It's been over a month since we discovered everyone's love for the breakthrough vertical drama, True Heiress Vs. Fake Queen Bee. Your comments, reactions, and just everything you said about the show which we've referred to as The Kaplan Heiress were all well-received. In fact, The Kaplan Heiress' lead stars have heard you all loud and clear.
We couldn't calm down when rave reviews flooded our social media pages (yes—us, Cosmopolitan Philippines). And so we did what we needed to do: chat with Maya Jenson and Daniela Couso, a.k.a. the true heiress (Hailey Kaplan) and the fake queen bee (Candice Mathis), respectively.
The two have showcased their love and dedication to their craft even with a short vertical drama that only had an hour-and-a-half airing time. It might be too short or too quick for a series, but their impact was remarkably extraordinary—especially for the cast.
Getting To Know The Kaplan Heiress' Lead Stars
On their love for acting
A little after the New Year's celebrations made way, we took a shot to send in some questions for Maya and Daniela through an email interview. Thankfully, we all connected through Instagram, where they also shared their surprise and excitement over the positive feedback their show received, particularly from the Philippines.
But before the fame and the projects (and the subsequent memes) started coming in for the two ladies, we asked about the story behind their acting journey. Interestingly, Maya and Daniela were theater kids. They fell in love with the art of storytelling onstage.
Maya told Cosmopolitan Philippines, "I’ve always loved to perform. When I was little I would put on elaborate little shows for my family and I began performing in school plays when I was probably around 8. Once I started doing theatre, I quickly fell in love with being on stage and the feeling of performing for a live audience." She even highlighted that being a part of a thespian community led her to pursue acting as a profession.
As a sucker for musicals, Daniela almost took the same route as Maya, but it was a film that triggered her curiosity about acting in general. She started to love The Phantom of the Opera (a classic!!!) as a toddler. Then, she became a dancer before diverting her entire focus to musical theater. "Once I discovered musical theater, I switched gears and studied it all throughout high school," she shared. Although it was all about musical theater for her, the impact of acting on her was something else. It wasn't about the glam and the fame—for Daniela, she craved a connection with the audience.
She shared, "I love acting. There's nothing like watching a movie for the first time and connecting with the story and characters. Movies and performances have had a profound impact on me throughout my life, and my ultimate goal is to have someday the opportunity to move and inspire others in the same way."
On the set of The Kaplan Heiress
Watching The Kaplan Heiress, we couldn’t help but notice the classic clique drama we’ve seen in iconic chick flicks. And yep, Mean Girls (2004) definitely popped into our heads right away. True enough though, Daniela drew some inspiration from the queen from the 2004 classic coming-of-age romcom film: Regina George played by Rachel McAdams.
"When it comes to inspiration for the role, I didn't have anyone specific in mind, but I certainly drew from the iconic Regina George in Mean Girls. Rachel McAdams did an incredible job of humanizing the character while fully committing to Regina's more outrageous and questionable choices. I'd say Candice definitely shared some of those traits haha!" Daniela disclosed.
What fascinated us about our conversation with Daniela was her take on internalizing the characters that she portrays. Admittedly, she had built some immunity to playing some villain or comedic roles in her projects. With that, she stresses the importance of understanding her roles more than just playing them. "I've come to understand that it's crucial not to judge the character you're portraying. Instead, you need to dive deep into their psyche, uncover their hidden motivations, and explore why they are the way they are," she said.
Maya had a different take and routine towards creating Hailey Kaplan's persona. ICYDK, she created a playlist for Hailey to get into character. "For Hailey, I felt it was important to create a playlist. Hailey is a high schooler, and being able to capture that teenage energy that this show calls for was really important to me," she shared. For Maya, music was a way for her to fully embrace Hailey's whole being.
All of these preparations came with the challenging parts of filming a vertical drama. Creating this type of show may look easy for most people since it's short and direct to the point when it comes to its scenes. But in actuality, it's more fast-paced. Maya and Daniela briefly underlined the fact that there was a time crunch when shooting for vertical shows.
Daniela revealed that at most, they only have two weeks to shoot a range of 60 to 90 episodes. "We film a lot of different scenes during these 12-hour days, so it's a quick and chaotic process. But it's always a blast to be part of the chaos with such a fun cast and crew, and we get through it together," she stated.
Sharing the same sentiments, Maya also shared how fun the filming was amid the limited time they had. "I would say the most challenging part of filming was the short shooting schedule. We shot a 109-page script in 10 days, which is a very difficult thing to do. In some scenes, we would only be given one or two takes before moving on and there would be almost no downtime on set. It was exciting though, and I feel like whenever I get to work on a set like this, it is a great opportunity to challenge myself," Maya illustrated.
Maya and Daniela emphasized that, at the end of the day, it was all about creating a great show with a team of talented and hardworking people behind the scenes. Naturally, this led to plenty of fun moments with the crew. Maya fondly shared how they would take time to enjoy heartfelt conversations over lunch on set, making the experience even more special.
She also loved how they had such freedom in experimenting with ways to improve scenes altogether. Case in point: the dodgeball scene. Maya shares, "That was such an energetic scene to film and so much of the cast was involved. We had a lot of freedom to experiment and run around. It honestly felt like a real P.E. class and I just remember having a lot of fun with that one."
Speaking of fun, Daniela actually got to live her high school dreams of attending a senior prom because of the show! It was the "Spring Fling" scene that stood out for Daniela throughout filming. She recalled, "Everyone was dressed in beautiful dresses and suits, and we filmed in a high school gym that had been decorated by our amazing set designers. It truly felt like we were at a real school dance. I never had the opportunity to attend my senior prom, so I got a chance to finally live out my high school dreams with this one." Adorable!
The surprising but sweet success of The Kaplan Heiress
In an alternate universe, Daniela and Maya would've lived a little differently. Maya, for one, could've been a baker. If acting wasn't something within her reach, she talked about living slow days in some small town where she could bake and be surrounded by nature. "Baking is one of my favorite hobbies and I think that it could be creative and fulfilling. The idea of living in a slow little town with wild animals and beautiful trees while baking sweets all day sounds so peaceful." Cute, right?
She added, "I don't know how realistic that is, but honestly it's really hard for me to picture myself doing anything other than acting. I am so passionate about what I do and want to continue working in this industry as long as I can."
On the other hand, Daniela hadn't pictured anything else outside the creative industry yet. She's so in love with everything that comes with it that even if there's a chance that she couldn't be an actress, she'd still be somewhere out there performing.
"I'd definitely still be involved in the arts in some way. I'd probably pursue professional dance... My mom always says I was dancing before I was even walking, so I imagine I'd be deep in daily rehearsals, stretching, and maybe even performing on Broadway or as a backup dancer," Daniela divulged.
Well, in present times, Daniela and Maya have garnered so much attention with people loving their craft as actresses—and they are every bit grateful for it. They knew just how much Filipinos loved them and their show and it's now something ingrained in their acting careers that they work hard for.
"I know I sound like a broken record, but I truly can't express enough how grateful and thankful I am for all of you. The response to the show has been absolutely overwhelming, and I hope you'll continue this crazy journey with me. Hopefully, one day, I'll have the chance to visit the Philippines and express my gratitude in person," Daniela wrote in the final question of our email interview. (She even included a heart emoji!)
Maya noted that it was actually the first time in her career that she received such positive feedback from viewers.
"I've gotten so many kind messages from people all over the world, but nothing can compare to the love I have received from the Philippines. This is the first time in my career that I have ever experienced this sort of support and it truly means so much to me that so many people enjoyed our show. I feel so honored to have such a strong Filipino fanbase. I appreciate everyone who has watched our show and again, I want to express how grateful I feel to receive this support. Thank you," Maya told Cosmopolitan Philippines.
2025 is looking up for the two ladies as well. Daniela's booked with back-to-back vertical dramas and films which we're yet to discover, while Maya's deep into performing in a play in Los Angeles—plus some film projects that she'll share with her fans in the future.
The True Heiress vs. Fake Queen Bee may have had a shorter airing time and a fast-paced filming schedule, but its impact—on both the audience and, most notably, on Maya and Daniela—has been remarkable. Stepping beyond their roles as Hailey and Candice, they are now thriving as actresses who wholeheartedly love and embrace their craft, regardless of the format or medium.
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