The star of Amazon Prime Video's new hit series Off Campus has defended her nearly 10-year age gap with her co-star. Based on Elle Kennedy's book series, the coming-of-age drama is the third most-watched Amazon series debut of all time, reaching 36 million views in just 12 days.
Following an elite ice hockey team and the women in their lives, the series sees quiet songwriter Hannah (Ella Bright) and Briar University's all-star hockey athlete Garrett (Belmont Cameli) strike up an unlikely romance. However, after the show's release, viewers began questioning the inclusion of 'partial nudity' given the pair's age gap, as Ella is 19 and Belmont is 28.
Addressing this discourse, Ella has now shut down any concerns, stating she 'understood what this role required'.
'Listen, I came into this job and during the chemistry reads with more than enough information and knowledge and understanding of what this role required,' she said on the Not Skinny But Not Fat podcast. 'I just fell in love with Hannah and these scripts immediately. Like, there was never a question that I wouldn't want to do this.'
Ella acknowledged why some people might be concerned about the age difference but shared that it never weighed on her while working with Belmont.
'I get people's concern, but also not once did I feel left out from being younger than everybody,' she continued. 'We're all such a family, and everyone was just more than perfect, and I couldn't be more comfortable on this set with these people. So, it is funny when they say that. I'm like, "I'm good. I'm completely good."'
Discussing the casting process for her role, Ella also added that showrunner Louisa Levy made it clear that she and her fellow co-stars needed to be prepared for the steamier elements of this romance adaptation.
Ella explained how her co-star Allie (Mika Abdalla) did full-frontal nudity 'because she's got this amazing confidence about her, and she is so free with her body.' However, for Hannah, she said that 'the briefing was like partial nudity... Everyone had full understanding of what we were going into.'
Created by Louisa Levy, the Amazon series seems to be capitalizing on the momentum created by The Summer I Turned Pretty. In anticipation of its strong debut, the series was given an early Season 2 renewal in February. The show also follows three other hockey players who are all getting their own love stories, including Dean (Stephen Kalyn), Logan (Antonio Cipriano), and Tucker (Jalen Thomas Brooks).
Off Campus is available to watch on Amazon Prime Video.
