Caddo Lake star Eliza Scanlen on alligator wrestling with Dylan O’Brien

Located on the Texas-Louisiana border, Caddo Lake is a giant body of water that inspires the imagination. What supernatural secrets lurk in the endless swamp? New movie Caddo LakeThe film, directed by Celine Held and Logan George, brilliantly uses the natural aura of the place’s bizarre mystery to tell a genre-bending sci-fi story.

Little womenEliza Scanlan and Young wolfDylan O’Brien stars as Ellie and Paris, two young people whose fates become intertwined when a young girl disappears into the forest maze of a dark lake. Caddo Lake, streaming on Max starting October 10, begins with the search for a missing child but quickly turns into a twisting sci-fi saga that evokes memories of the best The Twilight Zone in its palpable tension, shocking twists and bold plot decisions that create an unforgettable viewing experience.

Screen Rant interviewed Eliza Scanlen about her work on Max. Caddo Lake. She talked about the long hours of filming in the murky waters of a swamp and the creative freedom that comes from eschewing traditional Hollywood glamor. She expressed her gratitude to the visionary directors of the film. Finally, she admitted that despite her Australian upbringing, she is still afraid of insects.

Eliza Scanlen on Caddo Lake’s mix of naturalism, sci-fi and filth

“It was a lot of dirty, nasty days walking through mud, and I loved it.”

Screen Rant: I love a good old-fashioned, mind-blowing sci-fi story where at the end you go, “Wow, now I get it.” Tell me a little about how this copy came to your desk. Did your agent say, “Elisa, you have to read this,” or did the directors approach you? What was the process?

Eliza Scanlen: Well, it just landed in my mailbox. I hadn’t heard of Celine and Logan as directors, but I love, I love working on indie films, so I Googled them and watched their films and thought, oh my god, these people are so talented. I have to work with them! Their films that particularly influenced me were Topside and the short film they directed called Caroline. They just knew how to get people to give really naturalistic, grounded performances, and they had a lot of experience working with non-actors, and I think that’s always great when it’s done well in a film, and they did it very well. Then when I read the script, I thought, “Wow, this is also something I’ve never read before.” It’s sort of the intersection of supernatural mystery and naturalism. Working with non-actors, telling a very grounded story that’s focused on family and intergenerational trauma and all that stuff. I just thought, “Wow, these people are doing really interesting things, I met them and we hit it off and it all happened pretty quickly.”

I love the way you described it, how it’s so naturalistic, so realistic, that once the supernatural or sci-fi elements come into play, it makes it feel so much more tangible.

Eliza Scanlen: Yes, exactly, exactly.

Okay, I’ll just say this because I’m going to go ahead and say something else: I’ll say that you look great today.

Eliza Scanlan: Thank you.

And I say this because in the movie you’re manic and wet and nervous like most of the time.

Eliza Scanlan: (Laughs) Yes, yes.

You’re like a powerful firecracker in the movie.

Eliza Scanlen: I can clean myself up pretty well. But yeah, every day the hairdresser would rub fake mud into my hair and I’d get fake pimples and it was a lot of dirty, nasty days where I’d walk through mud and I loved it. I just loved it. It’s nice to not care about what you look like when you’re making a movie, and the messier the better in this movie!

So when you’re shooting in the water, you don’t think, “Ugh, this is disgusting.” Or does it make you feel down to earth? Do you like it or are you just like, “I can’t wait to shower after this?”

Eliza Scanlon: I mean, it’s both. Well, I’m Australian, so we don’t mind that. But at the end of a long day, I definitely looked forward to taking a shower and cleaning my nails and ears and all that stuff.

I’ve interviewed a number of Australian actors in my time and I think I’ve come to the following conclusion: I want to be Australian.

Eliza Scanlon: You can join the club!

You guys are so cool!

Eliza Scanlon: Thank you. We know. (Laughs)

Caddo Lake’s Eliza Scanlen on filming with a real dead alligator

“I was afraid that my eyes were going to open and he would bite my hand off!”

I talked to Dylan and he said, “I need to know about the alligator situation before I start shooting.” And I imagine you would say, “It’s okay, if there’s an alligator, I’ll knock it to the ground.” Oh wait, you actually have an alligator scene!

Eliza Scanlon: Well, I was definitely afraid of that alligator. Even though it was clearly dead, I was afraid that my eyes would just blink and open as I pulled the alligator away and it would bite my hand off! But yeah, it was pretty rough.

Wow, was there a real alligator in that scene?

Eliza Scanlon: Yes.

Oh. I thought: This looks so real, but it can’t be real, can it? I think so! Fine. Did you meet anyone alive on the set? I think they’re intimidated by the production.

Eliza Scanlon: No, they’re obviously very afraid of boats and that’s why they stayed away. And I think they’re pretty small too. And alligators, I mean, my Australian knowledge tells me that crocodiles are much more aggressive than alligators, I think, or more deadly… I could be completely wrong.

Is this an offensive stereotype? People will probably turn to you and ask, “Is this animal dangerous?” Or is this a cool stereotype?

Eliza Scanlon: I feel like this stereotype can be beneficial in certain situations, but when I spend time with my mom, I still make my mom kill the spider instead of me. I’m a shy cat when it comes to insects, which is unfortunate for an Aussie.

But your insects are the size of rabbits!

Eliza Scanlon: That’s true. Once I was bitten by a spider and I walked on crutches for two weeks.

Wow. Fine. So, last question: We talked a little about the excitement of your character, and once things get going, it just doesn’t subside. Is there any method that you use as an actor to maintain energy, such as exercise, breathing or something else? Or is it just, you know, acting?

Eliza Scanlon: It’s just a game, baby! (Laughs) I mean, I think you jump around a lot to get ready to get to the same pace that you’re trying to maintain throughout the film. But no, I feel like Dylan and I don’t have any crazy prep methods or anything like that. But I feel like Selena and Logan brought energy, you know, like they weren’t going to let us rest on our laurels. They were like, “Let’s go!” In general, we all needed a lot of energy, you know, the whole team and everyone had to work on it. So it was definitely a group effort.

More about Caddo Lake (2024)

When an eight-year-old girl mysteriously disappears, a string of past deaths and disappearances begins to link together, forever changing the story of a broken family. The inspiration for CADDO LAKE came after directors Celine Held and Logan George came across a photograph of the real Caddo Lake online, which led to numerous visits to the cypress forest located on the Texas-Louisiana border. The film was filmed in late 2021 and 2022 in and around Karnack, Texas.

Check out our others Caddo Lake interview here:

Caddo Lake arrives October 10 at Max.