Olivia Scott Welch | No Walls Make Thee A Scene Stealer

ETRO suit, KING & TUCKFIELD shirt, FENDI bralette, ROSEARK ring, and GLADYS TAMEZ hat.

Olivia Scott Welch is currently enjoying the limelight as Samantha Fraser in fan favorite Netflix Fear Street film trilogy. In the film, a group of teenage friends find the ancient evil responsible for a series of brutal murders that has haunted their town for over 300 years—a slick and entertaining nod to 90s horror flicks. Earlier in her career, Welch can be seen as Olive through a couple episodes of Modern Family. More recently, the 23-year-old Texas-born actor stars as Heather Nill, a recent high school graduate on the Amazon Prime show Panic.

The teen drama, which premiered in May of this year, features 47 graduates participating in the annual Panic competition, whereby the winner takes home a cash prize of $50,000 that will allow them to escape their small Texas town of Carp—the competition, as you might imagine, is pretty fierce. Welch also notched roles in the crime and drama limited series Unbelievable as Amelia, and IFC’s comedy romance effort, Shithouse, as Jess. Here, she fields a few of our pressing queries.

GUCCI dress and shirt, DIOR earrings and ring, and GENTLE MONSTER glasses.

Where do you hope to see change in the world?

I hope to see change in the ways that our government and society treats victims of sexual assault.

What is your most prized possession and why?

One of my best friends sent me a copy of Robert Crumb’s Dream Diary during quarantine, and it was so special. I will cherish it forever.

Do you feel like you're a part of ‘New Hollywood’? How so?    

I think so. I think it will continue to change and evolve. Along with acting, I feel really passionate about producing and also writing. I’m excited to find movies to bring to life in whatever form that takes. 

What is your favorite on-camera scene you’ve been a part of? How come?

The entire grocery store sequence in Fear Street 1994 was so epic and something all of us were so excited to film. When we got to it in the shooting schedule, it was truly go time.

What was the last cheesy thing you witnessed that made you cry? 

There was that viral snow day letter from a West Virginia superintendent that went around during virtual schooling in the winter and that absolutely destroyed me. 

Which cartoon character, past or present, do you most relate to?  

Maybe Snoopy. I love Snoopy. He feels like a kindred spirit. 

GUCCI dress and shirt and GENTLE MONSTER glasses.

Where do you go, mentally, physically, or otherwise, that brings you solace?

I take a lot of baths, and it’s become a huge decompression thing for me. I am also a big fan of background noise. Finding the right background noise helps me so much to process my thoughts.

What’s one of the biggest lessons you’ve learned throughout your time of acting?

A big lesson I’ve learned is that you can’t have walls up at any time to be an effective artist. There were times when I was (and still can be) really guarded, and I would push my emotions around to make them fit in whatever box—and that’s only hurt me in my life and also as an actor.

If you weren’t acting, what would you be your professional pursuit and why?  

Fashion is a huge part of my life and a deep passion. I would have loved to work at a magazine or as a stylist.

Which meal or food do you find the most nostalgic and why?

Campbell’s Chicken Noodle Soup. The original one, with only noodles and like.... the idea of chicken. I used to eat it all the time as a kid and will sometimes buy it just for the nostalgia.

What do you wish you had more time to be doing?  

I feel like I have all the time in the world and just need to be better about not using it to stare off into the void. 

ETRO suit, KING & TUCKFIELD shirt, FENDI bralette, and GLADYS TAMEZ hat.

Photographer: Jonny Marlow
Stylist: Dani + Emma
Hair: Clayton Hawkins at A-Frame Agency
Makeup: Loren Canby at A-Frame Agency
Written by: Eloise de Farias