GH Alicia Leigh Willis (Courtney)
© Soap Opera Digest
Though born in Georgia Alicia Leigh Willis spent most of her formative years in Los Angeles and Orange County, CA, with her actor father, David, mom Leigh and siblings Kimberly, Ryan and Tiffany.
How did your mom feel when you told her you wanted to be an actress?
ALICIA: “Well, my dad’s an actor. She totally supported me. She drove me to every audition; supported me 100 percent.”
LEIGH: “She did [acting] stuff when she was little, but when she got back into her sports, she concentrated on that. After we moved to Orange County, she decided that she wanted to do it again, and I was like, ‘Now we live an hour-and-a-half- away, so we’re going to be driving this [laughs]? We were five minutes away when lived up in L.A.!’ But I wasn’t surprised that she wanted to get back into it.”
What’s the best advice your mom has given you?
ALICIA: “Um, ‘Don’t get a big head, because I’ll kill you’ [laughs]?”
LEIGH: (laughing): “I don’t think I ever said that. But being on the sets with either Dave or her, you see people who aren’t very nice. I just told her, ‘Don’t forget this. If I ever see you acting that way, I’m going to pull you back in.’ And she said, “Please do.” She’s so careful when people come on the set. Even if they’re only there for a day, she will treat them nicely. I’m really proud of her because of that.”
Given your dad’s career, did your mom give you tips on the business?
ALICIA: “It’s funny because my dad will be like, “That was a really good scene the other day.” And she’ll be like, ‘And your hair and makeup looked fabulous [laughs]!’ Or, ‘Who did your makeup that day?’ She’s more about the way I look.”
LEIGH: “That’s true! She looks really good in red, so I’ll call her and say that. I tape the show, so I’ll keep different days and show her when she looks the best. Usually, she agrees with me. I do tend to do that … maybe too much [laughs]!”
How often do you see each other?
ALICIA: “Probably every day, every other day. She lives very close to me. She helps me out a lot now that I’m so busy.”
LEIGH: “I just have so much fun with her. I love her living so close by.”
Was Mom the disciplinarian”
ALICIA: “It was kind of half and half with my parents. She was probably stricker on me in high school, but now, I’m glad because I needed it. I gave her hell, poor thing, but now, we’re like best friends.”
LEIGH: “She didn’t really; she just didn’t want advice then, let’s put it that way. But we have a really close relationship now.”