Lisa Frankenstein follows a teenage girl who feels a connection to a boy, but his circumstances present an unexpected twist: he’s been dead for many years. However, when a strange circumstance raises the Victorian corpse and draws him to her doorstep, the pair will set off on a journey full of comedy, heartbreak, and oddities as they search for love and happiness.
Lisa Frankenstein stars Kathryn Newton, Cole Sprouse, Liza Soberano, Henry Eikenberry, Joe Chrest, and Carla Gugino. Lisa Frankenstein is the feature directorial debut of Zelda Willaims. Diablo Cody penned the screenplay and produced the movie along with Mason Novick.
Endgame Theory Makes Cassie Lang’s MCU Story Even More Heartbreaking
Cassie Lang’s MCU story could be even more heartbreaking, as this Avengers: Endgame theory suggests she lost more than just Ant-Man from Thanos’ snap.
Screen Rant interviewed Lisa Frankenstein leads Kathryn Newton and Cole Sprouse. Newton revealed how her understanding of the character evolved and how her Ant-Man & The Wasp: Quamtumania co-star Paul Rudd pushed her to take on this role. Sprouse explained how he connected with the role and why he loved playing a monster.
Kathryn Newton & Cole Sprouse Talk Lisa Frankenstein
Screen Rant: I loved this movie.
Cole Sprouse: Oh, thanks, dude.
Kathryn Newton: Really? Why did you like it? No, I’m just kidding.
Just interview me. I’ll break it down after the interview.
Kathryn Newton: Yeah. Tell me what was your favorite part? What made you go to this film? Was it him?
Cole Sprouse: Obligation.
Kathryn Newton: Did somebody pay you? Yeah, I bet. How much?
Kathryn, can you talk to me a little bit about getting into the headspace of Lisa, who very much feels like a character pulled from a John Waters movie and dropped into a John Hughes movie at the beginning?
Kathryn Newton: I love that. I love that.
Cole Sprouse: That’s great.
Kathryn Newton: How did I do it? How did I get in the headspace for it? That’s a good question. I had no idea what to do every day. I had an idea, but it was wrong. I actually read the script and thought that she was quiet. She is a quiet girl at first, as you see in the movie, dealing with grief. Nobody’s listening to her. But I really thought that I was the straight guy, and Cole was the funny one. Because if you read the script, he is the funny one. But then he doesn’t talk when we film the movie.
It’s crazy how script-to-screen is very… It’s a process of finding it. I found a lot of it in my character’s vanity, how her hair is, her wardrobe transformation. And, honestly, it was all on the page. And Zelda let me try things, and Cole was always down to try things. And I think in this kind of movie, if you say yes, you just have to try it all. You have to go for it. You can’t hold back. I don’t think I held back in this movie.
Cole, you bring so much pathos and comedy to a role where you don’t speak. What was the most challenging part of that process?
Kathryn Newton: Was it hard to not speak?
Cole Sprouse: Yeah.
Kathryn Newton: Yeah, I bet, yeah.
Cole Sprouse: Yeah. That little annoyance part of my brain was like, “Let me speak. I want to annoy people.” No, I know I’ve said this a couple of times, but when I was growing up, I was a big monster movie guy and I was a big practical effects guy. And I think, when I read this script, Zelda and I had been trying to figure out a project to do together for a long time, and she was already attached to it. And it hit all of the checkboxes for me, where I really got… I know this feels like a love letter to the ’80s and to this nostalgic film that we grew up on.
But, really, for me, it was a high five to my ten-year-old Cole, who’s just been grappling with, “This is the kind of stuff you want to do.” So I didn’t really find it challenging. I found it really exciting. It was difficult, but I think when you’re having fun, and you’re working with friends, and you’re doing something that you really enjoy, you go, “Yeah, yeah, this makes sense, totally. I get it.”
I love how weird you got in this movie, and now I just want to see you get super weird as Cassie Lang. Is there anything you’d like to explore, taking from the Lisa Frankenstein experience, that you’d like to explore with Cassie Lang in the future, given how weird her upbringing was?
Kathryn Newton: That’s a great question. I did this movie right after Ant-Man, and I actually asked Paul his advice on it. And it was great advice. He said, “If you think that no one else can play a role except you, and you can do your best to elevate a character or a story, you should do it.” And I was like, “Yeah, there’s nobody crazy enough to do this Lisa Frankenstein role.”
So I think I learned that. And Cassie Lang in Ant-Man, she’s someone’s daughter, so I’d like to see who she is as her own little adult. But we’ll find out. Who is that girl? Maybe she’s crazy, maybe she’s not. I am not feeling Lisa vibes from Cassie, so we’ll table that.
About Lisa Frankenstein
A coming of RAGE love story from acclaimed writer Diablo Cody (Jennifer’s Body) about a misunderstood teenager and her high school crush, who happens to be a handsome corpse. After a set of playfully horrific circumstances bring him back to life, the two embark on a murderous journey to find love, happiness… and a few missing body parts along the way.
Check back soon for other Lisa Frankenstein interview with writer Diablo Cody & director Zelda Williams.
Source: Screen Rant Plus
Lisa Frankenstein
Lisa Frankenstein is a comedic fantasy-horror film by first-time director Zelda Williams and is a twist on the classic Frankenstein formula. Set in 1989, a high school outcast named Lisa accidentally revives a handsome corpse from the Victorian era and resolves to rebuild him into the perfect man.
- Release Date
- February 9, 2024
- Director
- Zelda Williams
- Cast
- Kathryn Newton , Cole Sprouse , Liza Soberano , Henry Eikenberry , Joe Chrest , Carla Gugino
- Writers
- Diablo Cody
- Studio(s)
- MXN Entertainment , Lollipop Woods
- Distributor(s)
- Focus Features
