Alexandra Daddario – Texas Chainsaw 3D

SLS Hotel, Los Angeles
Interviewed by Izumi Hasegawa

Q1: I asked the same question to Tania and Scott: you guys were attacked in this film and then you guys kind of panicked. How about yourself with big things going on in your life suddenly, do you guys kind of panic or more calm, brave, to take care of self? How about yourself when these things happen?
AD: Do I react with panic? You mean, if this were to happen in real life?
Q: Not this kind, but…
AD: In real life, I try to stay as calm as possible but I think I react like anybody would react. I mean, I cry and I get upset but I think I’m a pretty – I think I try to be as rational as possible. The interesting thing about doing this film is you have to put yourself in a situation that you’d never be in and get yourself to an emotional place that is so beyond what you would have unless something completely tragic happened. And you have to make that real and that was sort of an interesting thing for an actress to do.

Q2: What sort of relationship do you have with the original film? Did you see it way before, or did you just sign onto this movie and say, “I’ve got to see the original?”
AD: We both watched the original after we had booked the film, in preparation for the film.

Q3: So before then you didn’t see the original?
AD: No, I hadn’t. I hadn’t seen any of the Texas Chainsaw movies because I’m a scaredy cat. But I really wanted to prepare for the role and know as much about the story and because this story continues from the original movie, I wanted to know about the family and what the original story was. So I thought it was very important. And also, the first movie is so amazing that it just made me that much more excited about joining it. It’s just you see why it’s so iconic and people have been watching these movies for thirty-plus years.

Q4: Now, your character is someone who kind of starts out as a person who is maybe just more of like a typical horror movie character, and then kind of transforms into someone that the audience really doesn’t expect. How was that for you to read and then to play as a character, to kind of evolve into someone that no one should really be rooting for?
AD: Well, it was really fun. I mean, I think she was a dark character to start with and she sort of never felt like she belonged kind of thing. That was sort of how I thought of it. And then she actually finds this place that she belongs that’s totally not what you would expect and does get to embrace a very dark side of herself. And I get to play this tough, strong, dark character. It’s sort of an interesting mystery about who’s good and who’s evil and this whole twist of what’s really going on. I think that sort of justifies her darkness and her toughness and the rest of her behavior.

Q5: How about the comical moments? In some parts, it’s kind of comical, especially when you’re running toward the graveyard and your character kind of trips. Also, there are so many physical stunts in the film. Did you do 100 percent of them?
AD: It was a real trip. I tripped and I fell and it went in the movie. No, I didn’t do all my stunts. I did a lot of stunts. I did a lot of running and there was a lot of physicality in the film and I got to ride the Ferris wheel around, hanging off of it. But I had an amazing stunt girl. I don’t know if you guys remember that fall down the stairs? Everyone was like, Oh my God, this girl’s amazing, and she got hit by the car. She’s just an amazing stunt girl so she made me look good.

Q6: I’m always told that the acting for 2D cameras and 3D cameras is different. Was that kind of a big challenge for you guys?
AD: I didn’t find that the acting was different. I found that it more affected the time. It was longer than shooting in 2D. It’s just another technological sort of hurdle to overcome. There are issues with like you can’t put your arm outside of the frame. But if something like that happens or if there’s something wrong with the technical aspects of it, it just takes longer because you might have a take that you really like. But it could be that the camera move didn’t work. It might have nothing to do with the 3D. There’s always something. So you just have to be ready to go again, I guess. But it just took a little bit of extra time – that was the biggest challenge. But it was totally worth it because the 3D is amazing.

Q7: How was the atmosphere during downtime on the set, since  you guys had four or five young actors hanging out together?
AD: It was good. It was serious when it needed to be serious, I think. But we would joke around during some of the lighter scenes when there wasn’t hysterical crying involved, like in the van and that kind of thing. We really all got along very, very well, which you know some people just don’t get along, and we really did. Even though we’re actually all completely different people, we really got along, enjoyed each other’s company and really supported each other. It’s totally true, unbelievable but true.

Q8: Did you have any karaoke nights together?
AD: No, we didn’t do karaoke. We went out a little bit. Keram [Malicki-Sánchez] is a musician and he played some of his music – a lot of musicians. Sometimes I’d sing and Trey [Songz] would make fun of my voice.

Q9: We’re kind of left with you at the very end hopefully without giving much away, we’re left with the story possibly continuing through your character. So are you sure of where the story’s going? Have they talked to you about your part in this yet?
AD: No. I mean, to be honest, I know that they would love to do another film. I don’t know what the story would be. I would love to play the character that I become at the end of the film. I think it’s a cool character. But we’ll see after.

Q10: It’s interesting because we’re supposed to sympathize by the end of the movie with Leatherface and then also with yourself with just how the story is presented with family.Does that make it easier for you? Instead of playing it just a straight serial killer, it’s a person with these kinds of familial ties and like, a heart underneath?
AD: Well, yeah. I think that’s the thing, it’s about family. It’s sort of who’s good and who’s evil. You don’t know. My behavior is justified by I’m doing the right thing and I’m doing the right thing for my family. There’s actually the people you wouldn’t expect to be evil are – not to give everything away. But I mean, that’s sort of the interesting thing about it is this creature actually becomes humanized.

Q11: What do you think audiences are going to be the most surprised by? What do you think they’re going to be happy to see with the new Texas Chainsaw Massacre movie out early next year? What are they going to be happy to see in this movie?
AD: Besides Trey, I think that it’s different than what people expect. There’s a twist. The 2003 and the 2006 versions were great but this is a different story than that, but it’s also really fun and really scary. When I saw the film, I saw it with some of the cast mates and we know what’s happening, we’re in the movie, we read the script, and we still were jumping out of our seats and screaming. And that’s really cool and I think people will have the same experience.