Written and directed by Neil LaBute, House of Darkness hits theaters on September 9th. Hoping to hook up with a woman he met at the bar, a single man finds himself at her secluded estate. While the night seems promising at first, it starts to become clear that something about his date is amiss. Continuing to ignore the obvious warning signs, he finds himself fighting for his life. But is it too little too late?
The film stars Justin Long (Jeepers Creepers, Superman Returns, Blue Crush), Gia Crovatin (I Feel Pretty), and Lucy Walters (Tesla).
Screen Rant chats with actress Gia Crovatin about what drew her to the horror movie, and what it was like to film in a castle in Arkansas.
Screen Rant: What excited you most about being in House of Darkness? Is there anything in particular that spoke to you when you were reading the script?
Gia Crovatin: I really love playing people that you're kind of not expecting. I think that that's the really exciting part about being an actor—is that you get to not be yourself. I have done sort of darker things before. I played a vampire before on a TV show called Van Helsing. But to be able to go deep into the lore and the movie and be able to... not reveal things, but slowly let them come to the surface? That's really interesting to me; human behavior and why people do the things they do. That's the whole reason I want to be an actor. I want to understand why we are the way we are. And this character, Lucy, is a very internal, kind of observant person, which is very different from who I am.
I'm an extrovert. I'm like a golden retriever in my everyday life, and she feels more like a Siamese cat or something. There's something very thoughtful and searching, and I love that there is this otherworldly element going on as well. So being able to unite the real, the pragmatic, with what's going on as a person..."Why is she doing the things that she's doing?" was this kind of otherworldly experience that felt really juicy and fun to me. And so I was hooked. Plus, there was a huge monologue. There's a five-page monologue, and it scared the sh*t out of me. If something scares you, you've heard that before, right? I'm sure another actor has said that to you. If something scares you, you've got to do it. That was the icing on the cake. Like, "Yeah, why not? Why the hell not?"
Screen Rant: You talked about this a little, but what was it like playing a character who's so different from you? She has this kind of cool demeanor, and she's very quiet and laid back. How was getting into her head?
Gia Crovatin: We shot in like the end of April and beginning of May 2021. So, this is my first real project after COVID hit. And I have to say, it was a little scary. We shot eleven days—it was all nights. There was an intensity there that lent itself to the script and to the dynamics of the other characters. You're kind of, like, walking around in a daze like, "I don't know how much sleep I've had. What am I eating? What's going on?" which really worked its way into the film. I love that she's a bit of a detective. She's trying to figure out exactly what's going on. Who's telling the truth? Who's not telling the truth? And she's a little bit of judge and jury as well, which I like.
I like when people have very strong moral points of view and I think Lucy does. A black and white sense of morality, I should say, because I'm a little more nuanced and kind of wanting to see all sides of the story. And she's very much a person who's like, "No, it's either A or B," and that's pretty much it. And I think that felt exciting to me because we're living in a world right now where I feel like there are two different kinds of people. There are people who see the world as black and white or there are people who see shades of grey and nuance. How do you navigate and live in a world where it's either polarities or everything else under the sun? It's like a really fascinating social experiment. So there was so much going on. It was kind of a whirlwind.
Screen Rant: On top of that, House of Darkness is a chamber film. The mansion is the setting and a lot of it takes place in the sitting room. How was filming in that environment?
Gia Crovatin: You know, we filmed in a castle.
Screen Rant: It was a castle? Oh my goodness.
Gia Crovatin: It was an actual castle in Arkansas, can you believe it? That is only in the movies. And there were actual wings of the castle where each actor was, and they were kind of separated from each other. Because of the COVID restrictions and because of everything that was going on, we weren't really together so much as actors. And because it is such a small movie, there's an inferiority and an intimacy, I should say, that was helpful because it is a chamber piece. This is a four-person piece and I think that what you see with Kate and Justin's performance so beautifully is this payment, this closeness.
We're like flies on the wall watching them. It just feels like this stuff is really unfolding, and you want to lean in, and you want to know more. Like, something's coming. Something's happening. And it kind of felt that way. We shot pretty much in continuity with the script, which was one of the first times I've ever done that, and it was actually so helpful to just go on the proper timeline. So it was really, totally creepy. But also, being someone with a theater background, I'm used to small productions. I'm used to really relying on my fellow actors and being there, and we're kind of all going through this together. So, that was also a draw to the project for me as well.
House of Darkness Synopsis
After meeting at a local bar, a man accompanies a beautiful and mysterious woman back to her luxurious and secluded estate. However, he soon gets more than he bargained for when their playful flirtation turns into something sinister.
Check out our other House of Darkness interview with stars Neil LaBute.
House of Darkness hits theaters on September 9, and it arrives On Demand and Digital on September 13.
