Jaeden Martell & Maxwell Jenkins reveal what about Arcadian made them want to be a part of it, the creature design, and even a potential sequel.
Arcadian is a unique thriller in that it merges a post-apocolpytic world with family drama. It follows a father, played by Nicolas Cage, and his two sons Thomas (Maxwell Jenkins) and Joseph (Jaeden Martell) as they try to navigate this new world where the daytime is safe, but the nights are not.
We sat down with Jaeden Martell and Maxwell Jenkins to discuss the new Sci-Fi family drama. They reveal what it was that drew them to the project, besides working with Nic Cage of course, as well as what their reaction was the first time they saw the final creature design. The two also talk a potential sequel, which we would love to see.
Jaeden Martell & Maxwell Jenkins Talk Arcadian + Potential Sequel
Tessa Smith: I saw Arcadian at SXSW and loved it. What was it about this film that made you want to be a part of it?
Jaeden Martell: I think for me, the thing that was really attractive was the fact that it’s this – we’ve been a part of this genre before, sci-fi, there’s monsters and it is post apocalyptic – but what was really interesting is that it was really zoomed in. It wasn’t about how it happened. It’s not about people saving the world. It’s about this family surviving and how they do that, and also their emotions, and their very normal struggles that they have. Their personalities, but also the little habits they have, the rituals of locking up the house, what they wear, all of that stuff adds to it. I really liked how it all was just very, very specific and zoomed in.
Maxwell Jenkins: Those reasons for sure. It’s this hyperfocus thing when you really look at it. Their survival or their death, it’s not gonna save or destroy the world. But you still find yourself really rooting for these people. Because hidden behind all the blood and monsters and behind all the scary elements of this sci-fi horror movie, they are real people. These people aren’t unlike people you might find nowadays. And I think that’s really special about this project. Additionally, the character of Thomas was unlike a character I’ve played before. I’ve really, for the most part, I’m super grateful. I love every character I play. But they’ve been the fixers. The people that clean up the mess. And Thomas makes a little bit of a mess. So I had a really great time trying to balance the, is it selfish? What are these feelings behind this mess up? He’s such an impulsive person to a fault, but it’s also what makes him such an eager, likable person too. How emotional he is and how much he thinks with his heart.
Tessa Smith: I love how you feel like real brothers in Arcadian. Did you have a lot of time to hang out before filming and form that bond?
Jaeden Martell: We actually didn’t really have much time. We had about a week of rehearsals, choreographing fights and whatnot. We just kind of hit it off. A lot of that is us being cast for reason by Ben and the way we fit into the characters and their dynamic on screen. It was interesting to find that, but then often we just made sure to have fun and entertain each other because we were stuck in a little resort in Ireland. So we only really could talk to each other and we became super super close.
Tessa Smith: The creature design for this one is so cool and unique. How did you react the first time you saw the final design?
Maxwell Jenkins: That’s great to hear. The first time I saw this was pretty much on the screen at SXSW with you guys, was when we first saw what the creature would be. It was constantly changing throughout filming. The idea of it, there were some constants though, like Ben, really wanted us to know that this creature – we don’t necessarily know where it came from, we kind of loosely know that it’s evolved as mother nature’s response to human beings destroying the world. So they’re almost in a way cleaning it up. What we also know is that these things can be, we learned throughout the course of filming, that these things can be killable and that these things, whatever they end up looking like, will not look so outlandish and so huge and so full of fangs and claws that they won’t be killed. Even their claws look like fingernails.
Jaeden Martell: He wasn’t trying to necessarily make it scary. It was more to make the audience a little bit uncomfortable. They’re weird creatures.
Tessa Smith: With the way things end, this feels like we could get a sequel. I would love to see it. Would you both be up for it?
Jaeden Martell: The way it ends though, too, is it’s enough closure for me because it’s all about looking forward. It’s very much based on what’s going on right now, and the way the world is headed. The way that we treat our planet, and all of that. The whole point is the hope for the future and what’s going to happen next so that kind of open ending, I think is it’s It’s satisfying to me in a lot of ways. But, sure. I’d hang with this guy.
Maxwell Jenkins: I take any excuse to go spend a few weeks in the woods with Jaeden. I’d take any excuse to go work with that Irish crew again. If it’s not a sequel, so be it. Like Jaeden said, I’m happy with the way we ended this story. I think it’s kind of nice with how it is but, they do go off and they potentially meet other people. It might be nice to know that they don’t go off and the next night they die.
Arcadian hits theaters on April 12th.
NEXT: Arcadian Review: Family Drama Meets Horror, Sci-Fi Thriller
About Arcadian
In a near future, normal life on Earth has been decimated. Paul and his two sons, Thomas and Joseph, have been living a half-life – tranquility by day and torment by night. One day, Thomas doesn’t return home on time from a visit to his crush, the nearby farm girl, Charlotte.
Paul chooses to leave the safety of their fortified farm, risking his life to find Thomas. Just as he finds his boy, a nightmarish battle ensues. Back at the house, Joseph is scared and all alone to defend himself against the nightly attack.
Arcadian hits theaters on April 12th.
Tessa Smith is a Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer-approved Film and TV Critic. She is also a Freelance Writer. Tessa has been in the Entertainment writing business for ten years and is a member of several Critics Associations including the Critics Choice Association and the Greater Western New York Film Critics Association.