ComingSoon Editor-in-Chief Tyler Treese spoke to Spiderhead star Jurnee Smollett about her role in the upcoming Netflix film, which is out June 17 on the streamer. Smollett discussed the film’s absurd moments, such as being afraid of a stapler, her chemistry with Miles Teller, and more.
“In a state-of-the-art penitentiary run by brilliant visionary Steve Abnesti (Chris Hemsworth), inmates wear a surgically attached device that administers dosages of mind-altering drugs in exchange for commuted sentences,” says the synopsis. “There are no bars, no cells, or orange jumpsuits. In Spiderhead, incarcerated volunteers are free to be themselves. Until they’re not. At times, they’re a better version. Need to lighten up? There’s a drug for that. At a loss for words? There’s a drug for that, too. But when two subjects, Jeff (Miles Teller) and Lizzy (Jurnee Smollett), form a connection, their path to redemption take a twistier turn, as Abnesti’s experiments start to push the limits of free will altogether.”
Tyler Treese: What I really loved about the film was that it was really dark and there are these dramatic moments, but there’s a real comedy to it and it relishes in that absurdity. What about the script grabbed you and made you excited for this project?
Jurnee Smollett: Well, I think that level of absurdity that it leans into is one of the things that caught my eye initially. Then, as I dug further into it, it reminded me … between the script and the short story from the New Yorker … I thought a lot about the Milgram Experiment and how someone who’s in power can get another person to inflict harm on a third person. And that always stuck with me and bothered me. I think with Lizzy, you know, one of the things that intrigued me is that while this story of Spiderhead is like this heightened, entertaining, and very thought-provoking, genre-bending thing, there’s this subplot of these star-crossed lovers.
Lizzy’s essentially analog in a digitized world, and her presence and the bond that Jeff and her build really are the thing that threatened the system the most. I’m a romantic at heart. So this idea that love and unconditional love and redemption and forgiveness of oneself could be the thing that’s actually more powerful than the synthetic power. I mean, that idea moved me. And then I met with Joseph Kosinski, our director, and I was like, “Ah, I’ve got to work with this guy.”
There are some really wonderful moments between yourself and Miles Teller in the film. They are two very damaged people starting to open up again. What went into that portrayal there?
Miles is such a great scene partner, and every take is different. I really appreciate just keeping that spontaneity, that energy, alive. But I think it was just about behaving and trying to find the truth of these characters who both have made mistakes in their past. And yet both are in a situation in which society has weaponized the guilt and the shame that they feel from those mistakes, and it’s been weaponized against them.
That bond that they share in being seen through their shame … It’s quite beautiful because they’re seeking that unconditional love that you experience with someone, when you say, “Hey, this is who I am. These are my scars. These are my wounds.” And when that person sees you, all of you, and they still choose you … Ugh, it’s so beautiful.
It sounds ridiculous without context, but there’s this great scene where you’re afraid of a stapler. This film really asks a lot of its actors to go to all these extreme emotions. So what challenge was there, as an actress, from having to go to these different extremes all of a sudden?
I think you just go to different places within your imagination. Essentially, the way it was written in the script, was that Lizzy sees the most terrifying thing. And so I had to be very specific and see that she doesn’t see the stapler. She actually sees something that is making her blood curdle, right? So I think the trick with it is to just get very specific.
You’ve worked with so many talented directors so far during your career. What impressed you the most about working with Joe?
He’s so visionary. He sees the film before we even get there, you know? He’s very decisive, which I appreciate in a director, and very collaborative. As I said before, he creates a space for everyone to just do their job. And he goes, “Listen, I’ve hired the best people, that I believe are the best for these positions.” And he empowers you to be your best. I think that’s just a mark of a great director. Instead of trying to micromanage you, they go, “I believe in you and I’m going to push you.” I have nothing but great things to say about Joe. He’s the future.