First Look: Hilary Duff in What Goes Up

After working in local theater plays and television commercials, Hilary Duff gained fame for playing Lizzie McGuire, which quickly became the flagship for the Disney Channel. After the hit show fulfilled 65 episodes, Duff went on to a successful movie career in Cheaper by the Dozen with Steve Martin and A Cinderella Story with Chad Michael Murray; and launched a successful pop music career with three platinum albums. She has also topped the Billboard 200 numerous times, and recent hits that include "With Love,” "Stranger," and "Reach Out."

In What Goes Up, Duff plays Lucy, a teenager who comes across as a narcissistic seductress attempting to win over the much older character of Campbell Babbitt (Steve Coogan) but eventually reveals much more depth than the way people perceive her. She also recorded the hit song “Any Other Day,” which Robert Lawson wrote with her and Jonathan Glatzer, for the film.

In this clip, complete with two scenes with Steve Coogan, Duff talks about how challenging it can be to be perceived one way by others while being a different and deeper person inside. It’s a quality she says she shares with Lucy despite being completely different people with very different backgrounds.

First Look: Hilary Duff in What Goes Up

Duff was originally encouraged to take up acting classes alongside her older sister, Haylie, who is also an actress and singer. Today, she leads a successful multifaceted career and has made guest star appearances on several television shows, including Law & Order: Special Victims Unit. She has recently completed several independent films that include War, Inc., Greta, and Stay Cool.

Duff, who has always been a strong philanthropist, is currently busy supporting AIDS Walk New York on May 17. She is also cast as Bonnie Parker in the upcoming The Story of Bonnie and Clyde (2010) and recently accepted a starring role in Provinces of Night (2010) with Val Kilmer and Faye Dunaway.

First Look: Steve Coogan in What Goes Up

When most people think of Steve Coogan, they think of one of the best known characters in the United Kingdom, Alan Partridge. However, Coogan is surprisingly diverse, recently playing Damien Cockburn in Ben Stiller’s Tropic Thunder and Octavius in the upcoming Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian, which opens the week before What Goes Up.

In What Goes Up, Coogan takes the lead as Campbell Babbitt, the morally challenged New York reporter who learns life lessons from a group of dysfunctional students (Hilary Duff, Josh Peck, Olivia Thirlby) after being sent to cover the story about a local hometown hero.

In this clip, complete with one scene with Molly Shannon and another with Thirlby, Coogan talks about what attracted him to the film, the depth of the characters, and how it relates to people searching for meaning in their lives. (Content warning: adult language).

First Look: Steve Coogan in What Goes Up.



Coogan, one of nine children, was born and raised in Middleton, Greater Manchester. He has won numerous awards for his work in television, including several British Comedy Awards, BAFTAs, and The South Bank Show award for comedy. In 2003, he was listed in The Observer as one of the 50 funniest acts in British comedy. He is also an accomplished writer, producer, director composer, and co-owner of Baby Cow Productions with Henry Normal.

Since March 2008, Coogan has been on tour doing stand-up comedy. He has also been cast in movies that include Eddie the Eagle (2009) and Murder in Samarkand (2011), both of which are currently in pre-production.

First Look: Olivia Thirlby in What Goes Up

Olivia Thirlby is best known for her role as Leah, who was best friends with Juno MacGuff (Ellen Page) in Juno. The film won an Oscar for best original screenplay written directly for the screen. Recently, she played the part of Stephanie in the independent film The Wackness opposite Josh Peck. That film won the 2008 Sundance Film Festival Audience Award.

In What Goes Up, Thirlby plays Tess, a teenager struggling with the concept of how individual experiences shape our view of the world. In this clip, complete with scenes from the movie, Thirlby shares personal insights about the film and what it is like working with Steve Coogan, who plays Campbell Babbitt. (Content warning: adult language).

First Look: Olivia Thirlby in What Goes Up.


Thirlby, the daughter of a construction worker, was born in New York City, and trained at the American Globe Theatre as well as (briefly) the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London. She also completed a stage combat course with the British Academy of Stage and Screen Combat (BASSC). Her first role was in the movie United 93.

Vanity Fair magazine called Thirlby part of "Hollywood's New Wave," along with The Jonas Brothers, Emma Roberts, Amanda Seyfried, Kristen Stewart, Josh Peck, and Christopher Mintz-Plasse. Recently, fans were thrilled to find Thirlby with Kat Dennings on the cover of Nylon Magazine.