Pop-Culturalist.com

Hollywood first met Claudia Sulewski back in 2011 when she began creating her own original content for YouTube. Today, that channel reaches over 1.8 million fans, but, Claudia’s more than just a social media influencer; she’s emerged as Hollywood’s newest triple threat, adding host and actress to her impressive credits. She’s currently starring in not one, but two hit AwesomenessTV shows, T@gged and The Commute. We were lucky enough to chat with her about the roles, making the transition from YouTuber to actress, and her career ambitions.

PC: Can you tell us about The Commute, your character, and where season two picks up?
Claudia: The first season of The Commute started off with two people who are complete opposites. They’re in different social groups at school, but come to an agreement to carpool to work together. Emma, my character, has a DUI and can’t drive, but she has a car. So Hansen, Steffan Argus’ character, drives them everywhere. The second season focuses on their relationship and what’s going on between the two of them.

PC: How would you describe Emma’s evolution from season one to season two?
Claudia: In the first season, Emma was definitely more stubborn and I feel like it took her a long time to warm up to Hansen. She only saw things through her perspective. In the second season, her mind opens up and she grows a lot.

PC: The first season was shot primarily in Emma’s car. What are some of the challenges of acting in such a confined space and what kind of adjustments, if any, did you have to make?
Claudia: The cool thing about it is that we can just blast music [laughs]. It actually made it super easy, but one of the challenges would be that because you’re only sitting in one spot, you have to pull out different emotions in different scenes. It’s interesting to sit in the exact same spot and film from there. It was so much fun to do scenes outside the car in the second season.

PC: There are a few characters that are joining the second season. Which new relationship was your favorite to explore and why?
Claudia: Oh! 100% the relationship between my father’s girlfriend and I. We have this dinner scene and it is the funniest thing ever because I’m just in such a bad mood and you can see the relationship play out with my dad’s girlfriend and me—how much I really dislike her. All of these new characters help add another layer to the series because we hear so much about them in the first season, and then in the second season, we actually get to meet them.

PC: If you had to pick one scene that you’re really excited for fans to see this season, what would that be?
Claudia: One scene…ugh, that’s so hard. I would say the camping scene. I can’t say too much, but it’s the cutest footage ever. It really made me mindful that I’ve been single throughout the whole show.

PC: You’re also the star of another Awesomeness TV show, T@gged. Which of these two characters do you relate to more and why?
Claudia: I would say I relate more to Emma just because in T@gged, Nicki is undergoing such extreme circumstances. She goes through an identity crisis and it’s a darker story, so, I feel like I would definitely relate more to Emma, especially because in season two, we had the opportunity to improv a lot of the scenes, so the banter between Emma and Hansen is just Steffan and I being weirdos.

PC: How did the two of you build that relationship offset?
Claudia: Literally by being attached to him on and off camera. Steffan and I would just always be together, hanging in each other’s rooms and yeah…After season one, he became one of my best friends. It was very, very easy for us to make out and then laugh about it and be like, “That was the best make out so far!”

PC: Jumping back to T@gged, what were you most excited to dive deeper into about Nicki?
Claudia: Honestly, the appearance was a lot of fun because she had a whole new set of wardrobe, but also getting to film with Lulu, who plays Rowan, because we barely had any scenes together in the first season. I was a bully to her and because of Nicki’s change, their paths cross and they get super close. That was so much fun. Lulu is so good at what she does and she’s a sweetheart and just a lot of fun.

PC: How has the fan reception been between the two shows?
Claudia: So good! It’s been the most rewarding thing ever—to have people tweeting and commenting about how excited they are. Sometimes, it takes forever for this stuff to come out and takes me away from YouTube and things like that. I’m always like, ‘I promise it’s going to be out soon,’ and so, when it finally is, it feels so good and everyone just responds very well to it. I also think it’s really fun for the fans to see someone that they may have been watching for years in a completely different world.

PC: Speaking of Youtube, you started your career on Youtube and then made the transition to acting. Do you have preference on which you like to do more?
Claudia: YouTube will always have a place in my heart and I can’t imagine not doing it, at least for a while, but right now, acting, for sure. It excites me and it makes me so happy. Ever since I started, it’s kind of been like a very clear thing in mind, but I’ll always love making YouTube videos.

PC: Do you have a dream role?
Claudia: A dream role…it’s not a very serious one but I’ve always wanted to do an action movie and have to run and fight!

PC: Doing your own stunts?

Claudia: Exactly!

PC: Is there an actor, actress, or director that you would love to work with in the future?
Claudia: My favorite actress is probably Rachel McAdams. She’s very versatile. I feel like she could still be playing a mean girl, she could still be playing an innocent sweetheart. I love watching her!

Pop Culturalist Speed Round

PC: Guilty pleasure TV show?
Claudia: I just finished Riverdale and I loved it.

PC: Guilty pleasure movie?
Claudia: Guilty pleasure movie…let’s see. It’s not a guilty pleasure but can I say the Austin Powers movies.

PC: Favorite book?
Claudia: There’s this book called You Can Heal Your Life by Louise Hay.

PC: A favorite play or a musical?
Claudia: I didn’t go to a lot of musicals growing up, I feel like a failure but I definitely want to see more.

PC: Favorite social media platform?
Claudia: Instagram

PC: Hidden talent?
Claudia: This is one of the most useless talents ever, but I’m really good with animal sounds. I can imitate animals really well.

PC: A band or artist that fans would be surprised to learn is on your playlist?
Claudia: My favorite band of all time is Lewis Del Mar. It’s like a two-man band. People wouldn’t be surprised because I talk about them all the freaking time. They’re still kind of starting out so I love bringing them up because they are like my favorite band ever. I just saw them live a week ago and thought they were amazing.

PC: Go-to karaoke song?
Claudia: “The Real Slim Shady” by Eminem

Subscribe to Claudia’s channel on YouTube and follow her on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. New episodes of The Commute air every Tuesday and Thursday on AwesomenessTV’s YouTube channel and check out new episodes of T@gged every Tuesday on go90.

Photo Credit: AwesomenessTV