Rebecca Brayton of WatchMojo: Inside the Strategy to Elevate Digital Pop Culture and Inclusive Language

As a part of our series about Inspirational Women In Hollywood, I had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Rebecca Brayton.

Described (by herself) as the world’s biggest Back to the Future fan, WatchMojo’s very own Rebecca Brayton (AKA The WatchMojo Lady) is an experienced host who has interviewed hundreds of celebrities and appeared in thousands of videos from a huge variety of pop culture genres. Whether it’s Tom Holland’s excitement over meeting her, The Rock and Kevin Hart roasting each other in front of her, or hosting the What The List? gameshow, Rebecca has seen it all and is firmly entrenched in the digital pop culture sphere.

Thank you so much for doing this with us! Our readers would love to get to know you a bit better. Can you tell us the story of how you grew up?

If you can picture a child who loved to sing, do crafts, watch “Back to the Future” and “Ghostbusters” almost constantly and had Batman and Robin as her invisible friends, you have a vague picture of my childhood!

Can you share a story with us about what brought you to this specific career path?

I still find it funny that YouTube (and in fact most social media as we know it today) didn’t even exist while I was in school, so working on YouTube was not something I had considered until I was already doing it. When a fellow student mentioned she was hosting videos for a new YouTube channel, I figured I’d give it a try as well — “something for the résumé,” I told myself.. This was in 2007, and I’ve been there ever since.

While I wasn’t hired at WatchMojo specifically for a voiceover role, I was always the kid that teachers called on to read out loud in class — so I suppose it was only a matter of time! Add to that my aptitude for writing and the inordinate amount of pop culture trivia I’ve absorbed over the years, and I think I’ve managed to find my perfect job!

Can you tell us the most interesting story that happened to you since you began your career?

I was given the opportunity to bungee jump while at a movie junket in Mexico a couple of years ago. Normally, this would not really be up my alley, but I was told “you wouldn’t want The Rock to make fun of you for not doing it, would you?” So I did it! And when I asked The Rock if he had ever bungee jumped himself, his answer was basically “no way!” Well, at least I can say I’ve bungee jumped!

Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?

I don’t really consider any of the experiences I’ve gone through in my career “mistakes,” since they were all important steps to get where I am now. I will say that some interviewees are more forthcoming than others in interviews, and I once had to pivot a conversation drastically in the middle of a shoot because the person I was speaking with was not interested in my planned line of questioning. It was embarrassing at the time and I felt I had failed, but now it’s a moment to look back on and laugh about (which we do… frequently!)

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?

I’m very close with my family, and I would never have been able to get where I am without the help and encouragement of my parents, sister and grandparents. While they were understandably reticent when I decided to pursue online video as a career (in the early days of YouTube!), they supported me and have been great sounding boards and cheerleaders. My sister even came to work with me, as one of the voices of our sister channel MsMojo!

You have been blessed with great success in a career path that can be challenging. Do you have any words of advice for others who may want to embark on this career path, but seem daunted by the prospect of failure?

There are pros and cons to embarking on a career in an unproven space as I did at the advent of YouTube; there was no certainty that I’d have a career long term, but we were also able to get in “on the ground floor” on the platform. It would be a very different beast to get into the space today, but if you’re good at what you do and find your niche and your people, success will come — although it doesn’t happen overnight and it does take a lot of hard work!

And I really can’t stress this enough: don’t read the comments! Seriously. It took me years to learn that lesson.

What drives you to get up every day and work in TV and Film? What change do you want to see in the industry going forward?

We’ve heard so many heartfelt stories from fans who’ve told us they were able to get through a hard time thanks to WatchMojo’s videos. I know what we’re doing isn’t brain surgery, but if I can brighten someone’s day with a silly voice or a stupid joke, that means a lot to me.

We’ve seen a lot of positive changes in the industry lately, with the increased attention paid to inclusivity. I hope this continues, so we’re able to see more diverse stories being told in the coming years. With regards to WatchMojo specifically, we now focus much more attentively on our use of language and tone in our videos. Our audience continues to help us evolve through their comments and feedback, and it’s been a worthwhile learning experience! My goal is to lead by example and help set a standard for inclusive language.

You have such impressive work. What are some of the most interesting or exciting projects you are working on now? Where do you see yourself heading from here?

As we head into the holiday season and the end of the year, we have some fun Best and Worst lists on the horizon, as well as some guides for things to get excited about in 2022. Now that Hollywood is back to its regularly scheduled programming (relatively speaking) there’s a lot for WatchMojo to cover, but personally, I’m just really excited to finally get to see all the movies!!!

We are very interested in looking at diversity in the entertainment industry. Can you share three reasons with our readers why you think it’s important to have diversity represented in film and television? How can that potentially affect our culture and our youth growing up today?

Everyone deserves to feel comfortable and confident with who they are, and I believe that starts with seeing yourself represented on screen. Additionally, everyone should be accepted for who they are, and representation on screen can help dispel stereotypes and introduce different personalities and viewpoints to those who might not otherwise be exposed to them in their daily lives. Finally, telling stories for and from different perspectives only enriches them, and shows the world as it is and as it should be.

What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why? Please share a story or example for each.

A list! Now we’re in my wheelhouse! Can all five be “Don’t read the comments”? No? Okay, here goes…

1. People Love Authenticity: Instead of making sure every detail is perfect, show your audience the rough edges or bloopers — I guarantee they’ll love the genuineness and sincerity.
2. Asking for Help Is Not a Sign of Weakness: It’s not only a good career lesson but also a vital life lesson.
3. Delegating Is Not the Enemy! I can be a perfectionist, and it’s taken me a very long time to let go and allow others to help. This is kind of tied to #2.
4. Learn to Set Boundaries: With people, between work and life, etc. Still working on this one!
5. Don’t Focus on the Negative: For some reason, comments sections are often filled with a vocal, negative majority. But consider how you feel when you’re watching a video online; how often do you truly enjoy something but don’t feel compelled to leave a message with your opinion? So it stands to reason that for every negative comment, there are 100 positive comments someone just didn’t write. There’s a good chance you’re positively affecting many more people than you think. So if you absolutely must subject yourself to reading the comments, try to keep that in mind!

Can you share with our readers any selfcare routines, practices or treatments that you do to help your body, mind or heart to thrive? Please share a story for each one if you can.

More than anything else I can do for myself, I need to drink a lot of water and get a good night’s rest! But outside of that — as clichéd as it may sound — I do love long walks in the woods, maybe with a true-crime podcast. If I can manage to do a little yoga and spend some time in the sun, I’m having a good week! Maybe even a solo dance party once in a while *wink*

Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?

One of my university professors told me: Don’t be afraid to make a difference. It’s a saying I’ve come back to a lot over the years, and while I can’t say I’ve always successfully embodied it, it is advice I consider whenever I am facing challenges at work. Basically, every job can have an impact, so anything worth doing is worth doing well.

You are a person of huge influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be?

I wish everyone had equal access to mental health resources. This is the root of so many issues and it is so vitally important to one’s overall wellbeing; it should be a priority.

Is there a person in the world whom you would love to have lunch with, and why? Maybe we can tag them and see what happens!

They say “don’t meet your heroes,” but I just can’t imagine that meeting Dave Grohl would ever be disappointing: I’ve been a fan for longer than I care to admit! Plus he seems like the nicest guy in the biz and you just know he has a million amazing stories to tell.

Are you on social media? How can our readers follow you online?

Well, other than the WatchMojo and MsMojo YouTube channels, you can find me on my own channel YouTube.com/WatchMojoLady, as well as Twitter, Instagram and TikTok @RebeccaBrayton.

This was so informative, thank you so much! We wish you continued success!

Thank YOU!