Dakota Fanning tries her hand at pure horror: interview

In Vicious, which arrives on Paramount +, she plays a young woman confronted with a malevolent entity and her worst nightmares. A daring solitary role for the young actress. She tells us.

This time, Dakota Fanning dives into horror! With Viciouswhich comes out this October 10 on Paramount+, she plays a young girl confronted with a malevolent entity and her worst nightmares… alone in her house. A terrifying descent into hell by Bryan Bertino (The Strangers). Almost alone on screen throughout the film, the 31-year-old young star revealed by War of the Worlds (2005), took on an unprecedented challenge in her career. Encounter.

FIRST: Vicious is a pure horror film. What draws you to this genre at this stage of your career?
DAKOTA FANNING: I’ve never made a pure horror film before. I think it was missing from my filmography, so I wanted to try it. Especially with Bryan Bertino, who is a specialist in the genre and whom I adore.

You had done The Watchers last year anyway…
Yes it’s true, but it wasn’t quite pure horror like Vicious… And then, Bryan Bertino offered me a role where I am alone on screen for a large part of the film. So it was a very interesting challenge to take on. I had never done anything like this before.

What was it like to be alone on set like this?
Honestly, it’s a bit strange. Because playing means playing with others. We bounce off each other. A spirit of camaraderie is formed from which something is born… There, there wasn’t that at all, but Bryan (Bertino), Tristan Nyby, the director of photography, or Daniela Barbosa, the first assistant director, replaced the other actors on a set, in a certain way. They helped me not to feel alone, to create a collaborative spirit so that I did not feel isolated during filming.

Is it liberating or intimidating to be alone on set?
I think it’s a bit of both, to be honest. It’s interesting to be able to delve into yourself, to explore a script from top to bottom on your own. Of course, the first few days are a little scary… But it’s also exciting.

Do you tap into your own fears to play pure fear in this way?
There is that, yes! When I read this script, it reminded me of a night, when I was living in New York, when I had a terrible nightmare, which seemed like reality. It was so vivid that when I woke up in the morning I didn’t know if it had really happened or not. Very strange experience. And so I used that for the film. Polly, my character, is in a bit of this kind of psychological battle with herself and, oddly enough, it reminded me of this terrible nightmare I had (laughs). This moment when we completely lose control, this intimate fear, I used it a lot on the set.

Horror is currently experiencing a real boom at the box office, with films like The Conjuring Or Fainted. Why do you think this genre resonates so strongly today?
I’m a horror movie fan myself. I’m not entirely sure why it’s become such a popular genre. Certainly because it’s fun to have the feeling of losing control, to play at scaring yourself in short. We let ourselves go completely. Me, I love The Exorcist (1973). I saw it again just before making Vicious. It’s still going strong.