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Lukas Gage on AI Horror Film Companion, Being 'Unhinged' in Hollywood
Lukas Gage dished on his new AI-horror comedy, ‘Companion,’ his blossoming ‘Scream King’ status and why he thinks being ‘a little unhinged’ in Hollywood is a good thing
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Lukas Gage. Phillip Faraone/WireImage
Lukas Gage is determined to keep the people on their toes — both on and off the big screen.
The actor, 29, stars in new AI-horror comedy Companion as Patrick, one of six friends gathering at a remote lake house to enjoy a weekend away. What is meant to be a quaint few days of board games and drinking quickly turns into a bloodbath when controlling Josh (Jack Quaid) reveals to his robot girlfriend, Iris (Sophie Thatcher), that she’s not human. Gage, meanwhile, is merely one half of a doting couple with Harvey Guillén’s Eli, both of whom — seemingly innocently — find themselves caught in the middle of the madness.
The premise seems simple enough, but the team that delivered Barbarian isn’t keen to deliver a one-note story for viewers, and what unfolds instead is an unexpected and emotionally gripping tale of love, abuse and, yes, the dangers of AI advancement.
While Gage made his breakthrough in the industry on YA dramas like Tagged, Veronica Mars and Euphoria, he’s recently transitioned himself into more mature roles in twisted psychological thrillers like Companion, making appearances in shows like White Lotus and You, and in 2024’s bone chillingly frightful Smile 2. And while Gage is happy to be dubbed a modern day “Scream King” as his career continues to blossom, it’s more about finding projects that feel elevated — and clearly have something to say.
Related: 'Companion' Movie Holds 1st Los Angeles Premiere Since Wildfires
Frazer Harrison/Getty Images The cast of Companion gathered together for the first movie premiere in Los Angeles since a series of wildfires devastated the region. Companion is a buzzy horror film costarring Jack Quaid, Sophie Thatcher, Lukas Gage, Rupert Friend, Megan Suri and Harvey Guillén. The plot centers around a weekend getaway at a remote […]
“I think, consciously, I gravitate toward scripts or filmmakers and writers that I think are doing great work,” he exclusively shares in the latest issue of Us Weekly. “It doesn’t really necessarily matter what genre … It just depends on the story we’re telling.”
Gage admits, however, that he’s had a “sick, twisted little mind” ever since he was young, making zombie movies in the basement with his friends — and feels tonally darker projects might just be his “inherent calling.” That won’t stop him, however, from jumping at the chance to appear in one of this year’s highly-anticipated blockbuster romances, People We Meet on Vacation.
While Gage’s range is certainly impressive — not many can play a Cat King on Netflix’s Dead Boy Detectives just to jump into the role of a budding bouncer in Jake Gyllenhaal’s Roadhouse remake — he’s made his mark off screen, as well, willing to speak his mind, whether that’s about his love life, the state of the industry or something else entirely.
Here, Gage talks to Us about his new film, becoming an emerging Scream King and what it means to be a “little unhinged” in Hollywood (warning, MAJOR spoilers ahead!):
Us: Companion really keeps you on the edge of your seat. It is full of twists and turns. Are you the type of person yourself who likes to read the last page first or do you like the surprise of it all?
Lukas Gage: Oh hell no. I definitely [want the] surprise of it all. If anyone ruins the end of a movie to me, they’re dead to me. No spoilers ever. I need to go in blind, always.
Us: Spoiler alert — your character is one of those major twists! How did the reveal Patrick is a robot play into how you played him?
Gage: I think at the end of the day, he didn’t change his intentions. His motivation stayed the same, robot or not. I think that’s what’s kind of beautiful about this movie is some of these artificial intelligence robots or companions are more heartfelt and more full of humanity than the actual humans in the script.
Us: What research and prep goes into sort of finding that balance of bringing such a complex character like Patrick to life?
Lukas Gage as Patrick in COMPANION. Cara Howe/Warner Bros. PicturesGage: I tried to kind of go in blind and not have too many judgments. There’s a lot of things right now about Chat GPT and AI and all these actual sex bots, so I wanted to go in with no judgment, no preconceived ideas. I was really inspired by Alex Garland’s film Ex Machina as, like, something that I found did a really good balance of giving it heart and humanity. I wanted to treat him with the same respect that I would treat any character. The only thing I was playing with was modifying his programming when it gets messed with when they turn up the intelligence or the aggression and variations of that. But I didn’t want to treat him or judge him any different than I would any other person. At heart, I think that his feelings are genuine. I loved that the character was completely real.
Us: You’ve also spoken a lot about how wardrobe helps you bring characters to life. How did that work when stepping into Patrick’s shoes?
Gage: You did your research! No, I know it’s a silly thing, but I have a cologne for every single character that I step into. And I worked with Sasha Grossman, the makeup artist in the movie, and we picked out all the tattoos together because [Patrick] has a full sleeve of tattoos, and with Patrick having a culinary background, he tattoos that [for] like his favorite dishes and little symbolisms for the movie. Like, there’s a little wine cork in there. There’s all these little intricacies of the character that are nods to, to things that just brought me to him. And I really fought hard to have an apron in the movie. No one wanted it. They said, “It’s too on the nose.” And I said, “It’s perfect. He has to have an apron, and he has to have these tattoos, and he has to smell like Tom Ford Leather.”
Us: This film does invoke more empathy and sympathy for the robots than it does for the humans. What do you hope viewers walk away with from this film?
Gage: I think that’s a really good question. I think that there’s really a blurred line between humanity and humans and AI. There’s positive and negatives to both. I didn’t want to judge it. I didn’t want to say that all AI and all technology is horrible and going to ruin the world. I think that the way that we use it and the way that we treat it with respect and don’t abuse it is important. If anything, [Companion] can remind humans to be a little bit more human and have a little bit more empathy and love for one another. That’s my hope for this movie. But also, I just want people to go in and have a good time. … It’s a fun ride and it’s an escape from some of the crazy going on right now.
Us: The film also has a lot to say about toxic relationships and empowerment.
Gage: Yeah, I don’t wanna give too much away, but I hope that we learn from the toxic masculine character [in this film] to not try to control anyone and not try to replicate those dynamics in a relationship.
Us: Jack Quaid plays a great villain.
Gage: He really, really does.
Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc.Us: After filming something like this, do you feel more nervous about the AI advances we’re making so rapidly? Or less?
Gage: I mean, listen, I am scared s—less of it. I think we are going down a really slippery slope of how we’re abusing it. I don’t agree with using AI for actors or for writers and using that technology to take away anyone’s creativity or work. I think that if we can use it in a positive platform to help people and do good things with it, there could be great stuff with it. But let’s be very cautious with that and not get too crazy with it. Because it scares me!
Us: You broke into the industry doing a lot of YA, but you’ve lately gravitated toward more horror and psychological thrillers. Has that been a conscious decision?
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Gage: Maybe a little bit of both. I think consciously I gravitate toward scripts or filmmakers and writers that I think are doing great work. It doesn’t really necessarily matter what genre, but I will say growing up, I loved horror films. I grew up obsessed with them and watching them all. I would stay home from school and just watch horror movies all day long. So I had a sick twisted little mind and I would make zombie films with the kids in my neighborhood and at camp. So I do think that’s more of my inherent calling. We’ll call it being a Scream King. But all genres are great. It just depends on the story we’re telling.
Related: Lukas Gage to Explore Sex, Addiction, Divorce and More in New Memoir
Corey Nickols/Getty Images Lukas Gage is catching fans’ attention with his upcoming memoir. The actor, 29, announced his book, titled I Wrote This for Attention, on Friday, January 24. “The book is inspired from my many journals I kept as a kid, where I wrote about a lot of things that I never shared with […]
Us: Everything you do has something to say, and you are one of the few new actors who are known for their big personalities — in a good way! Do you feel like this has overall helped you hindered you in Hollywood?
Gage: Probably both, honestly. I think as an actor it’s important to have a mystery [and not expose so much] to the world [so] they can get lost in your characters. But I also think there’s a level of authenticity and honesty that I want to share with the world that I think maybe has changed over time. I’m a bit of a loud mouth and I’ve probably revealed a lot more than most people, but I don’t want to hide. The section where public and private intersect is a weird strange line that I always navigate. I just think that maybe people take themselves a little too seriously now. They go so far with the mystery that they’re not willing to share anything with the world. And I would rather maybe overshare and have to make up for it later. That’s just who I am. I tried to repress some things and tried to hide some things [but] ultimately, it just came out. I’m a little unhinged!
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