In Hulu’s Helstrom, premiering October 16, a son and daughter team of a mysterious and powerful serial killer share a rather complicated dynamic. One that is steeped in familial bonds and loopholes, two of which are the parental figures.
Elizabeth Marvel plays Victoria Helstrom, the presently asylum bound mother of the two, and Robert Wisdom plays the Caretaker, who has been protecting the family for many years, as they track down the possible blights on humanity. Screen Rant was lucky enough to speak to these two amazing actors and discuss their experiences, inspirations, and choices while bringing these characters to life
Elizabeth, when acting, the phrase "make it yours" is used a lot. What did you bring to the role that was different from what we've seen before?
Elizabeth Marvel: I brought my own brand of hell, and my own relationship to rage and control and power. I was the conduit, so it came out the way I express it. I do believe it is uniquely mine. Everything you see me do and everything you hear me say is me. There is no alteration. There is a little computer change, with some of my veins popping out and my face bulging. But all of the stunt work - I would is say 90% me. Vocally, that's all me.
And it's true of the show in general. If you see us in a room on fire, we filmed it in a room on fire. There's very little CGI in the show. I mean, it exists, don't get me wrong - but it's extremely minimal. And that was something that the creators of the show were really adamant about, because of the nature of the show, which I think is so interesting. Because it's sort of based on a domestic story of a family breaking apart, and so they wanted everything to be based in realism and naturalism.
Robert, your character is supposed to be the guardian of knowledge in the occult. Did you get any time to research what that requires of you, or did you just have to run with what was on the page and build from there?
Robert Wisdom: No, I have a personal interest in and have explored the realms of high magic and esoterica and sort of occult things. So, I kind of buy into the power that whole dimension of ancient knowledge has, and so I respect it. I just brought that into the experience of Caretaker, knowing that there's powers that are old and we don't account for anymore, but a simple spell being enacted or a simple brew being put together can be as potent today as it ever was.
There was just some respect that I brought to that, and then the backstory of Caretaker, to sort of fill in other things. Then we were off. They put us in situations, and then it became just a drama for me. It became an actor looking at a situation and playing out the story in front of them, and the rest of it is just kind of what you emanate. Thank you for the feedback; I think it might work.
Elizabeth, you yourself, everyone's been saying, "When you finally get to her, you're gonna have to ask a stupid question." And I'm gonna ask a stupid question: the crazy voice, can I hear it?
Elizabeth Marvel: Oh, I need to get my voice there. I don't think I can get it there right now, because I usually need like a good hour to get it perfectly damaged enough. I basically have to damage my vocal cords. No, no, it's okay. They heal; they're resilient. I have a very strong voice. But it's it's not naturally where my voice lives; I have to get it there.
How did you build that crazy voice?
Elizabeth Marvel: How it happened was I was far from home in Vancouver, alone and away from my family, and I would watch a lot of evening news. I was so upset at what I was watching unfold in the world that I took a couch cushion, and I would scream into it. I guess I was unaware of how much I was screaming into that couch cushion, but I massively damaged my voice. I made it incredibly hoarse.
When I was going to work to sort of begin, my voice was trashed, and it was fabulously perfect for the demonic.
Robert, everyone says there was a moment during a table read where Elizabeth does the voice for the first time, and everyone had a reaction to it. What was your reaction to hearing the voice for the first time?
Robert Wisdom: Well, I'll let you do it in print. But I said, "Oh, fuck." It was that kind of thing where all I was doing, because I'm a big fan of hers anyway -
Elizabeth Marvel: It's mutual.
Robert Wisdom: It's one of those things where, at the table read, you're kind of looking at your side just see what she's gonna do next. "What's happening?" It was that kind of thing. And it's like, walking out of the room, "This is gonna work."
Elizabeth Marvel: It was funny on set, because to keep my voice there, I'd have to walk around [gunting.] There was a time that I was in an actor tent doing that, and this poor security guy came bursting in with his billy club. He thought a bear had gotten into the set, and he was absolutely terrified. So, there were instances. Yeah.
What was he thinking he was gonna be able to do with a billy club versus a bear?
Elizabeth Marvel: Not sure. I don't know, that's a good question.
Robert Wisdom: A Canadian with a billy club and a bear is different than an American with a billy club.
That's very true. Were there changes that were made consciously when performing or doing things for your character that was different or in contrast to what the source material had for your characters?
Elizabeth Marvel: I had a lot of room to play, because Victoria is introduced in Son of Satan, but it's mainly backstory [for the] Church of Dresden story. It's not in this moment moving forward. So, I really got to create as we went a lot. I had a lot of room.
Robert Wisdom: No, there were no reins on it. I remember on the first day, in the first scene, we took an extra amount of time because I pitched the character high, I pitched the character low, I came down the middle... Just trying to find where he lived. There was a joke being set up, and at first I was playing the joke. And then it was like, "No, just get behind it." So, we got behind it and dried it out, and then that's where the character lives. It's like, "Oh, he's real dry."
But you got to do a whole lot of things to kind of get there, and everybody's letting you play. So, you're feeling somewhat like a freak. And then other times you just realize it's the process, but it is happening in front of the camera. But finally, when we landed, it was just like a click. It was like a lock just dropping in, and it was like, "That's where it lives."
Helstrom premieres on Hulu on October 16.