In Christina's recent review of The Dark, she said that "The success of The Dark, for me, lies entirely in the characters... amidst all those successful elements, The Dark is about the two characters at its heart, Mina and Alex beautifully broken together." Today we have a Q&A with Toby Nichols, who plays Alex in the The Dark, hitting theaters and VOD today, courtesy of Dark Sky Films:
How did you get involved with The Dark? What did you think about the story and your character when you first read the script?
Toby Nichols: I got the audition to play Alex from my agent and I was fairly excited to play such a complex character. The day of the callback I was really sick and my mom had me under a sheet getting steamed all morning so that I would be able to talk when Justin and Nadia called me on Skype. When I heard I got the role I was very excited, relative to my calm, angsty temperament.
In The Dark, your character is blind. What kind of research and preparation did you do for the role?
Toby Nichols: As far as research goes, I had prosthetics covering my eyes on set, from the minute I got to set until we wrapped for the day. Being, literally, in the dark gave me a lot of time to put myself into Alex’s position and imagine what he went through. The challenge of the prosthetics was conveying subtext and emotion without eyes.
Can you talk about working with Nadia Alexander? The movie relied on you two having great chemistry, and you two really pulled it off.
Toby Nichols: Another testament to my acting, pretending to be her friend (joke). We bonded immediately and she’s an impressive actress who brought the character to life, or maybe death?
What was your favorite on-set scene or moment? What was it like working with director and writer Justin P. Lange?
Toby Nichols: My favorite scene was eating soup, I hate soup. Behind the scenes, our Austrian keygrip Boris would say “get ready for the souping” in an impish way and it made it nearly impossible to “ravenously” drink my cold soup without bursting out laughing.
Justin helped me understand Alex, so I could better place myself in his shoes. He’s a proficient director and he wrote something I was really proud to be a part of.
This film has been screening at festivals and will be available from Dark Sky Films shortly. What has it been like to see such a positive reaction to the film from critics and horror fans?
Toby Nichols: It is rewarding to see this work come to life in such a beautiful way. Then, seeing that other people love this story as much as I do is just amazing. This entire production was a joy to be a part of. The entire cast and crew were prepared and professional to the point of perfection.
What projects do you have coming up that you can tell our readers about?
Toby Nichols: As far as future work, I’ve just finished high school and I spent my summer working at an archeological park in Israel. I’m planning on working on another ongoing dig there this spring and hope to pursue that along with any other acting opportunities that come along.
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"On the outskirts of a small town lies Devil's Den, a mysterious tract of woods where many have entered but no one has ever left. The local rumor is that the spirit of a young girl who was horrifically murdered there haunts and hunts in this dense forest, brutally slaying anyone who dares to step into her terrain. When a man with a dark past crosses her path, a series of events are set in motion that may lead to a peculiar kind of redemption for two tragically tortured souls.
Part gothic fairytale and part chilling horror, director Justin P. Lange's debut feature balances rich imagery with a brutal and bloody story of unlikely kindred spirits who must defend themselves against the villainous powers of the 'normal' world."
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