The other week we got to talk to the main cast and director of the epic instant classic slasher film Terrifier 2 which is currently still in theaters. This is our interview with breakout scream queen/final girl Lauren LaVera. We hope you enjoy our interview with Lauren!
AJ: Hey Lauren, how are you?
Lauren: I’m well, AJ. How are you?
AJ: What got you interested in joining Terrifier 2?
Lauren: When I first received the audition sides, which are basically just scenes, I didn’t receive the full script for my audition. It was just sent to me through my agency. It was just a scene between Sienna and her mother. So it was just like a family drama and that’s what Terrifier 2, really is before it turns into a slasher film. It’s like a grounded in family drama and she was raised by a single mother or she’s now being raised by a single mother, which I was as well. So I really connected With in that way. Other than that I was really excited to be physical in a character. Sienna gets to fight back and I love that. I think it brings, it helps me as an actor bring more truth to a character and it’s also just immensely fun. So probably that.
AJ: And going back on the physical aspect of your character and there is a lot of scenes where you got to fight with art in the clowns and that had to be pretty exciting too.
Lauren: Very exciting and very intense. My body still aches thinking about it. It was a great time.
AJ: Fantastic. I believe you played at Fantastic Fest and are getting ready to play in about 700 plus theaters. How are you guys feeling about everything that’s happened with Terrifier 2 So far?
Lauren: It’s surreal. Nothing I could’ve expected. I had no idea that it would garner this much attention, even though Damien and David did warn me about it when I was signed on for the project. But I guess I just didn’t really believe it and even now it’s really kind of hard to grasp and I think it’s expanded to 800 plus theaters now. It’s continuously growing and each time it surprises me. I’m so happy that it’s resonating with fans and fans are finding it fun and entertaining cuz in the end we just want people to have a good time with this.
AJ: Right. And did you ever see the First or did you go into this one without seeing the first Terrifier?
Lauren: So I was familiar with the first for my first audition. I didn’t have time to watch it. By my second audition came around, I also didn’t have time to watch it and by my third in person audition cuz the first two were self taped. I did at home. I had time to it, but I made the conscious decision to not watch it because I was doing things without seeing the first one. So I assumed Damien liked what I was doing, so I was like, okay, let me not watch this film cause I don’t want it to influence my decision making. So I ended up watching it the same day I found out I was cast. I watched it as soon as I got home and I loved it Icontinue to watch it to this day I probably watched it about three times so far this Halloween season and I’ll probably watch it again. It’s just such a fun ride and Damien took so many risks in that film, which I really respect and appreciate as an artist.
AJ: Right. And thinking that he takes this grindhouse homage and approach to Terrifier and it’s just amazing how much gore is in these and it always surprises you, but the amount of go that he does and he really does like to push the boundaries on the, on these films. So was there anything in the script that you read that you were like, Whoa, it’s gonna be interesting to see how they pulled this off as well?
Lauren: Absolutely. Most of the kills. Which is now being affectionately referred to as the Bedroom Kill. When I read that in the script, I must have the first time went through and read that single part like five or six times over and over again cuz I was like, how are they going to pull this off? And even when I saw it, I was in awe because I was like, this is exactly how I envisioned it. And they pulled it off. And this is still a low budget film. I mean it’s, I mean he got significantly more this time than the first one. But for the amount of money that was put in this film, it’s unprecedented that he was able to still execute these crazy gory kills in the way that he did with that much money, which is crazy.
AJ: And there was a lot of horror icons making cameos in this as well. Like the Felissa Rose from Sleepaway Camp. Chris Jericho, Tamara Glynn. How was it like having them helping out as well?
Lauren: Yeah, the only two that I got to interact with were Tamara Lynn, from Halloween five and, uh, Felissa Rose. And they were both just so incredibly lovely. I still talk to them to this day. They gave me like just these wonderful pep talks and they also made me feel really welcome in this kind of hard genre community, which they’ve been a part of for years. It was such a joy and a pleasure to get to know those lovely powerhouse women and they still inspire me to this day. I’m just thrilled about the entire thing.
AJ: And have you always been a fan of the genre as well?
Lauren: Yeah, The first horror film I watched, um, was Poltergeist and that was because it was one of my mom’s favorite films and I watched that when I must have been a baby or a toddler and that’s what sparked my fear of clowns. Because that one clown scene is horrifying even still to this day to me. But yeah, I’ve been watching a horror film every night, so if you have any suggestions for tonight, anything obscure, like please, please give me some, um, cuz I’ve just, I love horror.
AJ: Well I just found out, uh, my favorite horror film is getting remade Up Magic with Anne Margaret and Anthony Hopkins is getting a remake.
Lauren: Yes. I found that out too. Oh my God, you’re absolutely right. I’ll have to revisit that one.
