It’s been 10 years since the show first premiered. Let’s take a look to see what the stars have been up to since
BY JASMINE SMITH, IMAGE BY MTV
10 years ago, MTV piggybacked off the success of hit teen show Awkward and created an ensemble of shows including Finding Carter and Faking It. Season three of Faking It premiered in 2016, but one day before the season finale, fans were left devastated as it was announced the show was cancelled.
Faking It revolved around Karma and Amy, two outcast best friends in a liberal high school who are mistaken for a lesbian couple and decide to pretend to be together to gain popularity. After kissing to maintain their charade, Amy begins to discover that she might not actually be faking it.
Despite being a show that creator Carter Covington himself emphasised was a challenging premise, Faking It provided many young adults in the LGBTQIA community with much-needed representation, presenting a fuller and candid (often messy) queer experience.
Let’s see what the cast have been up to since the show ended.
Katie Stevens (Karma Ashcroft)
Karma was chaotic, let’s be honest. She was desperate for people to like her and often insecure and jealous. Yet we couldn’t help but root for her, especially with her loyalty and acceptance of Amy.
After Faking It ended, Katie starred as Jane Sloan in The Bold Type for five seasons alongside Meghann Fahy and Aisha Dee. She also had roles in horrors Polaroid and Haunt.
In 2023 she appeared in Fantasy Island, and recently gave birth to a daughter.
Rita Volk (Amy Raudenfeld)
Amy was a clear fan favourite. We loved Rita’s portrayal of the sarcastic, quick-witted teen struggling to understand her sexuality. Our hearts broke for her in the season 1 finale, and celebrated as she thrived in queer relationships throughout the series.
Rita can be seen in projects Almost Friends, TV show Condor and horror We Still Say Grace.
Most recently she appeared in Dr Death Season two playing Yulia Tuulik.
Gregg Sulkin (Liam Booker)
Liam’s story evolved from a straight male with some weird fetishes to a (slightly) socially aware young artist with intense family issues. His friendship with Shane was refreshing to see, and his arc (while not perfect) resulted in a blossoming relationship with Lauren.
Since the show, Gregg has appeared in Runaways, Pretty Smart, and The List. He recently appeared in season two of World on Fire.
You can next catch Gregg in The Throwback and Six Triple Eight, releasing this year.
Michael Willett (Shane Harvey)
Few shows have had an openly gay guy be the most popular in school, and yet Faking It did. Shane was confident and charismatic, but with an unfortunate habit of outing people. His journey encouraged important conversations about acceptance within the LGBTQIA community.
Michael hasn’t appeared in many projects but does appear in Dolly Parton’s Heartstrings alongside fellow Faking It star Katie Stevens.
He released the album Pink Sunglasses in 2020.
Bailey De Young (Lauren Cooper)
Lauren was the original antagonist of the series, blackmailing Karma and Amy and hating Hester High for its liberal ideals. In season two, we learned that Lauren was intersex: the first ever intersex character to be represented in a recurring role on television. The reaction from fans in embracing the intersex community was one of our favourite outcomes of the show!
Bailey can be seen in The Marvelous Mrs Maisel as Imogene Cleary.
Yvette Monreal (Reagan)
Reagan was the edgy independent lesbian DJ we met in season two who helped to heal Amy’s heart. Unfortunately, their relationship didn’t last too long, as Amy’s honesty and Reagan’s trust issues tore them apart.
Yvette has been busy since the show, appearing in the Fosters, Monsoon and Rambo: Last Blood. She also played Yolanda Montez/Wildcat in Stargirl.
She is set to star in upcoming TV series More.
Keith Powers (Theo)
Theo was the perfect love interest for Lauren – until he was revealed to be an undercover police officer. Their relationship is one of the show’s more problematic elements, although it showed a vulnerable side to Lauren fans had yet to see.
Post-Faking It, Keith has starred in films such as The Tomorrow War, series What/If and romcom The Perfect Find in 2023.
He will next appear in Uglies alongside Joey King and Laverne Cox.
Sophia Ali (Sabrina)
Sabrina, Amy’s childhood friend, became romantically involved with Amy in season three. Then she admitted to lying and having a boyfriend – yikes. Ultimately, the series ends with Sabrina realising she’s in love with Amy and them reuniting.
Sophia has starred in Uncharted, Greys Anatomy and queer-favourite The Wilds. This year, she appears in Chicago Med, and upcoming Above the Line.
Elliot Fletcher (Noah)
Noah appears in season three and quickly becomes a love interest of Shane’s. We saw Shane struggle through some preconceptions before ultimately confessing his love in the season finale. Noah was another fan favourite and provided essential representation for trans men on screen.
After Faking It, Elliot appeared in Shameless, The Fosters and Y: The Last Man. He was a creative consultant for documentary Disclosure and can be spotted most recently in an episode of The Sex Lives of College Girls.
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