Lin Shaye Reflects on Elise Rainer’s Franchise Legacy Ahead of ‘Insidious: The Red Door’ [Interview]

Actor Lin Shaye’s memorable introduction as psychic Elise Rainer in 2011’s Insidious quickly established the character as a franchise mainstay. Sony Pictures is heading back into The Further with Insidious: The Red Door, set to release in theaters on July 7, and we can expect to see Elise in some form.

What’s an Insidious movie without the tough-as-nails Elise, after all?

Especially as the horror franchise returns to the Lambert family in Insidious: The Red Door, directed by and starring Patrick Wilson. Family secrets will be revealed as the Lamberts return to The Further again, encountering demons from the past and brand new terrors.

In the film, “To put their demons to rest once and for all, Josh (Patrick Wilson) and a college-aged Dalton (Ty Simpkins) must go deeper into The Further than ever before.”

The original cast from Insidious is back with Patrick Wilson (also making his directorial debut), Ty Simpkins, Rose Byrne, Andrew Astor, and, of course,Lin Shaye.

Ahead of the film’s release, Bloody Disgusting spoke with Shaye about her franchise legacy as Elise. The actor revealed what working with Wilson as this entry’s director was like and what Elise Rainer taught her about acting.

Shaye left an indelible impression on audiences in the original film as the small-statured but powerful psychic that aided the Lambert family when Dalton got trapped in the Further. Even when her character met her demise in the closing moments of Insidious, Shaye became the central protagonist in subsequent prequels Insidious: Chapter 3 and Insidious: The Last Key.

Lin Shaye in 2011’s ‘Insidious’

Because Insidious: The Red Door focuses on the Lamberts, expect to see only a little of Elise this round.

Shaye explains, “Patrick actually did call me when he knew he was going to direct the film and also the script; he was very much involved with the formation of the story. He did say as a disclaimer that Elise wouldn’t have a big part in the movie. I don’t care about the size of a part, to be honest. I never have. I feel some of my best work has been very small parts. So, it doesn’t matter how many lines I have or how many words I have. It’s really about how the character fits into the story. I just knew that her presence was going to be in the film. I was very happy to feel that Patrick was really aligned with me about whatever Elise was going to be in this movie; that was what she would be conveying. The fact that she’s such a good listener and she lets in negativity, she’s also learned how to protect herself sometimes, and sometimes she can’t. So there’s a vulnerability to her that’s always there. Those are all very important aspects of the character to me. But the fact she’s a good listener, she’s a giver, and she takes nothing. She doesn’t take. If you recognize, she’s not a taker, and most of us are. So there’s something special about her being that people are attracted to.“

The tenured actor previously shared the screen with Wilson in Insidious and Insidious: Chapter 2. The latest entry sees Wilson pulling double duty, reprising the role of Josh Lambert while making his directorial feature debut. When asked what it was like to work with Wilson as director, Shaye didn’t hesitate with her answer. 

“His sensitivity,” Shaye explains Wilson’s strength as a director. “He has an actor’s sensitivity and a director’s sense of direction. That’s a good way to put it. He’s very clear and yet very open at the same time. Often, directors, the ones that are the most difficult to work with, are the ones that are not good listeners. Patrick being an actor and being a receiver, as beautiful of an actor as he is, he is really, really gifted. He would open that part of himself, certainly with Josh. The film is fantastic. I have to tell you; I was sitting there like, ‘Okay, let’s see what they’re going to do with number five.’ I was so drawn in between Ty and Patrick, the two of them, and the story is, I think, one of the scariest Insidious films because you were so drawn into the emotionality of the characters and their dilemma as a father and son is a beautiful story. Patrick was, to go back to your question, he was able to switch gears like that [between acting and directing]. When we were doing the one scene, actually the final scene with him, he was giving directions to the sound guy. Then he turned on Josh; it was just magic. It was so impressive, so real, and so heartfelt. He’s really, really a gifted artist. And anything he does, I believe.”

Lin Shaye with Leigh Whannell and Angus Sampson in ‘Insidious: Chapter 2’

Five films deep, what has Elise Rainer taught Lin Shaye about acting? 

“Oh, she’s taught me about quiet,” Shaye reflects. “I can’t remember which one it was in, but there’s a scene that starts with me sitting. I think it was three. There was something where I was supposed to be having a cup of tea, and the director said, ‘Go and get the tea and you’re nervous so that the teacup is going to shake a little.’ So, don’t ever tell me that. That’s not how I work. I didn’t say that but don’t tell me to make the teacup tremble. Let’s see what I got to do that maybe you’ll make the teacup tremble.

“I remember thinking, ‘I don’t want to be doing anything. I just want to sit down, and I want to sit, and I want to think.’ The whole opening of that scene is it doesn’t go on too long, but it goes on just long enough, so it’s almost uncomfortable. Elise is just sitting quietly. Whatever’s happening is happening on the inside. I just knew it was going to be more powerful. That’s something, even for any character to remember, there are moments of doing nothing, of letting yourself think, letting yourself be—especially young actors, not that this is a coaching session for young actors. But in general, don’t be afraid to be quiet because other things will bloom from there. So I’ve learned a lot from her. I love the franchise, and I love her. And I’m hoping it’s not the end. I hope that there’s more to come.”

Insidious: The Red Door might finally close the door on the Lamberts, but this franchise belongs to Elise in many ways. The good news is that the door is never completely slammed shut in horror, and Lin Shaye has firm ideas of where she’d like to take Elise next.

“Many stories to tell,” Shaye says of her character. “Many, many stories. Some I have imagined, and I have ideas. I’m happy to explore those. There’s so much we don’t know about her. We know her qualities but don’t know what stories those qualities fit into. And The Further, we don’t know what’s in The Further, really. We know there are bad things there. Who knows? There could be good things there. I do have a real idea for a story, which we’ll see if anything ever comes from it. But I love the character, and I love it because there’s a purity and a core to her that’s tough and righteous in the best sense.

“She’s not a goody-goody. Can I say a bad word? She’ll say, ‘Fuck’ with the best of them because she knows what’s right, and she’s not afraid to express herself. She floats on that other plane that gives her, what’s the right word? Gives her the ability and the strength to maneuver herself around others. I love her. I really do. I’ve grown more and more in love with the character as the series has gone by. So I was very honored to be included in this and to contribute to the possibilities of what could still be available for her and the stories for Insidious.”

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