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Writer-director Deon Taylor and actor Andrew Bachelor are reuniting for their latest film, Fear.

In this psychological horror, a group of friends gather for a much-needed weekend getaway at a remote and historic hotel. Celebration turns into terror as one by one, each guest faces their own worst fear.

We sat down with Deon and Andrew to chat about Fear, the evolution of the horror genre, and more!

PC: Deon, you’ve said in previous interviews that one of your hopes for this film is to have audiences confront their own fears in order to grow, which you were able to do, filming during a pandemic. Tell us a bit about the growth you experienced working on this project and that pivotal moment when you decided that you weren’t going to let fear dictate your life.
Deon: This movie means so much to me because of what it represents and the time that it was made. It’s quickly becoming my favorite film because it’s a slice of time that we all remember. We’re all still experiencing it. The movie is deep on so many levels. You can go into this movie and be like, “I love the jumps. I love when this thing happens and I was scared.” Or you can go into this movie and really pick it apart and be like, “What did that mean? What were they trying to say?”

It’s very hard to find hybrid films like that. We’re in this place where there are movies with a lot to say and they happen to be in the horror genre. Get Out was one of those. Ex Machina was one of them. I think we wanted to say something, and artistically we all said it. There was no better person to do this movie with than Andrew, whom I am a fan of, whom I love, but more importantly, who showed up. There are some levels that I’m really excited for people to see in terms of his performance as an actor.

PC: Andrew, this project finds you reuniting with Deon. How did that prior relationship allow you to step into the role of an executive producer and take agency over your character?
Andrew: That’s a great question. This whole film was a challenge. We shot it during a pandemic. We were one of the first films to shoot during the pandemic. We didn’t know what it was. We didn’t know the severity of the virus. We had to deal with that challenge as well as the challenge of living in this haunted cabin. We believed it was actually haunted. At nighttime, I would lock my door. I didn’t want to see anything. It was a fun process, but it was a challenge. It’s a challenge that I’ll never forget, and shout out to Deon for getting us all together to be a part of it.

PC: Deon, the lodge where the film takes place is almost like a character in itself. How did that location inspire and change the narrative?
Andrew: It actually set up everything for me. During that time, everything in the world was closed. I was like, “I’m going to act like I’m renting a house or a cabin up in Tahoe.” It was a very independent film style. Somebody was like, “There’s a cabin, a giant lodge that’s 200 years old.” I’m like, “Where?” I went up there. I remember walking through it and being like, “This is the movie.” Everything spoke to me. There are different types of filmmakers. Some movies are made by filmmakers that are only making movies for critics. Some movies are made for personal reasons that led the filmmaker to want to make it. Then some movies are made for audiences. This was a movie that was made for a personal reason. It was made through the eyes of the audience. It’s kind of a hybrid film.

There was a moment when we were talking about Marvin Gaye’s “What’s Going On.” A lot of people didn’t understand that song when he made it a long time ago. It was like, “Man, what’s that song mean?” It was a reflection like, “What the hell is going on in the world right now?” Fear is my “What’s Going On.” Fear is a movie where I’m like, “Man, I want to turn the cameras on and make a horror film that’s grounded in how we feel right now.” What if we keep allowing fear to manifest in us? It’s interesting because the whole challenge of that movie is how you hold these people in a cabin or a lodge with all of this happening. That’s where the film’s brilliance is at. I can’t wait for everyone to see it.

Make sure to follow Deon (Instagram) and Andrew (Twitter/Instagram). Fear is in theaters now.