Sarah Dugdale Talks Her Character ‘Lizzie’ in Netflix’s Hit Series: ‘Virgin River’

One of the first things Sarah Dugdale wants people to know that she’s nothing like Lizzie, her character in “Virgin River,” a hit program on Netflix. Well, maybe a little.

The romantic drama, which recently announced a third season, shows the ups and downs of life when Melinda, a nurse practitioner, moves from Los Angeles, to a tiny town in Northern California for a fresh start. Sarah Dugdale joined the cast in Season 2, as Lizzie, the streetwise niece of the store owner and an active member of the town’s sewing circle. She also just relocated from L.A. and is having similar challenges adjusting to the slower pace of small-town life.

“Lizzie is wild, impulsive, and eager to find trouble wherever she goes,” Sarah Dugdale said. “She has a chip on her shoulder beneath the hard exterior and is a blast to play.”

So how different is real-life Sarah than TV Lizzie?

“Lizzie is much more confident and outspoken than I ever was, and holds her cards pretty close to her chest, which is what I relate to most,” she said. “I was very shy growing up, so I enjoy exploring her confidence, and find that her drive and resilience feel very close to my own.”

Along with “Virgin River,” Sarah Dugdale can be seen this year in “There’s Someone in Your House,” a horror/slasher flick based on the spooky 2017 book by Stephanie Perkins. The thriller tells the story of a Makani, a high school student who just moved to Nebraska from Hawaii. All of a sudden, her friends start dying in strange and mysterious ways, so Makani and some of the area’s outcast teens team up to stop the killings.

“Stephanie Perkins wrote a great book and the script by Henry Gayden really does this movie justice,” Sarah Dugdale said. “Plus, I love the horror genre so needless to say I had such a blast.”

Sarah Dugdale can also be seen in “The Shadow of the Moon,” another Netflix drama.