Last year, Krissy Carlson did something quite unheard of in Hollywood: She nixed a lead role in a feature film in order to return to a role she had briefly played on daytime soap opera. Gasp!

That soap role was Sunset Beach's Amy Nielsen, Sean's girlfriend, who was introduced during the much-hyped "Terror Island" storyline in January 1998. Though originally a one-note role, Carlson jumped at the chance to play Amy again when producers called several months later wanting to reintroduce her during the even more-hyped "Shock Wave" saga. "I got the call just as I was about to sign a contract and go to Romania for a month to shoot a movie," she explains. "They told me that Amy was going to be a bigger, juicier part, and that she would be on the canvas for a while. I definitely wouldn't have gone back if Amy was just going to be on Sean's arm all of the time, and have nothing to do."

The revamped (and vampy) Amy survived an ill-fated cruise on the Poseidon Adventure-inspired S.S. Neptune, and returned to shore with one mission in mind: to destroy the budding romance between Sean and Emily. Carlson blames Sean's new relationship on Amy's overnight shift from ingenue to bitch. "Sean breaking up with her was this big shock to her," the actress says. "She showed up on this cruise, saw him with Emily and realized that she wants him back. The only thing that's standing in her way is Emily - and she'll do anything to get her way."

Carlson, already thrilled with Amy's new spunk, was exuberant when Sunset soon offered her a contract. She immediately signed on the dotted line and has been tormenting Emily ever since. "I'm having the time of my life," she admits.

Though happy with Amy's direction, Carlson would like to see her get a little more substance, especially since the death of Amy's father (he withered into a mummy during the Rosario jewel saga) left her totally alone. "There's got to be a lot of pain somewhere in there," she says. "The writers always seem to ignore that and focus more on the snobby, superficial side of her. Let's hope some of the sadness will start to come out." She also feels that something is missing from the Amy/Sean/Emily triangle. "They call it a love triangle, but the only way I can see that is if Sean has feelings for both girls. Sometimes he does, sometimes he doesn't. Even I'm starting to get a little confused."

What Carlson isn't confused about is the love of her craft. "Basically, acting sort of fell into my lap," she says. "In high school, I was a cheerleader and wanted to be a professional dancer, but when I graduated I started taking some acting classes. After that, I got an agent and started working. Now, I have the acting bug; it's what I want to do for the rest of my life."

At 20 years old, Carlson boasts quite an impressive resume, which includes television guest appearances on Ellen, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, The Naked Truth and Pacific Palisades; among her films are Nowhere to Go and the just-released-on-video Devil in the Flesh. Her role in the latter is not unlike Sunset's Amy. "I played Meegan, the homecoming queen who's just the coolest girl in school," she says with a mock air of portentousness. "This new girl, played by Rose McGowan, comes to the school, and there is immediate animosity. We have a bunch of bitchy fight scenes; it was a real blast."

One of Carlson's first professional gigs was as a day player on The Young and The Restless. "I looked around at these actors who had to have tons of dialogue memorized for the next day and I was like, 'Whoa...'" Initially unappealing, that fast face is now something Carlson relishes. "I've really gotten used to it. There's always something new happening so you don't have time to get bored."

Her increased workload on Sunset has made a dent in her social life, but Carlson still manages to find time for her friends. Thankfully, many of them are on Sunset's set. "I have become good friends with Michael, Randy and Cristi Ellen (Strickland, Spelling and Harris, who play Brad, Sean and Emily)," she says. "Our scenes are always together, so I think that has pushed us a lot closer. It's great to have friends at work - especially when you don't have the time to return phone calls."

Another set-side friend, Farrah Bunch, a body-makeup artist, has afforded Carlson an opportunity she has always dreamed of: singing. "Farrah is getting a demo tape together, and she wants me and my best friend, Christina, to sing with her," she says excitedly. "Another aspect that I'm looking forward to is writing the words for the song."

Carlson also dreams of the day when she can helm her own sitcom. "It would have to be based on Christina's and my lives, because we always get ourselves into the funniest situations," the actress says. "We were thinking about writing a movie, but I think it would work better as a sitcom."

A recent lull in her Sunset taping schedule allowed her to throw herself back into film auditioning. "I just auditioned for a part in Panic, which stars Neve Campbell (Julia, Party of Five) and Donald Sutherland," she says. Though eager to pursue a film career, Carlson is happy with her feet planted firmly in the sand on Sunset. At least for now. "I don't plan to be on a soap forever," she says, "but at 20, I realize that working on daytime is the best thing that could happen to me. I'm getting paid to basically go to school to work on my craft. That's something a lot of actors don't get to do."