David Robert Mitchell, the writer/director of new horror film, ‘It Follows’, reveals to us his views on the genre, the decision to cast up-and-coming starlet Maika Monroe, and how the premise is based on a childhood nightmare.
‘It Follows’ may be his debut in the genre, but Mitchell insists he’s always been a big admirer. “I’ve always liked horror ever since I was a kid. I love all kinds of films but I’ve definitely been a big horror fan all my life.”
The premise for the film — an entity that follows a chain of hapless teens around with sinister intent — has been with him from a very young age.
“The basic idea came from a recurring nightmare I had as a kid. I was being followed by a monster that would look like different people — strangers or people I knew – and it was always very slow, but always walking right towards me. I could always get away from it, but it was so disturbing that it was always coming for me.” Essentially, this is the concept behind ‘It Follows’, which is the Michigan-born filmmaker’s sophomore feature. However, the physical transference of this entity (the obvious subtext of this relentless nasty being an STD) is a new addition to his nightmare. “As an adult I thought it’d be fun to have it be passed through sex,” he says. “Physically and emotionally, so I put the ideas together.”
Yet it’s based on a degree of misfortune that ‘It Follows’ even exists today, rather than being a future project set for release a year or two down the line. “I wrote it in 2011 and really quick. When my other project wasn’t happening and we were struggling to find the money — I had intended to do this as my third film — we moved this up as we thought we may have more luck with a genre film and that people would be more willing to pay for it – and this was true!
Starring the fresh-faced Maika Monroe (‘The Guest’), her composed, yet soothing performance is perhaps what holds the film together at its core. “I genuinely believed her,” Mitchell says of his lead when he saw her in action. “There was vulnerability in her performance that made me worry for her, care for her and be concerned for her. There’s something very honest and believable.” And it’s true; Monroe does a fine job of portraying the girl next door type and fits into the horror genre well.
Maika Monroe discusses 2014 sleeper hit The Guest and new horror flick, It Follows.
With two excellent back-to-back horrors under her belt in The Guest and It Follows, sat in a London hotel Maika Monroe’s demeanour is one fans aren’t used to seeing – specifically, she’s relaxed.
This isn’t to say that Monroe is never like this of course – by all accounts she’s a charming, laid-back individual – but for the characters she plays in 2014 sleeper hit The Guest and new horror flick It Follows, relaxation is not a feeling that’s expressed too often.
For the title of ‘Scream Queen’ – which has been bestowed to a number of impressive actresses over the years – now has a new holder. “Being called scream queen is cool!”, the 21-year-old says. “For me, It Follows and The Guest came just by chance, back to back, and it was not really a conscious decision that I’m doing two horror movies.”
The Guest was predominantly the vehicle of Dan Stevens – himself a burgeoning movie star – but Monroe still managed to leave an impression as the smart and capable Anna. In It Follows Monroe has been promoted to chief protagonist status as Jay, and her talents shine all the more brightly for it. “It was really after seeing David’s [Robert Mitchell, Director] first film The Myth of the American Sleepover that I wanted to do the film because it’s so unique and stylised. Putting a horror film in that kind of world is something very different.”
In both It Follows and The Guest there are a number of instances where Monroe has to depict fear, and rarely has it felt more genuine on screen. “To convey it as real as possible you have to [go to some dark places], as unenjoyable as it can be. You’ve got to mentally go there. A lot of times on set I’ll just have my headphones in, to stay in my own world. It’s only until the weekend when I’m able to shake off that week and go back to being fully me. When I’m filming during the week I stay in that world, which makes it easier for me.”
When asked about the most challenging scene to film, the answer comes surprisingly quickly: “The wheelchair scene was the hardest. It was the last day, and it was very cold that night. The wind was terrible, I was wearing basically nothing. And it was not a pleasant spot.”
That’s not to say no fun was had on set though, no surprise when you consider the camaraderie between Monroe and her co-stars on screen. “All of us bonded pretty quickly. Even the giant was super nice!”
Though her current title may be ‘Scream Queen’, Monroe is conscious of the need to try other things and avoid typecasting: “It’s really cool to see that people are responding to both these films and loving it and being called scream queen is awesome. But the projects in the future are quite different from horror.”
One such project is The 5th Wave, a sci-fi flick which will see Monroe line up with thespians such as Chloë Grace Moretz and Liev Schreiber.
“I just finished filming that. I get to play this super kick-ass character which was amazing. I had fight training, gun training, I dyed my hair black and it was my first studio film so it was all very exciting and kind of different from anything I’ve done. I’m excited for people to see it.”
It’s not hard to envision Monroe starring in a superhero film in the near future, especially with there being more and more options to pick from with each passing year.
“Someone was asking me the other day about Captain Marvel? That would be what I want. Start campaigning me to be Captain Marvel!”
Keep an eye out for the #Monroe4CaptainMarvel hashtag on Twitter soon.
It Follows Review by Peter Bradshaw “sexual dread fuels a modern horror classic”
A friend confessed to me recently that this was the only film to have given him, in adult life, a proper wake-up-sweating nightmare. I don’t think I have ever had a nightmare quite as scary as this film – a modern classic of fear to be compared to something by a young Carpenter or De Palma.
It Follows is from the American director David Robert Mitchell, whose 2010 debut movie, The Myth of the American Sleepover, was a gentle, unthreatening drama about teens and platonic crushes. That was Dr Jekyll to the snarling Mr Hyde of this new one. It genuinely is disturbing.
What Mitchell has given us is a contemporary reworking of ideas from MR James; in particular, his 1911 ghost story Casting the Runes. Jay (Maika Monroe) is a high-school student who has just started to date a nice enough guy called Hugh (Jake Weary); the rest of the time she hangs out with her sister Kelly (Lili Sepe), Yara (Olivia Luccardi) and a shy childhood friend called Paul (Keir Gilchrist) who has long had a hopeless crush on her. Jay’s normal sex life takes its normal course, but then she finds out, too late, that she has been inducted without her knowledge into a supernatural death cult. The sex act means that she will be followed, at a zombie’s walking-pace, by a demon that only she can see, and which will kill her. The only way she can get rid of her pursuer before this happens is to have consenting sex with someone else, and so pass the curse on to them. Her agonies of horror and indecision are compounded by the presence of Paul, piningly ready to protect the person he loves.
“This thing is going to follow you. Somebody gave it to me, and now I passed it to you.” With screenings planned for the 2015 Sundance Film Festival, those who haven’t seen the horror flick It Follows at the Cannes Film Festival or elsewhere will finally get to see what all the hype is about. And now a new trailer from across the pond shows off more of the film that will probably scare you from ever having sex again.
We’ve all ready seen the UK trailer for David Robert Mitchell’s It Follows, so it’s only appropriate that we share the UK quad as well! After its Sundance screening this Friday, IT FOLLOWS will hit theaters and VOD outlets on March 27, 2015. The wait is almost over, which is nice because the hype wheel has been turning since last year. I get it, it’s good. Just let me see the damn thing all ready!
IT FOLLOWS is about:
For 19-year-old Jay, fall should be about school, boys and weekends out at the lake. But after a seemingly innocent sexual encounter, she finds herself plagued by strange visions and the inescapable sense that someone, or something, is following her. Faced with this burden, Jay and her teenage friends must find a way to escape the horrors that seem to be only a few steps behind.
