How Jillian Shea Spaeder Put All of Her Unique Talents on Display in Godmothered
If you haven't set aside time yet to watch Godmothered on Disney+, you are missing out.
It's a hilarious and heartwarming modern take on the fairy godmother story starring Jillian Bell, Isla Fisher and one of our favorite young multi hyphenates in the business, Jillian Shea Spaeder. And she doesn't just act in the movie—she sings, too—appearing on two separate goosebump-inducing songs on the Godmothered soundtrack.
We love how involved Jillian was with this role, and we got to learn all about it through this recent interview with the star. Keep reading to discover everything she had to reveal about the movie.
Sweety High: Tell us about Godmothered!
Jillian Shea Spaeder: Godmothered is about a young fairy godmother-in-training (Eleanor) who sets out to prove people still need fairy godmothers. She finds a letter from what she thinks is a little girl, but it turns out the letter was old and the person she needs to help is now a single working mom of two girls. I play the older daughter, Jane, who has a terrible case of stage fright. We find out at the end if Eleanor is able to help Jane and her whole family find their happily ever after.
SH: Do you have a favorite memory from the set of the film?
JSS: One of my favorite memories was Taco Night! When we were on a break while filming the big concert scene, Jillian Bell found out Isla Fisher had never had Taco Bell before. Jillian ordered a bunch of tacos that we passed around to the cast and crew, then a few of us sat down and watched Isla take her first bite. She said they were good!
SH: What was it like to record music for the Godmothered soundtrack? Was it exciting to combine your various talents for the movie?
JSS: Being able to do my three favorite things—act, sing, and play guitar—in one project was really a dream come true for me. Singing "Rise Up" with a choir behind me and a giant crowd in front of me was surreal, but super cool! When we first started filming, and I recorded the vocal tracks for "Rise Up" in the studio, the producers and director asked me to do a little bit of "Hero" as well for a scene where they needed a few lines of that song. I played them the whole song with my guitar. I found out a month or two before the movie came out that they liked the version so much, they wanted to put it on the soundtrack. That was another dream come true!
SH: What's the first thing you would wish for if you had your own fairy godmother?
JSS: It's a well-known fact among my friends and family that I want a Pomeranian—and I already have a name for her: Stevie! But Poms aren't hypoallergenic, so I would ask the fairy godmother to poof away my dad's allergies!
SH: How has the pandemic changed your life as an actress and musician, if at all? Has it been a challenge?
JSS: The quarantine has been a challenge for everyone, me included. With a lot of productions shut down, there weren't many projects shooting or auditions happening, so acting was slow. That gave me more time to focus on music. I did some virtual writing sessions with some co writers and producers, and I even wrote and released a song at home that my dad produced!
SH: Is there anything you can tease about your upcoming music?
JSS: I'm going to be releasing a whole album, which will include most of the songs I've already released, plus four or five new ones. I'm hoping to release it early in the new year.
SH: Is there anything else you'd like to add?
JSS: Go watch Godmothered, because everyone needs a little magic right now!
Want to get caught up on all the classics on Disney+? Click HERE to discover our favorite Easter eggs hidden in Disney movies.