Disney actress Peyton List ( third from left) from the...

Disney actress Peyton List ( third from left) from the show " Jessie" with Kidsday reporters Cayla Kuey, Comeragh Sheehan, Maile Santora, Hannah Donneson and Ali Birk all from Westhampton Beach Elementary School in Westhampton, at Planet Hollywood in Manhattan. (Jan. 13, 2012) Credit: Newsday/Pat Mullooly

We met actress Peyton List, who stars as Emma Ross on the Disney TV show "Jessie," when she was at Planet Hollywood in Manhattan recently.

What was the oddest prop you had to wear?

I had to wear these giant heels. They were like this tall and they were so hard to walk in because I've never really worn heels that high, especially since I'm not allowed to wear that high of a heel. So that was really hard. I had to learn all week.

We know you have two brothers. Would you like a sister around the house?

Oh, definitely. All the time I wish for a sister to share clothes with or something. I remember I was like 6 years old when I found out that I was having a little brother, and I was wishing and wishing for a sister. When my mom came out and my dad and they're like, "It's a boy." Spencer, my twin brother, is cheering and jumping up and down and then I burst into tears. I was so sad. I was crying. I really wanted a sister to share my clothes with, and to talk to.

What advice would you give to a young boy or girl who wants to go into acting?

I would say just start with little things that could get you some experience. Like school plays, for instance, or community theater. Something like that. It's a good way to get started.

 

How do you get your education?

I used to go to regular school up until sixth grade. Now at the "Jessie" set we have two teachers and we have to do at least three hours of schoolwork a day. I actually do schoolwork on the computer. I do it all online. It's really different.

If you were not an actress when you grew up, what would you be and why?

That's a good one. I think I would want to be a dancer. I love dancing. Or I would want to be like a hair stylist or makeup artist.

Where was the first place you got your first job?

Actually when I was 3 I used to model. So I was really little. So I don't really remember it. But I think I was dressed up like a bunny or something.

What actress do you admire the most?

I really love Emma Stone. I really like her a lot.

Does the spotlight ever hurt your eyes?

A lot of the time, actually. But not really on "Jessie" so much. Sometimes when I'm on the red carpet or something and there was a lot of flashes my eyes like start watering. I'm like, "Oh." You have to hide it, so I just keep going and then I'm like, "Oh gosh, it hurts so bad."

 

Do you feel like you're missing out on kid stuff because you're busy with your acting career?

I don't think so at all because I have a lot of kids on set, guest stars every week that I hang out with and get to know. Also I have a lot of friends off set and they come and visit me sometimes. I don't really feel I'm missing out. Especially since I did go to elementary school. So I kind of got the feel for school, which I actually really loved.

Who are you closest with on "Jessie"?

I have to say Skai [Jackson], who plays Zuri. We hang out a lot. I just love her and she always comes and runs up to me and tells me something that happened to her or something funny that happened to her. Sometimes we talk about clothing or just girl stuff.

Do you play any instruments?

I play a little bit of piano. In first grade and through fifth grade, I played the violin. Yeah, I played the violin for a little bit.

Modeling for Justice must be a lot of fun. Do you get to keep the clothes?

I wish! I don't get to keep any of the clothes, which really stinks actually because a lot of it is really cute.

How do you balance your career and school work. Do you miss a lot of school?

Sometimes it's hard. Like on "Jessie," whenever we're shooting it's hard for me if I have a big episode that week to get a lot of school work in, but we have to. So we try really hard just to balance it out.

What was it like in the episode with the pimple?

The other week on "Jessie" I had to have this giant pimple on my nose and I kind of looked like Rudolph in a way. I remember I hated it and I liked it at the same time . . . I would just walk around the lot and a bunch of other Disney shows -- they're like "A.N.T. Farm" and a new one that's coming out that's called "Lab Rats" -- and I would walk around and they would see me and they'd be like, "What's that on your nose?" I was like, "It's a pimple." I was like, "Don't worry, it's fake." It was really funny.

Do you like when your brothers are involved in a movie?

I love it. It's a lot of fun. Did you guys see the Christmas episode of "Jessie"? My brothers were actually in the Christmas episode. They were waiting in line and remember when Jessie gets tasered by the elf, they were there going "ohh" in the front row and that was them. Yeah, that was really fun for me. I was like, "Come on guys, you've got to act surprised." Also the other day when the pimple episode, they were trying to find a little kid to scream in Central Park and be scared of the pimple. No little kids would do it. They just started crying and couldn't do it. So I was like my little brother could scream. I brought him out, I brought him out and he did it and everyone was so happy because we thought they weren't going to be able to do it.

What is your favorite thing to do with friends?

I love hanging out. I love getting active. So whether it's hiking or playing sports or biking or running around with my friends. I also just like hanging out or going to the movies.

What is the best thing and the worst thing about acting?

The best thing is probably the different cast, the different crew that I get to work with. I love the different people I get to meet and it's really fun. I love getting to experience something that I would never really do in real life. I think that's the best. And the worst part is probably the crazy things that we have to get covered in like one episode that we just did Jessie has to get covered in mud and it was like this fake brown goo and it smelled so bad. So that's probably one of the worst things about acting -- getting covered in things that you don't want to be in. And also Karan [Brar] for "Diary 3," he had to get covered in honey. . . . He needed to be covered for three days in honey. So now we call him Honey Boy and he sings a song about it, too. Honey Boy's going save the world with honey.

Do you sometimes feel like it's competition between you and your twin brother, Spencer, because you're both in the business?

Sometimes we get a little bit competitive but only when it comes to like sports or something. Like we always play basketball together, or board games and I'm like I'm going to beat you and he's always fighting me. That kind of thing. Since he's a boy, I don't really compete with him that much acting or anything.

What was your funniest blooper?

We have this scene in "Diary of a Wimpy Kid 3" where Chirag Gupta and I are like supposedly married and it was really funny. It was hard for me not to be able to laugh and in the scene. All of us started laughing because he was supposed to be my husband. So we were all laughing really hard and I think that was a really funny moment.

If you could pick any kind of movie to star in what would it be and who would you portray?

I always wanted to be in an action movie where I get to be a butt-kicking super hero or something like that. I always wanted to do something like where I'm flying. I think that would be really cool.

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