Whereas most keep in mind her because the fashion-obsessed heiress London Tipton from “The Suite Lifetime of Zack & Cody,” the actress lately revealed that her transition from baby star to severe actor wasn’t as clean because it appeared.
In keeping with Brenda Track, Disney tried to cease her from taking over extra mature roles in movies like “Gran Torino” and “The Social Community.”
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Brenda Track Says Disney Tried To Block Her From ‘Gran Torino’ And ‘The Social Community’
She stated she had initially been thought-about for a job in “Gran Torino,” however Disney nixed it on account of an meant sexual assault scene within the script. “And I used to be very upset however I used to be like, ‘Okay, I assume it didn’t work out,’” she recalled.
An identical state of affairs got here up when Track needed to audition for David Fincher’s “The Social Community.” On the time, she was nonetheless on “Suite Life,” and considerations over mature content material as soon as once more threatened to derail the chance. This time, nevertheless, she took issues into her personal arms.
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“I went on to Gary Marsh, the president and COO for Disney-branded tv on the time,” she defined. “I stated, ‘I’m an actor. While you employed me, I used to be not a resort heiress. If I’ve ever finished something in my private life to ever draw dangerous consideration to your organization, I perceive. However that is the final season of the present, and that is the chance of a lifetime.’”
Her plea labored. Disney allowed her to do the movie, which Track says, “actually modified my life.”
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Miley Cyrus Says Disney Banned Her From Singing ‘Hannah Montana’ Songs
It’s a narrative that mirrors latest revelations from fellow Disney alum Miley Cyrus, who stated on Spotify’s “The Ringer” podcast that she “wasn’t allowed” to carry out songs from “Hannah Montana” after leaving the community in 2011.
“It was nonetheless unhappy understanding these songs have my voice, my face, and I wasn’t allowed to sing them,” Cyrus shared.
She was solely granted permission to carry out them once more after being named a Disney Legend at D23 in 2024.
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Track Says Followers Nonetheless Quote Her Iconic ‘PRNDL’ Line From ‘Suite Life’
Like Cyrus, Track discovered her breakout second on Disney. However she’s labored laborious to evolve past her early roles. Her portrayal of London Tipton not solely helped outline Disney Channel within the 2000s however left a long-lasting impression.
One explicit second, the place her character hilariously mispronounces the automotive gear shift abbreviation PRNDL as “The Prindle,” continues to comply with her.
“It’s all the time the PRNDL and it’s surprising,” Track laughed in the course of the panel. “Individuals will all the time be like, ‘You taught me the PRNDL’ or ‘I nonetheless use the PRNDL.’”
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The Iconic ‘Suite Life’ Portrait
The actress additionally confessed to retaining souvenirs from her time on “Suite Life,” together with the pink outfit from the present’s pilot and an enormous portrait of London and her canine Ivana that after hung in her TV suite. It now lives within the residence Track shares with longtime associate Macaulay Culkin and their kids.
“I’m afraid to let anybody know the place it’s although, as a result of understanding a sure any individual, they might cling it up in our home and I’d be mortified,” she joked.
Brenda Track Stated ‘Being An Asian-American Actress In Hollywood’ Was ‘Tough’
Track credit a lot of her early inspiration to trailblazers like Ming-Na Wen, Michelle Yeoh, and Lucy Liu, who had been among the many few Asian-American actors she noticed on display screen rising up.
“That was the difficult factor rising up, being an Asian-American actress in Hollywood,” Track stated. “Like in the event you weren’t Jackie Chan or Jet Li, I’m not an Asian man, it was actually laborious.”
Track shared that Wen, specifically, had a significant impression on her. They labored collectively when Track was simply eight years outdated, and she or he remembers Wen being “so encouraging, so type, and simply so supportive.”
She additionally fondly remembered working with “Evening Courtroom” actor Richard Moll on the Nickelodeon collection “100 Deeds for Eddie McDowd,” describing him as light and welcoming throughout her first long-term mission.
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Although she’s lately labored alongside Pamela Anderson and Kate Hudson and even been directed by Fincher himself, Track continues to be humbled by her Disney roots. Nevertheless it’s her persistence, not her previous, that continues to outline her.
“I’m so lucky,” she stated. “However none of it got here simple. It’s important to battle for the roles you realize you possibly can play.”
