With J.J. Abrams Star Trek Into Darkness now playing around the world, we recently landed an exclusive phone interview with Alice Eve.  During the interview, she talked about making the sequel, how things changed on set, who was the one who broke the most while filming, her reaction to reading the script for the first time, deleted scenes, and a lot more.  She also talked about working with Bryan Cranston on Cold Comes the Night.  Hit the jump for what she had to say.

Question:  What have the last few days been like for you?  You guys are doing a full-on, hardcore, press junket.

ALICE EVE:  We have been doing full-on, hardcore press.  I haven’t set foot on the streets of London yet.  When I’m done with this, I’m gonna go out, I think – the first time in five days.  

I’ve done press for a long time and there’s literally like a wheel of questions you can ask actors, especially about projects that you don’t want to reveal all the twists and turns.  Has it been weird answering a lot of the same questions or are a few little gems coming in once in a while?

EVE:  There are a few little gems, person-to-person some people come in and they’re dressed like Spock and they want to play games and that stuff’s quite fun.  But the question I’ve been asked the most is what was it like joining the Enterprise.  They’re not painful questions.

There was a lot of talk about who was going to land your role.  Were you paying attention when people online were talking about people being up for a role or not at all?

EVE:  I’m not big on awareness about what’s going on online but usually if you do too much online stuff then you usually bump into something that hurts.  

I found the same thing, it’s called “commenters,” and they’re not very friendly.

EVE:  Yeah, it can get messy.  I kind of like to keep up with what the vibe is but then I got back to The Guardian and read about Syria.

What was your reaction, reading the script for the first time?

EVE:  I read it all at once in Bad Robot and that’s not normally the case.  Normally you’ll like get a drink in the middle or something.  But I didn’t, I sat and read it like a good student, so the movie kind of stuck in my head and it was pretty powerful.

When you first read the script to what all of us saw on screen, how much was that the same?  Or were there small tweaks along the way?

EVE:  Yeah there were definitely tweaks.  You know what?  I kind of think it moved faster than was scripted.  I think it’s quite fast, it’s a very quick movie, it’s a fast ride.  

Did you have any deleted scenes or things that didn’t make it into the movie?  Or was it like little bits of scenes that were removed to make it faster?

EVE:  Everyone’s scenes were like the bare bones of themselves.  The longest scene was that scene with Pike and Kirk in the bar, I feel like.  But most of the scenes move at a pace.  There was one scene we shot which is where I’m explaining to Kirk why I have an English accent, but there’s nothing else that I missed.  Everything else is in there, I think.  

I would imagine, making a film of this size and scope, there’s going to be a few surprises along the way.  What surprised you about making the film?

EVE:  The whole thing’s been just amazing.  I guess every day is a surprise.  Getting to talk to J.J. Abrams every day is pretty much a surprise.  

I would imagine the cast gets along great and it’s almost a challenge to make someone else break on camera.  Who’s the one that broke most on set or caused the most problems?

EVE:  Simon Pegg, obviously!  

I’ve heard that from other people.

EVE:  Simon Pegg, the resident – I mean, he’s the funniest man invented.  Simon Pegg, you can’t help but look his way and laugh – even J.J.

The thing about Simon is, he’s a little too fast on his feet.  So you’re thinking about a witty comeback and he’s already said four of them.

EVE:  I know his brain moves very, very quickly.  Probably not as quickly as J.J.‘s, although he’ll kill me for saying that.  Maybe as quickly as J.J., maybe, I don’t know.  We’ll have to have a brain-off with those two.  

I think they move quickly regarding two different things though.  Let’s give them each credit.

EVE:  Oh, you mean they both have their specialities in that area.   Is that what you mean?

Exactly.  I’m trying to be democratic.

EVE:  You have to be democratic, that’s the name of the game.

Did you hear or make any jokes about lens flares in the sequel?

EVE:  No.  But I’m pro lens flares.  I think J.J. found a good aesthetic.

Listen, I think that the lens flares are fantastic.  It gives the film a feel of a different look and time than just the typical movie.  I’m all for it.

EVE:  Yeah, exactly.  It brings it out of time, it kind of gives it a sense of – makes it classic in some way.  It’s J.J.’s signature, you know?

Totally.  Talk a little bit about filming.  What was it like working at Sony in Culver City and having all those sets?

EVE:  Being on the lot is an incredible thing.  You kind of drive around and look out the window and imagine all the other guys that walked those streets.  It never really sunk in, being in the lot – it was always a novelty. 

I definitely want to ask about Cold Comes the Night, where I believe you worked with Bryan Cranston.

EVE:  Bryan Cranston, what a legend.

Yeah, he’s awesome.  I have nothing but amazing things to say about that man.  What’s the film about?  Who do you play?  What was it like working with him?

EVE:  I play a single mother who’s running a motel, which she has to turn into a brothel to make money, because her husband died.  It’s set in upstate New York and we filmed it in the motel, we lived in a motel – it was an intense experience.  Bryan was there and he was a consistent, analytical engaged thought in the process that every day was interested in deconstructing and reconstructing a scene – which is the way I like to work.  It was a very rewarding experience working with him.

Do you know when it’s aiming to come out, in terms of release?  Or when we’ll see a trailer?

EVE:  I don’t know about a trailer but I think we’re looking for later on this year for a release.  

Do you know if you’re going to festivals?

EVE:  I’d have to speak to Tze but I think you’ll know more soon.  But I think we’re going to go into maybe festivals, maybe release, I’m not sure.  

Jumping back into Trek for a second, what have you learned about the franchise, in terms of the fans, the merchandise, in general that’s really surprised you?

EVE:  I don’t quite realize how well designed it was and how prescient Rodenberry really was in imagining the future.  Talking about it, I sometimes can’t imagine what the future would be like and it’s actually a really difficult thing to do if you really break it down.  Will we still be using knife and forks?  Will we still need to wash our hands every day?  You don’t know which thing, invention is going to take place.  No one could’ve predicted the internet.  So, it’s kind of a cool thing to imagine.

I also think it’s weird that the iPad is straight out of Star Trek from the 60’s.

EVE:  It’s cool, right?