by Gill Pringle
A first time filmmaker when he directed, wrote and produced, 2009 Oscar-winning movie Crazy Heart staring Jeff Bridges, Scott Cooper would go on to direct and write acclaimed dramas Out of the Furnace, Black Mass and Hostiles, populating his films with A-listers Christian Bale, Joel Edgerton, Zoe Saldana, Benedict Cumberbatch, Woody Harrelson, Rosamund Pike and Johnny Depp.
Today, he makes a total change, helming and writing supernatural flick, Antlers, co-produced by the fantastic horror maestro himself, Guillermo del Toro.
Set in an isolated Oregon town, Antlers tells the story of a sheriff (Jesse Plemons) and his school teacher sister (Keri Russell), who become embroiled with her enigmatic student (Jeremy T. Thomas) whose dark secrets lead to disturbing encounters with the title’s terrifying ancestral creature.
The film’s unusual title refers to a mythical beast named the Wendigo, part human, part stag, with Cooper jumping at the chance to tackle the classic horror genre with the full support of Del Toro, a man who knows how to boldly reveal the monster within our world.
Typical of Cooper’s style, he brings layers to the classic horror narrative, using the Wendigo as an analogy for the destruction of families, whether from drug use, alcoholism or the loss of jobs.
Cooper, 51, tells FilmInk how his surprising switch into the world of horror is a long-awaited twist of fate, after Del Toro told him he’s been directing horror films all along.
What made you dip your toe into the supernatural horror genre?
“Well, it’s my first supernatural film but, hopefully, a rather grounded one. But Guillermo del Toro came to me and said, ‘Scott, your last three films have been horror films, and nobody knows that’.”
We didn’t know that either!?
“I didn’t either but, in retrospect, he has a point. There are some horrific moments in Out of the Furnace, Black Mass and Hostiles. I was excited about this notion and the former writers of the screenplay, C. Henry Chaisson and Nick Antosca who wrote the screenplay based off Nick’s original book, The Quiet Boy, were so gracious in allowing me to really make this my own, because I write all my own films. So, for better or worse, it’s my own version and it really allowed me to discover the themes as I was writing it, which ultimately you see in the film. I also feel that horror as a genre specifically allows me to continue to explore the furthest and darkest reminiscence of human experience.”
Why do audiences love the horror genre so much?
“I believe that, for many people, we are interested in the darkness inside ourselves – that we don’t want to face or confront directly – and horror films provide a comfortable environment in which to do that; in which to escape. You’re either watching it at home or you’re in a darkened theater with friends. What’s occurring onscreen is likely not going to happen to you, but you still get to experience it.”
You lost your sister when you were very young. How much of Antlers is exorcising your childhood experience? I appreciate Antlers is set in Oregon – not Appalachia where you grew up – but it must have still resonated?
“It did and, unfortunately, I am interested in working through the difficulties in my life by addressing them through art. I didn’t realise this for a long time. I don’t know why, a mental block perhaps? But having lost my sister when she was young and then seeing how that experience affected my parents and my brother and, for me, it was certainly traumatic and I haven’t gotten over that and I don’t think anyone does who ultimately experiences something as horrific as that. I’ve noticed in my films that there is sibling loss – not in Crazy Heart, although Jeff Bridges does lose a young boy, but Christian Bale loses Casey Affleck in Out of the Furnace and the brothers [played by] Johnny Depp and Benedict Cumberbatch in Black Mass, and then Rosamund Pike losing her children in Hostiles. And now, children experiencing what they do in Antlers. It’s clearly something I’m working out. I feel like I’m in a therapy session, but you asked, and I want to be honest. So, I think I’m working through some things.”
How old were you when you lost your sister?
“I was four and she was seven and she came home from school and she had picked up a virus, a rare form of meningitis, and five days later she died, even with great medical care. So, it’s something that obviously you never get over. I will explore some lighter material at some point. I have to – my wife is vowing that I must! The truth is, if I can find myself in my work, others will see themselves.”
Young actor Jeremy Thomas plays schoolboy Lucas in Antlers, and we see this story unfold through his experience. He looks so haunted. How did you find him?
“Well, not easily. I think we saw about 900 boys around the world. But when I first saw Jeremy’s take, before he even opened his mouth, I said to myself, that’s the guy. I flew him out from rural Georgia, and he was the loveliest young boy, and we did a screen test, and I knew that I would not make the film without him. When you make a film with [Fox] Searchlight, who are such supportive partners, I knew that we could make something special. I wanted the audience to really feel for him and have an emotional connection and relate to him. I knew audiences would relate to Keri Russell and Jesse Plemons’ characters, because they look like real people and that’s important too; for people to see themselves in my movies.”
This is based on a short story, The Quiet Boy. How much of the “beast” is in the original story?
“When Guillermo sent me the screenplay it was already entitled Antlers, which I thought was an intriguing title and the Wendigo was also quite present in the short story, but I would not have made this movie without Guillermo, who is the foremost monster/creature creator we have and I knew that, together, we could develop a Wendigo which would represent thematically what I am trying to say in the film and be, not only terrifying, but also a beautiful looking creature/god or however people reference it. The short story writers graciously allowed me to take the seed of the story and make it my own.”
Was the creation of the Wendigo the most challenging aspect of making Antlers?
“Not so much because, in mythic folklore, we know that the Wendigo has a deer-like quality with antlers but we wanted it to feel like it came from the earth’s crust; its mantle, like it was made from ore and iron – all of the things that come out of the film’s opening location. It’s really about the destruction of the world’s natural resources, which is exactly what we’re experiencing now. There were many concept drawings and we worked with Legacy who are the best creature effects people in the world, so I knew I was in great hands there.
“But, what was difficult technically was to deal with some of these mature themes with young actors – who are not actors – who, at times, were quite scared. Terrified. And I think it helped that I’ve worked with a lot of child actors and my daughters were in Hostiles, but being able to make them feel safe and secure, knowing that this is some heavy thematic material, that was the real challenge because they were quite terrified of our Wendigo.”
That must have been tough for Jeremy, especially given that he’s not a ‘Hollywood kid’, accustomed to movie special effects?
“Yes, it was quite terrifying for Jeremy shooting the scenes upstairs in the attic. Any time you’re working with kids on material like this, it’s always difficult. So, creating the Wendigo for the screen was a lot easier in comparison. I kept saying to my team ‘It’s like the shark in Jaws. The less you see it, hopefully the scarier it is’.”
Do you have any plans to reunite with Jeff Bridges after you guys made movie history with Crazy Heart?
“Yes, and I speak to Jeff very, very often. He FaceTimes me, he doesn’t call on the phone! He’ll just FaceTime me in the most interesting and compromising situations! And I always take his calls because, the truth is, not only do I love Jeff, but he changed my life by saying yes to my first screenplay and saying yes to me as a first time director, who had never even directed a high school play, much less a film. I will forever be indebted to Jeff, and we absolutely will work together again, and I’m just thrilled that his cancer is in remission, and he was able to overcome his Covid crisis which was really quite terrifying.”
What are you working on right now?
“I’m currently in Pittsburg prepping my next film with Christian Bale, our third film together. But I think of Jeff every day and I do know that we will work together again, and I do have the seed of an idea for something for us to make together. I definitely have something up my sleeve for us.”
You filmed Antlers prior to the pandemic and subsequent US lockdown last year. How was Covid for you?
“It was deeply traumatic to see so much suffering going on in the world when it didn’t have to happen. Certainly, we were going to suffer a certain amount of tragedy, but it just didn’t have to happen the way that it did. I do hope that we’re starting to turn the corner, but there’s still a great deal of people suffering. But it did not affect the film. I had already finished it and Fox Searchlight pledged to keep this as a theatrical release. Horror, in particular, must be experienced communally and on as large a screen as possible.”
Antlers is in cinemas October 28, 2021
