I was checking out some of your seriously devoted fan sites. They're so sweet, and you really seem to give back a lot to your fans.

Yeah, it's so flattering that people sort of embraced this crazy character of Cindy Campbell and just are fans of what I do. It's really wonderful. Though I now see the importance of maintaining some distance for security reasons.

Have things gotten a little scary for you?

Not really. You do hear awful stories. More and more people have been warning me about not to have any contact with fans. Like if you write your fans, don't get personal at all, just send them a photo. Just sort of keeping a distance. At first I was so excited that people liked me in the movie that I would write everybody back. Not like a letter, of course, but I would sign a personalized photo. Sometimes attach a little Post-it note saying, "Thank you so much. "

You worry that people might take that the wrong way?

I do get letters from prison and people who want to establish a lot of contact. You have to use your head.

How has your life changed since the first "Scary Movie"?

Now I'm able to make money off what I love to do. So that's the biggest thing. Before I never thought of acting as a career. It was always sort of a hobby. Otherwise, not a lot has changed. I lead a pretty low-key, private life, which is really easy in L.A., where there are so many stars who are much, much bigger than myself. I do live in L.A. -- I probably wouldn't have made that choice if I wasn't acting. I have Seattle roots.

So you're not really into the whole Hollywood scene?

No. My favorite things to do are spending time with my fiancé [actor Ben Indra] and my family and my close friends. I love to cook and I love to hike and I love to shop. I do love to shop. But I don't really go to a lot of events and I don't really like to go out to clubs or anything. It's just not my style. I'd much rather go to a dive bar or a local place. I just don't love feeling awful, having to tell people, "Hi, yeah, I was in 'Scary Movie.' Do you mind if we come in?" I mean, it's so awkward.

Is fame what you thought it would be?

Gosh, yeah. I guess it kind of was. It is the way it's portrayed, you know. The red rope and all the beautiful people. It's very self-perpetuating. It loves to be what it is, just to hold up that reputation.

Did anything about it surprise you?

I think how beautiful everybody was. I knew there were beautiful people here -- I just didn't realize how beautiful. And, I think, the awfulness of the red rope, how exclusive places have to be. The pandering to the stars is so extreme that it's still shocking even if you've heard about it.

In an interview in Raygun magazine a couple of years back, you bemoaned the overemphasis on looks in Hollywood, blaming L.A. for your skinny physique and saying, "It's a little weird, all the stuff about boobs." Do you still feel distressed by the focus on actresses' physiques?

You know, not as much. But I do think it's the physical differences that make you special. Debra Messing once said, "I was convinced I would not be funny with huge boobs." And although "Scary Movie" might try to disprove that, I really admire her. I think it is your differences that make you a person and help the audience relate to you.

Do you ever get irritated by the pressure to look a certain way in Hollywood, to be thin, for instance?

It annoys me a lot. I have a few friends who have slightly bigger bone structures, just bigger frames than I do, and they have a hard time getting work. It really seems like you can't be too thin here.

You posed for Maxim, which I guess for a while every up-and-coming starlet had to do. Were you conflicted about doing that spread?

No. I wanted to do something sexy, but not too sexy. I wanted people to see me a little sexier than I am in the "Scary Movies." And I wanted to feel sexier. But would I do it again? No.

Why not?

I guess I don't feel as desperate. I feel like there was a time and a place maybe a few years ago, when people like Kirsten Dunst were doing it. Now it's like everybody's doing it.

How did the "Lost in Translation" role happen for you?

I had to kind of fight for that role. Sofia wasn't familiar with "Scary Movie," but one of her producers was and he brought me in to audition for her. But it was really early in the process -- before Bill [Murray] was attached -- and I think she wasn't sure what her vision for the character was yet. So I was on the back burner and I think she had a bunch of other girls read for her. Eventually she looked at my tape again and I got it. It was just wonderful working with her. It's an actor's dream. She just let us do whatever we wanted. You have to understand her vision, but she gave us so much freedom. It felt so good. Even having done all the improv for "Scary Movies" and stuff, it was just so rewarding to be able to play such a specific, well-written character that it seems like we all know versions of here in L.A.

Recent Stories