Thorne stars as Hilary, a 15-year-old who is clearly emerging as a beautiful young woman, despite having a dad who calls her Larry, dresses her like a boy, and encourages her to protein-load at the buffet.
As Thorne explains, “Hilary is a tomboy but that doesn’t mean she isn’t a girl too. She’s a little shy and self-conscious and just wants to jump out of her skin sometimes. Her hair is kind of a curly, frizzy bowl and she’s always in track suits, which doesn’t help.”
In “Blended,” single parents Lauren (Drew Barrymore) and Jim (Sandler) agree on only one thing after a disastrous blind date: they never want to see each other again. But when they each sign up separately for a fabulous family vacation with their kids, they are all stuck sharing a suite at a luxurious African safari resort for a week.
The young actress shares that she has a lot in common with Hilary. “Even though I’m wearing pink right now, I am very much a tomboy,” Thorne says. “I really like to just eat chicken wings and slurp Ramen. I have the stains all over my shirt to prove it. And I think that every girl would feel for this character because there are a lot of times when you’re wanting to get out of your own skin, and she just wants to be noticed. She just wants this boy to notice that she’s a girl and he doesn’t. [Laughs] And it’s the worst.
“Bella was brilliant,” director Frank Coraci attests. “Here’s a young woman who is known for being stylish and beautiful on red carpets and in magazines, and she has to shed her make-up, have bad hair and wear horribly fitting outfits. But she committed to it completely. She’s funny, she’s engaging, and she can dance, and, fortunately, she gets to showcase all of that in this movie.”
When asked what was the transition like for her from television to film, Thorne reveals “The only thing I miss about TV is that the people you work with see you every day. They see you in your worst mood and your best mood, so sometimes they’re really much closer to you than even your best friends. And when you work on a film, you get so close to your cast and your crew. And then three months later, you have to leave them and you wonder if you’re ever going to see them again, which is a little depressing. So that sucks.”
Most recently, she wrapped production on the feature films “Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day,” “Big Sky,” opposite Kyra Sedgwick,” and “Home Invasion.” She also signed a three book deal with Random House titled Autumn Falls, with the first book scheduled for late 2014, and was recently named the new Candie’s girl, following in the footsteps of Britney Spears, Carly Rae Jepsen, Vanessa Hudgens and Lea Michele.
The triple threat also recently expanded her talent in the music arena with her first solo single, “TTYLXOX,” which was included on the “Shake It Up” soundtrack and not only made the Billboard 100 but has sold over 300,000 copies to date. She has been topping the charts at Radio Disney with “Bubblegum Boy,” and collaborated with IM5 on the single “Can’t Stay Away.”
Opening across the Philippines on June 11, “Blended” is a Warner Bros. Pictures presentation of a Gulfstream Pictures/Happy Madison Production and will be distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures, a Warner Bros. Entertainment company.