Rachael Leigh Cook on 'Spirit Halloween: The Movie'
Rachael Leigh Cook talks to Yahoo Entertainment about her latest film, Spirit Halloween: The Movie, which is based on the popular retail store.
Video Transcript
- He's not answering his phone.
- He's with his buddies.
- Huh!
- [SCREAMS]
- He's fine.
- Holy cow.
- Seal with a sacrifice to set him free.
- Carson, now!
- [SCREAMS]
KEVIN POLOWY: I got to imagine that starring in "Spirit Halloween-- The Movie," you're a big Halloween fan.
RACHAEL LEIGH COOK: I have a lot of, like, guilt, actually, surrounding Halloween. But I really-- you know how you get these ideas as a parent of, like, what you want to be and do. Like, my mom was this incredible artist in so many ways, and she would make my brother and I epic Halloween costumes. Like, I was Queen Elizabeth one year. She made me a tornado one year with, like, 12 different tiers of fabric and a Fisher-Price helicopter, like, mounted on a black beanie. Like, it was epic.
So she overdelivered every Halloween. And I am a "Spirit Halloween" mom. Like, whenever those stores pop up, I'm like, we're going, kids. And they're like, hooray! And so when this movie came around and I was telling the kids like, oh, you know I'm thinking about making this Halloween movie, they're like, oh, you might be in a good movie? Like, that would be awesome. Like, you should go do that.
KEVIN POLOWY: I mean, I haven't fact-checked this, but I think this is the first retail store being adapted into a movie. How did you react when you first heard that they were doing this?
RACHAEL LEIGH COOK: I do think it's unusual. I've not heard of say, like, Bass Pro Shops the movie. That'd be weird.
KEVIN POLOWY: [LAUGHS] Right.
RACHAEL LEIGH COOK: I can't really think of another retail store that would make a good movie. I'm sorry. Not to smack anybody down right now. But, like, Claire's the movie, not sure.
KEVIN POLOWY: Were you nervous at all that they-- that they could make that work as a concept, like hearing about it before you read the script?
RACHAEL LEIGH COOK: What's funny about the whole thing as a concept, as the only likely transition from retail store to the cinemas, is, yes, I get it, a little bit unorthodox. But the movie works just plain as a movie. So it takes place in a Spirit Halloween store. They could have called it, like, Spirited Halloween, and it would have just been some kind of, like, weird ripoff. Like, it's really just a fun story that's like a coming-of-age story about these kids. And so it's just great that the store was sort of, like, game to make it, really.
KEVIN POLOWY: Do you get free costumes from Spirit Halloween now for life? Is that part of the contract?
RACHAEL LEIGH COOK: I should talk to someone about that. I've certainly given them enough money. They really come through for me. I'm just not crafty and handy like my mom. I'm a Spirit Halloween mom. I can't-- I'll go there in about two weeks.
KEVIN POLOWY: You are a mom in real life. What do you enjoy about playing the mom role on screen?
RACHAEL LEIGH COOK: I feel incredibly qualified to do it. That is-- that's my main thing. It's kind of like-- not calling anybody out, but yeah, like, when you see someone holding a baby at a movie where they're clearly like, what is this? You know what I mean? Like, I know what I'm doing. What's funny about being a movie mom that I have to keep reminding myself is that movie mom is nicer than real-life mom.
Like, in the beginning of the movie, I'm having some harsh words with my sort of like-- he's giving me attitude, my pre-teen in this movie. I'm sort of yelling at him to like, "cut it out" and this and that. And I'm using my real mom voice. And they very discreetly but creatively, like, cut away from me being that angry because movie mom doesn't get that angry. Movie mom's going to dial it down a little bit. So that's a quick little lesson I learned. But what do I like about being movie mom? Way more relaxed schedule, fantastically easy, and close to home.
KEVIN POLOWY: Have you done a lot of mom roles?
RACHAEL LEIGH COOK: I have not. I'm just starting to make that mom money, Kevin, just getting it now. I had to wait a long time, which I still--
KEVIN POLOWY: Starting to make that mom cash.
RACHAEL LEIGH COOK: Yeah, right? I was the mom in the remake of "She's All That" called "He's All That." So yeah, mom of teens, here we come.
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