ComingSoon’s Jonathan Sim spoke with Eileen director William Oldroyd and writers Luke Goebel and Ottessa Moshfegh. Neon’s psychological thriller is out in theaters on December 1, 2023.
“In the 1960s New England, Eileen Dunlop is working at a prison when a captivating, glamorous counselor arrives and helps her access new facets of her personality but may be drawing her into something more dangerous,” reads the official synopsis.
Jonathan Sim: First of all, this is just such a fascinating thriller. It takes you on quite a journey, and I wanted to ask Ottessa and Luke, where did the idea for the novel originate from and how did it evolve into the film that we have today?
Otessa Moshfegh: Well, first and foremost, it evolved out of my growing up in New England and driving through these small coastal towns being sort of fascinated and horrified by how perfect everything looked on the outside. And wondering with the dark imagination of a five-year-old, which I still have, what the heck people were doing in there. And so that’s where Eileen was born as a, a young woman who desperately wants out of her day-to-day, doldrum shut-down life in XVille and finds a way out when Rebecca, the new prison psychologist where Eileen works, appears.
Luke Goebel: And translating it to film really began with the three of us meeting with Will Oldroyd and having a shared vision and a shared sensibility and a mischief and a dark streak and a humor that you know, and a responsibility to the novel and the characters truth and justice, Christmas, et cetera.
Will, how did you go about taking that script and bringing it to life? How did you bring your style to it and what was your process like for that?
William Oldroyd: I mean, I didn’t really know about my style. I mean, I’m amazed if people can see something which is identifiably mine, I’m certainly not aware of it. I just try as best I can to tell the story on screen, you know make sure that each moment is being given the care and attention that it requires to tell the whole story. And, you know, the funny thing about film I find is that it’s constantly changing that, you know, the idea that we had when these guys were adapting the book to the script, and then when we took it then, and we filmed it, the actors then bring their interpretation. We have the interpretation of the production designer, the way in which it’s shot, and so on.
Everyone is bringing in an idea. And it’s my job in a sense to sort of make sure that we are all telling the same story. I have sort of bringing the light and dark and adjust and so on, and make sure that it’s a sort of conduct, I suppose in that sense that we have all these different instruments playing. I gotta make sure that it sounds good on some level. But yeah, I hope I’ve answered your question.
No, you have. You definitely have. Yeah. so this one goes out to all of you. Were there any scenes in the script that you were particularly excited to see the actors perform and how did it live up to your expectations?
Ottessa: Luke, you wanna take this one?
Luke: Well, obviously the basement scene. Don’t wanna give anything away, but certainly, and that was the hardest, wrought, hardest one to get it just right. The most elements that needed to be accomplished and and done with the characters. I think the bar scene was another one. Yeah, that was a pivotal scene.
Ottessa: Also, Anne Hathaway’s character, Rebecca just punching some guy in the face. I really wanted to see.
Of course, who wouldn’t? Well, I think my last question is what are the themes that you wanted to tackle with Eileen? What do you hope that audiences take away from the film? This goes out to any of you.
William: Well, I mean, I think that if it’s Christmas and you’re fed up with the usual movies that are on at Christmas, here’s a fresh alternative. I think yeah, if the idea of a twisted dark and very funny thriller that’s set at Christmas is your Christmas movie, then this is it, the movie for you.
