Actress Teala Dunn, center, from the TV show "Are We...

Actress Teala Dunn, center, from the TV show "Are We There Yet?" with Kidsday reporters Amanda Morrison, Emily Martinez, Michael Comiskey and Joselyn Lin at the Marriott Marquis Hotel, (April 29, 2011) Credit: Newsday/Pat Mullooly

We met actress Teala Dunn who stars on the TV show “Are We There Yet?” at the Marriott Marquis in Manhattan. After spending just a few minutes with her she is our newest and best friend! We had so much fun talking with her!

Do you like the title “Are We There Yet,” or would you prefer something else?

When I first got the script, like the audition, I was like “Are We There Yet,” I like lit up because I watched both the movies. So I was like is this another movie, is this a sequel, but then, oh it’s a TV show. That’s kind of cool. I actually do like the name. Just like “Are We There Yet” means a lot of things like in a family and just like a whole bunch of different things and also it’s a sequel. It’s kind of a like a continuation of the movie.

Do you have any brothers or sisters?

Yeah, actually I do. I have an older sister. She’s 18. She’s part of the reason I started acting because she started before me. I kind of wanted to follow in her footsteps.

Can you relate to your character Lindsey?

I definitely can. I feel like in the first season I was able to relate to her a little bit more because she was more like a goody two shoes, but now she’s kind of rebellious. She’s always on her phone when she’s not supposed to be and just like crazy stuff. It’s kind of getting a little more fun to kind of play her character because she’s just crazy now. I’m always on my phone just like her and I like her style a lot.

Did you like performing “Wonder Pets” better than “Are We There Yet”?

That’s such a hard one. I feel like “Wonder Pets” was such a good practice for me just because with "Are We There Yet?" we shoot three episodes a week. And the average show shoots like an episode a week. So we do a lot. We do like triple the amount. So I feel like “Wonder Pets,” since I did so many episodes and I did so many lines I just had to rehearse. I feel that was just a great practice. But I kind of like “Are We There” just a little bit more.

Did you like doing the voice for Tuck the Turtle?

It feels awesome. Actually a lot of my co-workers and just like the crew on the set, they have a lot of daughters and cousins and nieces and they always come up to me like, whoa I work with you everyday you’re Lindsey, but you’re also Tuck the Turtle. And I always like make phone calls for their kids and stuff. So it’s really fun.

Do you have any pets?

Yes I do. I have a dog, a shitzu. He’s like 12 pounds. He’s two years old and I love him so much. He’s so cute.

Which TV show do you think has the most fans: “Wonder Pets” or “Are We There Yet”?

They might have an equal amount. But I feel like different age group and different audience. Like "Wonder Pets," it’s mostly kids, but "Are We There Yet?" it’s kind of like every single level. Like from 9 to 90. Like it’s a family show. So I feel like they both have equal amount of views, but different audiences.

Do you like singing on YouTube?

Yes I do. I love making YouTube videos. I don’t know it just started out with me just making random singing videos and then me getting like over 6,000 subscribers and I was like, you know what, I should just start making more YouTube videos. So I just like started making blogs and all that stuff.

What is your favorite book?

My favorite book is definitely is “The Summer I Turned Pretty” by Jenny Han. I love that book so much. I feel it just has everything a girl wants in summer.

Do you like being Tuck the Turtle in “Wonder Pets” or would you prefer the duck or hamster?

I feel like every single character in "Wonder Pets" is really unique, but I like Tuck more because his slogan is that he gives hugs. And I met a lot of fans and sometimes they’re like oh, I’m so sad or whatever and they’re like, but hold on you play Tuck you can give me a hug. So I feel I could lighten up a little more kid's day the fact that Tuck’s slogan is give hugs.

Is there a particular show you would have liked to be a party of?

I love the fact that I’m the main role in “Are We There Yet?” because I haven’t really been a main, main role in a show that has my face on it, but probably “Shake It Up’ because we do a lot of dancing on the show like every single theme song or intro of the show we dance like crazy. That would be really fun.

If being an actor or singer didn’t work out, what else would you want to be?

Probably a fashion designer or maybe just something in the fashion industry because I really like fashion.

We saw the episode where you took drugs. How was it to play a character on drugs?

When I got the script, I was freaking out. I was like what is this. Because it was like the "Lindsey’s on Drugs" episode. That was the title of it. When I read on the table read I was oh, oh, well obviously they’re already telling me what I’m going to do in this episode. When I read it I started to just realize that it was crazy to really get into character because I’ve never done anything like that before. So it was all acting. I started to realize that this is actually a good message to the children and kids and teenagers to say, "don’t do it," because I got a lot of Twitter messages and just responses of kids saying Wow, I didn’t know if you tried that your whole world would just change and it would be really scary. So I think it definitely was crazy.

Do you have a lot of fun during the show or are you all business?

I do have a lot of fun. It’s funny because in school that’s where I have the most fun. It’s sounds really weird, but it’s true. My mom can tell you too. We laugh all the time like we’re just non-stop. But of course we have to pay attention of course for tests and all. But at the end of the day our teacher’s really cool. She lets us watch silly YouTube videos at the very end. Like the last five minutes of the day. And we just have the funniest time watching the silliest videos and that’s really fun.

Tell us something about Twitter.

I’m really excited because my Twitter account just got verified. My Twitter account is ttlyteala

The title "Are We There Yet?," what does it mean?

It means a bunch of things. I think for the most part it definitely means like is the family at like a good place right now. If you watch the show "Are We There Yet?" like there’s a lot of problems we kind of have. Like Kevin on the show; he plays my brother, we’re always fighting. It’s just like a bunch of family issues. But for the most part we’re kind of becoming a stronger family because the kids on the show including my character Lindsey is really starting to adapt to Nick, which is her father.

Do you like the message your show is sending to teenagers?

I do. I really do especially my character Lindsey. What I really like about her, she does a lot of crazy stuff a lot of teenagers do, but she’s very apologetic and she also admits when she’s wrong and knows that she doesn’t want to do whatever she’s doing anymore and I think that’s very important.

Do you have an idol beside the people in your family?

My biggest idol is God, just because he’s my everything. But besides my family, Sandra Bullock I would say. I look up to her. I really like her.

Did you like working with the Naked Brothers Band?

I did. Let me tell you. That was just so much fun. We filmed in the summer so we didn’t have school. Once we weren’t filming, just hanging out getting ice cream or going to the mall or going to the movies. That was really fun.

Who is your favorite actor or actress?

I have a lot. Probably Selena Gomez. She’s really good.

When you were little did you want to become an actress or something else?

When I was younger, I actually did want to become an actress. My sister, she started to do it before me and so I was like wow, like this is kind of cool, like she really liked it. And I was like hum, maybe I want to do this. And then my parents were like well, what if this is just a phase, we’re not too really sure and so they waited until I was like 61/2 and they realized I still want to do it. So I continued my dream.

Do you like being the voice of a bunny in Disney’s movie “Enchanted”?

Yes, I loved it. Actually when I first got the call I just had to sing "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star" and I didn’t know that "Enchanted" was going to be like this huge movie. I didn’t even know it was really part of Disney. I just went for it and I just love animation ever since I was Turtle Tuck on the "Wonder Pets." I was like whoa, this is pretty awesome and when I got to sing and I met the producers and some of the cast, I was like, wow this is pretty awesome.

How many movies were you in, and which one did you like the best being in?

I did a couple actually. My favorite was probably “Enchanted” because I didn’t realize it was going to be so big and I really had a fun time. It was probably "Enchanted." "Phoebe in Wonderland" was really fun too.

Do your classmates treat you different because you are an actress?

Some of my old friends did, but most of them I still keep in touch with them and they’re just fine with me being on TV. It doesn’t really bother them.

Does your cast on “Are We There Yet?” make you laugh?

Yes. Especially Ice Cube and Terry Crews. Let me say, Terry Crews is just the most craziest, randomist person ever. So he’s really funny to have on set. And Ice Cube, every single take with Ice Cube he always changes the line, but every single time he changes it, it’s funny. Like he always makes people laugh. So he’s hilarious.

How does it feel getting ready for a show?

It feels pretty awesome actually. I wake up 7 a.m. every morning and I go to set, and I go to hair and makeup, and then I go to school and then I go to set again and school some more, and then I’m done with the day. And then I repeat it again.

Did your career take you to different places? Where have you been?

Yeah, actually. I haven’t really traveled all around the world yet. My goal is to get to Paris. I really want to go to Paris and just like shop. But yeah, I’ve been to a lot of places with the "Wonder Pets." We did like a tour all around the States a little bit. We went to Minneapolis, Minnesota, just like a bunch of different places and we got to just sign autographs and meet our fans. So that was really fun.

Who or what inspired you the most in becoming an actress?

My sister inspired me and when it comes to an actress who inspires me, I would probably say Halle Berry. I like her acting. And Sandra Bullock is a huge inspiration to me. And Selena Gomez. Her acting is really good. I look up to her because she’s really just like a natural actor and I think that’s really important for a family show.

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