Bell revealed a vulnerable truth about achieving her dreams: when she finally landed her first lead role on Veronica Mars — the thing she'd been negotiating with the universe for — she wasn't happy. 'At all.' Her 'arrogant little asshole brain' couldn't comprehend it. She had the paycheck, the titular character, everything she'd wanted. The turning point came when co-star Ryan Hansen (with his 'terrifying' surfer-blonde hair) invited her to his birthday party after hours. He wasn't just inviting her to a party — 'he was inviting me to his life party, to his community.' She finally felt at home and made friends she still has today. In retrospect, she realized it was never the role or the paycheck she needed — it was friendship. She told the USC drama graduates she was 'pretty sure that's what Beyoncé would say' too.