IDOL HANDS
Fresh off the Irish premiere of The Restoration at Grayson Manor, Conor O’Doherty caught up with Chris Colfer to chat horror, queer representation and his experience of filming in Ireland.
Chris Colfer, much like the horror genre, knows how to reinvent himself. Breaking onto our screens first as the beloved Kurt Hummel on Glee 17 years ago, he has lived many lives for his youthful 35. His latest foray led him into the horror sphere, with the principal role in Irish director Glenn McQuaid’s The Restoration at Grayson Manor.
In the film, he plays Boyd, a young man who was subjected to so-called ‘conversion therapies’, by his mother, Jacqueline (Alice Krige). As an adult, Boyd returns the favour by flaunting his appetites for sex, drugs and the knowledge that he will never give his legacy-obsessed mother an heir.
One day, however, an accident renders Boyd handless and feeling helpless. Jacqueline spares no expense in her son’s recovery, outfitting him with state-of-the-art robotic hands. These hands, however, are linked directly to Boyd’s subconscious, and when Jacqueline makes clear these gifts come with a caveat – “provide me an heir” – Boyd has other plans.
Colfer describes the film as “a wild mother and son story with a lot of humour and a lot of horror elements.” His character is a far cry from the meticulously coiffed chanteuse of yesteryear. How did the actor take to such a role?
“You know, playing an Irish-English sociopath was a lot closer to home than I probably should admit,” he said. “But I think I identified with his frustration, living in a world with limitations. Other than that, it was really fun to put him on, try ‘em on for size and play someone who was so outrageously despicable.”
Seeped in a thoroughly Irish production, from the mind of Dublin’s own Glenn McQuaid (with co-writer Clay McLeod Chapman), produced by Dublin-based Fantastic Films (Vivarium, You Are Not My Mother), and filmed in Co. Laois, Irishness is in this film’s DNA, and in Colfer’s characterisation, too.
“I adored being in Ireland,” the actor says of the production experience. “I’ve been there many times. I have family from Ireland. Of course, it’s a gorgeous place, but I really just fell in love with the Irish people because I think every Irish person is a total smart-ass. So I fit right at home. I definitely had a lot of inspiration and material for Boyd’s wit, his humour.”
While Colfer has inhabited different personas over the years (haughty teen in comedy-drama musical, Glee, prolific children’s author in real-life, and blackmailing student Carson Phillips in Struck By Lightning), the nature of Boyd’s character makes for an altogether new experience. What does he make of this new persona compared to other characters he has inhabited?
“You know, I think it’s really wonderful to show a variety of queer experiences. One of the reasons why I was drawn to this project so much was that it was about a queer person, but it was such a different type of person than we usually see. And it’s a [different] type of relationship than the ones we get exposed to.” The takeaway? “If anything, maybe it’s that queer people can be just as deranged and murderous as straight people,” Colfer says. “You too can murder people with robotic hands, if you wish.”
While this is said off-hand (pun intended), the actor is well aware of the links between queerness and the horror genre, being an avid fan himself.
“I’m a huge, huge horror fan, have been since I was a kid. Contrary to popular belief, I’m much more of a horror movie, Comic-Con, kind of gay than a Met Gala, Vogue Gay.”
Speaking on the genre, the actor alluded to some queer favourites.
“I mean, I don’t know if it’s considered queer, but The Bride of Frankenstein is probably my ultimate horror movie of all time. I love The Innocents with Deborah Kerr. I love the Conjuring films. I also think that all horror is queer horror in a way, because the elements of fear and theatricality and the secretive nature reminds us of our own experiences.”
Working on a horror project, as it turns out, is much more of a pleasure than one might expect. Colfer described the atmosphere of many sets as chaotic, however this was not the case in this film.
“This is the first horror project I’ve ever done. I think it was really interesting just how much humour and love there was behind the scenes. Because we got out all the anger and the aggression on camera. I’ve been on a lot of sets where it’s [the] exact opposite, where behind the scenes things are a little more chaotic because you have to be so damn happy and pleasant on camera.”
While The Restoration at Grayson Manor may be a gothic melodrama-infused horror show, the scenes behind the camera were anything but, with Colfer speaking incredibly highly of the experience.
“I’m very, very excited to show this to an Irish audience. Also, I’m really excited for people to see Glenn McQuaid’s first feature debut because I thought he was just an absolutely phenomenal director. He was so warm and kind and generous, and just really created a wonderful environment to go to every day. I am really excited for people to see Alice, who plays my mother in this. And she’s just a force of nature. I think she’s probably one of the best actors I’ve ever had the chance to work with. She is phenomenal. I hope this film launches her into being a huge queer icon.”
Colfer has had an incredible career as a young queer person so far, playing roles that provided much-needed visibility and representation. Yet, he remains humble. On the possibility of being considered a queer icon himself, he said: “I mean, I don’t know. I try not to consider myself anything. I think that’s a safer hand to play. But, I’m very, very grateful. I got to mean so much to so many people. I still get thousands and thousands of letters every week from people around the world. Especially from countries where it’s still not okay to be openly gay. I think that’s just one of the greatest honours of my lifetime.”