The Young Star of Netflix’s Maid is Vegan. What She Ate on Set
Netflix's popular series Maid stars Andi McDowell's daughter, Margaret Qualley as Alex, a young woman trying to escape an abusive relationship. She ventures out in the night with nothing but her young daughter and a half tank of gas to start an independent life and find work, which is how she becomes a maid. The younger character, Maddy, is played by 5-year-old Rylea Nevaeh Whittet, who turns out to be vegan in real life.
While on the set the specific dietary requirements of the streaming network's smallest star became part of what bonded the cast and crew as they filmed the series on Vancouver Island, British Columbia.
"Rylea loved pretending to eat Mcdonald's french fries and all the other fun foods that were made for her by the props team on the set of MAID," her parents said. (Of course, the McPlant is coming but it's more fun when the prop folks make fake fast food.)
Scenes show Maddy getting fed pancakes, sandwiches, and other mainstays from the Standard American Diet, which had to be significantly tailored to allow the actress to take a bite of her breakfast or lunch on camera. There's even a scene of her at her birthday party, pretending to eat her cupcakes.
Five-Year-Old Rylea Nevaeh Whittet Eats a Vegan Diet
Margaret, 26, spent her free time hanging out with Rylea and her parents in Vancouver between takes and learned what she didn't know about cooking plant-based or vegan for a young co-star. In an interview with Vanity Fair, Margaret said that while spending off-camera they did normal things like taking Rylea to the grocery store, coloring with crayons, and trying to for Margaret, trying to learn how to cook with plant-based ingredients.
Margaret revealed she cooked vegan pancakes for the young actress whose parents feed her a vegan diet. "They tasted bad because I’d never cooked vegan pancakes before,” she confessed. In an interview with Collider, Margaret says about her young vegan co-star. "I basically just became her [Ryelea's] person on set. I’d carry her around and have crayons and snacks. She’s vegan, so I’d have all kinds of healthy things."
Rylea's Instagram account (which her parents manage) includes the ? emoji sign universally recognized as a symbol for vegan. It also includes some of her favorite emojis – a ladybug and cat ??. Rylea loves posing for pictures with her "ginger cat" Teddy and is an avid animal lover.
For more information on how to raise healthy kids like Rylea on a vegan diet read Food Diary of a Plant-Based Six-Year-Old and Plant-Based Parenting: How to Raise a Vegan Athlete and Ignore the Naysayers.
Sandra Oh and 20 Others It Might Surprise You to Learn Are Plant-Based
1. Paul McCartney
Sir James Paul McCartney is no stranger to a meat-free life as he's been vegetarian for 45 years. He initially went vegetarian in 1975 with his first wife Linda McCartney and began his advocacy for animal rights.
2. Sia
If you find yourself constantly singing along to the song The Greatest, then you're already a Sia fan. Sia tweeted that she is "fully vegan now" back in 2014 and stays true to her word
3. Sandra Oh
Way back at the start of Grey's Anatomy, Sandra Oh took the cast out for a plant-based lunch at Truly Vegan in Hollywood. In her effort to inspire contemporaries to eat vegan, the TV star is known to invite her friends for vegan meals that are delicious. She adopted the vegan lifestyle years ago and continues to quietly live a cruelty-free life.
4. Gisele Bündchen
Giselle revealed that when she was at the peak of her modeling career, her diet consisted of "cigarettes, wine, and mocha Frappuccinos," according to an interview in People Magazine. Now 39 and the mother of two children, Gisele eats a "mostly" plant-based diet to nourish her body and stay fueled.
5. Alec Baldwin
Alec Baldwin has made a bigger commitment to plant-based eating since he was first told by doctors that he was pre-diabetic and needed to change his diet. That was decades ago. But, over the last few years, he's been vocal about the benefits not only to his health but also the impact plant-based eating has on the environment.
7. Pamela Anderson
We all remember Pamela Anderson as the curvaceous blonde in the hit series Baywatch as she played Casey Jean in the red one-piece swimsuit that brought her world-class fame. She is a life-long active animal rights advocate and teamed up with PETA to join the Animal Protection Organization.
8. Kristen Stewart
"We shouldn't eat as much meat guys," Kristen Stewart told GQ in an interview in January. The Twilight star has made a full 180 from vampire to vegan. When she appeared on the game show "Hot Ones" she chose to skip the wings and instead compete by eating increasing spicier sauce on vegan cauliflower wings.
9. Jared Leto
This award-winning actor eats a high-protein diet consisting of only plants. Leto, who has been plant-based for 20 years, says it keeps him "shredded" in an interview. Now, 48, Leto looks half his age.
10. Jaden Smith
Jaden Smith switched up his diet from vegan to vegetarian, meaning that he doesn't eat meat but does eat dairy from time to time. In a recent article by Plant Based News, Smith admits he skipped meals and was not getting the proper nutrition when he was vegan, but this hasn't stopped him from espousing the plant-based life.
11. Meghan Markle
Meghan, the Duchess of Sussex has never admitted to being fully vegan, but sources say, she eats a plant-based diet most days during the week. She is teaching Prince Harry vegan cooking and in a Plant-Based News article, Markle explained how she hopes to raise baby Archie on a mostly vegan diet.
12. Serena Williams
As a professional athlete, fueling the body is a key factor to Willaim's successes. In a Bon Appetite article, she explained that she adopted a plant-based diet back in 2012, she was eating a lot "healthier" for her sister, Venus, who eats a strict vegan diet for health reasons.
13. John Mackey
The popular grocery store, Whole Foods Market sells vegan products and nonvegan products which arises black lash from ethical vegans as CEO John Mackey follows a strict vegan diet. The successful businessman grew up in Houston Texas and told Business Insider that he would traditionally eat processed foods for dinner while watching TV with his family. Now, Mackey steers clear from the processed isle and eats a clean vegan diet and feels amazing at the age of 65.
14. Jason Mraz
Jason Mraz, singer of the popular song, I'm Yours, committed to a vegan diet to support his friend diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes. Mraz says he eats mostly raw food and told magazine sources his favorite vegan dish is "Chocomole, a mixture of avocados, dates, cacao, agave nectar, and coconut oil."
15. Leona Lewis
Long time vegan, Leona Lewis grew up in a vegan household and continues to eat a plant-based diet. Lewis first adopted the diet at 12 when she learned about the health risks of eating animal products but told Women's Health Magazine she occasionally eats an omelet. She also mentioned her 2:30 lunch is normally a kale salad topped with dried cranberries and she loves a veggie stir-fry for dinner.
16. Hannah Teter
Hannah Teter changed her diet after watching the documentary, Earthlings when she discovered how "horrible" factory farming is. After a strict vegetarian diet, Teter liked the way she performed as an athlete and believes that her diet helped her win gold at the 2006 games.
17. Maggie Q,
You may recognize Maggie Q as the star of the Nikita series, but in the plant-based world, she's well-known for her heroic activism. Maggie Q has followed a strict vegan diet for 19 years, making her a true veteran of the lifestyle. She made the plant-based diet transition because she felt sluggish and had low energy, she has said. The famous actress keeps in shape by eating veggies and plant-based protein and working out with a passion.
18. Madelaine Petsch,
Winner of the first Masterchef vegan cook-off with Gordon Ramsay, Madelaine Petsch was raised vegetarian and went completely vegan at age 14. She claims that she started this diet before it was "trendy" and shot a campaign for PETA last year wearing a dress made of bok choy. Petsch says her vegan diet allows her to feel "healthier" and not "lethargic."
19. Millie Bobbi Brown
After doing a little sleuthing on her social media platforms we think Millie Bobbi Brown qualifies as plant-based. Whether or not she is actually skipping all meat and dairy, one thing is for sure: She eats mostly salads, vegetables and grains and lives a predominantly plant-based lifestyle full of healthy foods.
20. Chloe and Halle Bailey
The grammy-nominated sisters went vegan for a week with their mom but liked it so much they decided to stick with it. For one thing, it helps keep their "voices in shape" by eating a vegan diet and they emphasize the fact that dairy helps to limit extra mucus build-up, according to a PETA interview.
21. Hilary Duff
Best known for her role as Lizzie Mcguire in the long-running series, Hilary Duff is a recent vegan advocate and entrepreneur. She recently launched the vegan and cruelty-free eyeshadow palette, "Day Dreamer" and changed her diet to plant-based last fall.