Pop-Culturalist.com

Ana Yi Puig has emerged as one of the standout stars of 2023. As a gifted artist and storyteller, she is not only captivating audiences but also trailblazing for her community through her nuanced and compelling performances on both stage and screen. This year marks a significant milestone in her career as she takes on her biggest role to date, playing Isabella Lopez in Disney+’s Goosebumps.

Inspired by R.L. Stine’s worldwide bestselling book series, Goosebumps follows a group of five high schoolers as they embark on a shadowy and twisted journey to investigate the tragic passing three decades earlier of a teen named Harold Biddle—while also unearthing dark secrets from their parents’ past. Ana’s portrayal as Isabella is nothing short of transformative, illustrating a character on a quest to find her place in the world and uncover her voice—a depiction filled with remarkable depth and vulnerability.

Pop Culturalist was lucky enough to speak with Ana about her journey blazing a trail for her community, landing the role of Isabella in Goosebumps, how the creative team fostered an environment where all the actors could take agency over their characters and bring that authenticity, and more!

PC: How did you discover your passion for acting and storytelling?
Ana: I actually grew up doing sports. I was in a very sports-heavy family, and we were always very artistic. My dad is big on films, and my mom loves fashion. They were always singing in the house. My mom’s from China, and my dad’s from Puerto Rico, so there were a lot of cultural influences.

But when I was around six, I simply would not shut up. I would not stop talking. My mom and my dad put me in the Hippodrome State Theater Summer Spectacular, which was like a children’s summer camp at a regional theater that we had. It had improv, Shakespeare, and theater. I was so offended by this. I remember being so upset when she dropped me off. Then I met everyone, and for the first time in my six years on Earth, I was like, “Wait, these are my people. These people are like me.” I felt immediately that I had a community within this group of theatrical folks/creatives. I remember she picked me up that day from summer camp, and I was like, “Maybe you were right, and I will continue.” It really was just that.

Around seven or eight, I was like, “There’s no plan B. This is my plan.” It really was the stage more than anything. I always wanted to do TV and film, but I never anticipated it. This is beyond my wildest dreams that something like this happened at this point in my life.

PC: Who or what has had the biggest influence on your career?
Ana: Oh, my gosh. That’s a great question. It’s interesting. As a mixed person, specifically a Hispanic-Asian person, there were so few people that I can look up to and see myself. At the time, I don’t think I was able to articulate this as a child, but because I didn’t see myself, it was a little bit like I don’t know if someone who looks like me and sounds like me can actually do this, and if there’s a place for me, so I simply have to blaze that trail for myself. I have to make my opportunities happen. I have to get in these rooms. I have to make these relationships.

I remember being so impacted the first time I saw Mulan. It was really Lea Salonga who planted the seed that, “Oh, I can do this. You’re doing this, so I can do this.” After that, it was Eva Noblezada. Hadestown is one of my favorite shows.

It’s all the women, stage and screen alike, who fight for the rights of all. Jessica Chastain really inspired me as a young person. I went to a performing arts school for acting. She’s someone who also didn’t have the best experience in the educational setting for performing arts. I remember listening to a podcast where she was advocating for Asian-American women, and she was like, “I don’t know why we don’t see Asian actors in theaters and on film. It doesn’t make sense. That’s something I’d love to see more of.” Those are both women who really inspired me.

Honestly, my parents too. Where they came from, they didn’t really have many means of expressing their artistic selves, and they pushed me hard to have the opportunities that I did, and they supported me with every ounce of love and every penny in their pocket. I’m very grateful for them.

PC: It’s got to be so special for you because now you’re paving the way for future generations so they won’t have to experience something similar. You’re one of the stars of Goosebumps, and there are so many different directions that both Rob [Letterman] and Nicholas [Stoller] could have taken this series. But it really strikes that perfect balance of nostalgia while also introducing something that’s new, fresh, and exciting. At what point in the process did you realize you were all creating magic on screen?
Ana: Honestly, it was even before we shot. I had read the first episode, and I thought it was fantastic. I’m a huge R.L. Stine fan. I read all the books when I was young. It’s tricky to compartmentalize as an actor because when you’re going in for such a big IP, you have this responsibility to give an ode to the fans of the OG series but also give something to children who didn’t grow up with them and who want them now.

It was the first time that we did a table read and discussed with the producers their ideas and how they wanted to mesh this, knowing that some people are going to be disappointed and some people are going to really ride for this. We have to be okay with sticking to our vision because we were all very much on the same page.

But more than anything, it was when we went in for that table read. They had cast all of us. They approached me and talked to me about my parents and casting authentically a Chinese mother and a Hispanic dad. You obviously don’t see Mr. Lopez in the show; however, he exists. They also cast an Hispanic-Asian actor, Ian Ho, as my brother, which was so moving and incredible. That kind of consideration and attention was like ears perked. This isn’t going to be every other production. They’re taking care of us. They’re taking care of this story. They’re really trying to push the envelope and create a new aspect of this genre.

PC: The show has been so incredibly well received and well deserved. As you were saying, the creative team wanted to give you all the freedom to make these characters your own. What did you bring to Isabella that wasn’t initially on the page? How did that trust allow you to take agency over her journey?
Ana: These questions are incredible. What fulfilling prompts. I’m really grateful that you’re asking these. In Episode 3, The Cuckoo Clock Of Doom, there’s a scene in the AV room where we’re wiping off the goop, and I’m explaining to Margot and Isaiah what’s going on. I’m explaining to them that I’m the troll and how I didn’t mean to. We’re like, “Something’s wrong here,” and we’re piecing together that it’s coming from the Biddle house.

Erin O’Malley directed my episode, and she’s one of our producers. She also did American Born Chinese for Disney. She’s incredible. Shout out to Erin. She and I had this idea because there was a bat in the room from when I hit James. We started laughing, and everyone on set couldn’t hold it together because I grabbed the bat and Margot is like, “Maybe we don’t resort to violence for every situation.” [laughs] They ended up cutting it, but it was this improv thing that was never spoken about with Isabella.

But in that moment, I remember Erin pulled me aside, she took her headphones off, and she was like, “What if there’s a version of this where Isabella is always the one who tries to resort to violence?” She’s the Gryffindor of the group. She’s trying to get things done, and she doesn’t necessarily have to talk about it. She’s like, “Great, I have to kill someone now, sorry,” and everyone else is like, “No, wait, wait, wait.” [laughs] That was a really fun aspect of Isabella and bringing more badassery to her because when I first read it, it read on the page as someone who can be homely, reserved, and like your classic wallflower.

I really didn’t want to play to that stereotype and what that could be, especially with model minorities, and being an Asian woman. I really wanted to figure out how to take up space and show her journey of finding a voice for herself. That was never planned. Her becoming this badass, punchy biker girl at the end was organic.

PC: She has such a beautiful arc throughout the first season where she goes from being somebody that’s unseen to finding her place and being this real leader for the group, and you brought so much depth and nuance to that journey. As an actor, how did you create that space for yourself to dive into that emotional arc, that vulnerability, and that growth?
Ana: Thank you. To be completely blunt with you, I don’t think you’re ever ready for your first big job. I’m so privileged to have gotten this opportunity. It’s the greatest honor of my life to be part of a series that meant so much to me as a child. But I had no idea what I was doing. [laughs] I’ve taken film class, and I’m a theater human. But it was really the crew, my directors, my producers, and my fellow actors that held me. They created a space where I was comfortable and safe enough to make those decisions.

Film is a completely different medium. It’s visual. It’s incredibly nuanced. It’s tedious. You’re thinking about hitting your mark, making sure the left side of your face is lit. It’s so different. I’m grateful for the patience and openness that people had with me. It was so collaborative, especially Erin, Rob, and Nick; they were all so open to our ideas if we ever brought anything to them, which happened several times, a lot of people don’t know that. A little BTS secret for you is that a lot of the script had a lot of changes because they were really open to the actors coming to them and saying, “This doesn’t feel like Isabella. Is there any way this might happen or this could happen?” They were like, “Yes. Yes. Yes.” So it was just a delicious environment for imagination and creativity.

PC: I also think it’s one of the benefits of television as a medium as well. As the creative team gets to know their actors, they can build storylines based on their performances and their interpretations. These characters are bounded by their trauma, and they turn that into a beautiful friendship. You really spearheaded that camaraderie by inviting everyone over to your apartment ahead of filming. How did that time allow you to build the chemistry that we see on screen? What was your favorite behind-the-scenes moment?
Ana: I didn’t need to try and create chemistry with anyone. Sometimes what’s asked of us as actors is absolutely asinine. Actors are supposed to do the most intimate things you’ve ever done with a human being that you met fifteen minutes ago in a call back. We’re so privileged that Miles [McKenna] was cast first, then Will [Price] and I. We actually spent several weeks in Vancouver without Zack [Morris] and Isa [Briones]. They came later. We met them, and it was serendipitous.

I truly think there’s liquid luck in this casting director’s superb witch brew because I’ve never met such a solid group of humans who I would pursue being friends with outside of any work. That really informed our characters where they went. The whole James/Isabella being best friends is simply because Miles and I are best friends in real life. On set, we couldn’t keep it together. We were horrible. Isa and I are craving more for Margot and Isabella.

My favorite behind-the-scenes moment is a tie. In Episode 5 (Reader Beware) for Margot’s episode that was the first time that we got to act together. That was the first episode where it wasn’t every person’s individual episode; we were together doing the thing. It was so thrilling to look across from them and act for the first time with them and not behind set.

It was that or the massive dance sequence that no one got to see that Isabella does in Episode 2 (The Haunted Mask). It’s when she comes out with the mask. There was a scene with Lucas where it was this really intense, eerie possession dance. It was almost a musical theater moment. That sounds like it was like Glee, but it wasn’t. I swear. That was so fun to film because it was truly all my worlds colliding. So many of us in the cast started off in theater or musical theater, so it was really cool to do that on a film set. It was really, really fun.

PC: As you were saying earlier, there’s such a diverse cast leading this project, but it’s never leveraged as any form of tokenism, which is a huge step forward in terms of representation. It’s so crucial for young kids to see themselves in the media that they consume. Have you had time to reflect on the impact and the contributions you’ve made on audiences? What does it mean to represent our community in a series like this and on a network like Disney+?
Ana: It’s difficult for me to process. It’s quite challenging to understand the depth of what could be reached in terms of representation, having Zack, Miles, Isa, and I. I’m also the type of actor who doesn’t read reviews or comments. To hear that an impact is being made is profoundly moving for me. But it’s not only a privilege but a responsibility that I take seriously, especially for mixed folks, and not just Asian people or just Hispanic people. I wish when I was young that the shows that I watched had people who looked like me. I remember seeing Selena Gomez in Wizards of Waverly Place and being like, “That’s so close. That’s so close!”

My only hope is that young people can watch this show and see themselves and think, “Okay, I’m in high school and I look like this. I act like this. That’s a sliver of me, and I’m doing fine. This is okay.” As much as it’s a spooky, fun adventure show, there’s a lot of heart and a lot of growing pains that are reflected in your adolescence and how deeply uncomfortable, hard, and exhausting high school can be. I know it was for me. That’s also a massive part of representation and knowing you’re not alone and showing that they have other people who have gone through what they’ve gone through.

PC: Episode 110 leaves the door open for more stories to be told. If we’re lucky enough to get a second season, what else would you like to explore with Isabella? What do you think her reaction will be when she learns about the decision Margot makes regarding Isaiah?
Ana: Fingers crossed for Season 2. That would be incredible. I think that Isabella will be very, very scared and upset that Margot did this. However, I think that’s absolutely going to be juxtaposed with her immense gratitude and respect for the fact that Margot was brave enough to do a really scary thing.

I don’t know how much I can give away, but there was also cut footage between Isaiah and Isabella. What I would love to see explored is not only Isaiah and Isabella’s relationship but the deep friendship between Isabella and James and Margot. I want scenes with Margot. I want to see a female friendship blossom and explore who Isabella is when she’s confident enough to take space.

I think she landed there and that was delivered at the very end. You finally see her being comfortable and having friends for the first time. Even in her fashion and the little things, you can see she’s being braver and expressing herself authentically. I would love to explore what it looks like for her to be the most grounded version of herself. I’d love to explore more of her relationship with Isaiah too. It’s really fun, and there’s a lot of juiciness there.

To keep up with Ana, follow her on Instagram. Watch Season 1 of Goosebumps on Disney+ today.

Photo Credit: Sam Pickart