| By Fred Topel
In Theaters August 12
|
Get ready for a new Kate Hudson. Skeleton Key doesn’t have any smiling or lovey dovey romance. It’s a horror movie, so there’s screaming and fighting for her life. It wasn’t that Hudson needed a change of pace though.
“I wasn’t looking for a thriller or something,” she said. “I wanted to work with interesting people. That’s always my hope and desire. But this came and I read it and I loved the script so much. It was actually one of those experiences where I was shooting Raising Helen when I read the script. It was sent to me saying you have to read this and read it fast. I said okay and I picked it up at a lunch break and skimmed the first page. Before I knew it, I was done. I’d finished the script in probably 45 minutes.”
So what’s so great about Skeleton Key? It’s the story of a hospice worker (Hudson) taking care of a stroke victim (John Hurt). She begins to suspect his wife (Gena Rowlands) is up to something when she explores the house and finds voodoo memorabilia.
“I was shocked at the idea that it’s basically a four hander picture. There’s five people in the whole movie and it’s a character driven thriller that ends unexpectedly and boldly, and a Hollywood studio is going to actually make it. And I thought it was just so refreshing to me. So and then after the initial response to the script, I went, ‘I have never done a thriller and it will just be really fun for me to heave and pant and run and climb and break windows and scream every once in a while.’”
Though you may be used to seeing the light, fluffy Kate Hudson, you’ll see a far more personal version of her in Skeleton Key. “I guess I approach all work no matter what type of movie or character the same way. Then there are just some times you have to reach into places that are a little less familiar on a day to day basis in certain characters and others. For this character, it was actually quite accessible to play her. My fears were very accessible to tap into, very accessible to understand why somebody would move to a city because of music or because of a passion. And she’s strong minded and a little tough and I feel like she’s the kind of girl who’s okay being alone even though it might be a little lonely. She’s okay with that and I’m like that. So there’s a lot of things that I really could relate to.”
The atmosphere of voodoo and hoodoo hovered over the production as cameras broke for no reason. Hudson herself believed forces were at work, but kept her composure in most cases. “The only time I felt any kind of vibe was when we were doing the spell scene with John, especially when we were doing the master shot, the whole scene. There was a moment when he finally said cut it was kind like wow, that was weird. It felt like we were calling on some kind of weird energy.”
Still, the party atmosphere of New Orleans kept her busy enough to forget the freaky stuff. “We went out and saw great music. I had the best birthday here. Chris [Robinson] threw me a surprise birthday and a bunch of our friends flew in. I had no idea everybody was coming down. And we went to the Funky Butt and Big Sam and the Funky Nation played which was great. We did a bunch of stuff. We saw great music. That’s pretty much what we do. We like to go see music, so we had a really good time. Remember, once the baby’s asleep, mommy and daddy can go out and play. And especially in New Orleans when everything is so close.”
Even with the heat and insects in the summer, being in New Orleans helped set the mood of the film. “I didn’t look at those as difficult conditions. I looked at that as fun and also the total atmosphere of where we were. That’s New Orleans. The mosquitoes and the crocodiles, that’s not difficult. That was funny and fun and added to everything we were doing. Everything we did in this movie was so enjoyable. The rain, the thunderstorms, the lightning. They had the craziest tropical storms, they would come in and we would use them. It was amazing.”
Hudson will be back in a comedy, You, Me and Dupree, with Owen Wilson and Matt Dillon. Though it’s not a romantic fable, it will be a 180 from Skeleton Key. “It kind of has a feeling of a Meet the Fockers type of comedy. It’s not about romance. The Rooster brothers are directing it, the Arrested Development guys, so it’s got that kind of far out but at the same time totally accessible, like somebody everybody knows. You know that guy, and that’s Dupree. I’m kind of the one who’s stuck in the middle of everything and having to deal with him all the time. There is some very slapstick comedy that will be going on. It’s very good characters. Every character has its own voice. Every character has a bunch of quirks and is really funny. It was a rare comedy for me to read actually.”
Skeleton Key opens August 12. |
