Just when I thought I couldnt love her more...
Mischa Barton had barely begun to shed her image as Marissa, the spoiled teen she played in The O.C., when her world came crashing down. There have been bust-ups with former beaus Brandon Davis and Cisco Adler, her troubled sister Hania's rehab stint, and this week she faces court over her DUI arrest. But, as the 22-year-old starlet tells Woman's Day, she readily accepts she has to grow up fast - just like her character in her new wartime film Closing The Ring.
Do you feel pressure to be a role model, especially after your DUI arrest?
A role model is a complicated thing to wrap your mind around, especially when you're talking about yourself, because I don't tend to look at myself as a better person at all, but I think it is a responsibility if people look at you as a role model. Even my friends' children, when I go over to their homes and stuff, they look up to me as they watch my films and they want to ask me questions, so yes, you do have a responsibility to not encourage a bad image. It's not like you have to watch what you do or say on a daily basis, because I think it would drive me crazy. But it is there, lingering in the back of your mind, that kids look up to you and they care what you think and what you wear.
And to think you weren't popular at school, we hear?
[Laughs] I know! How could that be! There were probably a lot of factors as to why I wasn't considered too cool. When I first moved to New York, I had an English accent, I dressed different, I wore glasses. I was pretty dorky. I didn't fit in. All the kids wore jeans and Nikes and I wore Mary-Janes and dresses. It was a learning curve for me in school to understand what New York kids thought was cool, and I always felt like I was on the outside looking in. I think lots of kids feel that way. But I have a very European family. It kept me quite quiet for the first few years. I was shy and then, when I came out of my shell finally, I got ridiculously loud and outgoing. But I still have that shy kid inside of me. Sometimes, I think people think of it as me being aloof, but I just get quiet and reserved if I feel uncomfortable. That's my way of dealing with it.
Love is a central focus of your new film. Do you believe in finding your soul mate?
Well, yeah, of course. I should hope so! You never know where you're going to find the person you're going to fall in love with. There are lots of weirdos in LA and it seems true love has been kind of diverted by a lot of people. But I believe in it and I have friends who believe in it. I'm a true romantic and I believe in love and I believe in being in love more than once in life, because I think I've been really lucky with love. There are so many people out there that I think you can find more than one soul mate. You just have to be open and receptive. That's my personal take on the whole thing.
You're involved in many charities and causes. What's most important to you?
For me, the thing that I like to concentrate on the most is education for children. It's so pivotal in your young life - the way you're educated and what your school experience is. I went to three or four different schools growing up and I was even home-schooled for a while. So it can have a big impact on your life. I was in the public school system for most of my life and the arts programs were really shitty. All the programs gave me a really low self-esteem. It's tough when you're a kid to actually enjoy school. So I'm more interested in peer projects like that. In underdeveloped countries, I work with Save the Children. I'm supposed to be doing a trip to Mozambique to visit schools for children soon. I think education is key in all the kids' lives.
Do you hope to have a fashion line of your own one day?
Maybe. I get offered that all the time, and I think it's just about being really well done and representative of your style. There's lots of ways to do that. I don't want to do it in a sell-out, commercial way. You really want to find what your niche is and who you feel comfortable working with, if you do that.
How do you stay grounded with so much attention on you?
I travel all the time and I live near my family. I feel like I have really normal, cool friends who don't give a shit about what fame is, or any of that. They've known me for long enough that that's not important. I think as soon as you become dependant on that kind of lifestyle of being near Hollywood and being written about, it's really...I don't know...sad.
You have an older and younger sister. Are you close to them?
My older sister, Zoe, lives in London, but I've seen a lot more of her in the past five years now that we're adults, because she was mainly educated in London. We're really close. I try to get my work to take me to London as much as I can, just for that reason.
Your younger sister Hania has made headlines recently. Are you protective of her?
I'm seriously protective of her. She is my younger sister and out of the three of us, she's probably the most intelligent, and it's funny because she's deeply creative as well. My older sister is very bright as well - she'd kill me if I said that - but I do think that Hania is special and we all dote on her. That's just the way it is.
What sorts of things entertain you?
I don't usually watch TV. I don't usually even have proper cable and for a long time, I went without a television at all. That was until I started The O.C. and then I realised I really did need to get a TV. But the only things I really watch are Animal Planet, Discovery Channel, National Geographic or Family Guy.
Would you like to host one of those shows?
Oh, yeah! That's my dream job. Even just to go on a safari.
So, would Mischa Barton rough it?
Oh, yeah, I would! I think people sometimes get the impression I'm quite precious, but I'm not. I take weekend trips out to the desert. That's why I really want to do a proper trip. My family has never liked camping. They like their comforts, so it's something I'd have to do myself and I really do want to do it. I'm definitely going to. It's just a matter of when. I'm just trying to find the time in my life, to be honest. It would be nice if I could tell everyone to go away, to take a road trip, but I don't think they want to hear that!
Source: Woman's Day
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Mischa charged
With Mischa's arraignment scheduled for this Thursday, the District Attorney has opted to file four misdemeanor charges against Mischa. The full story can be read over at E! News.
Mischa's lawyer has this to say:
"We are pleased that the District Attorney’s Office has very carefully reviewed all the evidence in Ms. Barton’s matter and has chosen to file only misdemeanor charges against her," Barton's attorney, Anthony Salerno, said in a statement released by her publicist to E! News.
"The D.A.’s Office is to be commended for treating this case the same as it would any other matter; Ms. Barton has received no special treatment, and they have done the same diligent review that they do in every case.
"As previously stated, Ms. Barton has taken full responsibility for any mistakes in judgment that she may have made. We will, of course, conduct a full review of all evidence received from the D.A.’s Office before making any final decisions on the resolution of the legal issues, but we are confident that this matter will be handled by both sides in a professional and respectful manner."
Sigh.
The fact that Meesh has been allowed to not show up in court kinda relieves me...yet I'm still SOOOOO nervous about tomorrow!!! I had to come back home earlier from Uni and I won't go tomorrow...it will be totally useless, my mind is completely somewhere else.
Can I ask you to pray with me...?