Melissa's denim shirt on Abbott Elementary was a deliberate reference to The Parent Trap
Lisa Ann Walter knows you all love Chessy — and she is just as fond of your love for The Parent Trap character.
So much so that she included a reference to the 1998 film in a season 2 episode of Abbott Elementary.
In episode 204, "Principal's Office," Janine (Quinta Brunson) visits Walter's Melissa Schemmenti at home when Melissa offers to teach her to cook. In her more casual clothes at home, Melissa is sporting a denim over-shirt. The look blew up the internet with many fans noting the shirt's similarity to Walter's costume as Chessy in The Parent Trap.
Walter tells EW that wasn't just coincidence, but instead a purposeful Easter egg that she asked the wardrobe department to include. "I wanted to dress a little bit differently at home," she says. "They said, 'Well, what do you want?' And I went, 'I'm in my kitchen. We're standing over food. Let me throw a little Easter egg for the Chessy fans because they're so vocal and I love them and they all dress like the character. So, let me do this."
ABC/Gilles Mingasson; Walt Disney Pictures Lisa Ann Walter in 'Abbott Elementary' and 'The Parent Trap'
There was only one hiccup — costume designer Susan Michalek had never seen The Parent Trap. "I showed her the iconic picture of that scene — that everybody dresses as when they send me pictures of themselves dressed like the character. I said, 'You don't have to do the chinos, but let's do the shirt.' And I didn't think necessarily people were going to get it. I thought it was going to be just for me. Or a couple of people get it because they're really into it, but everybody got it and went nuts with it. It was really fun."
Walter once again took center stage in Wednesday's midseason premiere of Abbott Elementary, as Melissa and Janine got competitive over the school read-a-thon. Janine was determined to beat out Melissa, as the reigning champ, but Melissa quickly encountered more meaningful challenges in her classroom as one of her students, Mya, struggled with reading and teasing from her peers.
When Mya brought in a reading log insisting she'd read 25 books in one night, Melissa called in the child's parents, only to find them reluctant to acknowledge their child might have a learning disability. Instead, Melissa took Mya aside, confessed her own complicated history with reading, and provided the student with some resources that she had found helpful as a kid.
We got to sit down with Walter after an early screening of the episode on the Warner Bros. lot and chat about what it was like to bring this softer side of Melissa out to play, what she used in her own history to relate to the moment, and what might lay ahead for Philly's favorite firecracker.
ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY: This championship belt for the read-a-thon that Melissa carries — what's the backstory on that? Did she make it?
LISA ANN WALTER: It's from Donuts, the pizza shop [that sponsors the read-a-thon]. I don't know why they made it like that, but it's hilarious if you see a close-up on it. We were totally into it. There were books and symbols and all sorts of stuff on it, apples, slices of pizza, all these little things. It was adorable. And I just love the visual of holding the belt.
You have this great storyline with the student who's struggling to read and that being part of Melissa's backstory as well. Do you know in the writer's room where that came from? Is that something that you could personally relate to from family or anything?
I don't know who originally came up with the idea. I remember when Quinta first told me about it. They wanted to do a story about a kid struggling with a learning issue. In terms of being able to relate to that specific one, no, I was a really good reader. I was the opposite. I did have, what in those days never would've been diagnosed, ADHD. But in a way that's hyper-focused. Once I start doing something, I can't stop. I want to finish the book. I would actually stay up late with the book under the covers. I'll never forget in my economics class, I was reading Gone With the Wind or The Autobiography of Henry VII, some book that was like a thousand pages. And I had it inside of my economics books. And my teacher said, "What are you doing?" I just lifted the book up inside and she was like, "Oh yeah, that's good. Go ahead."
Math to me was hard; that was the one that I didn't get. I went to advanced algebra when I started middle school because of how I tested. And then I got in there and the teacher shamed me about wearing a halter top and sent me to the office. It was traumatic. And then I just never got the math. It took me four years to graduate from first year algebra. I hated it. Numbers made no sense to me. But words I got. However, I was heavy. I was a fat kid. Being shamed for that and being teased for that was what I used as an actor to replace.
The scene with the parents who are in denial will be familiar to any teacher. Was that challenging to shoot? It's a real departure for Melissa.
It's tough for Melissa in a number of ways. We're used to seeing her being very straightforward and not tempering her words. She's really a truth teller. She tells it like it is. But in this case, these are people that she recognizes are new immigrants, and it's very important for them that their child do well. It's hard for them to hear that they might be having a problem. She's not going to be her usual brash self. To do that relationship in a much quieter way than we're used to seeing Melissa. It was a question of being honest in the exchange with them. I loved doing that scene, even though as the character, I felt off balance and not really successful.
I will just say that I'm really grateful for fact that the writers and Quinta are so committed to giving me an opportunity to not just be wisecracking and in on the gags. She is very supportive and vocal about how much she appreciates my straight acting.
Will we see more between Miss Schemmenti and Mya this season?
I don't know. Let's put it to you this way — I haven't seen a script yet where we revisit that. But that doesn't mean it's not going to happen. What I've seen in this show is that in a previous season, we could not finish a story or we get part of the story and then they talk about it as we move forward and we see more of the character.
ABC/Gilles Mingasson Lisa Ann Walter as Melissa Schemmenti
Will we see more of Melissa's own relationship with reading pop up? Because that was key in her figuring out what the rules of the contest actually were.
That's another thing that's wonderful in terms of playing things out. The writer's room will take a piece that we saw in 102 and then bring it back. They've got a problem with such and such, so make that be the issue of why they missed it. So it's entirely possible that that'll come up in the future. But I think also that Melissa's character is somebody that would've taken that challenge, the thing that she was teased about and become so aggressive about it, that she now is a voracious reader and loves to do it.
She took the initial loss a lot better than expected. But was she secretly plotting revenge on Janine? Maybe going to call one of her cousins?
There are things that she takes a little more lightly. Obviously the reading thing is important because of her relationship with reading. But it's still a contest in school and she doesn't want the kids to feel bad. Number one is that she wants to protect the kids. The reason why she cheated in the egg drop is because she didn't want the kids to feel bad. And it didn't matter. They weren't going to learn physics. She knows for a fact that was not going to happen in this grade. But in terms of the reading, once she found out, they lost, her whole attitude is "protect the kids." And maybe get revenge on Janine, but not now when she's expecting it.
We know Melissa is ultra-competitive, but did the read-a-thon hold a lot of significance for her because of her personal history?
Every competition is important to her. That's why she's such a huge sports fan. She likes aggression, she likes the fight, she likes the win. She loves rooting for something. This making it personal was extra important to her, but overcoming all of that was the importance of helping this little girl.
She did overhear some of the developments in the Janine-Gregory (Tyler James Williams) situation in the teacher's lounge. Might she inveigle herself in that further?
It's so funny with Melissa because the way it's written, it's up and down with her. She'll hear something or Janine will say something in one and she's like, "We all know. We're in the same school with you. We see you. We're not shocked by this." Because she's a truth teller. She'll be like, "Yeah, we get it. We already know. It's not big news." But also she's very committed to "mind your own business." It's not your business, so stay out of it.
Speaking of people minding their business, will we see more of her sister this year?
Yes. You will. And you will be incredibly excited. It's actually a storyline that when people were asking me last year, "What do you want to see happen?" I was like, "I'd like to see this happen." That's what's happening. I can't tell you any more than that. It was literally a world that I wanted to see them in and I can't wait for you to see it.
We've heard her talk about her vending machine man, but we haven't really seen him much. Might he turn up?
Yes. You will see him as well. And it's great.
Can you tease next week's episode?
The students are fighting, and there's a storyline about fantasy football. There's some competitiveness.
This interview has been edited and condensed for length and clarity.
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