Q&A with Hemlock Grove’s Emilia McCarthy

Netflix will release all 13 episode of their original horror series, Hemlock Grove, this Friday. We recently had the opportunity to conduct a Q&A with Emilia McCarthy, who told us about her experience working on the series and what we can expect from her character:

Thanks for taking the time to talk with Daily Dead. Can you tell our readers a little bit about yourself and your acting experience over the years?

Emilia McCarthy: I live close to Toronto, Ontario in Canada and its cold most of the time! But other than that love Canada is awesome and there are so many acting opportunities in Toronto lately; it’s great! I started acting when I was about 7 and ever since it’s been my passion. My first experience was filming Babel in Mexico which was incredible! Ever since, I can’t think of doing anything else with my life!

How did you become involved in Hemlock Grove? What was the casting process like?

Emilia McCarthy: I was called to audition in Toronto for Eli Roth, the director. Got the role and was called in for a chemistry test to find my fraternal twin! It was nice and simple!

Without giving away spoilers, what can you tell us about the character you play?

Emilia McCarthy: My character Alyssa is one of the sheriff’s twin daughters. She’s honestly a typical teen girl trying to get through high school, high school dramas, boys etc. Only difference is that a typical teen probably wouldn’t be dealing with werewolves… It is because of this that Alyssa is quite relatable and fun to watch.

The series is based on a novel from Brian McGreevy. Did you read the original book and how similar is the book to the series?

Emilia McCarthy: The series has kept quite similar to the novel. After all, a big quantity of the viewers will be people who originally read the book so it’s important to please them, because ultimately it’s them who keep it all going!

Hemlock Grove has a huge cast, including Famke Janssen, Lili Taylor, and Bill Skarsgard. Did you enjoy getting a chance to work with all of these experienced actors? What did you learn from them?

Emilia McCarthy: It was fantastic working with all these wonderful actors! They are all such genuinely nice people; all in all great to work with! They are very inspirational and easy to look up to so I definitely learned a lot of acting tips from watching them!

You play the daughter of Aaron Douglas' character in Hemlock Grove. Can you tell me about your experience working with Aaron?

Emilia McCarthy: Aaron was so fun to work with! He is such a funny person and makes you feel real comfortable while working with him, which is very important. I was honored to get the chance to play his daughter!

Were there any funny or interesting behind-the-scenes stories you can share with our readers? What are some of your favorite on-set memories?

Emilia McCarthy: One of my first days filming, at the end of the day Eli Roth started bragging to me and Eliana Jones, who plays my twin, about how he’s good friends with Selena Gomez! So of course we were freaking out and wanting him to introduce us to her and so on. Anyway, we ended up sending her a video of us telling her to come be a guest star on the show and to feel free to bring Justin Bieber along with her… It was hilarious but embarrassing…

Are you someone who likes watching horror movies? What are some of your favorite horror movies? Or what are the movies that scared you?

Emilia McCarthy: I do love a good horror movie! I love The Blair Witch Project because of its realistic aspect to it, which is really important in a horror movie or else it’s not believable and ruins the whole purpose of a horror movie. I recently, also loved Cabin in the Woods for its comic relief aspect. I thought it was super creative and brought uniqueness to it, which Hemlock Grove also does with mine and my twin’s character.

Eli Roth is known for directing and producing a number of horror movies. Have you watched any of his films and did you get to spend time with him on set? What was your experience like working with him?

Emilia McCarthy: Eli was amazing to work with oh my goodness! During our time together on set, he was so personable and gave me so many great tips on having a successful career. Best experience ever! He is hilarious and such an awesome person. I really, really hope I am able to work with him again in the near future!

Thanks again for taking the time to talk with us. For our readers who want to keep an eye out for you, what other projects are you working on?

Emilia McCarthy: I worked on another series called Unlikely Heroes and which is set to come out with a release date soon! I’m also in the process of filming another series called Kids Town which wraps in June. I’m very excited about these projects as well!

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Interested in learning more about Hemlock Grove, catch up on our recent coverage and watch the latest trailer at: http://dailydead.com/new-red-band-trailer-for-eli-roths-hemlock-grove/

Photo Credit: S. Markus Mathurin