Malin Akerman Talks Vampire Comedy 'Slayers' and the Legacy of 'Watchmen'
Moviefone speaks exclusively with Malin Akerman about her new horror comedy 'Slayers'. "I just thought that it would be fun to play a vampire," she said.
Opening in theaters, on digital and on demand beginning October 21st is the new vampire comedy ‘Slayers,’ which was directed by K. Asher Levin (‘Dig’).
The movie stars Malin Akerman as Beverly Rektor, a reclusive billionaire who invites a group of influencers including Flynn (Kara Hayward) and Jules (Abigail Breslin) to her mansion.
But when they discover that Rektor is really a vampire looking to feast on her unassuming guests, the influencers will have to team with reality TV star and vampire hunter Eliot Jones (Thomas Jane) in order to survive.
Actress Malin Akerman has appeared in dozens of popular film and TV projects including ‘Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle,’ ’27 Dresses,’ ‘The Proposal,’ ‘Couples Retreat,’ ‘Rampage,’ ‘The Comeback’ and ‘Childrens Hospital.’
But she is probably best known for playing Laurie Jupiter/Silk Spectre II in director Zack Snyder’s groundbreaking superhero movie ‘Watchmen,’ and as Bobby Axelrod’s wife, Lara, on Showtime’s ‘Billions.’
Moviefone recently had the pleasure of speaking with actress and producer Malin Akerman about her work on ‘Slayers,’ how she got involved in the project, balancing comedy and horror, her character, the cast, her friendship with director K. Asher Levin, and her memories of working on ‘Watchmen’ with Zack Snyder.
(L to R) Ashley Reyes as Natalie and Malin Akerman as Beverly Rektor in the comedy/horror, 'Slayers,' The Avenue release. Photo courtesy of The Avenue.
You can read the full interview below or click on the video player above to watch our interviews with Akerman and Thomas Jane about ‘Slayers.’
Moviefone: To begin with, how did you get involved with this project both as an actress and producer, and what was your first reaction to the screenplay?
Malin Akerman: So, Asher, our lovely director, is a very close family friend. I've known him for over a decade. He came to me during COVID and just said, "I've got this movie, I think we're going to do it and would love for you to help put it together and maybe produce with me. Do you think your husband (Jack Donnelly) would want to play one of the roles?"
I was like, "Yeah, sure. Let's do it. Let's do something together." I read the script, and I thought it was super fun. I've never done a vampire film. I've never done anything in this genre before. So, I thought, what a fun, new, exciting, creative venture to go on with friends of mine.
Then he approached me a few weeks later and said, "Would you want to maybe play the queen Vampire in this? I mean, I think you'd be great for it." Again, I love doing projects with friends. You just want to work with people that you really like. So, it was such a fun opportunity to get to work together. I just loved it. And I thought that it would be fun to play a vampire.
I thought it was really fun, and I am not an aficionado on vampire films or horror films, so I'm not the best judge of character. But I personally just thought it was a really fun take on it, modernizing vampires and bringing in the modern world and influencers, and mixing it with old legends. So yeah, the answer was a big resounding yes.
MF: Can you talk about the challenges as an actress of balancing the movie’s comedy and horror tones?
MA: Well, when you're in it and you're acting it, you always have to act it for real. Unless you're in a sketch, of course. So, for me, it was all about being Beverly Rector. It was all about this empowered queen vampire who has lived many years, has a lot of wisdom and street smarts, and is very manipulative.
So, I was just playing that as straightforward as possible. But having said that, it was so much fun to watch all of our actors playing the influencers. They had free reign and a lot of more space to do improv because that really is what these influencers do.
MF: While you haven’t appeared in a vampire movie before, you have played rich and powerful women like Beverly Rector before in projects like ‘Rampage’ or ‘Billions.” So, could you identify with that aspect of the character and did that ground the role in a certain reality for you?
MA: Well, I like to think of myself as a powerful woman in today's society. I'm not as cutthroat as Lara Axelrod, and I'm not in that world at all. But I think that it's just stepping into your power as a human being.
As for myself getting older and knowing myself a bit better compared to in my twenties, where I thought I knew myself and I thought I knew what I wanted, to actually knowing what I want and who I am, it feels a bit easier to step into those types of characters.
Even though Beverly Rector has evil behind her, she still is sitting in her power and has poise. I am learning through the years to do that myself, to just sit in my own skin and be comfortable in it.
(L to R) Kara Hayward as Flynn Chambers and Thomas Jane as Elliot Jones in the comedy/horror, 'Slayers,' The Avenue release. Photo courtesy of The Avenue.
MF: What was it like working with the cast including Thomas Jane, Abigail Breslin, Kara Hayward, and Jack Donnelly?
MA: It was a great cast. I only wish that it wasn't in the height of COVID. I mean, it was really the first film out of the gate. It was in November of 2020. So, we didn't get a chance to hang out off of set.
Everyone was asked to kind of quarantine and be on their own so that we just made sure we could make this movie. But the time that we did have on set was lovely. I mean, there wasn't one bad apple. Everyone was just so great and so great at improv. Not that there was a lot of improv, but I loved how everyone just knew their characters well enough to be able to do it.
Thomas Jane, he's been at it for a minute and he's incredible to watch. He really brought his character to another level that wasn't on the page. He heightened it. I can say that for everyone. Everyone heightened their characters. He just brought a character that was really cool. He's the slayer. He is the main slayer of them all. So, he really lived up to it.
MF: As an actress, do you prefer it when another actor comes to set with their character fully realized, or is it okay for an actor to arrive and find the character while shooting?
MA: I think it's such a shifting scale. I think it doesn't really matter. If it works, it works. Some people come prepared. I think that's more of an actor/director relationship. Some directors want actors that they can mold and that they can work with, and some directors want actors to come to set already with choices made.
Some actors work that way as well, where they go, "I want the director to direct me." Some actors go, "Minimal, please. I've made these choices because I really know this character and I want to be able to do that." So, for me, I feel like a chameleon and I feel like this is what we do. We work with people and it all becomes a collaboration and you just got to kind of find how this dance works between us.
I enjoy the production of it. I can say that I'm more of a creative producer, putting things together and making sure everything is synergetic on set. But as an actor, I just want to collaborate and kind of be present to all the different people on set and take it in and see how we work together.
MF: Can you talk about collaborating with director K. Asher Levin, both as an actress and as a producer?
MA: Well, Asher is a close family friend. I've known him for over a decade. So, that was really fun. I kind of know how he works. But it was lovely. Again, because we know each other it was just an easy collaboration. There were no bumps in the road. We were on the same page all the time. We could talk to each other with no problem. It was smooth sailing.
(L to R) Patrick Wilson as Daniel Dreiberg / Nite Owl II, Malin Åkerman as Laurie Jupiter / Silk Spectre II, and Jackie Earle Haley as Walter Kovacs / Rorschach in director Zack Snyder's 'Watchmen.'
MF: Finally, I think ‘Watchmen’ is a masterpiece and one of the best superhero movies ever made. What are your memories of making that film and working with Zach Snyder?
MA: I Loved it. It was the biggest experience for me. I mean, that was like going from Mickey Mouse to Superman all of a sudden. I was playing with the big kids and in the big sets. Everyone was wonderful.
I have friends. Everyone in the cast. Carla Gugino is one of my best friends. Many of the cast I've kept in touch with and had the pleasure of working with some of them again. But I can't express enough how super that was, how big that was, and how awesome that was.
The set pieces, the costumes, the material itself that we got to work with. It was six months of shooting, which I've never done anything like that before. The fight training was incredible. It was hard work, and it was long hours, but I wanted to be there. Zack was incredible. I love that man so much. His energy and his vision are just beautiful.
Malin Akerman stars as Beverly Rektor in the comedy/horror, 'Slayers.'
