The young cast of The Carrie Diaries are hard at work filming the new series which is set to premiere on The CW in a few short days. Though the show is based on the prequel to Sex and the City, not all of them were familiar with the books and the show prior to landing their roles. Ellen Wong, who plays Carrie Bradshaw’s best friend, Mouse, was one of them.
“I definitely knew of Sex and the City but I didn’t get a chance to watch it before auditioning for the show,” Ellen admits to Access Hollywood. “But after we shot the pilot this summer, my homework was to watch Sex and the City. So that’s what I did this summer – sat and watched the entire series.”
Ellen also talked about the reasons why the the pilot script drew her the show. “It takes all of the issues that teens go through, but we don’t glamorize it or heighten it in this crazy sort of sensationalized world,” she says. “It’s something that we’re missing in TV right now. It takes a lot of the issues and it validates them and respects them and I think that’s really refreshing to have on TV right now.”
Carrie’s friends Mouse, Maggie and Walt do not appear in Sex and the City, but Ellen Wong shared which SatC characters she feels are similar to her Diaries’ character. “If I have to choose, I would say there’s definitely an aspect of Miranda in Mouse in terms of being very practical and has her life sort of figured out and knows exactly where to get to where she wants to be, but I think she also has a bit of Charlotte in her because she’s sweet and she’s looking for that true love in her life and she wants to be committed.”
The Carrie Diaries premieres Monday, January 14th, on The CW.