When Lili Reinhart saw the role of Betty Cooper, she knew she had to have it. But she wasn’t in the best place when the script first landed in front of her.
In a very candid interview with W magazine, she said at the time of the audition for Riverdale, she was suffering from severe mental health issues.
“I had so much anxiety booking work, and I spent almost five months holed up in this bedroom in this house just feeling anxious, waiting for my next audition, and not doing anything else. It was the most miserable time of my life.”
She was on new medications that left her feeling unstable and it’s at that time that she had to send in her audition tape.
“I spent three hours on my first audition tape, and I felt like I could not get it right. I sent it in and wasn’t the girl. It doesn’t surprise me because I was in a sh*t place when I taped that.”
Luckily, she was able to get help and start recovering by the time she moved to L.A. and was able to book a second audition — this time in person.
“I felt so close, and I had been so close to so many things before, that I didn’t want to let this one slip through. And I remember leaving the final audition and calling my manager, as I was driving towards the sunset, and saying, ‘I feel proud of myself for what I’ve done. Regardless of what happens, I feel happy and really at peace.’ And I truly felt that.”
She landed the gig (of course!) and went on to superstardom. But even still, it’s extremely impressive that she was able to overcome her anxiety and book her dream job.
So many other young actresses have admitted to struggling with anxiety, like Emma Stone and even her costar Camila Mendes. Camila previously said she also struggled through the audition process, explaining,
“I was losing sleep, I would wake up in the night crying! I was feeling so anxious because it felt like I was on the verge of something.”
Obviously, it was meant to be that Lili and Camila would end up playing Betty and Veronica. We’re just so proud of these two for all they went through and for being able to talk about it so openly.
Riverdale season 2 premieres October 11.
