IGN INTERVIEWS ERIN CAHILL
Our 1:1 with the lovely co-star of the new Fox comedy Free Ride

IGN FILMFORCE: So how is it going today?

ERIN: Good! I actually have to pick up my demo tape on the way home... It's the exact opposite way of where I'm going in Hollywood. Oh, what a day, what a day... Sooo, hi!

IGN FILMFORCE: So, to start off, give me the background story on how you first got involved with the show.

ERIN: I just auditioned. I got so lucky. My agent sent me in and said, 'It's improv' and I said, 'Well, I've never been improv trained, but let's just play and have fun and give this a whirl and it worked out beautifully!

IGN FILMFORCE: Did they give you an improv test and throw things at you?

ERIN: The auditions were really cool... It was so fun and exciting and a little bit nerve-wracking. When I went into the audition, they literally had a paragraph about the character... A little tiny paragraph and that was it. And you went in the room and Rob [Thomas] (creator and exec producer) was there... He just asked me questions as the character... As Amber, about my family, about brother and about my fiancé and it was all off the cuff and it was so much fun because I just got to make up whatever I wanted. I tested I think twice and they brought in the people they were looking at for Nate... So that was fun, but non of them were Josh... But I'm so glad it was Josh. None of them could hold a candle to him... He's phenomenal to work with...

By the way, I'm like sometimes kinda fun, but right now I'm the lowest energy girl in the world.

IGN FILMFORCE: No worries. It's print, so I can make you sound high energy.

ERIN: Thanks! Just throw in lots of exclamation points!

IGN FILMFORCE: So, once you got the part and got on set, how daunting was it to be up against guys with so much improv experience like Josh Dean and Dave Sheridan?

ERIN: It was really intimidating at first, but mostly it was just great. They are so loving and so great to work with and everybody was so open and so supportive... In the beginning, when I was getting my footing, they were like, 'Hey, that was really good...'

IGN FILMFORCE: Was there anything you were able to bring from your experience as the Pink Power Ranger to Amber?

ERIN: Ohhhh! I knew you'd ask about that! You know, I love them too. People are like, 'Are you tired of people calling you a Power Ranger?' I mean, definitely everything has its day and I'm ready to be known for other things. I literally have people go, 'Oh my God, you're the Pink Power Ranger' and I'm like, 'I do other things!' But, you know, it's so cool! I saved the world for a year. It was amazing. I really learned how to act on camera through Power Rangers because I hadn't done a lot of film and TV. I had done mostly stage...

[At this point in the interview, Cahill stops at her destination and realizes she doesn't have change for the meter. She puts me on hold briefly while she tries to score some pocket change.]

IGN FILMFORCE: Pretty soon, the show will be a hit and it will be no problem for you to borrow a quarter from someone on the street. They'll be throwing quarters to you.

ERIN: (Laughs) That's hilarious.

IGN FILMFORCE: Tell me about what it's like when you get to set. I understand they basically just give you an outline.

ERIN: It's literally just like a little paragraph outline of the scene and then they're like, 'Okay, go!' It's like nothing I've ever done before. It was really fun, like playing a game.

IGN FILMFORCE: Which cast member cracks up the cast and crew the most?

ERIN: It was equal between Josh and Dave, but probably Dave would do the most outlandish things...

IGN FILMFORCE: With a show where you shoot so many different takes, are you surprised when you finally see the way it's all been edited together?

ERIN: Yeah, it's wild! In other programs, you at least have somewhat of an idea, but this one you do so many takes and you do so many things and you try so much. But yeah, I literally was like, 'I have no idea.' I saw things that I did where I was like, 'Wow, I did that with my face?' or 'I said that?' It's so wild.

IGN FILMFORCE:: What else do you have coming up besides the show?