Rachel McAdams on “Red Eye:” “It’s a Wes Craven thriller. It’s basically a two-hander with Cillian Murphy [Scarecrow in ‘Batman Begins’] who’s a fantastic Irish actor. Imagine him in a thriller on an airplane being that creepy, too. It was terrifying. We meet and have this little flirtation and wind up sitting together on the plane. The plane takes off and he reveals his true character and his real plot, and I’m terrorized for the rest of the film.”
Two People, One Plane - Keeping the Story Going: “To sustain that kind of energy was really tough. I would go home at night and I would be so tense. I was getting massages all the time because I was [sore], which is just so awful. It was really rough, but you’re just clenching. And sitting in the same seat for like a month at a time. It’s not a horror. There are no demons. Nothing supernatural. It’s like a psychological thriller.”
No First Class Accommodations: “[We were] in coach all the way. No luxury here.”
On Wes Craven’s State of Mind: “I think he was ready for a departure. Ready to make this psychological thriller and excited about just working with Cillian and I. He seemed very excited to do it. I know the ‘Cursed’ process was a long one so I think he was just excited to move on and start something new.”
Rachel McAdams Faces Her Fears: “I’m getting worse the older I get. I didn’t get on a plane until I was 22. My first film was shot in Italy and I flew first class on Alitalia and I was like, ‘This isn’t so bad.’ Seven course meals and I was at the front of the plane, but I was terrified when the turbulence came because I wasn’t expecting it. Nobody had prepared me. ‘We’re dying. It’s my first flight and we’re gonna die. Isn’t that funny?’ I looked behind me and the whole cabin was fast asleep. Lately I can’t handle the turbulence. I think it’s because I fly so much I’m just assuming I’m pushing my luck.”
On How She Avoided Flying Until She Was 22: “I live in a small town in Ontario and we would drive to Florida for our summer vacations. It’s a long drive, but we had one of those big Crown Victoria’s and it was pretty spacious.”
On Her “Red Eye” Character: Rachel McAdams was one of the mean girls in “Mean Girls” and will be playing someone not so nice in “The Family Stone.” But in “Red Eye” as with “Wedding Crashers” and “The Notebook,” McAdams gets to play the nice girl. “She’s just fighting for her life most of the time,” said McAdams. McAdams admits she prefers the not-so-nice characters saying they’re “way more fun” to play.
“Red Eye” is distributed by DreamWorks Pictures and is rated PG-13 for some intense sequences of violence, and language.
