Fil-Am Hailee Steinfeld is a pitch-perfect new Bella

LOS ANGELES—When is she finally making her wish to visit the Philippines come true? Hailee Steinfeld smiled and then playfully slumped, her face down on the table, so all we could see was her mass of long, dark brown hair. That was how the Filipino-American actress amusingly reacted to our question, which we ask every time we see each other.

“Soon,” Hailee said after she sat up again in this recent chat in LA. Hailee remains sweet and warm, unaffected since her career took off when she made her Oscar-nominated film acting debut, at age 13, in the Coen brothers’ “True Grit.” Now 18, she looked fetching in a Christopher Kane ensemble of tee and long lace skirt and Pollini boots.

“I want to go (to the Philippines) right now,” added Hailee, whose mom, Cheri, has family ties to the Domasins of Bohol. “I need to plan a trip. You have no idea how bad I want to go and spend time there. It sounds amazing. I have connected with more people in the Philippines over social media in the last few months. It really makes me want to go there and meet them.”

In “Pitch Perfect 2,” Hailee plays Emily, the new addition to the Barden Bellas, an all-girl a cappella college group that also anchored the first movie, which became a huge, surprise hit. Anna Kendrick, Rebel Wilson, Brittany Snow and the rest of the gang are back, this time with an eye toward winning the world championships of a cappella.

Hailee rued that she did not get to meet The Filharmonic, an LA-based Fil-Am a cappella band which makes a cameo in “Pitch Perfect 2” as Manila Envy, the team representing the Philippines in the championships, during filming.

Hailee gushed, “It’s so unbelievable that The Filharmonic is in this movie. And Pentatonix and other real a cappella groups.”

The young actress explained why she missed meeting The Filharmonic on the set: “The whole week we shot our finale, we had people from all over coming in and shooting their parts. So many people flying in and out so that whole week was probably the most hectic of the entire shoot.”

At the recent world premiere after party at LA Live, we made sure to introduce The Filharmonic to Hailee. They were delighted to meet for the first time.

Movie mom

In the movie directed by Elizabeth Banks, who also reprises her role as Gail, an a cappella competition commentator, Hailee’s mom is played by Katey Sagal.

“Katey Sagal was on the set with me and my mom,” she said of the actress, whose Katherine was also a Bella in her student days at Barden University. In real life, Katey began in the music field, starting as one of Bette Midler’s Harlettes backup singers in the 1970s.

Hailee added about the star of the TV series “Sons of Anarchy,” “Katey is such a cool lady. She has raised amazing kids herself. She’s just awesome. My mom and I love her.”

Of her own mom, Cheri, Hailee said, “My mom was a flight attendant for 10 years. Then she had me and my brother (Griffin). She stopped traveling. I booked my first movie after I had auditioned. She helped me get to that point and read for the Coen brothers in ‘True Grit.’

“We were going for a walk and a plane went over us. I said to my mom, ‘I promise I will get us on a plane and go somewhere soon.’” With her booming career that offers plenty of traveling opportunities, Hailee has certainly made good on her promise to Cheri. “My mom loves traveling—that’s something I picked up from her.”

Hailee’s dad, Peter, is a fitness trainer. Hailee quipped with a grin, “I don’t work out, ever. No. All I do is eat.” Then she said, “I find my dad so inspiring. I have friends who go to the gym for two hours and train hard. My dad’s whole thing is about feeling good. It’s about doing it for yourself, whether that means going outside and working out or just going for a hike or riding a bike.”

Hailee has an uncle, Larry Domasin, who was a child actor who costarred with Elvis Presley in “Fun in Acapulco.” It’s trivia that we included in our book published by Anvil, “My Filipino Connection: The Philippines in Hollywood.”

“I don’t see him as much as I would like,” Hailee said of Larry. “But it’s funny how no one in my family was ever really an actor and then my uncle did that movie. He was very young when that happened. Then my mom and her sisters were extras in movies. But no one ever really studied performing like I have.”

Surprise, surprise—Hailee sings well in the movie. “It’s funny because this will be the first time anybody hears me sing. The first time that you actually hear me sing in the movie is when I audition for the Bellas. I prerecorded a segment of that song I was meant to sing in my audition. For some reason, on the day of the shoot, I could not match my recording. So I ended up singing live in the movie.”

‘Everywhere’ singer

Maybe it’s the Filipino blood in her—Hailee loves to sing. “I am a shower-, car-, everywhere-singer. Singing is always something that I love doing but never anything that I have taken really seriously.

“But acting is my No. 1 priority. I was looking for a way that I can incorporate singing and acting. This was an absolute dream role that enabled me to do that.”

The California native claimed that she did not ask her pal, Taylor Swift, for tips. “I approached this movie as an actor, not a singer. If anything, I feel a little more confident calling myself a singer coming out of the movie. I didn’t ask for any tips because I thought I had it under control.

“I just admire Taylor. She’s such a good friend, so supportive. When we find ourselves in the same city … we do whatever we can to hang out.”

“Pitch Perfect 2” ends with a hint that Hailee’s freshman Emily could be the next leader of the Bellas, should there be a third movie. “There is that idea but I wish I knew more about where it is going,” Hailee said. “As a fan of the first movie, it’s so exciting to be part of the second. If there were another opportunity that we as a crew could be together again and make another movie, that would be amazing.”

(E-mail the columnist at rvnepales_5585@yahoo.com. Follow him at https://twitter.com/nepaleruben.)