Remember Buddy, the bright orange unicorn and star of that classic children's television show who brought joy and life lessons into your living room? Inside the colourful world of "It's Buddy!", a group of children spend their days singing, dancing, and helping Buddy spread happiness.
However, when one child refuses to play along, Buddy is not pleased, and cracks begin to appear in this seemingly perfect world. That's the premise of Buddy, the new horror movie from Casper Kelly (Aqua Teen Hunger Force, Mandy).
Cristin Milioti has spent the past few years venturing into some wonderfully unique corners of genre storytelling. From playing Sofia Falcone opposite in The Penguin to her memorable turns in Black Mirror, the actress is no stranger to heightened worlds.
Buddy takes that to another level. The new horror movie sees Connolly play Grace, a mother who is pulled into the nightmarish world of a seemingly innocent children's character as she desperately searches for her missing daughter.
We caught up with Milioti to discuss Buddy, working alongside Topher Grace, filming some of the movie's more unique moments, what drew her to the script, and why she's so drawn to exploring big, fantastical worlds. Milioti also told us whether she'll appear in The Batman Part II, and you can find her comments on that by clicking here.
You can read the full interview with the Buddy star below.
Not that long ago you were acting opposite an unrecognisable Colin Farrell as the Penguin, and now you're working alongside Buddy, this Barney-like, demonic monster. Which of those has been the most surreal experience, would you say?
God. You know what? I don't know what it says about me that I wouldn't describe either of them as surreal, but they were both demented and fun in their own unique ways. Yeah. I mean, gosh, they couldn't be two more different experiences, for sure, but both equally thrilling.
I loved the scene where Grace is pulled through the TV into Buddy's world. Was a physical sequence like that as much fun to perform as it is to watch? And were there a lot of challenges with shooting that, obviously, with the CG aspect?
The challenge with shooting that scene when I'm, like, running up the stairs and getting sucked into the TV is that that was my final night. That was, like, my final night, and we shot that at 3 in the morning, and we got two takes. And I would say, when I saw it, I was like, wow, they really made that work, because we were just, like—we just, you know, were sort of coming up with it on the fly. But it cut together really beautifully. Like, Casper did such a good job. It's such a fun sequence. But, yeah, that was sort of by the seat of our pants.
In your scenes with Topher Grace, you can really feel Grace's frustration. He won't listen to her, and he's oblivious to what she's going through. Did the two of you have a lot of time to develop that dynamic before shooting, or was it something you found together on set?
We found it together on set. And, you know, Casper was so wonderful about having discussions with us. You know, pretty much whenever the cameras weren't rolling, we were, you know, rewriting the scenes, reworking them, talking through them, making sure that we were, you know, getting everything across. And it was—Topher was so wonderful to work with and so game. And I think we both just sort of, like, dove in because we didn't get any rehearsals for this movie. You know, it was really like, you just hit the ground running.
The thing I loved about Grace is she's a mother who will do anything to find her child. So what was it about that journey that really hooked you when you read the script for the first time?
I kind of can't describe it, but the script made me cry. I think I was really moved by the idea of a parent who would go to the ends of the earth to rescue their child who they weren't even sure was missing. You know, like, it was just such a—I don't know, it felt like this incredible expression of love in this unbelievably dark and demented world. In the centre of all this is a story about this mother's love for her daughter, and that nothing could ever make her forget how much she loves her.
And so I just found it really moving. And, you know, Casper and I had a lot of discussions going into it about sort of, like, there were these little Spielbergian homages to, like, Close Encounters. And, you know, obviously Spielberg does a lot of—does a lot of stories about parents and children and their relationships, both loving and fraught. And I don't know, it just—it really moved me at the time. So I thought it was such an interesting juxtaposition to the rest of the world of the film, which, as you know, is, like, completely demonic and crazy.
It is a crazy world. It reminded me, actually, of your episodes of Black Mirror, when you're in that heightened, surreal kind of Star Trek world. Does having those colourful, fantastical surroundings influence how you approach a performance like this one?
It keeps happening! It's so funny, you know, I don't. Like, it's only after the fact, when people point out, you know, similarities. Like, someone else has pointed that out, too, between, like, oh, you know, Black Mirror and this. Of, like, being sucked into this, like, alternate reality that you don't ask to be sucked into, which I would say is a lot like sort of being alive in this world right now sometimes. Like, it's not that crazy. That's kind of what it feels like to wake up sometimes. But I would say that, like, I really am drawn toward—I'm drawn to—yeah, I'm drawn to, like, big, fantastical stuff.
Sometimes I think it's like, those are the type of movies I love to watch. They're the type of things I grew up watching. You know, I'm definitely ready to dive into something that is, like, you know, maybe just, like, a couple of conversations at a kitchen table. I think I've really—I’ve really explored recently sort of, you know, bigger worlds, which I love, and I'll never stop exploring. But, yeah, I think I'm drawn to them maybe more than I even realise.
Buddy is only in theaters on August 28.