Marry Me’s Chloe Coleman On Cosplay, Art, And Working With J.Lo

In Elite Daily’s series Rent-Free, celebrities unpack the one thought, memory, or unforgettable pop culture moment that’ll always live in their head. In this piece, Marry Me star Chloe Coleman talks about her love of cosplay and art.

Chloe Coleman is used to dressing up. An actor since the age of 5 (when she first appeared as a dancer on Glee), she’s spent her life in and out of costumes and pretending to be other people. But when she discovered the concept of cosplay on YouTube, it sparked something within her.

“At first, I would watch convention videos, and I would see cosplayers in their costumes ... and I was like, ‘This is super exciting,’” Coleman, 13, tells Elite Daily. “Over time, I was constantly thinking about and watching videos about cosplay. I spent a lot of my time researching it.”

Coleman’s first time creating and building a costume was for Ibuki Mioda, one of the heroines from the Danganronpa video game series. (Coleman says she’s watched all 20 hours of playthrough on YouTube.) After making it, she realized it was time to show it off, so she headed to Los Angeles Comic-Con. “Seeing all these awesome people like me in their costumes walking into this convention, I just had like this big smile on my face,” she says. “People were even asking me to take photos of my costume because they thought it was cool, and to me, that meant a lot. People weren’t asking to take photos of me because I was an actor; it was because they loved my costume”

Some might assume those who dress up in wild costumes at conventions do it for the attention, but for Coleman, cosplay isn’t about standing out; it’s about fitting in with people who share her interests. “Meeting people and walking around and just getting to completely immerse yourself in fictional characters,” she says. “To me, it’s like, the most fun ever, and doing it with others makes it extra special.”

So far, Coleman hasn’t seen anyone cosplay a character she’s played as an actor, but considering she’s going to be in both the upcoming film adaptation of Dungeons & Dragons and the long-awaited Avatar 2, it’ll probably happen eventually. “I’d be really flattered,” she says of the possibility.

But before those projects, viewers will see Coleman in her latest movie, Marry Me, Jennifer Lopez’s return to the rom-com world after a decade away. Filming with Lopez was a surreal experience for Coleman. “I literally grew up on her music; she has some of the best dance songs I’ve ever heard,” Coleman says. “I was initially nervous — this is J.Lo who I’m going to meet — and she welcomed me with such opened arms and was really kind ... She’s a total mama bear.”

With a soundtrack featuring Lopez and co-star Maluma, Marry Me’s music is one of Coleman’s favorite aspects of the movie. She reveals there’s even a blooper reel of her accidentally singing out loud during a scene when she’s supposed to be lip-syncing. “The music is playing, and then it cuts out and you just hear me singing in the middle of the crowd and I wasn't supposed to be,” she says with a giggle.

Outside of the film, Coleman is more than just a music fan — she’s taken singing lessons, and she plays the piano and ukulele. She’s also super into writing. “I want to be a writer ... I'm talking about books and scripts and songs,” she says. Combine all her interests and talents together, and it sounds like Chloe Coleman is on her way to becoming a force in the arts.

Marry Me is playing in theaters and streaming on Peacock as of Feb. 11.