It’s been quite a year for 16-year-old Olympic gymnast Laurie Hernandez. First, she nabbed a gold medal in the team event and a silver on the balance beam — and her cheeky wink before her floor routine instantly won the crown for best GIF of the Rio Games. Afterwards, instead of taking a much-deserved break, she immediately joined Dancing With the Stars and won the entire competition.
Is there anything this girl can’t do? Because now, Hernandez has sent an audition tape to the Disney Channel — and I have a hunch the brand will jump at the opportunity to have her on board.
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She’ll get a chance to show off her acting chops soon — and on her very favorite show, no less. During an interview on The Ellen Show, DeGeneres surprised Hernandez with a personalized video from Law & Order: SVU stars Mariska Hargitay and Ice-T. In addition to singing her praises, they invited Hernandez to make a guest appearance on the show. Ice-T has only one condition: He really wants to see that gold medal.
Although a guest spot on SVU is a major bucket-list item, Hernandez hopes to add more acting gigs to her résumé. (You know, because being an Olympic medalist and Dancing With the Stars champ isn’t impressive enough for this go-getter.)
In an interview with Team USA, Hernandez revealed she’s waiting to hear back from Disney and hopes to eventually work in the film or theater industry.
“I think absolutely I would love to be an actress,” she said. “I notice as the months go by, I have a bigger love for it. I watched a movie (the romantic fantasy The Age of Adaline) the other day, and then re-watched it with the director’s (commentary), including ideas for the scenes. It was fascinating, and it’s such amazing acting. I would love to do that.”
The wildly talented gymnast added that she’d love to major in theater when she gets to college. It’s hard to imagine that anything would make her nervous after bringing home a gold medal in the world’s most high-pressure sports competition, but Hernandez admits she has “butterflies” thinking about an acting career. Of course, she won’t let that stop her.
“I think it would be a lot of fun. It would definitely be a lot of work, but it would be worth it,” Hernandez said.
Disney would be lucky to have Hernandez on board, and I for one can’t wait to see her small-screen debut on SVU. Something tells me acting is just one more career path where she’ll excel.