Growing up in the ’00s, most people remember Christy Carlson Romano from Disney Channel, as she starred in Even Stevens, Kim Possible and Cadet Kelly. Despite starring in hit shows and landing the role as Belle in the Broadway show Beauty and the Beast, the actress took some time to herself and later retreated from the spotlight to attend Barnard, where she later met her husband, Brendan Rooney.
But a few years ago, the brunette beauty started to create content — but this time, it was on her own terms. She got honest with her followers, with one video called, “What Disney Channel Made Me Say,” while another was titled, “What Happened On The Set Of Cadet Kelly.” From there, Carlson Romano also began a YouTube cooking show in which she invited some of her former Disney pals, such as Kim Possible‘s Will Freidle and That’s So Raven‘s Annaliese Van der Pol to make a meal with her. When the pandemic occurred, she and her husband had to find a new format for the show.
“I don’t mind calling it a comeback, but at the same time it’s almost like a rebirth because people are getting to know me on my terms,” the 38-year-old exclusively tells GRAZIA USA. “It’s so great. I definitely think it’s a second act — that’s totally fair.”
Even though Disney Channel launched her career, there were some bumps along the way, but Carlson Romano still wouldn’t change anything. “The most important thing I’ve learned from it all is twofold — it’s knowing your worth, and in doing that, setting boundaries. That’s pretty much what I would share with a younger version of myself or anyone that’s a younger person in Hollywood,” she says.
A few years ago, the Connecticut native admitted that she struggled with depression and alcohol abuse, just like some of her peers, including Amanda Bynes and Aaron Carter, but going forward, she plans to become “a louder voice” when it comes to being a young star in showbiz. “I’m really straddling between this world of being a mom and being a content creator,” the mom-of-two, who shares daughters Isabella and Sophia with Rooney, states. “Since becoming a mom, I’ve decided to become more vocal about the things that affect my community — not only am I a mom, but I am a former child actor. I am uniquely qualified to become an advocate for other child actors.”
“There needs to be more advocates and mentorship,” she declares. “I want to do that in the future.”
In the meantime, Carlson Romano has some exciting projects up her sleeve, as she created the podcast called “Vulnerable” with her hubby, where the two chat with their guests about their successes and failures. The Broadway alum also began “I Hear Voices” alongside Friedle, her costar from Kim Possible, which touches on people’s favorite characters.
“I have the luxury of launching two different podcasts,” she shares. “Will and I make a good team. We were originally seeing each other a lot at Comic Con, and we decided to launch this podcast, which has a fun animation element to it. We interview iconic people, directors and animators. With ‘Vulnerable,’ it’s more about mental health, and the idea came from my YouTube channel.”
“I was doing some videos where I talked about some of the growing pains that I had growing up in the industry,” she notes. “What I found is that mental health is a subject that people are talking about more than ever before. Hopefully these videos will continue to help people. I have celebrities, scientists, astronauts, activists — you name it — as my guests.”
Ultimately, Carlson Romano has one goal: to continue to help people. “I’ve been really busy!” she exclaims.
“My life could have gone in a lot of different ways but having children with my husband was probably the best thing that could have happened to me,” she gushes. “My husband and I have become stronger and stronger, and I feel incredibly blessed to have him as my husband and co-parent. In terms of the girls, I just love them so much, and they give me such a purpose in life.”
