The upcoming HBO Max movie The Parenting takes the somewhat familiar concept of dysfunctional family dynamics and flips it on its head by adding a haunted house into the mix. Director Craig Johnson’s cast mixes youth and experience, with the likes of Brandon Flynn and Nik Dodani supported by veteran actors including Edie Falco and Brian Cox. The movie shifts between comedy and horror with impressive ease, never losing sight of its core narrative themes.
Game Rant spoke with several members of The Parenting‘s cast, as well as the director, about the HBO Max movie in more detail. Director Craig Johnson, as well as Vivian Bang (Lillian), Brandon Flynn (Josh), Nik Dodani (Rohan), and Dean Norris (Cliff) all discussed their experiences while filming the movie. This interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.
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The Parenting’s Haunted House Setting Explained
Q: Vivian, the house itself is almost a character in the film. Were there any particular films that centered on haunted houses that you drew inspiration from?
Bang: Definitely! I grew up watching Poltergeist and all the kind of horror movies that you grow up watching. I have not worked in this genre before. I’m a scaredy-cat! I don’t even go on roller coasters because I like control and I like security. I don’t like facing the unknown, so it didn’t take much imagination. Also, the place that we shot was an old, small town, and it felt like it had a lot of history and even had some spirits of its own! I think that’s why they chose this place. It was quite scary!
Q: Your character is pivotal, playing both the comic relief and the emotional support for the two main characters. How did you strike that balance?
Bang: These days it’s such a horrific time we’re living in. I feel like I channeled the energy of someone protecting those that they love. If I had to protect people against hate, what would I do? I channeled that kind of protective friend, who says whether you want my help or not, you’re getting it. It wasn’t very hard just because I think, for me, I feel like these are horrific times, and this 400-year-old demon represents a lot of generational trauma as well as some toxic behavior. There are just bullies all around, so I just channeled all the bullies I faced in my life, all of that stuff. But, it’s also funny because humans are funny! As serious as all of this is, we have so little control, really, even of our bodily functions! I think it’s also about having a sense of humor about everything.
Q: The cast is a great blend of youth and experience. Was there anybody in particular that you learned a lot from?
Bang: I just loved watching everybody work. It is a very multi-generational cast, different races too, just all kinds of different people. It was really fun to see how different people approach things. They’re method actors who need a certain kind of ambiance. So I’m thinking, how do they do it? What do they do? Just trying to be in the moment. When you’re creating magic, it’s nice to know the tricks. You’re like, oh, that’s how they do it! But it was still such a joy to go every day on set. I’d show up sometimes when I wasn’t even working, just to watch the others do these crazy performances. I loved watching them work. It was like having the best seat in the house.
Dean Norris on His Relationship With Co-Stars
Q: Dean, the chemistry that you had with the cast, in particular with Lisa Kudrow, felt natural. Was that something that just happened straight away, or did you guys have to work on it for a little bit?
Norris: I have to tell you, Lisa, me, Parker Posey, we shared the same house while filming. I remember getting there and just immediately thinking, ‘I love them.’ We would have film nights together. We had a big cookout. We would go out to eat, we’d have game nights. It was so much fun doing this movie, I think maybe more than anything I’ve ever done in terms of off-camera stuff. It was a small town, Concord, Massachusetts, so we all just kind of hung out together. Lisa is such a brilliant actress, and we would have these improvs, like off camera, we would just have running things that we would do.
We would hang out on the porch, and someone would say something. All of a sudden we’d all start doing improv, just laughing and having fun. I think a lot of that just came into the movie naturally. Nik and Brandon were amazing. I think it’s going to really send them to another level in their careers. They really held their own, and we loved them. I mean, I loved them in real life, both of them, so it was easy. I think we all did because they’re such sweet guys too, in addition to being great actors! They’re very sweet, and they hung out with us a lot. Both on and off camera, it was a family affair.
Q: You’re best known for more intense, dramatic roles. Did this feel like a refreshing change of pace for you?
Norris: Yeah, that’s one of the main reasons I did it. I’m always trying to look for comedies and stuff that is separate from the stuff I’m more known for. This really fits the bill. When I read it, I thought, I know exactly who Cliff is! You don’t think of a funny line. You just think of playing the guy. He’s a fix-it guy. He’s a bit ham-handed. He doesn’t have a filter on what he says, but he loves and accepts his son, and he’s going to do his best to make this thing work out. And the funny part is, he keeps trying that, even when the guy is possessed by a demon!
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The Parenting’s Shift Between Horror and Comedy Explained
Q: Craig, the movie’s tone shifts very dramatically between comedy and horror. How did you go about translating that from script to screen?
Johnson: I give a lot of credit to the actors. I believe that actors, whether it’s comedy, whether it’s horror, they have to play it straight to a certain degree. The characters who are funny don’t know they’re being funny. They’re just behaving the way they would react to the situation. I knew the movie would only work if the scary parts were legitimately scary. I wanted to make sure it had the feeling of what it would be like if you were trapped in a horror movie. That stuff needed to truly be freaky for it to all balance it out.
How The Parenting’s Premise Was Conceived
Q: The movie’s premise is unique, taking complex family dynamics, and then throwing a haunted house in the mix, resulting in an unusual combination. Where did that idea come from?
Johnson: Kent Sublette, who wrote the script, came up with the idea. He and his partner had just started dating. They planned this whole weekend trip to bring their parents who had never met each other. The house got snowed in for three days. It was very awkward and weird, and he said to his partner, ‘The only thing that would make this stranger is if the house was haunted.’ From that, the idea was born!
Q: During some of Lisa Kudrow’s scenes, there seem to be subtle hints to her iconic Friends character, Phoebe Buffay. Were these deliberate or coincidental?
Johnson: That is coincidental. I mean, certainly, there might be some of Phoebe within Lisa’s performance there a little bit, but any specific things are purely coincidental.
Q: What was the toughest role to cast?
Johnson: The role of Brenda, played by Parker Posey, was very different in the script compared to the screen. That doesn’t mean it was hard to cast, though. I wanted to work with Parker, and I thought she could actually bring something different to this. What she did was kind of just make the whole role something new and different, actually way more interesting than it was in the initial script. But that’s what Parker does. That’s the magic she does. Quite frankly, though, once Brian Cox signed on, such is his pedigree, that we just got all these A-listers on board. Lisa and everyone came on board after that. I have to say it was one of the easier casting experiences I’ve had!
Nik Dodani and Brandon Flynn on The Movie’s Relentless Shift in Tone
Q: Nik, Brandon, how did you ensure your characters were able to move between horror and comedy so efficiently throughout the movie?
Dodani: I think the writing made it really easy to switch back and forth. Like in most horrific situations, there is usually something funny about it, and the demon possession was a perfect metaphor for the family tension.
Flynn: There’s one specific moment I remember, where I was just kind of teetering on that line. It’s where something terrifying happens. I’m getting attacked by a demon, and the natural response is to scream. Then the humor is just in how long I actually hold that scream. It’s like a learning lesson, knowing how to balance on that line.
Q: Working with such an experienced cast, was there anything in particular that you learned from your more experienced colleagues that you’ll take forward with you in your careers now?
Flynn: They encouraged me to really trust myself. Something we were so lucky to have with these experienced actors was their support. They passed on their knowledge and their belief in us. I will definitely continue to try to do that in my career as I grow, and hopefully, I can start to give back to others.
Dodani: I feel like I learned so much every day on that set. It was like a comedy boot camp. I think the biggest lesson I learned was to trust my gut and trust my instincts, not overthink things too much and be comfortable, like taking swings, because watching these legends do it was just amazing. It just instilled a level of confidence in me that I was really excited about. Brian gifted us all copies of his book. On the inside, his note to me said, ‘relax, you already got the job.’ That’s going to stick with me. Watching him work was incredible. It’s like Brian Cox, the actor, was actually possessed by Satan, instead of playing a character who was. That’s how good he is!
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The Parenting streams on Max from March 13.