Exclusive Interview: Kyle Allen Chats The In Between, Supporting Female-Led Stories, & More

Kyle Allen has quickly emerged as one of Hollywood’s most sought-after leading men. He’s landed coveted roles in projects including The Path, American Horror Story, and The Map of Tiny Perfect Things. This February, he stars opposite Joey King in The In Between.

The supernatural love story centers on a teenage girl, Tessa (Joey King), who, after bouncing around in foster homes for most of her childhood, doesn’t believe she deserves her own love story. Everything changes after she has a chance encounter with Skylar (Kyle Allen), a senior from a neighboring town who’s a true romantic. As her heart begins to open, tragedy strikes when a car accident takes Skylar’s life, while Tessa survives. As Tessa searches for answers in the aftermath of the accident, she soon believes Skylar is attempting to reconnect with her from the afterworld. With the help of her best friend and a newfound belief that love never dies, Tessa attempts to contact Skylar one last time, in order to give their love story the epic ending it deserves.

Pop Culturalist was lucky enough to chat with Kyle about The In Between, supporting female-led stories, and more.

PC: You’ve had a lot of success in the romance genre. Last year, you had The Map of Tiny Perfect Things, and this year, The In Between. What is it about this genre that excites you as a creative?
Kyle: I find it really fascinating because right now I feel like we get to tell stories that are more female-centric. They’re less classically romantic in the way that the woman plays a very specific role and the guy plays a very specific role. Something that’s really unique about The Map of Tiny Perfect Things and this film is that there is a twist. There’s a spin. That’s really important. Joey King leads this one. Kathryn Newton is the center of the other film. I feel really honored to be able to support these actresses in their careers and in telling these more modern stories.

PC: There’s great chemistry that comes off the screen between you and Joey. Because of the pandemic, you were never able to be in the same room before you were cast. Was there a moment on set when you realized you had the spark necessary to bring this love story to life?
Kyle: That’s all her. She’s super friendly. She’s super down-to-earth. People might see in her interviews being bubbly, fantastic, and friendly. They might wonder if she’s really like that, and she is 24/7/365. She’s absolutely a powerhouse of joy, openness, love, unrelenting professionalism, and is absolutely gifted in the art of filmmaking. It was a masterclass on life.

PC: At the heart of this story is a young woman who’s trying to connect with your character. If you were able to communicate with somebody from the other side, who would it be and why?
Kyle: Either of my grandfathers. I actually have only met one of my grandparents, but sometimes I feel like I miss that history and coming from somewhere. I speculate because I had only met one of my grandparents, who I wasn’t particularly close to, who passed away when I was young. That history and sense of knowing where you come from and the people who came before you and produced you are important. That’s who I would want to chat it up with.

PC: There are so many endearing moments between Tessa and Skylar. Is there a particular scene that you’re really excited for your fans to see when the film drops? What do you hope they take away?
Kyle: I really love that scene that we do at the end of The In Between where we’re saying goodbye. That was a huge point when I first read the script. I was like, “This scene is going to be great.” I really wanted to make sure we were building towards that. When we did it, I was like, “That was so honest.” We did it the way it was supposed to be done. I’m really looking forward to that.

Films for me have always been really affirming. You feel all these different and crazy things in your life and in your own head. You experience them and they stay with you. In a film, that gets reflected back at you. Hopefully, being young and having extreme loss, really difficult circumstances, and emotions, we can reflect that and that healing process back to people.

To keep up with Kyle, follow him on Instagram. Watch The In Between on Paramount+ today!