We only have four more episodes of “Chasing Life” left in season one. (The cast starts filming season two of the ABC Family drama the middle of this month.) As we are winding down to the season finale, actress Haley Ramm (Brenna Carver) is giving us a look at what we can expect in tonight’s episode and moving forward. She even hints that fans might not love everything that happens in the season finale. Ramm did the whole interview with SpoilerTV from her car – since she was getting cable installed in her house at the time. But she still took time to answer all our questions.
What can you tell us about tonight’s episode?
In this next episode, Sara is going to try to get Brenna to take school more seriously because college is right around the corner and there are no signs of Brenna backing down – and Natalie isn’t helping the situation. At the end of the episode, Brenna does make a decision about school that’s a very Brenna decision.
Is Brenna’s relationship with Natalie a good thing or a bad thing for her?
I think it’s a good relationship for Brenna because she sees herself in Natalie. April and Brenna are so opposite from each other, she can relate to Natalie more than she does to April. But Natalie might be influencing Brenna in a not-so-great way.
Where is the relationship between Brenna and Greer headed?
I think that no matter what happens between Brenna and Greer, whether it does go romantic again or if it doesn’t, they’re always going to be friends because they’ve confided in each other a lot at this point and they’re holding each other’s secrets, which is really sweet. I think it’s bonded them together. So no matter what, I think they’re going to be on good terms.
Is Brenna finished with her “wild child” phase or will we see more of that?
I don’t think Brenna is done with her young, wild, reckless phase quite yet. She’s still in high school, so she’s going to rebel a little bit more – especially having Natalie around. Who knows what kind of influence she is going to have on Brenna. Her path has changed a lot since the beginning because of April’s cancer and it forced her to step up and mature and help out the family a little bit more. She always means well but I don’t think that she’s goody-goody forever.
Sometimes it seems like Brenna’s family places a lot of expectations on her.
The expectations are building up and we’ll be seeing that a lot in [tonight’s] episode. Brenna comes from a family of very successful people. Her mom is a therapist. Her dad was a famous writer and April is well on her way to doing the same as her dad, so I think that she’s the black sheep in a way. Not that she’s not accepted by her family, because they’re so loving and sweet and understanding, but she definitely is different and I think is more artistic and free-spirited, which she gets from her mom. I think that no matter what, Brenna is going to handle these situations in her own way. And she’s lucky that she has her family behind her. As much pressure as they can put on her, they’re going to love her no matter what and support her. They love her differences.
What was your reaction to finding out about Brenna’s abortion?
It made a lot of sense to me. I thought it was a really interesting path to go down because it explained a lot about why Brenna was the way she was in the beginning. We like to bring up topics – serious topics like that – on the show and I think that’s great because there are people going through those situations that we portray on TV every day. For people to be able to turn on the TV and feel like they can relate in a situation where they would normally feel alone is my favorite part.
What has your experience been like playing this character?
To hear the feedback that I’ve gotten on social media about real-life Brennas has been amazing. There’s this girl who tweeted me saying that she wouldn’t have met her girlfriend if it wasn’t for watching “Chasing Life,” and that just melted my heart. I feel very happy to play a character who’s comfortable with [herself]. She’s just your average 16, 17-year-old girl trying to figure herself out and her sexual identity and who she is.
Do you think the fans will be happy with how the season ends?
Yes I do – in some ways. But I think the topics that we’re dealing with are very true to life and sometimes life doesn’t go your way or the way that you hope it would go. So I think I would compare it to life in general. There are parts people are going to be happy with and parts that are going to keep people watching next season!
That’s a teaser! Speaking of season two, is there a chance the 13-episode season could be extended longer?
I’m not sure. As of right now, we’re at 13, but I know all of us would be over the moon to do more, so fingers crossed!
“Chasing Life” airs Monday nights on ABC Family at 9/8c.
How much do you love Brenna's character? What do you think is going to happen the rest of this season? Let us know in the comments below.
