With another spooky season upon us, itsSarah Paulsons time to shine in the genre she loves.
And I feel like sometimes its just an occupational hazard, that reality.
Paulson stars as Margaret Bellum, a woman convinced that a sinister presence is threatening her family.
(L-R) Sarah Paulson and Alona Jane Robbins in ‘Hold Your Breath’Lewis Jacobs/Courtesy Searchlight Pictures
But at its core, she was most compelled by the films mother-daughter dynamic.
DEADLINE:Tell me how you became attached toHold Your Breath.
SARAH PAULSON:I got a phone call saying, Hey, do you read this script?
Sarah Paulson in ‘Hold Your Breath’Searchlight Pictures
So, I just really jumped at the chance to do it.
DEADLINE:Youve been an executive producer on a few shows at this point.
Was this your first movie to EP?
What was that experience like for you?
PAULSON:You know, lets just say that it suits me because Im a very controlling person.
I like to be in charge.
So it feels like a very natural step to me.
But its really nice when its sort of legitimized in a way.
What is it about them that appeals to you?
You know, Im not a mother, in terms of, I did not have any biological children.
You dont often film someone in the most ordinary of days often, when it comes to storytelling.
I dont know, youd have to ask my shrink probably.
And so to be in a circumstance, I always just feel like its extraordinarily fertile ground.
DEADLINE:Tell me about the actresses who played your daughters.
PAULSON:Well, they were extraordinary.
And it was just a really kind of a special thing to witness.
And so, I just really like it because youre getting people right at the beginning of something.
Did that speak to you as well?
I had, of course, read about the Dust Bowl.
We were over-harvesting and then basically depleted the land of its ability to produce anything.
DEADLINE:Youve done so much horror now and you have such a great signature terrified performance.
Im not very good at it.
Im not very good at that.
And I feel like sometimes its just an occupational hazard, that reality.
So, Im not always the best at alleviating some of that.
And for better or for worse, my mother called me Sarah Bernhardt for a reason.
But I always had big reactions to things and big feelings.
So I have access to them in a way, that maybe your average person doesnt.
