‘Scream Queens’ Season 2 Star Billie Lourd Reveals Her Inspiration For Chanel #3’s Voice

Billie Lourd as Chanel #3 — “Scream Queens” Season 2 actress Billie Lourd revealed that Chanel #3’s voice is inspired by her grandma’s voice. Michael Becker/FOX

One of Chanel #3’s (Billie Lourd) unique qualities that set her apart from the other Chanels on “Scream Queens” is her soft, whispery voice. But where did Lourd actually get her inspiration for it?

“I was kind of inspired by my grandma (Debbie Reynolds) because she talks in this great 1950s voice,” Lourd revealed during a recent interview with AOL News. “And the director, Brad Falchuk, came up to me right after I started doing it and expressed his love for the voice because it adds to Chanel #3's humor.”

Since then, Lourd had mastered Chanel #3’s speaking voice and can now switch from her normal voice to her character’s voice in no time, even off set. “Now I can’t escape it and end up doing normal things in my character’s voice,” the 24-year-old actress shared. “Sometimes my friends get mad at me and say, ‘You're treating me like #3,’ and I just answer back in the voice, it’s amazing.”

In an interview with People in May, Lourd revealed that her grandma is a fan of “Scream Queens.” “She thinks it’s hilarious, she loves it so much,” Lourd said of what Reynolds thinks of the FOX series. “She loves the costumes. [She’s] obsessed with fur and ear muffs and all of that.”

While Reynolds is proud of what her granddaughter has accomplished as an actress, Lourd revealed that her grandma has been encouraging her to do an act of her own. “She lives downstairs at my house … and I went down there and she was trying to convince me to start my own act, because she thinks that that’s the way that acting happens,” Lourd recalled.

Imitating Reynolds’ voice, Lourd jokingly said: ‘Well, dear, I know you’re doing this TV show, and you’re on ‘Star Wars’ or whatever, but I really think you should form an act. Cabaret is such an important art, and I think you should get a couple of songs together and do an act.’”

“Scream Queens” Season 2 finale airs on Tuesday, Dec. 20 at 9 p.m. EST on FOX. Check out the preview clip and synopsis for the Season 2, episode 10, titled “Drain the Swamp,” below:

“The Green Meanie sets its final plan for revenge in motion as Hester (Lea Michele) makes a bold move to secure her future, and Dr. Holt (John Stamos) performs a dangerous surgery to save Dean Munsch’s (Jamie Lee Curtis) life.”