Ella Bright had envisioned a conventional college experience. After spending her formative years on the British children’s series Malory Towers, the London teenager faced a decision: continue acting or prioritize her A-level exams and pursue higher education. Bright opted for a few final auditions before taking a break, with Off Campus, a new Prime Video romance series, being the last on her list. The then-18-year-old auditioned for the lead, college music student Hannah Wells, and ultimately never took that planned break.
“I did the audition, I got the part in this whirlwind month process,” Bright recalled. “It was like, okay, we only got two A-levels done, and I’m not going to college anymore. Here we go.” She described the experience as “daunting,” but added, “I just feel like I went with it full force because this was just a dream come true for me in so many ways.”
Based on the popular Elle Kennedy books, Off Campus delves into the lives of a college hockey team and the women in their orbit at Briar University. The series explores typical collegiate struggles alongside more profound themes. Following a strategy akin to Netflix’s Bridgerton, the first season of Off Campus centers on Bright’s Hannah and Belmont Cameli’s Garrett Graham, adapting “The Deal,” the inaugural book in Kennedy’s series.
Bright, 19, expressed her immediate connection to the material. “When the part first came through, I did a skim read of the book, and I fell in love with it immediately. Hannah is such a cool character that I feel so honored to be able to play her. She knows who she is. She’s not defined by her past.”
The romance genre, particularly sports romance, is currently flourishing, largely fueled by the success of BookTok and other online literary communities. Elle Kennedy is widely regarded as a pioneer in hockey romance, with Off Campus considered her seminal work, attracting a dedicated fanbase.
“I wasn’t expecting or aware of how popular this book series was,” Bright admitted. She recounted being approached by a fan on the London Tube less than 24 hours after her casting was announced. “This lovely girl comes up to me and says, ‘Oh my God, Ella, you’re going to be Hannah in Off Campus. I’m so excited.’ I was wondering, ‘What is going on?’ My friends were telling me how crazy it was. I was really not expecting that so early on in the process.” This enthusiastic reception continued into filming, where she found it “very surreal to have people come up to us, but it was also so heartwarming to see people say they’re so excited.”
Off Campus brought numerous new experiences for Bright beyond fan interactions. The actress, who humorously calls herself a “loud child,” comes from a non-entertainment background, making her career a collective learning journey for her family. “I’ve been working ever since I was 8, which has been really random, for lack of a better word, but I’ve just fallen so in love with it. I couldn’t imagine my life without this job.”
Before Off Campus, Bright spent years on Malory Towers, a series set in a girls’ boarding school in post-World War II England. “I grew up on that show, from 12 to 18, my whole teenage years. I was with a cast of girls, who are all my age, and they are, to this day, my sisters for life,” she shared. “It’s such a found family on that show, which I was so beyond lucky to find again on Off Campus. I went from one really strong ensemble to another.”
Indeed, Off Campus boasts a strong ensemble of young, emerging actors, in line with its evolving leading couple format. Bright noted that the cast members share similar professional experiences. “Everyone in this cast, particularly, I feel like we’re all in similar boats.” The actors actively supported each other during production and the press tour, always giving each other advice and being there to talk to one another.
The first season’s success heavily relies on the chemistry between Bright and Cameli, known for Peacock’s Saved by the Bell reboot. “I met Belmont in the chemistry reads, and it was an immediate, obvious answer that it was him,” Bright explained. “I think what really helped us build our teamwork was that we both really and deeply care about each other’s characters and our own characters.” The two developed a close bond. “Even for the more intimate moments, it was just like any other day on work — we were laughing throughout the whole thing. We would just get donuts and pizza afterwards. We both share a real love and excitement for this show that we can just feed off of each other in a really special way.”
As a hockey romance series, Off Campus has naturally drawn comparisons to Crave-HBO Max’s breakout hit Heated Rivalry. Although the Jacob Tierney-directed show premiered months before Off Campus, the Prime Video series had been in development much earlier, with both productions filming around the same time—Heated Rivalry in Toronto and Off Campus in Vancouver.
Bright expressed gratitude for the growing popularity of hockey romances. “I’m such a big fan of Heated Rivalry,” she said, adding that she even met Heated Rivalry star Connor Storrie at a party, where he expressed excitement to watch her show. Bright hopes fans of the Storrie and Hudson Williams series will also enjoy Off Campus. “I think they’re very different. The only thing that they share is this sport. I’m grateful that we filmed before that, and our show was in production way before I’d even heard of Heated Rivalry.” She further clarified, “Even when people think we’re copying or whatever, they’re very different, separate shows, which is really cool. Honestly, it was just exciting to see them blow up. I’ve loved watching their story unfold and just how people have our show in the same orbit has been really awesome.”
Looking ahead, Bright and the cast are set to return to Vancouver for season two of Off Campus. For Bright, who still resides with her family in London, filming season one marked her first experience living independently. “I’m looking to move out maybe in the next year or so, but I’ve been really enjoying spending time with my family,” she shared. “Between filming and school, I never really got a lot of time to be with my sisters and my parents and my dogs. It’s been really a special moment for me.”
Source link