Whitney Moore On Cult Horror, The Smashing Machine, And Campaign 4

What do Cult Horror, Websites, The Smashing Machine, and Critical Role’s 4th campaign have in common? The answer: Actress Whitney Moore.  

Cult Horror

The actress has done it all in her career. We got to interview her and talk all about it. One of the first projects that Whitney was a part of was Expedition Films and Moviehead Pictures’ Birdemic: Shock & Terror. This project has turned out to be a Cult Classic film over the years, and Whitney talked about her experience filming it:

“I was a fresh 18-year-old. I was a baby, didn’t have good boundaries, didn’t know how to stand up for myself, and so it was really traumatizing, to be honest.

That said, I didn’t want to quit, because I was like, This is my first movie, and I’ve got to finish it, and no one will see it anyway. I’m so glad that I did, because I learned a lot about just grit and resilience. Then I also am a B-movie fan. I am a fan of like, cult classics, and when it blew up in the way that it did, and found my community.

I found people who love the same things that I love, who are making the things that I want to make. It ended up being a super positive experience in my life. Even though the shoot itself sucked, it led to some really amazing moments of connection.”

Working At Bloody Disgusting And MetalSucks

She was also working at both Bloody Disgusting and MetalSucks, and had this to say about the experiences at both: 

“I met the Bloody Disgusting folks through Birdemic. I actually did an interview with them back in like, 2009 or 10. It was sort of part of the, oh, these are my people. I’m a horror movie fan. So I think that the reception to Birdemic is very similar to the way like, Bloody Disgusting and a lot of horror outlets approach things which is just, you’re on the side of the movie.

Unless it does something super offensive, or is, straight up boring. There’s just a love for film there. With MetalSucks. I mean, the Venn diagram of people who like heavy metal and horror films is a circle, so I just reached out to them, because I’m a metal head.” 

Doing Interviews With SYFY Wire

You may also recognize Whitney from her con interviews with SYFY Wire, and she talked about the experience of that: 

“Yeah, it was so much fun. I mean, I look back at that time and I have complicated feelings, because it was a great job. And I love talking to people. I love being at cons and talking to cosplayers. I really just, love people so much. And I also remember there was sort of a wistfulness, because, you know, I was so lucky to have a job.

But I remember going to, for instance, press junkets and talking to actors, and being like, man, you have the job that I want, and I’m asking you questions about being an artist, but I am an artist, and I want my art to be seen. I got to experience being on the other side of the interview with Critical Role and doing our press there. So it was the full circle moment for me. But I mean, I miss those times that I miss sneaking into all the after parties.” 

Critical Role’s 4th Campaign

Speaking of Critical Role, Whitney is in Campaign 4, playing the party’s Resident Chaos Incarnate Tiefling, Tyranny. She talked about the comparisons to Jester from Campaign 2: 

“Yeah, I got that a lot for the first episode. And I think that people see, you know, the way Tyranny acted at the funeral, which was sort of a little bit of a grenade in the middle of a pretty somber time. And thought, Oh, the closest analog to that is Jester. But I think they’re really different characters.” 

Whitney was also asked about what the 1 thing she hopes fans will take away from her Campaign 4 character: 

“I hope that people see bits of themselves in it. I’m playing Tyranny very close to sort of an amplified version of who I am and what my damages are. And I hope that people can see parts of themselves and heal the parts that need to be healed, because I am working on those things and and I just hope that the joy that I’m experiencing radiates and catches on to everybody who’s watching, because I feel so happy and lucky to be a part of it.” 

A24’s The Smashing Machine

Whitney’s next film project is Benny Safdie’s A24 project, The Smashing Machine. She talked about the process of being in the film: 

“I auditioned for it, and I got it. It’s It was so awesome though. I mean, the audition was really interesting, and not like most auditions where they asked you to do the scenes a couple of times, and it was very improv-heavy, and they also asked me to tell them the last time I was truly happy and about a recent dream that I had. And so it was really, sort of, it was clear that they wanted to see sort of like what my personality was, and I think that they liked my answers about that more than they liked the acting.” 

She also told us who she is playing in the film: 

“I play Jacqueline. I play Emily Blunt’s Dawn’s best friend. I’m in two scenes, I had a blast shooting, and it is sort of it’s a little bit of levity in what is otherwise a very dramatic film, but it’s super tender and just a beautiful examination of two really flawed people kind of bumping up into each other. And then I’m in it, and I’m like, What’s Up?” 

This was so wonderful. You could tell that Whitney is so passionate about what she does. And it shows with the projects she does.