Young Louisiana actress lands role on popular TV show ‘Abbott Elementary’

BATON ROUGE, La. (BRPROUD) – Peyton Turner, a student at East Baton Rouge Virtual Academy, has landed her first dream role on the Emmy-winning show “Abbott Elementary.”

Turner plays a student named Nia. Her sister, Paris, also has played a role on the show.

“I actually auditioned for four characters on my mom’s birthday. The characters did not have names when I auditioned, they were listed as Student 1, 2, 3 and 4 at the time. Nia was created after the kids were picked,” Turner said.

“I learned I was picked for Nia the week after I auditioned for the role,” she said. “I was super excited because it was a dream to be on the show after my sister booked Season 1.”

Turner said she auditioned for the show twice and freaked out when she learned she had landed a spot on the show.

She appears in the eighth and ninth episodes of the second season.

“Abbott Elementary” is described as a mockumentary sitcom series about teachers at a predominately Black, underfunded Philadelphia school.

“I love how Nia was able to interact with Janine and Quinta Brunson and have a special moment with Principal Ava,” she said.

Turner said she was nervous to meet Brunson, who co-writes and stars in the show.

“Quinta touched my shoulder, and my tummy felt like there were a million butterflies inside,” she said.

She also met Tyler James Williams and said he was a really sweet man.

“Working with stars is really cool because you get to see who they really are. When you watch them on TV, you can only see them pretend to be a character,” she said.

Choosing what she likes the most about acting is tough for her because she said she likes something different each time.

“If I had to pick a most, it would be learning new skills and making new friends,” she said.

She wants to be on TV and in movies.

“My mom says I should never limit myself to just one thing if I am passionate about multiple things,” she said.