Spontaneous is now available on Apple TV, Amazon Prime Video, Google Play, Microsoft Movies & TV, Sony PlayStation Video, FandangoNOW, and more. To celebrate the release of the movie which stars Katherine Langford, Charlie Plummer, and Hayley Law, and the latter was kind enough to take the time to speak with us about her role in director Brian Duffield's adaptation of Aaron Starmer's novel.
As you'll know if you've read our review of Spontaneous, we loved it, and you definitely need to make the time to check out this feel-good movie that mixes romance with sci-fi and horror.
In our chat with Hayley, we asked what it was like to join the project, how it felt to be shot in the face with a blood cannon, getting the chance to improvise on set, and a whole lot more. You can hear from the actress about the cancellation of Altered Carbon HERE, her interest in superheroes movies can be found HERE, and her thoughts on a possible Riverdale return right HERE.
Needless to say, we want to extend a huge thank you to Hayley, and it's going to be well worth keeping an eye on where her career goes next as this is an actress whose star is very much on the rise.
When you were first offered a role in Spontaneous, what was your reaction to this crazy hybrid of blood, grief, friendship, and romance?
You know, when I first read the script, I had to read it over because I almost couldn't believe what was happening [Laughs]. Of course, it's extreme with the combustions, but I really thought the friendship and love between Dylan and Mara was so great that I was honestly just blown away. I'd done a tape for it and put it out of my mind because whenever I get attached to something and don't get it, I get really sad, but as soon as I got the call for this one, I couldn't believe it and was so excited to be part of it. Right away, I thought, 'This will be insane to shoot because how are they going to do all this blood and resets?' I was just excited to be part of the whole process. I'm glad that I got to act in it, but I just wanted to be part of this movie in any way I could. I'm really happy I got to do it, but I was quite shocked [Laughs].
As I mentioned, there are a lot of bloody scenes in Spontaneous, so can you talk about what it was like to be in the midst of those and what they were like to shoot?
It was...truly, the reactions were so genuine. The hardest part about doing them was knowing who was about to explode. I wish we hadn't known because being aware that the person beside you is about to explode or knowing you're about to get hit in the face with a blood cannon was so nerve-wracking. Honestly, everybody did a really good job of acting like we didn't know it was going to happen, especially right before because you had to be so still and take the hit. That was so weird, and I don't think I'll ever do another project where you have to be that put together before you get hit with a blood cannon. Maybe I will, because it felt so strange getting hit by one [Laughs]. It was just crazy to shoot and a lot of it was hoping we would get it on the first try because resetting that scene would have been five, six hours. It looked great, and they did such a good job. I don't even know what they made and how they did it so well, but I think they did a really good job with it.
Did you get chance to read Aaron Starmer's novel before or during shooting, and if so, were there any scenes there with Tess you liked that maybe didn't make it into the movie?
You know, I haven't read it, but I just got sent a copy and I want to read it because the director, Brian [Duffield], told me that in the book, my character doesn't survive. I'm very interested to see how that comes about because what happens with Dylan and Mara is so heartbreaking, and I just really want to read it and find out what happened to Tess and how her friends took it. I think it was on the last day he said, 'Oh, I'm so glad you made it in the movie. It didn't go so well for you in the book,' and I'm like, 'What?! I need the book now!' [Laughs]
You, Katherine, and Charlie have a great rapport on screen, but how much of that was influenced by the relationships you formed behind the scenes?
Honestly, they're both so great, and we all got along so well. We hung out when we weren't working, and we all just got along with each other. Even if we weren't working together, we wouldn't have met how we did, but I think we would have all connected really well. Charlie helped me with taping some auditions when we weren't working, and we just became fast friends which was so lucky on a film job. I always worry a little bit that someone's going to be [Laughs] a bad asshole, but there were no bad assholes, for sure. We were all really close and it was really great. I love both of them, and I really want to work with them again.
There's a lot of great humour in the film, and while I have no doubt the script was great, did you get many opportunities for improv during shooting?
Yeah, we did. The scene where me and Katherine are quarantining, Brian said, 'Just do a couple with whatever you want,' and we were just like, 'Oh, yeahhh.' We got to play around and I think the one scene that made it is with me and Katherine just being goofy and funny. I think it went on a lot longer than what made the film, but we got to play around a fair amount. I'm used to working on things where you don't get to do that at all. I love doing improv if I can, especially on a film, so that was really special, and I was so happy Brian let us do that.
Talking of Brian, I know this was his directorial debut, so what was it like working with him as he was learning on the job, so to speak?
I never would have guessed that it was his first directing job had he not told me that. He was just really open and trusted us which is so great and quite rare sometimes with TV and film. Brian was really great, and we talked about scenes, character choices, and even dialogue. He wanted it to be as real and natural as it could be, and I really would not have known that it was his debut if he hadn't told me because he was just great to work with.
A lot of times in films like this one, we see the “best friend” pushed to the sidelines, but Tess also gets an arc here, so how important was that to you signing on to the project?
I always think about that and look for that when I'm reading scripts and especially, for me now, I really look for that and I'm really happy Tess got some good moments in there.
There are obviously some coincidental parallels here to what's going on with COVID, so looking back at the film with that lens now, how does that feel to see how relevant it's become by accident?
Totally by accident, and it's crazy. When we were shooting it, I was saying, 'This is crazy! Quarantine? Yeah, right.' Now, I remember texting Brian maybe in March when everything started locking down and saying, 'This is the perfect time for this movie to come out. I can't believe it's relevant like this and who would have though this movie would resemble real-life?' I'm just really happy people get to watch it now.
Having been part of big budget TV shows like the ones we talked about, does it feel like a refreshing change of pace to come on board a project like this which is an Indy that has a smaller budget and tighter production schedule?
I really like it. We shot this movie quite quickly. I think it was three and a half or four weeks. It was a lot in a small amount of time. Now, I've done one or two other small projects like that which are coming out next year, and I really like it. I love doing big budget things too, but it's such a tight little family with the cast and crew when it's smaller. You have a lot more freedom to play around which is great. You're not allowed to improvise on Riverdale at all [Laughs]. For sure, not!
I spoke to Brian earlier this week and he was talking about the soundtrack, and while I know you're not involved in that creative process, having done a musical role in Riverdale, do you feel like you appreciate seeing songs in scenes you're part of that little bit more?
Definitely. I love watching both and seeing the differences and the crazy amount of work that goes into that. It's cool to be part of that and watch how they come to life. It's really great.
Finally, Spontaneous features a really hopeful message which it feels like we all need right now, but what do you hope people take from the film?
When I first read it, I was kind of not satisfied with the ending. Then, when I watched it, it really did make me feel hopeful and I'm sure there are other movies like this, but I love seeing a movie where it doesn't necessarily end with sunshine and rainbows, but with characters that are just going to make the best of it. I hope that people take that away from it. It's a very unrealistic movie with people exploding, but at the end of the day things get crazy, and we have to be positive, appreciate the people around us while we're here, and I hope people take that from the movie. Rather than, like, a lot of blood [Laughs].