Carrying Laurie Strode in bold, new directions
Laurie Strode has been through hell literally and Scout Taylor-Compton who is reprising the role in Rob Zombie’s Halloween II wanted to show just how tormented she is after experiencing one of Michael Myers bloody killing sprees. The sexy young star talked to Shocktillyoudrop.com about the demands of the sequel and how she’d reluctantly do a third.
FAIR WARNING: THERE ARE SPOILERS WITHIN!
Question: How do you approach the character again after having a couple of years of downtime?
Scout Taylor-Compton: I created Laurie in the first one so it was easy to see how I wanted to portray her. It was just really easy to jump into it especially after I read the script and I saw which way Rob was going and that’s how I envisioned it.
Question: Because your character has been through so much she’s very so emotionally and mentally unstable. How difficult was it to get into the mind frame of someone like that?
Taylor-Compton: Thank you! That’s how I wanted it to come across. She has been through much so she’s not going to be the same Laurie Strode that everybody is expecting and that everybody wants to see. That’s just not realistic at all. She’s been through a lot and I think it shows. It was definitely tough. I’m not going to say it was completely easy doing this movie. It was just so draining and there was a lot of emotional stuff as well as physical. Getting into that stuff was easy, but yeah it was draining.
Question: What were some of your favorite scenes?
Taylor-Compton: The scenes with Margot Kidder. I fell in loves with those scenes just reading it on paper and the face that I was able to make it alive with such an amazing person was just such a blessing. We worked really well together which was a plus because I was really nervous about that. I asked Rob everyday, “Who did you get for the psychiatrist because it needs to be somebody really well that I can work off of?” And Danielle [Harris]. Doing all the scenes with Danielle – she was just so easy to work off of.
Question: Did you do your own stunts?
Taylor-Compton: Yeah, that’s one thing that I hate – I hate if I have to sit in this van and a girl that I don’t know has to go through a window and get hurt. I can do it. Why am I sitting while this girl is busting her ass? I want to do it. If Tyler can do it I can do it. There’s a few stunts that I couldn’t do and we argued about it. I was like, “Rob come on, please.” And he was like, “I can’t, I can’t.”
Question: Which stunts couldn’t you do?
Taylor-Compton: I’m not telling. It’s all me. Falling off of the roof, I wanted to do that so bad. I really did. I really wanted to fall on that pad. She made it look so easy.
Question: So you’re naturally a daredevil?
Taylor-Compton: Yeah, I’m a Pisces, man. We’re daredevils. I’m a tomboy. I don’t want to sit in the van while somebody is doing my stunts.
Question: There’s been some time between the films so do you work out what happens to Laurie in between that time or do you just go with what is written on the page?
Taylor-Compton: What’s great with working with Rob is that we play around a lot and we change a lot especially on set. It’s great because I created Laurie. I’m Laurie Strode. This is all me and the face that Rob understands that and if I voice my opinion on a line that I feel she just wouldn’t say he’s understanding and he let me create my character. He wrote a little draft and I just went with it.
Question: Including all the dialogue where you say f**k a lot?
Taylor-Compton: Okay some of the dialogue was Rob. Some of it was me – it was both of us. We’re really similar people especially when it comes to our writing style and our ideas are really similar so that was great.
Question: Did you watch the original Halloween films and was it a hindrance to watch too much of Jamie Lee Curtis’ performance?
Taylor-Compton: Yeah, the first one I made the mistake of watching over and over and over because I really wanted the part. I remember being on set and Rob said to me, “You’re not playing Jamie Lee Curtis you’re playing Laurie Strode. Stop watching the movies.” I really wanted to get it down and I think I did. This was a completely different girl than the original. We just went in a completely different way with her. I think this one is better.
Question: Were you contracted for a sequel?
Taylor-Compton: No. I was not. I just did not do that. I honestly thought it was going to stop and it was going to end. I thought it was going to be perfect – stop at the first one and we’re good. Then when I heard two French directors were doing it I was just like ahhhh. You guys are going in a completely different way. This isn’t even a Halloween movie. Then Rob called me and told me his ideas. I was like, “I don’t really want to do another one because I thought the first one was so great.” We just talked about it and it was going in a good direction. The script was really solid so I just fell for it.
Question: So no third one for you?
Taylor-Compton: I know no third one for Rob. Rob is done, so he says. It depends. I don’t want to ruin it. I don’t want to ruin Halloween. I don’t want to ruin the character. I feel like if I do a third one it has to be a really amazing, amazing script. It has to go well with the others. It can’t just be something completely different because I don’t want to let the fans down. People are really dedicated to this.
Question: If there was a third film you would be the main serial killer.
Taylor-Compton: Yeah, so it’s a lot to think about. You’re not just thinking for your career or the script, but for all these millions of people who love Halloween. You’re changing it and twisting their world. A lot of people get upset but it just depends on the script. I’m a fan of Halloween. I’m a fan of Freddy, I’m a fan of Chucky. If I saw some people come in and remake and f**k it up I’d pissed.
Question: What do you think is going on with your character at the end of the movie?
Taylor-Compton: Everything f**ked up that you can possibly imagine is going through her head. Just imagine the whole world you knew was gone. It only took a night to take everything that you knew and she’s just become this very vulnerable, angry, bipolar person. That’s the only way that she knows how to deal with it. She can’t vent to Annie. She went through the same thing. She can’t vent to Sherriff Brackett. She feels like she’s on her way. I think everything is going through her head and she can’t control it.
Question: Do you think there are some supernatural overtones going on in the film?
Taylor-Compton: I feel like she’s having these horrible visions. Put yourself into if you went through this. Would you be able to sleep? I wouldn’t. My whole personality would change. My outlook on life would change.
Question: How difficult was it when they cut the shooting time for you?
Taylor-Compton: It was so tough. We had days where we had five emotional scenes and then at night you’d have to run around. It was a lot. It was draining. I felt bad for Rob. He had just gotten done with everything. He’s just now going to get some sleep for a month and then go on tour which is like his playground.
Read our on-set interview with Scout Taylor-Compton here!
Source: Heather Newgen
