General Hospital’s Maurice Benard featured a young actress, Scarlet Spencer, on his video podcast, State Of Mind, to address the side effects of growing up in front of the bright lights of Hollywood movies and television sets and how she maintained a healthy psyche.
Scarlet Spencer: Staying Sane In An Insane World
Benard (Sonny) met the 16-year-old at a screening of the short film, Hidden Truth. He was immediately impressed with her maturity and wanted to know more. Spencer has been acting since age 7, and has already built an impressive resume with such credits as Paramount’s Awkward., Nickelodeon’s Cousins for Life, Showtime’s Shameless, Netflix’s Bright, and #BlackAF.
The veteran actor and State Of Mind host asked about how it felt growing up in the spotlight. “I have been in the public eye since I was 9, so I feel like I have always had anxiety,” Spencer acknowledged. “Although, there are some people who are very shocked about it.”
The candid teen explained in more detail. “Like recently, I just told somebody, ‘No, I can’t go to that party because recently I have been dealing with depression. I have been filled with a lot of anxiety going to public places, and I don’t really know the people, so I feel uncomfortable.’ And she was like, ‘Oh my gosh, I am so sorry.’ And it was genuinely so heartfelt. Like, ‘I am so sorry that you are dealing with something like that.’”
Benard tapped into his own personal struggle with anxiety and asked, “What does your anxiety look and feel like?”
The young artist was quick to respond with a very mature answer. “I see her as another person,” describing what she meant. “I don’t like her as a person very much, but we learn to work together in life, and we deal with and tolerate each other.”
Benard, always quick to get to the heart of the matter, asked if she thought mental health should be addressed in schools. “I definitely think that is something that needs to be talked about more in school,” the ingenue exclaimed. “Thankfully, I feel like with the online presence people are getting information and having more space to talk about it. There’s a lot of bad stuff online, but there are also people that you can connect with to feel a little bit less alone. I feel like that is truly the whole point of social media.”
A Star Shining Bright
Scarlet Spencer was poised and insightful for her age. The unlikely duo looked back on her childhood, growing up in Woodland Hills and Studio City, making a big splash as the lead in Nickelodeon’s Cousins for Life, and the fear that comes with auditioning in front of big wigs at a tender age.
She shared behind-the-scenes stories of working with Hollywood icons like Rashida Jones and Kenya Barrish in #BlackAF, including a trip to Fiji to tape the series finale and her first encounter with Will Smith for Netflix’s Bright. The actress and her mother were very impressed with the Oscar-winning actor despite his 2022 award show debacle. You should watch to find out what she had to say.
The young actress practically grew up on the sets of Hollywood and had a lot of insights into work ethics, maintaining self-esteem, and homeschooling her way through her work schedule. Spencer jokes about the PTSD she experienced after participating in The Kid’s Choice Awards, and much, much more. Get to know the talented young thespian. Check out the full episode here.
