Actress Chloé Hollings: I am 100% certain that 75% of our troubles would be solved instantly if every child had their physical, emotional, and psychological needs met
I believe there is an emergency, to take better care of the children of our world — to educate them, to protect them, and to turn them into happy, healthy, wholesome, autonomous adults that will not want to kill each other. I am 100% certain that 75% of our troubles would be solved instantly if every child had their physical, emotional, and psychological needs met. If I could use my influence, that’s where I’d direct it. Changing our educational systems, letting parents home from work at reasonable hours, learning to communicate respectfully, etc. There’s so much to do.
We had the pleasure of interviewing Chloé Hollings. Famous worldwide for incarnating Widowmaker in the video game “Overwatch” and after starring in the famous series “Versailles”, by Jalil Lespert, in “Valerian and the City of a Thousand Planets” by Luc Besson, along with Cara Delevingne, the French / British / Australian actress Chloé Hollings will feature in the new Netflix / Canal Plus series “On The Verge” by Julie Delpy, released in September 2021.
Born in Paris, France, Chloe Hollings grew up in Melbourne, Australia, where she started her career at age 8, as a voice-actress for the most prominent publishers in English-learning audio workbooks (Hachette, Nathan, Magnard, Hatier…).
Chloé entered the prestigious theater class of Jean-Laurent COCHET, former member of the Comédie Française, as she turned 18, and hasn’t stopped acting ever since : from theatres, television films with actors such as Jean RENO, to the first French Imax feature film, “Sea Rex” (“Océanosaures 3D : Voyage au Temps des Dinosaures”), Chloé Hollings played all around the world, from France to Hollywood, California, where she is now based.
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Our readers would love to get to know you a bit better. Can you tell us the story of how you grew up?
Thank you, I’m happy to answer your questions! I was born in Paris, France, and then my family moved to Melbourne, Australia, when I was 4 years old. Just a few years, but it was enough to impact me for the rest of my life. When I was 7 we returned to Paris and never moved back.
Can you share a story with us about what brought you to this specific career path?
I was very fortunate, in that my mother was chief editor of a small magazine, and once a year they hired voice actors to play out some fun scripts. I was 8 when she decided to get me on board, and that’s when I started learning voice acting, which would later become one of my main career paths. I discovered the joy of interpreting roles, and being around artists, which made it clear for me as I grew older that I wanted to be an actress.
Can you tell us the most interesting story that happened to you since you began your career?
The most interesting story might be the most random one: as a French actress living in Paris, going to a voice audition and booking it, and later realizing that this “gig” was for one of the biggest videogames in the world, Overwatch. I went to the audition extremely casually, without realizing it had the potential to completely turn my life around — which it did!
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?
It takes a village, as they say. In the arts, and more specifically acting, you achieve success with the help of many, many people: there are teachers that made me better and helped me discover my true purpose; there are casting directors that believed in me and fought for me; there are our acting partners without whom nothing is possible; there are the writers of the great parts we get to interpret; there is the audience that pays money to enjoy what we do; there are our friends who support us emotionally when we feel rejected and hopeless; fellow actors that will help out with a self tape or will read lines with you… It’s very humbling to think of the great number of people that need to get involved for one person to be, or to feel, successful. Definitely a team effort!
You have been blessed with great success in a career path that can be challenging. Do you have any words of advice for others who may want to embark on this career path, but seem daunted by the prospect of failure?
Get clear as to why you want to follow this path. That’s the only thing that will keep you going when times get tough. When I started, I honestly believed theatre and film had the power to change people, and to change the world. I truly believed that I was providing a great service to society by accepting to play out situations, and tune into some dreadful emotions, so that other people could open up to their own trauma.That’s just me, and whatever your reason is, that’s great, but it has to be important enough to keep you going. I would also encourage you to take the notion of failure out of the equation… You’re embarking on a fascinating journey, be willing to discover what that journey looks like for you. There is no “failing” — there is just the path. It’s like going to Greece for two weeks and when you get there it rains nonstop. Have you “failed” at your trip? No! Would you have preferred to stay home? Probably not… Something will come out of it, just be open to finding out what that will be and take the leap.
What drives you to get up every day and work in TV and Film? What change do you want to see in the industry going forward?
The great characters, the great stories, the great lives that need to be told on order for humans to become better, and to do better. That’s what I live for. I wake up with the desire to understand another person, and understand why they are who they are. The industry has been both a wonderful space and in a lot of ways, a toxic one. I hope to see more diversity in my lifetime, of race, gender, age and body-types. As well as working conditions that are respectful of everybody, including the crews who often sacrifice so much just to be able to do their job. I also hope to see more risks taken in terms of writing, more originality — do we really need a fifth, sixth or seventh sequel for this ‘90’s blockbuster? You know, those types of things. Let creatives do their thing, and come up with whatever their brilliant minds have been brewing!
You have such impressive work. What are some of the most interesting or exciting projects you are working on now? Where do you see yourself heading from here?
I’m currently writing my second book, so taking a short break from acting because writing requires a lot of focus. I’m also developing my new podcast, A Taste Of Honey. It’s about real-life miracles and it’s such a joy to do!
We are very interested in looking at diversity in the entertainment industry. Can you share three reasons with our readers why you think it’s important to have diversity represented in film and television? How can that potentially affect our culture and our youth growing up today?
Well, let me give you an example. When I was 9 years old, I started pulling my belly in because I thought I was too fat. Nine! That is the direct result of only ever seeing skinny women on TV and in magazines, and believing, at such a young age, that to be thin was good and to be fat was bad. We need to recognize ourselves in our daily encounters, and whether we are aware of it or not, images are so omnipresent that they play as members of the tribe for us. They influence us. They become our “models”. So, of course it is important that there are diverse human beings on our screens and in the stories we tell. We’ve recently started to talk more about diversity of race and gender, but I would also like to see more body types (again, between “thin” and “fat” there is a whole scale to be explored!), and humans at different ages (there is also a large scale between “young” and “old”).
Can you share with our readers any selfcare routines, practices or treatments that you do to help your body, mind or heart to thrive? Please share a story for each one if you can.
I am a deeply spiritual person, and so I have a ton of little habits that help me. For example, I observe the events that take place in my life, and treat them as clues that will help me know myself better. I look at them like elements from a dream that I can interpret… It’s quite fascinating. But, practically speaking, I meditate daily, which makes me feel grounded and over time, has helped me be more relaxed through life’s ups and downs. I make sure to always acknowledge my emotions, with no judgment. I have removed processed sugar and added sugar from my diet, which I believe helps both my mind and body. I am more calm, more myself, without sugar in my life. And I surround myself with people who make me feel safe and supported, I just have no energy for the others anymore.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
“The best way out is always through” by Robert Frost –
I think of this one when I’m facing something difficult, and I’m happy to say that as I get older I’m getting better at it. When pain, grief, deep sadness come up, I just let them take me over completely, I move forward with my emotions, no longer trying to push them away. I let them be and I let myself be ripped apart, until I get to the other side. I know that trying to repress feelings only makes you stay with them longer. Move forward, the sadness will end and you will have grown.
You are a person of huge influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be?
I believe there is an emergency, to take better care of the children of our world — to educate them, to protect them, and to turn them into happy, healthy, wholesome, autonomous adults that will not want to kill each other. I am 100% certain that 75% of our troubles would be solved instantly if every child had their physical, emotional, and psychological needs met. If I could use my influence, that’s where I’d direct it. Changing our educational systems, letting parents home from work at reasonable hours, learning to communicate respectfully, etc. There’s so much to do.
Is there a person in the world whom you would love to have lunch with, and why? Maybe we can tag them and see what happens!
I’d love to have lunch with Elizabeth Gilbert, I think we’d have a lot to share ☺
Are you on social media? How can our readers follow you online?
Yes! My Instagram is @chloe_hollings, my Twitter is @hollings_chloe!
Thank you for this great interview.
Actress Chloé Hollings: I am 100% certain that 75% of our troubles would be solved instantly if… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.