'Tarot' Interview: Spenser Cohen, Anna Halberg and Adain Bradley

Moviefone speaks with Spenser Cohen, Anna Halberg and Adain Bradley about 'Tarot'. "The best horror movies reflect the times that they're made in," Cohen said.

(L to R) Actor Adain Bradley and 'Tarot' directors Anna Halberg and Spenser Cohen. Photo: Sony Pictures Releasing.

Opening in theaters on May 3rd is the new horror movie ‘Tarot,’ which is based on the novel ‘Horrorscope’ and was directed by Spenser Cohen and Anna Halberg.

The film stars Harriet Slater (‘Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny’), Adain Bradley (‘Butter’), Avantika Vandanapu (‘Mean Girls’), Wolfgang Novogratz (‘Assassination Nation’), Humberly González (‘Slumberland’), Larsen Thompson (’Pearl’), and Jacob Batalon (‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’).

Moviefone recently had the pleasure of attending an event for ‘Tarot,’ where we had an opportunity to speak with directors Spenser Cohen and Anna Halberg, as well as actor Adain Bradley about their work on ‘Tarot,’ adapting the source material, why the filmmakers enjoy the horror genre, Bradley’s character, working with Jacob Batalon, and putting together the rest of the cast.

Harriet Slater in 'Tarot'. Photo: Sony Pictures Releasing.

Moviefone: To begin with, Spenser, can you talk about your writing process with Anna?

Spenser Cohen: I would say our process of working together is something we've built over 15 years, and we're at the point where we complete each other's thoughts. It's honestly like a one brain hive mind. For this specific idea, we knew we wanted to find a way to bring astrology and tarot to life in a way that no one had ever seen before. To do that, we had this idea of what if the cards came to life? When we had that? We've never seen that in a horror movie. It's hard to find a way in. It's hard to find your way into a new world. But that was it, what if the cards came to life? I think the best horror movies reflect the times that they're made in, and this was written during the pandemic. I think it has some of the sensibilities of our social collective anxieties and looking for answers that weren't there.

MF: Anna, can you talk about your process as a writer and the themes you wanted to explore with this movie?

Anna Halberg: I'll also say we started writing this movie at the peak of Covid, and so it was a time when we saw a lot of our friends and our peers turning to astrology and tarot cards for answers because there just wasn't a lot of clarity about the future. So, it was really at the forefront of our minds. Not only do we think it lends itself to being a great concept for a horror film, but it was something that a lot of our friends, like I said, and peers were really dabbling with. It's a lot about fate versus free will, and that idea of are you in control of your destiny or is your fate written in the stars? So, that's something that a lot of the characters grapple with, but it was also something that we saw a lot of people around us asking, thinking about, and questioning. So hopefully that's reflected in the film.

Harriet Slater in 'Tarot'. Photo: Sony Pictures Releasing.

MF: Spenser, what were the themes you wanted to explore with this movie as a director?

SC: I think movies must work on multiple levels. There must be a universal theme, and I think that's what Anna's talking about. Then there must be a personal theme in the movie. We have a character in the movie who's, it's basically a story about her conversation with death, and she had gone through a loss. So, it's really a journey about why she turned to these things for answers and ultimately her quest to let go and seek hope from her situation.

MF: Adain, how would you describe your character in your own words?

Adain Bradley: I think it's always tricky, especially in the horror genre, to play the skeptic, which is very much what I'm playing in the film. I think it was a very thin line because you don't want to bring down the mood whilst playing the skeptic. That was very important to me. I think the first time I spoke to Anna and Spenser, I felt like we were all on the same page. It's fun to play that line, and I think it creates more of an arc for my character in the movie when he must come to terms with the fact that maybe he wasn't right and maybe things come to fruition that he didn't believe was going to in the film. So that was kind of fun for me to play that within a group dynamic. Because I was the only contrarian in the group, and that was fun for me to play.

Jacob Batalon in 'Tarot'. Photo: Sony Pictures Releasing.

MF: Adain, can you talk about the relationship between your character and Jacob Batalon’s character, and what was it like for you working with Jacob?

AB: Well, it's funny because you never know when you walk into a group, not like anybody's a bad person, but you don't know if everybody's going to get along. So, the first day I met him was first day of the table read and we walked in as instant friends. I was like, “I'm going to the gym tomorrow.” He was like, “Great, what time?” We gelled like that and we're best mates. I mean, we almost speak every day still to this day. But to be honest, we were lucky with the whole cast. I know everybody says it, but there really wasn't a weak link or someone that didn't get on, which probably means that it was me. But I really consider Jacob to be one of my dearest friends. We met on that set on day one, and that makes me happy. Because it was one of those things, like in terms of lasting memories that I'll take from that set. He's going to be at my wedding. He's that guy.

MF: Spenser, what was the casting process like for you and what were you looking for from these actors when casting?

SC: I think we were looking for a group of real friends, which again, we see a lot of movies and shows and sometimes you just don't buy it. They don't feel like your friends, and you almost feel like the moment someone says cut, they don't want to talk to each other. We needed that. We knew it was like everything in this movie hinged on the group. If we care about them, we're going to care about the journey. We'll care about their lives being in jeopardy. We just got so lucky with this cast. They were genuine friends off-screen. So, when the moment we yelled action, we were just photographing great friends hanging out and you feel it.
Avantika Vandanapu in 'Tarot'. Photo: Sony Pictures Releasing.

MF: Anna, can you talk about the importance of using practical effects over visual effects on a project like this?

AH: I think it's always best for movies like this if you can, to have practical effects. We enhance things with visual effects as well. But like Aidan was saying earlier, to be able to react to something that's in the space and with our budget and our schedule, you can’t do that many visual effects. We're not trying to compete with Marvel. So having eight monsters, if we wanted something to look real and believable in the world, and be scary, we had to do it practically.

MF: Adain, as an actor, what do you enjoy about the horror genre?

AB: The stakes, right? That's what makes it so fun. I think the job specifically of an actor in most genres is to almost ground yourself in a reality that feels realer than real. Even when you're playing this as real as it gets, who's ever in a situation like this? I love playing those stakes. I think it's fun to do with other people, be in that heightened state. Everybody's delirious, everything's a night shoot, and you've got to turn it on and act like it's the first time you've seen The Hangman or the first time you've seen The Fool. But I think it can be tiring. When you're with people that you really love and people that get it, I think playing those stakes is the most fun to me. It's a lot of work, but it's the best work, especially when you see it on screen, it translates, and you elicit that response from people in the audience. You see it see on their face that they are terrified.
Avantika Vandanapu in 'Tarot'. Photo: Sony Pictures Releasing.

MF: Finally, Spenser and Anna, as filmmakers, what do you love about the horror genre?

AH: Horror is one of those genres that really allows you to explore the psyche of the human mind. Like Spenser was saying too, it really reflects the times that you're living in. So, it's something that feels topical and relevant. There's nothing more fun than going to a theater and going on this emotional rollercoaster and getting scared with a group of strangers in a dark room. So, it's fun for us as viewers and moviegoers, but it's also something that's fun for us to make.

Avantika Vandanapu in 'Tarot'. Photo: Sony Pictures Releasing.

SC: I think just to second that, Alfred Hitchcock has a quote about “Playing the audience. He's the conductor and he is playing the audience.” I'm butchering that, but I've always really related to that feeling of creating something that'll scare people. They're all sitting in a room feeling the same emotion or feeling the same silence at the exact same time. I don't think there's anything more satisfying. I do think that horror is a great genre to talk about human emotions, the human condition, because it's buried underneath all the other things. So, while you're scared and you're having fun, you're going on a journey that you don't know is there. I think it's just the most satisfying genre for us as a player.

What is the plot of ‘Tarot’?

The plot centers on a group of college friends who start dying in ways that are related to their fortunes after having their tarot cards read. Before their time runs out, they must work together to uncover the mystery.