The fact that Kelly Rohrbach had been a Sports Illustrated Magazine's Rookie of the Year, a performer in the industry, and quite a Baywatch-kind figure didn’t quite help her in hunting down the role for the 2017 action-comedy, Baywatch. In fact, the role of C. J. Parker in the movie came as a surprise to her. She played the role of C.J. Parker, which was portrayed by Pamela Anderson for 4 long seasons in the original Baywatch series. Pamela Anderson gave a definition to the character, setting the bar too high for the actress to make a statement out of the role, not to mention the constant comparisons.
Kelly had no path leading to a role in Baywatch considering her life back in the early 2010s. Following her graduation in 2012, she moved to Los Angeles in search of a place in Hollywood. She apparently asked her mother who gave her a period of 6 months to try her luck and energy, failing the opportunity she would make her return to the east. Rohrbach was new and a major role in a movie appeared nothing short of a far cry.
Well, as the time dragged on, Rohrbach had begun doing some modeling gigs. Soon after, she landed minor roles in extremely successful sitcoms such as the Kutcher-era Two and A Half Men and New Normal. But interestingly, the roles were too minor to stand out. Rolling down the path of modeling and occasional acting, eventually, she was cast in Baywatch, her ultimate breakthrough.
Rohrbach is a true Baywatch fan, watching the show since she was only four. "Everyone thinks I'm lying when I say how much Baywatch was a part of our lives, We used to sit on the couch with our blankies, suck our thumbs, and watch," Kelly once said.
Known to everybody, the movie-version reboot of a successful show features a bunch of new and power-packed stars. Everybody in the movie had a great idea of film-related process but Kelly being rather new encountered troubles. Truth be told, Baywatch is not an easy movie to prepare for. The actors need to be in perfect beach shape, know how to swim, and whatnot. But taking preparations up a notch, Kelly did it all.
“Everybody worked out hard to get their beach bodies — the guys and the girls. I love to eat, so I worked out really hard. I was running at least five times a week, plus I was doing a lot of weights and boxing classes. The great thing was that because I was doing such high-intensity workouts I got to eat steak every night during filming!”
The new C.J. Parker has come a very long way from the days of hopping from auditions to auditions in search of a place in Hollywood. How the story unfolded is itself a statement speaking volumes of Kelly’s determination for the role. Funnily enough, she went for the Baywatch auditions wearing the iconic red Baywatch kit, expecting failure more than approval. It was New York's dead winter in January, the casting directors were in complete awe of Kelly who thought it was nothing but embarrassing. New York winter can drive anyone crazy!
Believe it or not, C. J. Parker's portrayal by Kelly was probably destined to happen. Fun Fact: in the year 2014, out of the blues, Kelly posted a picture of herself wearing the Baywatch kit on Instagram captioned, 'watch your back CJ.' However, when she accomplished her dream, she deleted the post.
