Posted in: Exclusive, Interview, Movies, Sony | Tagged: eli roth, exclusive, interview, Jenna Warren, my little pony, thanksgiving, thomas and friends

Thanksgiving: Jenna Warren Reuniting with Dir. Eli Roth & Voice Acting

Jenna Warren (My Little Pony, The Young Arsonists) talks to Bleeding Cool about reuniting with director Eli Roth for TriStar's Thanksgiving.

Jenna Warren is an emerging star in the live-action and voiceover fronts. As a dual threat, she voices some of the most charismatic characters in her latest in the rebooted My Little Pony franchise as Sunny Starscout and Thomas & Friends' Carly. She's also becoming a regular in dramas and thrillers, including The CW's Reign, and indie films The Family and The Young Arsonists. Warren spoke to Bleeding Cool about her latest project in TriStar Pictures' holiday horror thriller Thanksgiving, reuniting with director Eli Roth, filming, and how her live-action projects compare to her voiceover work. The film follows a mysterious Thanksgiving-inspired killer who emerges following a Black Friday-related tragedy as it terrorizes the residents of Plymouth, Massachusetts, the birthplace of the holiday. The following does contain spoilers.

How Jenna Warren Reunited with Eli Roth for 'Thanksgiving'

What intrigued you about 'Thanksgiving?'
Warren: What got me excited about the project was that I would get to work with Eli again. We worked together in October of 2022 on one of his 'VR Shorts Trick VR Treat' and got along well. When I saw that he was making a feature, I wanted to be a part of it. Horror and thriller are some of my favorite genres to act in; they allow you to play with emotional extremes. I love any project with elements that are based on realism but also have a stretch. I love getting to explore things that don't happen every day.
When I learned that Eli and Jeff [Rendell] came up with this idea at 12 years old, and they were finally making it into a movie, I thought, wouldn't that be the coolest thing if I got to be a part of that creation? Also, when I read the script, I felt this could be special. I would have done anything to be a part of it.

How do you break down your experience working with Eli Roth, and how does this experience compare to the VR project you did with him?
Eli is excellent; he is so fun, passionate, and collaborative, all while sticking to his vision. It is always fun in a director when they know what they want but also care about what you have to say. We had a group chat with him, and still, to this day, we text in it all the time. On set, he would text us every day, tell us how proud he was of us, and lit a fire under us every day so we would show up and give it our all. I don't know many directors who do that. It was very special. He would join us on dinners to explore the city, we went to the movies, and he and Rick [Hoffman] came out for karaoke one night. Yes, it was work but so much fun—the best time of my life.

How is your rapport with your castmates? Did you devise an unseen backstory off-camera to help you get into your roles?
We are so close. It is a really special bond. It happened so organically; we all met and didn't leave each other's side—whole shoot. We had movie nights, dinners, and workout classes and we even went to a trampoline park. One day, while the parade scene was going on, Addison [Rae] and I weren't on set, but we wanted to see it so badly, so we drove from Toronto to Port Perry so we could witness that iconic scene. We would always go in on our off days to see each other, support each other, and learn from each other. We FaceTime and text all the time.

What is the most difficult aspect, sequence, or scene during production?
I think that we did it in less than two months. The amount we had to shoot and the content was a lot to squeeze into that time frame. That is partly why we felt like we wanted to connect as a cast, so the chemistry played well on screen. We didn't have much time to get to know each other before the cameras were up, but we got close quickly, which was never an issue. The RightMart fight scene was shot over four days of night shoots, with hundreds of extras and the craziest hours. But again, it wasn't difficult; we were tired, but we were all so excited to be shooting this iconic scene… the opener that it didn't matter what hour it was; we all kept each other going, and it turned out pretty cool.

The most challenging night for me was my death scene, both the saw and when we returned a few months later to shoot the corn sequence. We wanted to make sure we got it right, and emotionally, I had to get into that space, all while I was wet, covered in fake blood for hours, cold and shaking (they took care of me with blankets and heaters, haha) but again, I wouldn't have had it any different.

Do you find projects like this derivative from your previous work? Does it require a different headspace altogether?
Two of my previous films are both psychological thrillers, and those are projects I feel I do my best work. In that sense, this one aligns somewhat because I get to play with heightened emotions. I have learned how to tap into different headspaces to place myself in scenes, and I am thankful those projects helped me prepare for this one. I also have never died in a film before; I have been close to – but that was a whole other monster. It is a moment in the movie where you don't feel like you are in a slasher. I could sense that while I was reading the script, it moved fast but also moved slowly. Every time I watch it, the audience goes quiet, and they are so zoned in. It is a pause in the chaos, and I am the first one out of the friend group to die; my boyfriend and one of my best friends are there to watch it. I knew we had to handle this scene more carefully than some of the other kills.

What are the biggest differences between performing in front of a camera versus a microphone on a voiceover project?
The biggest difference is that when I am in front of the camera, I have so many externals to play with and rely on, including my own body. I have my facial expressions, my scene partners to play off of, and how I move my body… with voiceover projects, I rely solely on my voice box. Most of the time, I record alone, so I have to imagine this make-believe world that sometimes has not been visually created yet, with voices and characters that sometimes I haven't heard, and create my version of that reality. I have to give the animators and creatives enough to create the whole essence of a character with just my voice. What is such a fun part about this industry is that you get to play. I am so thankful for the opportunity and excited to see where I will go next.

Sony TriStar Pictures' Thanksgiving, which stars Patrick Dempsey, Gina Gershon, Milo Manheim, Jalen Thomas Brooks, and Nell Verlaque, is in theaters.

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