Andra Day had an “amazing experience” working with costar Glenn Close on The Deliverance, she exclusively tells Us Weekly.
“We really just ‘F’ with each other,” Day, 39, tells Us with a laugh while promoting The Deliverance, which dropped on Netflix Friday, August 30. “We just really listen. It was an honor to work with her, and again, she’s also just a legend, you know what I mean? She is a phenomenal actress.”
The horror film, which is inspired by true events, follows a family who discovers strange, demonic occurrences after moving into their Indiana home, convincing them and the community that the house is a portal to hell.
Directed by Academy Award nominee Lee Daniels, the chemistry between Day, Close, 77, and their other costars, including Mo’Nique and Caleb McLaughlin, is no accident. Day reveals Lee, 64, “really loves” for his castmates to “get to know each other” through things like “chemistry dates.”
“We worked really hard when we got to set,” Day says of her and Close. “I feel like she’s so amazing that even if we hated each other on set, you’d probably still believe that we loved each other because, you know, it’s great … So, in just spending time with her, I got to know her not just as this legend, but I got to also know her.”
As Day and Close “became friends,” the Marshall actress learned about her costar’s “youthful girlish energy.”
“I don’t think I expected that for Glenn Close,” Day admits of the Fatal Attraction actress. “I think I expected somebody very, like, much more austere, much more just like serious, you know what I’m saying? And grounded in their work.”
She continues, “She actually is very floaty, very youthful, very fun, very kind of giggly. She takes her work very seriously, but she is super fun and enjoyable to be around. She’s also incredibly committed to the work and so that’s inspiring.”
Besides connecting on a personal level, Day and Close share a similar work ethic.
“We’re both actors [who] want to get exactly what the director is envisioning,” Day says. “All the actors on set were like that. And so we had common goals. I think that really, really helps when you’re going after the same thing every day. But on top of that, I just really enjoyed her. And as I heard from her, she really enjoyed me. And so it was an amazing experience.”
The Deliverance is loosely based on the 2011 Ammons haunting case, also known as the 200 Demons House or Demon House. Latoya Ammons, her mother, Rosa Campbell, and her three children garnered national attention when they claimed paranormal activity occurred in their Gary, Indiana, residence.
“I relied on Lee very heavily because in the beginning he wanted to tell this story and he wanted to honor [Ammons]. He wanted to make the point, like, that she wasn’t listened to,” Day explains to Us about how the film’s plot was formed. “At the same time, he also wanted to craft his own story … He changed the character’s name to be Ebony Jackson, and he really wanted it to be about Ebony and her journey.”
The Deliverance is now available to stream on Netflix.
With reporting by Kat Pettibone
