(Left) Tal Anderson attending the Clarins Night of Extra party; (Right) Tal Anderson as Becca King on ‘The Pitt’
Credit: Tommaso Boddi/Getty; HBO Max
NEED TO KNOW
Tal Anderson has been making a name for herself in Hollywood as Becca King on The Pitt
The 28-year-old, who has autism, talks with PEOPLE about representing others on the spectrum in a very real way
In partnership with Clarins, the actress and author also shares her outlook on beauty and her skincare routine
Tal Anderson’s glow is shining brighter than ever.
The 28-year-old — who previously starred in Atypical and who authors her Oh, Tal! book series — has been making a splash on the Emmy-winning medical drama The Pitt as Becca King. Her spotlight is getting brighter by the second, and she’s got a skincare routine to match it.
Becca’s signature look is her pigtails and glasses, and behind the scenes, Anderson approaches beauty with an equally minimalist approach.
“I try to keep my skin care limited to a few products, and my makeup has to be easy to apply. If I need a little more glam, it definitely needs to be simple because my skills are limited. So when I do my own makeup, I tend to look a lot like I do every day, only maybe a little more sparkly,” she tells PEOPLE.
On set, it’s important for her to stay hydrated in all ways, and that applies to her beauty regimen. In her trailer, she loves to have anything from her favorite alkaline water to the skincare products she can’t live without, including the Clarins Double Serum and the brand’s Lip Comfort Oil (in the shade Honey).
Anderson joins PEOPLE over Zoom from Los Angeles, where not too long ago she attended a star-studded party with Clarins. At the time, she spoke to us about inspiring viewers with her realness, and today she says navigating The Pitt’s success and Becca’s popularity has been a “wild ride.”
Her character, who has autism and is taken care of by her twin sister, neurodivergent doctor Melissa ‘Mel’ King (played by Taylor Dearden), has been a part of the series since it started. But a very specific storyline about her sex life in season 2 has portrayed her in a new — and very real — light that has resonated with fans.
Tal Anderson and Taylor Dearden as Becca and Dr. Melissa ‘Mel’ King in ‘The Pitt’
Credit: Warrick Page/HBO Max
It’s important for Anderson, who herself was diagnosed with autism in preschool, to portray people on the spectrum with as much authenticity as possible, focusing “on their lives as humans” rather than “a bucket of stereotypes all sewn together.”
“I just like to see autistic characters portrayed as individual people within the story where their autism is just a part of who they are,” she says.
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“This show has touched so many people, and I’m grateful for the fact that Becca’s storyline has stuck with them. Having the world be on Becca’s side has had an amazing effect on a lot of us disabled adults because so many viewers have supported her right to pursue happiness in any way she wants. That inspires me professionally because I know that the public wants to see truly authentic portrayals of real-life issues disabled people face. That means hopefully that more writers will start writing disabled characters that way.”
“As for my confidence,” she adds, “[The fans’ positive reactions to Becca have] been a huge boost. It was a lot of responsibility and pressure to be part of telling that story the right way. There was a lot riding on Becca this season for the disabled community.”
Her authenticity is present in how she finds the beauty in others. “Beauty is when you can see who someone really is, like their true self. Being human doesn’t mean being or looking perfect. It actually means embracing the fact that we aren’t perfect. When you do that, you’re able to connect with people, and I think that’s beautiful.”
Season 3 of The Pitt is set to debut next January, and Anderson is ready to bring some “crazy” ideas to the table. “I do hope that Becca gets to go back into the Pitt,” she says. “At some point, I really hope she has some kind of, I don’t know, horrible accident where I get to put on some crazy bloody special effects makeup. That would be fantastic as long as she’s still conscious and she pulls through.”
For now, she’s staying busy with a multitude of projects, from her latest children’s picture book release, Oh, Tal! Not Like That, to co-scripting a true crime limited series with producer and writer Scott Stenholm to creating a supernatural fantasy series rooted in Korean folklore (Anderson is half Korean), while also preparing to pitch a feature comedy about two estranged and polar-opposite sisters with Atypical writer Nicole Betz.
Read the original article on People