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Hollywood newcomer Rachel Stubington is currently lighting up screens in the Apple TV+ series “Shrinking”, where she stars alongside Jason Segel and Harrison Ford. “Shrinking” follows a grieving therapist (played by Segel) who starts to break the rules and tell his clients exactly what he thinks. Ignoring his training and ethics, he finds himself making huge, tumultuous changes to people’s lives … including his own.
Stubington is also keeping busy with her second project of the year, the upcoming Lifetime original movie “A Rose for Her Grave”, where she will star opposite of Chrishell Stause and Colin Egglesfield, which will be released on February 18th.
Born and raised in Los Angeles, Stubington spent most of her youth recreating “Saturday Night Live” skits with her three younger brothers. Her love of comedy and performing started at a young age and paved the way for years of acting classes, improv, and musical theater. (She would even spend her summer at Jewish sleepaway camp, creating sketches with her friends for the camp’s talent shows!)
Beautify.tips caught up with this firecracker of an actor to learn about her recent roles, her love for comedy, and of course, the beauty products she can’t live without.
You must be so excited for the release of “Shrinking.” I would love to learn a little about your overall experience filming the series.
It was truly the best experience-the environment was fun and supportive, I worked with the most incredible cast and crew, and I ate so, so many free snacks on set. I constantly wanted to cry out of happiness, but I wouldn’t let myself because they did my makeup too well for me to ruin it. Getting to be part of “Shrinking” was a dream come true and I am so incredibly excited for people to get to watch it!
Tell me about “Summer” the character you play in “Shrinking”. Is she anything like you in real life?
Summer is Alice’s best friend, and no quote can truly capture her better than, “we can drink a lot, like I want to throw up.” She deeply cares about Alice and has a much cooler wardrobe than I did in high school. Summer and I are similar in that we will both only drink white claws if they’re black cherry and we want the best for our friends.
The biggest difference between us is that she plays soccer and more importantly that she’s good. I played soccer in middle school to impress boys and after two years of not scoring a single point, I finally kicked the ball into a goal…my own team’s goal… no boys were impressed.
Haha! (Ouch.) So when did your love for comedy begin?
I’ve been seeking constant external validation from the ripe age of ten when I realized that my Sketcher Shape-Ups and crush on Kermit the Frog weren’t going to be the things to make me popular. I soon realized that for me, making people laugh was the most rewarding feeling and I began to chase it.
I would obsessively watch “Saturday Night Live” and “The Simpsons” and force my brothers to act out sketches with me, I’m pretty sure they still hold a grudge. My love for comedy took me to the Groundlings and Second City and my passion for sketch comedy was put on display in UCLA’s annual Spring Sing, a variety showcase.
Who were some of your early comedy role models and who do you admire now?
Kristen Wiig, Maya Rudolph, Tina Fey and Amy Poehler were my role models growing up. I loved “Bridesmaids” so much that I quite literally made my mom put a six minute clip of the movie in my Bat Mitzvah montage. After watching “The Office” in high school I became in awe of Mindy Kaling. I’m such a huge fan that I joined a sorority in college because she said in her book that she was in a sorority and I wanted to do everything I could to be just like her. But it wasn’t until I paid for registration that I got to the place in her book where she said she quit very soon after joining… I think there’s a life lesson in there.
As someone that knows the horrors of showering in a frat bathroom where the only thing to cleanse yourself with is a 4-in-1 bottle of old spice, I am absolutely appalled that I have not yet been on “The Sex Lives of College Girls” and am still waiting for my call.
It looks like 2023 is going to be a big year for you! What are you looking forward to most?
I’m so, so excited to see the rest of “Shrinking.” The first two episodes made me cry and I will definitely remember to wear waterproof mascara next Friday, when the next episode airs. Additionally, I’m in a movie coming out on February 18th called “A Rose for Her Grave: The Randy Roth Story” which will be on both the Lifetime Network and Hulu. Career aside, I haven’t been to a Cheesecake Factory in ages and definitely see that for myself in the upcoming weeks.
Would love to talk beauty… what makeup trends are you into?
I have an unhealthy obsession with lip gloss, I like to lather as much as I physically can on my lips. I also may have mentioned it a few times in this interview, but I’m very prone to crying and waterproof mascara is an absolute game changer for me. I’m super easily influenced by TikToks and I saw someone do their contour before the put any other makeup on their face and then cover that with foundation so I’ve been really into doing that lately.
What about your nails? What’s your go-to style?
I recently did the Gel X manicure and it’s actually changed my life. I have a habit of biting my nails so having long, strong nails for once has made me a new person. I can get rid of any itch almost instantly and my hands look stunning. I’m a huge fan of sparkly nails, especially light pinks with shimmer.
Tell me about three of your holy grail beauty products and why do you love them.
- Deva Curl products are the absolute best for curly hair. As a proud Maxxinista I’ve come to realize that they almost always have their leave in conditioner at TJ MAXX and I probably go through a bottle a month. It leaves my curls so moisturized and gets rid of frizz.
- If anyone’s interested in smelling like me, I cannot start the day without covering myself head to toe in Le Labo’s LYS 41. If peace and happiness had a smell it would be LYS 41. 10/10 recommend.
- Just to plug waterproof mascara one more time, I firmly believe it is an absolute must. Imagine being able to watch “The Fault in our Stars” and not needing to run to the bathroom after to fix all the smudges so no one can tell how hard you were crying. I use the Lancôme Lash Lifting Waterproof Mascara and it makes my eyelashes stunningly long.
What’s the best beauty advice you were ever given and who gave it to you?
The best beauty advice was given to me by my nana, “Always wear sunscreen!”
