Matt Reeves:Why change the title?
Ad content continues below
It was our attempt to do another telling of Lindqvists story.
But thats where it came from.
Kodi Smit-McPhee: Im not really sure if I have anything that inspires me.
I think what goes into my work is everything beforehand that I do with my dad.
He teaches me acting, and I think maybe without him it would be pretty hard.
Your performance feels so genuine.
Do you have any experience of bullying that you drew from?
So, you might take those feelings and make them bigger.
So, I really do make it from scratch, and I know the whole character back to front.
KSM:It was awesome!
I was a nerdy 80s kid, I wanted to be a cool, rock and roll 80s kid…
But, Owens cool.
And at least he knowsMs.
Actually, Ive just realised, that doesnt make any sense.Ms.
It should be Ms. Pac-Girl.
80s is cool, Id like to go back to the 80s.
You say you knew the character back-to-front.
How do you prepare for the film?
Did you read the book, or watchLet The Right One In?
So, I thought, Ive already started now, so I shouldnt be bringing that in.
But I didnt see the film either.
I didnt want to copy anything.
So, me and my dad built it from scratch.
MR:I went on a search.
She did theIce Storm,The Sixth Sense,Little Man Tate.
And we started looking.
And I watched it, and I thought that he was remarkable.
And they said, Well, he does an American accent inThe Road.
And I said, Great!
Show me some ofThe Road!
Nobody could show me any ofKick-Ass.
And he read it in such an understated and authentic way.
Oh, we can definitely make the movie now.
And we had to cast him immediately.
And the same thing happened with Chloe.
And she did that, and so the whole thing was finding these two guys.
Well, I was bullied.
And I grew up at that time, and my parents went through a very painful divorce.
Theres tremendous shame with being bullied.
As a kid, I was always mistaken for a girl.
So, I identified with it a lot.
And what brings you out of that?
MR:With me, frankly, it was making 8mm movies.
I was obsessed with movies, and it ended up being the tool with which I could make friends.
And thats how I made friends, and it was also my escape.
In the movies, I was James Bond, so it was pretty good.
MR:That scene we shot.
And I didnt cut that scene because you say, to make it more palatable?
I cut that scene because it didnt work in the flow of the movie.
And that scene bonded them tremendously.
When I was writing it, I was talking to Lindqvist and I was asking about it.
And I was like, Oh, I get that.
Basically putting her on the spot.
And she says, I knew you wouldnt let me.
And that created a bond between them.
Then, in the next scene, he says, Who are you?
And then she pulls a knife on him, and she starts saying, Im just like you.
And youre like, wait a minute!
Just a second ago, I was in this emotional place why am I here?
It just didnt work.
But it was no attempt to soften the movie.
MR:It wasnt so much on the films themselves, it was on me.
As a kid… Its ironic that I make genre films now, because they scared me.
Did you feel a great weight of expectation, directing the first of the new Hammer films?
MR:I just was honored.
I thought it was really cool.
Those movies are so stylised, too, and theyre very gothic.
This movie is more naturalistic in that sense.
Those scared me more than anything.
MR:Well, we had shorter days.
But its still a lot.
Especially, Kodi was in almost every scene.
And I know that the shoot wore on him tremendously.
And I like to do a lot of takes, too.
We like to explore, and he loves to play, but sometimes its just too exhausting.
I mean, it was probably hard at times.
What was it like?
And you know youre going to have to wait another year to see it.
So, I was like Gah, come on!
The first of everything.
So, I was jumping into it, and that was pretty gruelling.
Matt and Kodi, thank you for your time!
Let Me In is released this Friday, November 5th.Read our review of the film here.
