Netflix viewers tuning into Wayward might feel themselves rooting for Alyvia Alyn Lind’s character Leile — especially if they were fans of her role as Angelica in Daybreak.
During an exclusive interview with Us Weekly, Lind, 18, weighed in on the similarities between her characters, saying, “Oh my gosh, I love that. I feel like I bring Angelica to literally everything I do in my life. I love that character so much.”
Getting the chance to play Leile was thrilling for Lind after Daybreak‘s short-lived run. The series debuted in 2019 but was canceled after one season.
“We were all so shocked and so upset. It was when we were filming and getting close to the end — it was not even really, like, an if we get renewed, but a when we get renewed,” Lind recalled. “We were talking about seeing each other in a few months. It was such a shocker.”
Daybreak was set in a post-apocalyptic world after a nuclear attack destroyed the adult population and left most teenagers alive. Adults were now zombie-like creatures called Ghoulies, and a group of misfits — including pyromaniac Angelica (Leile) — fought to survive.
After playing Angelica, Lind moved on to SyFy’s Chucky, where she scored the role of Lexy. She now stars on Wayward, which hit Netflix earlier this month. The series is set in a pleasant yet sinister town and explores the dark side of the troubled teen industry.
“It’s such an overlooked industry, and at the same time, it’s really not talked about as much as it should be. I’m really hoping that — if anything — that this show starts a conversation,” Lind explained about how Wayward highlights the dangers of the troubled teen industry. “It was a really eye-opening experience.”
Lind did extensive research for the role.
“When I got the audition, I did a little bit of research behind it. Then when I booked it, I went on a full deep dive. It’s all I did for weeks. I watched everything I could possibly find,” she shared. “I read every survivor blog, every documentary and read Paris Hilton’s book about her experience [at the Provo Canyon School]. I did everything I could possibly do.”
The actress specifically highlighted Netflix’s documentary The Program: Cons, Cults, and Kidnapping, adding, “I’ve been telling everybody, that when you’re watching this show to watch that as well. That is obviously a nonfiction version of our show. It is so disturbing and disgusting and terrifying.”
Wayward allowed Lind to push herself. “I love when I can just really sink my teeth into something and jump into it,” she added. “This was the perfect opportunity to really do all the research I could possibly do and really try to portray these kids that actually went through this in the best way possible.”
Lind called Leile one of her “favorite characters to develop” throughout her career so far.
“She has so many layers. She is obviously such a traumatized teen girl. I loved the aspect of her character where she uses humor as a defense mechanism and also uses her best friend Abbie [Sydney Topliffe] as a defense mechanism,” she teased. “Despite how thick her barrier is to let people in, you show those little cracks that show she’s just a 16-year-old girl. Behind that tough wall that she puts up for everybody.”
Lind continued: “I talked to Mae Martin — our showrunner and amazing star of the show. They were so helpful with helping me create Leile. They were there any time of the day for any question. Like, anything that I could possibly ask, they were there and ready to help develop. This is their baby and they’ve been working on this project for so many years. So I really wanted to get it right for them and that was also another responsibility.”
Wayward is streaming on Netflix now.
