The Boogeyman‘s Vivien Lyra Blair reveals if she was scared while filming, what it was like on set, and more, in this interview.
The Boogeyman is terrifying, largely due to the incredible performance from Vivien Lyra Blair, who you might also know as little Leia in Obi-Wan Kenobi. She is extremely talented, as well as professional.
During the global press conference, we asked Vivien if she ever got scared while filming. Her answer? Not really. “Everybody made the environment so comfortable. I like to joke that when the movie is scarier, the people are nice to you on set because they know they’re being scary in the movie.”
Related: The Boogeyman Review: Don’t Be Fooled By PG-13 Rating
Vivien Lyra Blair explains that the actors who play scary characters are always as nice as they possibly can be to her. “Michael, who did the mo-cap stuff for the creature, was just super nice. He would show me how to do backbends, and he would show me cool things.” She laughs as she recalls that her mom would tell him to stop when he would do creepy things like walking down the stairs in a backbend.
Vivien says that she felt it was a safe environment to be around and especially with Rob Savage and Sophie Thatcher, and Chris Messina. “They made it so amazing to be on set.”
Vivien Lyra Blair recalls having a lot of fun improving one of the scenes in The Boogeyman, as well. “I remember there was this scene in the movie where it’s during the sleepover. We’re in the kitchen, and Chris’ making pizza, and I’m just downing mozzarella cheese while playing with LEGOs. He sings this silly song, which I could totally see my own dad doing.”
She admits that she got swept up in the moment, did what she would have done to her dad, and threw the mozzarella cheese at him. “It was such a perfect shot because it was him and then me going and throwing the cheese. Then it’s like a closeup of him just being hit with cheese and then going, ‘Thanks.'”
Related: Sophie Thatcher Talks The Boogeyman, Yellowjackets, & More
Moments like these were able to come about because of the bonding the actors did ahead of time. They had rehearsals, and during those, they went on adventures together, like going to the Aquarium as a normal family would do. “We had a lot of family bonding moments,” Vivien explains.
She recalls that while they were filming in the therapist’s office, there was a toy kitchen, and she and Sophie Thatcher would play with it together so that they could feel like real sisters. “We were playing with it, and for some reason, I kept making it about avocado toast. We created a whole restaurant just around avocado toast.”
Vivien says that became her and Sophie’s thing, and they continue to give each other avocado toast related gifts. They both gave each other socks, and Vivien gave Sophie a bracelet and a stuffed animal. “It’s been our little bond that keeps us close together, which is randomly avocado toast. I don’t even really like avocado toast. It just randomly became a thing. It’s just a sweet thing that we have together, and it’s something that sisters would have, as well.”
Watch Vivien Lyra Blair in action as Sawyer Harper in The Boogeyman when it hits theaters on June 2nd.
NEXT: Director Confirms Little Leia Almost Had A Lightsaber
About The Boogeyman
The Boogeyman is a horror-thriller from the mind of best-selling author Stephen King. High school student Sadie Harper and her younger sister Sawyer are reeling from the recent death of their mother and aren’t getting much support from their father, Will, a therapist who is dealing with his own pain.
When a desperate patient unexpectedly shows up at their home seeking help, he leaves behind a terrifying supernatural entity that preys on families and feeds on the suffering of its victims.
