"I've had a pretty weird childhood, but I've had a really happy one," says Mckenna Grace, the young breakout star of 2021's "Ghostbusters: Afterlife."
The 16-year-old actor has grown up on film sets since she was 6, and, in a little over a decade, already has over 70 acting credits to her name.
The chances are Grace has played one of your favorite characters — with a few years knocked off, anyway.
So far in her career, she's played a younger version of Brie Larson's Carol Danvers in "Captain Marvel," a preteen version of Kiernan Shipka's Sabrina in Netflix's "Chilling Adventures of Sabrina," and a young Tonya Harding in "I, Tonya," the biopic that earned Margot Robbie an Oscar nomination.
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In 2021, at the age of 15, Grace also became one of the youngest-ever actors in history to receive an Emmy nomination, recognizing her work as rebellious child bride Esther Keyes in "The Handmaid's Tale." (Alas, the award, for outstanding guest actress in a drama series, went to Claire Foy for "The Crown.")
"It's funny, because I barely remember shooting some of those scenes," says Grace, who adds that she recently rewatched "I, Tonya" during a rare break from shooting a sequel to "Ghostbusters: Afterlife," which is currently in production in London.
"Though, I do remember shooting the scene where I pee myself on the ice. So, I definitely was remembering that, and getting kicked out of a chair by Allison Janney," she says.
Grace, who turns 17 in June, reels off anecdotes from movie sets with an ease that belies her age. It is apparent, through her self-assured confidence, that she is destined for this. For the sets, the red carpets, and, yes, interviews like this one.
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"I really love what I do, and I don't think that there's another way that I would've rather grown up," she says. "I love having gotten to grow up on movie sets and getting to do what I love."
Grace's passion doesn't come across as superficial — it isn't just the bright lights of Hollywood, and the fame that comes with it, that energizes her. At least not wholly.
Instead, she gives the impression that she is a real student of the game.
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A self-confessed film geek, Grace says she has logged an impressive 57 movies on her Letterboxd account this year so far. And it's only April when we speak.
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"I am so obsessed with it," she says, mentioning a couple of her recent — and surprising — watches: the obscure 1998 drama "Buffalo 66" starring Christina Ricci, and the French sci-fi thriller "Oxygen."
Growing up in Grapevine, Texas, which, in 2021, had a population of just slightly over 50,000 people, Grace says she bonded over film with her dad. It's their mutual love of cinema that still defines their relationship today; her father will be visiting her in London soon, and she is excited to see "Evil Dead Rise" with him.
The actor has been filming the sequel to "Ghostbusters: Afterlife" in the British capital since March alongside Paul Rudd, Carrie Coon, and "Stranger Things" star Finn Wolfhard.
In the 2021 reboot — directed by Jason Reitman, the son of original "Ghostbusters" director Ivan Reitman — Grace played Phoebe Spengler, the precocious and scientifically-minded granddaughter of original ghostbuster Egon Spengler, the character made famous by the late Harold Ramis.
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Her assured performance was one of the movie's highlights, which is a tall order when you're acting alongside Ant-Man, Mike Wheeler, and original "Ghostbusters" legends Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, and Ernie Hudson.
"I rewatched the film just about a month ago. I hadn't seen it in a long time, and it was fun. It's so good. I'm so proud of that film," says Grace.
Grace can't talk too much about the sequel — on pain of being busted herself by movie studio Sony — but she's clearly excited to return judging by the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man photos in her phone case.
Although it's the silver screen that has made the biggest impression on her young life so far, as both an actor and cinephile, Grace is also experimenting with self-expression in a new way — as a singer-songwriter.
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In March, Grace released her debut EP, "Bittersweet 16," which is filled with angsty pop-punk numbers like "Buzzkill Baby," alongside softer, heartfelt tunes like "Post Party Trauma."
While it's definitely a breakup album, Grace jokes that she'd "never been on a date or anything" while writing it. Instead, she finds lyrical inspiration all around her.
"Sometimes it just comes from hearing a conversation and somebody says something and, like, 'Oh, that's a good song lyric.' I'll even just use a breakup with a friend, or just feeling sad or something. I'll just have experiences in my life and then I'll write about it in a song," says Grace, who adds that she has "over 300 notes" containing potential lyrics stored on her phone.
"I do write all of my own music, and I really like to make it as specific to my life as I can, just because I feel like I spend my entire life and career as an actor portraying somebody else's story. And so, I think that with music, I wanna be as personal as I can, and tell my own stories."
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Grace has spent much of her life so far sharing with the public, but there's something she wants to do for herself. A reminder that even though she has played a superhero, witch, and ghostbuster, she is still a teenager after all.
"The one thing I would like to do is go to prom," she admits. "Growing up, that's the one thing that I've always wanted to do is go to prom or a school dance and I haven't yet, and I'm still waiting. I actually got invited to a prom last year and I was shooting. Then I got invited to a prom this year and I was shooting."
Until then, she says, "I'll write a song about it."
