Sometimes all you need is a phone call with your mom. And it turns out that was exactly what Sofia Carson needed too before tackling her latest film, Purple Hearts. “Getting into this project, I was terrified, and I had never felt that scared before,” the actor and singer-songwriter tells Tudum. “I was paralyzed by fear. I literally parked outside the studio just sobbing and shaking.”

It’s been quite the year for the 29-year-old, who is slated to perform the Oscar-nominated song “Applause” from the film Tell It Like a Woman with Diane Warren at the 2023 Academy Awards. Ahead of her March 12 performance, Carson’s already built an impressive repertoire as a performer — from her breakout role as Evie in the Disney Channel musical franchise The Descendants to her self-titled debut album released in March 2022. But Purple Hearts is her biggest venture yet, especially now the multi-hyphenate is adding a couple of new hyphens to her resume: She’s also the executive producer and soundtrack writer of the film. “I had never been involved with a project from start to finish,” she says. “So I learned an enormous amount about the entire process.”  

A case of the nerves can be expected before any new artistic endeavor, but the 29-year-old says her new romantic drama was different from anything else in her career to date. From her breakout role as Evie in the Disney Channel musical franchise The Descendants to her self-titled debut album released in March, Carson has always been hands-on with her projects. But Purple Hearts is her biggest venture yet, especially now the multi-hyphenate is adding a couple of new hyphens to her resume: She’s also executive producer and soundtrack writer of the film. “I had never been involved with a project from start to finish,” she says. “So I learned an enormous amount about the entire process.” 

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From left: Sofia Carson as Cassie, Nicholas Galitzine as Luke, Elizabeth Allen Rosenbaum (Director) on the set of Purple Hearts

Carson first met director Elizabeth Allen Rosenbaum while working on Pretty Little Liars: The Perfectionists five years ago. The pair knew they wanted to collaborate again, and it didn’t take long for another opportunity to arise. One Christmas morning, Rosenbaum handed Carson a special gift — a script. It was a rough draft of Purple Hearts, and it would mark the beginning of their creative journey together. “I still can't believe nor can I wrap my head around the fact that Liz Allen, Leslie Morgenstein and Elysa Koplovitz Dutton — who are our producers — trusted me to do this,” Carson says. “And from the very beginning, I told them that I wanted to be involved with the soundtrack and they were like, ‘Absolutely!’” 

With that, Carson got to work. She helped develop the script and her musician character, Cassie Salazar; she pitched the project to networks and streaming platforms; she helped cast talent (the film also stars Nicholas Galitzine, Chosen Jacobs and Loren Escandon) and wrote the entire soundtrack (with songwriter Justin Tranter) in one week. But through it all, it was her mother’s words of encouragement that she kept hearing in her head.

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Cassie prepares to play her song “Come Back Home” to Luke over video chat.

At a young age, Laura Char Carson introduced her daughter to Jennifer Lopez, Barbra Streisand and Cher. “They weren't just singers, songwriters or Grammy winners,” Sofia says. “They were directors, producers and Oscar winners. They were part of every aspect of storytelling.” Now Carson is finally joining the ranks of the trailblazing women she grew up admiring. But she’s also bringing someone else along for the ride: her mom. “We worked together on my career. I call her my head of management. She is my partner. She is my everything,” says Carson. Fittingly, Laura Char Carson is also an executive producer on Purple Hearts. 

In the film, Cassie’s support from her mom, Marisol Salazar (played by Escandon) is unconditional. As a Type I diabetic, Cassie is forced to navigate a health-care system fraught with red tape just to get the insulin she needs to survive. Cassie juggles multiple jobs to make ends meet and has seen firsthand how the government mistreats immigrants like her mother. But even though her life is heavy with trauma and injustice, Cassie isn’t jaded. Instead, she persists, fights and speaks up for marginalized people and communities, refusing to compromise her beliefs. 

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Sofia Carson attends Netflix Purple Hearts special screening at The Bay Theater on July 22, 2022 in Pacific Palisades, California.

Ironically, the first lyric of “LOUD,” a track on Carson’s debut album begins “Confrontation never has been my strength….” And while it’s easy to guess this is where Carson deviates from Cassie, that couldn’t be further from the truth. “My mom and my sister were always very loud and unafraid to say exactly what they felt, but I wasn't usually like that,” Carson says. “Being in this industry, though, I realized the importance of using my voice and the responsibility that I had. I was always very deeply passionate about justice and human rights.” 

As a UNICEF ambassador, Carson has been fighting for accessible education for young girls around the world. She’s the first-ever global ambassador for the Latin Grammy Cultural Foundation, introducing Latin music and educational programming to students. She also raises awareness about poverty and LGBTQ rights. “The responsibility to use my voice comes from my mom,” she says. “Which is why I'm drawn to characters like Cassie, who tell not only love stories, but important stories.”

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Cassie and her band finish a set, enjoying their new-found success in the music scene. 

Near the end of Purple Hearts, Cassie and her band’s dreams come true when they perform at the Hollywood Bowl. Cheering from the front row is, you guessed it, her mom, proudly decked out in her daughter’s merch. Much like the film’s mother-daughter duo, Carson says that she, too, shares her successes with her biggest inspiration. “My mom leads with love, kindness and empathy in everything that she does, and I strive to follow her example,” she emphasizes. As she says this, Carson’s eyes become watery and her voice catches a little. “The most important thing I learn from her every single day is that nothing is impossible. She'll never take no for an answer, in the best way.”