Sophie Thatcher is very quickly becoming a popular star among genre fans. She first started garnering attention thanks to her standout role as Natalie on Showtime’s phenomenal series Yellowjackets, and now she has added her first Stephen King adaptation to her resume with director Rob Savage’s The Boogeyman. She appears to have a very bright future ahead of her (if not especially because of the big shifts set to come in Yellowjackets Season 3), and she reflects on the 1976 classic Carrie as being a film that opened her eyes to the strong roles available to women in horror.
I spoke with Thatcher late last month during the Los Angeles press day for The Boogeyman, and our conversation began by talking about her history with Stephen King. She admitted that her awareness of King’s work was mostly through adaptations, but she pointed to Carrie as being a film of particular significance to her. She explained,
I grew up with his movies. I'd never read one of his books before surprisingly. But I grew up with Carrie and I watched that when I was really young and that was pretty informative. And I just thought, I mean Sissy Spacek is incredible in that, and it's just such an incredible performance, and I was like, 'Oh, like that's cool that horror can do that and find such like strong and complicated female protagonist.'
Not only does Sissy Spacek deliver a brilliant performance as the titular character in Carrie, but it’s recognized as an important one in the history of horror and Stephen King adaptations. The genre is rarely given much attention during awards season by the more prestigious critics groups and organizations, but Spacek’s work was recognized with an Academy Award nomination in 1977, as was Piper Laurie’s turn as Carrie’s psychotic, zealous mother, Margaret White. To date, only one other actress has been nominated for an Oscar, and that was Kathy Bates, who won Best Actress playing Annie Wilkes in Misery.
Carrie, of course, is one of many incredible films in the horror genre that give women the spotlight – it being the genre of Scream Queens and Final Girls. Sissy Spacek is part of an important legacy that includes stars like Jamie Lee Curtis, Dee Wallace, Linda Blair, Sarah Michelle Gellar, and more.
While still young and at the start of her career, Sophie Thatcher is on her way in that department, having done terrific work as Sadie Harper in The Boogeyman and being newly crowned as the Antler Queen on Yellowjackets. Hopefully she’ll continue contributing greatness to the horror world.
The Boogeyman is now playing in theaters everywhere, and if you’re on the hunt for fresh scares, you can check out our Upcoming Horror Movies and Upcoming Stephen King Movies and TV guides.
