Melissa Ordway will be making a huge mark in Hollywood in 2010 with her upcoming films, The Last Song, award worthy Bones, Minkow, and Tales of an Ancient Empire. She recently had a recurring role in The CW show, Privileged, and has also appeared on Entourage, How I Met Your Mother, and will soon appear on The CW’s Melrose Place. There’s lots more to this rising star, so get to know Melissa Ordway below…you’ll be seeing lots more from her this year!

How did you break into acting and get from Georgia to Los Angeles?
I did a lot of plays and theatre in high school. I always had a passion for acting so I moved to Los Angeles to follow my dreams, began modeling and from there broke into the acting world. That’s the cliff notes version.

What was the audition process like for The Last Song and did you originally audition for the role of Ashley?
I auditioned for Ashley and then didn’t hear anything for about a month so I had figured I hadn’t gotten the role. Then, on my first day of work on Bones, I got a call that they wanted me to come back and audition again. So I went in again and auditioned and found out the next day that I booked the part! I was SO excited! I always dreamed of being a part of a film written by Nicholas Sparks. Plus, we filmed in Georgia (where I’m from) so it was my dream job!

How did you approach the way that you would present your character of Ashley – as someone who is just trying to stay with the one she loves (Will), as someone who doesn’t know when to let go and is desperate to stay in a relationship she is comfortable in, etc…?
I think that Ashley was dealing with all of those issues. I understood Ashley as soon as I read the script. Ashley is hurt. That pain and hurt is what drives her to do what she does. The end of a relationship with your “first love” is uniquely difficult. I tried to embody that pain and loss in Ashley. As well as, not knowing when to let go and give up. Ashley does not take no for an answer and she gets what she wants so when Will turns her down, she doesn’t know how to react. So she has to deal with all of these new feelings at once.

The book is told in 4 different points of views, none are of Ashley’s so we only know what is told about Ashley through other people…so based on your perception of your character, if your point of view was shared, what do you think we would find out about Ashley and her relationship with Will?
I think you would understand how hurt Ashley is. Not only did she loose her first love but then to see him fall in love with another girl is heartbreaking and very difficult to deal with. I also think that you’d see that Will was never in love with Ashley. Ashley cared a lot more for Will than he did her.

Do you think that Cassie is a good influence, a good friend?
Cassie means well and she is always there for Ashley. Cassie is the best friend she knows how to be. Now whether she’s a good influence, I don’t know.

Were there many rewrites and did it affect your character?
There were a few rewrites but nothing major.

In The Last Song, Ronnie really grows into her own skin when she moves in with her father for the summer. What would you say was the moment that happened for you in real life?
I think I’m still growing into my own skin. I’m always learning and making mistakes that help me grow as a person. Just recently, I’m feeling more comfortable with myself. But it is hard being a girl and all of the pressure there is to look and act a certain way. But I am just starting to love my “flaws” and realize that no one is perfect and those things are what makes you, you.

Bones looks like an incredibly intense film…what was it like getting into that emotional state for your character?
Bones is very intense. It was so incredible getting to play such an emotional role. I was scared when I got the role because it was so different from any character I’d ever played. I had to learn how to go to the darkest, scariest place in my mind and bring those emotions to the surface.

From getting the role to the last day of filming, what did you learn about yourself from your character in Bones?
My character has some horrible things happen to her. But instead of dealing with what has happened to her, she gives up and (Spoiler Alert) ultimately ends her own life. I learned that no matter how bad it is, to NEVER GIVE UP! There is always help out there. Even when you think there is no hope, there is!

What was it like working with Writer/Director Frank Pestarino?
Frank is awesome! He was wonderful! He really knew what he wanted but he also gave us room to explore.

Tales of an Ancient Empire looks very cool. What was training like for this role?
The training was very intense. I had to learn how to sword fight (which was very fun) and horse back ride. I was very scared of riding on horses so I was afraid to learn how to fight, ride and film all at the same time. It turned out to be lots of fun but I was intimidated at first.

What was it like onset of 17 Again?
17 Again was one of the best experiences. Everyone got along really well and we just had so much fun everyday. We all became good friends so on set it was like hanging out with your friends. It wasn’t like work at all!

What was your favorite part about being part of the show, Privileged?
Jordanna was a really fun character to play. The show was so cute and I loved the cast and crew so much! It was so great to work with such talented and amazing people.

What would you have liked to have seen if Privileged had gotten another season?
More Jordanna… haha… no. ☺ More of the twins (Rose and Sage) and their drama. I’d also have liked to see more romance for Megan… it was just getting juicy and I really wanted to see what would end up happening between her and Will.

Can you tell me about your upcoming projects that I have not mentioned?
Currently, I am working on Melrose Place. I play Morgan; a thrill seeking girl who falls for one of the boys on the show. But we’ll have to wait and see what happens.

Aside from acting, are you interested in writing, producing, directing, etc?
I am interested in writing and producing. I have a lot of ideas.

What do you like the most and least about LA?
Most: Work, Friends, Weather and everything is close by. You can drive 20min and be at the beach or an hour and be in the mountains snow boarding.

Least: My family isn’t here. I miss my parents a lot and its hard to be so far from them. And Parking… its so hard to park here!

What are your favorite holiday traditions?
I love putting up the Christmas tree every year and on Christmas Eve my dad reads The Night Before Christmas.

Follow Melissa Ordway on Twitter.