Karen Gillan, much like the rest of us, is still trying to find her own work-life balance.
The 37-year-old actress turned filmmaker has been working consistently for the last decade and a half in major franchises like Doctor Who, the Marvel Cinematic Universe and Jumanji, while also finding time to tackle a slew of other projects. The new mother says she’s practicing the art of taking breaks.
“Not working for the sake of working is probably part of my self-care regime,” Gillan tells The Hollywood Reporter on a Zoom call ahead of the release of her latest project, The Life of Chuck. The fantastical film, a reunion for Gillan, hails from director Mike Flanagan and is based on the Stephen King novella of the same name.
Gillan’s next project is shaping up to be another collaboration with Flanagan that will find her in the director’s chair, the performer explains. Below, the actress and filmmaker chats with THR about working with Flanagan again, why she’s focusing on filmmaking and if she’s considering returning to Marvel.
How do you feel about audiences finally getting to see The Life of Chuck?
I’m so excited for people to see it finally because it’s such a unique project. When I first read it, I was like, there’s just nothing like this. It’s so unique, which is, and for something to be truly unique, I think is quite rare. There’s real originality in there. Much of it is based on the short story, obviously, which is so unique in its own right. Even the structure of it is something you don’t really see very often, and it just sort of brings up all of these questions within yourself about your existence and the meaning of it all. How you should be living your life versus how you are. I’m excited because I think it’s going to start a lot of conversations among people after they leave the theater.
What initially drew you to The Life of Chuck?
I was pretty much a yes before I even read it and that was because Mike Flanagan was at the helm. He is the reason that I came over to America in the first place from the U.K. [I had] a role in his film Oculus, which is one of his first films, and that allowed me to come to this country and then just not go home. I’m really grateful for that, and I had such a good time on that film. To watch his career skyrocket in the way that it has, [it’s] been so satisfying. It was so obvious that it was going to happen anyway, right off the bat. Initially he was the reason I wanted to do the project. Also, Stephen King, [is] one of the greatest of all time.
I would say that The Shining might be my favorite film, so I’m a Stephen King fan. I read the script and was even more excited to do it after I had read that because as I mentioned before, it was just unlike anything I had really experienced before when reading a script. I think it was really smart of the producers to want to make this independently rather than with a studio where maybe some [of the] strange uniqueness might have been dampened down to cater to the masses a little bit more. It was actually just afforded the luxury of being able to be made the way that the filmmakers exactly wanted to make it. That was also a really exciting element to me. It was like this is going to be Mike Flanagan at his most Flanagan-ish.
Karen Gillan in ‘The Life of Chuck.’
Did your experience working with Mike again make you reflect on the trajectory of your own career?
I knew that I wanted to work with Mike again. I visited him on the set of Haunting of Hill House while he was making that, and it was a lot of the same people and crew that made Oculus, the film that I was in that he did and I was like, “I need to work with you again.” I was sitting in video village just watching it being made. [I told him,] “Hire me, put me in something.” He [said,] “I will, I will. We’ll find the right thing.” Looking Life of Chuck, it does feel like a lot of familiar faces are popping up throughout that film in a sort of interesting way because the nature of the film is it’s about this man’s life and people are popping up in different ways throughout his past and it’s sort of the same for Mike Flanagan. A lot of his actors are popping up, so it’s a little homage to everything he’s done. It was the perfect project for us to reunite. It really was.
As soon as he told me about [Life of Chuck], I was like, this makes all the sense in the world. It did make me reflect on my own career because when I was filming Life of Chuck, I can’t tell you how content I actually was. You don’t always feel that way. I’m a human. We all are guilty of longing for things and wanting to be someone that you might not be in that current moment. Trying to get further along and do more. For some reason, just being on that film felt like I was exactly where I was meant to be exactly the right time. I didn’t need to long for anything. That’s quite a rare feeling, but I specifically felt that, and it’s interesting because [Mike] had all of the actors write a little piece about their experience on the film. He put it into a book that we all have. It’s just a little private book for us. I wrote about that exact feeling. That was what my piece was about, was like it’s so nice to just feel completely content with the present.
It sounds cheesy, but how do you take care of yourself when work gets hectic?
I think I’m still figuring that out, to be honest. I don’t think I have it nailed yet. I keep expressing this thing of when you’re working in this industry, it’s completely all-consuming. If you are someone that puts 110 percent into things — which I would say a lot of actors are because it’s so competitive to get to do this — that means there’s not much room for anything else while you’re working. Then you take a break from work and you are like, ah, I want to be creative. It’s either it’s all or it’s nothing. Middle ground here — how does that work? Even the hours that you’re filming, there’s nowhere I would rather be other than now with my daughter because she’s only four months old.
I don’t mean to sound like I’m complaining about being on set because it’s absolutely my favorite thing, but it is a situation where I spend 15, 18 hours a day sometimes. How do you strike the balance of a personal life and work at the same time? I haven’t figured it out. The only way I can sort of do it is by taking breaks. Not working for the sake of working is probably part of my self-care regimen. I’m someone that would rather take a break than make something just for the sake of doing it. That, and baths in silence. I really think so many of us don’t actually sit in the quiet with our thoughts until our head hits the pillow at nighttime and then we’re like, why can’t we sleep? It’s like because we have so much processing to do that’s been put on the back burner because we’re constantly stimulating it. Maybe if I can get that done earlier in the day or the night by sitting alone with my thoughts, then that’s what I need to do.
What do you find yourself creatively drawn to?
What I love and want to do more of is filmmaking — in the sense of creating the story, filming it, directing it, maybe being in it as well, editing it or with an editor. I don’t know how to edit myself, but being in that part of the process is amazing. That is where I definitely see my career headed now. It feels like I’m in a little bit of a new chapter, and I’m going to spend more [time]. That and that is what I do for fun, when I have a moment. It’s really interesting. I had a baby [about] five months ago. It’s the most incredible experience I’ve ever had. It’s been a bit of a blur for the last few months. Somehow, I don’t remember doing this, but I’ve written a pilot. OK, this is a complete postpartum haze of a pilot. It’s like when the baby was sleeping on me, I was like, I’m just going to start writing and I don’t even know if I show this to anyone. It sort of allowed me to really just word vomit and free write without the self-judgment of it all. I don’t even know if this will go anywhere, and it’s OK actually. I think I’m going to get it to a good spot. That’s sort of what I do to feel like I’m still being creative. It’s an outlet. It is fun for me, but there’s an end goal to it, which is hopefully I will make it at some point.
You’ve worked with many directors as an actor, do you find you’ve taken some of their way of filmmaking into your own? Do you think you’ve mirrored their way of things on set or found it helpful?
Definitely. You can’t help but soak it all up when you’re around it and experiencing it. What’s lovely is I’ve had the luxury of working with so many different directors, and it’s funny because directors are maybe the least experienced people on a set because they aren’t on set very often. Whereas I’m constantly on set. The crew is constantly on a set, and we sort of go through different directors. I’ve gotten to work with so many directors and so many brilliant ones, so I’ve taken all kinds of little things that I never would’ve known about. One of the best directors to work with actors that I’ve experienced is James Gunn. He’s so good with actors. He’s really respectful of the work that actors do, which really just feels nice. He’s one of those brilliant football coaches, where he’s a different coach to each actor. [That’s] an exercise in psychology. Who needs what and when? How do I give it to them? He is absolutely amazing at that. He also just knows when to really get in there and direct you and get you to an emotional place. He knows when to just let you be free. I’ve definitely taken how to work with actors from him.
Mike Flanagan’s another one. He was a really experienced editor when he started, and that really shines through in his way of directing. He’s already cutting it in his head, and he doesn’t overshoot things. He knows how it’s all going to come together. Hearing him talk about the way he’s going to cut something that I’ve just filmed with him is one of the coolest things because he’s really rhythmic. It’s already there in his mind, and that’s something I’ve definitely taken and really like to pre-plan, [that] is how I like to storyboard everything, which is something that he does as well.
Karen Gillan in ‘Avengers: Endgame.’
Everett Collection
Are there any projects you’re working on that you can talk about or that you want to talk about?
Oh gosh, this is going to be so annoying. I can’t actually talk about what it is, but I’m teaming up with Mike again on one of my own creations, which is really exciting. Something that I will direct for sure, perhaps act in at the same time. I don’t know how I do this to myself, but here we are again. That will be my main focus next. I have a few other things in development that are my original ideas. It’s more of a focus on original stuff right now.
I’m sure you’re very sick of being asked about Marvel, but of course, I’m going to ask you about Marvel. It’s become pretty clear that nothing is off limits in terms of rejoining or coming back. Do you see that in the future for you?
I can’t say, but watch this space.
Is there something that you haven’t been able to do in your career yet that you’re dying to do?
Yes, and it’s the thing that I’m doing with Mike. It’s going to be one of the biggest challenges I’ve ever taken on. If we get to do it, which it’s looking like we will, it’s one of those that’s verging on the opposite of self-care. I don’t know, [it might be] hard to pull off, but that’s exciting to me. I think I’m looking for something that feels like such a challenge that I’m not sure if it’s going to work. That’s quite a scary space to live in, and I’m trying to live in imposter syndrome as much as possible these days. That is actually where you want to be because it means you’re leveling up in some way. I’m definitely going to feel like an imposter on that one, so hopefully it works.
