Welcome back for a brand new episode ofCollider Ladies Night! If you’ve got any interest in comedy, no matter the format - sketch, film, television, scripted, improvisation, you name it! - this episode is a must watch because we’re putting the spotlight onLauren Lapkus. She first started gaining notoriety in the industry withAre You There, Chelsea?starring oppositeLaura Preponand soon thereafter, it was on to the groundbreaking Netflix original series,Orange Is The New Black. But, there was a lot that came before that and Lapkus is here to pave the way from scoring a very unexpected role in a children’s theater production ofBeauty and the Beastback in the day to her latest milestone, getting her first starring role in a big feature.
Lapkus leads the Happy Madison productionThe Wrong Missyas the title character.David Spade’s character, Tim, first meets Lapkusas Melissa, aka Missy, on a blind-date that goes horribly wrong. He’s ready to leave the incident behind him but then he meet another Melissa (Molly Sims) and falls hard for her. He manages to build up the courage to ask this new Melissa to join him on his company retreat in Hawaii, but the trouble is, he accidentally text messages the wrong Melissa and it’s Lapkus’ character who shows up for the trip.
The Wrong Missyis big, bold, and super zany, and Lapkus gives every single ounce of it 100%. And that seems to be the case with just about everything Lapkus touches. Not only is she scoring more and more high profile opportunities in film and television, but she’s also anunstoppable force when it comes to putting her skillset to use in other formats whether it be short films, podcasts or even watch-alongs during social distancing.
There’s a lot to learn from Lapkus' experience making her mark on the industry and she was kind enough to walk us through it all on this episode of Collider Ladies Night. Check out what she told us about makingThe Wrong Missy, what it was like working onJurassic World, her goals for the future and so much more in the full video conversation at the top of this article. Or, if you’dprefer to listen to the chat in podcast form, we’ve also got an audio embed for you below.
The Wrong Missyis now streaming on Netflix!
Lauren Lapkus:
