Beulah Koale Interview: Dual | Screen Rant
Filmmaker Riley Stearns knocks it out of the sci-fi park once again with Dual, starring Karen Gillan (Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3) and Aaron Paul (Westworld). In this latest thriller, Stearns (The Art of Self-Defense) weaves the story of a terminally ill woman named Sara who clones herself in order to spare her family the pain of losing her. When she survives, however, it turns out the clone might be deadlier for her than the disease.
Beulah Koale, who costars in the film as Sarah's husband Peter, spoke to Screen Rant about his audition process and his less-than-ideal character.
Screen Rant: I thought it was so awesome. How did the audition process go for you?
Beulah Koale: It's weird, because it was a phone call. It was a phone call with Riley Stearns, and I talked to him about why I wanted to work with him. I'd seen his films, and I've done a whole bunch of research on Riley, but he called me at the wrong time. I have twin boys and they [were] around three years old at that time. Most parents with toddlers know the hard position of getting your kid from the dinner table to the bathroom, and he called me right in that little pocket.
When I was about to jump into my speech about why I want to work with him, [why I loved] his films and his style of shooting, it was terrible timing. I said as much information as I could about what I knew about him. But then I just asked him, "Dude, I gotta go, but are you a good person?" And he says, "Yeah, I'm a good person." And I said, "I'm a good person. I just want to work with good people, and that's all I want. I'm gonna go right now because my kids are running amok around my house, but I'll see you later, buddy." And that's how I got cast in the film.
That's amazing. You're funny as hell in this movie, because you're just… you're a d**khead.
Beulah Koale: [Laughs] He's a piece of crap. He's a piece of crap. Yeah. That was awesome. That was cool.
The whole film is so unique and dark and funny. How did that contrast to anything that you've worked on before?
Beulah Koale: I can't compare this experience of working on this film to anything else, because Riley is so unique. The style he shoots, the way he writes? It's very Riley in terms of the way he talks, the way he dresses, and the way he puts things together in his house. If you meet him and get to know him, his film is exactly like Riley Stearns. And I've never experienced that before.
Even in the way we deliver our lines and the way he uses shots, it puts you in a space where you don't feel comfortable, which I love and enjoy. That was a challenge for all of us. I think we're all, as actors, very excited to work on something different that challenged us.
I feel like I keep hearing that in all the interviews I've watched. It's Riley. There's like this X-Factor of working with Riley. Now, did you film this in Finland?
Beulah Koale: Yeah, we shot in Finland and then got moved around because of the pandemic. It was right at the beginning of the pandemic. I think we were one of the first movies to shoot during the pandemic. It was in the beginning, so when I jumped on a bunch of planes flying to Finland, I was like one of three people on the plane. It was crazy.
But it seems like, based on your Instagram, you were able to have a little bit of a blasty blast in Finland.
Beulah Koale: Oh yeah. I think I got to [have] the coolest time, because I had a lot of downtime. Me and the producer Aram became really good friends, and we got shown around by this man [...] who is kind of like the king of Tampere, which is this town that we shot in. I got to sauna every day, I got to go ice bath in the lake and get to learn the culture, and I got to talk to a bunch of university students.
I tried to do things in the community. I found there's an acting department, so I talked to a couple hundred kids over Zoom about acting and trying to help them out.
What is the best career or acting advice you've ever received?
Beulah Koale: I'm enough, and I just use my life as the tool. That's what I say to everyone else that wants to be an actor. Whatever you've been through in life is exactly what you need to be an actor, and use that at the heart of it.
Do you have a dream role or dream project you'd love to tackle?
Beulah Koale: Well, I'm kind of doing it with films like these. It's not a dream role, I just always want to challenge myself. Those are the roles that I want. I was scared of comedy and scared of sci-fi, so I decided to jump into the darkest humor film out there in a sci-fi film. It's not really dream roles, I just want to be challenged every time I do a project and get the opportunity to express myself.
I always say too, if I'm kind of freaking out, that means I'm learning and progressing and getting better.
Beulah Koale: Yeah, that's a rule I have for myself. I run towards fear. So, if I'm scared of something, I run towards it. If I'm comfortable, I pretty much have to leave whatever I'm in.
You're also working with Taika Waititi, who is one of my favorite directors. I don't think he ever misses. How was working on Next Goal Wins?
Beulah Koale: He's awesome. He's just like one of the bros. Well, he is one of our mates from New Zealand, who just happens to be one of the biggest directors in Hollywood. Working with Taika, it's just like working with your friends. He brings no ego to it. He's very good at his job. Just like Riley, he's very Taika.
The reason why people, these individuals, are doing great and [are] gonna do great things is because they just [are] themselves. They don't try to be anything else. Taika in the States is exactly the same as Taika in New Zealand.
Upon receiving a terminal diagnosis, Sarah opts for a cloning procedure to ease her loss on her friends and family. When she makes a sudden and miraculous recovery, her attempts to decommission her clone fail, leading to a court-mandated duel to the death. Now, she has one year to train her mind and body for the fight of her life.
Check out our interview with Dual star Karen Gillan as well.
Dual is currently in theaters.