Darcy Rose Byrnes – Big Shot

By starrymag | October 14, 2022

By: Kemberlie Spivey

 

 

 

Q) Congrats on Season 2 of “Big Shot!” What is new this season with the team and Harper?

 

A) The team has some shakeups. As far Harper, she’s a little happier this season. She’s not as closed off as she was before she started dating Mouse.

 

Q) What will Harper’s relationship with Mouse be like in this new season?

 

A) It’s like any relationship, it has its ups and downs and it’s not always clear cut where things stand.

 

Q) Will Harper and Emma still be at odds, or will they gradually get along better?

 

A) There’s not much Harper and Emma (Sophia Mitri Schloss_ this season, unfortunately. When a show goes from forty-ish minutes to thirty minutes, and new cast is added, some things have to get cut. I’m glad though that our storyline together ended with Harper and Emma in a sort of truce. Hopefully in the future we’ll get more time together. I think there’s more there to explore. But I’ll settle for writing more songs for her! She’s incredible and such a joy to work with.

 

Q) How different is Season 1 compared to Season 2?

 

A) It’s a half an hour now and we’re dropping all the episodes at once!

 

Q) Was training for Season 2 in any way different compared to the work you put in for Season 1?

 

A) It was a bit different, yes. Season one we were creating something. I’d never played Harper before; I was just deciding who she is. It’s a bit like breaking in pair of shoes. Season 2, Harper already fit. I just had to put her back on. Also, because I had put myself out there creatively during Season 1, it was much easier to improvise and just go for things this time around. I knew I had already earned the creative team’s trust. That made it much easier to just play.

 

Q) Were you hoping to share more scenes with someone(s) in particular going into Season 2?

 

A) I got some more time with Yvette Nicole Brown which was quite a joy. There were a few long days where I mostly just talked musical theatre with [John] Stamos between takes. That was lovely. I’m still waiting for some one-on-one screen time with Jessalyn [Gilsig]!

 

Q) Is there an episode or episodes coming up that you are excited for fans to watch?

 

A) Absolutely. I’m particularly excited for episode 2, but honestly, I’m excited to see all of them. I did so much improv this season and I have no idea what actually made it into the final edit.

 

Q) What has been your favorite thing about being a part of Big Shot?

 

A) There are the people, of course. This show is riddled with insanely talented and ridiculously kind people. But, for a more introspective answer, my favorite thing about being a part of this show is how it’s changed me as a performer. Season 1 was incredibly stressful. We filmed during a pandemic, with no vaccines available yet, got shut down four times and I was a close contact twice. All the while I gave a performance that I’m very proud of and made my songwriting debut. It was one of those times where you go, “Well if I did that I can do anything.” It’s freeing.

 

Q) The show follows an all-girls basketball team and gives viewers insight into empowering diverse female characters. Why do you think this show resonates with so many people?

 

A) Perhaps because there’s so many empowered women involved in it. My first time ever selling a song was to this show. It was called “Everything to Me.” A woman produced it, a woman signed off on it and two women wrote the episode named after it. “Everything to Me” was historic and I didn’t even know until after because we weren’t trying to make history, we were just trying to tell a good story. The first queer love song and queer kiss on Disney was performed by women, produced and cleared by women and written by a woman. That’s pretty empowering.

 

Q) Are you working on any projects that you have been working on that fans should be excited about? 

 

A) I have! Most I can’t talk about, unfortunately. I just did a film called Floater, that I can say. The project I wrote, “Juliet Hereafter,” which is a Macbeth adaptation, is in development. As for the video game I’ve been doing, all I can say is: 2023.

 

Q) What would you like to say to everyone who are fans and supporters of your work? 

 

A) The most important thing is thank you! Growing up I wasn’t very focused on PR, so the fact that there are people who know my name and know my work, and that some of those people have stuck with me through multiple projects, it’s humbling. I know of people who’ve been watching me since “Young and the Restless.” That’s incredible.