Hertic's Chloe East and Sophie Thatcher on Mormon Upbringing

Chloe East again Sophie Thatcher they reflect on how their Mormon upbringing inspired their performance in the religious thriller, A rebel.

In the film, East, 23, and Thatcher, 24, play missionaries Sister Paxton and Sister Barnes, respectively. These were sent to a mysterious place managed by Mr. Reed (Hugh Grant) in an attempt to convert him to Mormonism, and all hell breaks loose as Grant's character is more dangerous than he seems, causing the duo to question everything.

“It was everything in my performance. “A lot of the decisions I made and the little things I chose were things I had withdrawn from going to church,” said East. Entertainment Weekly in a new interview published on Friday, November 8. “I just felt like I knew this character in my bones. I wish I didn't know better, and I had to research things, but I was like, 'I got it.' I, unfortunately, was this person or I have this person inside of me that I can use in this movie. But it's great to have a default role.”

Thatcher, for her part, told the outlet that she has “the same experience” as her buyer, noting that it feels “more personal than other projects.”

He continued, “It felt like I was going into something I knew in the past, but it was easy to go into it because I just thought about myself when I was young: the way I held myself, the way I presented myself, and I just think about it. my family and the specific ways and the way they talk, how they just express themselves. I thought a lot about my mother's side of the family. I felt very natural.”

Scott Beckwho wrote and produced the film with Bryan Woodshe told EW that they did not know that East and Thatcher grew up in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints when they auditioned for their roles.

“We weren't like, 'We have to get two actors who were raised Mormons,'” he told the newspaper, adding that the reason they won the roles “was because they were so authentic when they were playing them.”

He explained, “We kept going back to our casting director, asking, 'Are there more people like these two? Because there is truth there.' We didn't know they were raised Mormon. We could just hear it; we could hear it. We heard it in their words and approach. And I think the way they play the characters, it brought a lot of respect because they have Mormon families. So they share the same compassion and love that we share with those characters. “

And Grant, 64, Thatcher and East, Topher Grace again Elle Young appear in the middle A rebelwhich premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in September.

A rebel is now available in theaters nationwide.