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[0:00] Robert Bannon: Well hey everybody, this is Robert Bannon, and before I hit the theme song and introduce the show, I want to tell you about some exciting Roundtable news. The Roundtable has a brand new website. You can go to robertbannon.com, find out all about me, find out all about the show. Brand new and now up and running with brand new Roundtable merchandise. Do you know that on Thursday nights, since the show was invented in 2001, we've been having a segment called Shameless Plug? Cause I'm shameless! One of the things that people talk about the most. So we have brand new Shameless Plug Roundtable merchandise. Or you can get a special New Jersey Detroit shirt that we made exclusively for this month at robertbannon.com. Plus, if you buy two items, you get a Shameless Plug tote bag. Go to robertbannon.com, follow me on Instagram, and make sure you're subscribing to us wherever you listen to podcasts or on YouTube. Now let's do a show.

[0:57] Robert Bannon: Are you ready? It's The Roundtable with me, Robert Bannon. Absolutely. Hello, my name is Robert Bannon. This is Broadway World. This is The Roundtable and I'm so excited to be with Amber and Matthew. They're no strangers to things that make us scared. And now they've got a brand new project that made me scared all weekend long. Welcome to the show. Thanks for being here.

[1:15] Matthew Lillard: Thank you for having us.

[1:18] Robert Bannon: So Matthew, what does it mean for you to take on such an iconic role, an iconic piece that we all know, but you've spun it and twisted it and modernized it in a way that we're all going to be screaming all the way to Halloween.

[1:31] Matthew Lillard: Yeah, I mean, listen, when you're invited to a project with Mike Flanagan, you're going to jump in. He is an incredible storyteller and you've got a story that people think they know. It's eight episodes, right? We all know set pieces. There's eight episodes. And I think that Mike Flanagan digs in. And if you get the chance to sit in front of the show, first two episodes, you will be sucked in across the entire journey. For me, being a part of it is a total gift.

[1:58] Robert Bannon: Yeah. Amber, I'm a schoolteacher. This is my lunch break right now. I have a principal and a gym teacher. Yes. What did it feel like to play a teacher on screen?

[2:08] Amber Midthunder: Oh, I mean, I think for both of us, we felt so privileged by it because you guys are so important. And there's such like, my grandma's a schoolteacher. My friend is one of my close friends. She's a former professional athlete and now a gym teacher of a high school. And so there's this like really special, special, special, special, special thing about you guys.

[2:31] Amber Midthunder: No, there's this real like earnest care, right? Like there's so much just like going above and beyond, spending your own money for your classroom, like doing all these things because you just genuinely care about these kids and these people and their well-being. And I think for both of us, it was just such a huge privilege.

[2:48] Robert Bannon: Matthew, I think I've had some carries in my class through 20 years of teaching. I'm just letting you know, there's some that may be familiar. Would you be a scary principal? Were you a scary principal in this? What kind of principal are you, Matthew, in this film?

[3:02] Matthew Lillard: I think at the center of it, he's just trying his best to get everyone through the moment as best he can.

[3:10] Robert Bannon: I think that's beautiful and that's perfect. So, Amber, people are scared if people don't like scary movies. Why should they watch this if they've been traumatized in the past? Why is this production, this version for everybody right now?

[3:22] Amber Midthunder: Look, I really struggle with horror. So being a part of this group has been quite the exposure therapy experience. But I think to me, as somebody who's very scared of horror, I find that when you sort of forget the genre and sort of the material of the thing exceeds the genre itself, that's when you kind of get lost in just the character and the stories. And I think that Mike overall creates that. But I think especially in this, that is the type of story I think that he's not just scared.

[3:51] Amber Midthunder: Yeah, he says it's not. It's a tragedy. It's not a horror. It's not a horror piece.

[3:56] Robert Bannon: Which is good, because I think the work that you both have done have sent me to therapy and I have PTSD. And I thank you both for that. It's been it's part of the fun and joy of horror thrillers and fun. This is the time of the year, Matthew, for this kind of project.

[4:11] Matthew Lillard: Right on.

[4:12] Robert Bannon: Right on. Let's do it. Everybody, you know where to get it. You can be watching it right now. You should be streaming it. It's such an I'm such a fan of both of your work. You're both incredible on screen and off. And I'm so grateful to spend some time with you. Congratulations on this and the best is yet to come.

[4:24] Matthew Lillard: Thank you so much.

[4:25] Amber Midthunder: Thanks for being here.

[4:26] Robert Bannon: I'm Robert Bannon from Broadway World.

[4:30] Robert Bannon: Okay, just go.

[4:32] Josie Totah: I guess I don't follow directions, Josie and Allison.

[4:34] Alison Thornton: She's sick of you.

[4:35] Josie Totah: I'm done. I got kicked out of this junket. I've been kicked out of it.

[4:40] Robert Bannon: It's just another kicked out junket. And you know, I'm so excited for you both to be here. You're both here. And I'm literally in a school right now at my lunch break. And you are you are students in this that I don't think I'd want to have in my class.

[4:51] Alison Thornton: Are you a teacher?

[4:53] Robert Bannon: Yes. This is what I do on the side. I get to talk to fancy people. And so, Josie, why don't I why are you such a bad student in this? You both mean girls.

[5:02] Josie Totah: I'm really naughty. We're both very naughty students.

[5:05] Alison Thornton: Did you have to were you a mean girl as a kid? No, you were a charmer.

[5:10] Alison Thornton: Exemplary student.

[5:12] Josie Totah: So kind. She's the nicest person I've ever met.

[5:17] Robert Bannon: That's very, very kind. So how did you find these characters? How did you find them? How did you dig it? Is it fun to be bad? Is it fun to be these characters in this show?

[5:24] Alison Thornton: I mean, acting on this set is so fun. The characters are so complicated. And like acting wise, it's so fun to play such interesting people. I think a lot of the way in for me with Chris was just seeing how much pain she was in and having a lot of empathy for her. And not that that justifies what she does. But I think that like her actions make sense to her. And yeah, it was just such a treat to be able to work with everyone and explore that. And I feel like she had to be so cruel in order to do the story justice. And, you know, we all know what happens at the end of Carrie.

[6:01] Josie Totah: We do. And you have to watch it, everybody. It's so good.

[6:04] Robert Bannon: What happens? No, Josie, no spoilers. Josie, the work that you've done in the past, you don't always play a character like this. Is it fun for you to dig into the darker side and to be a little bit of a troublemaker?

[6:11] Josie Totah: Yes, of course. It's fun. Yes. It's very fun. And getting to work with these people is very fun. And I had a very good experience doing it. Yeah.

[6:27] Alison Thornton: Robert, they've modernized a lot of it. Now there's a lot of when you talk about bullying in 2026 versus 1974, the story has changed. There's cyber issues. There's different issues that have that have changed. How important is it for people to see this? And but also at the end of the day, we all just need to treat each other nice and be good people.

[6:44] Alison Thornton: Yeah, I think it's very important for people to see this. And as you said, social media plays a huge role in the show. I think social media is its own villain in the show. And while there are great things about social media, like you can spread information and connect with people, there are also really dangerous things about it. And I think the show really highlights how much power people can feel with social media and the decisions between using the power for good or bad are so important. And if you put something really negative out there online, like it still has repercussions in real life.

[7:14] Robert Bannon: It sure does. So, Josie, if you're scared of horror movies, if you don't watch them, if you've never seen Carrie or you did and you're traumatized and have PTSD, why is it now the time for you to check it out, especially this spooky season as we head into October? Should we be scared?

[7:29] Josie Totah: I mean, so many reasons. One, it's a Mike Flanagan show. Literally everything Mike Flanagan has done has been amazing. Let's talk about the number one rated horror show in the world, Haunting the Hill House. Of course, Mike Flanagan's creation. Two, it's based on one of the best books of all time, Stephen King's Carrie. And we pay tribute to that while also creating new elements that make it super relatable, but also just like fun to watch. And seeing Carrie grow in this new way is incredibly compelling. And seeing these amazing performances like Allison's is like one of the best things in the world. So I think everyone should watch it if they have a brain. If you have a brain, if there's a brain left in your brain and your head there, you need to watch. Look, I'm scared of everything. My therapist is on speed dial, but I loved binge watching it this weekend. So you all have to check it out. It's the perfect time.

[8:27] Robert Bannon: It's the perfect. And thank you both for so much incredible work that you've done. We love you here at the Roundtable on Broadway World. Let's go.

[8:31] Josie Totah: Thank you.

[8:31] Alison Thornton: And thank you for being a teacher. Teachers are the best people on earth. And they go through a lot, as told in our show.

[8:36] Robert Bannon: And you're going to hear about it. Listen, wait till you hear the principal and the gym teacher. They got a wild, rowdy group out there for these poor people. Thank you for being here.

[8:45] Alison Thornton: Thank you.

[8:50] Robert Bannon: And I'm so excited to be with Arthur and Joel. Congratulations, you both.

[8:50] Arthur Conti: Thank you so much.

[8:55] Robert Bannon: I'm obsessed with the two of you paired together because it's like one of you is like the good one and one of you is terribly bad.

[9:04] Joel Oulette: Who dare you? Good and evil.

[9:04] Robert Bannon: Arthur, how do you describe what your character is and how did you find him? How did you find the how did you play him? How did you discover him inside you?

[9:12] Arthur Conti: Well, who was the question to me? Oh, me. I am. Well, I think I think I tried to find things to do like about him, things that were likable in him. I wanted him to be charismatic and funny and have some redeemable traits, not quite redeemable, but at least at least likable. So but he's a he's a terribly he's a terribly troubled, terribly troubled guy. No, it cannot connect to other people. That's not interesting and they are just play the trouble.

[9:50] Joel Oulette: Thank God for Joel to take good care of our carry.

[9:57] Robert Bannon: Yeah, no. Tell us about Tommy. Tommy Ross sounds like just the good old American good old guy. What was it like to play him? How'd you find him? Well, who did you use? Is there a stereo? Someone in your life?

[10:06] Joel Oulette: That's a good question. I mean, I think I just really looked at Mike's writing and tried to embody the essence that he was trying to to get me to portray as Tommy. I think Tommy is a character that, you know, doesn't want to hurt anyone and wants the best for everyone. And I think when he sees Carrie, you know, getting picked on and and bullied, I think I think he takes it upon himself that he actually think this this girl is pretty cool and wants to to help her out and form a friendship.

[10:48] Robert Bannon: Well, you're like that in real life as well. He's big. They loved you with all the scary in the horror. Did you guys have fun, Arthur? Did you have fun together as a as a as a cast and as a as a crew?

[10:57] Arthur Conti: Oh, yeah, absolutely. It's a good time. Yeah, we're in Vancouver for five months altogether. And yeah, we hung out a couple times when a couple times we went kayaking. We were in a kayak together. Yeah, we almost crashed.

[11:13] Joel Oulette: We did. We actually almost died in a kayak. Yeah, you could. Yeah. That's like a five second alternate reality. You wouldn't be different billion time. And you saved you actually saved my life because it was like a speedboat coming towards me and you were like, I'm not doing anything.

[11:27] Robert Bannon: I don't think the insurance company would like to hear this story about y'all doing dangerous things while on the set.

[11:32] Arthur Conti: Yeah, it's out. Well, it's over now. You know, it's done.

[11:37] Robert Bannon: Yeah, so what you're saying is to be a successful actor and have a good ensemble face death together and then you'll make great television work together.

[11:45] Joel Oulette: That's that's exactly what I'm saying. Yeah, everyone should.

[11:48] Robert Bannon: If you want to face this, if you want to face death, then Carrie is for you is coming out and you need to check it out. Make sure you check it. It's the perfect time to check it out. I like it out. That was good. Thank you so much for being here. Such a pleasure to meet you all. Congratulations.

[12:03] Arthur Conti: Thank you.