Swapping camp stories with Hailey Sole—the real-life teen from ‘Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp’

Being the new girl at camp is always pretty scary, but what if you were the new girl at a camp staffed by the coolest, most famous people ever like Amy Poehler, Molly Shannon AND Janeane Garofalo?

Well, 13-year-old Hailey Sole went through that precise experience while shooting Wet Hot American Summer: First Day of Camp, the sequel series to the 2001 movie that ruins lives with its ridiculous awesomeness. So, naturally, Hello Giggles was anxious to swap campfire stories with her and get the scoop on what it was like being at Camp Firewood for the first time alongside so many veterans (including Bradley Cooper and Paul Rudd!). Stay tuned for secrets from the set, including which one of your fave comedians was the most motherly on set and which cast member was the funniest on screen and off.

Hello Giggles: Well, first of all, Hailey, congrats on this gig! We’ve seen the first six episodes and we really enjoyed them!

Hailey Sole: Oh, thank you!

HG: What’s more intimidating: being on the set for the first day with people you “know” from afar like Amy Poehler and Bradley Cooper, or going to the first day of actual camp with total strangers?

HS: I think being at the first day of camp with people you don’t really know can be really intimidating. Because at least with this, there are people you can relate to. You know, the other campers, the other kids, they’re in acting so I can talk to them about that. That’s already one topic that you have that you can relate to them on. And I was just really excited to learn from these actors and to be able to work with them. That’s such a great experience [to have] and I was really excited and I wasn’t really nervous.

I think going to the first day of camp can be really difficult because you don’t know anyone there, trying to fit in, you don’t really know what to do. You’re also in a new environment, so you don’t know where you are. So I think that’s more intimidating.

HG: Who felt more like a counselor to you and who felt more like a camper to you from the cast? Like who seemed like a maternal figure and who seemed more like a kid at heart?

HS: I didn’t get to work with Amy Poehler on this one, but I did work with her on Parks and Recreation. So although I didn’t work with her [here], I do want to say her because I worked with her in the past and she’s so sweet and really nice. She came up and introduced herself and acted, like you said, like a maternal figure. She interacted with all the kids and she was really funny and that was a lot of fun.

But on this one I think I would also have to say Molly Shannon because when she was in the same scene as us she’d just turn around and make a little joke. And we’d joke and laugh along and play along with her. That was a lot of fun as well.

And for the kids, a lot them. [Laughs] They had funny roles though, so I don’t know if that’s exactly how they would act if they weren’t playing that role.

HG: Was there a particular moment on set that was really hilarious?

HS: Well, I can’t really say too much. I don’t really know how to describe it without giving it all way….

HG: Is there a moment that’s maybe not a scene, but a moment that happened between takes?

HS: The director [David Wain] actually acted in some of the scenes. So it was kind of funny how between scenes he would run up and put on a wig and change his whole personality, his whole demeanor, and change into someone completely different.

HG: Was there a general camp vibe on set? Did you guys have a staff party at the end like they do in the show?

HS: We did. We went to a place called Daisy Lanes, I believe. And we all hung out and it was really cool because it was sort of ’80s-themed.

And there was a kind of camp-vibe on set — there were a lot of extras who played campers because, well, we needed a lot of campers. But it also made for this camp sort of vibe because there were so many kids on set and we all kind of bonded.

HG: Did you make any particular friends on set? Do you keep up with any of the kids?

HS: Yeah, I have a few of the kids on Instagram, and we keep up every now and then. I just hope I’ll be able to work with them again!

I do keep in touch with a couple of the lead campers.

HG: Did you get any keepsakes to take home with you at the end of the shoot? You know, like when you go to real camp and you get a t-shirt or get to take home an arts and crafts project?

HS: Actually, they sent me a sweatshirt. It has Netflix and Wet Hot American Summer on it. That was really cool!

HG: What would you say if they asked you to come back for Another Day at Camp [note: this is not an actual announced sequel, but our suggested title for it if it ever happens]?

HS: I would be so excited for it! It was so much fun to be able to shoot this and film this. I got to work with so many amazing people. The whole set and cast was so much fun to work with.

HG: Have you been to summer camp before and if so, how do you feel about it?

HS: I have been to summer camp before. And winter camp. [Laughs] They’re so much fun. You get to really bond with people and get so much closer to them. It’s also just a lot of fun, and I just definitely think that everyone should go to summer camp at least once in their life. It’s so worth it! It’s so much fun!

Wet Hot American Summer premieres today, July 31 at 11:59 p.m. PT, 2:59 p.m. ET.

(Image via Hailey Sole, Netflix)