Camera crews standing in the water for hours and hours, not knowing what’s at their feet. We had a mechanical shark, which the puppeteers would have to lug into the water in rough conditions. It doesn’t look like it, and I appreciate you saying that, because it was physically demanding for all of us. I am out of breath,” and I had to ask for breaks, and I would collapse on the sound. When I got out there, I was like, “ Oh, my goodness. I didn’t know what was at my feet half the time. It was really calm water, and it would become super choppy. I consider myself to be a good swimmer and relatively fit, but we were working at this little beach off the side of the airport in Hawaii, and it was stinking hot every day. Nicky Whelan: Well, I think I could have prepared a little better, to be honest with you. PopHorror: With this being filmed mostly outside and looking to be pretty physically demanding, how did you prepare for your role? Nicky Whelan: Right? I know, it’s so funny. Being asked to do a shark movie means you’ve made it! That’s how I would think about it. Shark movies seem to be the big thing right now, whether they’re good or bad. It was something I wanted to do, and it kicked my ass in a good way. It was Hawaii, and I was like, “Okay! Let’s do this, guys!” It was just an awesome group of people, a very challenging project. I was like, “In my career, I am going to do a shark movie, and get on board with this, and embrace it.” It was cool, and the location didn’t suck. There’s just this thing with them, and I got asked to do one. Everyone has their take and version of them, and people love a good shark movie, whether it’s completely ridiculous or completely realistic. There’s a big following in this world for shark movies. Nicky Whelan: The project came across me. PopHorror: What intrigued you about Maneater and made you want to be a part of the project? It was a great show, plus Malcolm McDowell, who I ended up working again with on Halloween II for Rob Zombie. It was early on in my career and surrounded by great people. Nicky Whelan: Aw, thank you, love! I forget about that project. PopHorror: That’s awesome! That was one of my favorite shows back when it was on. Nicky Whelan: Oh, yay! I ran into Breckin Meyer the other night! PopHorror: Maneater was a lot of fun! While watching it, I remembered you from Franklin & Bash! So I’m super excited to speak with you. To celebrate the release of Maneater, I chatted with stary Nicky Whelan about being asked to be in a shark film, preparing for her role, how she really feels about horror, and more! I am not a fan of CGI blood, so I really appreciated the few moments of practical effects sprinkled throughout the film. Maneater, directed by Justin Lee, is just that, a bloody fun horror movie that mixes the gore with a bit of comedy. So it’s always nice to come across one that is a bloody fun time. Gilda is a well-made film, just not one that clicked for me.These days, shark movies are a dime a dozen with very little setting one apart from another. That being said, I simply didn’t love anyone enough to care how the story would resolve. I did find it interesting that the film manages to shift the loyalty of the audience more than once, because we see different people behaving poorly at different times. I hate these kinds of situations where both men know what is going on, but they attempt to pretend it’s not going on, to either test their friendship or test the woman (or both.) I wasn’t exactly enamored with the characters to begin with, but when Glenn Ford and George Macready fell into this macho stand-off for the affections of Gilda, I was kind of done with them. What bothers me about films like Gilda is the strange concept of exaggerated male pride that seems to overpower any kind of reason. Then they add in the fact that Glenn Ford’s character had history with her, and it becomes an even more volatile situation. You can appreciate that she is a heart-breaker and bringing someone like her into a situation with two eligible men could be dangerous. There’s certainly no denying that she is a gorgeous woman, and the type that would create the kind of chaos we see in this film. I never did any research to see that Gilda was that film, but as soon as she flipped her head into screen I could just hear those characters in Shawshank hooting and hollering for Rita Hayworth. Can I just start by saying it was kind of fun finally watching the movie that the inmates are watching in Shawshank Redemption.
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