I had the pleasure of sitting down with talented actress Radha Mitchell. Not only did she talk that iconic role in Silent Hill, but we also discussed her role in the soon to be released supernatural film Dreamkatcher in which she plays the role of Gail, a single father’s new girlfriend. Problems arise when a dark entity sets its sights on Gail and her boyfriend’s young son who are left alone at a secluded cabin, the same one where the boy’s mother was murdered.
Radha has starred in many great movies during her career, including the creepy as hell movie Silent Hill, the fantastic 2010 remake of The Crazies, The Darkness in which she starred opposite Kevin Bacon, and 2004’s Man on Fire.
Horror Fuel: “Silent Hill is a great movie and it was something we hadn’t seen before. You’ve been in so many great films, Silent Hill, The Crazies. You always seem to play a motherly type role.”
Radha Mitchell: “Yeah, I do play a lot of mother characters. With Dreamkatcher it’s a stepmother and that’s a role everyone kind of hates. There’s something subconscious about hating stepmothers. I played the stepmother character which is a bit of an evolution. I’ve played the mother who adopts a child, a mother who loses a child, There was Man on Fire, and with The Crazies, I played a pregnant woman. I think it’s part of the female archetype in female stories.”
Horror Fuel: “You are right about people’s feelings about stepmothers. I was that woman who had a stepkid who started off thinking I was terrible, but luckily that phase didn’t last long. But I feel your character’s pain, it is a struggle. I blame Disney.”
Radha Mitchell: ” [laughter] At a certain age you become seen as a stepmother, casting wise. In this case, I was trying to kind of protect her [Gail] because there were things that could have happened to her in that story that I felt like might not have been great for her that might have been bad for culture. She had this longing to be a mother and he has this longing for his mother who he’s lost. She could be that person for him.
But you don’t know who’s going to turn out bad in the beginning, him or her. That was also the question through the shoot, is Gail going to do it or is the kid going to do it? Who is going to die? And I don’t think they had quite decided while we were shooting.”
Horror Fuel: “Stepmoms have it rough. It sounds like a complicated shoot.”
Radha Mitchell: “Yeah, but it was fun. We shot in upstate New York a couple of hours outside of New York City. We were very isolated. You really had the feeling of isolation because of where we were. That, I think, added to the anxiety. We didn’t have to imagine that for our characters, we were living that while we were there. But it was really beautiful there.
Horror Fuel: “The film plays out against a gorgeous background. I would happily move into that house, minus the evil entity of course.”
Radha Mitchell: “The house is actually on AirBnB if anyone wants to rent it.”
Horror Fuel: “Really? Wow! I would love to stay there. It looks so peaceful.”
Radha Mitchell: “You can sleep on the same couch where Gail gets stabbed and where the kid has his nightmares. It’s beautiful, it’s a great house. We lucked out with that house. The owner was with us for much of the shoot and his wife came up a few times.”
Horror Fuel: “The fact that you can actually go to the house in Dreamkatcher just adds to it.”
Radha Mitchell: “Yeah. We really should do a promotion for the movie with it.”
Horror Fuel: “You Should.
There’s something else that struck me about the film, there is a lot of violence that young actor Finlay Wojtak-Hissong was involved in during the film. Was that difficult to shoot?”
Radha Mitchell: “It was a little bit tricky. We didn’t have a whole lot of time to film those types of scenes, but we had great special effects. The violence felt like a crescendo to the slow build of the film. The violent scenes weren’t expected but required. It’s got to amount to a thing.
Horror Fuel: “Did you have any nightmares while filming?”
Radha Mitchell: “I didn’t have nightmares, but we stayed in a mansion that was partially empty. It felt a bit like an insane asylum. I used a lot of my free time to research dream therapy, dream interpretation. I was looking forward to having some nightmares so that I could learn more about myself and my subconscious. I didn’t have any horrible nightmares though.”
Horror Fuel: “That’s too bad [laughter].
I won’t reveal to our readers, but I really dug the way it all ended.”
Radha Mitchell: “Oh, good. Thank you.”
Horror Fuel: “I don’t know with things being the way they are but do you planning on attending any of the upcoming conventions?”
Radha Mitchell: “I don’t know if there are going to be any. I’ve encouraged the director to have a premiere Q&A online. I was hoping people could come on and ask questions, be a little more interactive. I think you might see more of that in the future while sorting things out with the pandemic. I went to Monsterpalooza. It was interesting, but I don’t know much about that world. ”
Horror Fuel: “I know there are several interactive conventions set up to happen online. Maybe we’ll see you on something like that. Horror conventions are the best.
You recently did an episode of “Law & Order: SVU”, which is huge.”
Radha Mitchell: “Yeah. There was a quick turnaround. That was fun. I was actually in Australia and got a call to do a character in 24 hours. I had planned a whole trip to Australia but I was like, ‘Yes. This will be such fun.’ Next thing you know I’m in New York basically 24 hours later. I was shooting a scene in a courtroom. It was a great experience and not having time to overcook it. I just showed up and did it. I played the CEO of a company and had gotten in trouble due to the people who work for her. She befriends Mariska Hargitay’s character. I hadn’t realized that all the stories have to do with rape and sexual assault. It’s been dealing with those issues for almost twenty years. It’s is very popular.”
Horror Fuel: “I’ve seen almost every episode. The show has brought a lot of attention to things women have really experience. It’s done a lot of good.”
Radha Mitchell: “My episode is called “Swimming with the Sharks.” The show is great and Marishka really impressive. She’s such a talented actress and is really the glue of that show.”
Horror Fuel: “Yes she is. I let a couple of episodes pile up and then binge-watch it. The next day I’ll binge another show. I watch most shows that way, which I guess is pretty weird.”
Radha Mitchell: Yeah [laughter]. I get into some shows but I prefer movies. I like watching the hour and a half and then I’m done with it. I’ve been watching The Larry David show. I think he helped get me through the pandemic. It’s good to laugh, you know?”
Horror Fuel: “Definitely. Anything that makes you smile helps.
Tell us about what other projects you’ve got coming out?”
Radha Mitchell: “Well, there is a movie called Run Hide Fight. There’s another movie, 2 Hearts. It’s a really sweet story. That was supposed to come out in September, but who knows now? There’s another movie which I’m not supposed to talk about yet. I don’t know when it’s coming out. Dreamkatcher’s coming out and it couldn’t be a better time for it.
I can’t help but wonder if more movies will be coming out this way.
It’s an interesting time. No one knows how to quite navigate the next couple of months. That’s kind of where we are at right now.”
Horror Fuel: “I think theaters are really in danger right now.”
Radha Mitchell: “It’s sad, but I think they are. They need a reboot or to be updated where quality meets cost. There used to be something magical about going to theaters. It needs like a bar, a party afterward, it needs something with a social presence.”
Horror Fuel: “They definitely need to be upgraded. I think everyone remembers the first movie they saw in a theater, it used to that big of a deal. What was your first?”
Radha Mitchell: “I think it would be either E.T. or Bambi. I remember the theater having this ceiling lit in blue. It was this old-school theater that had been converted into a movie theater. It was this magical thing. It’s funny now that I look back on E.T. with being in Dreamkatcher with Henry Thomas, who was the kid in E.T. It’s funny how things come around.”
Horror Fuel: “That is awesome! My first was Bambi. I remember crying so hard after Bambi’s mom being killed that my mom had to take me out and get me candy to get me to calm down. To this day I don’t eat deer meat. But yes, it was very memorable.
Radha Mitchell: “Really? That scene in Bambi was tough. I think kids are closer to humanity than adults.”
Horror Fuel: “I agree.”
Radha, who is soft-spoken and kind, has so many movies that have just come out and are soon to be released, including Dreamkatcher which is now out on Digital and Demand. Be sure to visit her Facebook fan page and follow Radha Mitchell on Twitter, and Instagram for updates and more.
