By: Izumi Hasegawa November 15, 2019
Thirteen year old Kyliegh Curran will no longer need an introduction after her role in Doctor Sleep, the sequel to Stephen King’s legendary 80’s thriller , The Shining. In the film Curran plays Abra Stone, a young girl with physic abilities. With way too much scary baggage she enlist the help of Dan Torrance (played by Ewan McGregor), who the last time you saw him, he went by Danny and was peddling his big wheel down the Overlook Hotel hallway chased by creepy twin sisters and had a secret friend named Tony who liked red rum. Doctor Sleep is everything a sequel should be and that’s largely in part to Director Mike Flanagan and the cast. We chat exclusively with this up and coming talented actress on what it was like to be a part of that cast and how she made her character, shine.
Q: Tell us about your experience in your first major feature film playing opposite of the legendary, Ewan McGregor aka Ob-Wan Kenobi ?
Mr. Ewan is super sweet. I really enjoyed working with him. And on set, it was like a big family. It was all fun [laughs]. So we did get a lot of time to talk. And I think because we grew a friendship out of the story, we really connected with our characters better.
Q: Your character Abra has this special gift, that she doesn’t shy aware from and truly seems to embrace it. Was that something you connected with as an actress?
Yeah, kind of. I feel like sometimes if you’re involved in acting or theater, kids our age won’t understand that, and kind of poke fun at that. So a lot of people hide away their true feelings towards acting. But I feel I relate with Abra. I love the theater and I love acting a lot [laughs].
Q: What do you think originally got you interested in acting? Was it a live performance, a TV show, a movie? What was your connection with the performing arts world?
Well I’d always been a super energetic and theatrical kid. So when I was seven we moved to Miami, me and my family. And I didn’t really have a place to put that energy. So we found a local theater and I started doing shows and classes. And that’s where the acting bug bit me. I started to want to do it more and more, and then all of this stuff happened. Yeah, I never would have thought my dreams came true [laughs].
Q: Do you have any siblings, or pets?
Yes, I do. We have a lot of pets [laughs], I have three siblings, an older brother and two younger sisters. I have two dogs…we used to have two cats, but now it’s my one kitty named Saoirse (not sure spelling)…two rats, and a ferret. Yes, named Cheesecake and Oreo. They’re fancy rats and they’re so cute and so sweet. They’re just darn adorable.
Q: In the film your character is being threatened by people who want to do her harm, and she takes them on fearlessly and head on while working closely with Dan (Ewan McGregor’s character) which is extraordinary for a girl her age. Could you talk about her bravery?
Well it was a lot of fun playing Abra. I don’t think we get enough young leads who are super powerful and aren’t just a background character. So it was a lot of fun to play her, yes.
Q: So do you consider that her traits, as being brave and being able to face crisis head on, is something that young people can embrace?
Yeah, I mean she’s very ambitious, she’s confident. And she’s a little bit reckless sometimes. But she does it all for a good cause. She’s genuinely good, and I think that’s a big part of her bravery.
Q: What was your favorite scene of the movie?
Definitely where Dan takes over Abra. That was a lot of fun to film. I had been watching Mr. Ewan to build up to that scene. So it came pretty naturally.
Q: Did he give you advice, or did he share any stories about being a teen actor in Hollywood?
Sometimes he’d talk about his acting life. But we mostly talked about our lives off of set, and commented on fun things that happened on set. Yeah.
Q: What was the best advice you got from Ewan or anyone else, about how to handle your first big movie role?
Having Mr. Ewan and Mrs. Rebecca (Ferguson, played Rose the Hat) there really helped. It was a little overwhelming sometimes because I was very new to film. But everyone on set was super sweet, very helpful, especially Mr. Mike (Flanagan, director). And I really appreciated having them there.
Q: What are you interested in about social issues and the environment?
Global warming, definitely. We’re not paying enough attention to it. I think if I could get involved, and a bunch of other young influencers can get involved, our generation can really realize what’s going on.
Q: What are you looking at next in terms of upcoming projects?
Yeah, I’m doing the mystery slash paranormal show for Disney Channel. It’s called Sulphur Springs, and I’m very excited to start shooting it. It’s very different from normal Disney.
Q: Do you have a favorite celebrity?
Well, I love Billie Eilish, Lupita Nyong’o, Jordan Peele is amazing, Miss Victoria Pedretti (an actress) I actually got to meet her on set one day, and let me tell you, I almost died. She’s so talented.
Yikes! Don’t tell Rose the Hat that.
Doctor Sleep is currently playing in theaters nationwide.
For more info on the film, theatre locations, and ticket info please visit the Fandango page at: https://www.fandango.com/doctor-sleep-219234/movie-times
Or the film’s official Twitter page at: https://twitter.com/DoctorSleepFilm
Facebook Page: https://www.facebook.com/doctorsleepmovie/
Interview by: Izumi Hasegawa – https://twitter.com/HNW_Izumi & Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/izumihasegawa/
Edited by: Jody Taylor – https://twitter.com/RealJodyTaylor & https://www.instagram.com/realjodytaylor
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