Actors may say that they became close to their costars on set, but in Britt Baron’s case, she was literally close with the other actors while filming the Netflix series GLOW.
“You’re in each other’s armpits and you’re rolling around with each other,” Baron said. “It made filming just an amazing, goofy, hilarious process and I think these girls are like my sisters for life.”
The bond she formed with her fellow actors also exemplified for Baron one of the major themes of the show. “In my experience, a lot of times, girls tear each other down, or we’re super judgmental of each other. This show is all about embracing each other; we’re so much stronger when we’re working together,” Baron said. “It was 14 girls and this was all kind of our big break for the most part, so there weren’t really any egos.”
GLOW takes place in 1980’s Los Angeles and tells the story of the creation of a women’s wrestling TV show based on the real life Gorgeous Ladies of Wrestling. Baron plays the youngest of the GLOW girls, Justine, who she described as a high school runaway with a punk rock style and “a lot of eye-rolling.”
But Baron said she was almost surprised that she got the part since her bubbly personality isn’t at all like that of Justine. “It was a really fun kind of challenge for me to take on because this wasn’t in my wheelhouse,” Baron said. “This wasn’t a super natural thing for me, which made it more fun as an actor. I think that, like a lot of actors, that’s what I love. I love to play a part that isn’t necessarily who I am as a person.”
That love of playing parts unlike herself is something that Baron has had her whole life and what drew her to acting. “I just had a huge imagination, and I loved playing pretend and that’s basically what acting was,” Baron said. “When I realized that was a career, I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, I can have a career just dressing up and pretending to be different people?’ That was my dream.”
Baron’s real name is Brittany Uomoleale, but after growing up with teachers and even some friends not being able to pronounce it, she was willing to give up its uniqueness to “have a name that people can say.” While she likes the alliteration of BB, Baron also was her grandmother’s maiden name. It’s fitting since she was the first to recognize where Baron would end up.
“She’s the one way back when who said originally to my mom, ‘Oh, that little Brittany; she’s going to be an actress one day,’” Baron said.
Baron’s acting experience isn’t limited to the screen. She has done voiceover work on projects like the video game Halo 5: Guardians as well as performed on stage at the Steppenwolf Theatre in Chicago. Both of these experiences have helped shape her as an actor.
[GLOW] is all about embracing each other; we’re so much stronger when we’re working together.
“Voiceover work is so liberating because you can play characters you could never play on screen or on stage, and you’re just in the sound booth, and it’s all of your imagination,” Baron said. “All those voiceover experiences have really helped me expand even my own confidence as an actor. You can do different things.”
She continued, “Doing professional theater is a total marathon, like eight performances of the same show a week, and you’re going to work when everyone else is getting off of work. It really taught me endurance and focus. You don’t get to cut and do the take over if you forget your line or something, so it’s good. It teaches you to stay in the moment no matter what.”
While she’s enjoyed all of her acting experiences, Baron said she was really excited and proud to be a part of GLOW.
“It’s just a really fun show for anyone. It’s funny, it’s smart, it’s heartfelt,” Baron said. “Mostly, it’s just so empowering for women because there’s women on the show of all different shapes and sizes, and for once, it’s not about conforming or trying to cover up what makes each of us unique. GLOW is all about totally embracing your individuality and celebrating it, and I think that’s what’s so beautiful about the show.”
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Photo Credit: Photographer: Jessica Castro Photography, Hair: Charles Dujic, Make Up: Andre Sarmiento, Styling: Lo VonRumpf
