"I want to be this girl." Class of '07 is a hilarious, absurd celebration of female friendship.

Emily Browning wasn't sure she could do comedy.

Then she read the opening scene of Prime Video's new local comedy Class of '07, in which her character Zoe was a disgruntled Bachelor-style reality TV star who has just been dumped.

Zoe, to use Browning's words, "goes apesh*t", yelling, throwing and then - finally, unfortunately - catching bird sh*t in her mouth.

It's a bold beginning to the new local comedy, setting up both the very funny, absurdist tone of the series, along with the chaotic mess that is Browning's first-ever comedic character.

Take a look at the trailer for Class of '07 on Prime Video. Post continues below.

Melbourne-born Browning has been based in Los Angeles for a decade and has established a strong career with roles in TV and films like Sucker Punch and Pompeii. 

She's always delivered brilliant performances, but she'd never had the opportunity to do something as absurdly funny as that scene before.

"I was like, I want to be this girl. I've never done anything like this before. I've been looking for a chance to push myself outside my comfort zone," she tells Mamamia.

"I'm learning that the only way to grow is to totally embarrass yourself as a performer. And so I thought, let me try. And I think at first [director Kacie Anning] was like, 'I don't know about that. I don't think you can do comedy. I don't think you can allow yourself to be enough of a dickhead'. And I was like, watch me."

Image: Prime Video.

The reality TV scene was actually the last to be filmed, after months of the cast effectively living as their characters in a COVID-safe 'bubble'.

"A bunch of the girls came in to watch me do it, which was great. It was so much fun. I mean stomping around in a ball gown and screaming and throwing food was great. It was very cathartic."

It also tells us a lot about Zoe, even before we learn about the apocalyptic setting the rest of the series takes place in.

"I think it's such an amazing introduction to a character because the psychology of a person who decides to be on a reality TV show is very particular. It sets up the kind of person she is - I don't want to drag anyone but, you know - a little unstable, a little looking for attention," Browning laughs.

"Then to see her just absolutely lose her shit when she doesn't win; I just think it's a genius way to show you this is what we're dealing with. This is who this person is. 

"She's a bit of a bit of a loose unit."

Image: Prime Video.

In Class of '07, this very public, televised humiliation plays a part in Zoe making a surprise appearance at her high school reunion, where her tipsy, high, eccentric former classmates are shocked to see her.

Among them are Zoe's former best friend Amelia (Megan Smart) who mysteriously disappeared during their senior year of school, and former high school bully Saskia (Caitlin Stasey), who has seemingly turned over a new leaf and become a successful entrepreneur.

The reunion setting already makes for a high-stakes environment in the form of confronting decades-old drama, but then the group finds themselves stuck atop the island peak of their high school campus after an apocalyptic tidal wave.

With limited food, no contact with the outside world, and nothing but water in every direction, the women must rely on each other to survive - leading to plenty of drama, tension, and laughs.

While Browning never attended her own high school reunion, she found herself relating to Zoe more than she'd thought.

"I definitely have a lot more Zoe in me than I am willing to admit. I think Zoe's me [but] 60 per cent less self-aware, and maybe 40 per cent more needy," she says.

"The reason I was able to play her is because she's the version of me that I don't usually want to let out... I worked through some high school trauma, I think."

Image: Prime Video.

Class of '07 explores the intricacies of female friendship as the women reconnect and work together, and despite the absurdity of the setting, is really a love letter to the special bonds between women.

In particular, Zoe and former bestie Amelia must work through their issues after Amelia seemingly disappeared off the face of the earth during their senior year, while in the most absurd of settings: the apocalypse (or 'the poco', as the characters come to call it').

"When I was watching it, I didn't expect it to hit me as much as it did. But I was texting Megan and I was like, 'we're making me cry!'" Browning says. "It's really lovely. It's very much a friendship love story for Zoe."

The ensemble cast is also brilliant across the series' eight 30-minute episodes, mirroring all the unique archetypes you find during high school.

This all meant the project offered a rare acting experience: working alongside an all-female cast.

"It was one of the best experiences of my working life," Browning says.

"It was so much fun. It's all really down to casting, every single person in the show is so perfect in their role, but every single one of them is also just like, a sick person. They all have the best personalities. They're all so funny. They're all so kind and lovely. And we really bonded, and we got along so well. We were like a little community and it just felt so fun to come to work every day.

"I'm gushing! But it was amazing."

And of course, it offered a homecoming of sorts after 10 years of working overseas.

"I live in LA and I actually haven't worked in Australia for so long, like way too long," Browning explains.

"So that was another draw for me. There's something really special about doing it at home."

All eight episodes of Class of '07 are now streaming, only on Prime Video.

Feature image: Prime Video.