Category: The Thing

In what appears to be part 3 of her interview with The Playlist, Mary reveals why it was necessary for her and the cast to do Thing reshoots and how she ultimately came on board to become part of the film. Click the link to read the full interview and below, are some excerpts.

Although Winstead was skeptical herself at first, the director and producers impressed her with their take on the material.
Though it boats the same title as Carpenter’s the film, this new version is actually a prequel of sorts and Winstead was encouraged by the respectful approach the filmmakers planned to take. “It was presented to me as a prequel,” Winstead told The Playlist. “They kind of described it to me as something taking place a few days before the Carpenter version. I didn’t really know what to think. Being a fan of that film, I was certainly a little worried as to what it was going to be. I read the script and really liked it. I met with the producers and with Matthijs and there was just such intelligence and passion and a respect for the Carpenter version. It went beyond what I expected. They were adamant about using practical effects and about character development and focusing on the paranoia and isolation and psychological elements that were so great about the Carpenter version. They really wanted to make something that was for a new generation but just as much for the fans of the Carpenter version; something both sides could get into, rather than what most remakes do which I think is just gloss over the original completely and just make something for a new group of kids. I was glad to hear that.”

 The much publicized reshoots were done to bring those unfamiliar with the Carpenter movie up to speed.
News of reshoots usually spells problems for any production. With the large skepticism already around “The Thing,” reshoot reports made an already cagey fanboy audience even more apprehensive, but Winstead offers an explanation. “We reshot a few scenes to kind of help guide the film along as far as exposition goes,” she told us. “When we shot the film, we had all seen the Carpenter version a billion times, so we were like, ‘We know what’s going on, we don’t need to explain it.’ When the cut came together, it became clear that we kind of unnecessarily glossed over some of those things and we had to go back and make things more clear as far as where we are in the film and what’s happening and what everyone was going and making it clear for people who don’t already know the story. And we did some additional things with the end sequence, making it bigger and crazier and more insane. So that was fun.”

Winstead doesn’t worry about being pigeonholed. She just really likes horror movies.
After parts in “The Ring Two,” “Final Destination 3,” “The Thing” and the forthcoming “Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter,” we asked Winstead if she’s a little worried about being forever pigeonholed as a scream queen. “You know, I’ve never really worried about it,” Winstead told us. “‘Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter’ to me isn’t a horror film at all. It’s really more of an action adventure historical epic. I feel like with every role I take I just want to be challenged in some way. As long as I become a better actor and keep working, that’s really the goal. Just, you know, keep at it.”

The world premiere of “The Thing” is happening tonight, and tons of new interviews are coming out with Mary talking about the film. Speaking with Moviefanatic, Mary talks about what it was like working with her co-star Joel Edgerton, the type of research she did, how “The Thing” differs from her other horror films, and more. Check out some of the excerpts below and click on the link above to read the full interview:

Movie Fanatic: You’ve done a lot of horror movies. What, for you, makes this The Thing different from others you’ve worked on?

Mary Elizabeth Winstead: To me it evokes a time period of my favorite horror films which are from the ‘70s and ‘80s. I feel like it had a little bit more of that classic, slow burn. The first half of the film is really kind of slow and suspenseful and then when the terror kicks in, it kicks in and it doesn’t let go. It doesn’t feel so modern and slick to me and that’s one thing I was really excited about going into it. And also the character was just so refreshing that it was just a no-brainer. I had to do it.

Movie Fanatic: The Thing is more dramatic, and less jokey than a lot of horror films. Was that also an appeal?

Mary Elizabeth Winstead:I feel like it’s a horror film for adults and I don’t think we get a lot of those. Most horror films now are made for teenagers; they’re about teenagers. I’ve done a couple of those horror films so there’s nothing wrong with that but the older I get the more I starve for more adult material. So that was one of the things that I really liked about this film and the character. There was a real maturity about it, I felt.

Yahoo! Movies posted a small featurette of Mary and her co-stars talking about “The Thing” and how it ties into the John Carpenter 1982 film. See for yourself in the new interview clip below:

Hey all. With day two of “The Thing” press junket going on, I’ve found this new interview with Mary talking about the upcoming film and her character. See it for yourself.