Bess Marvin, a.k.a Maddison Jaizani

Nancy Drew – a story we’ve all heard but we’ve never seen it quite like this. One key element of the new series that has changed form the original is Nancy Drew’s hometown, now Horseshoe Harbor. In this version, Nancy takes a year off from college working at the town’s diner, The Claw. 

When members of the town are found dead in the diner, Nancy, Bess and the other kids begin to investigate. 

Maddison Jaizani stars as Bess Marvin in The CW’s new Nancy Drew series.  Maddison gave Lapalme Magazine the rundown on what we can expect and how she ended up as character Bess Marvin. 

How did you get into acting? 

My parents are definitely to thank, they had me start in modeling at a young age and I took after school acting classes at some credible places.  To be honest though, I didn’t love the academic side of school.  I am definitely more of a creative, the periodic table of elements is not my friend!  I wanted to create and explore as a teen, and in the arts is where I found what I was good at.

How did you end up on Nancy Drew? 

I took a chance and headed out to Los Angeles for my first pilot season, stayed in an AIRBNB for 30 days and worked my butt off.  I did quite a few auditions for “Nancy Drew” and I was nervous every time.  I was about a day or two away from leaving to go back to the UK, and I was so sad I had not booked a job (and a little embarrassed to go home empty handed).  I will never forget, I was grabbing some food at Whole Foods when my team called me to let me know I got the part, I dropped everything I was doing and was running around the supermarket screaming and crying.  It has been one of the happiest moments of my life. 

How has your life changed ? 

So far my life hasn’t changed much, aside from filming on the other side of the world and being apart from my home, family, and friends.  The recognition is becoming more apparent every day, but honestly, it’s made me so much more grateful for the little things. I look out my window and I’m like ‘WOW, I’m living in a beautiful city, filming a television show, fulfilling my dreams, this is DOPE.’

How have you changed personally since filming Nancy Drew? 

I think this show has really given me a boost of confidence and has made me more driven!  I am so eager to learn and explore my craft through this series… it is teaching me focus, patience, and to listen.  It has been an amazing learning curve. 

Is it weird to watch yourself on the show ? 

To be honest, no.  All my life I have never watched myself. I always hated my face which is utterly absurd (and my parents would be very offended if they knew I disliked my shell for so many years) but, as I’ve grown older I’ve become a lot more comfortable in my own skin.  I am working on mastering the art of separating Maddison Jaizani, to the character I’m portraying.

How does it feel transitioning from regular girl to a celebrity? How do your friends and family treat you, any different?

I think my family and friends are just really proud of me.  I have worked hard to get to where I am and have taken a lot of chances to pursue this dream.  It’s a little scary to think maybe one day I won’t be able to get coffee in my unicorn pajama pants without getting rinsed in a magazine or whatever (YAWN) but I’m really excited for the platform to spread awareness on subjects that are really important to me. Mental health especially.  

Tell me about your passion and efforts to save the rainforest?

I donate to Earth Alliance and a few others; Earth Alliance is a nonprofit co-chaired by Leonardo Di Caprio, and it addresses the urgent threats to our planets life support systems.  It is scary to think that one day my children (and their children) will be affected by our negligence in taking care of the growing climate crisis.  We have to make changes now, even if they are small changes and we can do it together. 

When you are not acting, what do you do for fun? 

I love to hang out with friends and listen to live music! I love music so much… and have a lot of musically talented friends which is wicked! I love to do yoga and read books.  Oh, and love to eat nice food. I’m a self-proclaimed chef, ha! 

Do you relate to your character on the show at all? 

I really do! Bess is a young girl trying to navigate through this tough thing we called life, she’s gone and going through loss, identity issues, love, and pain. But she’s a hoot and I love bringing her to life.  

What are you binging on ? Netflix or HULU 

Netflix. Netflix Netflix. I haven’t explored HULU- I shall check it out!