Hot New York actress Ginger Kroll’s been getting some newfound buzz over the last couple months. Could it be because her first studio feature is in Fox Searchlight Picture’s “Notorious”? Maybe so! Ginger stars alongside newcomers Antonique Smith (Faith Evans) and Jamal Woolard (Notorious B.I.G.). She plays sexy groupie, Debbie, who throws a wrench into the couple’s marriage. In return, Antonique Smith’s character throws a couple of punches her way in an extensive fight scene (for which Ginger proudly did all her own stunt work). The film also includes: Angela Bassett, Anthony Mackie, and Derek Luke and was directed by George Tillman Jr. (“Soul Food,” “Men of Honor”). Although her role was cut, she definitely made her mark and now people will be excited to learn she has much more in the works for 2009.
You may recognize Ginger from the film “Spiker,” directed by Gerry Lively (“Hellraiser,” “Friday”). The DVD release came out over the holidays. Ginger starred as “Nikki McLean,” a sassy high school senior who made the mistake of spending the weekend in the woods with five friends. However, after “Spiker” and “Notorious,” Ginger still has several projects in the works and even more stirring up. She has a supporting role in the feature film “Made for Each Other,” a comedy starring celeb brothers Danny and Chris Masterson, due out in this spring. This girl keeps busy as she will also star in the film “SubHysteria” with G-Train productions and Cantera Films. She plays “Hannah,” a law student with a hidden past. Due out theatrically March 13, 2009 in Venezuela, the film co-stars popular Spanish soap stars Osvaldo Benavides and Rebeca Aleman. Currently there is no definitive date for a US release but we will definitely be on the lookout!
Also, “Secrets” is another project Ginger has signed on for, again with G-Train productions. The film starts production in March 2009. Ginger stars as “Carol,” a young actress with a dark secret. But it doesn’t stop there. Ginger is set to star in season two of the web series “Horrible People.” Fun fact– she was handpicked to play Danielle by creators A. D. Miles and Joe Lo Truglio (MTV’s “The State”). “Horrible People” had a successful first run co-starring Mather Zickel (Rachel Getting Married) and Kristen Schaal (Flight of the Conchords). She also stars in a Bollywood film titled, “New York” with the supporting role of character Sarah. The film is directed by one of Bollywood’s top directors, Kabir Kahn and stars the “Johnny Depp” of Bollywood, John Abrams- swoon much? The film is set for theatrical release this March.
We got a chance to ask this lovely lady some questions about her busy career… Check it out!
LA’s The Place: What was it like working on “Notorious”?
Ginger Kroll: It was real honor to work on a film so important in pop and urban culture. There was so much passion and dedication to making the film as authentic as possible and a real representation of Christopher Wallace’s life. Mrs. Wallace was often on the set showing her support, and letting everyone know how proud she was of the film and of us honoring her son’s name. The cast is so talented and the music in the concert scenes was done live, listening to Naturi Naughton perform as Lil Kim gave me chills! She has such a beautiful, powerful voice.
LATP: So you did your own fight scene stunts, tell us more about that!
GK: It was a lot of work and really fun! Initially the production had hired a stunt double for my role, but the actor hired had hair color that didn’t quite match my own and they asked me on the spot, “can you do it?” and I just said, “absolutely, let’s go!” Both myself and Antonique Smith (Faith Evans) had a stunt choreographer and we just went for it. There’s a lot of flying fists, hair pulling and smacks in the face, and a few times Antonique would throw a punch that would accidentally follow through and we’d stop in the middle of the heated scene and say, “oh my god! Are you alright?” and then just get back into beating each other up! It was really funny!
LATP: What was it like working on a Bollywood film?
GK: Bollywood is a completely different world where production seems to come together in a freer fashion. Bollywood isn’t under union jurisdiction, so hours can be longer. But it really was a wonderful experience and the production team was like one large extended family. I’m excited to see the Hollywood’s reaction to Bollywood in the years to come and what collaborations will come from such large industries working together.
LATP: What projects do you have coming up in 2009 that you are most excited about and why?
GK: The film I’m most excited about is called SubHysteria, it’s a small project, but unique and exciting because it was shot in the style of the Blaire Witch Project – sequentially and with complete improvisation. In the film, sixteen people get stuck in a subway car in NYC for 36 hours, without communication, food, way to escape, and a fatal sensation that they are going to die. It’s a raw display of human behavior when one confronts the possibility of death. Myself and 15 other actors worked for weeks training with improvised scenes, in-depth character analysis and then we were given an outline and were told to just go!
And I have a lot of other projects in the works! I have a supporting role in the feature film “Made For Each Other,” a comedy starring Danny and Chris Masterson, which is due out in the spring of 2009 and “Spiker,” a film directed by Gerry Lively (“Hellraiser,” “Friday”) is a direct to DVD release due out December 11, 2008 where I star as Nikki McLean, a sassy high school senior who makes the mistake of spending the weekend in the woods with five friends. Secrets also signed on with G-Train productions (SubHysteria) starts production in March of 2009. I play the role of Carol, a young actress with a dark secret, that I can’t tell you about!
And it It doesn’t stop there! I am also set to star in season 2 of the web series “Horrible People.” I was handpicked to play Danielle by creators A. D. Miles and Joe Lo Truglio (MTV’s “The State”). “Horrible People” had a successful first run co-starring Mather Zickel (Rachel Getting Married) and Kristen Schaal (Flight of the Conchords).
To learn more about Ginger Kroll, please visit www.gingerkroll.com.
