Maika Monroe built her career working in horror, but when it comes to seeing ghosts in real life, count her out.
The "It Follows" star shot her latest film, "Victorian Psycho" (in theaters Nov. 13), at a castle in Ireland, and during production, the crew claimed to have had encounters with spirits.
Monroe, 33, didn't see anything firsthand. But that may be because the horror actress, who says the paranormal "spooks me," deliberately stayed away.
"There were certain rooms that the crew said they had seen things and heard things, and so I just don't mess with that," she tells USA TODAY. "I just stay clear of that. They heard footsteps in one, and I'm just like, 'I can't.'"
Monroe is certainly no stranger to horror, but in her past genre movies, she's
usually the hero trying to avoid getting killed. In "Victorian Psycho," she's the one killing: Monroe plays a homicidal maniac hired as a governess for a wealthy family at a gothic manor where people start turning up dead.
The project came along when Monroe was ready for a horror hiatus after 2024's terrifying "Longlegs." "This genre, it's very demanding," she says. "It's not easy. I was just like, 'I can't. I need a break. Give me a rom-com, something lighthearted!'" Unfortunately, the script was too good to say no.
Going into the movie, the "Reminders of Him" star had "a lot of nerves," knowing an over-the-top killer would be a "big departure." But she found it "much more" enjoyable to play evil than good. "You can really go for it and unleash everything. It was very therapeutic."
To portray an unhinged murderer, Monroe studied Ted Bundy and Charles Manson. Jack Nicholson, one of her acting heroes, also inspired her.
"'The Shining' was a huge influence," she says. "What I loved that he did with that performance was he would just always be smiling, even through the worst of it, and there was something very disturbing about that."
Monroe is considered one of modern horror's most prominent scream queens. But she fell into the genre, and acting in general, somewhat by accident. Growing up, Monroe wanted to be an EMT, though she realized later she's "not great with blood." As a kid, she disliked performing.
"The middle school that I went to, everyone had to be a part of the school plays, and I hated it," she says. "I just hated the attention. I didn't like to be on stage. I didn't like people watching me. It was very uncomfortable."
Instead of acting, Monroe initially went into dance. When she was 13, a horror film reached out to her dance studio looking for extras. She took the gig to "make a couple bucks" and unexpectedly fell in love with acting on set. From there, Monroe started going on auditions while in high school but found breaking into the industry nearly impossible.
"Obviously, talent and skill's involved, but it's really about luck as well," she says. "So many people are auditioning for these roles, and it was really tough because I wanted it so bad."
By 17, Monroe reluctantly decided acting was "not working out." She pivoted by moving to the Dominican Republic to become a professional kiteboarder, drawn to a career where she'd have more control. Still, she couldn't quite let the dream go. She'd continue sending in audition tapes here and there, and she finally got lucky when one landed her a part in a Zac Efron movie, 2013's "At Any Price."
Not long after, Monroe landed her breakout role as Jay in "It Follows," an indie horror about a young woman pursued by a supernatural entity. The film put her on the map and received widespread acclaim, though it came out at a very different time for horror. These days, a low-budget horror film like "Obsession" can gross $500 million, and actors like Amy Madigan can win Oscars for horror. But in 2015, "It Follows" was lucky to crack $20 million, and Oscar nominations weren't even on the table.
"If 'It Follows' came out right now, I think it would be very different," Monroe says. "People have a new respect for the genre, and I'm so happy that performances within the horror genre are now getting attention."
Monroe recently revisited the role by filming an "It Follows" sequel, titled "They Follow." Not much is known about the movie, but she says she was "blown away" by the script and teases it's "bigger" than the original, but "very much in the same world, the same tone."
To skeptical fans, Monroe says director David Robert Mitchell "wouldn't make a second if he didn't have a really good idea." But she notes she's "nervous" about meeting expectations. "It's definitely intimidating."
For Monroe, it was "surreal" to be back on set in the role that "changed my life" over 10 years later.
"We're all back being like, 'oh my God, this is crazy,'" she says. "We made the first movie for under a million dollars. We were all young and naive and didn't know what we were getting ourselves into."
Since then, Monroe says she's "grown up so much" and become more resilient. "This industry is tough, but it's made me a much stronger human. I'm much more comfortable in my own body."
The journey has had its low moments: In the years after "It Follows," Monroe considered stepping away from acting after getting burnt out doing seven films back to back and having "some horrible experiences" during that run.
"This job, it's so hard," she says. "There's so many ups and downs. The highs are so high, and the lows are so low. There's been times where I've really struggled with this job, and I think there's a lot of really unhealthy parts of this industry. But at the end of the day, I love it so much, and the actual work and being on set – there's nothing better.”
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Maika Monroe dodged ghosts making new horror movie in a haunted castle
