The cast of “Legally Blonde” prequel “Elle” developed a special bond during filming.
“We hung out in[Elle star Lexi Maintree’s]room and watched ‘Legally Blonde,’” Daniel Chand exclusively tells Page Six.
“It was interesting to watch the movie with Lexi because she knew all the words,” she added of the 2001 classic. “I think she saw this movie about 150 times. We just fell in love with it and loved it.”
“Elle,” currently streaming on Prime Video, was executive produced by Reese Witherspoon.
The show follows Witherspoon’s iconic Legally Blonde character Elle Woods during her high school years in the mid-’90s, when her family is forced to move from Los Angeles to Seattle.
Minetree stars as the teen version of Elle.
Chand plays Shannon, a popular girl at Elle’s new school. In Legally Blonde, Elle is the ultimate confident sorority girl, but in Elle, the title character thinks Shannon is the coolest and desperately wants to be friends with her.
While the other students ridicule Elle, Shannon is the only one who is kind to her.
“Me and Shannon have a lot in common in that we’re very welcoming and very upbeat,” Chand said.
“First time anywhere can be scary, and I always try to be a kind and welcoming face to everyone,” she explained. “So when I found out that this is how Elle and Shannon met, I thought, ‘This is perfect!’
This show will be Chand’s first major role.
The Canadian actress told Page Six that she was taking acting classes when she got the call that she had won the role.
“I ran outside because I wanted to answer the phone alone, because I didn’t know what was going to happen on the other end,” she said. “And as soon as[my agent]told me I was booked, I ran back inside with my class and had one big group hug. And I just rolled my eyes and burst into tears.”
The film also marks James Van Der Beek’s posthumous role, as he filmed the film before his death from cancer in February at the age of 48.
Leximin Tree/Instagram
“I didn’t get to meet James Vander Beek,” Chand said. “But we’re really happy that he was able to join the show and that his legacy will live on.”
She continued: “And everyone who talked to him or met him said he was a real pleasure to work with.”
The show has already been renewed for a second season, but Shannon’s future remains uncertain in season one.
When asked if he would appear in season 2, Chand told Page Six, “You’ll have to wait and find out.”
