Summary
Heather Graham returns to the Western genre withPlace of Bones. Graham has explored a variety of genres throughout her celebrated career, ranging from her early work in Gus Van Sant’s crime dramaDrugstore Cowboyto Jon Favreau’s buddy comedySwingers, David Lynch and Mark Frost’s surreal mystery showTwin Peaks, andMike Myers’Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me, among others. Situated among these are two prior ventures into the Western genre, with the well-received true story dramaThe Ballad of Little Joand the Sam Worthington-ledThe Last Son.
Graham stars inPlace of Bonesas Pandora, a woman living on a remote ranch with her daughter who is grieving over the death of her husband and struggling to provide them both a meaningful life on the harsh frontier. Their quiet lives are thrown into upheaval with the arrival of Calhoun, a wounded outlaw on the run from a gang after a bank robbery gone wrong and killing a few of his posse. As she cautiously tends to his wounds, Pandora and her daughter must prepare for a potential confrontation with the ruthless leader of the gang.
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Alongside Graham, the ensemblePlace of Bonescast includesThe Umbrella Academyalum Tom Hopperas the gang’s leader, Bear John, Corin Nemec as Calhoun, Brielle Robillard as Pandora’s daughter, Hester, and Cowboy Cerrone as a member of Bear John’s gang. Hailing fromShe Never Dieddirector Ashley Cummings, the movie offers a refreshingly female-driven approach to the Western genre in the same vein as Viggo Mortensen’sThe Dead Don’t Hurt, while also featuring a surprising ending twist.
In honor of the movie’s release,Screen Rantinterviewed Heather Graham to discussPlace of Bones, getting to bring a feminine approach to the Western genre, the unique challenge of filming on location for the movie, the joy of working with new young actor Brielle Robillard and her thoughts on herTwin Peaksfate and potential future.
Place of BonesOffers Something “Really Rare” In The Western Genre
“The female characters are really complicated and interesting.”
Screen Rant: Heather, it is great to get to see you again and talk forPlace of Bones. It really is quite the refreshing take on the Western genre in that it’s very feminist-driven. What about the project really sparked your interest to be a part of it?
Heather Graham: It’s great to see you again, too, thanks for talking to me about this. I love the script, and I do like that it’s a female story, and we had a female director, Audrey Cummings. The female characters are really complicated and interesting, and we see the movie from their perspective, which I think is really rare in the Western genre.
The Movie’s Ranch Location Was “Really Uncomfortable” To Film In
If I read correctly, this was filmed in Los Angeles, but yet it feels very true to the old Westerns of filming out in the desert, in the middle of nowhere. Can you talk to me about shooting on location for this one?
Heather Graham: Yeah, well, we were out in the middle of nowhere. I actually did stay out there. It was kind of by Magic Mountain, but we were on this ranch, and honestly, we were freezing our butts off. It was really uncomfortable, but it does make you feel what it would have been like to live during those times when you don’t have heat, and you don’t have water, and you’re just really trying to survive.
Graham Built Her Character’s Backstory With Her Acting Coach To Inform Her Performance
One thing I love about your character in particular is that so much of your backstory is kept hidden. I mean, aside from the husband dying and mentions of a father figure, nothing is really explicitly told. How much did you work out with Ashley and with the writer to really figure out who this character was prior to shooting, as well as during shooting?
Heather Graham: Well, I have this great acting coach. I want to give her a shout out, her name is Warner Loughlin, and we, together, came up with all my memories from my backstory. I made up these really vivid memories of what happened, you know, I had this abusive father in my backstory, and just falling in love with my husband and him dying, and just my daughter growing up. So, I came up with a complete story that just kind of made me who I am, which has been really fun and creative.
Graham Sought To Create a “Supportive, Loving, Good Presence” For Robillard On Set
Speaking of your daughter, I’d love to hear about working with Brielle and building that rapport with her, because there really does feel like that teenage angst grind between the two of you, but also that love and care between the two.
Heather Graham: Yeah, she is a great character, because in some ways, she’s just really frustrated by me, but in other ways, we really love each other and it’s fun. She’s new, she’s young. She hasn’t worked on that many things, so she’s just so excited. It reminds me of myself when I first started, and you’re just so happy to be working on a movie, and just how much you love acting, and just it reminds you of that pure joy of, “Oh, this is so exciting to be in a movie.”
Was there any one little bit of wisdom you maybe imparted to her that you hope she’ll carry with her into future projects?
Heather Graham: I hope I just was a supportive, loving, good presence for her to do her best work. Because the story is really about our love for each other and my desire to protect her, and I think, in watching the movie last night and watching her performance, how I taught her to be this tough bada–, you know, so we both are kind of these tough bad—es. We kind of have a lot of similarities.
Graham Hopes To Get To Do More Action AfterPlace of Bones
“I just got a new job where I have a bunch of fight scenes.”
Speaking of being tough bada—s, as we see the movie goes on, it really starts to ramp up, and you get to be part of some of the action. There’s obviously a difference between modern-day action shooting and period-era action shooting, and I’d love to hear what that’s like in comparison for you?
Heather Graham: Well, we had a great director of photography, Andrzej Sekula, who shot Pulp Fiction. So, he made really cool shots in that Western style, where it’s like you against somebody else. It’s fun running around and shooting guns and falling over. I love it, I actually haven’t really gotten to do that much action in my career, and I would love to do more. In fact, I just got a new job where I have a bunch of fight scenes, so I’m excited about it. It’s actually like a horror-thriller, action comedy. It’s called They Will Kill You, and I get to fight with Zazie Beetz. We have some pretty cool fight scenes.
Graham Is Ready For ATwin PeaksReturn (& Is Calling On Fans For Help)
Before I let you go, I’m also ahugeTwin Peaksfan, and in the years since, I’m still wanting a proper answer for Annie on screen. I know Mark Frost has come out with a book that gives an answer, but I’d love to hear what your thoughts are on what happened to Annie, and what your thoughts on coming back, if they found a way to bring you back.
Heather Graham: It’s so cool people love that show so much, and I’m also a big fan. I wish that my character was still alive, and I wish I could be in more of the Twin Peaks things. I think it was questioning, “Did she die?” But I would love to come back to life and be in more Twin Peaks stuff. [Laughs] I want to hear about the book. I actually never read that. I want to be brought back to life. Let’s put it out there!
of Bones
On a remote ranch, a mother (Heather Graham) and her daughter fight for survival when a wounded outlaw seeking refuge brings a notorious bank robber and his ruthless gang, all desperate to reclaim a stolen fortune, right to their doorstep in this action-packed horror Western.
Place of Boneshits theaters and VOD on August 23.
