We sit down with Natanya Ross, known to a generation as Robyn Russo, the dark, sharp, unforgettable heart of The Secret World of Alex Mack. Natanya's story starts earlier than almost anyone's, on stage as a baby and on Broadway before she ever set foot in Hollywood. We get into the call that changed her life & pulled her family west, the audition that was only supposed to last three episodes and turned into one of Nickelodeon's most beloved characters, and what it was like to grow up on camera, as the show became part of a generation's childhood. We get into all of it, the family she was raised in, a momager who managed a remarkable career and the money that came with it, and the harder chapters that followed once the show ended and the anchor it gave her was gone. Natanya is open in a way few people ever are about the years she lost, the people she lost along the way, and the long road back. What she built on the other side of it, a life in recovery and mental health advocacy, is the part she's proudest of, and the part that almost never gets told. There are lighter moments too, shut-down amusement parks for wrap parties, the cast that's still family decades later, a 90s love story with another familiar face, and a few set secrets she's never shared. We talk about owning your past instead of hiding from it, why the loudest stories about child actors are so often the wrong ones, and what it really means to still be here. It's funny, it's honest, and it's a reminder of exactly why this podcast exists, because the real stories behind the kids you grew up watching are always more interesting, and more human, than anything that made it on screen. 🎥 What happens in this episode? 00:00 – Cold open: "We're so back" 00:31 – Welcome, and the Robyn Russo reaction 03:51 – From Asbury Park to Broadway to the call that moved her west 07:01 – Becoming Robyn: three episodes that turned into an icon 13:43 – The cast that became family 14:29 – Growing up edgy in young Hollywood 18:32 – The momager, the Coogan account, and a complicated home 24:00 – Acting as the first escape 32:13 – The end of Alex Mack and getting herself back on the show 37:01 – Life after the show and holding on 40:15 – The eight mile audition and losing everything 45:29 – The hardest years, and the moment things turned 46:57 – Treatment, purpose, and a career in recovery 49:21 – "Nothing cooler than being kind" 55:00 – A 90s love story 57:26 – "We're Still Here, Babe" and rewriting the narrative 1:00:21 – The documentaries, the safe set, and the real story 1:05:31 – Would you do it all again? 1:06:00 – Set secrets and one last Polaroid Send us Your Feedback! Follow, like, subscribe, and leave us comments! Check out more content on our YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@TheNotSoLittleRascals SOCIALS: Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thenotsolittlerascals/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@the_not_so_lil_rascals Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/thenotsolittlerascals
