The Cast of ‘The Baby-Sitters Club’ Talk About Season 2

Season 2 of ‘The Baby-Sitters Club’ brings in new members to the club, with a new school bringing more business and new relationships. The cast of the series spent time with Moviefone to talk about how they relate to their characters and how much real-life babysitting experience they’ve had.

(L to R) Vivian Watson, Sophie Grace, Anais Lee, Kyndra Sanchez, and Momona Tamada in 'The Baby-Sitters Club'

First, Sophie Grace, Malia Baker, and Kyndra Sanchez talk about their characters’ bedrooms.

Moviefone: Sophie, I feel like you can find out a lot about somebody by being in their bedroom and being able to look at what's in there. So tell me what your bedroom looks like, and what's in there. And I know you kind of get a new bedroom this season.

Sophie Grace: Very true. So since Kristy has her big move to Watson's, her new bedroom is still the same sporty, efficient, logical bedroom that she had back at her Mom's. But now it's bigger, and it's a little nicer, and she doesn't really like it at first, but she loves it. It's cool.

MF: And Malia, what about Mary-Anne's room?

Malia Baker: I feel like she decorated a little bit more than the first season, which I'm excited because you guys kept little Easter eggs on. Mary-Anne, she's a theater kid. As we saw in the first season, she directs a school musical, and then she stars in it, which is a huge leap for her. So she has a bunch of Broadway posters along with her obsession of cats, which, other side, as you can see, I have as well. So I feel like we're very similar in a lot of ways. And I'm excited for you guys to pick up on the little things that are new to them.

MF: And Kendra, what about Dawn?

Kyndra Sanchez: Well, Dawn is really into spirituality and in her room, you'll definitely see lots of plants, and you'll see lots of crystals and feathers and really cool things like that. She's really grounded in reality, and you'll definitely see that a lot in her room. As well as posters with good messages, because Dawn is an advocate, and she loves to spread her voice and spread kindness.

MF: Sophie, what about your character? Or is there anything about your character that you related to personally?

Grace: Well, I also, just like Kristy, come from a very big family, so that's the relatable sibling rivalry and stupid little bickering and video games always playing, and we always had pizza for some reason. Just like that kind of stuff, like living with a bunch of brothers. I relate very much so.

MF: So babysitting comes naturally to you?

Grace: Oh, absolutely. I've been babysitting since my brothers were born. I also have sisters, but they're both older, so they were babysitting me.

MF: What about you, Malia?

Baker: Mary-Anne and I are very similar in a lot of ways. And in some other ways we're not too similar. I feel like I'm better to confront people or just have that connection with people. As Mary-Anne says in the first season, when she talks to humans, it feels like her stomach falls out of her nose and I feel like I can differ from that, fortunately for me. But she's very caring. She loves her friends more than anything. And, when the time is right, she steps up and stands up and uses her voice for what she believes in.

MF: And is babysitting natural for you as well?

Baker: Babysitting is natural for me. I have one younger sister, so like Sophie said, when she was born, that's all I did. And then growing up in a small town as well, just being that babysitter that people can rely on. Mary-Anne on- and off-screen, pretty much.

MF: Kendra, what do you relate with to Dawn?

Sanchez: I am very much like Dawn because, like her, I use my voice to advocate for causes that are close to my heart. Every year for the past six years, I've been raising foundations for childhood cancer with the organization called Alex’s Lemonade Stand. And I also like to volunteer, to help clean up beaches in my free time, as well as going to nursing homes and performing and spreading some cheer during the holidays with my guitar and my voice and just singing to them. I think it's really important to spread kindness and smiles all around. And also, this is actually funny, there were days on set where people would mistake my regular outfits for Dawn's wardrobe. And so, yeah, I, I would say me and Dawn have very similar outfits.

Momona Tamada and Shay Rudolph talk about how they relate to their characters.

Moviefone: Momona, I think that you could tell a lot about a person by being in their bedroom, and it's always so interesting. So verbally, tell me about Claudia's bedroom and that's where the club meets most of the time.

Momona Tamada: Yeah. I mean, I think Claudia's bedroom is definitely like a visual representation of kind of who she is, like her personality wise. And also like this season, there were a few new additions. If you noticed, for example, her bed, it's all tie-dyed now. And I guess she like sparked inspiration from camp or something. I don't know. But I'm excited about the fans to see all the new little kind of things here and there that Claudia has added from the first season.

MF: I know we see Stacey's bedroom a little, maybe not as much as we see Claudia's bedroom. So what can we tell about Stacey from her bedroom?

Shay Rudolph: I think that her bedroom is very chic and crisp, lots of black and whites, just like her wardrobe. And also one of my favorite things about her bedroom was her little LED lights. She has a little heart light and I think a few others, but those were such fun additions to her room that we get a little sneak peek of.

MF: Shay, what most about your character do you relate to?

Rudolph: Yeah, I think Stacey really values her friendships with the other girls. She puts that very high up on her list of things that she thinks is important. And I think that's a trait that I have as well. I care about my friends so, so much, and it's really great to be able to play a character that does the same.

MF: And that's what I love about this series. How these girls, they love each other so much and are always there to support each other. So Momona how about for you? What about your character do you relate to?

Tamada: I think both Claudia and I are very artistic people. I've always had a very big passion kind of for the arts as well. And just being able to portray Claudia, she's definitely taught me a lot. Has definitely sparked a lot of my interest in fashion. So I think there's a few things that I'll find within Claudia and her personality that definitely resonated to me as well.

MF: Talking about fashion, Claudia has the best fashion in the show. On the best earrings, what is that like? What are the costumes and the earrings and everything like for you?

Tamada: Oh, it's so incredible. The fittings are just so much fun. There's racks and racks and racks of clothes, but honestly just getting to see all the jewelry even, it's so funny. You'd be in the costume office, and you'd see each characters' earrings, and you're like, oh, that's this character and that's that character. And yeah, it's just so much fun to get, to have the chance to play around with new clothes and get to try things that maybe I would never even imagine in my everyday life.

MF: Shay, your character, Stacey, has diabetes. Is that something you researched? How did you prepare to play that role?

Rudolph: I did research it, and I know a few people that also have diabetes. But I wanted to make sure that I was obviously portraying it as accurately as possible because it is a real thing. So yeah, I talked to a lot of other teen girls that have Type 1 diabetes and I researched it and there were also people on set that were making sure that everything was medically accurate as well.

MF: And what is it like Momona, with actual babies and kids on set?

Tamada: So, so fun. We got to work with a lot of babies this season, and sometimes they cry a lot. But being the babysitters we are, we always try to comfort them and I think we always have such a great time.

MF: So do you guys have siblings of your own? Are you babysitters yourself, or are you used to being around little kids?

Rudolph: Yeah, I have an older sister, so I am the baby of the family. But I do babysit as well. Growing up, I used to babysit some of my younger cousins with my older sister as well. So we do that together, but now I babysit when I'm home and have free time. So that's amazing to be able to have that onscreen and off.

Vivian Watson and Anais Lee talk about being the new members of the club.

Moviefone: Vivian, can you describe Mallory?

Vivian Watson: Yeah, so she's new to the club. She's quirky and she's fun. She loves to spend time with her friends. And I think that she sometimes struggles in the season with fitting in, especially since she's been the oldest, always, when she's babysitting her younger siblings. And so, when she moves to this club of older people, it's a big change because now she's the youngest. But, she's so fun, and I'm so excited for everyone to see her this season.

MF: Anais, what about Jessi?

Anais Lee: Jessi is very driven and hard-working. And she really cares about her friends and the people around her. She always looks out for them and notices when one is sad. And tries to pick them back up again, so they can have fun and be themselves. I love Jessi's drive and her passion towards dance. I look up to Jessi because of that. She's very driven. She's only 11 years old, and she's such a hard worker, she really is.

MF: Anais, I feel that you are very much like Jessi. You are actually a classically trained ballerina, correct?

Lee: Yes. I have been dancing since I was two years old, so getting this role was a dream come true because it combines my two favorite things, which are acting and dancing.

MF: So, would you say that's what you relate to most about Jessi, her dancing, or is it something else about her?

Lee: I would say, I relate to Jessi because of the dancing, but also, because she cares about her friends a lot. And I also care about my friends a lot. And I always look out for them and notice when they're sad and down.

MF: What can you relate to about your character, Mallory?

Watson: I relate to her being able to have fun. She always has fun. She's always so happy. She's always a little quirky, and I think that I relate to that. She also has a lot of drive, just like Jessi. I think it's very scary to join this club by herself. So, yeah.

MF: Anais, do you have younger siblings or younger people in your family? How familiar are you with babysitting? And what's it like having babies and young children on set?

Lee: I don't have any younger siblings. I only have a twin sister, but I have babysat some of my younger cousins before, so when they come over to my house I always have to babysit them. I definitely think I picked up some tips on babysitting while filming ‘The Baby-Sitters Club.’ So, if anyone wants to hit me up for babysitting, I definitely am your girl.

Season 2 of 'The Baby-Sitters Club' will stream on Netflix on October 11.