High School Stars Railey and Seazynn Gilliland on Being Plucked From TikTok to Play Tega

Publish date: 2024-11-01

Before 21-year-old twins Railey and Seazynn Gilliland were cast as real-life indie-pop sister duo Tegan and Sara Quin in Amazon Freevee’s “High School,” they were working at Round Table Pizza in Fresno, Calif., and making goofy TikToks on the side. Neither really knew about the Grammy-nominated band —except when their growing TikTok fan base would point out their resemblance.

“We had heard the names ‘Tegan and Sara’ because people in my comments section would compare us,” Railey tells Variety on a gray day at a park in the Mount Washington neighborhood of Los Angeles. “But we never really looked into them.”

Then, Railey got a DM from Tegan, who had stumbled on her TikTok account. Tegan explained that she and Sara were adapting their bestselling memoir “High School” — which chronicles their teenage discovery of their passion for music — into a TV show, and were looking for identical twins to audition. Though neither sisters had acted, sung or played a musical instrument before (Railey says she’s never even been to a concert, though her first one will be Tegan and Sara next month), Railey was open to the opportunity. It took a bit longer for her sister to warm up to the idea.

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“I originally thought, ‘Why would we ever do that?’” Seazynn says. “That’s not what we wanted to do —we don’t want to be actors. But then I thought, ‘How could we get the job? We aren’t actors.’”

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But sure enough, after sending in a tape, doing a Zoom audition and meeting the crew in-person, Railey and Seazynn got the job. When it came to casting, writer, director and co-showrunner Clea DuVall wanted the series to be as authentic as possible — meaning she was looking for queer identical twins who were also musically talented.

“We knew that what we were asking for was a completely unreasonable thing. Because it was not just one person who could do those things — it was two people who look exactly the same,” DuVall tells Variety. “So then when Railey and Seazynn appeared via the TikTok algorithm, it was really unbelievable. And especially once they got the job and we started working with them, it was just wild exactly how perfect they were.”

Indeed, watching “High School” — which premiered on Oct. 14 — one would never guess that it’s Railey and Seazynn’s first foray into acting and music. To prepare, the twins worked with an acting coach four times a week for six months, along with taking guitar and singing lessons.

Below, Railey and Seazynn discuss stage fright, what they were like in high school and how they hope the show inspires other young members of the queer community.

It’s safe to say being cast in “High School” has changed the course of your lives drastically. Before getting the job, what were your career plans?

Seazynn: We had just worked in many food jobs, some together and some not. I didn’t have any set career that I wanted to do. I had done a semester in college, and then I didn’t like it. I had thought about going to cosmetology school but it was too expensive. I had wanted to be a firefighter at another point, but then I sprained my ankle so I couldn’t go to the program anymore. My mind was changing constantly about what I wanted my life to be, so at the point when we were reached out to, I had no idea.

Railey: For me, I had absolutely no ideas. I mean, at least Seazynn had some ideas and some ways to get there, like going to her firefighter thing. Me? No. Actually, as a child, I thought it would be fun to be an actor. It was just a thought, and I was like, I don’t know, that would kind of be fun. It was always in the back of my mind like, maybe I could be an actor, maybe I could do it. But I was never going to do anything about that.

Seazynn: P.S., she took us to a couple of Disney auditions. Railey had heard it on the radio and she took us to audition.

Railey: I was, like, 9 years old!

Seazynn: I mean, obviously she didn’t take us down there, but she had my mom and dad take us, and it was at this hotel and it was just a bunch of other 9-year-olds that wanted to get on Disney Channel. I think we did that twice, actually.

You mentioned earlier that neither of you had really sung before this. Did you have to sing during your audition, and how did you prepare for that?

Seazynn: Well, we were supposed to do that during the audition process, send in a video of us singing. And we didn’t. Railey found an excuse every single time, because she was the one that was mostly communicating with them.

Railey: It was either I communicate with them, or nobody at all.

Seazynn: So Railey would find excuses as to why we couldn’t send in a video of us singing, like, “She’s at work, I’m at work.”

Railey: And we would be together and I would say, “Seazynn, we need to film, we need to record just a small video of us singing, just very small.” And she would be like, “No, I’m not doing it.” So I’m like, “OK, I’ll just let them know we’re not here, we can’t do it.” And eventually, we still got the job.

Seazynn: Yeah, that’s the one thing I was not going to do. And if they said, “OK, then we’re not giving you the job,” then I would have said, “OK, that’s fine.”

Railey: Here’s what happened. We avoided every request to send in a video of us singing, but Seazynn was singing in a parking lot one time and I had recorded her. And so I sent it to Sara.

Seazynn: And I was singing “Tegan Didn’t Go to School Today.”

Railey: So Sara was like, “OK, they can do this.”

Seazynn, how did you get over that fear of singing in front of others?

Seazynn: Oh, I didn’t. Especially in front of the crew and everything. The first time I had to do it, Railey wasn’t even in the scene but she came into the room we were filming in and just sat there, because there was no other way I was doing it. Even every single time after that, when we had a scene where we were singing, it never got easier.

Railey: I had to sing first in the whole production, and oh my God, I had the biggest mental breakdown before I had to film that. I thought I couldn’t do it — I was sobbing on another set, and Clea had to come talk to me. She was the most helpful for every situation. She came onto another set with me and she was making jokes and she was like, “I’ll sing with you!” which was really nice. So we practiced before I had to film and I finally pulled myself together. I mean, that scene’s not going to be as good as I want it to be because five minutes prior I was sobbing, but Clea was so helpful in getting that done. I wouldn’t have been able to do that without her for sure.

In the show, viewers see Tegan and Sara going through a rough patch in their relationship, and music is what ultimately brings them back together. Was there ever a time when you two weren’t as close?

Railey: There were times throughout our life where we would drift apart and come back together. When we were the age that Tegan and Sara are in the show, just like the show, Seazynn had a secret girlfriend and we drifted apart. I didn’t really know what was going on, because we were also best friends with them. And I was like, “What’s going on? Why don’t they want me to be talking to them?” But nothing specifically that I can remember brought us back together.

Seazynn: We broke up.

Obviously, this show is called “High School” and explores Tegan and Sara’s teenage years. What were you both like in high school?

Seazynn: I was a cringey high schooler.

Railey: She was cringey, and I was a loser.

Seazynn: Loser is a little bit dramatic.

Railey: No, it’s not, Seazynn.

Seazynn: She was a churchgoer.

Railey: Freshman year to middle of junior year, I was going to church five days a week. I was insane. I wouldn’t even say that I was religious, I was just going to church. I was only friends with people from the church, and then I realized I was gay, left the church and started making my own friends. The last two years of high school, we started to act out a little bit, doing things we weren’t supposed to.

Seazynn: She makes it sound like we were doing drugs. We were climbing electrical towers and…

Railey: That’s not even what I’m talking about!

Seazynn: No, like we were stealing…

Railey: Anyways, I was a loser.

What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learned through this experience?

Seazynn: Before this whole thing, I would settle with life. And I think since this happened — I’m not typically OK with change, so with the change that we made, I’ve realized how much more there is to life if you’re not settling, and how important it is not to.

Railey: I realized that I love acting, and that that’s something that I really want to continue doing. When I started doing it, I just felt really good and it’s like, “Oh yeah, maybe this is what I should be doing.” I just really discovered that I have a passion for it.

Seazynn, do you want to continue acting as well?

Seazynn: Right now, I’m just hoping for a Season 2 because I would love to do a Season 2. But beyond “High School,” I think it’s tough to say right now. I really enjoy the production side of things and learning more about their jobs and what they do behind the camera. So I think that’s something that I’m a bit more interested in right now. But I mean, we’ll see.

What do you hope viewers, especially queer kids, take away from the show?

Seazynn: I hope that they’re able to see themselves on screen. I don’t think that there’s anything I’ve really seen on TV that I can feel that way. I know I played [the character], but watching it back, I feel that way.

Railey: I would say, especially to the young queer kids, that they’re not alone. I felt that way in not seeing myself on TV and being around homophobia and in the church and everything. I felt so alone. I didn’t have anybody that I could see myself in and relate to. But then being able to play this person that is feeling all of those things that are actually really normal, I just hope that people realize there’s other people who are going through the same thing.

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