Malia Baker FAULT Magazine Covershoot and Interview

Photographer – Ben Cope
Fashion Editor –  Edith Walker Millwood
Stylist – Mickey Freeman
Make up – Eliven Quiros
Hair – Adrianna Michelle
Interview – Amirah Jones

With Season Two of The Baby-Sitters Club debuting in less than one week, I was able to sit down and chat with the amazingly talented Malia Baker, who plays Mary Anne Spier on the Netflix series. Not only does Malia play this role as a super sweet and shy tween going through the many phases of life as we all once did during our middle school days but she is involved in so much more! Malia is extremely passionate about continuously growing and learning throughout all aspects of her life. From Nickelodeon’s “Are You Afraid of The Dark” to a Lifetime movie coming out in 2022 and Malia’s major strides in activism work, there’s nothing she can’t do. We dive deep and discuss it all today! 

The Baby-Sitters Club ,season two, returns to Netflix on October 11th! That’s super exciting and congrats! In middle school,high school, and all throughout life we do so much growing and changing as people. Without giving us too much, in what ways has your character, Mary Anne, grown from the first season to now? 

MALIA BAKER: By the end of Season 1, we see Mary Anne directing a play, which is way out of character from her original introduction. Not only is she directing the play but she’s also starring in it, which leads to so many other events like her first kiss and what it feels like to be in the spotlight. Throughout Season 2, we see that arch continues through a lot of challenges and triumphs. Mary Anne gets to nurture people, which is something we didn’t see a lot of in the first season. She goes in full on Mom mode for a lot of the characters, which I loved portraying and I’m just excited to see everyone’s perspective on it. 

In The Baby-Sitters Club, Mary Anne is pretty shy and reserved compared to her friends. How would you describe yourself in your friend group? 

MALIA BAKER: Honestly, my friend group are the girls from the show! They’re family and we’re all very similar to our characters, so I would indeed place myself as Mary Anne. I’m definitely more outspoken than she is but at heart, we both are shy introverts. 

What’s a role or character you would want to play in a tv series or movie sometime during your career? 

MALIA BAKER: I’m a big fan of Marvel! During quarantine, my friend and I watched all the Marvel movies which was super ambitious of us but we did it! I saw “Shang-Chi” in the theaters, my first Marvel movie in real time which was cool. I would love to play someone from the Young Avengers! My friend Dawn (Xochitl Gomez) from Season 1 of “The Baby-Sitters Club” is actually the new America Chavez, so I’m definitely fan girling her! That Avengers series is so cool, that’s definitely a dream of mine! 

What’s one thing of importance that you’ve learned that you will be taking with you throughout your acting journey? 

MALIA BAKER: There’s so many things you learn! It’s not the kind of job that you go into fully prepared. You 100% learn on the job and there are little things that progress as I grow as an actress. One of the biggest things I have learned was that if you’re not learning or learning something new everyday on the job, then it’s time to switch it up. Mark Feurestein, who plays Watson on the show, told me that the first time I met him on set! Also, I’ve learned that setting boundaries is so necessary! As a recovering people pleaser you get tired and have to take a step back sometimes. You have to respect yourself and learn what your boundaries are! 

Along with being an actress you do a lot of activism work, which is so dope! When, how, and why did that begin? 

MALIA BAKER: There’s not even a time or place I can pinpoint for when it all started. I can’t say “that’s exactly when I knew and that’s when my whole awakening started…I can now speak in front of thousands of people. I’m so confident!” That wasn’t the case whatsoever. I remember being very passionate about these things when I was younger. Being a young, BIPOC girl there’s a ton of experiences that have built up for me wanting to help others, speak to new things, and that’s really what started it. It’s something that’s been in me for as long as I can remember! Now, with a platform, it motivates me even more because I’m able to share my opinions, values, and things that need to get done in the world with so many people! 

You are the co-creator of Hashtagsand, which is a community that you created with your mom that pushes everyone to do more work outside of just using hashtags about the many issues going on in the world. How has that experience been like being alongside your mom, making a huge impact on changing the way we approach racism, transphobia, etc.?

MALIA BAKER: This came about in 2020 because with so many things going on with Black Lives Matter, yes it’s great spreading awareness but at the same time if you’re just posting a hashtag or a black square and then going back to posting your bikini photos afterwards, it’s treated more as a trend rather than a major issue. I wanted to do my part to spread awareness but also sign petitions online, sending emails, etc. My mom and I wanted to get those opportunities out to people who want to help but may not know where to start and want to go beyond a hashtag. That’s the main root of it and we hope it can grow into a community where it’ll be an easy and attainable resource to help people in the long run. 

I know people may think social media can be a lot sometimes, with information overload, but how important do you believe it is for us to have and efficiently use social media during these times right now? 

MALIA BAKER: If you want to use your platform for things you care about and are passionate about, that’s amazing! You want to spread your voice, especially for people who may not be able to use their voice. I’m not a big social media person. I’ve never been the type of person to take a selfie and then post it online. That’s just not something that comes natural for me but for others it’s the complete opposite. I just really try to have a good balance between the things I care about, whether that be sharing my voice about activism and acting. Even posting photo shoots which are so much fun because I’m around so many fashionista and then times like this interview where I’m connecting and chatting with someone. 

What are three things about you that most people do not know? 

MALIA BAKER: 1) I don’t like bananas. I know that’s super random but I really despise them for some reason. I’m not sure where that came from but it’s there. 2) I played the drums when I was younger. Music is a big thing in my family and I’ve continued with the piano and guitar but the drums was something I was super passionate about. 3) My favorite animal is a cow. They’re just so cute! 

Can you tell us a little about this new movie you’re starring in the Lifetime movie “Caught In His Webb” produced by the legend, Whoopi Goldberg, which releases in 2022? 

MALIA BAKER: When I got to audition for this I was super excited. There are so many twists and turns and at certain points while I was reading the script I was like “AHHH no way!!”. When the cast and I read the revised scripts together, we all were astonished by certain parts because it’s so unpredictable. The bittersweet part about this is that it’s based on a true story. It was really a huge moment for the three of us, the three girls who are all a part of this. It was so much fun to film and includes such an amazing cast. Yay 2022!!! 

What is your FAULT? 

MALIA BAKER: People pleasing is definitely one I have to consider for myself, especially being in this industry. It goes pretty hand and hand with boundaries because it’s something we all can learn from. There are some people who have mastered that, which is definitely something I’m reaching towards every step of the way. I’m working on not people pleasing to the point of putting on an unrealistic face 24/7 and wanting to appear perfect everyday. I’m learning to just show up authentically myself. We’re all human!