Carrie Underwood in the Movies!

Country-pop singer Carrie Underwood, who won “American Idol” in 2005, is now a multi-platinum recording artist, Grammy winner and more. She married cute hockey player Mike Fisher last July but, in our interview near UCLA in Los Angeles, Carrie told us they don’t have plans for a family yet.

Always an admirer of surfer Bethany Hamilton, who lost an arm as a teen in a shark attack, Carrie was delighted to take on her first film role in Soul Surfer as Bethany’s Youth Group counselor Sarah Hill. We’re talking films, fame and “American Idol”. Check it out!

TeenHollywood: We understand that this film was something you wanted to be involved with. When did you hear about it, how, and why did you want to do it?

Carrie: I have lots of people in my life, and they had heard that they were making a movie about Bethany Hamilton. I don’t know who reached out to who but one way or another I got a script, and I got the book, and I got DVDs and all kinds of information about Bethany and her story, which I’d heard of when it happened, but I didn’t know the ins and outs. When I read the script, I definitely wanted to be involved; such an inspirational story. Just to be a part of telling that was enough for me.

TeenHollywood: Did you pick out the role that you wanted to play as well?

Carrie: No. I feel like so many people, especially when they’re coming over from the music world, jump into a starring role and usually end up being made fun of, right? I know that music is my life, is my strong point, that’s my love, and this seemed perfect; this is the role they had in mind, and it’s a small role, but a very important role. The whole success of the film does not weigh on my shoulders as an actress. It was perfect. It all fit.

TeenHollywood: You had some very dramatic scenes with AnnaSophia Robb. What was it like working with her?

Carrie: She is amazing.  I'm very excited to see what she is going to do after this.  It's hard to believe she's as young as she is, because she is very mature, but not like creepy mature because sometimes you run into kids, where you have to say “Just be your age! Why are you acting like you're my age?” But she has got her head on straight. 

She’s just very talented and being around her, being able to feed off of her, I think I would have been very different if it had been a different actor looking at me.  She helped me so much and she knows so much and she was very encouraging throughout the whole process.

TeenHollywood: What was your biggest surprise being on your first movie set?

Carrie: It's just so funny how kind of sterile things can be. You're trying to be in the moment, but there are 50 people watching you at any given time. I've always done video shoots and stuff like that, but that's a smaller scale and there's not really lines you have to memorize.  But everyone was super nice and made me feel very comfortable and they were understanding that it was my first movie role.

TeenHollywood: You play Bethany’s youth leader. Was there a special youth counselor in your life?

Carrie: I had various ones throughout my church, but I would say my role model as far as just somebody leading by example, which to me is what a great youth counselor does. If it was someone who was there to talk to, and they lead by example, it would be my mom.  And she wasn't a youth counselor.  She was a teacher and she is a good person and definitely one of the biggest influences in my life.

TeenHollywood: Were you able to meet the actual youth counselor who you were playing, Sarah Hill?

Carrie: Yes. Everybody was there every day. I feel like we are probably a lot alike.  I haven't gotten to spend that much time with her, but she is very direct, and she'll be honest and kind of tell people how it is.  I really respect her.  And I learned more about her from listening to other people talking about her than I did from talking to her myself.  Bethany's parents were saying “She has helped so many people.  She helped her family so much” and they love her. They love her to death!

TeenHollywood: Are you a surfer yourself?

Carrie: I've been surfing once in my entire life, and I wasn't terrible at it, but my love for music is like the Hamilton family's love for water.  So I understand it, but I'll stick to music!

TeenHollywood: Would you ever go back into the water if something like that happened to you?  Bethany got right back in.

Carrie: It's tough to actually ask yourself that question because I have no idea what I would do.  But I would hope that if there were some random voice accident that I would be able to go back to singing!

It's a tough thing to put myself in her shoes, but maybe other people will see the movie and stuff that they thought they couldn't do, they will be able to do it again.

TeenHollywood: You studied journalism in college and you have a degree, and now you’re sitting on the other side. The tabloid culture is big right now, and many people like reading gossip stories. How do you see society now on those terms?

Carrie: It’s not the content of the story. I know people are really interested in everything that the celebrities are doing, even if you don’t consider yourself a “celebrity”, but what always would drive me crazy is, I took ethics classes in college, and it always amazes me how there would blatantly be something that I did not say in quotation marks.

That’s the first thing that we learned is, you better have it right. If you’re putting quotation marks around it, it better be exactly what that person said. It just gets so frustrating that it seems anybody can make up whatever they want to and say you said and there’s nothing you can do about it.  But then you can use your celebrity power to do good in the world too, so I guess it all evens out.

TeenHollywood: Have you had something major that you’ve had to overcome like this?

Carrie: Not like that. Oh gosh, not like Bethany. I’ve been so lucky in my life. I’ve never had any major physical problems or an accident, or anything like that. I’m a very, very lucky person thus far. But, seeing what Bethany went through and being able to get to know her firsthand, it makes me realize all the dumb little things in my life, that I’m like, “Why me? This is the end of the world!” Seeing her go through that makes all of my big problems seem [small].

TeenHollywood: Can you tell us about the initial meeting, when you met Bethany?

Carrie: I met her on set. It was all so quick; one minute we’re talking about the movie, and the next minute I’m flying out to Hawaii. It was so wonderful to have the whole family: Bethany, her parents, her brothers, everybody on set, working on the film. It was very encouraging. It made you feel like you were doing things the right way and you had their blessings.

She just wanted to surf; she didn’t hang around the set too much. She’d come for about half an hour or so, and then be like, “Yeah, I’m going to go.” She is what you think she would be; she’s an athlete, and she loves to be on the water.

TeenHollywood: You’ve said that you don’t really consider yourself a celebrity. How can that be?

Carrie: Well, first, I live in Nashville. When I’m on stage, I feel like a performer for sure. I know people are looking at me and taking pictures and all that stuff and singing along, and that part’s wonderful, but I live the most boring life away from what you see me on camera doing. The other 300 days out of the year I’m just the most normal person in the universe. I’m a wife, I’m a mother to my doggies, I’m a maid; I clean the house.

I’m pretty boring; we don’t ever go out to eat, we don’t do anything. I think that’s why I consider myself not a celebrity. I don’t know, I’m a normal person that sings on stage. Me, as Carrie wanders around in sweatpants. If I looked like this (all glammed up) and always wore make-up, all my friends would be like, “What are you doing? We’re going to TGI Fridays!”

TeenHollywood: A lot of people didn’t think “American Idol” would go without Simon [Cowell], how do you think it’s going? Also, you seem to be one of the American Idol winners that doesn’t mind coming back.

Carrie: I think the season’s going along really well with the new judges, with Jennifer Lopez and Steven Tyler. I feel like Randy [Jackson] stepped it up, and he’s a little more honest, a little more blunt. Steven is much more warm and caring than I ever expected this rocker guy to be. I like him. I think he’s very charming. J-Lo obviously looks gorgeous. It’s like week to week she’s more and more opinionated. So it’s really good. I think other people are enjoying them as well. It’s a good crop of contestants; they’re all very different.

TeenHollywood: And going back on the show?

Carrie:  I do enjoy going back because that is the only reason I’m in the music business, period. I had no idea how to get in any other way. It was this random shot, might as well. If I get cut in the first round, nobody will know, might as well do it. So I did, and that’s why I do what I do now, is because of that show, and I love seeing other people get the same opportunities and get to go on tour. You learn so much in such a short amount of time. I love going back because it’s nostalgic. I’m like,“That was me!” It’s like going back to school.