Mischa Barton: Life Before & After The OC (FBF)

Join Alex in NYC for a sit-down interview with Mischa Barton. Mischa reminisces on how her whole life changed after booking The OC and the crazy world she was suddenly thrust into at such a young age. She discusses being the only teenager on set, bullying behind the scenes, cast members dating each other, and why she ultimately chose to leave the show. Mischa reflects on what life was like after The OC… the paparazzi’s unhealthy obsession with her, her team trying to control and manipulate her, and the lies she was told from those she thought she could trust. She also opens up about the time she learned her boyfriend had illegally recorded them, forcing her to fight for the rights to her own body. Mischa talks about her rock bottom moments and how she has come back stronger, healthier, and happier than ever. She even spills the tea on her current dating life and what she needs in a partner. Get ready to hear Mischa Barton’s story like never before.

Speaker names marked ? are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.

• 0:00Alex Cooper?

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• 2:10Alex Cooper?

  What is up Daddy Gang? It is your founding father Alex Cooper with Call Her Daddy.

• 2:19Alex Cooper?

  Misha Barton, welcome to Call Her Daddy.

• 2:21Speaker 03

  Thank you. Thanks for having me.

• 2:23Alex Cooper?

  I'm so happy we're finally doing this.

• 2:25Speaker 03

  I know.

• 2:26Alex Cooper?

  We've like wanted to do this for so long and our schedules have been shit and we're finally here. We're on the couch, we're cozy, we're ready to go.

• 2:33Speaker 03

  We're doing it.

• 2:34Alex Cooper?

  So Daddy Gang, we're currently in New York, which is where you grew up and kind of like where you really have like got your start. Do you plan on staying here long-term? Like is New York it for you?

• 2:45Speaker 03

  I love New York. I mean, I just feel more at home here. I've actually, I mean, this last year, like since we first started talking, like I've been spending a lot of time in London and Europe again. But like I get that kind of, those kind of vibes when I'm in New York and I get the culture and I, you know, I started in the theater. I love being able to like go to the theater all the time and like hang out in the cute little bookshops. And I love like the village where I live. It's romantic and cute.

• 3:12Alex Cooper?

  It is. It's magical. I used to live here and like every time I come back, I'm like, I miss you.

• 3:18Speaker 03

  You're an East Coast girl, right?

• 3:19Alex Cooper?

  Pennsylvania.

• 3:20Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 3:20Alex Cooper?

  But you were born in London or?

• 3:22Speaker 03

  Yes. Yeah. No, I was born in London and then we moved to New York when I was five and a half. So I, I actually had like a little British accent and the whole thing when I was a kid and had to lose it. I got teased mercilessly in school.

• 3:36Alex Cooper?

  Was that actually a good thing sometimes for like work? Could, would they be like do a British accent and you could and or do an American and you could?

• 3:42Speaker 03

  Yeah, I still do. I mean, I'm very grateful for it because when I went to like, they had to send me to a speech coach to like get a proper transatlantic accent. So.

• 3:53Alex Cooper?

  They're like, be a valley girl bitch. You're like, oh, what?

• 3:56Speaker 03

  Well, that was, that's really hard for, believe it or not, that's more complicated. It took living in LA for years to be able to understand what that even was. Cause I only moved to LA for the OC. So like, they were like, they would always be like, can you sound more like, you know, you're from the valley or more Orange County? And I was like, I don't actually like, I've never been to Orange County. I don't actually like know what that is.

• 4:21Alex Cooper?

  You know what's weird though? Listening to you talk, you're so right. You have this like eloquent tiny twang underneath and it is clearly from that like English background. So you've got a great voice. Going back to the beginning, what were you like as a kid?

• 4:35Speaker 03

  I was pretty serious and very shy at first. So like I was like painfully shy and um kind of awkward, I guess. Like not very um but very serious.

• 4:47Alex Cooper?

  When we think of actors and actresses, I feel like people that can't relate are always like, oh, my gosh, they're like the most outgoing in the. And then I feel like every time I speak to an actor, they're like, no, I'm insecure. I was like trying to find my voice. So like acting helped. Like, how did you then find yourself like putting yourself in these situations?

• 5:05Speaker 03

  I got into it by um I didn't want to do any of like the outdoor activities at camp. And so I wrote this like monologue. And then that was what you all had to perform something or show what you'd been doing all summer at camp. And so like my big sister had been like horseback riding and doing all this stuff. And I was just like sitting there writing. And um I performed the monologue. And then like the, I guess, someone's parent in the audience was an agent at a literary agency here in New York. And was like, oh, well, she should definitely get into acting. And so like I tried it and yeah, the rest is history.

• 5:40Alex Cooper?

  When I think about child actors, I always am like, okay, I can't imagine your social life in school. But was your experience like you were the cool kid in school? Or were you getting bullied? Or was you were just kind of like fitting in?

• 5:54Speaker 03

  I was always a bit like on the outside. I only had like one best friend and I was friends with a lot of the boys. But it was always like me and this girl Laura Katzman. And like it was just the two of us and we were kind of like outsiders. And like we were considered a bit like, you know, yeah, Gothic, a bit weird, a bit like off the beaten. So we weren't popular, no.

• 6:14Alex Cooper?

  Yeah.

• 6:15Speaker 03

  That definitely wasn't the case. And I got teased once the Sixth Sense and stuff came out. And the kids realized that I was like, you know, in movies, then I got teased. And I did not want to be homeschooled. They tried and I fought that tooth and nail. I just acted up until they sent me back to school. I just didn't want to be stuck at home with my sister. And like taken away from like that social. Like it was so important to me to like have some semblance of a normal kind of. I I enjoyed school, like I really genuinely enjoyed learning. And like I didn't want to become that like weirdo kid who was isolated, who had no like social kind of interaction.

• 6:55Alex Cooper?

  Right. You're like, let me be like Gothic with my one friend in the cafeteria, mom. Like, let me live, okay?

• 7:01Speaker 03

  That was important to me.

• 7:03Alex Cooper?

  So. After high school, you had plans to go to Yale.

• 7:08Speaker 03

  There was an early acceptance to the drama program, which I wanted to do.

• 7:12Alex Cooper?

  That's like a huge deal. And then you decided not to go.

• 7:15Speaker 03

  I got cast in the OC when I was, you know, it was right at that kind of pivotal moment where it was gonna like, kind of, yeah, affect the rest of your life. And I fought it originally. I didn't really want to do it, but I flew out and I kind of did an episode on another series, like a different series that McG was doing. And basically, everyone was like, you have to take this opportunity. You have to, because it's like, it's a big role and it's a life-changing thing.

• 7:45Alex Cooper?

  Do you ever look back at that decision and like, question like, hmm?

• 7:48Speaker 03

  I mean, yeah, but like, I'm still like that. Like, I live near NYU. I like, every day I walk by, I'm like, oh, I used to sit in the back of like, some of my friends' lectures and classes that were going to Columbia and NYU and stuff. And I would just like, I mean, I was obsessed with school culture and learning. I really enjoyed it.

• 8:07Alex Cooper?

  I'm gonna walk past NYU like tomorrow, and I'm like, is that Misha? You're like, sitting in the classes.

• 8:12Speaker 03

  Yeah, but I do, I find it fascinating. I mean, like, you know, my big sister, she's so smart. I mean, she studied law, politics, economics, and like, it's always like, she went to the University of Edinburgh in the end, but like, yeah, I don't know. I was always very jealous of, of that. But yeah, it always kind of didn't sit well with me that I didn't get to do university, that I didn't get to go to college.

• 8:34Alex Cooper?

  So we talk about the OC. We got to get into it. You mentioned you obviously did, took that instead of going to college. Obviously, the OC was this phenomenon that I don't know if anyone expected it, but like, it is still iconic to this day. People still talk about it. COVID, everyone's re-watching it, like, new people are finding the show. I'm curious, like, did you have any idea that it was going to be as big as it was?

• 8:58Speaker 03

  Not really, no. I think the first time that we realized was when we went to the first premiere episode of it. And like, we literally thought that that whole crowd was there for something else. And we were all like, I remember we were all riding in the same van together and like, we looked over and we were like, what's that? And they were like, no, that's like the premiere for your show. That's where you're going.

• 9:20Alex Cooper?

  You were obviously the youngest of everyone, basically, on that cast. You were 17 at the time, and everyone was in their 20s, 30s, 40s.

• 9:30Alex Cooper?

  What was the dynamic initially like with you and your castmates? You being seventeen?

• 9:35Speaker 03

  Um, well, I think it was a bit tricky for everyone because like, you know, just having like, I was experiencing all of my firsts and like, I was so young and like, you know, my mom would be on set and, um, yeah, I just needed a lot more like attention in that sense because I had my mom there and there was stuff going on and I was just finishing up school and so, you know, they like, it was a lot of my firsts. Let's put it like that and I, um, that kind of really like separated me a little bit from them in the sense that like, I wasn't out there living on my own in LA like, yet, you know?

• 10:13Alex Cooper?

  I didn't realize that the romantic partner that you had on your on-screen relationship with the character Ryan Atwood with Marissa, you being seventeen at the time, I didn't realize he was twenty-five. And so like, again, as a seventeen-year-old, playing across a twenty-five-year-old, like, that's a pretty big age gap. How did you feel about that, like, romantic on-screen relationship?

• 10:36Speaker 03

  Yeah, it wasn't just on-screen either. I mean, it was kind of complicated for me because like I said, like, I went into that like a virgin, like a kid, like, really feeling like I needed to grow up quickly to portray like, you know, acting with people older than me was a bit like, oh, wow, like, they know what they're doing and like, there's gonna be like, relationships on this show and you're gonna need to like, play that part. And I didn't feel really ready for that because I was always like a really late bloomer in school and I hadn't really dated and I had, yeah, I just had like no idea what I was doing, really. So I felt like I needed to catch up, I think, a lot of the time.

• 11:18Alex Cooper?

  So you had a relationship with?

• 11:20Speaker 03

  Yeah, yeah, I mean, that was my first like, and I had no idea like what I was doing, you know, and I think that kind of set things off on the wrong foot, too, because it was like, you know, people hook up on these shows and whatever, and like, these things happen, but it was, it, we threw ourselves all into it very fast and like, then, you know, when you break up and like, things don't work and they see you dating other people and you know, like notoriously, there was a lot of like, interdating on that show and different people getting together. But I, yeah, it was, it definitely was tricky that it happened like, right out of the gate. And that like, I felt overwhelmed and not ready for any of that and kind of like,

• 12:04Speaker 03

  you know, they were also like, I remember they were like, Misha's disappeared with Ben and like, she's only seventeen and a half, eighteen, like, and the producers like, went to my parents and were like, you know, it was like a very, it was kind of a whole ordeal. And so like, that's in the very beginning of the show before we're even like, halfway through a season. So, there was a lot going on there. That show, it just so much happened in three seasons. It really feels like it was over the course of like, seven years or something, but it wasn't. It was like, all crammed into this tiny little space.

• 12:38Alex Cooper?

  I didn't understand how much, and I'm not saying this happened in your case, but like, I didn't understand how much directors like, are really like, promoting, yes, like, hang out together and be together, like, it works for chemistry, but was that your case where they supported it?

• 12:53Speaker 03

  Yeah, I mean, it kind of felt like a double edged sword because like, you know, exactly what you said, they're like, oh, we want it to seem like you guys are all friends and that you have chemistry and we need this to really work and make it look like you guys have this chemistry. And then you sort of get punished for it on the flip side and they're like, oh, but not so much that it like, affects our production or like, what's going on here? And there's nothing you can really do about that because it's too late, like, and you know, I feel like when I, I was that young, so like, in first relationships, like, you just kind of know what you don't want, you don't know what you do want, and so you kind of like, Panic and try to like, yeah, so it was it was definitely a tricky balance to strike.

• 13:37Alex Cooper?

  How did you emotionally and mentally handle a dynamic where you still have to see someone every day? And like be cordial, but?

• 13:45Speaker 03

  Well, I mean, yeah, we just had to like suck it up and get on with it. And there was, but there was a lot of like jabs behind the scenes and off camera and kind of like, you know, um, yeah, I felt I felt like that kind of ostracized me as well because like, you know, there was a marked difference in like um maturity level there. And so like it it was um, yeah, I don't know what to say about it. We got through it, a lot of jokes, a lot of like, you know, I really loved our crew. And I did feel that they were really there for us and that it was like a family. And that part was positive. And like, I remember Rachel was saying to me recently, like she looks back at the scene where we're all playing like chicken in the pool and stuff.

• 14:30Speaker 03

  And it's like, those were genuinely happy moments where we could forget about like all the pressure that was on us and like, and it was really hard because you know, you would be out getting photographed with different people. And like I did start dating and then, you know, you try not to bring that on set. When people are, you know, you just try to let it go at the door. And kind of get on with it and keep working.

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• 17:54Alex Cooper?

  Did you end the relationship?

• 17:56Speaker 03

  Yeah, I mean, I, yeah, I drew, I think, you know, like, one of those things, you're so young and you've realized, like, I'm not ready for this. Like, I have no idea what I'm doing.

• 18:05Alex Cooper?

  Yeah, it's overwhelming.

• 18:06Speaker 03

  Yeah, overwhelming and just like too close to home. Like, you can't, it, that, it would be a very, very tricky thing to keep going on set. And I think, you know, Adam and Rachel, like, we all kind of experienced that in some form or another. But again, I just felt like not mature enough, like, younger than them in that sense. I had not dated before and I was not aware of, and I think he was like really angry with me to begin with and like, kind of like, and I felt the punishment of that, like, I felt that from the producers as well, that they were not, um, like, happy about that. But like, that's where the, like, there was such great chemistry between the characters.

• 18:46Speaker 03

  And I think, like, people did fall in love with them because there was, like, genuine friendship and love there on some level, you know?

• 18:53Alex Cooper?

  Such a good point, like, I remember when I was, I had Rachel on my show and we talked about her and Adam. And like, the chemistry between the cast, the core four, it was like overwhelming for people and we romanticized it so much. And I could imagine, you're right, like, ending relationships like Adam and Rachel at one point, like, it was so heightened.

• 19:13Speaker 03

  But that sexual tension was there. And it really, like, it reads, like, even when you're looking at the scenes on, like, the Ferris wheel and stuff and like, you know, I think we, like, kind of hated each other at that point. But like, there was still this, like, intense kind of, like, tension there. And so it really worked for, for the show.

• 19:32Alex Cooper?

  Can I ask if you lost your virginity when you were filming DOC? Is that kind of what you?

• 19:36Speaker 03

  Yeah, yeah, like, that's what I'm saying. Like, I was just such a, like, I had no idea about relationships at all or sex. And so, like, it was kind of just like a whole learning curve for me.

• 19:46Alex Cooper?

  You had mentioned there was bullying on set in, like, an interview. And I'm curious if, like, You can talk about that a little bit as like being in that position? Like, how do you deal with that?

• 19:57Speaker 03

  There was just kind of like backtalk between people and like there was it's I think I heard you say this of one of your interviews. It's typical that in these sets where like everybody that not everybody is gonna get along. And even with like the secondary characters and like guest stars and people who came in, you know, there are gonna be clashes, there are gonna people who are gonna create rumors and make stuff up and like.

• 20:22Alex Cooper?

  Yeah.

• 20:23Speaker 03

  And I think I was just very sensitive to that because I was so young and like finding out that like maybe people were talking about you behind your back because I was particularly like sensitive to that. It felt like high school, but in the real world and very elevated and very magnified, so.

• 20:42Alex Cooper?

  Totally, totally.

• 20:42Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 20:43Alex Cooper?

  Marissa, the character you played was like the it girl, like she's partying, she can get all the boys. She's got like the family drama, she's getting into trouble. I'm curious, like, did you relate to anything that she was going through?

• 20:56Speaker 03

  I found those places in her, I guess. I mean, like, I, yeah, I started to more and more. I think that's why they wrote so much drama for her in there, like the relationship with her parents and stuff. Because that was the stuff that I could, I felt that, you know, emotional turmoil and angst in my life going on outside of the show. And so it was easier for me to to play into that. And so I did start, you can't help but start to relate to your character. When you're playing somebody day in and day out, there is this bizarre kind of like emergence of the two. And even like my social life outside of the show took on a very weird turn with me dating like, you know,

• 21:37Speaker 03

  like a typical like rich LA kid and like some of that kind of like, and because of the fame and the paparazzi and stuff, it kind of like all took on a weird turmoil around. So the character ended up like that's what we played up in her as well. Because I really was going through a lot of growing pains and kind of coming into my own. And so the things I related to most was like her, her inner turmoil.

• 22:03Alex Cooper?

  You leave at the end of season three. It's still to this day is like one of, I feel like, the most heartbreaking moments on TV. Your character dies. How did you decide?

• 22:15Speaker 03

  Spoiler alert.

• 22:16Alex Cooper?

  Right, okay. By the way, if you're watching on TikTok, turn this off. I'm like, so Marissa dies. How did you decide to leave the show? Was it your decision?

• 22:26Speaker 03

  That's complicated. You know, things had not been going like they really needed like a huge cliffhanger. Something had to give, something had to change. And I'm like, to be really honest, like, you know, I think as Josh and Stephanie were writing it, they they knew they needed something huge. And the obvious thing was like, how much more can we really do with Marissa? Like, really, what more can she do? She's like experienced like with drugs, her sexuality with like, and they'd written so many things and they were such quick succession of arcs like that she was kind of like a character that was spiraling out of control.

• 23:05Speaker 03

  And at the same time, in my life, like, you know, I was getting so much attention and there were other things going on, like people trying to write other roles for me and I would not be released from the show. I could not go do anything else. So like, you know, even like Stan Lee was writing like a comic book character for me. Like, there was no way that they were gonna let me out to go do anything outside of the show because that's just how it is. You're like, and so I think it was the obvious choice. The friction just between my team at the time and them and like how I did seem to be the most alienated one and a bit a fish out of water. Like, I think that was like, it was an obvious choice and we like, I don't know.

• 23:50Speaker 03

  I mean, Josh and Stephanie have their own ideas of how they ended it and they say that they regret like a lot of like how they did handle it. But I thought it made the most sense for her to go out with a bang. She wasn't really a character that I thought, you know, she just like. Fade off into oblivion or like, you know, ride off into the sunset like. Uh, she had to go somewhere and I felt like that was the right thing for her.

• 24:17Alex Cooper?

  Do you remember the feeling of when the world saw that scene? Like, did you pay attention to how many people were so devastated? Were you overwhelmed?

• 24:24Speaker 03

  It was crazy. I had people crying in airports to be like, people would come up to me on the street and be like, can I hug you? Like, I mean, people wanted to like physically touch me. They were just very like concerned about what had happened with the character.

• 24:36Alex Cooper?

  Because like you're alive.

• 24:37Speaker 03

  It really upset people and especially upset young girls and rightfully so. I mean, it should like. You know, she had taken it too far and like, but all the best characters do. And like all the best characters kind of like, you know, have some huge tragedy. Hers is a bit final, but I just.

• 24:57Alex Cooper?

  Um, when you went on the OC rewatch podcast with the girls, I remember watching you like. You looked upset when you were watching that final scene. You were like, oh my God.

• 25:07Speaker 03

  Well, I haven't watched it maybe ever, actually.

• 25:10Alex Cooper?

  Is there a reason?

• 25:12Speaker 03

  Well, I never sat down and watched the show as it was airing. It was not something so like a lot of it I hadn't seen. And that one in particular, I hadn't seen it since we shot it and I forgot so much about it. Like the fact that there's no music, there is a really a choice because the show was so music driven.

• 25:31Alex Cooper?

  So good.

• 25:32Speaker 03

  And that whole thing is just kind of like silent and then, you know, the flames in the car like. I didn't remember it being quite that dramatic, the way the car is actually on fire and like.

• 25:44Alex Cooper?

  Oh, girl, it was dramatic. You had me in tears and then Alleluia starts playing and then you're like. But, um, when you watched it and you were like, okay, let's turn this off. It's going to get emotional like. Did, what did it bring up for you seeing that scene? Cause it felt like you were like upset.

• 26:00Speaker 03

  We were upset on set that day. A lot of the crew were really sorry to see me go and they were pretty upset and it was a lot of goodbyes and like, you know, putting on a brave face about the whole thing, but basically like, I mean, I would always make make light of everything and we were like, more blood, more drama, like, you know, and but it was um, it was a sad time because we were, we were sorry to leave each other, you know?

• 26:24Alex Cooper?

  Yeah.

• 26:24Speaker 03

  They really were like a family to me. A lot of the guys and, you know, the heads of department on that show.

• 26:30Alex Cooper?

  Yeah.

• 26:31Speaker 03

  Were really there for me.

• 26:32Alex Cooper?

  Yeah.

• 26:33Speaker 03

  Through tough times, you know?

• 26:35Alex Cooper?

  How would you describe that time of your life, like after the OC?

• 26:38Speaker 03

  It was an intense time. I it was because I think the thing that um, I hadn't really wrapped my head around was like the amount of worldwide fame that show actually got. And so there wasn't anywhere to really hide. And I think what overwhelmed me was like, I was doing all these campaigns and like, there were times when I only had a few days off in the year. There was a lot of friction at home. There was like, really no place for me to go that felt calm. And there was just a lot of pressure being put on me by um, by people who expected the most out of me constantly. And so like, I never really like, there were some years there where like, there was only like, maybe two days off

• 27:21Speaker 03

  in the year, like, and I didn't. So I and like, what really got me would be going to somewhere like Australia or the wherever you would think would be like, the middle of nowhere to like, and then still having, you know, pictures surface of you and like, I just, it felt like I could never really get away from anything and I had no privacy.

• 27:42Alex Cooper?

  The paparazzi were absolutely obsessed with you. It was like insane. Can you talk about some of like, the like, details of like, the way that they would try to get to you to like, really embody what you were going through?

• 27:55Speaker 03

  It was dangerous most of the time and also just extremely invasive. I mean, the lengths that they would go to to like, tap phones and conversations and like, find out where you were going and track your car and stuff. I mean, the lengths they went to were were pretty absurd.

• 28:13Alex Cooper?

  I like, think I read somewhere, you said something like, They would like give homeless people phones?

• 28:18Speaker 03

  No, they really did. They would give people like in the Malibu, like Country Mart and stuff and people on Rodeo. They would give like random people like phones and they would say like if you ever see a celebrity show up, I'm the first person you should call. Like I'll give you 50 bucks, 100 bucks, whatever it is. If you tip me off that you see like Misha or Nicole or any of these girls coming down here to like go shopping or go to lunch. That way they wouldn't have to like sit there all day and wait themselves in the car.

• 28:45Alex Cooper?

  Lazy fucks. Like lazy piece of shit. Okay, you couldn't just wait there yourself. I mean, that's just insane. And you're right, like it was a different time. And I think maybe with social media now, like there's just more access, so it's less intense.

• 28:59Speaker 03

  You can't get away with the same level of invasion of privacy. And you're right, like it's better. I think people have lived and learned like the nice thing about social media is like, and the way it is now, you can give access to what you want to give access to. And so if you share more, then there's less of this kind of insane wall to try to get behind. So they're not literally scaling the walls to celebrities' homes anymore. Because you're in there like posting about your life and you're sharing more about your personal life. And so it doesn't have that kind of intense, the stakes aren't so high.

• 29:34Alex Cooper?

  You, I think had said at one point, you're some, someone on your team around you started to give you like prescription drugs. When did that start happening? And like, how did, how did that happen?

• 29:44Speaker 03

  It was happening even towards the end of the OC.

• 30:04Alex Cooper?

  Call Her Daddy is brought to you by Airbnb. Okay, I am well into my third trimester now, so I haven't really been able to travel because I need to stay close to my doctor. But spending all this time at home has made me start thinking about all the places that I want to go once the baby is here. I have literally been sitting on my couch with the TV on scrolling through Airbnb and planning trips. I am nowhere ready to take yet, but suddenly my vacation priorities, I will say, are completely different. Like, does the house have enough bedrooms? Is there a big kitchen? Does the furniture look baby safe? Or is every table covered in, you know, sharp corners? And obviously, we need an extra room for my mom,

• 30:47Alex Cooper?

  who has already made it very clear that she will not be leaving my side. She's like, "I got you, I'm the babysitter, okay." And now that it is October, I'm picturing cooler weather, cozy sweaters. Oh my God, maybe a little cottage where we can escape for a little weekend. That's what I love about booking a home on Airbnb. Whether you're traveling with family, friends, or your partner, everyone has space to relax while still being together. Even if you're traveling for a concert or a game, you have one place where everyone can get together and convene after. Before the holiday season gets busy, treat yourself to one more fall getaway and check out Airbnb while you're planning it. This is a paid ad by BetterHelp.

• 31:29Alex Cooper?

  So anytime that I am finding myself having a habit that I just cannot kick, I'm like, "Okay, I need to talk about this in therapy." Listen, guys, everyone has habits, mindsets, or patterns that don't serve them. But recognizing what they are and learning how to let them go can be so important. It's literally the first step towards creating meaningful change. And therapy with BetterHelp, one of the leading online therapy platforms, can be a space to explore where those patterns come from and develop healthier habits and mindsets for a more fulfilling life. With over 30,000 therapists worldwide, BetterHelp has served millions of people globally. BetterHelp makes it easier to fit therapy into your routine with flexible ways to connect. That work for different schedules and lifestyles.

• 32:12Alex Cooper?

  Plus, BetterHelp therapists have at least three years and 1,000 hours on hand experience and hold all required education, training, and certifications. You can meet with a range of professionals from marriage and family therapists to social workers and counselors. So Daddy Gang, if you're thinking of starting therapy, give BetterHelp a try. Sign up and get 10% off at betterhelp.com/daddy. That's better H E L P dot com slash daddy. Someone on your team around you started to give you like prescription drugs. When did that start happening and like, how did, how did that happen?

• 32:50Speaker 03

  It was happening even towards the end of the OC. Like, it was put into the contract that I had to have a sober coach with me. And so then like, I was being watched 24/7, but like, it was still very popular in those days, like, to still be prescribing like Xanax and things for like, you know, like, whatever. Like, if you were under a lot of duress or stress, they'd be like, this is what you need to do to like, kind of get through it. And it was just, um, being constantly told what to do by people every second and micromanaged in, in every single way. And I think that that just became, oh, I don't think it did become overwhelming for me. And it wasn't like, there never really was a proper break.

• 33:34Speaker 03

  There was never really a moment. And like, I remember coming back home, like, they were very concerned. Like, I walked into my house and there was like, you know, like, 10 guys in suits all sitting around, like, talking to me. I was like, what is this? And they were like, well, you have to go do a project in like, two weeks. Like, are you gonna be ready? So it just kind of all started compounding.

• 33:56Alex Cooper?

  Like, you're saying the men in suits were there to like?

• 33:58Speaker 03

  Those just people from like, all over, like, the agency, like, producers, like, the people really wanted to know that I was gonna be performing and, and doing like, the schedule that they expected me to stick to and, and like, I mean, I don't think that would even like, I don't think you could really do that with actors now. Like, now, if you say to somebody like, I'm, I'm not doing well, or, like, there are like, trigger words that you can like- Where they're like, okay, well, we have to leave this person alone, like she's needs like a few days off or she needs some time to herself like. That wasn't the case then, and I've listened to other actors talk about that too, where they were kind of like.

• 34:39Speaker 03

  I mean, it's a big deal when you're helming a whole show and everybody's jobs are relying on you and and situations like that, so.

• 34:48Alex Cooper?

  That's an interesting point, like mental health wise, like no one was having conversations the way that they were now, so like. Cause all I'm thinking about is anyone like asking you like, Misha, are you okay? Like, do you need a break? And instead, everyone's like, how are we gonna get you out the door the next day? Like, take this pill, like, everybody's here, like. We need to, you're making us all money, so let's go out the door. That's a lot of. Responsibility and a lot of weight to put on a young girl that's been doing this for so long, like the beginning of this interview, I'm like. You're ten when you get your first movie, um. Your mom, your relationship with your mother, at one point you did fire her as your manager, like, what? Was the dynamic that led to that? And then how did you get back to a relationship?

• 35:30Speaker 03

  It just wasn't healthy, and I mean, it's still like, you know, I've just, in my life, I've really learned to prioritize like. My chosen family and like the people who have really actually been there for me. I don't rely on. Um, like any one particular family member anymore, like I've learned that for my own happiness and like. It those relationships, I think in life, to be honest, are the most toxic because. You feel like you can say or do whatever you want to somebody because. You're related and I've found that those have been the hardest for me um to really understand, so. I mean, I'm completely independent now and I do everything.

• 36:14Speaker 03

  For me and you know, like, it's led to my like sobriety and happiness and. Like, I've had to watch other people crumble and it's been hard to watch, but like, you know. I I'm just grateful that I've been able to kind of find the the people in my life who have been there for me consistently and consistently shown up for me. And so like that's led to where I am now, which is like healthy and sober and happy and like, you know, but unfortunately, I've had to lose a lot of family members along the way. And so like, you know, there are people in this industry who understand that there are a lot of people.

• 36:54Speaker 03

  It's it's unfortunate, but it's sometimes like the reality of the world is that.

• 37:00Alex Cooper?

  I think it's a good point, though, and I think I've talked about that on my show before, like, family, the word family is so, just by the way that you define it, like, it doesn't have to be blood and you can make your own family and like the family that you're born into, it doesn't mean that it doesn't mean anything. It's like if you're not getting treated correctly, like, then you need to adjust your relationships and you need to reevaluate and just because it's blood doesn't mean like you have to stay and you have to, of course, we're gonna fight for things to a certain degree, but when it's so unhealthy, um, seeing things online of like potentially family members like stealing money from you, like, how do you get to a place where you can like be in relationships moving forward and like trust people from previous things that have been like

• 37:43Alex Cooper?

  so heartbreaking and happening to you?

• 37:46Speaker 03

  Yeah, it it there has been a lot of heartbreak. Um, I think that like for me, the thing that's is like I have to like really concentrate on myself because it's sounds cliche, but like, you know, unless you love yourself and love you and like can spend the time with you, you're the person you have to answer to, you know, and like nobody else. And I've had other people I've been, yeah, stolen from and lied to in so many different ways over the course of, you know, the last ten fifteen years especially and like, it's only in the last like two, three years even maybe that I feel like I have really taken

• 38:29Speaker 03

  responsibility for it and for myself and like been like, you know what, the only thing that I can do is just be happy, healthy and sober and working out and like that's the only thing that's really gonna like make make my life worth living. Cause I had given up for a while there, like I was very, I just felt so. I don't know. I don't know. It makes me emotional because I felt really alone.

• 39:01Speaker 03

  Yeah, so, I mean, yeah, it really has been just like cutting people out of my life, truly.

• 39:09Alex Cooper?

  Thank you for sharing that because I can imagine it's so hard when I'm like, you're talking about your family and you're talking about literally getting stolen from. You're like, how do you, like, that's something that is like, you couldn't feel, how could you feel not alone? Like, the people that you usually would turn to, to be like...

• 39:28Speaker 03

  Yeah, I mean, I think that, you know, I have to believe that in life, everybody does things thinking they're doing it for the right reason and maybe like with good intentions. But sometimes like, there isn't always good intentions and sometimes you can't really explain why people do what they do. And, yeah, that's, it's a tricky one and I think, you know, in family especially, it's a tricky one. And you can just like,

• 39:56Speaker 03

  minimize your contact with those kinds of people and moving forward, be careful about. Because I can tend to be a very open and trusting and kind of naive person for a long time there. And I, you know, I had it happen kind of repeatedly to me in both like relationships as well, people using me. And so, I realized that, um, yeah, I don't know. I mean, like, maybe I wasn't the best judge of character for a while there. And to stop making excuses for other people because I think for a long time, I was making excuses because you don't want to believe that somebody would like, you know.

• 40:39Alex Cooper?

  Of course. I'm curious, Misha, like, when you were alone in those moments, like... How did you keep going? Cause I'm trying to put myself in your shoes of like knowing the closest people to you are kind of like just completely abandoning you. There's no trust, you're getting stolen from. Like, how did you keep even going?

• 40:58Speaker 03

  I mean, a lot of therapy and a lot of just like cutting people out and working on myself. And like, strength comes at the darkest times, you know? I mean, I've found my strength and when I was younger, like I didn't think I was, I thought I was gonna like be dead by twenty seven. I was gonna be part of that twenty seven club. It was like, it was like live young and fast. And like, you know, I was like, I, I really didn't give a shit. I was reckless. I was over it. I didn't really, um, you know, wanna be doing stuff for other people anymore. I didn't wanna be like, you know, the person that everybody needed to be making the money and doing the this and the that. And then like, you know, I think when I got to my thirties and I was like, shit, I'm still here.

• 41:42Speaker 03

  I'm still going and I'm stronger than I was then, you know? And I've been through so much and these experiences haven't killed me and they've made me so much stronger. And I've been to court, I've fought for my rights, I've fought for my freedoms. And I've, you know, like when you get past that and out on the other side, then your whole perspective on, on life and everything changes. Because you're like, I am strong.

• 42:06Alex Cooper?

  Right.

• 42:07Speaker 03

  I'm, I'm strong. And I used to get so upset with people because they'd be like, you're the strongest person I know. And that really felt like an insult after a while because it just felt like, well, why, why do all these things keep happening to me? But it's true. I mean, you really do, um, when the chips are down, find that strength in yourself, you know?

• 42:26Alex Cooper?

  Yeah. I mean, I'm so sorry because I can't imagine like being at a place where you are almost like aware that the end could be near for yourself because of what's happening in your life. Like I-

• 42:39Speaker 03

  Well, I romanticized all of that kind of like rock and roll, just like, you know, I was just like, I, I had kind of made up my mind that it wasn't gonna like, yeah, that there was no real kind of longevity in it for me. That I just didn't want to, I didn't care to like keep going. And then, yeah, like I said, I think- Just, I can't stand injustices in life and like, I really can't stand when people do take advantage of people and I think that's where the strength that's really came from is just like, you know what, like, I'm not gonna take this and like, yeah, fuck that, like, I'm not gonna sit by and, uh, and watch these people do that.

• 43:24Alex Cooper?

  Talking about that time in your life where like, it was kind of like, I was romanticizing it, it was like, fuck this, like, so in 2007, you were arrested for a DUI and a few years later, you were held in a psychiatric hospital, behind closed doors, like, what was happening with you at that point?

• 43:44Speaker 03

  Well, the DUI, I mean, I don't really know what to say about that, that was just, it was what it was, it was just like, it was a straight up, like, we were out one night and, yeah, that was, it was stupid, got a DUI, the psychiatric stuff, like, that was just like, having a full-blown breakdown and like, I mean, that time, it was really, I was, um, I, I, I was drunk, somebody had slipped me roofies and I was, it was GHB and I'm lucky to be alive, like, I mean, I just happened to be like, I overdosed and so, there was so many things that other people did to me that felt like so aggressively, like, wrong and, you know, I don't think that I realized how dangerous that seedy side

• 44:25Speaker 03

  of LA can be and like, I had been kind of really protected and sheltered for a long time and when I kind of got out there and the like, you know, and I was like, I wanna live my life, I wanna be a normal person, whatever that means and like, go to like, go to these parties, go do this stuff and then it's like, you know, you end up in a situation like that, it's, so, yeah, I mean, you really do, you live and you learn and, um, that was, uh- Yeah, those, I mean, it was, I just had a full blown breakdown from that.

• 44:56Alex Cooper?

  When I heard you say like, it was so annoying hearing people say like, you're so strong, you're so strong, you're like, but why does this all have to keep fucking happening to me?

• 45:03Speaker 03

  It was just hard, people saying that. I mean, like, you know, even like my boyfriends and all my friends around me would constantly say that. But I didn't feel as strong as I think I was coming across, you know? I do have this like, kind of like, British thing of like, suck it up, just move on, like, kind of, don't show your feelings, like, just kind of try to keep like, a good exterior to you. You know, it's only in the last few years that I really feel that, like, from the inside out. For a long time, I didn't really feel that strength to the degree that I do now.

• 45:41Alex Cooper?

  I was thinking about, like, of all the, when you're saying, you know, like, people basically taking advantage of you. In twenty seventeen, one of your ex-boyfriends, you found out, had filmed you when you were having sex and was going and trying to shop the sex tape.

• 45:57Speaker 03

  Yeah.

• 45:57Alex Cooper?

  Can you take me back to the moment where you realized that even like existed and what you were going through?

• 46:03Speaker 03

  It was a disaster, it was an absolute fucking nightmare, but I mean, yeah, I don't like to go back there, but I will tell you, I mean, it was,

• 46:13Speaker 03

  it, yeah, shady, don't, boys who live together in a house, probably red flag. Too many computers, red flag. I mean, like, the whole thing was just like, in hindsight, red flags everywhere, but like, I mean, in the bathroom, in the living room, like, the whole, like, just constant, so, yeah, it was bad.

• 46:34Alex Cooper?

  No idea?

• 46:35Speaker 03

  No idea, absolutely no idea. Somebody actually showed it to me and I was like, one of his friends came to me and warned me. And I didn't think it was possible that some of that was real, and it was, I mean, and apparently, he was even caught saying to somebody, like, he knew that, Kim Kardashian and Paris Hilton and all these people had had sex tapes and that like I was one of the only. Girls who wouldn't like, and I mean, if you know me, I'm like quite, I'm very private and really prudish when it comes to like sexual relationships and what I share. And so that was just like, I mean, I thought my world was ending. It was literally like the worst thing that anybody could do to me.

• 47:19Speaker 03

  I mean, forget all the like other things that people have done to me. That for me was like, no, I I I cannot go on if this person manages to do this to me. And so like, I was at a friend's house in the Hollywood Hills, I remember. And she woke me up and she was like, oh, my God, there's a rumor going around that um that there is like footage and I was like, of what? Like, what can it possibly be? I that was a whole crazy experience. I became my own detective and I went and went to the LAPD. And I was constantly contacting like the sex crimes. Like I did my own surveillance of him and his friends, found him like, yeah.

• 48:02Speaker 03

  So I I had to turn into like a full blown vigilante there for a minute.

• 48:07Alex Cooper?

  And did you?

• 48:08Speaker 03

  Glad I did.

• 48:09Alex Cooper?

  Well, absolutely. When you found also out, like, did you have a conversation with him? Did you not speak to him again?

• 48:16Speaker 03

  God, no, no. I mean, like, he disappeared, he upped and like, I mean, the it was already over. The like, it was just a like a two week thing. And it was so he'd already gotten what he wanted. He was long gone. I had to like track him and his friends down. And I mean, yeah, it was like a nightmare. Get like going into court, getting all these restraining orders, constantly showing up for over a year, like a year and a half, over a long period of time. And if I hadn't had the support I'd had from lawyers and from other women who were more aware of it. And there was no real laws at the time, like the LAPD were like, oh, we deal with stuff like, yeah, we have, we we know this stuff goes on.

• 49:00Speaker 03

  But I'll never forget walking into the police station and like giving them the address of the house where I thought most of it happened and they brought it up on the and the cop turns the computer around and he goes, is that him? And he was actually there on Google Maps in front of the apartment building with his dog. And I was like, I mean, like when I say the detective in me like came out.

• 49:23Alex Cooper?

  You have no idea. You're like, let's go get this motherfucker.

• 49:26Speaker 03

  You have no idea.

• 49:27Alex Cooper?

  Wait, so did you date this guy for two weeks?

• 49:30Speaker 03

  Yeah, it was just like a like two week fling. Shocking what goes through people's minds, like where they see opportunity, isn't it?

• 49:38Alex Cooper?

  It's just so sick how how it happens. Any woman listening, like if they are going through this, like it is not your fault. It is illegal and it's a crime. I'm curious when of everything like that's just you've been through in your life, are you resentful at all?

• 49:54Speaker 03

  No, no. I mean, there are people that I look back on and I'm like, you know, I've definitely can't stand them. I'm glad that they're not in my life anymore. And I blame them for some of the things that kind of went on around that time period. But no, I mean, I don't think you can be resentful in life. I think I still have, I like to think like a great sense of humor about things and like to be, I keep things very lighthearted and I keep my chosen family very close and and the family that I do choose to speak to very close. And like, you can't be resentful in life.

• 50:37Speaker 03

  You may as, it's all over if you're gonna get like that. You know, you may as well be dead. Like, what's the point? You can't sit around and hate people for the things that happen. You have to learn and grow. And mature from those situations and like evolve, you know? I mean, life is one big like learning curve and story. And so like, you know, you're just, all you can do is like learn and grow. And I'm actually very grateful for that, you know? In the bigger picture, like it's made me, it's definitely made me who I am today.

• 51:10Alex Cooper?

  If you could say something to yourself when you were at that point where you had the mentality of like, fuck it, I'll be in the 27 Club, like what do you wish you could say to Misha now?

• 51:22Speaker 03

  You're gonna be here 10 years later, sitting on a couch, talking to Alex Cooper about it. So get your shit together now.

• 51:32Alex Cooper?

  Bitch, you're gonna be alive and thriving and happy and healthy and it's all gonna come together.

• 51:37Speaker 03

  Cause you don't see it at the time when you're in it. You just feel so overwhelmed, you know? And depression is real and it takes like a while for like the serotonin and the like happiness to like level out and for you to come back from these situations and it's not like an overnight like, but then like strangely, one day it will be kind of like a switch gets flicked and you feel, it is weird.

• 52:03Alex Cooper?

  It's like you look back when you're talking about it. Like I have moments in my life too where I was like going through some whatever and then one day you're just like making coffee or you're and you're like, oh my God, it all.

• 52:13Speaker 03

  I'm not that person at all anymore. I don't know because when I was in it, I didn't see like, I couldn't barely even see a pinpoint of a light at the end of the tunnel. And now here I am and it's like, I'm not even in the tunnel.

• 52:26Alex Cooper?

  You're not, bitch, the tunnel's nowhere to be found. Okay? It gone. It's so gone. It's gone. Um, are you dating? Are you in a relationship? Are you single?

• 52:51Alex Cooper?

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• 53:34Alex Cooper?

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• 54:19Alex Cooper?

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• 54:37Alex Cooper?

  Are you dating? Are you in a relationship? Are you single? What are we doing?

• 54:40Speaker 03

  No, I'm single at the moment, and I love it. I love it. I really, truly have just been working on myself, and I fucking love it. It's great. I mean, I don't have to answer to anyone. I just like, I feel very like, you know, like, happy and sober and like, clear and like, I can be healthy and, because I will fall into like, it'll all happen when I fall in love again, like, I fall hard and fast, and then I'm like, you know, kind of almost codependent with that person. So I hope, like, moving forward, if I want anything from my relationships, it's that they aren't so intense and like...

• 55:17Alex Cooper?

  I do feel like what I've learned, though, is like, that's also just, we're talking about all these different stages of your life. And something I learned about myself is like, I had a similar experience. Like, I was like, God, these relationships are... So heavy and so intense and then the more I worked on myself and the more that I became the best version of myself and it sounds like you're just in this place of like clarity and you're like Pilates and yoga and sobriety bitch like you're you are

• 55:41Speaker 03

  You don't give off those vibes, guys don't feel like they can control you like that. Yeah, exactly. Cause you are, without even knowing it, you are giving off vibes that you need to be babied or you need to be taken care of in some way, I think. And like, even though you feel like you're acting so independent, but like, yeah.

• 55:59Alex Cooper?

  It's different. Like, you will attract someone completely different in this new stage of your life, just because you're, you also see yourself differently. I mean, even think about what you were feeling about yourself before 27 and then now you're like, oh my god, these are different people.

• 56:14Speaker 03

  I mean, yeah, that person never would have considered settling down, never would have considered marriage, kids, anything. Like, none of that would have even been like, that'd have been like, oh, hell no. But, you know, yeah, things, things change.

• 56:28Alex Cooper?

  So you said you kind of would consider yourself, like, are you a romantic? Yeah, Valentine's Day. Misha brought me literally a nice little teddy bear and a little rose.

• 56:36Speaker 03

  Well, you're engaged. And I was like, oh, you have to spend Valentine's, it's a, and I hate that word, Galentine's, but I was like, okay, so, no, it's such an annoying word, isn't it? But anyway, um, I was like, if we're doing Valentine's Day, you need a teddy bear and a

• 56:51Alex Cooper?

  Let me be so clear, I cannot explain to you how happy I am that I'm spending Valentine's Day with you. Like, truly, this episode, I already know, is one, gonna help so many women, and two, like, we're Misha fans over here, okay? We fucking love you. Um, if you do start dating again, what is your approach to dating and what are you looking for?

• 57:12Speaker 03

  Oh, man, I don't know. Like, I think, I, again, with that, I went through phases where, like, I really wanted to date musicians and like be on tour and like, you know, like,

• 57:23Alex Cooper?

  Misha.

• 57:24Speaker 03

  Yeah, exactly. Like, those, those days are over. That's not attractive to me anymore. I don't want to be with, like, the guy in a band and I don't like, you know, I mean, never say never, but it's not really my thing. And I've kind of, you know, I've, I've moved on from all of that stuff and I've matured and

• 57:42Alex Cooper?

  So you had a type?

• 57:44Speaker 03

  I mean, I did date a lot of like, kind of band guys. I don't think I have a type per se, but.

• 57:52Alex Cooper?

  What was it about the band guy that you were loving? Like, what was going on?

• 57:56Speaker 03

  I don't know. I was just young and thought that was cool to be on tour with like the Cold War Kids or Rooney and stuff like, you know, like, I thought I was like having a blast. I was in my twenties. I don't know.

• 58:06Alex Cooper?

  Like it was, I forgot, Rooney was on the show.

• 58:09Speaker 03

  Mm-hmm. We had so many cool bands on the show. It was a great way to meet people.

• 58:15Alex Cooper?

  Okay, so you liked the band boys, but now maybe we're like veering away.

• 58:18Speaker 03

  Yes, no, we have veered away. Um, I'm, I like people who are driven and have their own stuff going on. It's incredibly important considering how like independent and driven I've always had to be in my life and am in my life. Like, I need, that and a sense of humor are the two main things.

• 58:37Alex Cooper?

  What is a non-negotiable for you?

• 58:39Speaker 03

  Like, if you don't have a sense of humor and you can't make me laugh, like if you're not funny, then it's like, no, that's not gonna work, probably.

• 58:46Alex Cooper?

  Right, like I need to be cracking up.

• 58:48Speaker 03

  Yeah, I, I, I need somebody who feels like a best friend.

• 58:51Alex Cooper?

  Mm-hmm. So, cause I think also, if you could talk about, cause I, as we wind down, like, I have a lot of, I just sounded like my fucking therapist. You guys, my therapist at like the fifty minute mark is like, as we wind down, I'm like, oh bitch, that's your way of telling me like it's over. Like, you're gonna hang up on me.

• 59:07Speaker 03

  Panic.

• 59:08Alex Cooper?

  Um, but as we wind down, um, I'm curious, like, of, of all the themes we did talk about with men, like, how have you, whether it's in therapy or just on your own journey, like, how have you tried to rebuild trust? Cause I feel like there's so many women that write in to me of like, I just feel like I've been so fucking wronged by men and, sorry to all the men in the room, but like, it's hard to not hate them because of the bad interactions you've had with them. Like, do you have any advice for women that have gone through?

• 59:33Speaker 03

  I've definitely become more of a girl's girl over the years, that's for sure. Um, but. What, in relationships? Like how to like not get? Yeah, I mean, you have to, you just have to. I mean, you just have to keep your wits about you, but like, you can't go around with, like we said, like resenting or having a chip on your shoulder and being like that. Because also, you won't attract like the right people in that, in that phase either, so.

• 1:00:01Alex Cooper?

  That's a good point.

• 1:00:02Speaker 03

  I love love. I think, you know, everybody needs to keep an open mind. So there are good people out there, even though this episode addressed a lot of.

• 1:00:11Alex Cooper?

  You all suck.

• 1:00:13Speaker 03

  A lot of not so good people, but.

• 1:00:15Alex Cooper?

  No, there are, you're right. And it's like, I think it's, it's important to have conversations with like this of like, the bad can be really fucking bad and really fucking dark. But if you keep pushing through it, like you said, like you wish you could tell yourself, then like, no bitch, you are gonna make it past twenty seven and it is going to get better. And you, you are so strong, but you shouldn't have had to be that strong. But the reason you're still here is because you're so strong and like, keep fighting to people listening that are going through it, like, there's a reason to keep fighting, because it actually, most of the time, always does get fucking better.

• 1:00:47Speaker 03

  It does.

• 1:00:48Alex Cooper?

  What do you think is the biggest misconception about you?

• 1:00:51Speaker 03

  Oh, I don't know. I, I think like, honestly, a lot of people think that I am Marissa Cooper. Like, I think a lot of people think I'm gonna be a really stuck up bitch, like I do. I get that vibe, like that people think like, oh, I've dated these guys and that like I'm gonna be, I, I do think that that's a horrible, like, it kind of comes with the territory of when people meet me. They're always like, oh, you're so much prettier in person and you're so much nicer. And then I thought you were gonna be, and I'm like, wow, okay. I don't think I want to know what you thought. But like, I think that seems to have been like the lasting stigma around things.

• 1:01:32Speaker 03

  I think it's the whole thing we were talking about of like, you know, like the storylines of Marissa and like, Misha at the time, kind of crossing and people just like equating the two with each other. I think that's been kind of a toxic, kind of lasting, like, that some people have stuck in their heads.

• 1:01:50Alex Cooper?

  Does that make you at all like resent the character?

• 1:01:53Speaker 03

  No, I, I still love Marissa as a character. I think she's a badass bitch and I think like she was a great character. I just think, um. You know, like, people are not the roles they play and like actors are like, you know, you've, yeah.

• 1:02:08Alex Cooper?

  Yes.

• 1:02:09Speaker 03

  Give, give actors a break.

• 1:02:10Alex Cooper?

  Actors are not the roles they play, period. God bless. Everyone online, you get that? TikTok? Okay. Um, what do you hope people take away from this interview?

• 1:02:18Speaker 03

  Hopefully, like, for me, girl, girl strength and power, because I think talking about these things and like, you know, if you can talk about your dark times and your depression or anything that you've been through and like, for me, like I said, I was walking around the city with my headphones and listening to your interviews and I, I do find them really interesting and I think it's important that you can listen to other women's perspectives and what they've been through. And if you're having a bad day, it's probably, hopefully it's not as bad as Misha's first day.

• 1:02:47Alex Cooper?

  You're like, bitch, hopefully this really brings you up.

• 1:02:50Speaker 03

  This will brighten you.

• 1:02:51Alex Cooper?

  But you're right. It's like, sometimes when you're really, everyone goes through it where you're feeling so alone and it, there is something really nice when especially people you look up to that you know online are like, oh, I have been through it. It, it can give that person sitting in their room, whether it's a good or bad day, to be like, damn, I'm so not alone in the, it's all the same themes. It's all, we all have ties to each other. It's just we experience it or feel it differently. But, um, no, I really appreciate you opening up today because I know you don't do a lot of this kind of stuff. But I think in the right environment, like, it, it was such a powerful.

• 1:03:26Speaker 03

  Well, I wanted to talk to you because I think you're cool. I get good vibes from you. And when I was, when I first spoke to you, I was like, out of everybody that I could talk to, like, yeah, it's true. I turned down all the podcasts and stuff. But it's been fun talking to you.

• 1:03:39Alex Cooper?

  Thank you. I really appreciate that. Last question.

• 1:03:41Speaker 03

  Yes.

• 1:03:42Alex Cooper?

  What can fans expect from you next? What are you up to in your life? Just like, give us the tea.

• 1:03:47Speaker 03

  Ooh, you know what's fun is, well, I was working quite a bit last year, which was, which was fun. And so I was traveling a lot. And then, so I was working in Australia and now I think I'm going to be doing a rom-com later this year in Australia, which is a really new territory for me. So she's a really fun character. Yeah, I know. It's not the kind of role, but she's got this kind of like great sense of humor to her, the character and stuff. And I just think it's such a beautiful backdrop to film in. And yeah, I really, I feel, I feel this character.

• 1:04:22Alex Cooper?

  I'm freaking out.

• 1:04:23Speaker 03

  That. And yeah, I did a little movie in Ireland last year, which was really fun for me because I got to be back near my Irish roots.

• 1:04:31Alex Cooper?

  So fun.

• 1:04:32Speaker 03

  Yeah, just a

• 1:04:33Alex Cooper?

  You in a rom com?

• 1:04:34Speaker 03

  I know.

• 1:04:35Alex Cooper?

  Misha, I'm like, I'm already gagged.

• 1:04:38Speaker 03

  I love this one because it's like a modern day, like real take on, you know, she's got a great sense of humor and she's really grounded and like the supporting, like he's got a brother in it and she's got her sister. So those dynamics also come into play a lot. So I think it's a great script.

• 1:04:55Alex Cooper?

  Let me just say this. The daddy gang, my fans and I will be sat, ready to watch with our popcorn, ready to support our girl.

• 1:05:03Speaker 03

  They're coming back too. Like, I mean, yeah, it's a fun genre. We don't always want to be in like, you know, running scared and doing these dramatic roles.

• 1:05:12Alex Cooper?

  Right. And like our emo days, like we want, sometimes we want to like little laugh with our popcorn. Misha, I cannot thank you enough for coming on, for trusting me with this conversation. And like, truly, it has been such a pleasure to get to know you more. And I feel like, I mean, I know there's so much more to you, but I appreciate you sitting down with me because this was really one of my faves. So thank you. And thank you, thank you, thank you for coming and taking time out of your busy life.

• 1:05:36Speaker 03

  No, thanks. I'm glad we got to meet up here in New York.

• 1:05:39Alex Cooper?

  Woo!

• 1:05:55Alex Cooper?

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