Melissa Collazo and Mia Healey star as Caitlyn and Alicia in Motorheads, a show about first love, first heartbreak, and turning the key in your first car.

An Interview with Melissa Collazo and Mia Healey

Temple of Geek spoke with the actresses about why they believe the YA genre is special to audiences, what their favorite ships need to have, which “first” they experienced while working on the action thriller, and their approach to understanding their characters.

Set in a once-thriving rust-belt town that’s now searching for a glimmer of hope, the series is an adrenaline-filled story of a group of outsiders who form an unlikely friendship over a mutual love of street racing, while navigating the hierarchy and rules of high school.

The YA genre

Melissa Collazo believes the YA genre resonates with audiences because being a teenager is a universally challenging period. Seeing diverse characters navigate these struggles helps viewers feel less alone and understood. Mia Healey agrees, emphasizing that coming-of-age stories are relatable and provide a sense of support, making her grateful for the genre and the community around it.

Melissa Collazo: I mean, I think it’s about being a teenager and just being a young adult is literally the toughest period of almost everyone’s lives, and I think just seeing every type of person represented in that, it kind of feels like a hug. You feel less alone seeing these stories happen to characters. It makes you feel less like a crazy teenager. 

Mia Healey: Yeah, I mean the same, like those coming-of-age stories, and that time of our lives is such a whirlwind, and it’s amazing to be able to dive into something where you can see yourself reflected. And yeah, the support just means everything, and I’m so grateful for this genre, these people, and this space. It’s been such an amazing journey, and I’m super grateful.

Their characters

Collazo describes her character, Caitlyn, as a “lover through and through” who, unlike Melissa as a teen, thrives when faced with challenges and possesses an admirable inner strength. Healey believes her teenage self would have been impressed by her character Alicia’s “mystique.” While Mia was more impulsive and open as a teen, she admires Alicia’s thoughtful, sensitive, and introspective nature, and would have aspired to be more like her.

Melissa Collazo: I feel like Caitlyn’s just a lover through and through. Something that I didn’t have as a teenager that I really love about Caitlyn is she sort of sees a challenge and thrives in it, where I think as a teenager, I probably would have just freaked out and had an anxiety attack. So I love sort of her strength despite. 

Mia Healey: I feel like as a teenager, I would have watched Alicia and been so impressed with her sort of mystique, I guess you could say. I feel like I was definitely more impulsive and kind of just wore my heart on my sleeve, and I don’t know, I kind of love how Alicia‘s like a thinker, she’s quite sensitive, and introspective, and I would have loved that about her. I probably would have tried to be more like her.

What a ship needs

Mia Healey enjoys a “ship” (relationship) where there’s an element of it being wrong or a “should they, shouldn’t they” dynamic, and she also loves a good love triangle, citing The Vampire Diaries as an example. Melissa Collazo concurs, highlighting the “forbidden aspect” and inherent problems as juicy and engaging for viewers. She also mentions Teen Wolf and agrees that the “will they, won’t they” drama is fun to watch and act.

Mia Healey: I feel like there has to be… something has to be wrong. I love a ship where it’s like, she really should be with that person, but really kind of shouldn’t, like that should they, shouldn’t they sort of dynamic, I love. I also love a triangle. I used to love watching The Vampire Diaries, the most iconic love triangle ever. That’s very important to me. 

Melissa Collazo: Yeah, agreed. I think it’s the forbidden aspect, there’s always like a forbidden — there’s always a problem, and it’s so juicy to consume. And yeah, like The Vampire Diaries, I was a big Teen Wolf kid, and that was inter-dynamic crazy. I think it’s just, what Mia said, the like, will they, won’t they? There’s always drama and problems, and it’s fun to watch and it’s fun to act.

Love triangle teams

Both Mia Healey and Melissa Collazo revealed they were “Team Stefan” from The Vampire Diaries, with Mia expressing relief that she wouldn’t get in trouble for her preference. Melissa also shared she was a “Stydia truther” (Stiles and Lydia) from Teen Wolf, appreciating the slow burn of their relationship which kept her watching for several seasons due to the “will they, won’t they” tension.

Mia Healey: Ooh, okay, this is so controversial. I was a real team Stefan, I know, I know. Wait, really, you too? 

Melissa Collazo: Totally. 

Mia Healey: Okay, I’m really happy to hear that because for a minute there, I thought if I would ever say that, I’d get into a lot of trouble. 

Melissa Collazo: I was a Stydia truther. Yeah, it took so long for anything to truly happen, but I think that’s what kept me watching the show. It was the will they, won’t they, and I think it took four seasons, but I was sat. 

Their Motorheads firsts

For Collazo, a significant first was working extensively with cars, as she doesn’t even have her driver’s license and knew nothing about cars, making playing a savvy car girl a major challenge. This included delivering monologues with specific car part terminology in the correct order. Healey noted that this was her first time playing a character involved in a love triangle with two male characters. She also cherished the “first” of experiencing a classic American high school setting, complete with lockers, which had been a career dream.

Melissa Collazo: I didn’t know anything about cars. It was a lot of firsts in the sense that I, as Melissa, just, I don’t even have my license, so it’s funny that I was playing this super savvy car girl because I could not be more the opposite. So I think that was my biggest challenge, and it was a first to even be behind the wheel, basically.

Mia Healey: That’s so funny, because I remember there was a day that we were filming, Melissa, and I remember being like, I feel so bad for you, I don’t know how you’re doing this, like the car lingo, all of the engine talk, how are you remembering this? 

Melissa Collazo: Probably first in the sense that I think there’s, it’s a thing throughout the season, because she’s a car girl, I would have a lot of almost mini monologues where I was sort of just listing off 10 different parts, and the thing about cars is there is a particular order because it all connects in a certain way. So I really had to — I couldn’t flip two different parts, it was really particular, so I think that that was another first, it was me having to list off a lot of car parts and get it right. 

Mia Healey: For me, I guess this is kind of the first sort of love triangle I’ve ever really played. I’m just thinking now, I’m like, yeah, I think this is the first time I’ve played in a love triangle with two guys, so. I have to admit, there was also something so fun about just playing in high school at the locker. I just always wanted to do that. I always wanted to be in an American high school, wearing my own clothes and going to the locker. That was, for some reason, in my head, some big career dream of mine to tick off, so I’m very glad I got to do that.

Understanding and building their characters

Healey uses “dream work,” a technique learned from their shared acting coach, Sheila. She writes a note to her subconscious before sleep, asking for dreams to illuminate her character, then analyzes the dream upon waking to find insights. Collazo also uses dream work and creates character playlists, sometimes multiple playlists for different relationships her character has, like one for “Caitlyn and Zac.” She also uses mood boards and journals in character to develop an internal monologue for scenes.

Mia Healey: I like to do a lot of dream work, and Melissa and I actually have the same acting coach here in New York, who, Sheila, we do that with. Basically, I’ll go to sleep, I’ll write myself a note kind of to my higher self, inner self, asking myself for a dream to shine more of a light on my character and what they’re going through, and then I kind of wake up, write the dream down immediately and then, go through it and kind of try and find ways within my subconscious that are trying to shine lights on parts of the character that I might not have been aware of at first and just get more of her soul, you know? 

Melissa Collazo: I do a lot of the same dream work. We love Sheila. And then, I think something I do with every character is the playlist. Sometimes I’ll make a character playlist, and then I have separate playlists for the people they interact with, so I have a Caitlyn and Zac one. So, I’ll make multiple playlists. I think mood boards really help, and I like to keep a journal in character and sort of read through a scene, and then journal my thoughts about it, so I kind of have that internal monologue just ready to go for when we shoot it. 

Number one on the playlist

Collazo cited Sky Ferreira’s music as central to her character’s playlist, as its “teen angst” vibe was the soundtrack to her own teenage years. Mia Healey identified “Scott Street” by Phoebe Bridgers as a song that speaks to her character Alicia’s introspective nature, and “Always Crashing in the Same Car” by David Bowie as a song reflecting the town and story of Motorheads. Collazo also added “White Mercedes” by Charli XCX, which she used for one of Caitlyn’s relationships due to both the car title and its lyrics.

Melissa Collazo: Mine was from Sky Ferreira, just like Sky Ferreira in general, because it’s so teen angst, that was the soundtrack when I was a teenager. So it was that Tumblr music. 

Mia Healey: I love that. I really felt like Alicia‘s song, I have a playlist for Alicia as well, and I think one of her songs, which is so depressing, but you know, “Scott Street” by Phoebe Bridgers? That’ll get you there. But I really feel like in a lot of ways that song kind of speaks to her, and I also feel like the song “Always Crashing in the Same Car” by David Bowie, I feel like is more of a Motorheads song for the town. I feel like she listens to that as like, it’s more of a good reflection on the story, where they’re from, and everything.

Melissa Collazo: That actually did remind me, “White Mercedes” by Charli XCX because it’s the car title, but also the lyrics. I used it a lot for one of the relationships on the show, and yeah, that kind of was my soundtrack, I would say.

All 10 episodes of Motorheads will be available to stream on May 20, exclusively on Prime Video.