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Meet Teen Vogue's New Hollywood Class of 2025 Leah Sava Jeffries, Mckenna Grace, and Mason Thames. In the ever-shifting organism that is Hollywood, the teen titans have played key roles in projects that have deeply engaged, invested fans. From Mckenna's scene-stealing role in 'Ghostbusters: Afterlife' to Leah's starring role as Annabeth Chase in Percy Jackson and the Olympians and Mason who helmed the live-action 'How to Train Your Dragon,' these actors are breaking through in a major way. Hear what they have to say about figuring out the kind of adults they want to become alongside the fans who love their work.
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00:00Welcome to Teen Vogue's Facetime. I'm Caitlin McNabb, the culture editor here at Teen Vogue,
00:04and today with me I have McKenna Grace, who stars in upcoming films like Regretting You
00:09and Five Nights at Freddy's 2, Leah Jeffries, who stars in the hit series Percy Jackson and
00:14the Olympians as Annabeth Chase, and Mason Fames, who starred in this summer's live action
00:18adaptation of How to Train Your Dragon, and will also star in this fall's Black Phone 2.
00:23We'll be talking about everything from craft to fandom to career dreams.
00:30If this year were a chapter of your life, what would you name it?
00:35Chapter 19.
00:38Chapter Teen Vogue.
00:41Dream Vogue.
00:42Dream Vogue.
00:43That's not bad.
00:45I read that.
00:46That's all I could come up with, but I'm okay with that.
00:49So you're all on the cusp of releases here with either new seasons or sequels on the horizon.
00:54What has been one of your favorite fan interactions so far from all of your different fandoms?
01:01I was at this How to Train Your Dragon event, and there was these mannequins with my costume
01:07and axe and stuff, and I walk up and I started touching everything just to see if it was the
01:11real thing.
01:12And there was this mom, and she was like, oh, I don't know if you're allowed to touch those
01:16things.
01:17I was like, oh, it's okay.
01:18It's my stuff.
01:19And the kid came up, and she looks at him, and she goes, that's Hiccup.
01:22That's the guy in the movie.
01:23And the kid's just, no, it's not.
01:26And then he was like, yeah, say a line.
01:28And I was like, well, what line would you like?
01:30And he was like, this is Berk.
01:31And I just went, this is Berk.
01:33This is Berk.
01:35He just, it was the, it was genuinely the cutest thing I've ever seen.
01:40So stuff like that.
01:41I work conventions sometimes.
01:43I do Comic Cons, and I get a lot of Ghostbusters fans at those, and that's such a big fan base.
01:49It's always really special to get to see little girls and little kids dressed up as
01:54Ghostbusters, or I've met like a few babies named Phoebe, which is really crazy.
01:59Oh my god.
02:00So it's like, I don't know, it's really special to get to see, um.
02:03Your legacy will live on forever.
02:07And so it's just wild to me, getting to be a part of something that brings so many families
02:11together and so many, um, kids and parents and grandparents.
02:15And it's just, um, that's always really special.
02:17What about you, Leah?
02:19It was basically, I was walking around and then like, this girl knew me from
02:23playing Annabeth and things.
02:24She saw me in other projects, but she was like, I love you as Annabeth.
02:28And it's just that, you know, like everyone knows that I'm playing a character that was
02:32like, supposed to be like Caucasian.
02:34And the thing is that she was an African-American girl and she looked at me and she was like,
02:37it's just so amazing to see you on the screen.
02:39And she was like, now I can look at it and be like, that's like me.
02:43Like I can be like that, you know?
02:44And so, so I'm really happy that she told me that.
02:47She said, keep up the good work and stuff.
02:48And no matter what anyone else says, like she thinks I did amazing.
02:52So that's, that's my little like fan interaction that I keep with me 24 seven.
02:56That's so sweet.
02:57You're all about to star in or have already starred in adaptations.
03:02I want to know what is the biggest pressure or difference between yourself and your role
03:06that you've had to really adjust to while embodying a really beloved character.
03:10First season, it was a little bit harder just because me, myself, I'm very like bubbly and like,
03:15hey guys, how's it going?
03:16And like Annabeth is more like, I'm Annabeth.
03:19Are you stalking me, Annabeth?
03:22Yes.
03:22She's very like stoic and like stubborn and everything.
03:25So it's kind of hard to get that out of her.
03:27You know how you watch shows and like, you'll see like someone playing like the meanest role,
03:31but yet when you see them doing press, like the most like kindest person ever, that's kind of how
03:35it was for me.
03:35And then going into the second season, you know, like me and Annabeth was able to go to in-person
03:39school after like so many years of not really being in like the real world.
03:43I was able to do that.
03:44And then going into the third season, you know, she's grown up more and everything.
03:47So I feel like it's less and less harder now to be able to go back into like that character.
03:52And just because I've also grown up with her, like I've been on this for like almost four years now.
03:56So it's like,
03:57That's crazy.
03:57I know, right?
03:58It's like, that's, that's actually wild.
03:59Like I've never been on something that long.
04:01So, um, being able to play her and just keep growing up with her around the same age and
04:05stuff.
04:06Like it's amazing.
04:07I love that answer.
04:08Oh, my turn.
04:10I think Hiccup was my childhood.
04:13He was, he still is everything to me and, um, getting the chance to bring him to life
04:18and bring him to a new generation was, um, was a really crazy, cool and scary opportunity
04:24because I want to do right by the fans and also myself.
04:27Of course.
04:27It was a thing of finding a mix of, because if I just did exactly what Jay did, it would
04:32feel like an impersonation and just kind of disrespectful to his performance because what
04:35he did was so fantastic.
04:37So I kind of had to find a gray area of my Hiccup and what everybody loves.
04:42And, um, I remember I went into the first audition and I was doing the Hiccup voice.
04:46They're like, okay, Mason, please stop.
04:48And I was like, oh, okay.
04:49Can I do like a little bit?
04:50They were like, no, I was like, okay.
04:52And they're also going to keep the curls for Hiccup.
04:54But, um, yeah, yeah.
04:56That's what I wanted.
04:57I decided on that side part.
05:00I have to kill you.
05:01I will because I'm a Viking.
05:03Hear that?
05:05I'm a Viking.
05:07It's just kind of finding my version of Hiccup and, um, you know, just starting off as the
05:13boy who wants to fit in and make his dad, his father proud.
05:18And by the end of it, realizing that, you know, he knows who he is and he knows what he can do
05:23to help other people.
05:24And yeah, and he does that.
05:25So it was, it was a lot of fun.
05:28I feel like for me, the biggest one I'm really working on right now is Hunger Games.
05:33Yeah.
05:33Um, you know, I'm playing such a beloved character in this book.
05:37Whenever I'm playing these roles, of course, I'll, I'll read the book a million times over.
05:43I'll read all the headcanons, all the fan things because I'm such a fan.
05:47And even if I was unfamiliar with the subject matter beforehand, I try to become as familiar as I can.
05:55That way I am the biggest fan and I can put to screen what I as a fan would be proud and happy
06:01to see, you know, eventually you have to know it as well as you can know the character inside out
06:08and kind of decide like, okay, I feel like I know her.
06:11I think I can step into these shoes now and try to just act as best as I see possible.
06:18And as best as I can, it's, it's always nerve wracking because everybody's going to have a million
06:22opinions of every single thing that you do. Um, so we're going to get into that in a second. Yeah.
06:28But, um, I mean, especially with right now on set.
06:32Yeah. You're doing amazing.
06:35So we know that being a celebrity on the internet these days is a minefield to say the very least.
06:41What is your, all of your personal relationships with, or your take on being online and engaging with
06:47fans directly? Like, are you, you're taking peaks at subreddits that you're kind of, okay, fan edits,
06:53like how much are you kind of engaging with that stuff?
06:57I've kind of the past few years decided that I think it's fun. And I'm like, it's just silly and
07:04stupid. And it's a way for people to get to see what you've been working on. If it's a part of my job
07:09now, I might as well make the most of it and have as much fun as I can. And as long as I'm only like
07:15posting things for myself that I think are fun that I would want to see, I'm just like, it's the
07:21same thing that I do with work. If I'm happy having it out there, then what else matters? I definitely
07:26try to stay tapped into what's going on with fans of the franchises that I become a part of or what I
07:32can try to do to, you know, I love a little fan service. So I'm like, I try to do the best I can.
07:38Yeah. And I used to have a secret edit account.
07:40I'm aware.
07:41I know, you said it.
07:42You still?
07:43Yeah.
07:43Actually.
07:45And the name is?
07:48There is an edit account that exists. I don't know if it's current or past.
07:52Yeah.
07:53Right. We plead the fifth. Okay.
07:56I know the answer.
07:57I'm tapped in.
07:58No.
07:58I'm tapped in.
08:00Okay.
08:00I try to be on there as much as I can, but I just think it's kind of fun, you know,
08:07especially with, you know, cool jobs that we get to do and posting behind the scenes stuff. And I
08:11see a lot of cool fan things with, you know, either Finney or Hiccup and, you know, it's just,
08:17it's a lot of fun. And now I'm seeing a lot of stuff from a movie of Reading You,
08:20so all that type of stuff I love.
08:21So how online are you?
08:22Okay.
08:23So let's not go through my phone and see like how long I am.
08:31I am on it a lot.
08:33That's screen time, huh?
08:34Yes.
08:34Yeah.
08:35It probably says like 36 hours in a day.
08:37Whoa.
08:38And it's only 24 hours in a day.
08:39Yeah.
08:41Yes.
08:41Y'all don't understand.
08:42Like I'm just on it 24 seven, but for good reasons.
08:44I was just showing my best friend last night.
08:46I was like, look at all these videos I have.
08:48And they were like, why don't you like post that stuff?
08:50I'm like, I don't know y'all.
08:51So they're just sitting in your drafts.
08:53Like, I'm pretty sure I have like a million like gigabytes,
08:55like just stuffed in my storage.
08:57Cause you know, now Tik Tok can tell you how much like.
08:59It sure does.
08:59It sure does.
09:00It's bad.
09:01I have like three drafts.
09:04What?
09:04Three?
09:05I have 1,913 drafts.
09:07How do you have that memorized?
09:09She checked this five minutes ago, right?
09:11Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
09:13On the opposite end of it,
09:14cause I know you kind of talked about like the fan edits
09:16and like seeing fan art and like how that can kind of feel
09:19really like fulfilling or exciting to see.
09:21What are the kind of posts that make you be like,
09:23all right, it's time to log off.
09:25Is it like hate?
09:27Is it dating rumors?
09:28Is it, what is it that kind of makes you be like,
09:31all right, I'm going to just put this down now.
09:33Here's my thing is that when I see it,
09:35I laugh at it just because we already know how we're thinking
09:38in that moment.
09:39Like, you mean like Percy Beth, like dating rumors?
09:41Yeah, yeah, yeah.
09:42So like, and it's funny because like when we see like
09:44Percy and Annabeth, we're like, oh, that's so cute.
09:46How are they going to think of this?
09:47And I was like, we're like, okay, that's funny.
09:49Then when we start seeing like Walia and like all like the walkers.
09:52Walia.
09:53We're like, hold on a second.
09:55Hold on.
09:56We'll be scrolling and we'll look at like a demon slayer at it
09:58or something like a funny thing.
10:00And like something will pop up with us.
10:01And we're like, turn off, turn off, turn off, turn off.
10:05So I think that's just a funny part of it because we find it funny
10:08in some parts, but then we're also like, okay,
10:09this is cray cray because we're like brother and sister over here.
10:11I love it.
10:12Yeah.
10:13What about you guys?
10:14Because I know, especially with your upcoming role,
10:16I'm sure it's been a little.
10:17Yeah.
10:18Yeah.
10:18Yeah, definitely.
10:20I don't mind stuff like that.
10:22I think that it's silly sometimes.
10:25But for me, it's more like the only things that make me want to log off the internet,
10:29you know, things get really scary on the internet.
10:30Yeah.
10:31Or very hateful.
10:33And so it's like, I feel like because the internet exists,
10:38sometimes people feel like they know you more personally or which, of course,
10:43that's what sometimes you want to do is like show people another side of you.
10:47And it's just, it gets a little strange sometimes.
10:50The parasocial can get really, yeah.
10:52I suppose.
10:52But it's more so just how like weird things can get with like AI or editing or hateful comments.
11:02Besides that, I'm like, I feel like it's all just so silly and fun.
11:05As somebody who used to run another account, I can get it all.
11:13No, that's great.
11:14I'm glad that you guys are still somewhat chronically online somewhat and, you know,
11:17having a good time at least.
11:18So, yeah.
11:19I've also been much more chronically online since I've been hanging out a lot more.
11:22Okay.
11:23What is that supposed to mean?
11:25That means I'm just doing more pibble.
11:27Come on now.
11:28I am pibble.
11:29Why am I better?
11:30You don't get this.
11:31I don't know, but I just like how cute it is.
11:35My bad.
11:36You'll be in on the inside joke soon.
11:37Yeah.
11:38I'll say that too after this.
11:39Don't worry, don't worry.
11:41So, so many of your scenes with Toothless, these are scenes where you're interacting with,
11:46you know, a CGI dragon.
11:47Wait, what?
11:48Shooting those.
11:49No, he's real.
11:51What?
11:51Don't, please don't tell me that.
11:54So, I'm suspending my disbelief.
11:59What was harder for you though,
12:00working with blue screen or stunts?
12:03I love stunts.
12:04Stunts are so fun to me.
12:06And most of the stunts I had on Dragon 1 were just falling a lot and learning how to fall correctly.
12:13What about Dragon 2?
12:18You're going to get me in trouble.
12:19Tell me there.
12:19Toothless, where you at?
12:22Yeah, the first one was just a lot of falling and unlearning how to fall because Hiccup is the
12:26first movie just, you know, a little flimsy and frail.
12:39Flimsy and frail.
12:40Flimsy and frail.
12:40That's how my mom describes me.
12:42But I'd say both were fun, you know, for the toothless stuff.
12:47I didn't know if I was going to be working with a tennis baller, what it was going to be.
12:50But it was, we had amazing puppeteers led by this guy named Tom Welton.
12:53He's awesome.
12:55I love him so much.
12:56And he walked around with this giant foam toothless head.
12:58Nice.
12:58So something I could look at and touch.
13:00And it was, it was nice.
13:02It was, we had time to bond and create that, you know, hiccup and toothless forbidden friendship.
13:07Yeah.
13:08Okay.
13:08So we're going to pivot to Black Phone.
13:09That was the next one.
13:11What were you most looking forward to about returning to that character for the sequel?
13:15I mean, I just love the world of Black Phone.
13:19And that was, I mean, that was like my first thing.
13:21So it has a very, very special place in my heart.
13:24So the fact that I get to come back four years later and so much has happened with Finny during
13:29that time and also with me in my life, like it's, it's a big gap.
13:32I was 13 when I filmed and I was turning 18 when I shot it, the second one.
13:38It was just really cool to see where Finny was at and where they took the story from there.
13:42And Finny is, he's a, he's a complicated dude in this film.
13:47And he was in the first film as well.
13:51Hello, Finny.
13:54You and Leah both got your acting debuts when you were five years old.
13:56Oh.
13:57And that kind of makes you close to.
13:58I mean, you guys did have this for me.
14:01Seriously.
14:02That makes you kind of close to like industry veteran status.
14:05So now that you're stepping into a lot of older teen and like adult roles,
14:09this is kind of sort of your leading lady era.
14:12So how does it feel to show a newer side of yourself through these parts?
14:16It's so exciting.
14:17It's so cool to, because, you know, in the past I've played very mature and very dark
14:25and handled a lot of very heavy subject matters from like a really young age.
14:30So it's, it's not like I feel, it's not like I feel like I'm stepping into something that's
14:35all of a sudden mature.
14:37It's more so just cool to be on screen entering a new chapter of my life, but also it's a new genre
14:42for me in romance, which feels it's like my first mature role because it's my first role as an adult
14:50in the industry on camera.
14:51Yeah.
14:52You look beautiful.
14:52It's so exciting getting to do romance and there was nobody that I would have rather done it with.
15:12There's nobody I would have rather done it with.
15:15And I'm so excited to see what everybody thinks.
15:18Yeah, yeah, great answer.
15:19Congrats on the film.
15:20Thank you so much.
15:20Um, are there any really cool behind the scenes details about the Percy universe
15:25that fans have never seen before?
15:26In season two, there's a lot of water and, you know, you always think like,
15:30oh, it's just water being splashed on you.
15:31But for you to actually act and be scared of something that is so huge in front of you,
15:36and it's not even there, like it's, it's terrifying, you know?
15:39So like they had to use our stunt doubles for a couple of things.
15:41And then also like our acting coach, like he helps us with that.
15:44Like he, he has us run around like this big massive set sometimes,
15:47like we'll like yell out loud and stuff to really get into it.
15:50And sometimes, you know, like when it's, when it's freezing cold, you know,
15:53like outside they obviously use like warm water and things,
15:56but sometimes we'll be asking for the cold water.
15:58So we could just really get into like that, like, like that really freezing part of it.
16:01Oh yeah.
16:02Like respect.
16:02Yeah.
16:04Especially Walker.
16:05Can you give me a hot water bottle please?
16:07Yeah.
16:08Please.
16:09No, literally like, so, and the thing is that, you know, like people don't realize this,
16:12but like you might use warm water, but like 30 seconds later, that warm water is done.
16:16Like it's cold, it's freezing cold.
16:18We might as well have warm water for a little bit.
16:20Yeah.
16:21Long story short though, BTS, um, hopefully they'll have something come out with season two
16:26and things you'll see the intensity of everything.
16:28And yeah, you're going to love this season.
16:30We're heading into the sea of monsters.
16:33Are you sure you're okay to do this?
16:40Let's go do the impossible.
16:43Well, thank you so much for joining us guys.
16:47We can't wait to see you on our screens soon.
16:49Bye team build.
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