KAREN GILLAN
stars in film
The Life of Chuck
Interview by Laasya Gadiyaram
With an ever-growing repertoire that spans from cosmic franchises like Guardians of the Galaxy to heartfelt indies, Karen Gillan continues to captivate audiences with her versatility, wit, and depth. In her latest project, The Life of Chuck, she reunites with director Mike Flanagan for a film that defies genre and expectations—an intimate, poignant reflection on life and legacy told in reverse. Radiating both warmth and humility, Gillan opens up about the profound experience of making this film, the emotional resonance of her character, and what it’s like to share cinematic space with some of the industry’s most iconic names. We sat down with her to dive into the magic behind The Life of Chuck, her evolving artistic journey, and what lies ahead.
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LG: Congratulations on the Life of Chuck! What has the process been like so far?
KG: Thank you so much! It’s been the most incredible process, all the way from being sent the script, to making the film, to then putting the film out into the world. It’s such a special piece of work and it was so apparent immediately when reading the script. I got a call from Mike Flanagan, the filmmaker, who I’ve worked with before, and he asked me to be in the film. I basically said, “Yes!” before I even read the script, but I thought, “Okay, I’ll do my due diligence,” so I read the script and was completely blown away. It’s just so unique and special, and I knew I wanted to work with Mike again because I had such a good experience the first time. Then we made it and it felt like some sort of big family reunion in a way. It’s so special to be part of something that he wants to leave in the world. This is such a special film for him, one that he wants to leave behind for his children, and so it was really nice to get to be part of that.
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LG: What was it like to work with such an amazing cast, including Mark Hamill, Tom Hiddleston, and Mia Sara?
KG: Incredible. I’m such a fan of all of those people. I can’t quite believe I get to be in the same film as them, the same conversation as them. I didn’t actually have any scenes with them, but it’s cool enough just to be in close proximity to them. Most of my stuff was with Chiwetel, who I’m a massive fan of, and he is such a brilliant actor that I genuinely feel like I learned something from doing my scenes with him.
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LG: This isn’t your first movie in the sci-fi realm. How does this experience compare to your previous projects?
KG: I’m no stranger to sci-fi… always in space. Even though Life of Chuck explores a lot of sci-fi-ish themes, a lot of end-of-the-world, end-of-the-universe stuff, it feels a lot more grounded than the other sci-fi experiences that I’ve had. The film doesn’t necessarily feel sci-fi. It feels more true to life, even though it’s pretty outlandish, in terms of the themes of the film, so it feels totally different. It feels like it’s very human and an exploration into how we’re spending our lives, how we should be spending our lives, and whether we’re spending them the way that we ought to be.
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LG: How did you approach developing your character, Felicia?
KG: I had a really in-depth conversation with Mike Flanagan where we kind of filled in all the blanks of her backstory. Then I went away and did more work on my own. So I kind of had it all in my head, and then I just sort of brought it to the scenes, and then it took on a life of its own once Chiwetel was in the picture. I kind of had some of the stuff Mike and I had discussed in the back of my mind and it kind of became what it is naturally. Bit of both, really.
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LG: What similarities or differences do you see between yourself and Felicia?
KG: Ooh, am I like Felicia? I think I can sometimes take on a little bit of a caretaker position in people’s lives. Both of my parents worked in the care industry so I have inherited a little bit of that tendency, naturally drawn to that, and I like that about Felicia too.
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LG: How does Felicia fit within the broader story in the film?
KG: So she’s in the first act, which is actually the third act of the story, as the film is in reverse. Felicia is a nurse and is at the end of everything, the end of the universe, and so she is completely overrun at the hospital since so many people are giving up on life and committing suicide. She is desperately trying to hold on to hope and optimism because of her nature as a caretaker and her tendency to make sure everybody else is okay. Then she reconnects with her ex-husband (played by Chiwetel), his name is Marty, and they have some beautiful moments together before it’s the very end.
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LG: You’ve worked on franchises like Jumanji and Guardians of the Galaxy. How do you compare contributing to a collective body of work as opposed to a stand-alone film?
KG: I always feel really fortunate when I get to be in a film that has more of a franchise as opposed to a single standalone film, just because you get more time. More time to explore the character, more time to show different sides of them, more time to dive into all different kinds of things that you wouldn’t have the time to do in a two hour stand-alone film. So you know, for something like my character Nebula in the Marvel films, I feel incredibly fortunate that I got to evolve the character. She had so many more layers and became so much more because of the screen time that I was given with her.
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LG: What projects would you like to work on in the future?
KG: I’d love to do a good rom-com. That would be really fun. I grew up watching them and that would be great. And I’d like to do a lot more filmmaking and that’s definitely what I’m planning to do.
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LG: What do you want audiences to know before they experience this movie?
KG: As little as possible. Go in cold and just be completely open to the experience of this film. It’s one of those that will spark conversations and it will make you examine your own life in a really incredible, valuable way.