Interviews
Interview: Mark Williams on directing Blacklight with Liam Neeson and filming in Australia
Ever since 2008’s Taken reorganised Liam Neeson‘s career, the actor has embraced his action persona and, almost annually, kept his fans satiated with each subsequent outing. His latest release is Blacklight, a slightly more grounded action film where he stars as FBI operative Travis Block who uncovers a conspiracy within his own agency. To coincide…
Interview: Jennifer Lopez, Owen Wilson and Maluma on Marry Me; “There are going to be so many people from Latin America that will feel attached to this movie”
Releasing in Australian cinemas today – just in time for the Valentine’s season – Marry Me is the latest romantic comedy from Jennifer Lopez, with the global icon starring as a pop singer who suffers a public humiliation and, on a leap of faith, marries a stranger on an impulsive whim. After saying “I Do”…
A Unique Bite: How Wyrmwood: Apocalypse sets itself apart from the zombie pack – behind the scenes with Luke McKenzie
Halfway through 2021, the AU review was invited to visit the set of Wyrmwood: Apocalypse which was being filmed under strict COVID-19 regulations in the outskirts of Sydney. It’s the long-awaited big-budget sequel to Australia’s “most pirated film” Wyrmwood: Road of the Dead, a title the team are proud to boast about, which was released…
Filming a zombie sequel in a pandemic: Wyrmwood: Apocalypse – behind the scenes with Luke McKenzie
Halfway through 2021, the AU review was invited to visit the set of Wyrmwood: Apocalypse which was being filmed under strict COVID-19 regulations in the outskirts of Sydney. It’s the long-awaited big-budget sequel to Australia’s “most pirated film” Wyrmwood: Road of the Dead, a title the team are proud to boast about, which was released…
Interview: Ciarán Hinds on working with Kenneth Branagh and Judi Dench on the “protected” set of Belfast
Predicted to be a major player at this year’s Academy Awards, Kenneth Branagh‘s acclaimed Belfast (you can read our review here) is the celebrated director’s most personal film to date, a semi-autobiographical drama about a young boy growing up in 1960’s Northern Ireland. Assembling one of the year’s finest casts, Ciarán Hinds, a decorated character…
Interview: Director Edoardo Vitaletti on the religious inspiration behind Shudder’s The Last Thing Mary Saw
Following its acquisition by Shudder, Edoardo Vitaletti‘s horror film The Last Thing Mary Saw will commence its streaming season on the genre-centric service from January 20th, 2022. To coincide with the film’s release (you can read our review here), Peter Gray discussed with the writer/director the religious origins of the film, if he felt any…
Interview: The cast of Scream on carrying on the iconic horror franchise; “You don’t want to feel as if you’re copying because that can be virtually disrespectful”
As Scream, the hotly anticipated fifth instalment in the acclaimed horror series, arrives in Australian cinemas today (read our review here), Peter Gray sat down (virtually, of course) with the cast of fresh blood. Melissa Barrera, Jack Quaid, Jasmin Savoy Brown, Mason Gooding, Sonia Ammar, and Mikey Madison were all on hand to chat with…
Interview: Will Smith and the cast and crew of King Richard; “It’s about family and making it joyful, even though it’s intense”
As King Richard arrives in Australian cinemas today (you can read our review here), Peter Gray was invited to attend a global press conference with select cast members, including recent Golden Globe winner Will Smith, Aunjanue Ellis, Demi Singleton, Saniyya Sidney, and Tony Goldwyn, as well as Venus and Serena Williams, to discuss the making…
Interview: The Addams Family 2 director Conrad Vernon on crafting a sequel and his relationship with animated films
Writer/director Conrad Vernon and the animated genre go hand-in-hand. As both a voice actor and a director, the former storyboard artist has left his stamp on such films as Shrek 2, Monsters vs. Aliens, and Sausage Party. After the success of 2019’s animated update of The Addams Family, Vernon found himself back to the drawing…
Interview: Simon Rex on filming Red Rocket and being “rediscovered” in the process; “I’ve never really been respected as an actor”
For someone who’s receiving unanimous praise and deserved award chatter about his latest performance, Simon Rex is an actor that’s keeping things remarkably cool. Humbled by the reception he’s earning for his role in Sean Baker’s acclaimed comedy Red Rocket as a washed-up former porn star looking to get back on his feet, Rex is…
Interview: Clayton Watson on playing Kid in The Matrix franchise and keeping himself grounded throughout his career; “Be centred and be still, especially in front of the lens”
Clayton Watson may be most familiar to audiences as he appears above, but the actor, best known as Kid from the Matrix sequels Reloaded and Revolutions, is so much more. Returning to Sydney to attend the preview screening of The Matrix Resurrections (you can read our review here), Watson engaged with our own Peter Gray…
Interview: Director Joachim Trier on the messy process of creating The Worst Person in the World
A shortlisted title for Best International Feature at next year’s Academy Awards and currently sitting 100% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes, The Worst Person in the World is undoubtedly one of this year’s most celebrated films. After a successful run at film festivals across the globe, it arrives in Australian cinemas on Boxing Day. To coincide…
Interview: The Matrix Resurrections production designer Hugh Bateup on working with The Wachowskis and executing their unique vision
Are you ready for another trip down the rabbit hole? The Matrix Resurrections (you can read our review here) is returning such iconic characters as Neo and Trinity to the technological fray, with visionary director Lana Wachowski further suspending her audience’s perception of reality. With such intricate and expansive design sprawled across the screen, Wachowski…
Interview: Rodarte designers Kate and Laura Mulleavy on creating costumes for Sing 2
As world-famous designers and founders of acclaimed brand Rodarte, sisters Kate and Laura Mulleavy have been at the forefront of fashion since the label’s inception. Not just content dominating their own avenue, the sisters have branched out into the world of film, both as designers creating pieces for the Oscar-winning Black Swan and as directors…
Interview: Neil Patrick Harris, Priyanka Chopra Jonas and Jessica Henwick on The Matrix Resurrections
Nearly 20 years after it was released, The Matrix still remains a culturally relevant blueprint for which other genre films are based on. Breaking boundaries and expectations in the decades since, with such bold efforts as Cloud Atlas and Jupiter Ascending, director Lana Wachowski has returned to the very IP that launched a phenomenon with…
Interview: Sing 2 director Garth Jennings on classic comedy, dream casting and working with a “melting pot of creativity”
Having a background in live-action comedy films has evidently paid off for director Garth Jennings with his animated aspirations. The acclaimed helmer of such features as The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy and Son of Rambow, Jennings moved into animated fare with 2016’s jukebox-musical success Sing. Now back to reunite his scrappy crew of musical…
Interview: Isabelle Fuhrman on training for The Novice and revisiting her role in Orphan; “You don’t realise what you’re biting off until it’s really hard to chew”
Winner of Best Narrative Feature and Best Actress at this year’s Tribeca Film Festival, as well as recently earning nominations for Best Feature, Best Director, and Best Actress at the Independent Spirit Awards, The Novice, director Lauren Hadaway, and actress Isabelle Fuhrman are more than receiving their fair share of accolades for one of this…
Interview: Australian author Aaron Blabey on pitching The Bad Guys as “Tarantino for kids”; “The challenge was finding filmmakers that understood that”
To coincide with the release of the trailer for the anticipated animated action film The Bad Guys from Dreamworks Pictures, based on Australian author Aaron Blabey‘s #1 New York Times best selling series, our Peter Gray chatted with the writer himself about where the books originated from, pitching a “Tarantino film for kids”, and how…
Interview: Australian filmmakers the Spierig Brothers on the 20th anniversary of their cult horror hit Undead; “There’s something to be said about leaving directors alone to go and make their movie”
Before making waves in the horror genre with such box office successes and critical winners as Daybreakers, Predestination, and Jigsaw, German-born, Australian-raised brothers Michael and Peter Spierig pooled their talent, connections and coins together for Undead. Originally released in 2003, the low-budget Australian zombie thriller was an homage to the B-grade horror entries of the…
Interview: Dear Evan Hansen director Stephen Chbosky on adapting the stage musical and the isolating feeling of making a film during the pandemic
A coming-of-age stage musical that won immediate critical acclaim from its opening in 2015, Dear Evan Hansen‘s inevitable stage-to-screen adaptation was always going to be a mammoth task to whichever filmmaker dared to take it on. For Stephen Chbosky, it was a challenge he tackled with open arms. As the film arrives in Australian cinemas…
Interview: Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn writer/director Radu Jude on filming through the pandemic and embracing bad behaviour in his storytelling
There are few films that take your breath away in such a graphic fashion as Bad Luck Banging or Loony Porn. The Romanian black comedy (you can read our review here) is now screening in select Australian cinemas, and to coincide with its release our own Peter Gray got to chat with the film’s writer…
Interview: James Marsden on recording The Boss Baby sequel during a pandemic; “I made a makeshift studio with duvets and pillows”
Four years after an infant Alec Baldwin steered Dreamworks’ The Boss Baby to over half a billion dollars at the global box office and an Academy Award nomination for Best Animated feature, the troublesome tyke is back in The Boss Baby: Family Business, and he’s bringing his household along for the ride. Joining Baldwin and…
Interview: Last Night In Soho‘s Thomasin McKenzie on collaborating with Edgar Wright, researching horror, and who she’d like to work with next
At just 21 years of age, New Zealand-born actress Thomasin McKenzie has amassed quite the career since her 2012 debut. In the last few years alone she has worked with the likes of Taika Waititi (on the acclaimed Jojo Rabbit), M. Night Shyamalan (on his recent hit Old) and Jane Campion (The Power of the…
Interview: Ray Liotta on playing a “Hollywood Dick” in The Many Saints of Newark; “One thing I don’t have is a calm intensity”
Ray Liotta has made a name for himself throughout his career portraying characters with a certain intense edge. From Scorsese’s genre-defining Goodfellas, the psychological thriller Unlawful Entry, and the controversial Silence of the Lambs sequel Hannibal, the Golden Globe-nominated actor has made it a point to express his vigour on screen. But for our Peter…
Interview: Leslie Odom Jr. on the The Many Saints of Newark super secretive audition process & becoming a better actor
Since his Tony Award-winning role in Hamilton, Leslie Odom Jr. has had something of a meteoric rise. Not content with just dominating the music and theatre scene, the New York-born actor is a wanted commodity on the big screen too, working with the likes of Kenneth Branagh, Kate Hudson, Orlando Bloom, and Judi Dench, to…
Interview: The Many Saints of Newark director Alan Taylor on what he truly believes happened at the end of The Sopranos & auditioning James Gandolfini’s son
A writer and director known for his predominant television work, helming episodes for such lauded series as The Sopranos, Boardwalk Empire, and Game of Thrones, Alan Taylor is returning to the gangster-fuelled environment of David Chase’s Sopranos with The Many Saints of Newark, the anticipated prequel to the award-winning show. Ahead of the film’s Australian…
Interview: Jamie Lee Curtis and the cast of Halloween Kills on character dynamics, female representation and franchise emotionality
As Halloween Kills slices its way through Australian cinemas (you can read our review here), series scream queen Jamie Lee Curtis and fellow cast-members Andi Matichak, Anthony Michael Hall and Kyle Richards participated in a global press conference – which our own Peter Gray was invited to attend – to discuss the character dynamics formed in…
Interview: Lair writer/director Adam Ethan Crow on making his first feature length horror film; “I think fans appreciate when they see something a bit different”
To coincide with the release of his horror film Lair, now available to rent or buy on DVD and digital in time for the spooky season, writer/director Adam Ethan Crow spoke with our own Peter Gray about his love of horror films, attempting something different to please the genre fans, and the rough seas travelled…
Interview: Halloween Kills director David Gordon Green on how classic cinema inspired him and the pressure of taking on an iconic horror franchise
After pushing 2018’s sequel-cum-reboot Halloween to record breaking statistics, it only made sense that writer/director David Gordon Green was handed a sequel to continue revelling in Michael Myers’ carnage. Not only granted a sequel – Halloween Kills – but a trilogy (Halloween Ends, set for a 2022 release) to boot, Green expanded on the violent…
Interview: The Black Phone writer/director Scott Derrickson on his love of the Horror genre and the importance of casting.
To coincide with the trailer launch of The Black Phone, the latest horror film from Blumhouse, detailing the abduction of a young boy who learns he is able to communicate with the voices of his captor’s previous victims through a disconnected black phone, Peter Gray chatted with the film’s director, Scott Derrickson, discussing the origins…