Mila Kunis Interview On Why She Was Cast As The ‘Bad Girl’ On 7th Heaven

Mila Kunis thinks she knows why she was given the role of a bad girl to play during the course of her four-episode arc on 7th Heaven. She built her early career mostly as a TV actress, with that particular role in the WB sitcom.

The cast of 7th Heaven was led by Stephen Collins and Catherine Hicks as the two parents in the Camden family, with a total of seven children to raise. Other actors who featured on a regular basis were Barry Watson, David Gallagher and Jessica Biel, among others.

With a total of 243 episodes over the course of 11 seasons between 1996 and 2007, 7th Heaven became the longest-running TV show in the history of The WB. In that time, many celebrities who were not part of the main cast featured in guest roles on multiple occasions.

The list of major stars who made cameos on 7th Heaven ranges from already established showbiz icons like Usher and Jane Lynch. For the most part, though, it was up and coming actors like Kunis who were given a chance to make their mark.

Other future big names that fans might have forgotten made brief appearances in the Brenda Hampton drama include Gabrielle Union, Kaley Cuoco and Leighton Meester. Kunis appeared on 7th Heaven for the first time in episode 7 of Season 1, and then returned three more times until episode 10 of Season 2.

Mila Kunis Played A Slightly Villainous Role In 7th Heaven

Ashley was depicted in 7th Heaven as a troubled teenager with a difficult past, whose rebellious nature clashed with the conservative values upheld by the show’s central characters. She was introduced on the scene as a friend of Lucy Camden, the second daughter and third child of Eric and Annie Camden. The role of Lucy was played by Beverley Mitchell.

As well as friendship with Lucy, Ashley was a love interest of Jimmy Moon, as was portrayed by Matthew Linville. When she was first seen on the show, Jimmy was actually dating Lucy.

Suffice to say the relationship between Lucy and Ashley broke down after the latter started seeing her ex. In a sense of poetic justice, however, Jimmy ended up dumping Lucy without so much as an explanation.

Why Does Mila Kunis Think She Was Cast As A Bad Girl In 7th Heaven?

Mila Kunis started making her mark in the entertainment industry at a very tender age. Her father enrolled her in acting school when she was 9, and she started landing jobs starring in commercials thereafter.

Her breakthrough role would come playing Jackie Burkhart in the famous Fox sitcom That ‘70s Show. It was here that she would also meet her future husband Ashton Kutcher for the first time.

Kunis’ spell as Jackie started in 1998 when she was 14. Before that, she had played multiple roles, mostly on television. Some of her TV credits up to that point of her career include Baywatch, Days of Our Lives, The John Larroquette Show and five episodes of Nick Freno: Licensed Teacher, also on The WB.

Kunis feels that, even back in those days, she was already being typecast as a ‘bad girl,’ and it all had to do with her physical looks.

Mila Kunis Has Continued To Play Villains Since 7th Heaven

Mila Kunis discussed her stereotypical casting even as a child in an interview with Vanity Fair in late 2022. “I think as a kid, the ‘bad girls’ were the ones with the darker hair, and like the more relatable all-American gals were the blonde ones. So I clearly wasn’t that,” she said, per Screen Rant.

Kunis’ dark hair did not entirely consign her to ‘bad girl’ roles. Blonde-haired actresses were also considered for the more boujee roles. Either way, they were depicted as not being very relatable. “So I ended up as a young kid being like the ‘cool girl’ or the ‘bad girl’ cause I had dark hair that happened to be curly,” she added.

Thankfully, that early typecasting did not discourage Kunis from taking on fully-fledged villainous roles in her career, as she has done on a number of occasions since. Perhaps the most prominent of those was in Darren Aronofsky’s Black Swan in 2010.

In the film, the Ukrainian-born actress played Lily, a seductive and manipulative dancer who becomes both a rival and a source of obsession for Natalie Portman’s character Nina. Kunis has also played a ‘bad girl’ in Max Payne as well as Oz the Great and Powerful, among others.