Exclusive Interview: Pop Culturalist Chats with Big Shot’s Tisha Custodio

Rising actress Tisha Custodio is delivering a slam dunk performance in her breakout role as Mouse in Disney’s Big Shot. Created by David E. Kelley, Big Shot follows a temperamental college basketball coach (John Stamos) who gets fired from his job and must take a teaching and coaching job at an elite all-girls private school.

One of the girls that he coaches is Tisha’s character, Mouse, who is the youngest in the group and comes out of her shell as the season progresses.

Pop Culturalist was lucky enough to chat with Tisha about discovering her passion for the arts, Big Shot, and what audiences can expect from Season 1.

Career

PC: How did you discover your passion for acting?
Tisha: Growing up, I was always drawn to performing. I wanted to dress up and tap dance like Shirley Temple. I was constantly singing princess songs, and I wanted to learn to play guitar like Taylor Swift. The love for it grew as I did, so much so that I decided to audition for a performing arts high school, which was essentially the launchpad for my acting career.

PC: Who or what has had the biggest influence on your career?
Tisha: I had this incredible Shakespeare teacher named Peter Uribe, who was so passionate about acting. The subject of Shakespeare and acting fundamentals can be very hard to like unless you have an exceptional teacher. I credit my love for theater and acting to him.

PC: In addition to being acting, you’re also a musician. How has music made you a stronger actress and vice versa?
Tisha: Music carries so much emotional weight for me while also allowing me to feel freer. I love making playlists for characters that I play to help me get into the mindset in a less structured way.

Acting has absolutely helped me as a musician since every song tells a story. It’s helped me be more emotionally attached to what I’m singing and/or playing.

Big Shot

PC: Tell us about Big Shot, your character, and what drew you to this project.
Tisha: Big Shot is about a temperamental NCAA coach who gets fired and has to teach at a private all-girls school to redeem himself.

I play Mouse, who is the shortest and youngest on the team. She’s almost the peacemaker in the group and sees the positive outcome that will come from Korn coaching them before any of the other girls do.

The main thing that drew me to the project was how distinct and well fleshed out the characters are. I remember reading the script for the first time and seeing all these characters so vividly in my head. They’re just so grounded and real; I absolutely know a real-life version of Mouse, Destiny, Olive, Sam, and Louise.

PC: What can you tease about Mouse’s journey in Season 1? How did you prepare to step into her shoes?
Tisha: I would say Mouse starts to gain confidence as she starts to find out who she is during this season. What I love about playing Mouse is that she has a bunch of similarities to my high school self. I definitely drew from my real-life experiences as well as my friends’ experiences in high school.

PC: David E. Kelley has created some of the biggest shows in television history. Did that bring any pressure to this project/role?
Tisha: I wouldn’t say pressure. If anything, it was more of a comfort to know that someone so incredibly talented as a writer was creating this show.

PC: This is your biggest role to date. Did anything surprise you about the process? What was the biggest takeaway thus far?
Tisha: Lots of things surprised me! I think the biggest thing that surprised me was exactly how technical film/TV acting is. Most of my training is for stage, so minding things like continuity and standing in a specific spot on a specific line was very new to me. The biggest takeaway was the importance of being flexible enough with your acting choices to play along with your castmates’ ideas. I quickly learned this once I realized how much John [Stamos] loves to change things up during takes, and the small, serendipitous moments that happen when we all really play off of each other are my favorite moments.

PC: There’s a natural chemistry that comes off the screen between the cast. How did you all build that bond so quickly?
Tisha: The chemistry was honestly there from the audition, however, we really got to bond during the month-long basketball camp that we had to do before we started filming. We would see and work with each other every day for two hours, and it was just so much fun.

PC: The show is out now. What do you hope audiences take away?
Tisha: I hope audiences feel how much heart this show has, especially since this show has a team of girls who are genuinely there for each other and helping each other grow.

Pop Culturalist Speed Round

PC: Guilty pleasure TV show?
Tisha: Drake and Josh.

PC: Guilty pleasure movie?
Tisha: The Princess Diaries.

PC: Favorite book?
Tisha: The Picture of Dorian Grey.

PC: Favorite play or musical?
Tisha: Last Five Years!

PC: A band or artist that fans would be surprised to learn is on your playlist?
Tisha: Ariana Grande.

To keep up with Tisha, follow her on Twitter and Instagram. Watch new episodes of Big Shot every Friday on Disney+.

Photo Credit: Ryan West