Stenberg, now 18, has had brief roles on TVsSleepy Hollowand the short-livedMr.
Since I graduated Ive pretty much been working nonstop, Stenberg tells EW.
So it definitely felt like jumping into the deep end of the pool when it comes to adulthood.
Credit: Maarten de Boer/Getty Images
Its such a complicated period of time that Im still experiencing and transitioning out of.
She has a real strength, but shes really optimistic and positive.
Thats something Maddie is, Yoon says.
Amandla also has an innocence about her, which Maddie does, too.
Questions of who fits in and why fascinate her.
I was raised by an interracial couple, she says.
My mom is from the Bronx and shes black and she moved to L.A. as a writer.
She has also moved around between schools, some with mostly black students, others mostly white.
As someone caught between, she found herself shaped by thoughts about who is welcomed, and who isnt.
Stenberg is a fighter.
Equality, justice, fairness, are the broadstrokes.
Stenberg grew up with roles not being available because of race.
At first the roles werent available to me, and now they are because people are bored.
And what do they want?
Diversity is something that people desperately want.
Just as important as representation is connection.
Shes ready to be herself.
Or just the person shes playing.
Thats something that Ive always believed in, Stenberg says.
That just existing can be a political act in itself.
Sometimes it can be unsafe, sometimes it can be risky.
Sometimes it can be really powerful and you learn the most beautiful lessons.
Holding off on the rest of her formal education is the chance shes currently taking.
Stenberg was accepted to New York Universitys film school, and someday she hopes to return.
But for now, shes waiting.
For now, Stenberg has an opportunity for lots of on-the-job training in front of the camera.
