“The More Messed-Up And Complicated A Person Is, The More Fun They Are To Be”: Owen Teague on Mastering Terror

In James Ashcroft’s Netflix-released The Whisper Man, the Floridian actor is a shadow waiting to burst from the curtain seams. But away from the camera frame, things aren’t as sinister as they seem. 

Actor Owen Teague’s on-screen magnetism is both eerie and quiet. He’s got a hypnotic allure – but you’re also itching to run away from his beady glare. Whether donning the hairy suit of chimpanzee royal, Noa, in Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes or a floppy-haired emo teen in the highest-grossing horror movie of all time, It, even embodying the almost-faceless serial killer, Francis Carter Jr. in director James Ashcroft’s The Whisper Man, the Florida-born actor possesses a rare ability to disappear into the darkest corners of human – and non-human – nature. 

Amid a star-studded ensemble that includes Robert De Niro, Adam Scott and Michelle Monaghan, in The Whisper Man, Teague brings a thoughtful, disarming stillness to a character defined by chaos and lingering isolation. Having prepared for the stage (and the silver screen) in community theatre classes in Tampa, a slew of grassroots nurturing and an impressive, growing portfolio helped to dictate his cinematic chameleon-like sensibilities. Somewhere along the way, he discovered a knack for inhabiting figures that are as terrifying as they are heartbreakingly fragile. 

Off screen, he is disarmingly grounded, spending his downtime between theatre show runs and dabbling in music production with his childhood friends – he’s not released anything yet – back in his home state of Florida. But when he’s on set, his dedication to acting is absolute, balancing monster and victim with haunting precision. As he prepares to tackle Netflix’s high-profile, December-releasing The Murder of JonBenét Ramsey, opposite Melissa McCarthy and Clive Owen. In this story that has held its unshifting chill globally for 30 years, Teague’s MO becomes clear: he’s set himself the challenge to master those roles that dabble in the darkness. And he’s succeeding.

Taking a minute out of his bustling schedule, Teague talks with Man About Town about the profound, career-changing experience he had filming Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, working with cinematic greats and the character he’s yet to play.

This is arguably the darkest movie you’ve ever featured in. What drew you to the script for The Whisper Man?

The character excited me the most, I think. I knew Francis Jr. would be a challenge and would be a role where I could do something different than I’d done before, and where I could have a lot of fun at the same time. And the conversations I had with James before filming made it very clear I’d be in good hands. I left our first meeting saying, man, I really wanna work with that guy. 

Your role as Francis Carter Jr. kicks into gear as we’re reaching the film’s ending, at the point where viewers will certainly be gripping their seats. How did you build up that dark, lingering presence without physically being present? 

A lot of it was in the voice and the body language in the little glimpses we get of Francis before his face is revealed. This is a guy who grew up with an extremely violent, child-murdering psycho for a father, and who witnessed the abduction and murder of those children firsthand. How does that person hold himself as an adult? How does he speak? There’s a little scene with Jake where Francis talks about feeling like a “boy on the floor, underneath everyone’s feet, who no one knows is there.” That was kinda the key for me: The loneliness of this guy. So the physical presentation, the sound of the whispering, had to capture his isolation and his empathy for the kids he takes, who are also lonely and sad, and are off-putting and scary at the same time. What we found was that the kinder I was to my victims, the scarier it played. 

What did you find most challenging about playing Francis Carter Jr.? 

The hardest part was definitely justifying Francis’ own horrible actions to myself (and to him), finding the way he twists things in his brain so he’s able to do what he does. He knows he’s doing terrible things and feels immense guilt, but can still justify them, as anyone who does bad things can. So finding the balance of monster and victim was really important.

Was any part of you personally terrified by what playing him required of you? 

No. I’m playing pretend. I love characters like this – the more messed-up and complicated a person is, the more fun they are to be. 

Was there anything you brought to the role that wasn’t explicitly laid out in the script? Moments of improvisation or going off-script, for example? 

The script was pretty open about how Francis should be played. The way I approached the character mostly came from James, and from me, though, I tried to incorporate as much of the book’s description as I could. But the kindness Francis shows to the kids, as well as his sudden shift when the fighting starts into animal rage, so I guess I brought that in. You always bring your own interpretation, but I usually can’t tell where the script ends, and my conception of a character begins, assuming the writing is strong.

This is a star-studded cast, with you acting opposite Robert De Niro, Michael Keaton, Michelle Monaghan and Adam Scott. What was that experience like? 

Totally awesome. I’ve been very lucky to work with some absolutely legendary actors. Most of my stuff was with Michelle, who’s wonderful and I’d been a fan of for years. She’s a blast to work with, especially with a scene like the one we had, which is all in the unspoken, all in little looks and pauses. She’s so good.

What did you learn most from working alongside them? 

It’s always cool to watch older actors be just so chill on sets. De Niro has his chair as close to where we’re filming as possible, and he hangs out between setups. Which is what you should do, 'cause you wanna be close by so that when the cameras are ready to go, there’s not a five-minute wait while some poor PA fetches you from your trailer. It was nice seeing that. Even at his level, he’s still about the work. A producer said to me while I was filming Apes, “#1 on the call sheet sets the tone.” (On that film, that was me, so he was reminding me of that responsibility). I forget who was #1 on Whisper Man – Adam or Bob – but that set was a very nice place to be.

Is there a particular memory from the set that stands out when you look back on your time filming The Whisper Man? 

On the last day of filming, we were covering the scene where I run up into the attic and grab Jake – Acston [Luca Porto]’s character – to get him out of the house. We’d been rehearsing it at like 50% energy, and when it came time to roll, James looks at me and tells me to go as big as I can. So they call action, I run through the attic door, and scream “GET UUUUPPPPPPPP!!!!” so loud and so ferociously that I see our DP, the great Peter Deming, basically jump out of his chair behind the camera. We all had a good laugh about it afterwards. Acston thought it was awesome. 

Of the movies you’ve worked on so far – anything from Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes to A24’s You Hurt My Feelings – which have been the most impactful to your craft and skillset? 

Definitely Apes. That film had such an impact on how I approach acting. I grew up working in theatre, and performance capture is more like stage work than anything else I’ve done in film. It’s all based on your imagination and how you can modulate your body and voice. Sometimes you’re working in a blank room, with cut-up pool noodles standing in for props. Just you and another actor. All you have is each other and what you create for yourself. I actually did a play last winter, my first in about ten years, and that taught me more than any film since Apes. Being able to do the same show night after night and play the same scenes for months allowed me to relax in a way that film doesn’t really allow. It’s helped me focus more on experimentation and play, I think. It forces you to be totally present.

Is there a character you’ve always wanted to play and haven’t yet? 

I’ll know it when I see it. If they ever make a movie about [Australian musician] Nick Cave, I’d love to play him. 

You’re also set to star in The Murder of Jonbenét Ramsey on Netflix later this year. How do you feel about tackling another thriller, particularly on a case many still feel passionate and curious about? 

Dead kids are certainly a theme in my career. Fortunately, this time I’m not killing anyone. I’m excited for people to see that show. I’m glad it’s actually getting released. I haven’t seen anything of it yet, but I think it’s gonna be pretty great. Their angle on the story is really smart.  

Aside from acting, are there any other interests you’re excited to explore? 

I’m working on an album right now with friends down in Florida, where we all grew up. Producing it, I guess, and playing on it. Music has always been a big part of my life, but it’s become more important to me over the years. I have no idea when we’ll release that – it’s slow going cause I’m always travelling and we’re all incredibly obsessive, but we’ll get there eventually.