Join us for a live virtual discussion featuring actors Mayan Lopez ('Lopez, Lopez'), Kayden Muller-Janssen ('The Villains of Valley View'), Madison Thompson ('Ozark'), David Iacono ('The Summer I Turned Pretty'), and Bebe Wood ('Mean Girls') as they discuss the unique challenges and opportunities for emerging actors.
This series of conversations with early-career artists explores the unique challenges and opportunities for emerging artists. This panel will focus on marketing and the various tools that our panelists use to promote themselves and their goals of raising awareness of their talent and work in the industry at large.
PANELIST BIOS:
David Iacono - is a true multitalented star on the rise with a passion for theater, film, and television. A graduate from the prestigious LaGuardia High School in New York, a public magnet, high school specializing in visual and performing arts, Iacono continues to propel himself forward in the industry.
Most recently, he was seen on season two of Amazon Prime Video’s young adult coming-of-age series “The Summer I Turned Pretty,” where he is reprising his fan-favorite role of ‘Cam,’ the straight-edged, cute, and book smart local boy who develops a relationship with ‘Belly’ (Lola Tung). Based on the hit book by Jenny Han, the series follows a love triangle between one girl and two brothers, the ever-evolving relationship between mothers and their children, and the enduring power of strong female friendship. The second season premiered on July 14, 2023.
Iacono was also recently seen leading the cast of Tubi and Village Roadshow’s thriller “Cinnamon.” The film follows a struggling small-town gas station attendant and aspiring singer, who meets a young hustler who quickly becomes her fiercely devoted boyfriend (Iacono). Both of their lives are sent into a tailspin after a fatal crime. The film also stars Damon Wayans, Hailey Kilgore, and Jeremie Harris. After premiering at the 2023 Tribeca Film Festival, the film was released on Tubi on June 23, 2023.
He recently wrapped production on Netflix’s Dead Boy Detectives. The drama series is based on the DC Comics characters created by Neil Gaiman and is described as a fresh take on a ghost story that explores loss, grief, and death through two dead British teenagers, and their very alive friend. Iacono stars as ‘David the Demon,’ a powerful and threatening demon who torments Crystal and the Dead Boys. The series is set to premiere in April 2024.
Iacono was also seen reprising his role as ‘Eli Briscoe’ in season two of HBO Max’s Golden Globe, SAG, and Critics Choice nominated mystery/thriller series “The Flight Attendant.” The series follows flight attendant ‘Cassandra Bowden’ (Kaley Cuoco) who wakes up in a Bangkok hotel room, hungover from the night before and with a dead body lying next to her. Iacono plays the son to ‘Megan Briscoe’ (Rosie Perez) who is a colleague and friend to ‘Cassandra’ and ends up in her own web of complications. The second season premiered on April 21, 2022.
Also in 2022, Iacono reprised his recurring role as ‘Faust Aquino’ in the third season of Showtime’s crime drama series “City on a Hill,’ which stars Kevin Bacon and Aldis Hodge. Introduced in the second season, Iacono’s ‘Faust’ is a classmate and potential love interest to ‘Benny Rohr,’ the daughter of Kevin Bacon’s ‘FBI Agent John "Jackie" Rohr.’ He also recured as the handsome and charming Brooklynite ‘Ralphie’ in seasons two and three of Starz’s drama series “Hightown.”
In 2020, Iacono appeared in Netflix’s “Grand Army” which tells the story of five high school students as they struggle with sexual, racial, and economic politics and fight to succeed and become somebody. Iacono starred as 16-year-old first generation Russian American ‘Bo Orlov.’ Though one of the strongest swimmers at Grand Army, ‘Orlov’ is known to be the fighter around school and likes to see how much he can get away with. The show launched globally on Netflix on October 16, 2020.
Also in October 2020, Iacono was seen in Netflix’s “Social Distance,” an anthology series from the award-winning team from “Orange is the New Black,” including Emmy award winner Jenji Kohan, Tara Herrman, Black McCormick, and Hilary Weisman Graham, who also served as showrunners. The show was produced remotely with a focus on the new bizarre, bewildering reality we are experiencing in the wake of Covid-19.
On the silver screen, Iacono’s past credits include “Joker,” “The Pastor,” “St. Vincent,” and “Choose.” On the small screen, he has been seen in “Blue Bloods,” “The Good Doctor,” “New Amsterdam,” “Strangers,” “NCIS: New Orleans,” “The Blacklist: Redemption,” and “Show Me a Hero.”
Iacono was born and raised and currently resides in Brooklyn.
Kayden Muller-Janssen - Born to two Dutch parents, Kayden was raised by her mom in Palm Beach County’s Wellington. Her immediate upbringing consisted of farm life, riding horses in the Winter Equestrian Capital of the World. While she developed a genuine love for a hobby inherited by her two trainer parents, she realized early on that a performative, theatrical side needed to be unleashed.
After being inspired by the film Catch the Kid, and Disney Channel’s popular Hannah Montana TV show, she knew an on-camera career was her calling. In no time, the aspiring star got into public stage plays and just-for-fun acting at home for her family.
Simultaneously, Kayden discovered she had a talent for singing, upon listening to one of her sister’s CDs with Christina Aguilera’s “Reflection” from Disney’s Mulan. This song kicked off her love for music on a whole new level, encouraging her to experiment with her vocals. She credits Aguilera, Britney Spears, Whitney Houston and Amy Winehouse for turning music into more than just her hobby. She went on to join Lake Worth Beach, Florida’s famed School of Rock at age 10, where she learned to perform songs by The Beatles and No Doubt.
But it was being bullied later down the line in middle school that encouraged Kayden to pick up the pen, starting at age 11. She grew up feeling different from her peers, whether in terms of wearing colorful hair accessories or her prepubescent body. Ultimately, insecurity and confusion sunk in, leading her to write about her feelings as a coping mechanism. Crying turned into humming, which then turned into melodies—and before she knew it, she realized she could carry a tune.
As she evolved personally, her trials and tribulations continued to set the stage for her music. Whether breaking-up with the so-called love of her life or getting into friend drama, she continued seeing music as a creative outlet to process her misfortunes. She began singing at parties for friends and family, and the most natural step from there was signing with an acting agent and going on major auditions in entertainment.
After hearing no plenty of times, Kayden would land the jumpstart role of a lifetime. With low expectations after sending an audition tape to Disney Channel two days late, she received a callback immediately, which led to a chemistry read with a new show’s lead, Isabella Pappas. A successful read led to her to land the role as Hartley in the sitcom, The Villains of Valley View. Viewers can catch Kayden (who is credited by her birth name, Kayden Muller-Janssen) as the effervescent neighbor to a Texan teen supervillain.
All the while, the multitalented performer continued making music, which she maintains is her utmost true love. Kayden landed a No. 1 spot with her hit “Kiss Kiss Baby” on the now defunct Radio Disney. She also scored a Top 5 most requested video on Music Choice with “Kiss Kiss Baby” and “Walk.”
In 2022 Kayden dropped her debut EP 'Unraveled' containing “No Maybe,” a track Kayden says she’ll love endlessly, written with Dustin Atlas about her biggest crush at age 13. “No Maybe” was followed by “Crave,” a cover of the Etta James song "I'd Rather Go Blind," and “Meant To Be.” The success of her music hasn’t gone unnoticed as was featured as one of People Magazine’s “Talented Emerging Artists”.
While acting and singing continue to be at the forefront of her life, the teen enjoys common extracurricular activities, including go-karting, snowboarding and hiking. She’s also made time for charity work, taking it back to her equestrian roots with involvement in Brooke USA. The organization works to improve the health, welfare and productivity of working horses, donkeys and mules, and the people who depend on them for survival.
The Villains of Valley View airs on The Disney Channel and streams on Disney +. Season 2 is out now. The new Disney darling has found her second home in L.A.—and when she’s not busy working, you can easily find Kayden sipping on a vanilla milkshake with her friends at Bob’s Big Boy in Burbank!
Mayan Lopez - is the co-creator, writer, co-executive producer and star of the heartwarming NBC comedy series “Lopez vs. Lopez” alongside George Lopez and Selenis Leyva, which will return for its second season this spring. Lopez conceptualized the series from her TikTok content, which she used as a creative outlet during the pandemic. She portrays a fictional version of herself, a modern Gen Z daughter working to rebuild her dysfunctional relationship with her old-school Latino father.
Lopez made her television debut in season 6 of the “George Lopez” show in an episode titled "George Rocks to the Max and Gets Diss-Ban-ded.” Later, she received extensive training at the Conservatory Program at Second City as well as the Columbia College Comedy Writing and Performance Program in Chicago. Lopez honed her improv skills while performing with various improv troupes late at night at Second City after the Main Stage shows and did voiceover work for the local Chicago and regional Midwest market.
Lopez serves as an ambassador for the National Alliance of Mental Illness, the nation’s largest grassroots mental health organization. By using her voice and platform, Lopez empowers Generation Z and Millennials to speak up and take action when it comes to their own mental health. She also continues to support the LGBTQ+ community and this spring will be seen as a guest judge on “RuPaul’s Drag Race.”
Lopez’s additional credits include “Handsome: A Netflix Murder Mystery,” “Other People,” “Jersey,” “Mr. Troop Mom.”
Madison Thompson - is a SAG Award-nominated triple threat best known for her role as ‘Erin Pierce’ on seasons three and four of Netflix's Emmy Award-winning series OZARK.
Most recently, Madison starred in the Emmy-nominated musical series GREASE: RISE OF THE PINK LADIES, a prequel to the beloved classic GREASE, for Paramount+. Madison was a standout as ‘Susan,’ leader of the Socs and the most popular girl at Rydell High School, with Collider praising her performance for “[finding] ways to make Susan escape the cheerleader stereotype, including finding new and delicious ways to be mean.”
Her other credits include Amazon's EMERGENCY, which premiered at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival, Netflix’s BOO, BITCH, and more. In addition to her acting career, she also works as a writer and producer.
Madison is Presidential Merit Scholar and recent graduate of the University of Southern California where she received a BS in Business of Cinematic Arts with Summa Cum Laude honors
Bebe Wood - is a Cuban-American actor, musician, and songwriter from Kansas CIty, MO. She started acting professionally when she was 10 years old with one of her first roles playing opposite Tina Fey in an episode of 30 ROCK. Now, 12 years later, she stars as ‘Gretchen Wieners’ in Fey's Mean Girls. Bebe is best known for her roles as 'Lake' on Hulu's critically praised Love, Victor, 'Shania’ in Ryan Murphy’s The New Normal and 'Shannon’ on ABC’s The Real O’Neals. She has also lent her voice to a plethora of Guillermo del Toro's animated series and films in the Tales of Arcadia universe. Her love for theatre and acting began at the age of three, when her parents took her to see a production of Chitty Chitty Bang Bang in London.
Bebe has had an immense love for music since childhood; she learned to play piano at age five and taught herself guitar as a teenager over the course of a summer. She sparked to songwriting immediately but only compiled them into an EP, 21st Century Hippie in 2019 when she was 18 years old. Each song captured the sounds and memories of a different moment from her teenage life, forging a brutally honest musical scrapbook. 21st Century Hippie is available across all streaming platforms.
Please feel free to submit questions in advance for our panelists here. The form will also be available during the program.
