'The Nest's Carrie Coon and Sean Durkin on Why the Drama Is Really About Love | Sundance 2020
36'The Nest's Carrie Coon and Sean Durkin on Why the Drama Is Really About Love | Sundance 2020
The Nest stars Carrie Coon and Oona Roche and writer-director Sean Durkin stopped by the Kia Telluride Supper Suite in Park City, where Collider spoke with the trio about their '80s-set drama about an American family that begins to fracture following their move to England.
According to Durkin, The Nest was born out of his own transatlantic experiences. "As a kid in the late '80s/early '90s, I moved between England and the U.S., and I remember an immediate textural difference in the two places. The environment felt very different, and I thought the stark contrast of the two places would make a great backdrop and tonal shift in a film. And then within that, I started to look at what a move could do to a family and a marriage at a very specific point in time."
"It was a marriage that I recognized," said Coon, who goes toe-to-toe with her onscreen husband, played by Jude Law. There are a lot of screaming matches between them, but at the end of the day, Coon says "it's about love, and how in spite of the imperfections, we love each other."
Roche said that when she learned she'd be playing the daughter of Law and Coon in a movie, her father shed some tears. Her character is a bit of a brat, but her attitude makes sense within the context of the film. "I think i'm still an angry teenager, and I might be forever. Sam's a young woman carving out her own space in the world. There's a lot of love there, even when it's disguised as tension."
Coon gave Durkin credit for the honesty of his script, and how it doesn't shy away from tough moments in the marriage."I love what Sean has done in terms of showing their passion for each other. One of the most honest things you can do with a partner is be honest with them."
Parents don't intend to make mistakes, they're trying to do the best that they can, but they have limitations," said Coon, adding that she "hopes you root for them, because I think they're very well-matched."
Coon said, "there are a lot of parts out there for exasperated wives and they're very boring, and I get offered a lot of them... and so to do something that actually asks for some nuance and some complication, and play a real human being... of course that's the only stuff I want to do."
Durkin and Coon later discussed their backgrounds with horses, and the director weighed in on whether the horse in The Nest served as a metaphor for the marriage. Coon also reveals that they used the same horse as Jon Snow's steed from Game of Thrones.
Elsewhere, Durkin credits his music supervisor Lucy Bright for introducing him to composer Richard Reed Parry (of Arcade Fire) a few years ago. "I had listened to some of his classical stuff, and actually wrote to his stuff, and I wanted him to be a part of that," said Durkin, who also addressed his relationship with cinematographer Mátyás Erdély.
"We worked together on Southcliffe, so by the end of that, we didn't need to talk anymore, because we got to know each other so well.
As for what's next, Durkin said he's working on a new film about the Von Eirich family, a wrestling dynasty that revolutionized the sport in the late '70s/early '80s, while Roche let the cat out of the bag that she'll begin filming Season Two of Apple's The Morning Show in March.
Finally, Coon weighed in on her upcoming turn in Jason Reitman's Ghostbusters: Afterlife. "Think of Jason Reitman as a little boy on that set [of the original Ghostbusters] and what a magical place that was for him, and his love for those collaborators. I think Jason has done a really tremendous job expressing his childhood love for that film. It's funny, and it's going to be a bomb for the soul at a time when we really need it. It's the sort of movie they don't make anymore that really brings people together. The kids are fantastic and Paul Rudd is a dream."
Does her contract contain a sequel option? "Maybe," she teased.
Watch the interview above, and stay tuned to Collider for our Sundance supercut, in which dozens of artists offer their Super Bowl predictions, theories on the death of Cliff Booth's wife in Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, and which categories they'd like to see added to the Oscars, as well as the TV shows they most recently binged, and the ones they'd love to guest star on. To watch the trailer for the new Ghostbusters movie, click here.
Finally, we have to thank our presenting partner, the Kia Telluride SUV, which was recently named the 2020 North American Utility Vehicle of the Year. Additional thanks to support sponsors Glenfiddich Scotch, Peroni Beer, Marbl Toronto, mou footwear, ic! Berlin sunglasses and clothing lines, Laundry by Sheli Segal and Orginal Penguin.
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