Original-Cin Q&A: Grown-up child stars Adam Brody and Sophie Nélisse talk about the quirky The Kid Detective
In the unusual and quirky The Kid Detective, Adam Brody (The O.C.) stars as Abe Applebaum, a once-celebrated kid detective, now 32 who continues to solve the same trivial mysteries between hangovers and bouts of self-pity.
But when a naive client (played by (Sophie Nélisse) brings him his first 'adult' case, to find out who brutally murdered her boyfriend, Abe realizes he seriously needs to grow up if he is going to help her.
Our Bonnie Laufer spoke with stars Adam Brody and Sophie Nélisse about the film.
Sophie Nélisse and Adam Brody are on the trail of a murderer in The Kid Detective.
ORIGINAL-CIN: When I was growing up I read every single Nancy Drew book I could get my hands on. I have to know were either of you into mystery books as kids?
SOPHIE NÉLISSE: “I'm from the French part of Montreal so at school we weren't really exposed to Nancy Drew. I know it's huge when you're in school, but I didn't really have the opportunity to read them. I've always been a fan of detective books though and I am obsessed with serious mysteries.”
ADAM BRODY: “ I'm sorry to say I wasn't really into Hardy Boys mysteries. The closest I got to youthful detectives would have had to have been Scooby-Doo!” (Laughs)
OC: Scooby-Doo, come on, that counts!
BRODY: “Alright, it's not quite as literate as reading Hardy Boys books or anything. But no, I liked reading comic books.”
O.C. Adam, I know this is something that had been in the works for you for a very long time. How did it all come together ?
BRODY: “Initially I ran into Evan Morgan, the writer/director at a film festival in 2012. He had another movie he was involved in playing down the street called The Dirties, so I checked it out.
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“I was very impressed and then about six months later he contacted me with the first draft of this script. I really liked it but he wasn't sure where it was going to go. We had a talk about it and then I didn't hear from him for about a year.
“I thought, ‘Well, I guess that’s that.’ And then the full script showed up in my inbox and I loved it. After that it was a journey of looking for money for a solid four years. We got new producers and then Telefilm came through with some money for us, which we are forever thankful for. And before we knew it we were on set shooting the film.”
O.C. Sophie, when we first meet your character Caroline, she's very sweet and naïve. But as things progress, we find out more about her and see her mature. What was it like for you to be able to play someone like this?
NÉLISSE: “ It was really fun and it was great to be able to play a more mature role than I’ve played before. It was a nice step forward and I love her journey through the whole movie.
“Like you said, she starts off being just super naive and really sees the best in people. And I think even though that kind of holds on through the whole movie she just gets a little smarter and a little more mature. She is an old soul and understands a lot more than you think.”
O.C: She is a great anchor for Adam’s character.
NÉLISSE: “Yes, she always wants to know the truth and Adam’s character Abe challenges her but is still sensitive to what she is going through. I also loved the whole script and how it's dark and funny and sweet all at the same time.”
O.C: Adam, you feel a bit sorry for this guy. He’s a bit of a sad-sack resting on the glory of his kid detective days and can’t quite man up. Did you find it a challenge to play a guy like this?
BRODY: “Yes and no. Yes, because I just wanted to be as good as it could be. It was a long journey to get the film made and I believed in the project so much. I worked as hard as I could to really get every detail right. So on one hand, that was hard. But on the other hand, really loving this script made it easier to act in.
“I always say it's the worst stuff you do that's harder to act in, because you’ve got to make it natural and palatable. I didn’t have to fake my way through any of this and even the bad sides of Abe were easy to lean into.”
O.C. It’s interesting because both of you were child actors when you started in this business. You got a lot of attention when you were young so as you get older do you feel a responsibility to live up to that?
NÉLISSE: “It's really something that I find I've had to deal with recently, and mostly in the interviews that I do. I feel like everything I do or say has more of an impact now, or the role that I pick is being put under a microscope.
“I feel like when I was a kid, I would just do whatever I wanted or just say whatever was on my mind. I was a kid and it just didn't really matter. But now every sentence I utter I feel like it has some weight and I have this pressure on my shoulders that I just didn't really feel when I was young.”
“I also have the added pressure as to where I should focus my career. I have one foot in Los Angeles and the other one in Montreal and I don't want to lose either. There are Quebecers who are really proud that I'm working a lot internationally, but I feel like I have to hold that weight of what people are expecting of me.
“Should I go big in the States? And what if it doesn't happen for me, then I let down a lot of people. On the other hand, I'm also scared that if I make a full commitment to working in the U.S that I'll lose the possibility to shoot at home in Montreal. So it’s a real tough time for me right now to know what the right decision is and the expectations people have of me.”
OC: Adam you're a dad with two kids now, so talk about added pressure! Is it harder to find specific roles, especially with the popularity of something like The O.C. It not only catapulted you into stardom but is now being replayed to a whole new set of fans.
BRODY: “I'm pickier with the logistics because I've got a family, so I have to take into consideration location and how long a shoot is going to take. Is it really worth it? Not just for the journey or the experience, but financially and career-wise.
“Also, does it speak to me creatively? So I think about the logistics more, but in a way it's been more liberating because of that. The truth of the matter is I mostly have fun no matter what I'm doing. It’s important to be passionate about what you do and that is why I loved being a part of The Kid Detective.”
O.C: Sophie, did you and Adam hit it off right away? You guys had a good chemistry.
NÉLISSE: “Yeah, I think so. We had a little bit of time to rehearse but we just knew exactly what we wanted from our characters and we had the same vibe.
“Our way of working was really similar as well. We love what we do and we take our work very seriously, but we also didn’t want to spend hours rehearsing for nothing. We tried to keep it light and keep it funny in between takes and it made for a relaxed set,and so when it was time to shoot our scenes we were really comfortable.”
O.C. “What did you think of our wonderful Canadian gal?
BRODY: “We were very lucky to have her and we knew we wanted her from the very beginning. She was perfect for the role. And as she said, we got along very well.
“We speak the same language and got the script intuitively. We instantly understood what was special about the script and I know it's not for everyone. There are some people who will not like it and that’s OK. It’s a quirky little independent movie that I am really proud of, and I can honestly say that it felt very natural and organic to all of us who were a part of it.”