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The refreshing reason Cheryl Ladd refused to test for Charlie's Angels
"I refused to succumb to the demeaning pressures of tests," said the actor.
It’s not easy to follow Farrah Fawcett, but it seemed that Cheryl Ladd was more than up to the opportunity. Ladd was cast in the second season of the popular crime series, Charlie’s Angels. Originally, the actor was hired to fill a void left by Fawcett, who had departed the series previously.
However, Ladd was a confident woman; she maintained that she was playing an original character all her own, not simply a stand-in to exist in Fawcett’s shadow.
During an interview with The Times-Mail, Ladd revealed that she fought for her character, Kris Munroe, to be a woman of substance.
“I told the producer I wouldn’t be another dumb blonde sex symbol,” said the actor.
Already a professional actor, Ladd refused to do a test shoot for the role. “Yes, I was asked to test…But I did not test. There was plenty of film of me available. I refused to succumb to the demeaning pressures of tests. Producers take a show-me attitude.”
Ladd’s confidence helped her win the role. “I was raised on encouragement,” said the actor. “My parents told me continually that I could be anything I wanted to be. It was wonderful brainwashing.”
Though she was beautiful, Ladd wanted people to understand that there was a brain behind a pretty face. “If you’re a pretty person, people can’t see beyond your good looks,” said Ladd.
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