Five Minutes With Crystal Hunt, Actress
Published: Sep 21, 2007
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After playing spoiled brat Lizzie Spaulding on "Guiding Light" for three years, Clearwater native Crystal Hunt loved being the good sorority sister in "Sydney White," a romantic comedy opening in theaters today.
The 22-year-old actress co-stars with teen favorite Amanda Bynes ("Hairspray") in this update of "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs."
Filmed in Orlando at Rollins College and the University of Central Florida, "Sydney White" features Bynes as Sydney, a socially challenged tomboy who, with the help of seven dorks, takes on the wicked campus queen (Sara Paxton) at the fictional Southern Atlantic University.
Hunt plays Dinky, a perky freshman with big hair and a thick Texas drawl who, like Sydney, is a pledge at the blondest sorority on campus.
After being nominated for a Daytime Emmy in 2005, Hunt decided to try films and prime time roles and turned down an offer to stay with "Guiding Light." In addition to "Sydney White," she was in the family film "Derby Stallion" (2005) with teen heartthrob Zac Efron and has just finished a role in a chase thriller, "Brooklyn to Manhattan," which could be in theaters next year.
Q: Where did you get that Southern accent for Dinky?
A: I modeled it after my mother [Nada Hunt], who is from Australia. Amazing isn't it? But she grew up in Dunedin and picked up a Southern accent. I mimicked her. My mom didn't want me to go into modeling and actingwhen I was a child because she was a model in New York and she didn't want me to face that rejection. But my grandmother insisted because she thought I was made for the business.
Q: Dinky is obviously a nickname. Do you have one in real life?
A: Yes, "Princess." My whole family calls me that. It started when I was little and they said my button nose, this scrawny little ski slope of a nose, is like a princess nose.
Q: One theme of "Sydney White" is how we all might be nerds. Are you a nerd?
A: Oh, yes. I am a girly girl on the outside and a tomboy on the inside. I like guns, handguns and shotguns and cars. I would like to have a classic like an old Cadillac convertible or a 1960s' Corvette. I don't drink. I don't smoke. I hate parties. I'd rather go bowling or rent a movie.
Q: When you worked with Zac Efron in "Derby Stallion," did you think he would become such a star?
A: We all knew Zac would succeed because of his talent. And he is so good looking. But this was before "High School Musical" and even he didn't expect it to be so huge. He thought it would be a little Disney movie that would go straight to video.
Q: What did you like about playing Dinky?
A: I liked working with Amanda and the rest of the cast. I also got to create a character. Lizzie on "Guiding Light" was fun because she had problems, and she is nothing like me. But Dinky is bubbly, outgoing and sweet. It's a fun movie that my whole family can enjoy.
