Entertainment
HBO's new series Betty follows a skateboarding group of girls trying to carve out a space for themselves in the testosterone-filled subculture. Series co-creator Crystal Moselle also directed the 2018 movie Skate Kitchen, which followed many of the same cast members playing versions of themselves. The new show, which premieres May 1, once again follows the Skate Kitchen girls as they fall in love, flip tricks, and eat pavement. And if audiences want to follow the Betty cast on Instagram, they're in luck, because they all have burgeoning social media presences.
After stumbling into Nina Moran and Rachelle Vinberg on the subway in New York, Moselle made a series of projects with the Skate Kitchen collective: A short film for Miu Miu, Skate Kitchen, and now the HBO series. "The girls and I have been working together for four years now. So every project that we do, we learn a bit more," Moselle told Newsweek. "I think that they learn their craft a bit more. I learned my craft a bit more because I didn't direct actors before this. I was a documentary filmmaker. But it was really cool to be able to explore more of their stories."
And while not all of them are skateboarding as much as they used to, here's where you can follow all of the Betty cast members and keep up with their latest projects.
Ajani Russell as Indigo
Russell moved to L.A. four years ago to study at California Institute of the Arts, according to The Face. She was originally studying ceramics and painting, but said that she recently switched to film. In addition to making art, Russell is a model, so her social media is predominantly filled with glamour shots.
Nina Moran as Kirt
Moran recently started a new Instagram, with her first post in late April. On this new account, the Betty star posts skateboarding videos and photos of her various pet rodents in equal measure. According to the same Face article, Moran has four rats, three Betta fish, and a chinchilla.
Ardelia "Dede" Lovelace as Janay
Recently, Lovelace's Instagram has been filled with quarantine chic modeling photos, DJ sets, and sponsored Champion sportswear posts, in addition to the occasional skateboarding video. "Clearly I have not been skating," she captioned a Jan. 3 post. "Stay focused kids and stay in school."
Rachelle Vinberg as Camille
In quarantine, Vinberg shared that she's trying to do new things. "Got a guitar and I'm 3 days in, tried to do push ups the right way," she wrote on Instagram. "I can't do either, but I'm trying." The Betty actor mostly posts skateboarding content on her social media, even sharing a video of herself at 13 doing tricks in front of her house, which Vinberg said she made her mom record.
"[Skateboarding is] the one thing that hasn't ever changed in my life in the past 10 years," Vinberg told The Face. "It's a thing that grounds me and is always there. It looks the same, it smells the same. When I look down at my feet and see the black grip, it just feels right."
Moonbear as Honeybear
Moonbear is on a mission to destigmatize breasts and often flaunts her own while wearing colorful nipple patches (she's declared 2020 "20Titty," by the way). Moonbear also sets challenges for herself: In 2018, she ate vegan, in 2019, she went off Instagram, and this year, she isn't drinking alcohol.
Brenn Lorenzo as Ceila
Brenn and Jules are twin sisters, and the former told Teen Vogue in 2018 that she's proud of the diversity that their collective provides. "You don't normally see girls of color in a male-dominated area like this — in our group, there are many girls of color, from all different ethnicities and backgrounds," she said. "We're breaking down barriers [with Skate Kitchen] and showing that everyone's welcome to do this."
Jules Lorenzo — Yvette
Jules has mainly dedicated her Instagram to skateboarding and making funny videos. She's gotten particularly creative during this quarantine: In one post, she uses household objects to recreate anime characters' poses. "A proud weeb," she captioned the clip.
Raekwon Haynes as Philip
Haynes loves goofing off and posting dance videos on his Instagram. In addition to playing Philip in Betty, Haynes has appeared in White Boy Rick, Blue Bloods, and Law & Order: SVU.
Katerina Tannenbaum as Ash
In Betty, Tannenbaum plays Honeybear's love interest, Ash. She's previously appeared in AJ and the Queen, Sweetbitter, Better Call Saul, and The Bold Type.
And while she told W that she "skated a little bit as a teenager but never a ton," Tannenbaum had do a fair amount for her Betty role. "I have a skateboard now that's my own, that my friend in the show helped me build," she said.
As for her Instagram, the actor mostly posts glamour shots and the occasional photo of her boyfriend and dog.
Edmund Donovan as Bambi
Before Donavan's character catches Camille's eye in Betty, the actor was in High Fidelity and Orange Is the New Black. His Instagram is mostly devoted to promoting upcoming projects, selfies, and (of course) the occasional skateboarding video.
Keep up with these skateboarding wunderkinds on social media to see what's next for them.
