Eva Carlton
Speaking Really Loud
by Kayla Marra
You may not know Eva Carlton yet, but that’s going to change.
Eva Carlton is an 18-year-old actress who got her start in Universal Studio’s Little (2019) and Universal Kids’ Where’s Waldo? (2019-2021). Currently, Carlton is starring in Nickelodeon’s newest television show The Really Loud House, about a boy named Lincoln who lives with his ten sisters – Leni, Lori, Luna, Luan, Lola, Lucy, Lana, Lynn, Lily, and Lisa.
The series follows the premise of its predecessor cartoon series, and fans are more than ready to see their favorite characters (and more) come to life!
We sat down to chat with Eva about The Really Loud House, her acting inspirations, singing a One Direction song for an audition, advice she has for aspiring actors/actresses, and more!
Since we haven’t spoken with you before, could you tell us a bit about yourself?
I'm Eva Carlton. I'm 18 years old. I have a little sister who is 16 named Chloe. I also have a dog named Charlie. She's a chocolate lab.
Congratulations on landing the role of Leni Loud in Nickelodeon’s The Really Loud House! What drew you to this script and made you want to be a part of this production?
The script is absolutely hilarious. First off, all of the jokes are really funny. Even when we were doing the audition, my mom was cracking up, because she is my reader. We do a lot of self-tapes. She’s been my reader ever since COVID, since I’m based out of Atlanta. We have our own little station at home and my mom records it. She was crying laughing in-between takes, trying to keep herself from laughing during the actual audition, so as to not ruin it. It was very funny. I definitely felt a kinship with Leni in terms of her happy-go-lucky nature and her love for fashion and love for all things beautiful. She just seemed really fun and is really fun.
How did you prepare for the role of Leni?
When I first auditioned for the series, I had a completely different interpretation of who Leni was than what she actually. I didn't watch the cartoon before auditioning, but I’ve seen it since. When I first auditioned, I hadn't seen it, and I played her very obviously dumb. She's not dumb, but I played her that way. I did a scene from the cartoon, the episode where Leni is trying to pass her driver's test. I definitely played it really slow and not fully there. I went straight to testing and they told me that Jonathan Judge – our executive producer and our director on some of the episodes – told me that I needed to be quicker. That Leni is always happy. She's always smiling, super fun, and she’s not dumb. She says things and things make sense to her. I guess things just work definitely in her world. But she's not slow or dumb. She's very high-energy, fast-paced, and definitely smart in her own way. I definitely took that note and that's how I've been getting into her headspace. She's just happy smiley, and in her own world.
Leni’s character is known for her bright and positive outlook on life. What similarities do you see between yourself and her? Any differences?
I'm definitely not as smiley as Leni. Not that I'm not happy, but I'm definitely more of a realist than she is. In terms of similarities, I relate to her love of fashion and how extra she is. I guess the best way to say it is that she's the most overdressed, she always looks incredible, and she's always putting her best foot forward. That is me, you can ask any of my friends. I'm always overdressed, always dressed to the nines. I really relate to that.
What was the biggest challenge you faced in taking on this role?
I would say that the biggest challenge that I faced is because Leni is such a funny character, There are a lot of jokes written for her. Leni’s character is written, for me at least, definitely very funny. There are a lot of jokes for her. It's so hard for me to make a complete round character with her, because sometimes her personality or things that she will say just change depending on the context of the scene. For instance, I'm really used to Leni being super unaware of her surroundings and that’s the butt of a lot of jokes. Then in other terms, she’ll get very straightforward like an older sister, which is different than she’s been in the past. I guess the challenge for me has been finding where those to meet. I'm creating a full character with that.
What has it been like working with Nickelodeon as a whole?
It's definitely been crazy. I got actually got into acting when I was little. I was watching Disney and Nickelodeon and I told my dad that I wanted to be on TV. So, it's definitely been surreal to now be in a place where I'm on Nickelodeon. It's even crazier when I see ads on Nickelodeon for our show. I don't think it's really hit me yet, but everyone has been great. Everyone at Nickelodeon has been great! They gave me a little swag bag! I have my Nickelodeon bag, a blanket, and a water bottle. They gave me a bunch of The Really Loud House stickers too, so it's been fun and honestly just surreal.
What was your first acting experience that you remember and what did you take from that experience?
My first-ever acting gig wasn't professional I guess; it was the first acting experience that I remember. It was the first audition that I ever went to, I was eight and in third grade, and I was auditioning for my regional theatre’s production of Zorro. I had never auditioned for anything; I didn't even have a headshot! We ended up using my Christmas pictures from that year. I went in with no official headshot, with nothing on my resume, auditioning for a part. There were tons and tons of other girls that were stacked with resumes. We had a cold read and a song we had to sing. I volunteered to go first. I memorized the lyrics and went in there to sing “What Makes You Beautiful” by One Direction. If you know anything about theater, you don't say One Direction in an audition. Everybody else is singing arias or traditional music theatre, but I wasn’t. I was just confident, and it got me pretty far. I got a callback, and then the director called my parents and told them that I was really talented. The main thing I've taken away from that is confidence. I was confident in myself, despite not having any experience. I was confident in my abilities. I volunteered to go first, and I didn't care what song I chose. I think that will always get you far.
Was there anyone you looked up to when you were younger that inspired you to act?
Honestly, I don't really remember who specifically I was watching when I said that I wanted to be on TV. One of my biggest role models, when I was younger, was Selena Gomez because she was just amazing on Wizards of Waverly Place. When I was younger, I also believe that I looked like any girl with tan skin and dark hair, so I thought we were the same, and I wanted to be her. So I would definitely say Selena Gomez. Ariana Grande was also huge for me in elementary school. I was obsessed with Victorious; I was a big singer. Then I got really into Sam and Cat. I am just obsessed with her to this day.
What is a genre that you haven’t worked in before that you’d like to try?
Drama or horror. I think that would be really fun. I have worked exclusively in comedy, but I would love to explore drama. I know that the whole set environment would be completely different, because on set for The Really Loud House and on set of my other productions, everyone's cracking jokes. It's super light-hearted, even at times it’s a bit chaotic because this is a kid's show. So, I really wonder what it would be like to act in a drama or psychological thriller or something like that.
What was the best piece of advice that you ever received?
My dad is going to laugh when I say this because I make fun of him for saying it. He has this mantra where he says, “Work backward from your goal.” That's actually what he said to me when I said I wanted to go into acting. He's very much the type if I say that I want something, or I want to be something, or I want to do something, he will come up to me and say “You have to work backward from your goal. What do you want? What are the steps you have to take to get there? Make sure you do it and make sure you do it as best as you can. You know that you will get here if you do X, Y and Z. You have to end here.”
Do you have any advice for aspiring actors?
Like, I said before, confidence, because this industry can really tear someone down. There's a lot of rejection. Honestly, a lot of rejection behind closed doors. You don't know 99% of the time how your audition went because they won't tell you. They don't like you; you don't hear back. It's really demoralizing. It can get hard pretty quickly to continue with something without receiving affirmation or validation that you're good at it. So, I would say to know that you're good at it, and to do the best you can, so you know that you did the best you could, and to be confident in your abilities.
Make sure to watch Eva in Nickelodeon's The Really Loud House, premiering on November 3rd!
Copyright ©2022 PopEntertainment.com. All rights reserved. Posted: November 2, 2022.
Photos ©2022 Storm Santos. Courtesy of Conscious Living PR. All rights reserved.