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In Elle (Lexi Minetree), the prequel series to the classic 2000s rom-com Legally Blonde, Elle Woods and her parents move from sunny Los Angeles to gloomy Seattle after her father gets into some legal trouble. The new setting couldn’t be any more difficult for Elle as her pink outfits and outgoing personality easily stick out like a sore thumb. And this contrast is seen early on when Elle meets Liz (Gabrielle Policano). The two couldn’t be any more different, and fittingly enough, so are Policano and Liz. But it’s in these contrasts that a connection and friendship are developed in season one, as diving into a near-opposite role for Policano was a fun exploration.
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Gabrielle Policano Meets the World of Elle
Even before entering the world of Elle, Policano was no stranger to Legally Blonde. “I can’t remember a time in my life before and without Legally Blonde. It was my favorite movie as a kid,” they tell MEGA Asia. When the news went around that the sequel series was in development, Policano was excited. At first, it just meant the video of Reese Witherspoon announcing that Lexi Minetree would play the new Elle being shared in their family’s group chat, but little did Policano know that they would find themselves alongside Minetree in the series, playing her best friend, no less.
“I knew that they were auditioning for that role for Liz because I had a few friends who were auditioning. When the email came in, I was like, ‘Okay, yeah, I’ll send off this tape; nothing’s ever gonna happen with it.’ It’ll just be a lot of fun to pretend to play a scene with Elle Woods.”
A week later, Policano got their first callback, followed by a chemistry read with Minetree a couple of days later. It was a period Policano admits was nerve-wracking for them, but they kept their cool, and also took advantage of the fact that they got to work with Minetree, even if it was just for the audition. “It was so much fun. She was such a dear; we wound up messaging right after,” says Policano on meeting Minetree for the first time.
“I hopped on to the chemistry read and everyone from Amazon was there, and I was like, ‘Hi, Lexi, if I don’t ever get the chance to talk to you again, I just want to say I’m so proud of you. And I’m so excited for your future. And that video was so awesome. Anyways, it’s so nice to meet all the rest of you.’”
That moment, one brought about by Policano’s joy of being in the room, inadvertently showed the producers the energy they were looking for in Liz. A couple of days later, Policano got the call that they got the role and had to move to Vancouver to shoot the series. “It all happened very quickly. And it was kind of a whirlwind. But it worked out exactly as it was supposed to. And you know, now Lexi and I have gone from me like obsessively fangirling over her in a chemistry read to her being one of my best friends. We trusted the universe on this one.”
There’s a Lot More to Liz Than Her Walkman
In the series, Policano plays Liz, a queer zine-making musician whom Elle meets on the first day of junior year of high school in Seattle. Elle, whose pink outfits are as outspoken as her confidence, initially gets the cold shoulder from the nonchalant Liz. It’s a far departure from how Policano is in real life. But it’s this contrast where the actress feels Liz shines.
“Everything that Elle does, in every way that Elle expresses herself, Liz does it differently,” they say. “We, Lexi and I, have talked about how Elle is like the hummingbird going this many miles an hour and Liz is kind of like a very steady, bald eagle of sorts. She’s very independent. She kind of does her own thing. She’s a loner in the sense that she just prefers hanging out with the Walkman and reading a book.”
Unlike most of Seattle in the series, Liz isn’t there to antagonize Elle. While things start a bit awkwardly between the two, a friendship forms. “She can’t help but be pretty charmed by Elle,” comments Policano. “Seattle greets Elle with a very intense, judgy energy. Liz isn’t judging her because Liz’s number one thing is that she respects people being exactly who they are. And Elle is pretty unabashedly herself. Even if Liz may not be familiar with that kind of person, or understand it, she has a ton of respect for Elle, who never shies away from it.”
Though a far cry from how they are in real life, Policano, who is also queer, did find some similarities when stepping into Liz’s nonchalant shoes. “We both have the same love of music. She’s a musician, and you kind of never really see her not listening to music on the show. And I’m a musician and have my own work on my own music as well. So we share that kind of common language. Obviously, she’s super queer; I’m queer, which is awesome, getting to play a queer character for my first kind of on-screen role.”
Embodying the character also meant Policano was transported back into the show’s ’90s Seattle setting, and that meant a lot of black, grunge, and Walkmans. “We all had a great time, sort of sitting back in our flannel and just looking a little dead-faced. It was so much fun,” they share. The show’s stylistic choices highlight how far off the world Elle enters is, while also bringing viewers into what life would look like for a teenager in the 1990s.
“We’re going back to the Walkmans and the VHS tapes, and the beepers and pagers. I think 90s kids will get a ton of nostalgia from the show.” As a ’90s kid herself (Policano was born in 1999), they are the oldest in the main cast and jokingly says that they had to teach their younger co-stars about the analog devices of their childhood. “I tell them that I’m educating them on my culture, even though I was born in 1999. It’s been kind of fun going back into all that. I had a CD Walkman when I was a kid. So I’m getting to go back to all those little things. It’s been awesome.”
Aside from her friendship with Elle, Liz has a few storylines explored in the first season, one of those being between her and her mother, Donna, the school’s secretary. Without going into spoilers, Donna plays a big part in season one’s plot, especially when it comes to her relationship with her daughter and Elle. Mother-daughter relationships, in fact, are a major theme in season one, an aspect Policano considers their favorite part of the show.
“Donna and Liz have a really special relationship because Donna’s a single mom and she raised Liz on her own. They don’t necessarily have as much money as the rest of the gang. But I think, especially as the series goes on, you really get to know their relationship better. And they’re kind of the grunge version of the Gilmore Girls. They are each other’s best friend, and they’re very there for each other.”
The Cast of Elle Taking On the World Together
To the casual viewer, Elle might seem like just another prequel series. And while it does set up the foundations for the Elle we meet in the movie, it also justifies its purpose. In the same way that the original film depicted Elle fabulously taking on Harvard despite the institutional and societal roadblocks in her way, the series explores relatable themes such as feeling like an outsider, not fitting in, and making friends. It’s a journey that Elle, Liz, and the rest of the main characters go through.
Naturally, that bond on screen easily transferred to real life, with Minetree and Policano bonding over the experience. The moment is also surreal for the two as Elle serves as Minetree and Policano’s breakout series and biggest project to date. The spotlight is on them, alongside the other young actors forming the core characters of the show: Chandler Kinney, Jacob Moskovitz, and Zac Looker.
Policano understands that the attention coming their way is both good and bad, but they choose to see the positives, especially alongside the friends they made on the cast. “We’re in an industry where what people think of you, unfortunately, is so at the forefront of everything. I know there’s so much about my career that’s in other people’s hands. I can only control the things I can control. And we, I think, have found this really awesome support system within each other. We really are best friends. The five of us are family.”
With Policano and the rest of the cast busy promoting the series and shooting season two, the actress takes solace in the fact that, regardless of the show’s reception, they found a new family, not unlike how Elle found her people in the movie and the show. “It’s no longer going to be just ours. People are going to think what they’re going to think. Some people will love it, some people will hate it. That’s the nature of just making art. But we have a great support system around us. And I think that really changes everything when you’re in it as a pack. You feel a lot safer.”
All eight episodes of Elle season one are streaming on Prime Video.
The interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Featured Image: Courtesy of Prime Video, Taken by Kevin Mazur
Photos: Courtesy of Prime Video, Gabrielle Policano (via Instagram)
Frequently Asked Questions
Gabrielle Policano plays Liz, a queer zine-making musician who befriends Elle Woods on her first day of junior year in Seattle. Liz initially gives Elle the cold shoulder before a friendship develops, contrasting with Elle’s outgoing personality and pink wardrobe.
Gabrielle Policano auditioned for the role of Liz after learning friends were also trying out for the part. A callback and chemistry read with Lexi Minetree followed, after which Policano was cast and relocated to Vancouver to film the series.
Gabrielle Policano and Lexi Minetree, who plays Elle Woods, became close friends after their on-screen chemistry read, with Policano describing Minetree as one of their best friends. Both actresses consider Elle their breakout project and biggest role to date.
Gabrielle Policano, who is queer, shares Liz’s love of music, working on their own music outside acting. Playing Liz marked Policano’s first on-screen role portraying a queer character, adding a personal dimension to the part beyond the character’s contrasts with Elle.
All eight episodes of Elle season one are streaming on Prime Video. The series serves as a prequel to the 2000s film Legally Blonde, following Elle Woods and her move from Los Angeles to Seattle, with season two currently in production.
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