Lucie Guest is a Canadian-born actress, director, and writer who has been on series such as “The CW’s Supernatural”, “iZombie”, and Netflix’s “The Chilling Adventures of Sabrina”. She is a powerhouse talent both in front of and behind the camera and in 2021 her dynamic talent as a storyteller was on full display.
I had the opportunity to (virtually) sit down with Guest to discuss her new film “Hypnotic,” which just debuted on Netflix. We also discussed how she got into acting and her favorite roles she had the privilege to be part of, and some dream projects.
Brendan: Welcome, Lucie! Thank you for doing this interview. First off, I just wanted to say I’m a huge ‘Supernatural’ fan. How did it feel to be on the show?
Lucie: Um, well, that was an awesome role that I got to play. I think the episode was called ‘Bloody Valentine,’ I think. But I mean, she was a pretty fun character. She was definitely disillusioned and had a very different sense of right or wrong, which was really fun to play. And it was just cool to be a part of that. ‘Supernatural’ has such a huge following. And it was when that episode aired, even like five years later, I remember walking into something, and somebody ultimately recognized me from that episode. During that moment, they were like, we just rewatched your episode. I was like, ‘Oh, wow. That’s amazing!’ So it’s just nice to know that ‘Supernatural’ has such an amazing fan following.
Is there any advice you would give to aspiring actors, aspiring writers? And I know you’re a writer, actor, and director. So, double question, do you feel like you enjoy three? Or what’s your favorite?
I think the hardest of the three is writing. For some reason, I feel writing can feel the most vulnerable. I mean, acting has had its moments where you are fully exposed. But writing, especially when you’re creating something, is so satisfying. Because sometimes, when I’m writing, I feel like the ideas are kind of coming through to me. And I just feel like when I can experience that, it’s pretty magical. It doesn’t happen all the time. But there’s something really satisfying creating characters in a world and then filming it and seeing the final project.
I remember when the first feature-length I wrote was officially made, and I was directing it when people were talking about the characters in the world and how they were. When they were telling you and talking back to you about how your characters would be and what they would do. It was just so wild to me because I just made them up. It was so satisfying just to have people take on this thing that you’ve created and just take it to another level. And that was just super awesome.
You’re also in ‘Sabrina,’ which was great because it was a complex mixture of ‘Riverdale’s’ CW drama built with the heart and the intensity of ‘Supernatural’s’ writing.
Oh, that’s an excellent way of putting it. ‘Sabrina’ was great, especially playing Circe, which was pretty wild. I read a bunch of history on pagan witches and the mythology behind the Greek story of Circe, which was pretty in-depth. There’s a 700-page book about Circe which I did not read. I watched the author talk about it. But Circe was such a great character to play. Because she was sort of a complex character.
Still, there’s so many layers to that. It’s so interesting because it all depends on how you define what the term ‘witch’ means. It opened up a whole world for me when I went pretty deep down a YouTube rabbit hole of the history of Circe, pagans and witches. I was like, ‘there’s a lot of really great people just like they’re not all there, there’s not a lot there’s the assumption that you know,’ which is super dark and has these dark intentions. Really, when you look into some of the world’s of witches, it’s like aromatherapy was considered witchcraft and things like that when it’s not very, in my mind, evil at all. It’s very good.
I commend Roberto Aguirre-Sacasa. He wrote ‘Riverdale,’ but he also produced ‘Sabrina.’
He’s very involved in the creation of the show and every episode. What I like about Roberto is that he’s very detail-oriented. I think my favorite filmmakers, showrunners and writers are the directors who have this ability for attention to detail. And I think he has that. And I think that’s why there’s some sort of consistency with the shows.
Everyone was so welcoming. Sometimes, when you’re a new cast member, it can be daunting. I came on the third season. You know, everyone’s sort of established, everyone knows everyone, and everyone’s sort of a family, and you’re kind of the new kid. And it was just the most welcoming set.
I have only had really good things to say about that cast. We still keep in touch over Instagram, a bunch of us, and it’s just kind of nice to have worked with such talented young actors.
The tone around the series is that it’s going to be a cult classic one day. For example, you might get to attend a comic con. You might get called to host a panel and discuss the series and its impact.
I would love that, and I feel I wore the best costumes, I think, I’ve ever had during my acting career. The costume designer, Angus, I think he won an Oscar for ‘Moulin Rouge,’ he was designing the corset I wore. This one outfit was sort of like a ‘Moulin Rouge’ type of outfit, and he was like, ‘this is bringing me back to my Moulin Rouge days.’ I was like, ‘this is the best costume I’ve ever had.’ I mean, that’s sort of the dream for me when I get to collaborate with people whose attention to detail put their all into something, and that’s their passion.
So transitioning to films you’ve done, and I know you have two projects coming up. We’ll talk about that in a few minutes. How’d you get into ‘Hypnotic?’ What drew you to that project?
Well, ‘Hypnotic’ is sort of a psychological thriller about a girl who tries to recover from a rough time, personally and professionally. And my character, Gina, who’s her bestie, convinces her to see a hypnotherapist and things sort of take a dark turn from there.
What drew you to this role?.
The script. When I read it, it was a good page-turner, and I enjoyed the relationship between Jen and Gina. It was nice to see two characters that are really supportive of each other, and it just felt real. And I also kind of like that it’s like this giant PSA for never getting hypnotized.
I will never get hypnotized after this movie. I thought the role of Gina was great. I got to have some pretty fun scenes. Then to have her innocence turn on her while having this sort of realization that things aren’t always how they seem. The consequences of that, like having that experience and sort of having her kind of psychologically realize that she’s put her friend in danger, was interesting to play.
So would you say it was like a dream project, or what is a dream project you want to embark on?
I definitely think it was a dream project, [especially] working with the cast, the directors and the producers I’d worked with before. It was such a good, strong team. Kate Siegel is such a talented actress, and Jason O’Mara was so creepy as Dr. Meade. It was just so nice to work with such strong actors that it was thrilling. I think a dream project would be something like a White Lotus or Fleabag, or something like that. My dream project would be a character that has some comedic elements but is quite layered and complicated as well. ‘Killing Eve’ or something like that. I enjoy shows with characters that are complex, surprising, and have moments of comedic relief. I think that’s a really fun marriage.
What’s it like going from Netflix/The CW to Hallmark?
I understood the tone of what Hallmark was looking for. So I wrote a sort of pitched idea, and we were able to make it, and I directed it. It was a great experience to be able to write something and then direct it and see it on TV.
Personally, my genre has a lot more dark humor to it. It’s nice sometimes to venture out of what your natural sort of essence is, and do something a little bit outside of your comedic sensibilities. I always say that these sort of romance movies for Hallmark are ROMs, no comms. I mean, there is some com, there’s some fun banter. But there, they’re warm hug romances, and they’re perfect.
Sometimes you just need to decompress to something that’s not stressful in any way. And that brings you some sort of happiness and or warmth. You see, I’m a director. I know how to adapt and deliver to a tone that a network is looking for, and I find that really exciting.
If you could pitch anything to any studio, what would it be?
I definitely would pitch a limited series that I would like to co-create and be a part of, which is kind of like my ‘Fleabag.’ I would like to write it and be a part of it. I want to be able to be a part of the beginning, middle, and end of something that you get to act in. I enjoy being able to direct and act simultaneously. I have gained experience doing both, so it’s an enjoyable challenge.
