Zero Chill: Meet the cast of Netflix’s coming-of-age ice skating series

Young Netflix viewers are going to love Zero Chill – a drama series about family, friendship and coming-of-age, all set in the Hammarström Ice Hockey Academy.

Kayla MacBentley and her twin brother Mac are high-flying skating stars with big dreams. But when they have to move from Canada to the UK for Mac to fulfil his dream of becoming an ice hockey player, their lives are turned upside down.

Mac faces a crunch moment in his career as the star signing for ‘The Hammers’, while Kayla is torn apart from her ice dancing partner and forced to put her own skating ambitions on hold.

The series follows Kayla and Mac and their sibling rivalry as they build new friendships and a new life in the UK.

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Get to know the cast and characters of Zero Chill...

‘Mac’ MacBentley – Played by Dakota Benjamin Taylor

Mac is a formidable young ice hockey player who leaves Canada with his family to attend the Sheffield-based Hammarström Ice Hockey Academy.

An out-and-out nice guy, he struggles with the expectations his talent places on his shoulders and with achieving a balance between building his sporting career and enjoying an ordinary teenager’s life.

Talking to BT TV, Dakota said: “I grew up playing hockey and I had to put hockey to one side a bit to pursue acting. So for that to come full circle is absolutely insane.

“For hockey, we wanted to make sure we could do everything. So often we would run things with the body double first and then the actor.

"There were a few little bits and pieces that we weren’t allowed to do – for the figure skaters it was the jumps – but the hits in the hockey were allowed. I took a lot of hits! But they were all great fun.”

Kayla MacBentley – Grace Beedie

Mac’s twin sister who has a real passion of her own - figure skating. Dynamic, determined, funny and optimistic, Kayla is also vulnerable and when the going gets tough she seeks solace on the ice.

With her own life and dreams superseded by her brother’s, she must work out how to adjust to her new reality in the UK and how to find renewed fulfilment, on and off the rink.

Rising star Grace Beedie told BT TV: “I learned to skate from the age of three and competed from the ages of 12 to 15. And then I got this audition so I was suddenly back in it - it was a culmination of my two favourite things.

“We all trained together for nine weeks and that really solidified why the producers wanted us to do most of the skating.

“They’ve done a really good job of letting us tell the story of a skater and bringing an authenticity to the story that you wouldn’t get necessarily with CGI.

“I definitely did some of my own falls as well!”

Sky Tyler – Jade Ma

A young figure skater who befriends Kayla and Mac. When we meet her she is recovering from a major health issue, which has taught her compassion and empathy for others. Although strong-willed, talented and determined, it’s her care for others, especially her friends that singles her out from the crowd. She is enjoying a sweetly innocent fledgling romance with Mac

Talking to BT TV about the series, Jade said: “I started skating when I was about three years old and skated until I was about 11 competitively.

“Having the opportunity to come back to skating was incredible because I’ve always had the voice at the back of my head about ‘what if you had continued’. There was always a part of me that always missed it, so getting back on the ice was really special.”

Where have you seen her before?

Later this year, you’ll be able to see Ma in Marvel’s Black Widow.

Luke MacBentley – Doug Rao

A loving dad to Kayla and Mac. A former ice hockey pro himself, he recognizes his son’s exceptional talent. It was Luke who set up Mac’s opportunity at the academy, even though it has meant moving the whole family to a different continent.

Likeable and happy-go-lucky Doug is also an ex-sportsman struggling to make something of the next chapter of his life.

Where have you seen him before?

Dark Heart, The Bill, Doctors

Jenny MacBentley – Sarah-Jane Potts

Kayla and Mac’s mum, now returned with her husband and children to England, the country of her birth. A lioness, she’ll do anything to protect, nurture and encourage the twins even if it’s to the detriment of herself and husband Luke.

Where have you seen her before?

Waterloo Road, Holby City, Kinky Boots, Sugar Rush, Gracepoint

Bear – Jeremias Amoore

The golden boy of “The Hammers’. Loved by his teammates and lauded by the coaches in charge, he takes his role as captain of the team extremely seriously.

Sam – Leonardo Fontes

The youngest member of ‘The Hammers’. Protected and nurtured by his older brother, team captain Bear, what he lacks in years he makes up for with drive and optimism and a will to win.

Anton ‘The Hammer’ Hammarström – Oscar Skagerberg

A former player turned teacher and head of the ice hockey academy. Unwilling to give up on the sport he loved, he created the institution when his own career as a professional player ended.

Where have you seen him before?

A classically-trained Shakespearean actor, Oscar is well known in Sweden for roles in dramas like Midnight Sun, Real Humans and Anno 1790. He also starred in another Netflix series, The Last Kingdom.

Ava Hammarström – Anastásia Chocholatá

Anton’s daughter and the child of a broken marriage. She lives with her mother whose ambition is for her to become a world-class figure skater, whereas Ava sees skating mostly as a way to impress the dad that she longs to be close to. Her father is enmeshed in the boys’ world of ice hockey and isn’t entirely comfortable around girls.

Where have you seen her before?

She recently played a  leading role in the Czech fantasy film Enchanted Feather

Nico Haas – Stan Steinbichler

The popular assistant captain of ‘The Hammers’. Previously secure in his role, the Austrian player is threatened by the arrival of the talented Canadian, Mac.

Nico doesn’t like Mac being the new one, thinking he’s the king of the world. Nico feels like his place in the jungle is threatened.

Where have you seen him before?

Stan has already appeared in Vienna Blood, an Austrian/English co-production for the BBC as well as some small roles in Austrian crime thrillers.

Carson Hubick – Brett Houghton

A deeply troubled ice hockey player who has a lot of jealousy over Mac. He feels constant pressure to prove himself, not just to the new player but to his emotionally absent parents, to Anton, the head of the academy, and most of all, to himself. He suffers secretly from ‘imposter syndrome’ and wonders if he really deserves to be at the academy.

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Watch Zero Chill now on Netflix.