Actress and singer Jonetta Kaiser stars in the inaugural 10-episode series adaptation of vampire academy streaming now on Peacock. The fantasy horror television series, based on the best-selling novel. vampire academy by Richelle Mead, brings a tale of romance, friendship, and danger to the exciting world of real vampires and half-human dhampirs.
Kaiser plays Sonya Karp, a quiet and strange character who navigates the society of the story without any royal lineage.
The Louisiana native got into acting after being diagnosed with scoliosis at age 14. She took a gap year after graduating from Hammond High School in 2013, before following her passion for science, technology, engineering, and math and coding to attend Southeast Louisiana University for a major. in biochemistry.
During her junior year, her acting aspirations called her to Los Angeles full-time.
Kaiser sent her resume to casting directors with photos her sister had taken in her backyard. She received a response requiring her to be in Los Angeles for a meeting, rented a car, and made the 27-hour drive from her hometown.
She met another agent on that trip, who told her they would sign her if she moved to the area.
She did.
Kaiser worked as a barista and bartender while looking for acting jobs and landed roles that took her back to Louisiana for filming and to Hong Kong just before the coronavirus pandemic.
She went back to an immediate shutdown. When things reopened, she booked the role for her in vampire academy.
Kaiser spoke to Andscape about her life, her career progress, and what we can expect from her next. vampire academy before the series premiere.
What inspired you at 14 to start acting and take the initiative to take your own photo and start working at full speed?
Oh Lord. So I’ve always just been… I love to read. I love words. So I think it started with that. I mean, the number of Nancy Drew books, I think I’ve read all of the Nancy Drew books. Instead of just going out to play, she would just read books and then imagine me in the worlds she was reading. I think that’s really where it started because I was like, ‘Wait, how can I keep doing this? This is what I love. And then I found out, ‘Oh, I could actually…’ I think I was watching an Angelina Jolie movie or watching Honey or something, I thought, ‘Oh my gosh, maybe I could do that.’
It was like, realistically, oh, I could actually do this because people do it. And then having my sister go to my grandmother’s backyard and take my photos and I still have my headshot. It is very shameful. That’s where I just googled, looking for everything. There were a lot of scams in southeast Louisiana where they were filming stuff there, but people were coming from Los Angeles and Atlanta to film in Louisiana. So I think I ran into a lot of roadblocks and eventually found my way back just by saying, ‘Oh, let me take the leap and move to LA. And then, obviously, it’s there. It’s everywhere. So I’m going to find out somehow. I think it worked.
What TV series and movies did you grow up watching and how do you think they contributed to your acting career today or even your inspiration to continue acting?
Oh my God. it’s so Raven. Raven-Symone. I actually got to work with Kyle Massey, which was fun. He is a great guy. But I think I’ve always been able to see myself as those characters and I assume the essence that they’re bringing out. So he’d just walk around and say, ‘I’m having a vision.’ So weird. Thank God I didn’t have any friends because I probably did a lot of weird stuff. I think that was one of the main ones. God, what else? There was Zoey 101. Just those good millennial shows you grew up on on the Disney Channel and Nickelodeon. That’s all I saw.
I read about your experience and advocacy with scoliosis. What do you think people should know about scoliosis?
I think the thing about scoliosis is that people don’t really realize it. Yes, I have a curvature in my back, but a lot, it hurts often and there are certain things… Being on my feet all day really affects me. At the end of a 12-hour shoot, my legs sometimes feel numb. I remember when I started waiting tables, I worked a 12 hour shift and when I went to tie my shoe, I fell on the floor. My back hurt and I was only, I think, 18 when that happened. So I think a lot of people underestimate how excruciating the pain can be, but also how many people don’t want to have surgery to correct it. It’s horrible. I wouldn’t wish it on my worst enemy. And then I know people who have had surgery and have lost flexibility because they have a rod in their back. And then also on the mental side, it creates this body dysmorphia for me, personally. I see myself very differently than I really am. And a lot of people will say to me, ‘I don’t even see your scoliosis,’ and I’m like, ‘How can you not see? It’s so clearly there. My scoliosis is by no means as bad as others. And then seeing other people who don’t have it, it’s like, ‘Well, why did I get this and they don’t have it? What made me have it? Because mine is also, I think, pronounced idiopathic, so there are no known calls as to why I have it. So no one else in my family does. So, it’s like, whoops! I pulled out that short straw and got the lucky pick.
What advice would you give to your younger self or any other young lady experiencing body dysmorphia?
Well, first of all, for any deformity or anything medical, get a second opinion. I have always had problems with my thyroid, which is why I have hyperthyroidism. And the doctor immediately wanted me to remove my thyroid. But I was like, what? And then take medication for the rest of my life. There are certain things that maybe triggered my hyperthyroidism, foods that I was eating. So I started cutting things out of my diet and I was able to heal my thyroid. So always seek a second opinion. Don’t let scare tactics immediately drive you into surgery because they make money off of it and they make money off of putting a steel rod through your spine and having to live with it for the rest of your life, which it’s not. .. And then move.
I speak of this for myself. Sometimes it’s so hard to go for a walk, stretch, go to a class. Find something that motivates you to exercise. And I’m saying this, I haven’t exercised in at least a week, but because it’s just the motivation to get there and know, oh, well… In my mind, it’s like, ‘Oh, well, I’m not going to see any real progress because i can’t get rid of scoliosis so what’s the point of exercising? What’s the point of strengthening my core, which is essential for my future health?’ It’s always an internal struggle, but I think just trying to get over it and maybe going to therapy if that’s something that’s really a big conflict for you, which I’m doing.
What did you enjoy the most? vampire academyand your role?
I am a fan of books. So Sonya, my character, is a bit of a loner, so I didn’t get a lot of crowded days of shooting. I had a few with my family. Mia Karp and Victor were like our little family, so we did some filming and then I have a love interest, Mikhail. There are so many scenes that I just don’t know, so I’m excited for everyone to watch it and see what the show is about.
What was it like growing up in southeast Louisiana?
Oh, it’s interesting. Well, one obvious thing, LA is much bigger. I think growing up in the south, the pace is much slower. You have the idea that everyone around you, especially my hometown, many of the people who were born there, will live there and also die there. There’s not a lot of original thinking, and that’s nothing to criticize the people from my hometown, because they really are some of the nicest people. Two of my best friends are there and I adore them and now they have families and I adore them and I’m so happy for them. They’re happy. It’s not for everyone, traveling and such is not for everyone.
One of the things that I loved when I moved to Los Angeles is that I saw so much diversity everywhere and that’s just not something in my hometown. It’s amazing to see successful black men owning businesses and women and Asians owning things. It’s something that really opened my eyes and I’m like, oh wow. Anyone, if they put their minds to it, can be successful. There is nothing stopping you. The only thing that stops you is perhaps your circumstance, but you will find a way out and then the mental blocks that stop you.
Can you tell me a little more about your experience as a singer and your forays into music?
I flirt while singing in the shower. For some reason, I was always… The music industry is harder to break into than any other industry, I think. So my logic is that I sing and hopefully I’ll be able to do it in acting one day, but I’m not pursuing a music career.
I love to sing and it makes me happy. If I ever feel stressed, that is one of my main therapeutic ways of restoring my calm, peace and joy, because it is. I dont know. There has to be some scientific study on that, but it definitely relaxes me and, yeah, I just enjoy it.
What can we expect from you in the future?
I made a movie, a thriller. I filmed that in New Jersey. That was my first time on the East Coast. It was fun. I don’t know the… I can’t say the name yet, because it hasn’t been announced and they might change the name as well, but it’s a thriller. It was fun. So you can search for that. I hope it’s good. I dont know. I had never done a thriller before.
