Lin Shaye and ‘Insidious’ Continue to Evolve [August Cover Story]
By Dread Central
7 min readFor our August Cover Story, we chatted with ‘Insidious: Out of the Further’ star Lin Shaye about the franchise and her horror legacy.
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For our August Cover Story, we chatted with ‘Insidious: Out of the Further’ star Lin Shaye about the franchise and her horror legacy.
Ahead of Insidious: Out of the Further, releasing on August 21, and helmed by Jacob Chase (Come Play), I had the pleasure of sitting down with Shaye to discuss the latest entry, what keeps the series enduring, and what her years in the industry have taught her.
“The situation is very different than anything we’ve seen in any of the other Insidious movies,” she says of this latest entry. “It’s about a mother and daughter, and they realize they have this ability to go to the Further. So, the constants are the Further, which keeps evolving, I guess; as each film comes around, you learn a little bit more about the Further. With each installment of the films, we learn more about what might be there and the demons who populate that world.”
This sixth entry adopts an almost-legacy approach, this time seeing the insidious beings of the Further seep out into the real world, among them some demonic faces fans are sure to recognize. “You see everybody reacting to fear in these movies because of the demons, and each one is a little bit different. So, I think there are just nuances, a new family, a new way that fear affects them and how they respond. And I think that’s what makes the dynamics of the movie; that’s what moves the movie forward,” she shares. Elise, however, remains a constant, and Shaye has spent a great deal of time developing Elise both on-screen and off.
“I’ve built a whole world for her outside of what we’ve ever seen in any of the movies. So, it’s interesting for me how I can add something about her that you learned from the circumstances of the movie. And I hope I’m successful at it because she’s not the same all the time, but she is the same all the time. And maybe that’s all of us. Maybe we are all the same all the time, but we change and react differently to what we’re given to react to. So, I hope you love her still. I kind of love her.”
We both laugh, aligned in the perennial warmth of Elise’s presence in the series (its only constant, other than that damned Further), and there’s an unspoken understanding that Elise as character, and Shaye as performer, have had a far more profound impact on both the genre and audiences than we know how to convey. “I looked at the second film [Insidious: Chapter 2] not very long ago. And even I was looking and going, ‘That’s crazy.’ I mean, I don’t even remember that scene. And yet the audience is still continuing to be interested in her and hopefully learn things about themselves through her. I believe that’s an important part as an actress. I feel I want to be able to be some kind of a teacher, teaching other people how it’s okay to feel about themselves.”
There’s a tenderness to her words, something almost familial, and I was taken back to a time with my own mother and our experience seeing that first Insidious one random April weekend in Annapolis, Maryland. It scared the hell out of us, and we both agreed – that Lin Shaye really is something. Shaye conveys that same sense of welcoming; through her performances, she’s inviting you into her world. “I’ve learned so much personally from the experience. So, I hope I give that back to the viewer.”
Part of that is the communal experience of fear. When we’re together, the scares are the ties that bind, so I had to ask Shaye: What scares Elise the most? “I think loss of self somehow, because she’s a real giver.” Existential, yes, but no doubt accurate. After all, in both life and death, Elise remains available to help those plagued by the Further. “That’s part of her nature. She’s got this built-in drive that she has to fulfill. I did have a backstory for her in a way, just saying that she has this gift. And they talk about the gift in the very first Insidious, actually. Her brain is like a two-way radio. There’s a constant static always in her head from the other side, and that it’s only the loudest screams that make her come and realize she has to help.” The gift parallels a new character, Gemma (Amelia Eve), whose ability allows her to courier between worlds, of whom Shaye remarks, “She’s a different character than we’ve met before in other movies, and yet the challenges of fear are the same for her.”
And help she does. Of course, fans of the franchise will probably want to know whether this is the last we’ll see of both Lin Shaye and Elise. If Shaye has her way, hopefully not. “I have some ideas for another Insidious that might have Elise and some other women or something. She still lives within me and still has places to go. And so, I got my own ears open to my own ideas.”
While we didn’t broach the topic, both Patrick Wilson and Leigh Whannell shifted from cast member to franchise director. My fingers are crossed for Shaye’s opportunity to move into the director’s seat. This series, after all, is imbued with her singular energy, and if anyone can helm the next entry, it’s her. After all, Shaye shares that the “humanity” of the Insidious films—more than their scares or lore—is what helps them endure.
As we capped our conversation, Shaye shared a great deal about her experience with Jason Blum and, more broadly, within the larger Hollywood ecosystem. She is a legacy, of course, and she—in her infinite kindness— closed with some words of advice for this next generation of horror stars (including, of course, breakout Obsession player Inde Navarette, whom Shaye is a massive fan of). “It’s always the same kinds of pieces. And as a performer, I really think the main thing I keep coming back to is being a good listener.” Shaye has embodied that throughout her work, and fittingly, Insidious: Out of the Further expands on Shaye’s innate willingness to try new things. This is Insidious bigger and more mythic than ever before. The sequel expands the universe in meaningful ways and is guaranteed to scare you more than ever before.
There are few words to describe the indomitable spirit of both Lin Shaye and Elise. In fact, I don’t think there are any words. The best way to fully grasp her profound influence on the genre, and the manner in which her mind and heart have guided this series to monumental success, would be to see Insidious: Out of the Further when it opens nationwide on August 21. I’ll be there since, as long as I’m able, I’ll never pass up a trip into the unknown alongside Lin Shaye.
(This interview has been edited for time and clarity)
