Interview with Actress Laura Ellen Wilson

Laura Ellen Wilson is a multi award winning actress and black belt martial artist from the UK. Recently I got the chance to chat with Laura about her career this far and what’s next for her.

PopHorror: What inspired you to become an actor?

Laura Ellen Wilson: I had always been interested in Musical Theater growing up and was obsessed with several British dramas such as Casualty, The Bill and Holby City. I told my mom I wanted to be on them one day and she said I needed to start acting classes. I did several short films before starting my career as a dancer/singer in hotels and on cruise ships, but I always told myself I would come back to acting!

PopHorror: Who are your biggest acting influences?

Laura Ellen Wilson: I have so many! I would say Nicole Kidman would be my main one. I love all her her work and shes so versatile – whether its a rom-com or horror, she just nails it.

PopHorror: How do you go about preparing for a role?

Laura Ellen Wilson: It would definitely depend on the genre. As I’ve worked mostly in horror, I feel most comfortable prepping for those kinds of roles. I first learn about the location and which scenes are shot where. I am very influenced by my surroundings so that really helps me. I also make sure I know the script and my dialogue perfectly!

PopHorror: What is your favorite project that you’ve worked on overall? Favorite Horror project you’ve worked on?

Laura Ellen Wilson: I have honestly enjoyed every single one of my projects but a standout one would definitely be Friday 13th: Vengeance. That was a real turning point for me as it was my first ever project in the US. Everyone was so lovely, professional and everyone was hungry for more, even after 17 or 18 hour days. There’s nothing worse than being on set with someone that doesn’t want to be there, but with Vengeance that was absolutely not the case. Also, getting killed by Jason Vorhees was pretty cool too!

PopHorror: One of your earliest films is Christmas Slay, a Christmas slasher film. Are you a fan of holiday horror films? What was your favorite part of working on the project?

Laura Ellen Wilson: Christmas Slay was such a cool experience. I am a huge lover of travelling and to be able to travel to Bulgaria whilst working was incredible. It was a place I would never have gone to otherwise. The location itself was like a horror movie so we didn’t need much to get in character!! Holiday horror can sometimes be super cheesy, but as we all know, true horror fans are year round horror fans, not just during spooky season. The holidays are great, but a scary holiday?? Yes please!

PopHorror: You starred in the horror film Monster as Emily? What can you tell us about your character and what your experience was like making the film?

Laura Ellen Wilson: Monster was my first leading role in a feature film. I was overjoyed when I was offered the role, but I had no idea how big a deal it was. The author was popular worldwide and had a massive fan base, mainly here in the US. Monster was his first book to screen adaptation (and also a multi award winning novella) so naturally, his fans were anticipating the release. I do feel as though my career was initiated by that role as I was invited to horror conventions with the author, Matt Shaw, at one of the conventions I met the director of Vengeance who straight offered me the role, Matt’s  fans became my fans and I still get brought posters and DVDs of Monster to sign when I attend conventions.

PopHorror: You starred in the fan film Friday the 13th: Vengeance. Are you a fan of Friday The 13th and what was it like playing in that world?

Laura Ellen Wilson: I had never really watched any of the Friday the 13th movies, but once I was offered a role in the fan movie, I watched them all over the next week. I really enjoyed them, although I usually prefer more psychological and suspenseful horror. Now that I have started guesting at conventions, meeting so many of the Friday the 13th Alumni has been so cool. It was also very cool to work with CJ Graham, who played Jason Voorhees in Friday the 13th Part VI, and Tom McLoughlin, the director of Part VI.

PopHorror: You play the lead Linda in the 2022 film Chained, where your character spent the film chained up. How did you prepare for such a psychological intense role?

Laura Ellen Wilson: Chained was also a book-to-screen adaptation by Matt Shaw and since I had already worked with him, I knew what I was getting myself into. He’s a great person and I really like his directing style, so that side of everything was fine. The chain was the difficult part. It was a real and heavy chain and I did get several bruises from it! I also got a few crew members shins with it at times too, so we all had a laugh about that. The content and subject matter within Matt’s films are very hardcore, but the moment the camera stops rolling, it’s very lighthearted so it’s the perfect balance. My main focus for the preparation was the dialogue. It was extremely dialogue heavy and Matt isn’t very flexible with improvising lines, as he wants to stay true to the books, so I had to make sure I had them down completely.

PopHorror: Project Skyquake saw you dip your toes in the Sci-fi genre. What was that like?

Laura Ellen Wilson: Project Skyquake was such a fun shoot! Not only was I working with my good friend, Laura Saxon, travelling to Hungary was such an experience. It was quite a difficult shoot as it was my first time working in the found footage genre. The shot setup was easy as we used mostly natural light and we used the camera microphone, but getting the shots completely how the director envisioned them was certainly a challenge. Watching the film for the first time, I was so impressed. The shots were so beautiful and cinematic and the CGI was incredible!

PopHorror: You star in the upcoming horror thriller Black Sheep. What can you tell us about your role in the film?

Laura Ellen Wilson: My role is of a cruel and snobby career actress called Elizabeth. She doesn’t like competition, she doesn’t like newbies and she certainly doesn’t like to be in the background of a shot. Another very fun shoot, but that’s all I can say for the moment!

PopHorror: Any exciting projects coming up?

Laura Ellen Wilson: I have quite a few, although there’s only one I am allowed to talk about. It’s working title is Family Values and it’s a thriller. I play the co-lead of Monica, with Jesse Green playing my grandfather, Frank: ‘A retired Sheriff and his granddaughter team up to solve a string of suspicious murders when she becomes a police detective’. We are looking to shoot early 2027!

PopHorror: Last but not least, in my best Ghostface impression, what’s your favorite scary movie?

Laura Ellen Wilson: As previously mentioned, I am a huge fan of psychological horror. My go-to is Triangle. It’s surprisingly not very well known and I have no idea why!! I recommend it to everyone. It keeps you guessing right until the very end!