Whereas most bear in mind her because the fashion-obsessed heiress London Tipton from “The Suite Lifetime of Zack & Cody,” the actress not too long ago revealed that her transition from little one star to severe actor wasn’t as easy because it appeared.
Based on Brenda Music, Disney tried to cease her from taking up extra mature roles in movies like “Gran Torino” and “The Social Community.”
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Brenda Music Says Disney Tried To Block Her From ‘Gran Torino’ And ‘The Social Community’
She stated she had initially been thought-about for a job in “Gran Torino,” however Disney nixed it attributable to an supposed sexual assault scene within the script. “And I used to be very upset however I used to be like, ‘Okay, I assume it didn’t work out,’” she recalled.
An analogous scenario got here up when Music needed to audition for David Fincher’s “The Social Community.” On the time, she was nonetheless on “Suite Life,” and issues over mature content material as soon as once more threatened to derail the chance. This time, nonetheless, she took issues into her personal arms.
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“I went on to Gary Marsh, the president and COO for Disney-branded tv on the time,” she defined. “I stated, ‘I’m an actor. Once you employed me, I used to be not a lodge heiress. If I’ve ever finished something in my private life to ever draw dangerous consideration to your organization, I perceive. However that is the final season of the present, and that is the chance of a lifetime.’”
Her plea labored. Disney allowed her to do the movie, which Music says, “actually modified my life.”
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Miley Cyrus Says Disney Banned Her From Singing ‘Hannah Montana’ Songs
It’s a narrative that mirrors latest revelations from fellow Disney alum Miley Cyrus, who stated on Spotify’s “The Ringer” podcast that she “wasn’t allowed” to carry out songs from “Hannah Montana” after leaving the community in 2011.
“It was nonetheless unhappy realizing these songs have my voice, my face, and I wasn’t allowed to sing them,” Cyrus shared.
She was solely granted permission to carry out them once more after being named a Disney Legend at D23 in 2024.
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Music Says Followers Nonetheless Quote Her Iconic ‘PRNDL’ Line From ‘Suite Life’
Like Cyrus, Music discovered her breakout second on Disney. However she’s labored exhausting to evolve past her early roles. Her portrayal of London Tipton not solely helped outline Disney Channel within the 2000s however left an enduring impression.
One explicit second, the place her character hilariously mispronounces the automobile gear shift abbreviation PRNDL as “The Prindle,” continues to observe her.
“It’s at all times the PRNDL and it’s stunning,” Music laughed throughout the panel. “Individuals will at all times be like, ‘You taught me the PRNDL’ or ‘I nonetheless use the PRNDL.’”
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The Iconic ‘Suite Life’ Portrait
The actress additionally confessed to retaining souvenirs from her time on “Suite Life,” together with the pink outfit from the present’s pilot and an enormous portrait of London and her canine Ivana that after hung in her TV suite. It now lives within the dwelling Music shares with longtime companion Macaulay Culkin and their kids.
“I’m afraid to let anybody know the place it’s although, as a result of realizing a sure someone, they’d cling it up in our home and I’d be mortified,” she joked.
Brenda Music Mentioned ‘Being An Asian-American Actress In Hollywood’ Was ‘Tough’
Music credit a lot of her early inspiration to trailblazers like Ming-Na Wen, Michelle Yeoh, and Lucy Liu, who have been among the many few Asian-American actors she noticed on display rising up.
“That was the difficult factor rising up, being an Asian-American actress in Hollywood,” Music stated. “Like for those who weren’t Jackie Chan or Jet Li, I’m not an Asian man, it was actually exhausting.”
Music shared that Wen, specifically, had a significant impression on her. They labored collectively when Music was simply eight years previous, and she or he remembers Wen being “so encouraging, so type, and simply so supportive.”
She additionally fondly remembered working with “Night time Court docket” actor Richard Moll on the Nickelodeon sequence “100 Deeds for Eddie McDowd,” describing him as mild and welcoming throughout her first long-term venture.
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Although she’s not too long ago labored alongside Pamela Anderson and Kate Hudson and even been directed by Fincher himself, Music continues to be humbled by her Disney roots. Nevertheless it’s her persistence, not her previous, that continues to outline her.
“I’m so lucky,” she stated. “However none of it got here straightforward. It’s a must to combat for the roles you realize you possibly can play.”
