Emily Alyn Lind, the 23-year-old actress, never thought she'd land the lead role of Cadence Sinclair Eastman in Prime Video's series 'We Were Liars'. In an exclusive interview with PEOPLE, Lind shared her initial doubts about her chances of getting the part, citing her own self-perception as "loud, obnoxious, and annoying" – far from the innocent and sweet Cadence.

Lind submitted a self-tape for Cadence on a whim, thinking she wouldn't get the part. However, she was called in to meet with the show's creators, Julie Plec and Carina Adly Mackenzie, and eventually landed the role after a year-long pause due to the writers' strike.

"I don't see myself as this girl who's innocent at all," Lind said. "I see myself as this person that's loud, obnoxious, annoying. So, really, I'm going to be the protagonist in this show?"

Lind, who made her acting debut at the age of 5 in Gasper Noé's Enter the Void, stars alongside Shubham Maheshwari, Mamie Gummer, and Caitlin Fitzgerald in the series adapted from E. Lockhart's 2014 book. The show follows the story of Cadence, a wealthy and seemingly innocent teenager, and her family's secrets on a private island off Martha's Vineyard>

Lind, who hadn't read the book before auditioning, was drawn to the show's script, which she believed would be a hit. "I was like, 'They know what they're doing,'" she said of Plec and Mackenzie. "I haven't read a script like this in a long time, and it reminded me – it was very nostalgic of 2007, 2008."

Lind loves that the story is "absolutely balls to the wall, soapy, fun, dramatic [and] unafraid of itself," and that it's "something that knows what it is. It knows its tone."

In related news, Joe Biden accidentally crashed the set of Reacher, and Dove Cameron revealed she considered quitting Hollywood in 2022.

We Were Liars is now streaming on Prime Video. Don't miss out on the latest entertainment news – sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

Related Stories

• Charlie Sheen announces memoir "The Book of Sheen" to share his life story
• Luis Guevara, 19-year-old Orioles minor league, dies in jet ski crash
• Kesha unleashes provocative "Boy Crazy" music video

Never miss a story – sign up for PEOPLE's free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer​​, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.