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In This Episode
New best friend alert! Peyton List joins Josie, Alycia, and Yasmine to talk about it all: her acting career (from Jessie and Cobra Kai to Diary of a Wimpy Kid), her beauty brand, speaking up about politics during her Disney era, preserving her mental health…the range. She can do it all!
Show Notes
TRANSCRIPT
Josie Totah: Hi, guys.
Yasmine Hamady: Hi.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Hola hola!
Josie Totah: Welcome to Dare We Say.
Yasmine Hamady: Woo!
Josie Totah: We’re so happy to have you today. We have one of the most special people in the entire world on our podcast. She is just about everything under the sun. An actress, a CEO, just an icon and an amazing friend. Her name is Peyton List. And our conversation with her was really special because I feel like you got to see a new perspective from her that you may have not seen and or heard in the past.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yeah, she dropped a lot of gems. We got to know her more. It was really special and–
Josie Totah: It was intimate.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: We sat here, and we Kiki’d, as we do on the pod, and it was special to have someone come into that and just be so present and open and talk with us crazy little girls.
Josie Totah: Yeah. It was so fun. So–
Yasmine Hamady: It’s it’s so rare to find a girl like her. So, Peyton, we love you.
Josie Totah: And let’s–
Yasmine Hamady: Thank you!
Josie Totah: Let’s get into it.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yay.
Josie Totah: Okay. Here we go. Are you ready? [bumping mic] Oh, shit. Fuck. Okay, you guys. We have, we have an extremely special guest with us today.
Yasmine Hamady: Oh my god.
Josie Totah: She is, means so much to me. She’s an actress. She’s an entrepreneur. She’s giving CEO, actually, of recent times. Um. She’s a dog mummy of of many doggies. And she’s literally my childhood bestie and family member for life. Her name is Peyton List. [cheers]
Peyton List: Thank you for that.
Josie Totah: Welcome. [light clapping] Can you guys all clap? [laugh] Clap. [light clapping]
Peyton List: This is so surreal.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Thank you.
Peyton List: [laugh] Um. How are you–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: We’ll send you guys a check after.
Josie Totah: How are you doing? Welcome. How are you feeling this morning? You look adorable. Are you wearing Pley beauty on the eyes right now?
Peyton List: Yes. I–
Josie Totah: Imagine you’re like, no, it’s Fenty.
Peyton List: Imagine. [laughter] I’m screaming. I would too. I’m like, I love trying every single makeup brand–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: You’re so into it.
Peyton List: –known to man.
Josie Totah: Yeah.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: We love that.
Yasmine Hamady: I could actually tell it was Pley just by the camera because I was like, is that a shimmery purple?
Peyton List: Oh, my gosh.
Yasmine Hamady: Yeah. It’s one of the–
Peyton List: Yes!
Yasmine Hamady: –Nicest purples I’ve seen on a make-up brand to this day. So–
Peyton List: Wow.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Beautiful.
Yasmine Hamady: Pley slay.
Peyton List: Wait I need. Do you guys all have products? Because I need to give you guys all products.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Oooh.
Josie Totah: Wait stop. I will wait.
Yasmine Hamady: We’ll rep!
Peyton List: I should have brought, I should have brought–
Yasmine Hamady: We’ll rep!
Peyton List: –it here. I’m so weird about it. I’m so weird about, like–
Josie Totah: Like plugging your self.
Peyton List: Yes.
Josie Totah: And putting your–
Yasmine Hamady: Always plug.
Josie Totah: [?] always be. Because I feel like if you have a good brand. It’s not embarrassing.
Peyton List: It’s like we did like a cast interview with, like, Vanity Fair. And they show me the questions and like, a couple of them were Pley beauty related. And I was like. No. Like, I just like–
Yasmine Hamady: You tossed them out!
Peyton List: –tossed them aside because I was like, I don’t want to talk about [phone buzz] the brand right now. And then I felt weird about it like I should, because it really is–
Josie Totah: Right.
Peyton List: –like something that I stand behind. Like–
Josie Totah: Yeah.
Peyton List: Yeah.
Josie Totah: It’s like an unfunny person asking you to go to there, like stand up show. But like, if you’re funny, it’s funny, you know?
Yasmine Hamady: Whoa.
Josie Totah: Like Yasmine.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Not Yasmine.
Yasmine Hamady: Yeah.
Josie Totah: It’s like, it’s like you’re afraid to do it. But then if you have stuff to back it up, it’s like it’s good. And I famously was lucky enough to be a part of the campaign for Pley beauty.
Peyton List: That was so nice of you to come. That was so fun.
Josie Totah: Remember, that was such a chaotic day where I had come from set, stolen the wig from–
Peyton List: Didn’t you crash a car that day or something? Like for in the scene?
Josie Totah: Oh in the scene I crashed a car. Yeah.
Peyton List: Yeah yeah yeah. Clarify.
Josie Totah: We need to clarify because on this podcast we talk about my vehicular problems quite a lot.
Yasmine Hamady: There’s so many. There’s so many.
Josie Totah: Yes. Including–
Peyton List: I saw your story the other day.
Josie Totah: Oh, when something wrote–
Peyton List: You being called a cunt.
Josie Totah: When someone did that, [laughter] I parked like a cunt. Yes.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yeah.
Josie Totah: Honored I was. And then mid recording. We thought I was getting towed, but I wasn’t. Um. But yeah, Anyway, we’re so happy that we have you here and you mean so much to me. And–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yeah.
Josie Totah: –now everyone else.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: So grateful to know you. Like, who would have thunk?
Josie Totah: We just spent, we just hung out with you last weekend.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yeah.
Josie Totah: And it was so fun. And it just reminded me of, like, how much history we have. And I just wanted to have you on this pod because I feel like no one has really seen or heard your adult perspective in a format that is just a little bit more casual and less formal than I feel like the interviews that you’ve done in the past, which may be more polished. And I think we just wanted to hear like the the real Peyton and bring that to the table. So with that being said. Uh, let’s get into it.
Peyton List: Yeah!
Josie Totah: Okay, wait. So let’s start at the very beginning. So you were born in Florida. Which we probably don’t don’t we don’t write on our bodies that [?] was born in Florida.
Peyton List: But it makes sense for me.
Josie Totah: It no, it doesn’t.
Peyton List: It does. [banter]
Yasmine Hamady: No I’m sorry.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: I’m a step in and say, no, ma’am, it doesn’t.
Yasmine Hamady: It no–
Josie Totah: It doesn’t.
Yasmine Hamady: It’s it’s either like upstate Washington or Oklahoma. There’s no in between. Does that make sense?
Josie Totah: Like, I think she’s saying you have small town–
Peyton List: Oh, my God.
Josie Totah: –charm.
Peyton List: Oh, my God. Shut up.
Yasmine Hamady: Yeah. Small town charm.
Peyton List: Shut up. I mean, my mom’s from Texas, so I feel like that has rubbed off on me.
Josie Totah: She does have, like, that Texas sweetness, but also the bless your heart like I could fuck you up.
Yasmine Hamady: Oh I love–
Peyton List: Yes!
Yasmine Hamady: –a bless your heart mama.
Peyton List: Yep.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yeah.
Josie Totah: So you were born in Florida, and then you grew up in New York City. How was that like?
Peyton List: Yeah it was wild. Like we moved to Brooklyn when I was four from Florida and still had family in Florida. But I mean, I had to like it’s a lottery system in New York. And I feel like schools are so competitive. And I had to like, just my mom was like, just go in and like, get into the school, like, figure it out. So I feel like I was like auditioning from a young age and like, figuring it out. I just went in and–
Josie Totah: Right.
Peyton List: Like, sweet talked the principal and then got into the school.
Yasmine Hamady: In hindsight, looking back, do you like L.A. more or do you like New York more like? Do you have a preference?
Peyton List: Now I feel like I just I feel like you spe– when you spend your formative years, like your teenage years somewhere.
Yasmine Hamady: Sure.
Peyton List: I feel like I’ve become so much more um L.A., but I–
Josie Totah: Yeah.
Peyton List: –do want to go back to Brooklyn for the summer because I love a Brooklyn summer. I feel like it’s–
Yasmine Hamady: Oh we love a Brooklyn–
Peyton List: –so fun.
Yasmine Hamady: –Bushwick summer.
Josie Totah: I actually do too.
Peyton List: Right?
Yasmine Hamady: So much.
Josie Totah: I really like New York in the summer.
Peyton List: Right?
Josie Totah: But I feel the same about L.A. like moving here when I was like ten, nine, ten. I feel like I had my, like, favorite memories out here that I definitely like L.A. better than Northern California. But before you booked Jessie, you booked two other things, right?
Peyton List: Mm hmm.
Josie Totah: And the first thing was when you were eight years old. What was that?
Peyton List: Yeah.
Josie Totah: Because I remember when that came out. 27 dresses.
Peyton List: Yup.
Josie Totah: I was like, five years old.
Yasmine Hamady: Oh. My God.
Josie Totah: And that movie feels like a–
Yasmine Hamady: Formative.
Josie Totah: –Nineties film.
Peyton List: Yeah, it does. It has that nostalgic. It’s I haven’t watched it in a bit, but I just remember absolutely like defining myself by doing that. I remember just being so excited.
Yasmine Hamady: Oh!
Josie Totah: Yeah. What was that like? Like being on set for the first time and–
Peyton List: I mean. I just thought it was like playing. I just had so much fun. Like the director just, like, took me under her wing and was so sweet. And like–
Josie Totah: It was a female director?
Peyton List: Yeah. It was a female director.
Josie Totah: Oh that’s so cool that your first job was, like, with a female director?
Peyton List: It was really cool.
Yasmine Hamady: So rare.
Peyton List: It was so safe. And like, I’ve had I’ve been so fortunate to have, like, such kind experiences, I think.
Josie Totah: On set. Which is rare, I feel like because a lot of people might not be able to say the same, especially with being taken under people’s wing.
Peyton List: Right.
Josie Totah: Usually they’re taken under their other things.
Yasmine Hamady: Oh my–
Josie Totah: And they’re uncomfortable and they’re not taken care of well.
Yasmine Hamady: I’m speaking of that. Not the [?] thing.
Peyton List: Honestly.
Yasmine Hamady: That’s not the wing.
Peyton List: No. I met my best friend though, on that movie. Like we played sisters and she just acted in that one movie and then that was it. And we just became like sisters ever since.
Josie Totah: That’s so cool. And then what was the thing in Detroit that you spoke about?
Peyton List: Oh, in Vancouver.
Josie Totah: Oh, it was Vancouver.
Peyton List: Yeah.
Josie Totah: It wasn’t Detroit. Why am I obsessed with Detroit.
Peyton List: I mean. I did go there once, but it’s like for a Lifetime movie that I don’t talk about.
Josie Totah: Okay you know.
Peyton List: Don’t expect that. [banter]
Yasmine Hamady: That’s that’s actually what we’re talking the whole episode about. [banter]
Josie Totah: [?] It’s time to promote that Lifetime movie.
Peyton List: Perfect.
Josie Totah: Wait. So you went to Vancouver and–
Peyton List: Yeah.
Josie Totah: Was that during middle school?
Peyton List: Yeah, that was during middle school, I guess. Yeah, um the end of middle school. So I like finished it up there on that set on Diary of a Wimpy Kid um and filmed that in Vancouver. So it was like during my summers, like end of middle school um time and yeah, it was like summer camp.
Josie Totah: That’s and were you a fan of the like book before you went? Because I remember when we were young, I feel like–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Oh my gosh.
Josie Totah: –That was like the biggest thing.
Yasmine Hamady: Oh formative.
Peyton List: Did you read–
Yasmine Hamady: Insane.
Peyton List: Did you guys read them?
Yasmine Hamady: Oh!
Josie Totah: I don’t read but.
Yasmine Hamady: Of course.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: I did. I read not all of them, because there ended up being so many. They were like the became like–
Yasmine Hamady: I hated that though.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: –Junie B. Jones and stuff. There were so many.
Yasmine Hamady: I hat–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: But I did read them at the time. And then you were iconically in the film.
Yasmine Hamady: Um.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: With the cheese and all.
Yasmine Hamady: No, the cheese and all. And can I just say Rodrick was one of my sexual awakenings. I don’t care–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Huh.
Yasmine Hamady: –What anyone says. Rodrick. Oh, Brother Rodrick I was like, What is this feeling in my pants?
Peyton List: Oh, my God.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: I cannot.
Peyton List: I feel like there’s things that TikTok has like, taught me about just, like, things come out later. And that is one of the things that I’m like, Oh my God, so many people were into Rodrick that I had no idea about.
Yasmine Hamady: I’m screaming.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Interesting.
Josie Totah: I did not know that was a thing until–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Me either.
Josie Totah: I thought that was just a–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: I learned just right now.
Josie Totah: –niche thing that Yasmine just said.
Yasmine Hamady: No.
Josie Totah: But that’s crazy.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: That’s a thing on TikTok, that’s so funny.
Yasmine Hamady: I’m starting a trend. It’s–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Does–
Yasmine Hamady: –was Rodrick your sexual awakening yay or nay? [laughter]
Peyton List: Oh my god.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: I can’t. I never heard that. Um. Speaking of like, all of these really dope things that all I watched and personally was a fan of, which I think is so cool um does it feel weird, like watching your childhood, like, reflected back to you? Like in these kid things like whether it’s Diary of a Wimpy Kid or 27 Dresses or Jessie and like, how did Jessie feel different from the things that you had done prior?
Peyton List: That’s a really good question. Um, it felt different because it was a multicam sitcom and there was like live laughers, like paid to sit there and laugh in between our jokes. So that was weird because I was just used to like single cam silence, like it felt more personal, but then having like a live studio audience and everything, like, you know, was just–
Josie Totah: It’s like a live play.
Peyton List: We had to be I had to be trained to learn how to just, like, cheat out and always be like playing to the camera and doing that because I was just more natural before it. So I felt like I had to learn how to be, how to do that cert–, that style. And then I had to learn how to break that style. So that was hard.
Josie Totah: Which some people can’t do. And it’s I’m so happy you brought up the laughers, because I think it also creates like a false sense of like security and confidence at that young age.
Peyton List: You think you’re funny, but people are being–
Josie Totah: They’re being–
[spoken together] Paid.
Josie Totah: To laugh at you.
Yasmine Hamady: They’re being paid to laugh.
Josie Totah: And I feel like everyone like, the Disney kids with like the egos of that era. And one thing that I will say, like, you have remained one of the most humble people that I’ve known since the beginning. And I remember when I don’t know if obviously if everyone knows, it’s like we met on Jessie on that show, and that was my very first thing ever. And that was like my–
Peyton List: What!
Josie Totah: Like, yeah, you didn’t know that?
Peyton List: No.
Josie Totah: I had only done–
Peyton List: You just were too comfortable.
Josie Totah: I was just a little [indistinct] [banter]
Peyton List: I swear to god.
Josie Totah: Speaking of egos. Speaking of egos.
Yasmine Hamady: I’m screaming [indistinct]
Josie Totah: Um but I I remember that was my like [?] with a chance like moment or like I had watched I watched I remember watching the premiere of Jessie on my family’s couch with my entire family in Davis and seeing all of you guys and then moving to LA and auditioning for it and like booking it and then coming. And my mom was like, this isn’t a real pent– she was like shocked that it wasn’t a real apartment in New York. And your mom was like, no, bitch, like you dumb idiot. Um. And like–
Yasmine Hamady: Not [?] mom idiot.
Peyton List: Sounds about right.
Josie Totah: Your mother definitely took my mom under under her wing, along with Sky’s mom. But yeah, that was it was just very interesting. But why do you think you never, like, I don’t know, became a crazy person or like–
Peyton List: I tried.
Josie Totah: Like, stayed so grounded in those moments because you definitely were, like, a heartthrob in your era, which is crazy to say, but it’s true.
Peyton List: Oh, God. I didn’t realize at all. Like anything. I don’t know. Like, my mom would just be like, bitch shut up, make your bed.
Yasmine Hamady: Yeah humbling.
Peyton List: Like–
Yasmine Hamady: So humbling.
Peyton List: I don’t know. She would just be like, what are you talking about? I don’t know. I feel like my family just would be like, shut up. None of this is real.
Josie Totah: They would bring you down to earth.
Peyton List: Yeah. So I don’t know. It felt very much like a little bubble. And it was, like, weird that other people were watching it. I guess at the end of the day.
Yasmine Hamady: Yeah. Yeah.
Josie Totah: Do you think it’s because social media wasn’t as big that back then that you didn’t feel like the pressure of everyone looking up to you?
Peyton List: Mmm good question.
Josie Totah: Because I remember like everyone was in love with you, including my brother–
Peyton List: I don’t remember though–
Josie Totah: –who asked you to prom. Do you remember that?
Peyton List: I do.
Yasmine Hamady: Aw.
Peyton List: I wish I could have gone to prom with him.
Josie Totah: Yeah, I think you said yes, but I think it didn’t work out or something.
Peyton List: Yeah, I remember. I had, like, two proms that I was supposed to go to, which would have been, like, my proms that I would have gone to, and I never went.
Josie Totah: What about Disney prom?
Peyton List: Disney prom.
Josie Totah: What was–
Peyton List: Yes.
Josie Totah: I don’t think anyone knows what Disney prom is.
Yasmine Hamady: Yeah, wait can you explain that? I’m I’m not familiar.
Peyton List: Yeah. Disney would invite all of the Disney kids to a Disney prom or to a Disney dance to make some sort of normalcy, because that was like our high school.
Yasmine Hamady: Yeah.
Peyton List: You know.
Yasmine Hamady: Sure, yeah.
Peyton List: Even on the back lot and everything, it’s like you run into people from other shows and that feels like, oh, your high school experience, like because you’re in your classroom with like the five kids that are on your show or whatever it is.
Josie Totah: Yeah.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yeah.
Peyton List: And then if you had come for the week, it was like–
Josie Totah: It was like a substitute teacher or something.
Peyton List: We got a new kid in the villa. [laughter].
Yasmine Hamady: Wait, I’m so sorry.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: The love island of disney.
Yasmine Hamady: That is hilarious. Um. But Josie brought up something very important. I want to bring that up. It’s like social media. You are part of the social media world wind that we live in now. But also you weren’t at a young age and specifically about being a woman and this transition of growing into the woman that you are today with the whole world looking at you, how has that affected you today?
Peyton List: It’s made me very socially awkward. And, you know, I think social media scared the shit out of me as a kid because I just saw the dangers of it so quickly. You know, there’s–
Yasmine Hamady: Yeah.
Josie Totah: Yeah.
Peyton List: –like so many weirdoes that are attracted to children. And I think–
Josie Totah: 100%
Peyton List: Seeing that on–
Josie Totah: Especially when you’re on a children’s show.
Yasmine Hamady: Yes.
Peyton List: And I remember seeing the comments that I would see and just growing up a little too fast and [pause] it was just scary. Like I had a stalker for a bit and like–
Yasmine Hamady: Unreal.
Peyton List: –on the soundstage. Like, I remember seeing, like, his picture and by like, the security gate and everything, like, it was just a rude awakening for me. Like–
Yasmine Hamady: It’s not normal.
Peyton List: –To be careful. And I just remember like looking over my shoulder when I would like, go home all the time, like being paranoid.
Josie Totah: Wow.
Peyton List: As a kid and–
Josie Totah: That’s so frightening.
Peyton List: Yeah, it was weird. And then I thought that was normal just to be so frightened. But, like, I feel like every female goes through a form of like this in some way. You know?
Yasmine Hamady: Sure.
Josie Totah: I think in some way but I think certainly you’re allowed to acknowledge that it’s not fair and you experienced–
Yasmine Hamady: Yes.
Josie Totah: –it on a much higher magnitude than–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Absolutely.
Josie Totah: –much people do in their lifetimes.
Yasmine Hamady: Mhm.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Absolutely.
Josie Totah: Which I think is really scary.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yeah. How do you feel like you preserve your mental health now and–
Yasmine Hamady: Oh good question.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: You like as a woman in this industry, so successful, you know, like you’re not just an actress anymore. Like you’ve become a–
Yasmine Hamady: Yeah.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: –Multi-hyphenate with a beauty company and stuff. Like how do you um ground yourself? How do you, like, find peace and like, how do you like honestly get through the bullshit? Like that is an awful thing for a child to deal with. Most adults um can’t say that they’ve dealt with the magnitude of eyes that you’ve dealt with like your whole life. So how like as an adult, has that changed since you being a kid? Like, what do you find your peace in? What grounds you? What relaxes you when things get crazy?
Peyton List: I feel like connecting with even I like a safe, I just feel even connecting with you guys or like going out, you know, with friends and connecting with people has has been able to ground me and just like meeting real, authentic souls, like lately, I’ve really been meeting like such good, authentic souls and like, really finding my people where it feels so safe and they’re just like, just a reminder, like, you could literally be anything in this room or say anything, and there’s no judgment. And just being so vulnerable has just been so nice.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Mm.
Yasmine Hamady: Yeah.
Peyton List: There are good people, but it’s just so hard to find them.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yeah.
Peyton List: And I just feel lucky that I found, like, a good group.
Josie Totah: I’m really happy that you feel that because I think a lot of people at your level that I’ve met or interacted with or feel a lot more isolated and a little bit more alone, they just don’t seem to find their people. I think it’s just harder. Why do you think they have a harder time or like when you have a platform, it’s just you have a harder time?
Peyton List: Yeah. I feel like it’s so easy to get blinded by people’s intentions, I guess?
Yasmine Hamady: Intentions.
Peyton List: I don’t know
Yasmine Hamady: Yup.
Peyton List: Right.
Yasmine Hamady: Yes.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yeah.
Peyton List: And–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Like, you don’t know if people are genuine?
Peyton List: Yeah, I guess so. But–
Yasmine Hamady: I feel like also in L.A., too, right? I feel like there’s so many people whose goals or um reasonings to be your friend is not for the right reasons. And you find and what have you noticed that living in L.A. specifically, too?
Peyton List: Yeah. Yeah, I have. But I feel like people must encounter that in every–
Yasmine Hamady: Sure.
Peyton List: –industry and everything and like. But yeah, my friends lately, they’re so honest to a fault. To like, a point where I just start laughing because I’m like, I cannot believe that just came out of your mouth, but I respect the hell out of it. Like, I just love how honest they are.
Josie Totah: I love that. And that’s what you deserve. That’s how my friends are like, constantly being humbled.
Yasmine Hamady: I’m screaming at that, looking at Alycia.
Josie Totah: Yeah I’m–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Why why did I get the [indistinct]?
Josie Totah: By my sisters. Um. Which I think is really important, but–
Peyton List: Well how do you guys do it? Like, do you guys call each other out and like, how do you–
Josie Totah: Oh please.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Honey.
Yasmine Hamady: Uh um.
Josie Totah: Oh please.
Yasmine Hamady: Do we call each other out?
Alycia Pascual-Peña: You, honey, you’ve met us.
Josie Totah: Yeah.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Um we’re that’s why it doesn’t even feel appropriate to call each other friends, because there is, like, that level of cunfort and sincerity.
Josie Totah: Of cuntfort.
Yasmine Hamady: Cuntfort.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: That does not– [banter]
Yasmine Hamady: Cuntfort!
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Espera te. That’s not what I said. Um. But–
Josie Totah: No I agree. I think since the beginning.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Mm hmm.
Josie Totah: I think that’s what attracted me to you. And Yasmine the most cause like–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Because I say, because we say anything?
Josie Totah: Was your guys’ just honesty. And like, I think having someone who like, can just be upfront with you because I think the opposite is like, then they’re not seeing you as a full person if they’re having to tiptoe around you or they’re having to like earn your like respect or not respect, but like earn your um admiration, I feel like that’s when it’s sort of ingenuine. I remember when I started college, like in the first three weeks I was there, everyone came up to me and wanted to like, you know, be friends with me um because I had like, been on shows and had whatever small platform that I had. And then after the three weeks everyone, no one gave a fuck about me. And I was like.
Yasmine Hamady: No.
Josie Totah: You now, I’m an actor. Right? Like. You can try to use me.
Yasmine Hamady: Yeah.
Josie Totah: Like I have an Instagram account with follower– and everyone was like, we don’t give a fuck about you die, bitch. Um.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: No.
Josie Totah: But it was I had that experience, on a small magnitude, but–
Peyton List: But that’s how I feel. I feel the same. I feel like it’s not like everyone’s really like, how much can someone really get? Like, there’s people are just here to be authentic now, especially like, at this age, I don’t know.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yeah.
Yasmine Hamady: No, I think you brought something up really important. Like I’ve said this to my girls prior, but I feel like because I’m 24. I hate that. But, you know, as I grow and age is beautiful. But I feel like the older I grow, the more deep my relations are getting. And also I’m making new friends that are outside of my circle. And I feel like the older we get, the less likely we are to venture out to make so many friends because we’re so comfortable, which is fine, which is good. But I feel like and that’s something you were saying earlier about how the friends that you have now make you feel so safe and make you feel so heard and seen in your fullness. And I just feel like that’s so incredible right now. And I feel like with people listen to this to like not only just be comfortable with, to be comfortable like with what you have, but also like, go with the intentions of making new friends, making new relationships, fostering these new connections with people.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yeah.
Josie Totah: You get what you put out, which I think is–
Peyton List: Yeah.
Josie Totah: –Really important. And do you feel like you’re still fighting those things that left an impact on you as a kid? Or do you feel like you’ve, like, let those parts go? Certainly when making friends, but like when romantic connections or even just friends in general, is that an issue?
Peyton List: It is a little bit. I mean, I’ve met some really positive, beautiful people, especially in this industry lately.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yeah.
Peyton List: Just actors who really just want to help and like–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yeah.
Peyton List: –create and do their job. And I have been so just I have they’ve helped rewire my toxic thoughts and brain. And I realized I was still hearing lots of people saying, don’t don’t trust them like they’re out to get whatever, you know, those sort of things are being told to, you know, you feel like gaslit as a kid. If there’s like another actor who’s competitive, like, you don’t understand what’s going on.
Josie Totah: Mm hmm right.
Peyton List: But I feel like I’ve just been working in very positive environments and like changing that. So it’s been I feel like it’s been really nice.
Josie Totah: When you were young, I feel like you were so looked at all the time that like, correct me if I’m wrong, but I think you had to kind of develop a sense of I don’t give a fuckness in order to like, live your life without feeling like you’re walking on eggshells?
Peyton List: 100%
Yasmine Hamady: Incredible.
Peyton List: Actually now I can go through here and I can say that, yes, playing that character on Cobra Kai and like playing someone that is so strong and changing, I I loved that those creators gave me the opportunity to change, sort of like the narrative around myself. They were like, Oh, we love taking this Disney princess and like, sort of just have letting you fight. And it was fun. And–
Yasmine Hamady: Yes.
Peyton List: When people accepted that character, then I felt liberated to be more myself because I was like, I am more of a bitch. Like I can, I can be.
Josie Totah: I love that.
Peyton List: And it was–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Period.
Yasmine Hamady: Incredible.
Peyton List: Like it was freeing for me.
Yasmine Hamady: Yup.
Peyton List: I was just like, Cool, people accept this. I’m this is definitely a part of me. So I feel like I can joke around more people and people come up like we actually just have like amazing, hilarious interactions. Like, I find just like people, whenever someone watches something, like it’s always a funny experience and I enjoy talking to them. It’s like the weirdest most random experience.
Josie Totah: I love that.
Peyton List: Yeah.
Josie Totah: Well, I feel like that show also has like a really big fan base, much like Jessie, but in a different way.
Peyton List: In a really different way. Yeah, because I came in the second season, so it was like obviously already established from the Karate kid.
Josie Totah: I didn’t know that.
Peyton List: Yeah.
Josie Totah: Also that show was such a like giant hit and unexpected hit too because it was a YouTube original.
Peyton List: So unexpected.
Josie Totah: And then became Emmy nominated–
Peyton List: That’s–
Peyton List: –or Emmy winning. Right. Did it win an emmy?
Peyton List: Uh on.
Josie Totah: No. Okay well you know what? [?] get emmy nominated.
Yasmine Hamady: Yup. You know what?
Josie Totah: I mean.
Peyton List: No.
Josie Totah: It became an emmy nominated just seriously several Emmy nominations though, which is like really exciting.
Peyton List: Yeah.
Josie Totah: Like the fact that it was nominated for for like, best comedy series is like the biggest honor our show could get.
Peyton List: Yeah. I mean, the showrunners were just like huge fans of The Karate Kid, and so they were roommates, like in college, and they just created this show with Billy and Ralph and are the perfect people to do it because like, what better people to do a sort of pick up something where it left off than actual fans? Like–
Josie Totah: Yeah.
Peyton List: They know what the people want to see because they want to see it.
Josie Totah: I’ve always known you–
Peyton List: It’s hilarious.
Josie Totah: –to be that like kick ass type energy, but you’re so right when you’re forced to be that like bubblegum princess type person–
Yasmine Hamady: Yeah.
Josie Totah: It makes–
Peyton List: I thought. I’m also–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: –seems confining.
Peyton List: I was like a people pleaser, so I just thought, this is I want to play this character for them when they meet me sort of thing. And it’s like, that’s a little toxic.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Um. But I obviously was just admiring your Instagram and I was like, the relationship you have with your brother is just so precious, like being from New York and being Latina I’m super family oriented, so I really admired that you are that with him and your family.
Josie Totah: I love that you brought up Spencer because I think that I mean do people I think a lot of people know at this point that you have a twin, but was it easier to go through life with the twin or was it–
Peyton List: Yes.
Josie Totah: –harder.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Aw.
Josie Totah: Because you had someone like a mirror up to you?
Peyton List: No, he was not a mirror, thank God.
Josie Totah: Okay.
Peyton List: He was a separation.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Are you guys very different?
Peyton List: Yes, we’re so different.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Tea. Tell us more.
Peyton List: He is insane. Like such a like, wild child. Like we shared bunk beds, and um he would torture me growing up like–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Okay.
Peyton List: We would fight. He would beat me up like–
Josie Totah: Jesus.
Peyton List: Yeah.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Was is that brotherly sisterly rivalry?
Peyton List: Yeah.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Got it.
Peyton List: Yeah, We were super competitive, but then, like, we got put on a basketball team together, so that kind of–
Josie Totah: Oh wow.
Peyton List: –like formed a different bond.
Josie Totah: A co-ed basketball team. How progressive.
Peyton List: Yeah.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Very progreesive. [laughing]
Peyton List: Yeah, yeah exactly. It really was. Because I was. I was terrible. I was like, maybe there’s a reason I shouldn’t be on this damn team. I wasn’t scoring any points.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: You know what? You’re a team player and we respect that.
Peyton List: Exactly
Alycia Pascual-Peña: We respect that.
Peyton List: I brought a lot of energy. A lot of–
Josie Totah: Was it was it hard to, like, bring boys around because your brother was there?
Peyton List: Yes, because I always fell in love with his best friends.
Josie Totah: Wait.
Yasmine Hamady: Oh no!
Peyton List: And he was like–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Song, that’s a song.
Yasmine Hamady: Oh fuck.
Peyton List: He was like bitch–
Josie Totah: I didn’t think–
Peyton List: –stop.
Josie Totah: –that’s where this was going.
Peyton List: He was like, I’m going to have to drop another friend. [gasp]
Josie Totah: What do you mean?
Yasmine Hamady: No. So your– [banter]
Josie Totah: [?] was like his best friends?
Peyton List: Yes.
Josie Totah: That was like your thing.
Peyton List: That was my thing. It felt safe.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Well, they were just around–
Peyton List: They were around.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: –and if like he liked them. I’ll probably like him too.
Josie Totah: So–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: But in a different way.
Josie Totah: He would bring–
Peyton List: Exactly.
Josie Totah: So he would bring them to like set or something.
Peyton List: Yeah. He’d bring them to set or they’d be like, maybe their sibling was like working on another show or something.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Ahh.
Peyton List: And I would be like. This is my the love of my life.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: That’s. That’s a journey.
Josie Totah: I love that.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Does he act as well?
Peyton List: He does, yeah.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: That’s iconic I didn’t know that.
Josie Totah: Was, did you–
Peyton List: Yeah.
Josie Totah: –have your first relationship when you were really young or not till you’re older, like your first relationship?
Peyton List: I guess when I was. Yeah. Older. Older. Like, I always had crushes and everything, but what about, like, what about you?
Josie Totah: I’ve never been in a relationship.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: That’s insane.
Josie Totah: That is with a human. [banter]
Yasmine Hamady: I’m dying. With a human.
Josie Totah: [?] bank account?
Peyton List: –with a AI or oh okay.
Josie Totah: Like my career and my bank account.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Funny enough, I didn’t like actually start dating dating until I got to college. Um. Once again, like we were talking prior. I was just boring, and and like stayed pretty confined. You were a famous star as a kid, but um even like, acting and feeling like that adult aspect of life made me feel like I couldn’t date like with auditioning and with school and all of those things. Did you feel that way as well? Like, I felt like it just wasn’t a priority and it wasn’t my time. Even now, frankly, sometimes I’m like, is this lifestyle conducive to prioritize romance at some point in my life? Do you feel that way? [banter]
Josie Totah: I, I agree. I feel weird doing that.
Peyton List: I do for sure.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Like–
Peyton List: It feels like your bringing, it feels unfair to me to bring someone into it because–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Right.
Peyton List: I’m like, welcome to the circus. Like, I don’t know if someone normal would understand this. Like, I don’t know. I feel if I date another actor, I’m like, okay, you’re out for yourself and your job as well.
Yasmine Hamady: Yeah.
Peyton List: You’re prioritizing yourself–
Yasmine Hamady: They’ll be doing the exact same thing.
Peyton List: Because I don’t want to date anyone who’s prioritizing me because I just am scared of that.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: [?] we can’t do the same.
Peyton List: Exactly. [music break].
[AD BREAK]
Josie Totah: Every time I did tapes with Alycia because I hate doing tapes, I can never audition on tape. I’m like, really bad on tape. But every time I would do tapes with Alycia I’d really get into it.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: You act for your life.
Josie Totah: And I would pray that–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: She’s in a Yale seminar. And I can tell too.
Josie Totah: –that they would cast me.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: I–
Josie Totah: One time I had to do a tape with Alycia completely naked because of how hot she keeps her house.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Okay, Peyton, I’m glad that you’re–
Peyton List: How? What?
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Peyton. I’m glad that you’re here for this because–
Josie Totah: It was 80 degrees.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: How did you think that I could focus when this girl had not one slither of piece of clothing on.
Josie Totah: It was 80–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: She’s being so dramatic. [?]
Josie Totah: It was 83 degrees in the house. And we were in the attic of her home. We were in there.
Peyton List: How–
Josie Totah: I don’t know why she did that to me.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: You know what? You’re not here to watch us fight because that’s what this will become. Because she did. She she sequestered me and I had to do the tape with her fully naked because I had to turn it in.
Josie Totah: I did not sequester you.
Peyton List: I need–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: But–
Peyton List: I need to join this friend group. I need to just–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: But. Oh, you’re in it.
Yasmine Hamady: Literally hang out with us anytime. [banter indistinct]
Josie Totah: You were inducted. I remember when I feel like we’ve always clicked though. And one thing like I said before, like, I’ve just have always felt supported by you.
Peyton List: Oh good.
Josie Totah: And I remember getting in to Pley Beauty because I want to ask more about that. But like when we were on the set of that, we both got emotional. Do you remember? At the wrap?
Peyton List: Yes, I —
Josie Totah: And we both started crying.
Peyton List: I thought about that before coming on to this, and I was like, Oh God, I hope she wasn’t like, I hope it wasn’t too much because–
Josie Totah: No!
Peyton List: –I just got so emotional.
Josie Totah: Oh, my God.
Peyton List: That you were there.
Josie Totah: It wasn’t too much at all to me it like, it made me feel so loved because I think I even though when I when we were young and like I was obviously a guest on that show, I think I like was filled with like crippling fear and anxiety that like, I was just like it it I was also reminded constantly by many people that that was like not my place, and that obviously I was a guest in that space. And you always made me feel so loved. And I think because of the dynamics of that show, we couldn’t really be close friends until we were older.
Peyton List: Yeah.
Josie Totah: And like we needed to like, find each other again. And like–
Peyton List: I know, so happy we did.
Josie Totah: –when we had that moment, like, it made me emotional too, because of how much love I have for you and just how safe I I felt with you my whole life. Like, I’ve never doubted, like, my safety with you or my comfortability with you.
Yasmine Hamady: Aw.
Josie Totah: So I wanted to say that to you.
Peyton List: Yeah. I’m really happy that you’ve always felt comfortable with me. That’s like, my number one thing with people is I just want them to feel not judged and like, I because. I I just want to be like a safe place for everyone to come to. And I’m so happy that it felt that way because I always am scared that it wasn’t that way. Maybe because I felt that way for so long with other people that I’m like, I’ve like gaslit myself. So I’m really happy that you felt that way because I. I just. I’ve always been su– your biggest fan.
Josie Totah: Aw baby.
Yasmine Hamady: Aw.
Peyton List: Like your biggest, biggest fan. I just think the world of you.
Josie Totah: Thank you.
Peyton List: It’s insane. I really do. I always talk about you to everyone.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: I’ll never forget you first mentioning Peyton, like randomly. I think when we were filming Saved, this was way before I’d ever met you. But when she had spoken about, like her times on at Disney, you were always like a name that was associated with so much joy and support, you know? And I–
Peyton List: Yeah.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: –commend you kids. LA isn’t easy as an adult. I just got here, what, four years ago and I have and, you know, so I know nothing. I feel like a LA baby. But even in the time that I’ve been here, I’m like, it can it can get hard in regards to people’s expectations, in regards to judgment, in the ways how I feel perceived and I feel inadequate.
Peyton List: Mmhm.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Um. So I just I commend you guys for really like weathering the storm and overcoming–
Yasmine Hamady: Yeah.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: –not only the industry, but just growing up in a place that isn’t always that easy, you know, And it seems like you guys have found your people in addition to just being beautiful like humble souls. And you guys are just a lovely people. And I’m glad that you guys have had each other. Like during this process.
Yasmine Hamady: When we were all like pitching who do we want to be like our first guest and who do we want to have this full episode about and Josie mentioned you. We were always we were like, well, that’s a no brainer.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yeah.
Yasmine Hamady: I feel like specifically [?]–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: For sure.
Peyton List: Ugh. So honored.
Yasmine Hamady: –watching you no, that was a no brainer because and it wasn’t like a discussion, like we were just like, all right, we’re done with pitches. We got the we got, we got what we wanted. Because specifically for me, like watching you, I watched you in Jessie, watched you in Cobra Kai and and now you have different things like school spirits um and more a different genre than what you’re used to, or what you’ve always been in. It’s incredible what you bring to this to this I said stage–
Josie Totah: See the journey
Yasmine Hamady: [?] I’m a BFA in theater performance, [laughter[ but what you bring to the screen is just something that you don’t see a lot.
Josie Totah: And throughout all of that, you’ve maintained this like sense of moral–
Yasmine Hamady: Yes.
Josie Totah: –decorum that a lot of people don’t.
Yasmine Hamady: Yes.
Josie Totah: And one thing that really stood out to me, I don’t even remember seeing this initially, but I always knew you to be someone who spoke up and stood your ground. Was like when you were 18 years old, you released a piece like with Elle where you talked about politics, and this is when Trump was running for president and why you didn’t why you weren’t voting for him. And I have what you wrote here. I think it was really special. You said, I believe in equality. I believe that racism is a problem and we need to do something about it. I believe in a woman’s right to choose because no one ever seems to tell guys what to do with her body. This is true. I believe–
Yasmine Hamady: Yup.
Josie Totah: –I should make the same amount of money for doing the same job as a man. True. Even if this election won’t affect you, it will, which direction do you want the country to go in? How do you want America to interact with the global community are the questions you posed in that piece. And I thought that that was so special. To be 18 years old and have–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Brave.
Josie Totah: Were you still on Disney at the time?
Peyton List: I think so yeah.
Josie Totah: I think you may have been.
Peyton List: Yeah.
Josie Totah: You were on Bunked.
Peyton List: Yeah.
Josie Totah: And um.
Peyton List: Yeah I was.
Josie Totah: To do that is like kind of brave because of how much you’re told don’t speak up, don’t talk about these things. Don’t ruffle feathers.
Peyton List: Right.
Josie Totah: Like how did you get the courage to do that and what, what ultimately motivated you to, to really that.
Peyton List: Well, thanks for recognizing that. That’s so nice. Um I. I was really nervous to come out because somehow saying even those statements, which I think are just talking about equality somehow–
Yasmine Hamady: Like literally.
Peyton List: –that really pisses people off.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yeah. It’s out of control
Peyton List: Which is insane. A woman should get paid the same. I–
Yasmine Hamady: It’s–
Peyton List: –posted that a few times and people have wanted to cut my throat. Like–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yeah.
Peyton List: I’m like. Okay, if [?] if we are getting paid the same–
Josie Totah: It’s not like you’re saying the sky should be–
Peyton List: –then what’s the issue? Like–
Josie Totah: –like fucking cotton candy. It’s literally like saying it’s like normal human rights.
Peyton List: Yeah, I’m saying unicorns are real apparently. Because–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yeah yeah yeah.
Peyton List: –it’s just never going to happen. Um.
Yasmine Hamady: The bare minimum of things, equality. You would think.
Peyton List: Or like a woman’s right to choose or whatever it is.
Josie Totah: Yeah right.
Peyton List: I was just I was like, and I was so terrified saying these things. Um.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Mm hmm.
Josie Totah: Yeah. What was your mindset back then?
Peyton List: I remember I asked someone at a I think it was one of the editors of Teen Vogue because they invited me to one of their lunches or something, and I told her how scared I was to talk about politics at all. And I felt like it wasn’t my place. And she was like, why wouldn’t it be your place? And I guess that’s kind of what over the pandemic it was like, it’s everyone’s place now to talk about it, and if you don’t, then you’re complicit. Was like–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yeah.
Peyton List: And but I still feel like I look to other people first and like, do my research because I don’t want to speak on behalf of anyone in like any wrong way. But I just felt like these were very basic concepts. And like when Trump was running, I just felt like we we all had to say something. And also because so much of America, like, has watched Disney and it’s just like–
Yasmine Hamady: Yes.
Peyton List: I felt like I had like a voice with people who I actually could speak to who–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yeah.
Peyton List: –and maybe have a conversation. But I don’t know. Sometimes it feels like if people are dead set on something, like, you’re not going to change them. But.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Well, I have to say, I commend you like fully, fully, fully. I think it’s hard enough to like, stop a conversation at a dinner table with people that, you know, let alone what you did was take a stand as a kid and speak out and say, this is what’s right. This is what equality um we should be advocating for. Like, I think that that’s really special and I just want to tell you, like, even if you didn’t see it like, first hand, like you sowed seeds, like God only knows how many kids saw their favorite Disney star–
Yasmine Hamady: Yes Alycia.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: –talk about equality.
Yasmine Hamady: Yup.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: And talk about feminism, which is what you were advocating for at the time and intersectionality. And I think your decision to do the hard things, one, your moral compass is telling you to, even when it’s hard, really is a testament to someone’s character.
Josie Totah: That’s what was really cool too about being at the Pley photoshoot was like seeing all different types of people with different backgrounds there. Was just a really beautiful and cool, especially as like a young girl who is white and, you know, has that platform. I feel like it’s rare for people like yourself to want to speak out because the fact of the matter is you you don’t really have to, I mean as a woman you’re compelled to because you’re affected by certain things. But in other ways you could just sit idle and not put in your two cents, but you put your foot down and you’re speaking up and you’re being an ally and you’re amplifying voices that are smaller than yours. And I think that is really commendable.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Mmm.
Peyton List: How do you how do you guys find it? Like, how much do you go into politics, do you think?
Josie Totah: My parents have always been really liberal and progressive, so it’s always been a part of me. I think, like I didn’t want to I didn’t even feel comfortable speaking up about, like, LGBTQ issues and stuff when I was even like, when I first met Alycia, like I just remember just not feeling confident in myself and feeling proud of myself.
Yasmine Hamady: Mm.
Josie Totah: And I didn’t really experience, like, pride until like a few years ago for the first time, like just genuinely being proud of my own skin. But I think when I was able to do that and I was able to post more because I think you need to be kind of comfortable with who you are before you like put yourself out there like that. I think no matter who you are and speak about issues because it’s like a vulnerable thing when you’re posting about stuff. It’s one thing to post about things that you care about that affect other people, but when it directly affects your self, it’s like, you know. [?] vulnerable.
Yasmine Hamady: 100%. I feel like not the stakes are higher, but it hits home a little bit more when it affects you.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yeah.
Yasmine Hamady: I think it–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Because you have emotional stake.
Yasmine Hamady: Yes Alycia.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: You’re the one dealing with the oppression and then–
Yasmine Hamady: Exactly.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: –being asked to talk about it, it’s a different way and–
Yasmine Hamady: 100%.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: –that’s yeah. I also think you know, it’s important to know we were told not to all of us in this room, like, you know, you’re my beautiful Yas in Manchester, but we’re all told like not to talk about politics.
Josie Totah: Mm hmm.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Um. And it’s like, what that awesome woman at that Teen Vogue told you, it’s like, why not? Like, we all should be caring and stuff and it makes you want to lead to ask you another question. Is there anything as of recent right? Like we lived through a pandemic, we lived through the protests like we lived through a lot of things just within the recent years. Is there anything new that you are learning about yourself or the world that you think is like a recent revelation or new causes that you care about, like Pley itself I I want to commend the sustainability stance that you’ve taken.
Peyton List: We’re a plastic neutral brand, so we clean up an equal amount to what we put out. And we just and a lot of our pallets are paper and they’re made out of 100% recycled material. I just couldn’t make something myself that was damaging the planet. I just felt–
Yasmine Hamady: Yeah.
Peyton List: –too guilty putting, creating and and creating damage as well along with it. Um. So yeah, that is something that I’m trying to constantly learn about and and help with. Lately I’ve just been trying to be kind, even just on like a personal level, like go out of my way for other people because I feel like it’s when someone even just takes a moment to do that. It’s like it changes everything. Like. It’s just contagious.
Josie Totah: Yeah, I agree, too. I think, like the smallest things that you don’t even think of, like the connection. And it helps people. Mm hmm. Which I love. I want to pivot to School Spirits though. Because I’m so excited about that. How was filming that? Because that shit was dark.
Peyton List: Yeah.
Josie Totah: Sorry why’d I say it like that.
Yasmine Hamady: That line, that shit was dark.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Well, you’re right. But the tone in which you said it, like that shit is dark.
Josie Totah: I’m going to I’m going to. I’m going to say that was dark. How was doing that?
Peyton List: Yeah, I it was interesting because I really related to a character that was dead somehow, like from the first scene, she’s dead. And I really woke up in the process of doing that show because I realized there was a part of me that was not really living. And the therapist even told me that she was like, you were on autopilot.
Josie Totah: Wait, there’s a part of [?] that wasn’t living?
Peyton List: Yeah.
Josie Totah: And the therapist, your therapist.
Peyton List: My therapist.
Josie Totah: I’m like who’s the–
Peyton List: I know, I’m taking it out of the show and I’m taking it into me but.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: No, please.
Josie Totah: Wait no. Please, please.
Peyton List: Yeah. There was a part of me–
Josie Totah: Wait wait wait wait wait.
Peyton List: –that was on autopilot, and I needed to wake up.
Josie Totah: Tell us about that. Okay. How was that?
Peyton List: It was insane.
Josie Totah: What what do you think put you on autopilot?
Peyton List: I think just um I thought it’d be easier to deal with people in situations if I just didn’t let anyone or anything in, and um–
Yasmine Hamady: Okay.
Peyton List: –just kind of, like, breeze through and not even know what happened. Like, I would go somewhere and just be like, All right, like move on. If anyone asked me to do anything, I’d be like, sure, have no actual opinion on the person or the thing happening. And now I’m just choosing things that I, people I really care about or who I think are really good. But anyways, back to the show. Um. Yeah, it was–
Josie Totah: No I love that though.
Peyton List: It. She’s dead from the first scene and she’s so passionately trying to figure out what happened to her. And I was like, this girl really cares about her life. I wonder what that must be like.
Josie Totah: Wow.
Peyton List: It’s like–
Yasmine Hamady: I wonder what it’s like to care.
Peyton List: –yeah [?].
Yasmine Hamady: And want, like living.
Peyton List: I wonder what it’s like to–
Yasmine Hamady: Yeah.
Peyton List: –care and love it and want to get back to it. And so like having to, like, fight to come back to find her life and with how many people cared about her and how closed off she was like, she doesn’t let this character is just the strongest person I’ve ever played and like she doesn’t let a single soul in. And I really learned from the creators because they went through so much trauma, creating the show like they loved like, they had an alcoholic parent. And to get through it, they would watch Veronica Mars or like fun shows. And so we wanted to create something that was like a fun, like escape.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yeah.
Peyton List: From everything.
Josie Totah: Right.
Peyton List: Um. But my character also has an alcoholic mother, and that’s like her only parent. So she’s had to be an adult a lot of her life. And it was really cool to just play this really broken but strong person. And I learned so much.
Josie Totah: Yeah.
Peyton List: I learned so much through her and from from them.
Josie Totah: Well–
Peyton List: It was like therapy.
Josie Totah: I commend you for that. That is that is such a special thing to get to work on something and have it affect you in such an impactful way and have it change you for the better. I mean, usually it’s the opposite. [laughter]
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Tea.
Josie Totah: Like being on certain–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Truly.
Josie Totah: –projects and stuff. I feel like it like dements you. Um.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Truly.
Josie Totah: Was there like and you can also tell me to shut off if this is too uncomfortable. Like, was there a point where like, you realized you had to get off autopilot? Like, was there like a thought in your head or a certain turning point?
Peyton List: I was telling myself all the time, but I wouldn’t get off of it, you know, like, I was like, man, I should really wake up. And but I had to just go out and work so hard, you know, like, I just needed to I will still do it. Like, I took a freezing cold shower yesterday, and I’m like, wake up, wake up, wake up. Like, I just need to tell myself, like, wake up to the world. Like, yes, there’s hard things going on, but you can’t just, like, tune it out.
Josie Totah: Right. And I think that is harder to do than it is to say.
Yasmine Hamady: Yeah.
Josie Totah: But I think that even just watching you, I think people who have known you and certainly people who watch you could probably see that on you. I don’t know. Have you heard that a lot that like you’ve changed in a way that’s like just so beautiful and freeing.
Peyton List: Yeah.
Josie Totah: How has that been?
Peyton List: It’s been pretty wild. Yeah. You don’t realize that there’s something off about you either, or that there’s something wrong. And then when people are like, Wow, you’ve really. You’re. I like whatever energy you have right now. It’s changed. And I’m like, Yeah, I feel more myself again. Like it’s nice.
Josie Totah: You seem just settled and confident in your own skin.
Peyton List: Aw thanks.
Josie Totah: And just comfortable.
Yasmine Hamady: Mhm.
Josie Totah: And we love that. And we love that about you and we want more of you. So–
Yasmine Hamady: More, give me.
Josie Totah: We have some fun questions to [cheer] get into the end of this and to wrap this out.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yeah.
Josie Totah: Um. And, and some fun ones.
Peyton List: Okay.
Josie Totah: You mentioned I think in an interview that we read that you wanted to work with Margot Robbie. If you could–
Peyton List: Yes!
Josie Totah: –like put her in any film with you, what would it be like a, what would it be like a buddy cop comedy or like an older sister, younger sister thing, a lesbian rom com? [laughter]
Peyton List: Now the buddy cop movie just will knock it out of my head. [laughing].
Alycia Pascual-Peña: No.
Josie Totah: I mean, that could be cool.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: That one sticks.
Peyton List: No, I have–
Josie Totah: It could be mall cops.
Peyton List: I have absolutely no clue.
Josie Totah: You just want to work with her.
Peyton List: A sister comedy would be very fun, but I don’t know. I just watched her in Babylon and I’m like, I don’t know if I want to work with her or if I just want to watch her in awe now–
Josie Totah: She–
Peyton List: –at this point.
Josie Totah: I cannot wait to see Babylon.
Yasmine Hamady: That’s that’s also like–
Peyton List: She’s phenomenal.
Yasmine Hamady: –very much with bisexuality, like, do I want to sleep with them or do I want to be them? Does that make sense?
Josie Totah: Our next question for you. I think it was Wonderland and an interview that you did with them. You said you wanted to work with Olivia Wilde. What did you make–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Oh my gosh.
Josie Totah: –of the whole Don’t Worry, Darling scandal and press tour?
Peyton List: Oh, my God. I’m like, I must have said that before because I feel like just saying–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: We just–
Peyton List: –that now is–
Yasmine Hamady: We were talking about that.
Peyton List: –intense. But.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yeah.
Peyton List: Yeah, we did talk a little bit about this.
Yasmine Hamady: Yeah, we literally just talked about this, it’s so funny.
Josie Totah: Really?
Peyton List: Yeah. But. I don’t know. Like, I still I have no idea because I feel like there’s what you see on social media and there’s what you see, like people thinking that Harry spit on that guy’s lap and–
Yasmine Hamady: Yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah.
Peyton List: All of these things and it’s like, did that actually happen? Like, I’m just seeing this on social media. I’m a spectator. I have–
Josie Totah: I know.
Peyton List: –no clue.
Josie Totah: Everything’s everything’s blurred lines.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: But–
Josie Totah: I pray for their healing.
Peyton List: I feel like I would still work with her, but–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yeah.
Peyton List: I also–
Josie Totah: I mean she’s still proved she’s a good director.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: I was going to say. I want her to direct me. I’m here for that.
Yasmine Hamady: Yeah. Don’t we all?
Alycia Pascual-Peña: What are you watching right now? Like, there’s so many things I’m currently bingeing and it’s keeping me from doing productive things. But what are your shows? Any films you’ve been obsessed with?
Josie Totah: Or stuff you love to hate watch. Because that is like a big thing for us.
Peyton List: Ooh. I mean.
Josie Totah: But anytime someone asks me that question–
Peyton List: I’ve been on a–
Josie Totah: –I always forget.
Peyton List: I’ve been on a like a Lena Dunham kick. Like I–
Yasmine Hamady: Oh!
Alycia Pascual-Peña: [?]
Peyton List: –started at the beginning of her career, um the movie that she did before she started Girls. I don’t know if that was like her way of getting Girls off the ground.
Josie Totah: Is that little furniture or something?
Peyton List: Yeah.
Josie Totah: Tiny furniture?
Peyton List: Tiny furniture.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Ah!
Peyton List: Yeah. I loved it. And then I watched Sharp Stick.
Yasmine Hamady: Mmm.
Josie Totah: Oh yeah.
Peyton List: And I really like that. Um. Yeah I love Girls and I love all of those shows. It’s like–
Josie Totah: Girls is iconic.
Peyton List: Mm hmm.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yeah.
Peyton List: What about you?
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Woo. Oh, my gosh. I’ve seen a bunch of movies lately. Babylon. Puss in Boots, Last Wish, one of the best films of the year. You can’t tell me anything else.
Peyton List: That’s what everyone’s saying. It’s driving me insane.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Girl, you got to watch it.
Josie Totah: Wait did you say Puss in Boots is one of the best films of the year?
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yeah, and I stand by that.
Josie Totah: I love that.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Thank you so much. Oh, I just. I’m late. I’m so late but I just–
Josie Totah: Did you just say everyone’s saying that?
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yes. Everybody and they mother.
Josie Totah: Oh. Wow, I’m really out the know.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Um. Banshees. What uh.
Peyton List: What’d you think of Babylon?
Josie Totah: Banshess of Inisherin.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yes, I just saw that. Whoa. Sad as fuck.
Peyton List: Oh really?
Alycia Pascual-Peña: But great film. Yeah. Um. What did I think of Babylon? I would have loved to see, like, the Black character storyline a little bit more well written and, like, thought out because of moments that I did saw, see, I loved. I just felt like we didn’t, just wasn’t like, holistic enough of, like, who he was. Um. What else did I think? I thought all the performances were phenomenal. Diego Calva, the Latino lead. Wow. Wow, wow, wow. I think he’s like the future.
Peyton List: Mm hmm me too.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Um. What did you think of Babylon? I have so many thoughts.
Peyton List: [?] that–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: I’m just trying not to spoil anything.
Peyton List: I had the exact same thought. But–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yeah.
Peyton List: Obviously wouldn’t–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: I think it’s a lot [?]–
Peyton List: I thought the story, I said the same thing to my friend. I was like, that storyline didn’t feel like it was fully like, well–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yeah!
Peyton List: It was so beautiful. Like when he was in the powder in the–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yes when he was in the Black face. Yeah. Stunning shot.
Peyton List: I was that was like, probably the most heartbreaking moment of the entire–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yeah.
Peyton List: –movie. I just it looked fucking heartbreaking.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yeah, I was in chills and I was just like, we really didn’t get that many scenes, but um I think cinematically, it’s stunning. The performances are great. I just feel like there was so much being fit into one film it couldn’t do everyone justice. But Daniel. Beautiful. Score beautiful. Um. Okay, if you could ban one thing in the country–
Yasmine Hamady: Ugh.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: What would it be? For me, it would be fans. And I know that sounds outrageous.
Yasmine Hamady: Fans? You’re sick.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Fans.
Yasmine Hamady: You’re sick. You’re a sick girl.
Josie Totah: She loves to be warm. She loves to be warm.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: I like being warm.
Yasmine Hamady: You’re a sick girl Alycia.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: I want every, I want every room to be 80 degrees. If you could ban one thing, what would it be?
Josie Totah: Yasmine would be cilantro, right?
Yasmine Hamady: Oh, I genuinely wholeheartedly believe that the world would be a better institution if cilantro was banned.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: It’s because you have that gene. Don’t do that. Latinos need cilantro.
Yasmine Hamady: I, but that’s that’s like not it. Because I’m saying it right now. It doesn’t add stuff and tastes like soap. It [makes puking sound] it’s horrific.
Josie Totah: For me it’d be Matthew McConaughey and Amy Duncan for me.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: No.
Yasmine Hamady: Please.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Not [?].
Peyton List: Why would you ban Matthew McConaughey?
Josie Totah: Because he just gives me anxiety.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: I enjoy him. I love a Matthew rom-com. But do you have one? What would you ban? In the US of A?
Peyton List: [making mouth whoosh sound] I wish we could all just convert to electric cars a little easier.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Tea.
Josie Totah: Oh you had it, a real answer. [banter]
Peyton List: Yeah.
Yasmine Hamady: You said get a [indistinct].
Peyton List: Um that’s a really lame answer.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: No. That’s great.
Josie Totah: Wait do you do you have an electric car?
Peyton List: I, no.
Josie Totah: Okay. [laughter]
Peyton List: That’s why I’m like I’ve been trying, I’ve been in line to get one.
Josie Totah: What do you mean in line?
Peyton List: I have been in line to get one.
Josie Totah: What are you trying to get? [banter]
Yasmine Hamady: Tesla
Alycia Pascual-Peña: She wants a Tesla.
Josie Totah: No.
Peyton List: No.
Josie Totah: Not a Tesla.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Oh.
Josie Totah: Because we don’t support Elon. Just kidding.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Per.
Josie Totah: I’m not speaking for you. [laughter]
Peyton List: No comment. I’m like, I’ve just been wating for like a little BMW–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: That’s a media trained kid.
Peyton List: –electric–
Yasmine Hamady: That’s a media trained kid, I’m [?].
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Media uh BMW Electric car. Is that what you’re wating for?
Josie Totah: I love that.
Yasmine Hamady: Oh, those are so–
Peyton List: I don’t know, cars. I’m like–
Yasmine Hamady: –cute.
Peyton List: –a BMW electric car.
Josie Totah: Do you believe in online dating and do you participate in it?
Peyton List: I don’t really. I–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Tea.
Peyton List: I did for a bit. And then now I don’t really I mean, I know that a lot of people have met through it, but for me personally.
Yasmine Hamady: I don’t think it’s for everyone because like, online dating is really hard. But I also feel like it depends on the person. And it’s always interesting because I was like, if I, you know, they say like by 23 you would have met the person you’re going to marry. I’m like, fuck that, absolutely fuck that. I would rather die than marry someone I’ve already met now because everyone–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Wait. Who the hell says that?
Yasmine Hamady: Have you not heard that?
Alycia Pascual-Peña: But no, but thank God. I think. I think everybody has different things that float their boat. You know, for me, it scares me. Is that how you feel?
Peyton List: Yeah, it does scare me.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: It makes me–
Josie Totah: Wait, what?
Peyton List: Yeah. It’s just–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Online dating.
Josie Totah: Oh, yeah. No I can’t.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: And I know so many relationships that are thriving because of it.
Josie Totah: Same.
Peyton List: I do, too. I do too.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: But for you have you been, like–
Peyton List: That’s–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Nah, because, you’re like, I don’t know them or what?
Peyton List: Yeah, I’ve just had a couple of experiences where I’m like, I just get red flags once I’m in person with them.
Yasmine Hamady: Yeah, yeah yeah yeah.
Peyton List: And like they just haven’t gone well, I mean, I had one that I thought the guy was like, so genuine and sweet, um–
Josie Totah: But boring.
Peyton List: But that was one. [laughter]
Alycia Pascual-Peña: You said but that but you did try. At least you tried girl.
Peyton List: I did try.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Period.
Peyton List: And then I realized this.
Yasmine Hamady: Yeah.
Peyton List: I’m like, Wow, I really need to know people for a long period of time. Which is bad, though.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: That’s not bad.
Josie Totah: That’s good that you know that about yourself though.
Peyton List: Like, we need to have, like–
Josie Totah: That’s–
Peyton List: –a mutual. That’s why I asked– [banter]
Josie Totah: Because some people–
Peyton List: -if we had a mutual.
Josie Totah: Some people are–
Yasmine Hamady: Yeah.
Josie Totah: Don’t do that. Yeah, I’m afraid of that. I’m afraid of online dating. I’m afraid of actors.
Peyton List: I’m scared someone’s going to, I think I’ve just seen too many shows where it’s like–
Yasmine Hamady: Of catfish.
Peyton List: –my husband ended up being a serial killer. [banter]
Yasmine Hamady: Well, well it’s true statistically. Like if a man–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: No true. We can’t be trusting these men.
Yasmine Hamady: Statistically husbands literally are most likely to kill their spouse. But–
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Terrifying.
Yasmine Hamady: It’s interesting because [?] I’m obsessed with catfish, so I’m like–
Josie Totah: Stay gay?
Yasmine Hamady: When I, stay gay, when I was. Yes. When I was getting to the airport, I was like, this is either going to be the most like the girl I’ve been talking to face timing for the last five months, or it’s going to an old man with a micro penis and a receding hairline.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Oh dios mio.
Yasmine Hamady: And then lo and behold, it wasn’t.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Look hey.
Josie Totah: I love that.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: What’s your in and your outs for 2023?
Yasmine Hamady: Oh good one.
Peyton List: Out is not fucking laughing at yourself. Like I have to laugh at myself. [gasp] Um. That’s–.
Josie Totah: So not not laughing at yourself.
Yasmine Hamady: Yes.
Josie Totah: So that’s just in.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: So it’s in. To laugh at yourself.
Peyton List: It’s in.
Josie Totah: Laughing at yourself.
Peyton List: In is laughing at yourself.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Per.
Peyton List: Out is taking yourself seriously.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Mm. [slapping sounds]
Peyton List: Um.
Josie Totah: Love that. Answer me, my literal um love of my life. My little sister, Val, she told me the other day, um she was like, this is the year of being. And I was like, you’re so right. Like, we should just be. Because I feel like we’re so worried about everything then like, what’s in is just being if I’m worried about something, bitch I’m just going to be.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yeah.
Josie Totah: If I am excited about something. Okay, I’m just going to be.
Peyton List: No, I agree. Like in is rest and–
Yasmine Hamady: Ah.
Josie Totah: Out is self-doubt and insecurity and men in finance. And I love that. [laughter].
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Oh my gosh.
Yasmine Hamady: And that, and that ladies.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: And that is our episode.
Yasmine Hamady: I think that’s our, that’s our in and outs of 2023. From Alycia del sol Pascual-Peña. Josie Totah. Peyton List. And Yasmine Hamady.
Josie Totah: So thank you so much for coming on the pod.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yeah!
Peyton List: Thank you for having me.
Josie Totah: We love you dearly.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yes.
Josie Totah: Please come back.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: This was so beautiful, truly. Thank you.
Peyton List: This was beautiful.
Yasmine Hamady: Thank you.
Peyton List: Thank you guys.
Yasmine Hamady: We’re so grateful. Thank you so much for coming and joining. And also, you have a home at Dare We Say anytime.
Josie Totah: And everyone watch out–
Peyton List: Yeah maybe I’ll just come be an audience member sometime.
Yasmine Hamady: Oh, my God, you’re the live audience. You’re like [making quiet cheers]
Josie Totah: Please, imagine we do that.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: You can watch the arguments first hand.
Josie Totah: You can be our paid laugh-er.
Yasmine Hamady: Yeah.
Josie Totah: Um.
Peyton List: Perfect.
Josie Totah: To laugh at all of our jokes.
Peyton List: Perfect!
Josie Totah: So School Spirits comes out when?
Peyton List: Comes out March 9th.
Josie Totah: March 9th.
Peyton List: On Paramount Plus. [cheers] Yeah.
Josie Totah: And then Cobra Kai.
Peyton List: And then Cobra Kai. Yeah. But who knows if we’ll go back, but I think we will.
Josie Totah: Fingers crossed.
Yasmine Hamady: Fingers crossed, babe. Well.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: We’ll be watching. Whatever.
Josie Totah: And then you just filmed, like, another movie like, a few months ago, and so you’re just a boss ass bitch. So everyone follow her and be obsessed with her like we are. But I’m sure you already are, so. Thanks. Pay.
Peyton List: Thank you.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yay.
[spoken together] Yay! [music break]
Josie Totah: Ugh, that was so fun. I literally am obsessed with her. She is just–
Yasmine Hamady: Oh!
Josie Totah: –An icon and just a gem of a human being.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: She was amazing. She inspired me. Truly. Um. And it was a good time. And it was cute to hear you guys reminisce about your childhood.
Josie Totah: Listen. And I love that no bad stories of me came up. [laugh]
Yasmine Hamady: Yeah, that was that I was waiting for one.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Were you scared to be exposed Josie?
Josie Totah: Possibly. You tend to ask people who have known me since I was a kid, what are the worst things I’ve done to them.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: In private! But it’s okay. But you know why that trend started? It started because people would come to me and be like, Josie would bully me. And it was a trend like–
Yasmine Hamady: Alycia.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: So many of her childhood friends would tell me these insane stories. So now I just like, have a mental scrapbook.
Josie Totah: Okay.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yeah.
Josie Totah: Well.
Yasmine Hamady: Um also, can I just say she has, her smile is more contagious than Sars 19.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Oh, she’s stunning.
Josie Totah: Like she, Oh, it’s insane.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Yeah, she’s really stunning. Um.
Josie Totah: Well, yeah.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: Here’s to pretty guests–
Yasmine Hamady: Well that’s our show.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: –with pretty minds. It was an awesome time. Thanks for listening, guys.
Yasmine Hamady: Thank you.
Josie Totah: Bye.
Yasmine Hamady: See you next Thursday. [music break]
Josie Totah: Dare We Say is a Crooked Media production.
Yasmine Hamady: Caroline Reston is our showrunner, producer and Mommy and Ari Schwartz is our producer and show daddy. Fiona Pestana is our associate producer and Sandy Girard is the Almighty executive producer.
Josie Totah: It’s hosted and produced by me, Josie Totah.
Yasmine Hamady: And me, Yasmine Hamady.
Alycia Pascual-Peña: And me, Alycia Pascual-Peña. Our engineer and editor is Jordan Cantor, and Brian Vasquez is our theme music composer. Our video producers are Matt DeGroot, Narineh Melkonian, and Delon Villanueva and Mia Kellman.
Josie Totah: Lastly, thank you to Jordan Silver, Gabriela Leverette, Jesse McLean, Caroline Heywood, Shaina Hortsmann, Deisi Cruz, Danielle Jensen and Ewa Okulate. For marketing the show and making us look so damn good.
