The Boogeyman's Sophie Thatcher On Killing Her Ego, Acting To A Blank Wall, And More [Exclusive Interview]
This post contains spoilers for "The Boogeyman."
While the eponymous creature in "The Boogeyman" spends a significant portion of the film tormenting young Sawyer Harper (Vivien Lyra Blair), the movie largely follows the arc of Sawyer's older sister, Sadie (Sophie Thatcher), who slowly comes to realize this creature is terrifyingly real. Sophie Thatcher plays Sadie with a nice mixture of vulnerability — her character's mother dies shortly before the film begins — and yearning. Sadie desperately wants to connect with her father (Chris Messina), who is too raw from the family's devastating loss to be able to properly deal with his emotions; without that connection, she resorts to watching YouTube mediums to try to find a way to reconnect with her deceased mother. It's heartbreaking, and Thatcher is the glue that holds the story together, the link between the unbelieving adults and her character's scared little sister. She turns in a physical, well-calibrated performance that perfectly fits with what director Rob Savage has orchestrated, and while she's been in movies before, this could serve as a major stepping stone from her breakout "Yellowjackets" performance into the world of film.
I had the chance to speak with Thatcher about the film's scariest scene, her interpretation of the ending, acting without a scene partner, and more.
Note: This interview has been lightly edited for clarity and brevity.
'You have no room for ego'
The moment where the creature breaks down Sadie's door and jumps in her mouth was the biggest scare of the whole movie for me. What do you remember about filming that moment?
[laughs] That was one of the worst scenes because I was tied with a rope and I had to fall back. And then I had a glove — it was just really uncomfortable. And in that moment, I was like, "What am I doing? I'm an actor, but this is kind of ridiculous." But then I was like, "Just commit. It'll look great." [laughs] In moments like that, you just turn your brain off. I think I learned a lot within this project, too. You have no room for ego. You've got to rid yourself of that and not think twice and just go for it and commit. Because if you think twice about putting your ... no. [laughs]
You get to have a couple of really big classic hero moments in this movie, especially near the end. That part where Sadie says, "I saw it bleed," reminds me of Arnold Schwarzenegger in "Predator" saying, "If it bleeds, we can kill it." Did you look at any big cinematic hero moments for any inspiration at all?
Not really. And I feel like she is her own specific kind of final girl. But yeah, not really. I tried not to make it grandiose and big and tried to keep it as natural and as small as possible, because you just want it to feel real and you want people to believe you. Because in moments like that, when you're delivering such epic lines, the fear is always, for me specifically, I don't want to be corny. So it's just about keeping it as grounded as possible. So I think if I were to watch that now, it'd be different, but I was trying not to watch too many horror movies while I was filming it.
'You just have to act to a wall and prepare yourself for that'
The moment where you're face to face with the creature at the end and it starts ripping its face off, what did you see as an actress on the set? Was there a maquette or something for you to react to?
Yeah, they had built this head, it was attached to a stick, and the director, for eyeline, was just moving it around. Then there was this silver ball they were using, that would be special effects. So that was hard having to do the climax of the movie to something that is not going to be the final thing, but also, that's your job as an actor, to use your imagination, and a lot of the time you just have to act to nothing. You just have to act to a wall and prepare yourself for that. I think for one of the scenes, because Vivien [Lyra Blair] has shorter hours because she's a child, she had to step out and I had to do the scene. I think it's the scene where I think I might have said that: "I saw it bleed." That scene was to the wall. I had a mark and I was like, "This is her face."
Wow.
"Use your imagination."
I'm curious about what your personal read was on the last few shots in the movie. What kind of conversations did you have with Rob Savage about what that meant for Sadie?
I think it's symbolic of her moving on and her accepting everything that's happened and choosing to move on and choosing to continue her life and not let — this sounds corny — the darkness override her.
'So, I guess, thank God for Travis'
I have to ask you one quick "Yellowjackets" question. When you received the script for "It Chooses" and saw that Natalie drew the card, did you have any idea how she was going to get out of being sacrificed?
It was crazy because when I was reading the script, I was like, "No, this can't happen!" and then I was like, "No, I survive." [laughs] I knew that something would happen, and I'm like, "Natalie's going to get out of it." In that moment, she also takes in that acceptance, and I think she is just so emotionally drained and out of it and has experienced all the worst things a human being can experience. In that moment, she's going to sacrifice herself and she's going to give herself over to her teammates. It was just also the terror of thinking about if she were to try to do something or get out of it, they would chase her. So, I guess, thank God for Travis. He saved Natalie. Oh, wow. [laughs]
"The Boogeyman" is in theaters now.