OCULUS Stars Talk Fear of Mirrors
- Details
- Category: Interviews
- Created: Tuesday, 08 April 2014 09:29
- Published: Tuesday, 08 April 2014 13:29
- Written by Lupe R Haas
Audiences aren't the only ones leaving the movie theater fearing mirrors after watching OCULUS. The new horror film even had the OCULUS stars afraid of their own reflection during and after production.
OCULUS stars Katee Sackhoff, Karen Gillan, Rory Cochrane, and James Lafferty sat down to talk about the making of the new horror film which has everyone talking and putting away their mirrors for good. Watch Trailer
Q: What was it about the script that you liked?
Karen: One of the things I loved about the script so much is the time devoted to the character, so we really see them develop before things happen to them. We are actually invested. We really earned the scares.
Katee: I loved the obsession my character had with Mirrors ever before the mirror came to her. I really wanted the audience to love this family and understand this family then ultimately feel sorry for these children and what they had to go through. I just love how this film pulls you on this slow ride and then the last 30 minutes it just punches you in the face repeatedly.
Q: Karen did you see the work of the two younger actors portraying you and vice versa?
Karen: Katee and Rory filmed their stuff, the stuff you see in the past first. That was the first three weeks of the shoot. So Brenton and I kind of went down to set just to watch what everyone was doing. Absolute credit to Annalise who played the younger version of my character because she absolutely established the character. I went down and watched what she did and just took it from there and just had to extend on it.
Q: The mirror reflects the victims darkest fears and insecurities. If you were to look into it what would you see?
Karen: Oh, my God that's a hard question. You're basically asking what are deepest and darkest fears are. I would say probably not being able to do what I want to do. Basically not being fulfilled and happy. I don't know how that would manifest itself in a mirror but yeah just that feeling of not being satisfied with my life would be the worst thing that can happen to me.
James: I would say every audition that I've ever gone on.
Katee: We were talking about that how we should do a Funny or Die skit on our worst auditions. I once had someone answer their phone on an audition and I was like should I stop or keep going, I don't know what to do right now. I just said alright 'I'll see you later then.'
Q: There are so many types of horror movies just wondering which ones are the ones that appeal to you?
Karen: I love horror films. I'm a huge horror film fan so this was really exciting for me. I love the cheesy slasher ones for the gore aspect but really the ones that are truly scary are the slow burners that really burn up to things. I loved The Ring. I just thought they did that really well. That one really wasn't that gory it was just a really creepy video.
Katee: There are enough things in my life that scare the shit out of me already. I tend to be scared of the movies where it can actually happen. When we're actors we spend a lot of time on the road and in different places so I tend to wake up in the middle of the night and run into walls a lot and forget where I'm at. One time someone tried to open my hotel room and the chain was going and I was like 'Oh my God what's happening.' It's just those weird things because you're constantly not home and you're never in a comfortable place.
Karen: You know one time I was at a hotel and I was convinced it was haunted so I decided to make a film of it and there was nothing on it but I then called the reception and said this room is haunted I need to move. They didn't ask any questions and they said yeah we're going to move you. Like they knew.
Rory: I just want to add to that… When we were in Alabama she had a stocker. Am I allowed to say this? Anyways this guy made his way across the
United States sending post cards and it got to be pretty scary. So the guy actually shows up at the hotel with flowers. Everyone on the crew was like 'Karen you have to be really, really careful' but she was like 'oh he's so sweet he brought me flowers.' She wasn't scared of that at all and that was a real thing.James: If you can trick me you can make me laugh or cry. That's one of the great things about Oculus is that it tricks you so often that you're often questioning you're own sanity at one point and you're not sure where you are in the film or if it's your fault or the mirrors fault. If you can get me off balance like that then you've scared me. So I guess the psychological aspect.
Q: What did you guys take from previous roles to help shape this role?
Karen: I worked on a show in the UK called Doctor Who where we had to be repeatedly scared at something that wasn't there and that came repeatedly hand for this film.
James: This for me was actually a role where I played an adult from the start to the end of the film. It was nice to go from the television show I was on where I ended up as an adult to playing an adult the entire time.
Q: Rory, there were a lot of violent scenes in the film how was it working with the kids?
Rory: The kids were terrific and they were resilient and professional. Katee even had a safe word with the kids just in case we were going too far. For me I didn't have a safe word but I would check in every once in a while before every take. I would say 'am I hurting you and then tell them 'I'm actually not that bad of a guy.' There was a couple of times where I was chocking the girl and after the fourth or fifth take she was like maybe ease up a little bit. Then I felt really bad.
Q: How do you unwind after shooting a film like this?
Karen: I'm usually good with just walking away and forgetting about it but on this film there was a couple of scenes that stayed with me for like two days afterwards. The scene involving James, I shouldn't give anything away but something bad happens. I really don't know why but it just stayed with me for two day. It was really weird.
Rory: I remember filming one scene in particular where after I was shaking but I can just shake them off.
Q: Did anyone have a reaction to that mirror either during filming or after filming?
Karen: We're all emotional recks now.
Katee: I just took a mirror off the wall from the rental house I'm staying at and locked it in the closet.
Karen: Really
Katee: Yes, I couldn't sleep and I found a sugar ant in the bed and that freaked me out because the sheets were black. So the ant freaked me out then I rolled over on the bed and the mirror was there and I thought it was really freaking me out. So then I went onto Twitter and everyone was talking about the movie and how it was so scary. So after 15 minutes of laying there I felt like an idiot and decided to take that mirror down. So I took it off the wall and shut it in the closet because God forbid like that would stop the ghost if it got out. A door because that would work and it's still down.
Karen: I didn't. It looks really cool to me. I sort of want it…is that creepy?
OCULUS opens April 11, 2014.