Jessica Belkin
BELLO It Girl by Carl Tienabeso and Ed Solorzano
Not many can say they are Lady Gaga’s daughter, and while that may first confuse you, actress Jessica Belkin proudly wore that title for a season of the FX hit show ‘American Horror Story”. Bello Mag go to shoot and sit down with the young actress on her career and what is looking for her in years to come. She has already played the character of Wren alongside Lady Gaga’s and in such a young age, the blond actress has been able to play a number of different roles and we simply can’t wait to see what she plays next. She has been seen on various networks including ABC, FX, Freeform, Nickelodeon and Amazon Prime Video appearing in shows including “Pretty Little Liars”, “Nicky, Ricky, Dicky & Dawn” , “Speechless”, “Just Add Magic” & more. We may not remember the character name of Wren from “American Horror Story” in years to come but the world will soon know Jessica Belkin.
What do you love most about playing Leah on “Just Add Magic”? Tell us about the show and your role.
I have played a lot of mean girls in my career but Leah has been my favorite! Leah starts off as such a sweet character you almost don’t want to hate her but she starts doing some pretty mean things to her friends. She’s the queen bee of the girls at school. The best part about playing Leah is I get to play someone I’m totally not, and then later people come up to me and say, “Wow you’re so nice in real life! You play mean so well!” I like surprising people. The show is on Amazon and its about 3 girls who have a magic cooking book, but every time they use it to cast a spell, there comes a price. My character befriends one of the girls, Hannah played by Aubrey Miller, and ends up bullying her and sending the entire school mean photos of her. Leah definitely learns her lesson in the end.
You have experience acting in a variety of genres. What types of roles are your favorite?
Like I said before I’ve played a lot of mean girls but my favorite roles to play are in drama/horror projects. I was on the 5th season of American Horror Story where I played Lady Gaga’s vampire daughter. It was such a different role and I loved it! I like to play serious roles. I love scary mixed with fiction or fantasy. Tv shows like, American Horror Story, The Haunting of Hill House, Bates Motel and Black Mirror are the kind of genre I like to play.
What sorts of roles challenge you the most?
I’ve been acting since I was 5 and over the years, I’ve gotten a couple auditions where the script literally just doesn’t make sense. It’s either about like robots or about a kingdom but I just don’t get it. It happens to everyone, sometimes actors just get scripts they don’t like. Those roles are hard to understand and figure out but we still go out for them, you have to seize every opportunity.
Any fun stories while you were on set of “Just Add Magic”?
In one of the episodes, you see the world through my eyes and in one of the scenes I jump into the pool! It was so funny, I actually had to jump in! They recorded my feet jumping in and then my point of you out of the pool. I was freezing but it was such a cool experience! There was also a baby golden retriever when we were filming on location. She was so cute, my cast mates and I would visit her during lunch.
Who inspires you? Why?
My biggest idol in acting would be Natalie Portman. I think she’s so talented and her career blossomed at such a young age, I respect and look up to her so much. My all time favorite movie is Leon: The Professional, where she was 12 years old and she played the role perfectly. My biggest idol for music and fashion is Billie Eilish, I’ve loved her music since she was 15 and love everything she creates and puts out into the world. I think her style is so unique and head turning. I love that.
As you know, Bello is a lifestyle magazine that readers use to keep “up to date” on all good things LA. What are your top 5 favorite things about living in LA?
I was born in LA and I honestly can’t see myself living anywhere else unless it’s for work. I love Melrose and FairFax, I go there to shop and pick out some cute outfits. There’s also a lot of graffiti and art there to take pictures at. I love my family and friends, a lot of my best friends have moved away to their home towns so I’ve been making a lot of new friends and I love the people in LA. There’s a lot of great colleges, some of my dream ones are UCLA or USC. I’m currently in community college and am going to transfer to a university when I’m 18.
The weather is usually really nice in LA but recently it’s been raining and really gloomy these past couple months. I think the last thing I love about living in LA is being close to all the studios. It’s just easy when you’re in the center of things.
Do you have any go-to places in the city?
I love going to Moonlight Roller Way! I went roller skating for the first time since I was a kid and I loved it! I love going with friends and skating to the music.
Bello is also a fashion magazine. What are some of your personal wardrobe staples?
I wear my Air Force 1 and Jordan 1 all the time. I always add hair clips to my outfits. I always add my cropped black puffy jacket, it has neon green inside and finally I use silver jewelry and chains, and belts a lot.
What are three things you can’t live without?
My heart, Portable charger and my phone.
How do you like to treat yourself after a stressful day?
Literally I eat chocolate. That’s how I reward myself. After that I go to bed. Knock out.
What are some of your goals for 2019?
I’m actually flying to New York this month to film a new movie! Its gonna be such a cool experience I’m so excited! There’s a lot of good people attached to the project and I’m so happy to be a part of it! It’s a dramatic movie, just my specialty haha! I’m also gonna start recording music soon, making YouTube videos and more content for my supporters. I wanna start modeling more and doing more editorial photoshoots like we did!
Photography Arthur Galvao @artGphoto
Styling Sky Naval @sky_is_dlimit
Hair & Makeup Teresa Ammons @teresaammons
Production Maison Privée x BELLO Media Group
featured in BELLO April 2019 issue #184. Order your print copy HERE.
