If you missed out on Doctor Who and are eagerly anticipating Guardians of the Galaxy, get ready because you’re about to get a sense of what Karen Gillan is capable of in her upcoming release, Oculus. She leads the film as Kaylie, but Kaylie isn’t your ordinary horror movie heroine. As a child, Kaylie witnessed her parents’ murder and then saw her little brother get pegged for the crime. Years later, Tim (Brenton Thwaites) is released, but Kaylie refuses to let him readjust and finally live a normal life again because she’s still determined to prove that it wasn’t her brother, but rather, the supernatural force residing in the Lasser Glass that’s responsible for her parents’ death and many, many others.
Kaylie doesn’t just vow to avenge her family, throw herself into a dangerous situation and spend the rest of the film running for her life. She’s determined, passionate and prepared, and even manages to convince you she’s got a fighting chance. You’ll get the opportunity to see how she fairs when Oculus arrives in theaters on April 11th, but for now, check out what Gillan told us about developing the character with her young counterpart, Annalise Basso, how she met the challenge of turning an enormous amount of expository dialogue into compelling material, what she’d do if Marvel came calling and needed her to shave her head again to film addition Guardians of the Galaxy scenes, and so much more in the interview after the jump.
Image via Relativity Media
Karen Gillan Time Index:
- 00:00 - Her first meeting with director Mike Flanagan via Skype.
- 01:09 - On nailing a very, very lengthy monologue.
- 01:50 - Her dialogue memorization technique.
- 02:12 - Her favorite Lasser Glass kills.
- 02:37 - Biting into a light bulb on set.
- 03:34 - How she connects to her character.
- 04:13 - Working with the actress that plays the young version of Kaylie.
- 04:48 - Establishing the family dynamic.
- 05:15 - Her favorite horror movies.
- 05:25 - The importance of being relaxed on set.
- 06:07 - Jumping in and out of the character in between takes.
- 06:33 - On working with Flanagan as an actor’s director.
- 07:13 – The scare scene that was added to the film at the last minute.
- 07:45 – The first time she saw herself as Guardians of the Galaxy’s Nebula.
- 08:28 – On minor script changes that happened during filming.
- 08:42 – On the size of the role.
- 09:14 – Whether or not she’d shave her head again if the filmmakers decided to shoot more material.
