asked to move there so I was like, “Oh well that sounds better than Geometry class!” I literally packed my stuff and I left. I moved there all by myself. It was interesting, you know? You’re 15 years old and you’re thrust into the spotlight. There’s a lot of pressure and it forces you to grow up fast, but it was really fun. My first performance was in front of 30,000 people! The thrill of getting to perform in front of that many people is something that I’ll never forget, that was probably the best part about it, and getting to meet really cool fans. I’m half Chinese, which is something a lot of people don’t know. They’re like, “Who’s that girl? She looks Mexican.” so it was cool to meet family members that I didn’t even know I had and to learn more about my culture. So many Americans are a mix of all these different ethnicities and they don’t get to know much about it. So, that was cool.
JJ: Tell us about your music video for “Uh Oh.”
CB: I shot that video and I had only had 2 days of dance rehearsals, which is very obvious by the lack of dance skills that I have in the video! They actually make fun of my dancing on set all the time! Joss Whedon, the creator of the show, he loves to do my “Uh Oh” dance. He thinks it looks like some weird Bat Mitzvah dancing, we make fun of it all the time. When we shot it, we would do one take in English then they’d say, “Ok, let’s re-do it in Mandarin.” So I would re-sing it in Mandarin and try and focus on the words, then I’d forget the words in English! It was a shit show, basically, but it turned out pretty funny. Some of the crew members call me Sparkles, because of Robin Sparkle from How I Met Your Mother. She’s a pop star in Canada and she’s really quiet about it, so they like to call me Sparkles. Actually, my stage name in Chinese literally translates to “Bright and Shiny.” It’s really embarrassing.
JJ: What do you miss most about living in China?
CB: It’s an experience living over there, you know? I’m pretty happy living here. I love to visit, but it’s definitely not a place I want to live in again. I love China and I love Chinese culture, also the food is really great, but I’m definitely happy here. I miss the food and getting to travel China, because it’s so beautiful.
JJ: Would you ever try being a pop star in America?
CB: No. (laughs) No! I’d love to do a film where I get to sing or do something like that, because I love music, but I’m very happy acting. When I was over there I never felt like a pop star, I never felt like that’s what I was supposed to be doing. It like like I was acting like someone and I was just putting a character on, I never felt like who I was. I feel much more comfortable pretending to be other people. To be a pop star here you have to have a certain level of shock value and you have to seek a lot of attention, and that’s not something that interests me.
JJ: Do you enjoy foam parties?
CB: (laughs) I wonder who you’ve been talking to! Yes, those are fun! A bunch of my friends and I went to Mexico and we just filled the whole hotel room with bubbles and just jumped around in there. I was some of the most fun ever.
JJ: What’s your favorite memory from your trip to Mexico? We heard it was a wild time.
CB: It was really wild. We were stuck in this one resort and it was kind of boring. I think my favorite part was when we bought out the gift shop in the hotel, and bough all the cheesiest stuff and ran around driving golf carts. We just had a really silly time. I never went to college. Most kids my age are in college, so it’s fun to experience something like that. It was only one week, but it was totally enough!
JJ: Does your dad ever embarrass you?
JJ: Does your dad ever embarrass you?
CB: Oh my gosh, who’s parents don’t embarrass them?! It’s funny for me, because I think that I’m a little ridiculous sometimes. I love messing with my family and my brothers, I love to poke fun at them in public. But my dad has this one thing that he does when he sees celebrities, he just can’t handle himself. He acts like a weirdo around them! I’ve learned from experience that if I see someone I know, I won’t say anything until that person is gone, if I’m around my dad. Once we were walking in New York and out of the corner of my eye, I see Paul Rudd walking towards me. Then I see me dad A-Line for Paul Rudd! I start thinking “Oh no, what’s he going to do right now?!” So I see him go up to Paul Rudd and he punches him in the arm! I was like what is he doing?! Then my dad tries to talk to him and Paul Rudd just walks away. My dad comes back scratching his head and says, “That was so weird, I know that guy! I think he’s a work buddy of mine, but he just doesn’t remember me.” I say, “Dad! You know that guy because he’s a movie star, not because he’s your friend. That’s Paul Rudd. What are you doing? You punched Paul Rudd in the arm!” He was like, “What?! Oh yeah! We should go get his picture!” I said, “No, you just punched him! You could get arrested!” It was very bizarre. So, yes, my dad does embarrass me. (laughs)
JJ: You’re a big basketball fan. Do you have a favorite team/player?
CB: I am from Chicago, so the Bulls are definitely where it’s at. I grew up about 2 miles away from the United Center, which is where they play. I remember in the 90s, growing up, when Jordan was playing and that was awesome. I love the Bulls! D. Rose! I’m excited that he’s back in the game. The only thing with that is, working in the Marvel Universe, I haven’t had any time to watch any games. I know it’s just started, but hopefully I’ll have more time to watch some games. Hopefully when I go back to Chicago for Thanksgiving. It’s always fun on Thanksgiving, I play football with my brothers. Since I have 6 brothers, we split up and pick teams and they never pick me first. I’m always picked last! They never want me on their team because I suck at all sports. So that’s embarrassing, it’s kind of a bummer, but we have fun.
JJ: You once had a pet squirrel? What was that like?
CB: (laughs) How do you know all this?! Oh my gosh, I did! I totally had a pet squirrel, his name was Flea, I got him when he was a little baby squirrel. He was outside of my house, and it’s so rare! I mean, when do you ever see a baby squirrel just outside chilling? You never really do. So I see this baby squirrel and I’m just like, I need that baby squirrel! I need that to be my baby squirrel. I saw a dead squirrel on the street so I assumed that was it was just hanging around, because it’s mom was dead. So I buried its mom. By the way, I’m notorious for stopping on the street and burring dead animals. It’s something I have to do, it makes me feel terrible if they don’t have a proper burial. So anyways, I caught the squirrel in an open umbrella by putting little nuts in it, then I picked it up. I got one of my old aquariums from the garage and made a little habitat for him in there, then I kept him in my closet. For a month! Then, my parents found out about it. They came to my room and they were like, “Honey… we have a question for you. Do you have a squirrel in your closet?” I said, “Yes. Yes I do, dad.” So they’re like, “Ok. Ok. Um, why? Why do you have a squirrel in your closet?” I told them I found it, so it was a little awkward but I got to keep it! Eventually we had to give it away to my neighbors, but then the state took it away because it’s illegal to have squirrels as pets in Chicago. I still have my eye out for a baby squirrel.
JJ: One of your friends asked us to ask you, do you remember who “Sandy” is?
CB: Yes! I tend to go a little crazy and I make up characters. Sandy is this really weird dorky character that I used to do with Ali and Colton. She has a specific face, a double chin, and a Texan accent. It’s like a dorky Texan with a lisp. (laughs) She’s my alter ego. That’s how I feel on the inside, like Sandy. I forgot about Sandy! I’m so excited you reminded me of that.
JJ: We aim to please here at Just Jared! Thank you so much for taking time out of your busy schedule to talk with us.
CB: You guys are the best! Thank you!
PHOTO SHOOT CREDITS (PICTURES BELOW) —–
Pictures 1 & 4
Isabel Marant dress
Kesha Rose by Charles Albert necklace
Luv Aj ring
Tory Burch boots
Isabel Marant dress
Kesha Rose by Charles Albert necklace
Luv Aj ring
Tory Burch boots
Picture 2
Rhea Costa dress
Rhea Costa dress
Picture 3
Liv Los Angeles top
Liv Los Angeles top
Picture 5
Rachel Zoe dress
Luv Aj bracelet
Rachel Zoe dress
Luv Aj bracelet
Producer: Jared Eng (@jaredeng)
Photographer: Justin Campbell (@justjustinnyc)
Stylist: Jordan Grossman
Hair: Kylee Heath (@KyleeRaeHeath)
Make-up: Kindra Mann (@KMannMakeup)
Interviewer: Colin Moretz (@colinuggets)
Photographer: Justin Campbell (@justjustinnyc)
Stylist: Jordan Grossman
Hair: Kylee Heath (@KyleeRaeHeath)
Make-up: Kindra Mann (@KMannMakeup)
Interviewer: Colin Moretz (@colinuggets)