Ex-Oh Ex-Oh
Is Olivia Hunter the busiest person in showbiz? With the second season of Gossip Girl enjoying as much, if not more success than the first did, her new movie The Fall premiering at Christmas and a slew of other projects up her sleeve I was amazed that the 22 year old actress had time to sit down for a chat with me. Olivia is a whirl of energy, as she bustles about the kitchen of her New York City apartment (a 21st birthday gift to herself) making coffee and showing me her hidden stash of chocolate biscuits specially reserved for guests as she answers my questions.

So Olivia, second season of Gossip GIrl, how does that feel? Oh, it's amazing. Because of the writer's strike last year there were so many shows who just didn't get to fulfill their potential and have ended up canceled. It's been a pretty rough time for US television actually so I'm really proud of the fact that Gossip GIrl made such a big impact in the small amount of time we had.

What can you tell us about this season? What's in store for Vanessa - and will she and Nate ever get together? [laughs] This series is going to be really interesting, I think and, as we've come to expect from the show, everyone's relationships will be going through some highs and lows and we'll also get to see different sides to pretty much everyone. In the first series, at least at the beginning, Vanessa was more of a side character but now, I think especially because of her little romance with Nate, she's going to become more entangled in the lives of the Upper East-siders. I can't tell you what's going to happen between her and Nate and if they do eventually get together but I can say that whether they do or not, it sure as hell won't be easy.

You've been around for quite a while now, haven't you? Are you calling me old? [laughs] Yes, I have though. I first started with A Little Princess in '94 so that's what? 14/15 years? It really doesn't feel that long.

But looking at your filmography you've managed to do a hell of a lot in those 14/15 years, especially for someone who's only 22 years old. Well, I like my job, it's the only thing I've ever really known, and when I'm not working I just feel restless. I'd rather work a lot and have loads to show for it than not.

You've transitioned almost seamlessly back and forth from television to film. Do you have a preference for one of them? They both have their advantages and disadvantages but I don't think I could say that I preferred one or the other. I got my big break in television with Boy Meets World so I think that will always hold a special place in my heart but then doing film is also great because you get to go to all these really wonderful places to shoot. With television I think there's more pressure sometimes because you don't have the time that comes with film - you don't have months and months, if you're lucky you've got weeks.

Speaking of television, you practically grew up on the set of Boy Meets World. What was that like? It was fine. Normal. I don't have any other experiences to compare it to so I can't say that it was better or worse than anything else. I grew up around some really great people and ok, it probably wasn't the most conventional of upbringings but it worked for me.

You're the first to admit that you didn't exactly have a conventional upbringing. Do you ever wish that you could have just been normal? What's normal? I used to, when I was a lot younger but then I thought, would it have really made a difference whether I was in the public eye or not? I would still have had the same parents and they would have just found another way to screw me over that didn't involve stealing from me.

You were emancipated from your parents when you were only 16. What was that like? It was different but, for me, it was the right thing to do. My parents were, as I said, screwing me over and it was basically a toxic situation to be in. Once I was emancipated I was able to strike out on my own and I've been a lot happier since.

Do you keep in contact with your parents? No, I don't. I don't particularly want to and neither of them have shown any sign of wanting contact with me.

Your mom [Julianne] claimed that she and your father have been trying to get back in contact with you for years. [laughs] Well that's news to me. She's probably just saying it to promote her book!

How do you feel about the book? [Julianne has written a tell-all tale about Olivia; to be released October 31st] I think it's hilarious. I divorced them so that they couldn't steal my money so now she's found a way to make money from my name - it's stupid. I've heard a few of the tidbits she's leaked to drum up publicity and they're all bullshit.

You showed us your vocal talents in A Walk To Remember, Ella Enchanted Cinderella Story and Reefer Madness: The Movie Musical. Have you ever considered recording an album? It's on my to do list, trust me, and I've had a fair few offers it's just that I've never really had the time when it comes down to it. Once we've finished shooting this series of Gossip Girl I am planning on heading into the studio though to record a couple of things.

Really? Interesting. We'll have to keep our eyes open. So, what sort of music is it going to be? Will it be more Sam from A Cinderella Story or Jamie from A Walk To Remember? Neither. Both of those are fictional characters and whilst singing as them was great if I were to release an album and it were to sound exactly the way I wanted it to then I guess it would be more....Issy Morgan or Kady O'Brien than anything else.

So is that your kind of music then? Definitely! I think they're both amazing and I've been following Issy's work for years and have you heard Kady's music? It's fabulous.

Speaking of Kady, the two of you are friends aren't you? Yes but she doesn't pay me to promote her music. If she did I would have said something along the lines of 'it's totally orgasmic'.

You met through power-couple James and Angela right? We did. Obviously Kady worked with both of them on Firefly, and currently on Serenity and I've worked with both James and Angie on a few occasions. Angie in Hook, which was only my second movie ever, and then 10 years later in Mean Girls. James and I were both in Reefer Madness: The Musical and we've also just finished filming Watchmen together.

James has a reputation for being quite the grouch. I know! I think he just likes to play that up because honestly, he's just a great guy who's very serious about what he does. He's like a father to me, which...is pretty ironic I guess, considering our roles in Watchmen.

Yes, about Watchmen it's pretty different to most things you've done before. Can you tell us a little about it? Of course. Well, obviously it's my first superhero movie, which I feel is almost like a rite of passage in itself, that everyone must go through but it's also...it's not a teen movie. There are some really dark themes in there, as fans of the comic can attest to, it's really complex and just fascinating.

Aside from Watchmen what else do you have coming up? A couple of really exciting things, actually. I have a film (The Fall) which is going to be released this Christmas. It's a beautiful, fantastical story set in 1920s LA about a stuntman, played by the gorgeous Chance Harper, who ends up in hospital after a stunt gone wrong and the stories he tells this little girl who's also in the hospital. I play a nurse who tends to both of them but I also appear in the story he tells too, which was fantastic because it was almost like playing two separate characters. I'm also possibly going to be returning to high school for a role in the near future too. I don't want to say too much in case I jinx it but it's definitely not your typical high school story - the script is just hilarious and so you've to keep your fingers crossed and hope that I get it!

I will do! [laughs] Thanks!

Shooting Gossip Girl has really thrust you and the other stars into the spotlight. It's almost impossible to pick up a magazine and not see one of your faces staring back at you, whether it be from a photoshoot or just paparazzi snaps of you at Starbucks. How do you deal with that? Well, I think I've had more experience with the stalkerazzi than some of the others but you actually get used to it pretty quickly. Sure, it's always going to be a little weird that people are photographing you buying toilet paper but that's just the way it's always been, it's all I really know, and I don't expect it to change anytime soon.

So, any truth to the rumors about on-set catfights? [laughs] No! We all get on pretty well. Of course we're not all bffs but we are pretty close. I get on really well with Stella [Blair Waldorf] and Trent [Chuck Bass] especially.

Speaking of Trent, you two are often photographed out and about at various clubs around town. Yes...so? We both like to enjoy ourselves after a day at work, whether that be hanging out a club or at a salsa bar. Work hard, play hard - that's my motto!

And it's a pretty good motto as far as we're concerned. You can catch Olivia in Gossip Girl Monday nights at 8 on the CW and in The Fall when it hits cinemas this Christmas.