Just based on the fact that she's talented, successful, well-spoken, and definitely more mature than I am, I often forget that the star who plays Stranger Things' Eleven is, in fact, only 12 years old. But if I'm looking for a jolt back to reality, Millie Bobby Brown talking about her first kiss in Interview magazine is the perfect reminder. I'm familiar with adult actors, who are typically unflappable when it comes to answering questions about the awkward experience that is smooching someone on screen, but Brown is a tween, who was very flapped when the conversation turned in that direction. The interview was actually done by Brown's BFF and fellow famous teen, Maddie Ziegler, who knew exactly how to get her pal to dish.
Ziegler playfully teased Brown into talking about the kiss by saying, "Oh, what was I gonna say? We were talking about Stranger Things being your favorite show because you get to kiss Finn." Of course, that's Finn Wolfhard, who plays Mike on the Netflix show, and I didn't realize this, but the kiss that they shared on screen was actually Brown's first. Which definitely gives some context as to why she was so weirded out by it.
Here's how Brown responded to Ziegler throwing her under the bus:
"You're an evil, evil person. You know that? Are you aware of that, Maddie? Yeah, I did have to kiss Finn. At the end of the day, it's only acting, and it's something you have to do, and I would do anything for the show. I cut my hair, I kissed Finn. It was definitely strange. It was, like, my first kiss, so it was kind of weird. But then, like, when I'd done it, I thought, 'Wow. It makes sense for the storyline.'"
Yup, those are the words of a 12-year-old, alright. A very mature 12-year-old, but a 12-year-old nonetheless. You'd never hear an actor with a ton of stage kisses under her belt drop words like "weird" or "strange," but that's what makes Brown refreshing as a performer — her candidness. Ziegler even called her out on showing her emotions to the audience and said, "It was priceless, like, your reactions. You were like, 'Kissing sucks.'"
In response, Brown laughed and admitted, "Finn reacted quite well and I didn't. I felt really bad afterwards." But I don't think she should feel bad. Literally every day I struggle to wrap my head around how a kid her age could be so pulled together and on top of things, so it's nice to see that she's also a real human being who, y'know, thinks kissing is a little gross right now and would prefer not to do so. It also highlights her dedication to the show, since she says she would "do anything" for the role.
At the end of the day, I love seeing this other side of Brown, and if anything, it only makes me an even bigger fan.
