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First Posted: 2/13/2011
Less than two years ago, Dianna Agron was just another pretty face in a town full of pretty faces. Then came “Glee,” in which she brought poignancy to the plight of pregnant cheerleader Quinn Fabray. Suddenly, the whole world fell in love with the 24-year-old actress from Savannah, Ga.
These days, Agron is so in demand that her toughest assignment is trying to let casting directors, album producers and tour managers down easy.
“Sometimes you just have to say no,” she relates. “You have to protect the integrity of the show, your health, the character, all these things. So now it’s just about finding the right moments for everything.”
Last year, director D.J. Caruso approached Agron about “I Am Number Four,” a sci-fi fantasy executive-produced by Steven Spielberg and Michael Bay. Agron was in the midst of a tour with her “Glee” castmates, but she jumped at the chance to star in a big-budget adventure she describes as “Rebel Without A Cause” with aliens.”
Says Agron: “I literally went to the film straight from doing the ‘Glee’ tour. We finished up at Radio City Music Hall, and that night I flew to Pittsburgh (where the movie was being shot). It was a chance to step into a different world.”
Based on a book by Jobie Hughes and James Frey, “I Am Number Four,” opening Friday, spins the saga of nine humanoid aliens hiding out on earth. One by one, the exiles are being destroyed by visiting alien bad guys hellbent on world domination. Number Four – a.k.a. John (Alex Pettyfer) – is a high-schooler who discovers he’s next on the hit list.
Luckily, Number Four has two things going for him: He’s beginning to develop superpowers, and he finds a surprise ally in Sarah (Agron), a senior who agrees to keep his secret while helping him battle the evil forces.
Agron says it was easy for her to relate to the feisty Sarah.
“I was never a cheerleader when I was in high school,” she notes. “I was a dancer. That was my way out of normal school experiences. But I was part of the yearbook staff, and I’ve always had a love for photography, like Sarah.
“As soon as I read the script, I knew there were certain qualities that I wanted to bring to Sarah. She has this wanderlust. She has aspirations to travel and to see the world. And she has a bit of an old-soul quality to her.”
When Sarah meets Number Four, she realizes she’s found her soulmate.
“It’s almost like a chance to start over with him because he’s from out of town, and there’s something kind of mysterious about him, but he’s also kind to her,” Agron notes. “They very quickly form this very serious relationship, and then things get somewhat crazy.”
Although she’s a Southern gal by birth, Agron was primarily raised in San Francisco, where she became obsessed with becoming a dancer thanks to a series of classic movie musicals.
“As I child, I was a big fan of ‘My Fair Lady,’ ‘Funny Face,’ ‘An American in Paris’ and ‘Singin’ In the Rain,’ ” Agron says. “Those were just perfect movies to me. I fell in love with … Audrey Hepburn and Leslie Caron. And then I started ballet when I was 3.”
Agron credits her self-confidence in going out on hundreds of acting auditions to her dance training. One of her first big breaks was playing a snotty cheerleader on NBC’s “Heroes.”
Ironically, before she was cast in the role, Agron had a hard time convincing producers and directors she could portray anyone but the girl next door.
“I remember so many people saying to me, ‘Well, you can’t read for the mean-girl character because that’s just not how we see you.’ And I would say, ‘But it’s acting, you know. I’m an actor.’ “
“Glee” was a game-changer for Agron. The musical comedy series was nominated for 19 Emmy Awards during its first season and almost instantly became one of the most buzz-worthy shows on TV.
Not only is the series a consistent ratings champ and critics’ darling, but recordings of numbers performed on the show have racked up more than 13 million digital single sales and 5 million album sales.
The great thing about playing Quinn Fabray, Agron says, is that the character has allowed her to show off a range of emotions. “Quinn started off as a mean girl, but then she became pregnant and humanized,” the actress notes.
Unlike some TV performers eager to make it on the big screen, Agron is still very much committed to the series that made her a star. Her favorite “Glee” episode, she notes, was the recent tribute to Michael Jackson’s “Thriller.”
“It was really big dance numbers and pyro and zombies and fog and a lot of Jane Lynch, which is always good,” she says. “Always good.”
When Agron’s workload gets too exhausting, her favorite escape is travel. While she’s weighing movie offers for her second-season hiatus from “Glee,” she’s also hoping to sneak in a trip overseas.
“I’d love to take my camera and just go,” she says. “I’ve vowed this summer (to visit) Asia because I’ve done a lot of Europe, and I’ve done Australia. I want to see Africa, too but I’m afraid if I go, I may never come back. I just might go live with the animals, adopt an elephant and have a friend for life.”