Esther’s terrifying saga continues in this thrilling prequel to the original and shocking horror hit film, 'Orphan’.
After orchestrating a brilliant escape from an Estonian psychiatric facility, Esther (Isabelle Fuhrman) travels to America by impersonating the missing daughter of a wealthy family. Yet, an unexpected twist arises that pits her against a mother (Tricia, played by Julia Stiles) who will protect her family from the murderous 'child' at any cost.
Here, Julia Stiles chats about her role in 'Orphan: First Kill', divulges what scares are in store for audiences, and spills on working with Isabelle Fuhrman.
You’ve previously said you don’t watch a lot of horror movies, so what was it about this script that made you excited to be part of this one?
Honestly, the only reason I say I don't really watch horror films is that I'm too much of a wimp! But I think what's fun about this one – and what makes it different – is that it is a prequel so we already know the secret. There's a lot of fun to be had in watching Esther trick people and seeing how much longer she's going to get away with it. When I was reading the script, it was such a page-turner and I thought it was so clever. Then when I got to the twist, I was like, “Wow, that's really good!” My character Tricia is somebody who is very determined to keep her family together and keep up appearances. When Esther comes back into their lives, Tricia wants this to work but something doesn't feel right and she can't quite put her finger on it. And then to see what she does with that is really, really fun and it was fun to play. She's driven to protect her family at all costs. That's what hooked me.
Isabelle Fuhrman, who plays Esther, is also a producer on the film so she clearly brought so much history with her to this prequel. Do you think the film could have been made without her?
I was really, really impressed with Isabelle Fuhrman in the movie. She's now 23 years old, and she's still playing somebody who could convincingly be a child. I think she did it so well. I loved watching her work every day because she tricked us all and I really can’t imagine anybody else playing that role. It just wouldn't work and I'm sure that fans of the first film would agree with me. Isabelle really pulled it off and it was amazing to watch.
How did you approach playing the mother of a missing child?
There is so much more than meets the eye when it comes to Tricia. I actually approached this part differently as I wasn't really trying to relate to her. I think she's a unique character. What interested me about Tricia is that she is trying desperately to keep her family together and to keep up the appearance of a healthy normal family at all costs.
Did you see any similarities between your character, Tricia, and the mother you played in 'The Omen'?
That's interesting. Yes, I think there are similarities to 'The Omen' where I was playing a mother who has the same sort of fear of her child, even though she wants to love her child. I know I’m supposed to love them, but there's something off and I can't quite connect to them. She can't put her finger on exactly what is wrong. There's definitely a parallel there but with 'Orphan: First Kill', Tricia is much less passive.
Given that you grew up in New York, the character of Tricia – a wealthy, fundraising mother – must seem quite familiar. Is she an amalgamation of women that you've met in the city?
She's not the kind of mom that I hang out with but I think I know that person. I didn't want to make her a stereotype, but she’s very much into keeping up appearances. She's very involved in her family's life and that's not only important to her, but she will protect it at all costs.
The fight scenes are intense but in addition to the choreography, you had to wear platform boots to make the height difference with Isabelle Fuhrman believable. How difficult was that to achieve?
Yes! it was difficult and it was hard not to feel really silly. I was impressed and happy that the filmmakers didn’t want to rely on special effects and CGI so all the tricks were real, using forced perspective within the camera. We ended up wearing what we called the Gene Simmons boots. I think our costumer got them at some wacky costume store as they were rock and roll boots that had actual leather fringe on them. So I had to wear those daily and watch everybody laugh at me. They kept getting taller and taller and they got harder and harder to walk in. There were a lot of things you had to tune out or ignore when you were in the middle of the scene. It certainly also made us laugh a lot but eventually, we figured it out and we were able to not become distracted by it. Isabelle was the most gung-ho of anyone and I give her a lot of credit because she would have to do scenes squatting down or she'd have to walk bending down to make herself look shorter. At one point, they had this rig with a chair on rollers so that she could slide across the floor to look like she was walking while keeping her at a lower height. But what was also amazing with Isabelle was that it wasn't just making it look like the height difference was right, it was also the way that she just embodied Esther in her voice and her mannerisms, and the way she carried herself. That's where the craft was in terms of making her look believable as a young girl.
What was the most challenging aspect of making the movie?
The thing that was most challenging, in a good way, and that made me want to be a part of the film is that I had to treat my character like two different characters – the person before Esther is revealed to be who she is and the person after that. And then the other obvious challenges were all of the in-camera tricks that we were doing to make Isabelle look like a child compared to the adults.
What do audiences have in store when it comes to scares in the movie?
I think what's so scary about it – and what's creepy about it – is just how convincing Isabelle is as a woman posing as a child and how much she can trick and manipulate this family.
What did you enjoy most about working with director William Brent Bell?
He was so great to work with and he's so good at this kind of genre. He's also very good at managing the set and he’s really great with the actors. It was a challenge because we were all having to rehearse with masks and people were nervous about COVID and getting used to the protocols. It was the first time that I had gone back to work during the pandemic and it was an adjustment and something that we had to get used to. Brent handled it really well and made everybody feel very safe, which was important.
'Orphan: First Kill' is in cinemas now.
