Santa Monica’s artistic talent knows no bounds, with one of the city’s new standouts taking the spotlight in his hometown this past weekend.
On July 13, the 2024 Nickelodeon Kids Choice Awards came to Barker Hangar at the Santa Monica Municipal Airport, bringing along a host of A-listers like Billie Eilish, Adam Sandler and Margot Robbie. Within the crowded celebrity pool were the stars of Nickelodeon’s Erin & Aaron, including 16-year-old Santa Monica-born Jensen Gering.
Gering, who plays the musically-inclined Aaron on the show, hit the Orange Carpet alongside co-stars Ava Ro and Luca Diaz, and has been amazed by the reception the show has received, particularly on the Netflix streaming service alongside its broadcast home.
"It’s been amazing … once [the show] went on Netflix, people were coming up to me and saying ‘oh, I watched the show’ or ‘my little sister watches the show,’ just getting fan interactions," Gering said. "It’s truly been great, a bunch of exposure [and] hopefully boosts in all of our careers.
The show revolves around Gering as Aaron and Ro as Erin, two step-siblings who share musical aptitude while navigating their lives as a shared family. Ro added that the familial nature of the show allows for generational crossover appeal.
"Aaron & Erin is all about family," Ro said. "It’s about two families coming together and honestly, family is so important. I mean, those are the people that you love and trust."
Filming the show in Burbank, Gering’s studio is a literal family affair, as his father Galen Gering also filmed there as an actor on Days Of Our Lives. Gering made sure to note that his show is a little less risqué than his father’s, a slice of all-ages television that carves out a wholesome traditional media lane in today’s social media-dominated environment.
"It teaches values, which I feel like you wouldn’t get when scrolling through social media … there’s a whole story that is applied and helps with attention span," Gering said.
Many of the night’s award winners weren’t exactly shockers, as the smash hit Barbie picked up the "Favorite Movie" trophy while Jack Black won "Favorite Villain" for portraying the King of the Koopas, Bowser, in The Super Mario Bros. Movie. One big surprise took place, though, in the form of Disney’s Percy Jackson and the Olympians winning "Favorite Kids TV Show" over Nickelodeon competition.
Along with the huge win for Percy, its title character won "Favorite Male TV Star," that being Walker Scobell. The popular book series has now become a smash streaming sensation, with Scobell also stressing the importance of cross-generational content.
"There’s Percy Jackson fans of every age, and I think it’s important to still make a new and exciting kind of story [and] put our own spin on it, but at the same time, kind of give the people that have been reading the books and imagining [it] in their heads … an accurate image," Scobell said.
