Freya Tingley is an Australian
actress who has made an impact in
Hollywood with roles in the popular
series Hemlock Grove, Once Upon a
Time and the Clint Eastwood directed
film Jersey Boys. Her fairytale
beginning seems destined to continue
with enchanting prospects ahead.
You were born in Perth, and you began working
as an actor when you were very young. Was it
always your ambition to be a part of this industry?
I had always been a really creative child. I loved
painting and singing and dancing, making things basically all things creative! The first thing I wanted
to be was a singer but I was acutely shy when it came
to singing in front of people. I then really wanted to
be a catwalk model because "performing" in front of
an audience exhilarated me, and I had/have a big love
of fashion. Then when I was about nine I saw Spy
Kids and felt inspired to be a spy. It was the idea of
dressing up and tricking people with an identity
which really excited me. Unfortunately, the realities
of being a spy hit me a couple years later when my
mum told me it was a dangerous profession and one
can get killed partaking in secret service shenanigans!
Which brings me to acting. I took part in a
commercial acting workshop when I was 14 and
enjoyed it so much I then signed up for weekly acting
classes. From that day forward I decided I was going
to be an actress!
You had some roles in Australian films and TV
series, such as Cloudstreet, before you began
working in the US. What made you decide to move
to the US, and was it a difficult transition to
make?
Ever since I started acting I knew that the US was the
place to be because that's where all the big movies
come out of. I moved when I was 17. Making the
transition to the US required a lot of determination
and hard work. Getting that 0-1 visa to work in the
states can be a hard task, as many Australians know. I
was very, very lucky, and still am, to have incredibly
supportive parents who have supported me all the