Sam Morelos
Emily Soto
In the new Hulu original comedy Summer of 69, Sam Morelos stars as Abby Flores, a socially awkward high school senior who’s determined to win her crush after learning he has recently broken up with his longtime girlfriend. When Abby hears of his particular fondness for a certain sexual position, she hires a local stripper named Santa Monica (played by Chloe Fineman) to give her a crash course in the “bedroom department,” leading to an unlikely friendship and a journey of self-discovery.
Poster for ‘Summer of 69’
Courtesy of Hulu
There’s a lot to like about comedian Jillian Bell’s directorial debut—its quirky humor, the nods to classic teen comedies like Risky Business, its ability to entertain audiences without being too raunchy (there isn’t a single sex scene in Summer of 69, despite the title). But perhaps the best part about the movie is Morelos’ show-stopping performance as Abby. Morelos makes Abby wholly believable and endearingly awkward, delivering lines with an impeccable comedic timing usually seen in only the most seasoned actors.
It’s hard to believe that Morelos is only 19 years old and just finished their freshman year of college. They enrolled at NYU’s prestigious Tisch School of the Arts last August—less than two weeks after filming for Summer of 69 had concluded.
“It was the craziest turnaround,” Morelos tells Forbes. “I wrapped Summer of 69, had a vacation for like a week, and then two days later, I moved into my dorm.”
For the young but already in-demand actor, a packed calendar is nothing new. Recently they’ve been cast in the upcoming screen adaptation of the Colleen Hoover novel Regretting You, which completed filming in Atlanta earlier this month.
“I would fly back and forth to New York like every other weekend from Atlanta. I’ve been on a plane 12 times in the past month,” Morelos says.
Fortunately, that dizzying schedule has taught them to strike a healthier balance between school and acting. “Because I had that experience, now I know for the future that it’s not worth putting 50% of yourself everywhere. I’m learning to choose one at a time,” the busy actor admits. “I feel like my college experience is not going to be linear. If I don’t go to school, that means I’m working, and I get to learn somewhere else. And if I don’t book, that means I get to go to school. I tried to have both things at the same time. I’m glad I did it, because now I’m not gonna do it again.”
SUMMER OF 69 – An awkward high school senior hires an exotic dancer to help seduce her longtime … More
Disney
Morelos, who grew up in San Gabriel Valley just outside of Los Angeles, started out doing musical theater in their local community at the age of four. “I was a singer first. I didn’t think I was a very good actor,” Morelos reveals.
The budding star was studying musical theater at a local performing arts high school when the pandemic hit. They credit one of their acting teachers at the school for making them fall in love with acting. “She was like, ‘We can’t do musical theater on Zoom. Let’s make this a camera acting class,’” says Morelos. “I was like, ‘Oh my God, I love this!’ And then that year, I switched into the acting department, and it was that year that I booked That ‘90s Show.”
That ‘90s Show—the spinoff of That ‘70s Show—was Morelos’ first taste of professional acting. Morelos, who received rave reviews for their performance as Nikki Velasco in the sitcom, eventually landed the role at the age of 16 after submitting to an open casting call, launching their whirlwind introduction to Hollywood.
“I got the call that I got ‘90s on a Thursday, and then on Friday, I told my teachers that I’m not going to be in class for two months. Saturday and Sunday, we had to find some way of getting a work permit really quickly for a minor, and then Monday, I was on set for pre-production, COVID testing and costume fittings,” Morelos says.
“So yeah, in conclusion, I don’t sleep, and I haven’t slept since,” they comment half-jokingly.
Summer of 69 marks Morelos’ feature film debut. As for what drew them to the movie, Morelos remembers “laughing out loud” when they first read the script and thinking that it was something they would want to watch. “And the more I got to know Abby, and the more I got to know about Jillian and the production and what the messages were, it went beyond my expectation of what this movie could be, which is—at its core—a movie about self-love, confidence, taking your own time to do things and being true to yourself,” Morelos says.
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Disney
“Also, the makeover that Abby undergoes is not the typical ones that you see in these teen sex comedies, where the protagonist takes off her glasses, takes her hair down. The second that she fits into a mold of what a woman is supposed to look like and be, she’s desirable,” Morelos points out. “It was so not Abby. Abby’s a nerd. Abby likes to game, and the second that she started to really embrace the things that she loves about herself, she [becomes] a magnet to other people, because people really want to be around people who know themselves.”
To bring Abby to life on screen, Morelos explains that they focused heavily on physicalizing the character. “I thought a lot about how Abby takes up space—just physical space. How does she carry herself? How does she walk? She waddles a little bit. She’s very stiff. The posture that she has is very hunched over and almost protective—like she’s protecting something about herself,” Morelos says.
“But as she gets more confident, you see her spine straighten a little more, and you see her more willing to take up space,” Morelos goes on. “There’s a parallel shot of Abby walking across the parking lot at the very beginning, and also at sort of the middle. We shot [both scenes] on the same day because it’s the same setup, but in one, I was hunched over with my head down, and in the second take, Abby was waving to people, like, ‘Oh, hey, how are you doing?’ Just taking up space. Abby never changed—she just grew.”
Director, co-producer and co-writer Jillian Bell and actor Sam Morelos on the set of the Hulu movie … More
Brett Roedel (Courtesy of Disney)
Morelos notes that they and director Jillian Bell—who also co-wrote the screenplay—shared the same perspective on Abby, which made the character feel very relatable to Morelos. “Jillian had a very specific vision for Abby, and we just happened to agree. It was really inspired by her life, because Abby is Jillian, almost. And Santa Monica kind of represents the mentorship that she got from her older sister Breanna, who produced Summer of 69.”
It also helped that, like Abby, both Bell and Morelos came from a Catholic background. “Jillian went to Catholic school, [where] topics around sex are just shrouded in shame and guilt. I’m the kid of two immigrant parents from the Philippines, and I grew up Catholic and went to church every Sunday. So it was something I could relate to,” says Morelos.
“But I don’t think it’s a coincidence. It felt like fate,” they add.
Sam Morelos as Abby Flores and Chloe Fineman as Santa Monica in ‘Summer of 69’
Brett Roedel (Courtesy of Disney)
Like Morelos, Abby Flores is of Filipino descent, but the character wasn’t originally written that way in the script. “The audition that I got was any ethnicity, and then the second that I was cast, Abby’s Filipina,” Morelos says. “Same as in That ‘90s Show—Nikki never had a last name, and then season two, it was Nikki Velasco. I think that I’m so vocal about it that productions can’t unhear my voice being like, ‘Yeah, I’m a proud Filipino American.’ It’s a huge part of my identity. It’s the one thing I can’t take off. So every single character that I will ever be will always be Filipino. Always.”
In Summer of 69, Philippine influences can be seen throughout Abby’s house, though Morelos points out that they fortunately didn’t have to push for any of that. “Our set designer is also an Asian American woman. So she knew,” says Morelos.
Besides the Philippine flag proudly displayed in Abby’s room, elements of her Filipino heritage can be found throughout the kitchen. “There’s a whole box of mangoes and shrimp chips. There’s a ‘Live Laugh Love Lumpia’ sign. Like little details,” Morelos explains. “And for some reason, in every Filipino household, there’s a giant wooden fork and spoon decoration in the kitchen. Don’t know why, but that was in there too.”
And with Summer of 69 premiering in May—which also happens to be AAPI Heritage Month—some viewers might be wondering: was that a pure coincidence?
“It’s fate,” Morelos says with a smile.
Summer of 69 is currently streaming on Hulu.
