Malin Akerman & Jack Donnelly Interview Slayers Slayers HEAD TOPICS

Malin Akerman & Jack Donnelly Interview Slayers

10/22/2022 9:26:00 PM

We speak to Malin Akerman and Jack Donnelly

Slayers

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Screen Rant

We chat with Slayers stars Malin Akerman & Jack Donnelly about the subtext of the film's spin on the vampire genre, and some of the most memorable parts of making the movie: We speak to Malin Akerman and Jack Donnelly We speak to Malin Akerman and Jack Donnelly on the making of Slayers, the subtext of the film's spin on the vampire genre, and some of the most memorable parts of making the movie. What were some of your favorite moments or experiences from the making of Slayers? Jack Donnelly: And working with my wife, too! Absolutely, as a vampire! Jack Donnelly: Yeah, I mean, personally, I play a YouTube influencer in the movie, and that was one of the more exciting things about the script. It felt like a mash-up of genres, even though social media in itself isn't a genre, but it was like "We're going to take a classic vampire movie, a classic horror trope in a way, but we're going to throw these characters in there." Read more:
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On Saturday's 'America Right Now,' Tom Basile explains why American parents need to demand better phonics for their kids in schools in the upcoming November ... Read more >> Thomas Jane Interview: SlayersWe chat with Slayers star thomasjane about his role as vampire slayer Elliot Jones, the film's blend of horror and comedy, and its subversive commentary on online culture: Taylor Swift recruited Mike Birbiglia and Laura Dern for her Midnights music videosPlus Dita Von Teese, Haims aplenty, and the inescapable Jack Antonoff Charlie Puth Says He's 'Definitely' in Love With Hometown GirlfriendThe singer opened up about his relationship and self-titled album in a new interview. 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Vampire hunting just got crazier with the release of the horror-comedy Slayers.Battling vampires is always a profession fraught with an abnormal number of occupational hazards.It’s Always Sunny In Philadelphia ’s Mary Elizabeth Ellis, model Laith Ashley, all three extant Haims, comic John Early, make-up artist Pat McGrath, Dita Von Teese, and, of course, the utterly inescapable Jack Antonoff—were tossed up on the screen at the end of the video teaser, which mostly just serves to show off the dozen-plus looks Swift will be deploying in the videos for the much-anticipated album.Howard Stern whether he was single or with someone, Puth cautiously shared,"I'm with somebody now. Directed by K. Asher Levin and now out in theaters and on digital platforms, Slayers brings together a group of online personalities for a surprise encounter with the undead. With a mix of satirical humor of modern online and social media life with vampire slaying a-plenty, audiences in the mood for both can see each just in time for Halloween with Slayers now in theaters and on digital platforms. Malin Akerman and Jack Donnelly are both part of Slayers' vampire fun, the former among the nosferatu players in the film and the latter among their prey.m. In Slayers, billionaires Steven (Adam Ambruoso) and Beverly Rektor (Malin Akerman) bring the designated members of the "Stream Team" of online celebrities to their mansion for an ostensible getaway. Fortunately for them, vampire hunter Elliot Jones brings all the vampire-slaying expertise the house guests lack. However, it is the rare blood type each carries that is of real interest to the hosts, with their guests soon discovering they've been lured into a trap by vampires."And I would assume that when times inevitably are hard in the future, because what is life without valleys and peaks, she would be there for me as well. Meanwhile, veteran vampire hunter Elliot Jones (Thomas Jane) manages to level the playing field at just the right time in Slayers. SCREENRANT VIDEO OF THE DAY RELATED: Marvel Secretly Reveals The MCU's Original Vampire We speak to Thomas Jane on the making of Slayers, his role in the movie as the vampire slayer Elliot Jones, and the film's blend of horror and comedy with elements of subversive commentary on online culture. And, of course, today, , is also the release date proper for Midnights. SCREENRANT VIDEO OF THE DAY RELATED: Vampire Academy Cast & Character Guide We speak to Malin Akerman and Jack Donnelly on the making of Slayers, the subtext of the film's spin on the vampire genre, and some of the most memorable parts of making the movie. Malin Akerman & Jack Donnelly on Slayers Screen Rant: How did each of you come first come aboard Slayers? Malin Akerman: Well, Asher is a good friend of ours, he's sort of a family friend we've known for years, and he approached us with this script and asked if I wanted to help produce it. It had a bit of a cult movie feel to it, and the tone that we were trying to hit was a little bit self-aware but not too self-aware, and trying to have some fun with those kind of movies that I used to go see when I was in my 20s. Then the second question was 'Do you think Jack would want to play in this?', and again, knowing Asher very well, it's so much fun to be able to work with friends and family. So, to be able to part of the process of really fun characters and getting to play in a vampire film, which I've never done before. I really enjoyed that tone that we had a chance to hit and have some fun with it, and I liked the commentary on what we're doing with ourselves on this planet right now, this post-pandemic strange world that we're living in right now."I'm not really interested in going out like I used to and being crazy. What were some of your favorite moments or experiences from the making of Slayers? Jack Donnelly: I mean, Thomas Jane was awesome! I've worked with actors who have improvised before, but he would just find a funnier version of every line. One that really stands out is the first scene we have with him, where we're all in a Winnebago with the influencers, and he stood in the middle of a dirt road. Was Slayers filmed during the early days of the pandemic? Did that impact the making of the film significantly? Thomas Jane: We were right in the damn middle of it, and before the vaccine had come out, and I don't even know if they were talking about a vaccine seriously at the time that we shot the movie. The line in the script was "You need to turn around and get the hell out of here' "and as we walk up, he goes, "You need to flip that b---h and f--- off!" I thought, "Well, that's the best alternative to that line, I think!" So, he was awesome! Malin Akerman: What about working with your wife? Jack Donnelly: And working with my wife, too! Absolutely, as a vampire! Malin Akerman: I actually didn't have any scenes with Thomas Jane, but I do love him. I just enjoyed working with Asher, and it's always fun to play sinister characters. Everybody had a mask on, I didn't know what anybody looked like until the end of the movie! It's a weird experience to know people like when you're working with them on a daily basis. It's a departure from who I am in real life, I like to think! So, it was great to get the teeth put in and play the Queen vampire.m. Slayers is very different from a lot of other vampire movies. Everybody was happy to be there doing what they love to do, and we were fortunate that we got to make it. It deals with media and online life as an analogy to vampirism. Was that something that really jumped out at each of you when you first read the script? Jack Donnelly: Yeah, I mean, personally, I play a YouTube influencer in the movie, and that was one of the more exciting things about the script. I had the opportunity to take a character and sort of say whatever the hell is on his mind. It felt like a mash-up of genres, even though social media in itself isn't a genre, but it was like "We're going to take a classic vampire movie, a classic horror trope in a way, but we're going to throw these characters in there." It just made it so much funnier, because you go, "Yeah, these people who livestream their entire lives and everything they ever do is posted, let's throw them into this kind of story and put a spin on it," which made it so much more interesting. Everybody is just kind of watching their back, and that is odd."It just rears its ugly head every time that I hear it. I think that shows through the movie. When Thomas Jane and Kara Hayward's characters go on the mission to take down the vampire overlords knowing they could be killed, the fact that Kara's character livestreams the whole thing pretty much sums up the whole movie, and it's like "Yeah, that's the tone, that's who we're dealing with here. That's something that cannot be messed with, and the fact that we're being messed with in that way is really strange, and I think the job of art, movies, entertainment is first of all to entertain, but then to also hook us into what's going on right now." And I loved that. I've not seen that before, so I was excited to be a part of that. And we've got Elliot Jones, he'll just say whatever the hell he wants, he doesn't give a s--t, he's not on social media, and he has no idea what these kids are doing with these glass things in their hands, so it was liberating, I guess you could say. Malin Akerman: By the way, Jack doesn't have any social media whatsoever, so it was such a departure for him! Jack Donnelly: Yeah, so it was like "Let's go look into this and see what it's about!" By the end, I'm like, "Yeah, I don't want any part of this!'" How was Slayers a departure for each of you from other movies you've done in the past? Malin Akerman: I mean, for me, what made this one enticing was just being able to play a vampire and get into that role and see what that was like and be part of that world. But this is the hardest song that I ever had to put together, and I'm so excited for you to hear it. I get scared so easily, so I don't watch a lot of horror or anything that has blood and gore in it, but it's so much fun to play. Is that something that really drew you to the film? Thomas Jane: Well, like I said, it's a fun way and sort of a safe way of stepping outside the box, taking a step back, and being able to look at ourselves in a way that has some honesty and some humor. It's fun to be in that zone, and playing a vampire is one thing that I can check off my bucket list now. Jack Donnelly: I've done a lot of different things, but I've never done horror. You never know what you're going to run into. The closest thing was probably Misfits, which was a British show and was very early on in my career. I've never played a character like this, and also, this is my first time doing an American accent on camera. She didn't take any s--t, you gave her some s--t, she'd hand it right back, and it becomes play when you find an actor who's really good like she is. I've done it on stage before, but I've never done it for TV or films before, so it was a lot of first for me, and I was also blonde! Was there a big, involved process in becoming a vampire in Slayers? Malin Akerman: No, it wasn't that long of a process actually, because it was basically just the teeth. There was a moment where we tried putting some light tubes on my chest and then put prosthetics over it, but I don't think it quite worked. When I first read the script, I was like 'This guy's gotta have a big, giant, three, four-year old beard that he hasn't combed or groomed and there might still be pieces of dinner left in there somewhere', and that sort of was the launching pad to create the character of Elliot Jones. It was an idea that we had that maybe their veins started glowing, but it didn't end up happening. Jack Donnelly: I won't give it away, but some of the other actors go through far more prosthetics and had a lot longer in the make-up chair, but we came out relatively unscathed. That brings its own challenges, it can slow things down a little bit, but we didn't let it stop us. What was the most fun scene to do or the scene that jumped out to you the most in Slayers? Jack Donnelly: Well, without giving anything away, there is the moment where Jack Chambers, my character, sort of comes out of a VR experience, and sort of the dawning realization of where he is and what's happening, all of it starts to topple down on him. But the scene is played at such a level that it's also quite funny, and I enjoyed the harmony of that sequence. What would you say was your favorite aspect of Elliot's role in Slayers and how it deals with the themes of vampirism on different levels? Thomas Jane: Well, you get to inject a sense of humor into something. Malin Akerman: I really enjoyed Ash T, who plays their manager in the movie, is a doctor turned stand-up comedian in real-life, and is absolutely wonderful. We had a scene together where I kind of shoe him into the depths, let's just put it that way. When they do, people really enjoy them. It's a small scene, but just shooting that scene, I had such a blast with Ash, he's so funny and we're making a vampire film but I'm peeing my pants with laughter shooting this scene with him! About Slayers Vampire slayer Elliot Jones made it his life's mission to take revenge on the bloodsuckers who killed his teenage daughter. After years of tracking them, he's finally reached their secret and hidden base. I think they'll dig it. However, to get to them, he'll need help from a motley crew of social media superstars who've been invited to party at a compound that's also a lair for ancient vampires. Check out our other Slayers interviews here: NEXT: Day Shift’s Different Types Of Vampires Explained Slayers is now in theaters and on digital platforms. After years of tracking them, he's finally reached their secret and hidden base. .