Meet Baby Animals singer Suze DeMarchi’s daughter BeBe Bettencourt

Baby Animals frontwoman Suze DeMarchi sits down with her actor daughter BeBe Bettencourt for a chat about her artistic upbringing and trading wardrobes.

BeBe Bettencourt was born to perform. Her mother, Suze DeMarchi, is the trailblazing frontwoman of enduring Australian rock band Baby Animals, who will celebrate their 30th anniversary this year with a national tour that kicks off next month; her Portuguese-American father, Nuno Bettencourt, is the guitarist and keyboard player for the US rock band Extreme, whose 1991 hit song ‘More Than Words’ remains a staple of lite FM radio.

But rather than joining the family business, BeBe opted for acting. After completing her studies at the Australian Theatre For Young People in Sydney, she made a memorable feature-film debut as Ellie Deacon, the young girl whose murder drives the mystery at the heart of this year’s hit The Dry, starring Eric Bana.

“It’s a real relief to know that your kid’s all right.” (Picture: Steven Chee)

And now, the 25-year-old is starring in new TV series Eden (which premieres June 11 on Stan).

During a recent extended visit home from Los Angeles – which she now calls home – BeBe joined her mother for their first joint photo shoot and a lively chat with Stellar, to trade familial sledges and mutual admiration as they discuss their artistic talents – and express envy of each other’s wardrobes.

BeBe, your DNA would seem to steer you towards working in music, so what prompted you to choose acting?

BeBe Bettencourt: I just read so much as a kid, and I always just wanted to step into those stories. Also, because my parents are musicians, I was rebelling. I’m not going to be a musician!

Suze DeMarchi: The acting world is foreign to me. I did try at one point to do some acting but I get the giggles and I’m not serious enough about it.

“I think my mum’s incredible; what she’s done in her career is amazing.” (Picture: Steven Chee)

BB: It was kind of the first time in my life when you and me really were on the same page, because you guys understood what I wanted to do and the passion behind it, and were always very supportive of that.

SD: BeBe took it into her own hands. I had nothing to do with any of the path she’s taken other than driving her to the Australian Theatre For Young People when she was 14, and we moved back from America. It was what she wanted to do and she’s good at it.

And BeBe, you had your mum’s stage wardrobe to raid for costumes.

BB: From a young age. And not just the stage clothes; I lived in your closet. You got so mad at me, but it’s a compliment.

SD: I wouldn’t get mad at you for using them. I’d get mad if you never put them back and I’d find my clothes in a pile on your bedroom floor a week or a month later!

BB: We found a suitcase of a bunch of your stage clothes from the ’90s that I fully raided and wear all the time. Now you’ve started to raid my closet a bit. And I have to let you.

SD: Yes, but I do always ask you nicely. And I put them back.

Bebe Bettencourt and her co-star Sophie Wilde in the upcoming mystery series Eden. (Picture: Every Cloud Productions)

Rebelling didn’t really work in the end, BeBe, because you sang The Church classic ‘Under The Milky Way’ in The Dry.

BB: Director Rob Connolly and a couple of the producers knew that I could sing. It started out [with me] singing a couple of lines and it just grew. ‘Under The Milky Way’ felt really perfect for this film… I didn’t know they were going to use it for the trailer or that it was going to be in the film. It was a little bit nerve-racking.

SD: I was so, so proud, so happy for her. I saw it at the premiere – BeBe wouldn’t let me see it before, she made me wait until it came out.

BB: Mum came up to me after and didn’t say one thing to me. She was just sobbing and sobbing. And then Rob, our director, started crying. And I was standing there [thinking] get it together, everyone.

Suze DeMarchi with a young Bebe in 1996. (Picture: Supplied)

SD: I was relieved, to be honest with you. Thank God she’s good. Imagine if she sucked at it and I had to say, “Oh baby, you were so good.” I’m not a good liar.

The characters you play in both The Dry and your new show Eden are pretty dark.

BB: It seems I have a brand: complicated, sad characters. It’s great therapy, I get it all out at work – living with my mum, other feelings. I feel like generally, I’m a positive person, so it’s fun for me to explore all of that [on-screen]. Everyone has darkness in them.

SD: Everybody struggles through that teen rite of passage. It’s hectic. And to see her come through that and now be working doing what she loves, being good at it and make a living out of it, it’s really quite simply a relief – a real relief to know that your kid’s all right.

“As a kid, people always assumed that my home life was rough because of the nature of what my parents did.” (Picture: Supplied)

Did being raised in a creative home, both in the US and Australia, educate you about the less glamorous realities of the entertainment business?

BB: Yeah, I’ve been able to form a realistic view of it. I know the bullsh*t and also, through my parents, I saw how hard they work. There’s no finishing line. I’ve gained a greater appreciation for them and what they do.

I think my mum’s incredible; what she’s done in her career is amazing. It blows my mind all the stuff she had to push through because she’s a woman in rock music. I’ve learnt a lot from her.

SD: Do you want to say that again… a little bit louder?

BeBe, what do you predict your mum’s reaction will be to your central character Hedwig in Eden?

BB: That girl has a lot going on. To be honest, I think it’ll be tough for my mum to watch. She’s not allowed to watch some scenes. But Eden has so many beautiful moments, too – so much loveliness. I’ll have to give her time stamps, I think.

Suze DeMarchi and BeBe Bettencourt feature in this Sunday’s Stellar.

Suze, did you ever worry about bringing up your children [DeMarchi and Bettencourt also have a son, Lorenzo, now 18] on the road?

SD: That’s why I stopped [touring] for quite a long time, because I just wanted to be at home with my kids and Nuno was touring. It’s a choice that you make. I missed it, but it was really good for me to be at home and to be available and to enjoy my children.

There was no way I was going to drag them around all the time, but they were exposed to good people. I don’t work with d*ckheads.

BB: As a kid, people always assumed that my home life was rough because of the nature of what my parents did. Teachers pulled me aside and said, “If you need to talk to anybody about home, let me know.”

I’d think, what are you talking about? My mum is at home in her pyjamas drinking tea. My parents were quite strict because they know... They weren’t going to let me get up to what they did.