Resident Evil: Extinction – Ali Larter Interview

by Staci Layne Wilson

We want to know what the zombies are going to look like. Of course we do. We're the press. And we're horror fans. However, the makeup effects man, Richard Redlefsen, says he "can reveal nothing." That will make for a really good story, don't you think?

It's June, 2006, and there's a small group of us on the set of Resident Evil: Extinction, the third in the series of popular action/scare flicks starring Milla Jovovich. With the advent of each new film in the videogame-based series, the ante is upped when it comes to the undead villains.

Redlefsen decides to come across with a couple of tidbits, after all. Since the zombies are infesting the Las Vegas desert this time (but the movie's being shot in Mexico City, fyi), it stands to reason that rather than oozing, they'd be beef jerky like. Well, "that look just didn't work." The dried eye sockets didn't read (so to speak) and took away the actors' performances. Always on the go, Redlefsen and his crew have been hard at work on this shoot, "moving appliances from face to face — like Mr. Potato Head zombies."

But today, there are no undeads on the set. Just actors. I guess they're OK, too. Right now, we're about to interview a pre-Heroes Ali Larter (the show's pilot would debut the next month, at 2006's Comic-Con).

Larter's not working till later today, so before we talk to her in the lounge area, we check out Jovovich doing a scene set inside the cab of a truck. She's sharing in some shenanigans with her director, Aussie Russell Mulcahy (he of Razorback and The Highlander fame).

"I didn't know it was so much fun shooting in a truck on a blue screen stage," says Mulcahy, laughing. Time to direct: "In character! In the moment! – Action!" Time to play: Jovovich hugs Mulcahy between takes, and teases him about his accent – "How do you say 'man' in Australian?"

Larter, not yet in costume, joins the press and sits for a few questions. Someone lays into her with a toughie, right away.

Q: Is your hair color changed for this role?

Ali Larter: Yeah, very much. I think when I decided to join this project, I had spoken to Paul and Jeremy and it was really important to them that they were bringing in a character that was part of video games. For people that are truly passionate about the games, it’s important to have the resemblance to Claire Redfield. People have an idea of what they want her to be and red hair is just one more thing to help bridge that gap and help them take the journey with me in the movie.

Q: Did you keep the costume too?

Ali Larter: No and I’m so glad about that. We’ve been traveling through the desert just trying to survive. If you look at it, we could be stopping at different stores that are deserted and you pick up clothes that you need when you are living in those kinds of grave circumstances. So it’s like cargo pants, a tank top, baseball cap, glasses and anything to hold my guns – anything that is realistic in these kinds of predicaments.

Q: Are you shooting today?

Ali Larter: Yes, today we are doing Alice has just arrived and saved us from this attack from the crows. We’ve had a little conversation about how I feel about her entering into our convoy. The discussion is about a journal entry that says there is an area in Alaska that is safe, where the infection hasn’t reached yet. At this point, I have become the leader of the convoy and it is my job to keep these people safe. I’m not worried about the characters that are strong, but the pregnant mothers and the children – if they can make that journey. It’s a discussion about that and what’s the best move for us at this point. It’s all of us. It’s actually a great day to be here on set because we don’t have that many scenes where we are all together.

Q: In RE2, Siena played Jill and she talked about how Jeremy [Bolt, producer] and Paul [Anderson, writer] wanted her to use some of the physical characteristics of her game character. Did you use your character?

Ali Larter: No, I think with this movie they are going in a different direction than the first one and the second one. They are taking on a more realistic, hyper-real world. We’re out in the desert now and not confined to one area. For me, I think it would be silly if I were wearing the same things in the desert trying to survive. Also with the mannerisms, we didn’t discuss it. With the video games, there is its own mythology and with this I had to come up with my own choices and ideas of what I thought was the best way to play this role.

Q: How much action do you get?

Ali Larter: Not as much as Alice. Alice gets to kick ass in this! Milla is so amazing and she cuts the most mythic figure. I have my Beretta and some knives but my role isn’t as much to the action, but keeping people together and organizing it like the General. I do have a couple runs in with the undead and I shoot the shit out of them.

Q: Did you do gun training?

Ali Larter: We did a little bit. I’ve worked with gun on different movies. Rick our stuntman is amazing in making us as believable as possible. I think it is. I’ve seen some of the dailies and it looks beautiful.  It’s definitely exceeded my expectations on every level.

Q: Is there some doubt going into the third part of a franchise for you?

Ali Larter: Defintely. 100%. Going into a franchise, especially one this successful, and one where there is an incredibly strong female lead. How are they going to feel about another woman coming and how I will be treated? With that Milla, has been nothing but amazing. She has welcomed me with open arms on the set. She is so cool and fun. Together, we are both about elevating the material in any way that we can. Creatively, I think we work really well together.

Q: The second film was the first time Milla had another woman to work off of. With Jill she had a bittersweet relationship. What is the relationship between Alice and Claire?

Ali Larter: I wouldn’t say it’s bittersweet. I think at this point it’s all about survival so if you can come in and help us, please do. On the other side, I’ve been taking care of these people and it’s all about keeping them safe. We come together when we can. At first, it takes a minute to earn each others trust. The other side is that when you are in grave circumstances, there’s no time for bullshit. There’s no time for getting jealous. How can you help each other? Are you going to put us in danger? If you can help us – stay? It’s not about making someone feel good. It’s about what can we do to get through this day, it’s on that level.

Q: How big is the convoy?

Ali Larter: It started at about sixty and by the time we get to the end, it’s about six.

===SPOILER ALERT

Q: Are you alive at the end?

Ali Larter: I am. We get through Vegas and get to the helicopter and take off with the kids. What’s amazing about this movie is that we have lost so many people and that’s what keeps this movie on such a heightened level. You see this family they created and they keep losing every day; it keeps it tense. The way Paul has decided to end it is me, K-Mart, and couple of the convoy and their kids. It leaves that universal feeling in mankind that is hope and children represent hope. I think by taking the movie to the next place with that is that there is a feeling that things are going to be ok.

===END SPOILER ALERT

Q: Is Carlos the boy-toy?

Ali Larter: Yes, he is. Poor guy (laughs)

Q: Have you played the games?

Ali Larter: I haven’t. I’m not good at video games so I don’t know about them. I look forward to learning more about the mythology.

Q: They didn’t walk you through the games?

Ali Larter: They didn’t. I think they kept this one separate and have a very different approach from the second one. I feel like it’s in a different direction. We are very much living in a film that’s a real world.

Q: Have you seen the first two films?

Ali Larter: I have.

Q: Were the Mexicali shoot the most difficult you have ever done?

Ali Larter: Probably, but I have worked in such extreme environments though. I did a movie in India for three months, and even doing American Outlaws deep in Texas in the heart of summer is incredibly hot. Everyone on this movie is excited to be down here. Sometimes people can phone it in or come for the paycheck but with this movie, everyone is doing their best to elevate the material. We shuffle work so when someone is getting tired or feeling down, they move a scene around and someone else pops in does what they need to do to pick up for the other. We all really do like each other and it will show in the full the way we have bonded. We are having a great time together.

Q: Where does that come from?

Ali Larter: It’s the actors on this one. It’s different on every movie, but with this one…especially with me and Milla, we’ve been working together a lot. We keep an open dialogue and it’s been really great.

Q: And shooting on location?

Ali Larter: With our costumes and our DP, it’s gorgeous. We’re shooting in the same location that Jarhead shot so you can just image the dunes and the shadows and the suspense that you can find through daylight.

Q: You’ve done a lot of horror films; what keeps you coming back to the genre?

Ali Larter: Strong women; I think that’s what it is. I was thinking about that today. I don’t pick a movie because of the genre. I really pick a movie for character, a director or the writing. Those are the three things that draw me and make me decide the work I want to do. I love strong women and the amazing thing about the genre is they allow two in one movie. Where else do you see that? It’s so rare.

Q: Do you work through your own fears in the genre?

Ali Larter: It’s not so much about things that scare me, but I love the adrenaline of it. I’m an intense person and this stuff just keeps you on. You live in the moment and are reacting and I love that. With this movie, they’ve added the element of heart which makes it different and hopefully will make people love this movie.

Q: You balance your career with a lot of smaller projects. Do you need that?

Ali Larter: For me I just moved back to Los Angeles from New York in January (2006) that was like taking a couple years off because I worked so much in the beginning of my career that I needed to figure out who I was outside this business. Grow up a little bit, travel and really find my own identity away from Hollywood. Even last year I did three independents that took me from India to Texas in all these incredible roles. One side is that they fill me so much creatively but you also never know if they are going to find an audience. I didn’t have that balance in the beginning. I never look for what’s going to happen to a film when I am doing it. For me, my process is preparing for the role and shooting the movie and I have to let it go. They really served me and gave me what I needed at that time of my life. Now I am on huge sci fi genre movie where I know people are going to see it and love it. There is something really exciting about also doing movies that people love and give them sheer entertainment. Figuring out that balance, I don’t know if I will ever truly find it, but I’m giving it my best shot.

One of the things with Claire is that she does play a role with everyone: a sister or with some of the kids, a mother role or with Carlos, they are buddies and confidantes dealing with everything together. There is the relationship with Mikey, who is crushing on her and there is this banter. Why I love to play her is that she gives everyone what they need, or filled with hope or a base of reality.

Q: How did you keep it going off screen?

Ali Larter: What’s great is that we all really like each other. We all really bonded. We hang out all day and have dinner together every night. We watch movies together on the weekends or go out dancing. There are so many different ages and we’ve come together to form a mini-family and it will be another thing to elevate the movie to another level.

Q: Tell us about the crow attack.

Ali Larter: Sure. My take on it is that its Mad Max meets The Birds. I think the audiences are ready for that. When we were shooting up, they have these fake crows on sticks. They look real but not really but then you realize they going to fill in with CGI. A movie like this demands so much from your imagination. What they are able to create now with technology is extraordinary, but as actors we don’t get to see that. There’s also this helicopter that is half the sixe of this table and we were doing the scenes and it was zooming in and around us. It brings this energy! It will be the POV of the crows. It’s so cool! It brings one more element to this movie. It’s like they pulled out all the stops and are getting the best people to keep you on the edge of your seat.

[end]