PopHorror Let's Get Scared
One of my favorite films this year is hands down the horror comedy, Villains, from Dan Berk and Robert Olsen. It’s the perfect mix of horror and comedy and I seriously loved everything about it. I was stoked when I was asked to interview the creators behind this masterpiece and get a little insight about all the magic that went into making this film.
Villains hits theaters nationwide this Friday, September 18th!
Synopsis for Villains
After a pair of amateur criminals break into a suburban home, they stumble upon a dark secret that two sadistic homeowners will do anything to keep from getting out.
PopHorror – Thanks for talking with me! What inspired you to work in the film industry?
Dan Berk and Robert Olsen – Our origins in filmmaking are eerily similar. We both spent our high school years tooling around with miniDV cameras, making awful comic parodies of Lord of the Rings-esque fantasy epics with our friends. When we met later in life, we were struck by how alike our early “films” were. We then decided it would be best to consolidate our efforts so people wouldn’t have to deal with twice as many of them.
PopHorror – That’s awesome! You guys have done multiple projects together. I know you just touched on this briefly, but how did you guys officially meet?
Dan Berk and Robert Olsen – We were randomly assigned roommates our freshman year of college (thanks NYU Bursar’s Office!). Once we met, we were fast friends, but it was years before we actually started working together. We always say that’s the reason the partnership works so well. We were brothers before we were partners and that’s really vital to our creative process. You’ve gotta be able to argue like siblings (i.e. passionately but without worry) because that’s how the best ideas are formed!
PopHorror – Destiny! I absolutely loved Villains, it’s one of my favorite films of the year. So I got to ask, what inspired Villains?
Dan Berk and Robert Olsen – Thanks so much! That means a lot. The inspiration for Villains really started with the characters of Mickey and Jules. We knew we wanted to follow these two lovers on the run, and then the question became – what should we pit them against? After considering a few options, we discovered that the most compelling antagonist would be a kind of bizarro-world, warped, future version of themselves. And once we had our four characters and dropped them into the powder-keg of a single location, the story began to write itself.
PopHorror – It turned out beautifully. This film has an amazing cast. How did the casting come about? Did you know who you wanted?
Dan Berk and Robert Olsen – We got incredibly lucky with the cast in this film. We knew the movie would live or die on the performances, so casting was not something we took lightly. That said, we didn’t necessarily write the script with actors in mind. One of our producers from Star Thrower Entertainment, Allan Mandelbaum, initially suggested Bill Skarsgård. We were huge fans of Bill from Castle Rock and IT, but we were frankly skeptical as we’d never seen him do anything close to Mickey. But once we met him, we were convinced immediately. He’s such an effervescent, magnetic personality, and his ability to embody Mickey made the choice an easy one.
The rest of the cast came together quickly once Bill dipped his toe in the water, so we owe him a lot for putting his trust in us. Maika was at the top of our wish list since we saw It Follows, so having her take interest in the script was a dream come true. And of course, Jeff Donovan and Kyra Sedgwick were absolute no-brainers. We learned so much working with veterans like them and we were always struck by their humility, given each of them headlined a major network TV show. We owe them all such a debt of gratitude.
PopHorror – Bill and Maika have great chemistry. Their relationship is one of the best onscreen relationships I’ve seen in a long time. Did they exceed your expectations?
Dan Berk and Robert Olsen – Their relationship did exceed our expectations, and it’s worth noting that we had very high expectations. We knew that if that chemistry wasn’t present, the entire film would fall apart. Their love story is the anchoring element that gives the movie stakes and makes you emotionally invest, so if it didn’t feel genuine and three-dimensional, the whole film wouldn’t work.
PopHorror – I completely agree! Bits and pieces of this film reminded me of Wes Craven’s People Under the Stairs. I’m not sure if you’re familiar with this film, but if so, can you see a resemblance between the rich parents, who are completely bonkers, and have people locked up in their house?
Dan Berk and Robert Olsen – You know, it’s funny how that works. Neither of us had seen The People Under the Stairs until we were well into post and someone recommended it. After watching it, we couldn’t believe how many little similarities there were! Perhaps us and Wes Craven shared the same crazy neighbors at some point. In any case, we’re just proud to be the latest installment in a rich tradition of the home invasion sub-genre.
PopHorror – Oh, although I love both films, Villains stands on its own and deliver something extraordinary. Speaking of bonkers. Both Jeffrey Donovan and Kyra Sedgwick are brilliant. I’ve never seen Kyra play a role like this and she blew me away. Why do you think her character is the way she is?
Dan Berk and Robert Olsen – Gloria, like almost all the characters in the movie, had a tough run in her youth (some of her backstory is in the film, other portions of it are merely alluded to), and it contributed to a clearly unhealthy maternal dynamic, as well as a toxic over-dependence on George. Kyra really immersed herself in the role and helped to flesh out and bring into focus so much of Gloria’s personal history.
PopHorror – Thanks for the insight! There’s so many great scenes, without giving any spoilers anyway, do you have a favorite?
Dan Berk and Robert Olsen – So hard to choose, but the “Salesman” scene, when we first really get to meet George and Gloria, is something we’ve always loved. Obviously the performances are what makes it shine, but the philosophy behind the coverage design and edit are among our favorites.
PopHorror – Totally! I did not see that ending coming but it was eerily perfect. In the end, it was really the only way. Do you agree?
Dan Berk and Robert Olsen – Definitely. We went through several options for the ending of the film, but in the broad strokes it always looked pretty similar to what’s there. We like to establish a moral spectrum in our films, and by the end of the story, the characters are gonna fall somewhere on that spectrum, which will ultimately determine their fate. We think the film ends exactly how it should based on that.
PopHorror – It’s absolutely perfect! Any upcoming projects?
Dan Berk and Robert Olsen – Yes! Several things we’re very excited about, but unfortunately not yet at liberty to discuss. Hopefully we’ll be able to say more soon!
