In Untitled Home Invasion Romance, with his marriage on the rocks, Kevin (Jason Biggs) whisks his wife Suzie (Meaghan Rath) away on a romantic getaway with a wildly misguided plan: fake a break-in and play the hero.
However, when things spiral, and someone turns up dead, Kevin finds himself at the centre of a murder investigation, with lies piling up faster than the alibis.
Earlier this month, we spoke with Jason and Meaghan about their roles in the movie. The former also makes his directorial debut with Untitled Home Invasion Romance, putting himself on the map as a filmmaker.
Jason is best known for starring in American Pie, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and Orange Is the New Black. Meaghan, meanwhile, counts the likes of Being Human, 15/Love, The Assistants, and Hawaii Five-0 among her credits.
Explaining what drew them to this project, we hear from the duo about the unique challenges their respective characters face, the contrast of exploring vastly different tones within the context of the story, and what they love about romantic comedies.
You can check out the full interview with Jason and Meaghan about Untitled Home Invasion Romance in the player below.
I had so much fun watching this movie. Jason, I'd love to hear from you first on what drew you to this story, not just as the actor playing Kevin, but obviously as a first-time filmmaker as well.
Jason: Thank you. I'm glad you enjoyed it. When I first read the script, I thought it was really different from a lot of the things I'd been reading and certainly had acted in during my career. It felt like it was in the world of movies that are some of my favourites, namely the Coen Brothers films. What they do so well is find comedy in some of the darkest scenarios, with lots of unexpected twists and turns. I read it initially just to act in it, but I thought this would be a fun challenge for me to direct, and certainly something unexpected for what people might think I would do for my directorial debut. I got lucky with the opportunity. I found people to back me and the project, and had a wonderful cast.
And Meaghan, there's obviously a lot more to your character than meets the eye, and she's not the victim that Kevin imagines she'll be. How did you approach building this character, given the direction the film takes her in?
Meaghan: So much was in the script. There were so many little clues about what was going on with her emotionally and what her life up to that point would have been. It was about finding the right moments with Jason to bring that through and show why she does the things that she does without spoiling anything. I read that script and thought this is such an incredible character that I've never seen before. I had this crazy feeling you get very rarely, where you know you have to do this. I'm lucky.
Suzie is such a strong, capable character, and Kevin, of course, is pretty hapless. What did you both enjoy about exploring that contrast in the context of the comedy, the relationship drama, and what becomes quite a tense thriller at moments as well?
Jason: To Meaghan's point, she read the script and thought this character is badass, one I've never seen before and never played, and she wanted to do it. I was similarly really attracted to the character of Suzie. Kevin is much more in my wheelhouse—this guy who has the best of intentions, but everything falls apart around him. That's something I've done before. What I loved about it was that the world around him allowed me to make departures, and it always felt like this was Suzie's movie, Meaghan's movie. She has the true hero's journey, and she's the one with the rich history that we slowly uncover. That was always the most exciting part for me as a director. Then for Meaghan to come in and just knock it out of the park.
Meaghan, that must have been quite a satisfying arc as well—playing a character who isn't the stereotypical one we might see in a romcom. She is this very capable character with quite a fascinating past.
Meaghan: It was so much fun. Reading it, I had so many ideas about where everything came from, and it was fun to explore when to show those things in the journey—how much to keep completely hidden, and at what moments to let her real feelings come through as we follow her over this weekend. That was one of the greatest challenges, and it's so satisfying to find those things and try a whole bunch of different approaches on the day to figure out what's right. When you have a director who's also an actor, he understands how to talk to actors and what excites us because he feels the same way. That was the best part of filming this—talking about the scenes and working them.
Just one final quick question. We don't get anywhere near enough romcoms, and I think this one—not the traditional type—is going to surprise people. But what do you both love about this genre?
Jason: I've always loved romantic comedies. I'm a sucker for very traditional ones and, of course, for ones that experiment a little bit and are unexpected. One of the things I loved about this script was that it is a romantic comedy. When we were first talking about potential release dates, we had a meeting early on and noted it's coming out before Valentine's Day. This is a romance—it's in the title—and it's a comedy. It is also these other things, but I love it. I've been in a bunch of them myself, and I feel the genre gets a bad rap sometimes, in the same way that multi-camera sitcoms do. But to me, there's something about [it] that requires a specific formula and a rhythm that, when done right, can be a thing of beauty.
Meaghan: Good answer!
Untitled Home Invasion Romance will be available on Digital on January 27.