IGN DVD
Torrey DeVitto Podcast
By IGN DVD
August 16, 2006
I'll Always Know What You Did Last Summer... and now you can too. Torrey speaks!
I'll Always Know What You Did Last Summer is the third film in the slasherific horror franchise and the first to head exclusively to DVD. We recently got an opportunity to talk to one of the film's stars, Brooke Nevin, and today... we've got a podcast interview with Torrey DeVitto, who plays Zoe in the film.
Transcript:
Interviewer: For people who haven't seen the movie yet maybe you could just give a description of your character and what role she plays in the movie.
Torrey DeVitto: Sure. My character, her name is Zoe, and she is the lead singer in a punk rock band. In the beginning she is best friends with Brooke Nevin's character Amber. They're kinda like two peas in a pod. They're different, Zoe's got a darker side, but they just get along you know. And when the whole - they do a prank and when it goes bad and one of their friends dies they kind of split up and they don't talk and Zoe kind of gets more into her darker side a year later she just kinda gets lost in her music. So she kind of turns into this bitter kind of punk rock chick. She's fun and she's sassy and she speaks her mind and she says what she wants to say. She's just really into music and stuff. She's a cool character to play.
Interviewer: Did you have any aspirations to be a rock and roller before this movie?
Torrey DeVitto: (Laughs) Yeah. And I swear if anyone says they don't at one point in their life they're lying. My favourite band is the Start and I just love to emulate Amy Echo every time I put on her CDs. All my friends make fun of me. She was a big - because I do performance for the Battle of the Bands in the movie - and I so used Amy Echo and Brody from the Distillers and Gwen Stefani and all those girls that I wished I was when I was younger came out in my part for Zoe for sure.
Interviewer: What kind of - I mean obviously other than an enjoyment and appreciation for the musical side of the character - what sort of work or research did you do, or did you have to do to sort of get into this role?
Torrey DeVitto: Well Zoe, cause I mean Zoe's kinda like my alter ego. Like when I read the script I was like 'oh I love that' like you know. She's a lot, she has a little bit of my sister's personality in her too. I used her, my older sister used to go to shows all the time when I was younger and even now she's got a lot of tattoos and her septum pierced and a lot of piercings so I kind of stole some of my sisters when I see their attitudes go, I kinda stole some of that from my older sister to play Zoe. Cause I cut my hair black and short and me and my sister look a lot alike except she's like a punk rock version of me. So when I cut my hair my parents were like 'oh my God you look like Devon now'. So I kind of yeah stole a lot of my sister. Kind of looked at her and her mannerisms and the way she acted in certain situations and took that.
Interviewer: How about jumping into that certain "scream queen" sort of role. Did you have to do anything like watch old horror movies or anything to prepare? Or was it pretty easy to get into?
Torrey DeVitto: You know. It really is cause I was afraid that one thing - like if you're crying at a funeral scene, or your crying or laughing you research and pull up some of that. But dying, you like can't go up to someone ask oh 'what was it like dying?' you know? But to get into the screaming thing it was easier than I though it was so fun cause you just get yourself pumped up and you honestly get scared while you're in the scene. The screaming just comes out, it was so much fun to scream. I loved it. I'd scream again all day, I loved it.
Interviewer: Well what did you think about the idea of jumping into the third film in a series? You know in terms of were you concerned at all - I don't know how they approach you or offer you the role - but were you concerned at all about maintaining a certain continuity with the series? Or where they like 'this is going to be a totally independent thing' or you know how did you approach it knowing that there were already two of these movies that you did not participate in?
Torrey DeVitto: Honestly I didn't - I mean obviously I watched the first and second movies, but I didn't really think about them too much. I thought it was really cool cause the movie series already has a cult following because of Jennifer Love Hewitt and Sarah Michelle Gellar and all of them and you know the movies did really well. But there's such a big gap from then to the one we just did you know and I feel like - obviously the Fisherman's the same and stuff - but there's none of the original cast members and stuff. So I just, I don't know. I mean I wanted it to - I knew it was close to the old movies, but then again I also knew it was going to be different because there's like a ten year gap isn't there [Interviewer: "I think so, yeah"] from the last one to now? It's crazy like a long time and not a lot of sequels just do that pick up a third one ten years later so.
Interviewer: Are you generally scared easily or is it tough to maintain that suspension of disbelief to be scared when you're in the movie when you're obviously on set seeing how they do all the behind the scenes stuff that's supposed to make the movie look scary to the audience?
Torrey DeVitto: Yeah. It was interesting. Generally in life I can get scared pretty easily if someone jumps out at me or something so it was easy - and especially with the other cast members. In most of my chase scenes I was with Brooke and Ben - who plays Lance - and so definitely we kept each other pumped up and stuff. Even during emotional scenes we just kept each other going and when we had to be scared we'd - if we had to be out of breath - we'd all in between takes be jumping up and down and keeping each other pumped up so we had that out of breath feeling when we got into the scene and so it was cool.
Interviewer: One of the staples of a lot of horror movies has always been that like 'damsel in distress'. You know that hot girl you sort of punish for being sexy or whatever. You know this movie doesn't seem to have too much like of the nudity and stuff of like the 80s horror movies or anything like that. But did they, was that a concern for you going into this that may be a possibility? You know at this point they don't do it as much as they used to but it is always sort of part of the sort of sex and violence of horror movies.
Torrey DeVitto: Yeah that's always in horror films. And that was one of the things that attracted me to it too cause nudity is something I have vowed I will never ever do. And when I read this script and stuff I loved my character - first of all I though she was badass. And you know everyone I told that I did a horror film to they were like 'oh, let me guess you were running around in your underwear. You had to make out with guys' were in a horror film. And I was like 'no, I was fully clothed the whole time'. I thought that was really cool cause in a lot of movies it's unnecessary you know? And so I just loved that. Especially my character I mean, neither did Brooke's character she didn't have to really do anything - she was more the hotter chick than my character was. You know the pretty blonde natural you know. But yeah I was so stoked that wasn't in there especially with my character I thought that was cool cause most horror films do have that.
Interviewer: Well do you think that these movies actually explore real themes? I mean things that are sort of deeper emotional journeys than you know maybe just sort of escapist entertainment. Or how do you look at it when you're making a movie like this? Are you like 'well I'm doing this sort of really interesting look at you know what teen life' as opposed to 'I'm just making a movie that's fun and scary'?
Torrey DeVitto: Well there's a - besides being chased by someone - there was a lot of scenes that I thought are very close to what it was like growing up and stuff. Because you know the two characters of Amber and Zoe they lose touch and were best friends. Zoe goes through that hurt of feeling left and you know all that stuff so there's more than just being scared. There's a lot of real life teen situations you know that especially younger kids would be able to relate to.
Interviewer: What are some of your favourite horror movies other than I'm sure "I'll Always Know What You Did Last Summer"?
Torrey DeVitto: Oh of course "I Know What You Did Last Summer". I love "The Ring". "The Ring" is the one movie. "The Ring" and Michael Myers are two things that scare the crap out of me. I don't know why Michael Myers I think it's that whole real life looking thing. Because you know his face is like a person but it's not you know? "The Ring" scared the crap out of me. I made my roommate sleep with me for like a week when I saw it. That little girl. Every time I'm sleeping if my back is to the door I would picture her standing behind me. I love "The Ring". I love scary movies. I just love freaking myself out. What are other ones? I know I have like billions of scary movies that I like but now that you ask I can't think of any.
Interviewer: Do you want to continue working in this genre or are you interested to sort of you know having your one horror movie and then a drama and then a comedy? You know, how interested are you in - based on your interest in horror movies - in continuing to do these same kind of films going forward?
Torrey DeVitto: Oh honestly I love screaming and crying but I feel like for the past year and a half most of the work I've been doing I've had to cry a lot (laughs). And so I would love to do another horror film. I would love a little bit more time to pass before I did another horror film. But say I were to audition tomorrow and booked another one that I really liked then I definitely wouldn't turn it down, I'd do it. Definitely but I wouldn't mind some time passing. Maybe do a comedy (laughs).
Interviewer: What else is coming up for you after this?
Torrey DeVitto: Right now I'm just back auditioning and going into meetings and stuff and just trying to get another job.