"Hope Plus Cody Forever"- Liza Soberano Reveals an Old Diary Entry Proving Cole Sprouse Was Her Childhood Crush
Los Angeles Premiere Of DreamWorks Animation s And Universal Pictures Forgotten Island LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, USA - SEPTEMBER 23: Liza Soberano wearing Mark Bumgarner, styled by Katie Qian arrives at the Los Angeles Premiere Of DreamWorks Animation s And Universal Pictures Forgotten Island held at the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art on September 23, 2026 in Los Angeles, California, United States. (Photo by Xavier Collin Image Press Agency)
Los Angeles Premiere Of DreamWorks Animation s And Universal Pictures Forgotten Island LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA, USA - SEPTEMBER 23: Liza Soberano wearing Mark Bumgarner, styled by Katie Qian arrives at the Los Angeles Premiere Of DreamWorks Animation s And Universal Pictures Forgotten Island held at the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art on September 23, 2026 in Los Angeles, California, United States. (Photo by Xavier Collin Image Press Agency)
Some childhood crushes disappear into the attic with old notebooks and questionable handwriting. Liza Soberano’s apparently waited years for the funniest possible comeback. The Filipino actress made her Hollywood feature debut in Lisa Frankenstein, sharing the wonderfully warped 1980s world with Cole Sprouse, Kathryn Newton, and Carla Gugino.
Sprouse played the resurrected Victorian Creature while Soberano brought Taffy, Lisa’s relentlessly sunny stepsister, to life. Everything seemed like a normal co-star experience until Soberano’s aunt produced photographic evidence.
That young Liza had once been very, very invested in Sprouse’s Disney Channel alter ego.
Liza Soberano forgot Cole Sprouse was her childhood crush
During a recent episode of Collider Ladies Night, Liza Soberano revealed that she had completely forgotten about her childhood fascination with Sprouse while they were making Lisa Frankenstein. The memory returned during the film’s promotional run when her aunt sent her a photograph of an old diary entry she had written around seven or eight years old.
“My real name is Hope so I wrote Hope plus Cody forever because I love Cole from Suite Life of Zack and Cody.”
Dylan and Cole Sprouse arriving at the Teen Vogue Young Hollywood Party at the LACMA in Los Angeles, CA on September 18, 2008
Dylan and Cole Sprouse arriving at the Teen Vogue Young Hollywood Party at the LACMA in Los Angeles, CA on September 18, 2008
Soberano recalled the discovery turned an already major career moment into something wonderfully absurd. she had spent production working alongside the actor she once knew as Cody Martin without realizing that her younger self had apparently planned a much longer relationship.
That full-circle quality becomes even funnier given how important Lisa Frankenstein was for Soberano. The Zelda Williams-directed horror comedy marked her U.S. feature debut, with Soberano playing Taffy as an earnest spin on the popular cheerleader archetype. Williams previously praised the actress for finding genuine sweetness beneath lines that could easily have made the character cruel.
A forgotten diary may have connected Sprouse to Soberano’s past, but his next romance is very much happening on screen.
Cole Sprouse and Kiernan Shipka lead Goodbye Girl
Cole Sprouse is moving back into romantic-comedy territory with Goodbye Girl, an Amazon MGM Studios project from Gulfstream Pictures starring Kiernan Shipka. Oran Zegman, who directed Honor Society, is behind the camera, with Danielle Hoover and David Monahan writing from a story they developed with Jessica Elbaum.
March 29, 2023, Madrid, Spain: US Actor Dylan Sprouse Gardner attends the Maravilloso Desastre premiere at Cines Callao in Madrid. Madrid Spain - ZUMAs197 20230329_zaa_s197_134
March 29, 2023, Madrid, Spain: US Actor Dylan Sprouse Gardner attends the Maravilloso Desastre premiere at Cines Callao in Madrid. Madrid Spain - ZUMAs197 20230329_zaa_s197_134
Shipka plays Jess, a professional heartbreaker hired by a nervous bride to end her engagement days before the wedding. Sprouse plays the unsuspecting groom. The assignment goes spectacularly sideways when Jess develops genuine feelings for the man she was supposed to dump.
Production began in New Orleans in February 2026 and wrapped up in March. The cast also includes Natalia Dyer, David Iacono, Megan Mullally, Alan Ruck, Zosia Mamet, Catherine Cohen, Andrew Bachelor, Anthony Keyvan, and Odeya Rush.
What do you think about Liza Soberano discovering that Cole Sprouse had been her forgotten childhood crush? Let us know in the comments.
Edited By: Aliza Siddiqui
