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When it comes to his craft, Kieron Moore is a self-confessed “insane.”
So when the opportunity came to portray a brooding vampire with a dark past, Moore knew she could jump right in. boots and other projects. Losing 30 kilograms (about 66 pounds) if Lucius Malfoy was going to the feet of Jason Isaacs, Moore’s commitment to the new horror film. Vampire Carnival And his dynamic role as Eric is quite impressive.
Vampire CarnivalAvailable now on VOD, follows Gemma (Nell Verlak) as she becomes drawn to a mysterious traveling carnival that appears without warning in her small town. Still grieving the loss of his father, he is drawn to the carnival’s terrifying spectacle and its promise of escape from his daily struggles. However, he soon discovers that the carnival is a gateway to a hidden vampire world – a world where human blood is spilled. is not in their work list.
Part of the deal is Eric, who cheers up carnival-goers with his “man who feels no pain” act. Although daggers in vital organs are no big deal, his dark and mysterious past threatens to undo him. Both he and Gemma must confront their demons and discover that they may have more in common than they realize. As the film reminds viewers several times, “there is beauty in the dark. The world shouldn’t be this dark.”
Ahead of the film’s release, PopHorror spoke with Moore, as well as directors Justin Douglas Powell and David Charbonnier about this unique breed of vampire, Jason Isaacs as cult leader Toussaint, Moore’s physical transformation into Eric (and the subsequent impact of Krispy Kreme’s surprise music score).
Pop Horror: I congratulate you Vampire CarnivalI really liked it! Justin and David – Something I found very interesting is that your vampires are not your typical predators. Obviously, they feed on humans, but they also offer this euphoric experience for their predators. After that, they wipe the person’s memory so that they don’t have to live with such trauma. Sebastian (Alvis Rigo) even asks for consent before sucking Gemma’s blood, which we love! What were you most interested in exploring that and making vampires more morally complicated than they’re usually portrayed?
Justin Douglas Powell: That was something we were interested in when we read the script. It felt like they were a type of vampire we hadn’t seen before. They were, as you said, asking for consent, trying not to kill people. Their goal is to co-exist, which just isn’t a narrative you often see in vampire stories. That was something we were really, really interested in. We love vampires in general. We watch a lot of movies and shows about vampires, read stories about them. This was the first time we encountered moral vampires and we found it really interesting. That was something that attracted us.
David Charbonnier: We found it interesting that they live by this code. And then also, what does it mean if there are people in that society who don’t live by that code or don’t want to live by it? What kind of conflict will this bring? Especially since you can attest that it’s kind of antithetical to vampire nature. We thought it was a really interesting way to go about the world.
Pop Horror: Kieron – Eric is Super Disturbing throughout the film. You did an amazing job with him, starting with him just lurking in the shadows for the entire show “The Man Who Feels No Pain.” It comes from something like that bootsWhere the physical requirements are so different from what we see here, how did you approach the physicality of building Eric? And was there a sequence or moment that was the most fun to create?
Kieron Moore: Thank you for the kind words! I love what I do and feel very lucky to do what I do. I’m really obsessed with the physicality of the characters and I feel different in my own body. This gives their dishes a strange look. Not that I act in any way. Kieron must suffer. Then I gained 30 kilograms boots. That was a lot of muscle. And then I lost a lot of weight to play Eric. It was a matter of choice, not vanity. There was a line in the script that told me a lot about him being a “man who doesn’t feel pain” in the scene that he didn’t have an ounce of fat on him. I was like, “Oh, I wonder how that feels. Let’s try and do it.” It really helped my performance. I was hungry all the time and I wanted it. I wanted her to feel like she was starving and malnourished, in an emotional sense as well. It’s like it has this hole in it. So that was a fun part of the process to really get a feel for it.
But every scene for me, I’m obsessed with it. I love to play. I love seeing what comes out and brainstorming ideas with these two very smart, very caring people and just seeing what happens. I really couldn’t pick a favorite moment or scene. They all give me different things. The show “The Man Who Feels No Pain” apparently does exist. I remember the first time I read it and I was like, “Oh, I want to do that.” Then the last scene, the last scene for me, Eric shows you who he is and why he does what he does. As a performer, it’s exciting because hopefully I’ve built that awkwardness in the crowd by this point. They were somehow offended and probably wrote it off. Now, let’s see if I can make it more complicated.
Pop Horror: So did you eat everything when you were done filming?
Kieron Moore: David still owes me a box of Krispy Kreme donuts! I was starving. On the last day on set, I had nails because I didn’t really eat anything during the whole shoot. But it was worth it. However, I got a good thing now because I ate so many donuts after wrapping that I now hate them. I think my sugar cravings have taken a backseat now.
Pop Horror: One thing I love about Eric is he has this amazing musical side. He does this horrible whistling thing throughout the movie and at the end, he dances and sings “Losing My Religion”. Was that something built into the character from the jump? And what was it like bringing those scenes to life?
Kieron Moore: It’s a wonderful, happy accident. The three of us arrived at the airport after my first fitting. I’ve always been a whistleblower. I think I got it from my uncle. David and Justin texted me, “Can we use the whistle?” I was like, “Oh, cool, yeah!” I came up with a tune with a friend of mine who is a musician and we sent the guys a few options. There was something fairy-tale about it, something young, something that I thought was quite interesting, and the gentleman adapted it. It was really fun. When I first read the last scene, I was like, “Oh, no, I have to sing! That’s going to be hard.” But everything is in order. My sister’s name is REM after her initials. I was like, “It’s meant to be.” But I think it shows his unpredictability. It is not one thing. I don’t think he knows his limitations and it’s so interesting that he always offers something new.
Pop Horror: There is one line that runs through the entire film. “There is beauty in the dark. The world shouldn’t be this dark.” I feel like this is something that every audience can take and apply to their own lives. I’d love to know what that line means to each of you, especially as it relates to bringing this film to life.
Justin Douglas Powell: I looked at it like vampirism was somehow healing. That’s something we found intriguing about the story and something we can explore. I often feel that becoming a vampire is such a scary thing when you look at other vampire tales and it’s something you try to avoid at all costs. They are all so damaged and scary. But this is how they explain their trauma. They join something bigger and leave it all behind. There was something that was really, really beautiful to us. At first, the story didn’t even end with this montage. It actually ended after she (the ship) woke up. But we felt that leaving the audience with that message was much more powerful and more in line with the story being told.
David Charbonnier: I always saw it as more simplistic and about everyday life. There are so many traumas and obstacles that are thrown at you on a daily basis, sometimes for no reason, that if you can find the good – it’s very harsh – you can see that it usually outweighs the darkness.
Kieron Moore: Heck, I should have gone first because those are really good answers. I completely agree with what gentlemen have just said. From Eric’s perspective, it’s something that no matter how many people want to help you, if you’re not willing to help yourself, nothing will change. Therein lies this sometimes impossible task of choice. You have to make a choice, choose how you see things. And there’s little choice about how it affects us, even if it doesn’t. But now I’m thinking along those lines Harry Potter About Light (“Happiness can be found even in the darkest of times if one just remembers to turn on the light”), which is funny because I play a character who has a lot of darkness in him.
Pop Horror: while speaking Harry PotterJason Isaacs brings such a cool dynamic to the role of Toussaint. He’s almost this welcoming, fatherly figure, but he has it all going on behind the scenes at this carnival. What did he bring to the character that surprised you? And Kieron, what was it like working against him for a few scenes?
Kieron Moore: A dream came true for me. Jason is just that high caliber. His work alone deserves respect, and that’s what amazed me. He was one of the few people I’ve ever worked with where everyone in my family who isn’t in the arts—which is none of them—knew who he was, which is cool. Jason is such a kind person, so my favorite memories are actually those memories. But in the scenes he’s such a collaborator and has all these ideas. We often agreed with each other, which I think is great. You allow each other to fight in these scenes. He is such a fascinating person and I learned so much. One of the great things Jason gave me was validation. I went there on the sly, like, “I want to swing with Jason Isaacs and see if I can do it,” and I never felt for a second that I couldn’t. I owe
David Charbonnier: Kiron said everything. Jason is a great co-worker. He brought so many fun ideas to the character. Kieron, you just reminded me – you and Jason used to argue a lot about your characters, which was so funny because Justin and I were watching from the sidelines. They were really following Toussaint and Eric’s thinking, but they were doing it through Kieron and Jason. It was kind of a mess in our minds, but it was just a funny, constant conflict. Not bad, but really interesting.
Kieron Moore: Great! It really shows the characters and how much we care about them. It is at this caliber that Jason works. He came at it like, “No, I know what I’m representing.” But that’s great, I think he was tempting me too. I think he wanted to see how much homework I had done and what I was up to. Little does he know, I’m passionate about my craft, so I fought back.
Pop Horror: To finish, what are you hoping for? People feel or take away after watching Vampire Carnival?
Kieron Moore: I just encourage people to go along for the ride, enjoy it, commit and see how it feels. Not every movie will change your life. But some are going to leave us with an impression, an inspiration that we have been missing for a long time. Some pleasure, some escape. let him go find the light (laughs)
Justin Douglas Powell: Just come in and have a good time.
David Charbonnier: Watch him for amazing performances.
Pop Horror: And an Edward Cullen reference that I particularly enjoyed.
David Charbonnier: Cue Edward Cullen and you might as well watch Kieron sing and dance a bit.
Kieron Moore: Which everyone dies of course.
Thanks for chatting with us, Kieron, Justin and David! watch it Vampire Carnival On VOD now.
