BEFORE landing the role of bad girl Naomi Clark in the spin-off of Beverly Hills, 90210, AnnaLynne McCord has never set foot in a high school.

The 21-year-old was home- schooled her whole life. Despite leading a vastly different life from the character she plays, the actress says she will be friends with girls such as Clark in real life.

'I tend to reach out to people like Clark because I can see they are putting on a facade and are not as bad as they seem. They will eventually let their guard down and become nice people.'

McCord admits she has not watched the original drama series which ran from 1990 to 2000. The series shot its actors such as Luke Perry and Shannen Doherty to fame.

The original series followed the lives of a group of teenagers living in the high-class community of Beverly Hills, California, with the teens attending a fictitious high school. The 90210 in the title refers to the postal code.

The spin-off, simply called 90210, has a similar plot line.

McCord, born in Atlanta, Georgia, says: 'I want Clark to be someone the new generation can connect to and it is important for me to try to make her totally different from anything viewers have seen before.'

Read the full story in Tuesday's edition of The Straits Times Life!