SIMPLE CHARACTERS DON’T INTEREST KATIE DOUGLAS. FROM PLAYING ABBY LITTMAN IN THE CHERISHED NETFLIX SHOW GINNY & GEORGIA TO PORTRAYING QUINN MAYBROOK IN THE HORROR-MEETS-COMEDY FILM ADAPTATION OF THE NAMESAKE BOOK CLOWN IN A CORNFIELD, THE CANADIAN ACTOR IS DRAWN TO EXPLORING COMPLICATED PERSONALITIES WHEN CHOOSING A PART. WITH SELF-EXPRESSION AS HER ULTIMATE GOAL, DOUGLAS TALKS ABOUT HER FIRST LEADING ROLE AND THE FEAR OF CLOWNS, RECLAIMING HER FEMININITY, AND HER DEEP-ROOTED LOVE FOR MUSIC.

Left Black cut-out top & skirt **Courrèges**, earring **Kevork**, ring **Shy Creation**
Right Full look **Maccapani**, earring **Anabela Cham**, rings **Loren Rodkin** & **Simone**

Let’s talk about Clown in a Cornfield. How do you feel about clowns? Were you ever scared of them?

It’s hard to find somebody who isn’t afraid of clowns, genuinely. [Laughs] I think that the first clown that I remember, the first scary clown, was [the serial killer] John Wayne Gacy. It’s the idea of someone hiding behind a false smile and luring you in. That’s universally terrifying!

Did you feel that while filming?

You know what, it was never something I really thought much about, I never had to be afraid of clowns before, in any meaningful way. But I did live through the 2016 clown costume pandemic, and there was some residual fear living in me from that.

Left Oversized jacket **Dsquared2**, earrings **Misho**, ring **Kevork**
Right Full look **Maccapani**, earring **Anabela Cham**, rings **Loren Rodkin** & **Simone**

The film had an all-Canadian cast and crew. What did that represent to you? Did you notice a sense of community?

Absolutely! And Canadians happen to also be the funniest people ever. I feel like I say this a lot, but I can’t express it enough. The set, the cast and the crew were just the nicest, most collaborative people I’d ever had the pleasure of working with. I did feel the weight of that Canadian talent pulling us through the movie.

Any big learnings from that experience?

I learn so much from every project that I step onto, but this was obviously my first widely released leading role. I think I learned a lot about collaboration and my own voice, because it’s a genre film too, and it’s so different from any other acting project. It takes you on a journey rather than you guiding it a lot of the time.

Left Baby blue bubble skirt & sweater **Susan Fang**, earrings **Anayah**, ring **Loree Rodkin**, shoes **Jimmy Choo**
Right Red sweater **Shushu Tong**, earrings **Polène**, ring **Mateo**

Were you always interested in starring in a horror production? Are you generally drawn towards the genre?

Always! It’s my favourite genre.

What’s your favourite horror film?

That’s a loaded question because there are so many. But I would say the original The Texas Chain Saw Massacrefrom 1974 is an easy answer.

Full look **Maccapani**, earring **Anabela Cham**, rings **Loren Rodkin** & **Simone**

Quinn Maybrook is not a typical ‘final girl,’ there’s more depth to her than in most slasher film characters. How did you prepare to play her?

Going into it, I knew that she was a book character, and I understand the importance of trying to represent her in a way that stays true to how she was originally written. Genre films can be so fun, but also tricky. My main intention was to make sure that she represented what she was supposed to, which is this kind of resistance to a town that is stuck in its stagnant, old ways.

Did the fact that the story is based on a book make you feel any pressure about the way you adapted the character?

You always do, of course. You don’t want to let anybody down, but at the end of the day, you have to surrender yourself to the fact that it’s in your hands now. Which can be such a scary thing, and you get mad impostor syndrome, but it can also be very fun.

Black cut-out top & skirt **Courrèges**, earring **Kevork**, ring **Shy Creation**

In previous interviews, you mentioned your appreciation for playing more relatable characters, which can be seen in both Clown in a Cornfield and Ginny & Georgia. Where do you think that comes from, and why is this aspect of acting so important to you?

I think that I’m just drawn to complicated characters, by people who aren’t trying to be perfect. They are unreliable, and they are not boring. I like to read that in female characters, too, because so often guys get to do it. It’s just so much more realistic, relatable, and real to portray someone with as many flaws as they do. They are as flawed as they are gentle, and they are fleshed out in a way that elevates a voice.

You navigate very confidently between comedy and horror, often mixing both aspects of acting in your roles. Do you think you are a funny person?

[Laughs]. I never thought I was funny. Sometimes people laugh at me rather than with me, and I do think that there’s still a lot of humour in that, too. But I’ve learned that it’s best not to try to be funny and to just let the funny line take you.

Vest & skirt **Isabel Marant**, earrings **Misho & FKA**, rings **Simone**, shoes **Zanotti**

Did you notice any significant changes in the way people perceive or approach you after you were cast as Abby Littman in Ginny & Georgia?

The one thing that I have been moved by is the community of people who feel seen by my character, who feel represented. They have reached out, kind of opening up to me about struggling with very similar things, and, in a way, it’s nice to be there for people who relate to the character. It feels like you are supporting a community of people who need that.

What do you and Abby have in common?

I used to think I didn’t have much in common with Abby, but the more we explore her character, the more similarities I find. She has a very avoidant personality and, because of that, there are a lot of communication issues. Then she resents it, and it piles up. She tries to make herself smaller for the sake of making a situation smaller, but that can lend itself to being so catastrophic down the line. That’s something I relate to very much with Abby, and I think a lot of people do, too.

Left Full look **Marni**
Right Red sweater **Shushu Tong**, skirt **Margesherwood**, earrings **Polène**, ring **Mateo**, shoes **Zanotti**

What can we expect from Abby in the next seasons of Ginny & Georgia?

I think we left Abby at a place in her dynamic with everyone where she’s had an important arc in her relationship with her friends. It might hurt right now, but it’s necessary, and it does play into the theme of the importance of supporting your friends and having the support of female relationships. She’s complicated, and she is still growing. She can be an unreliable hero at times, but the great thing about those types of characters is that they have room to grow and learn.

Like many teenagers, Abby uses her personal style as a form of expression, which also ends up helping with her self-confidence. How were you as a teenager when it came to dressing?

I was such an all-over-the-place teenager. Just like everybody else, at times I really wanted to fit in and, when that didn’t work, I would flip the coin and express myself in ways that ended up isolating me a little bit from my community. But no matter what, I always kind of felt like I had a strong sense of self, and usually communicated it as much as I possibly could. I kind of came into my own and found my people after high school.

Left Sweater **Susan Fang**, earrings **Anayah**, ring **Loree Rodkin**
Right Oversized jacket **Dsquared2**, earrings **Misho**, ring **Kevork**

How is your relationship with fashion and style nowadays?

I love it! I didn’t think I would be someone who was so delighted by fashion, but it’s [a form of] self-expression. I’m not an expert at it, but I love following people who are and expressing myself. You get to decorate yourself, and by doing it, you are kind of attracting the right things for you. Self-expression is really big for me.

Are there any other ways you use to express yourself, besides your style?

Very much so. It’s very important for me to still feel like me. I am not someone who is a big advocate for social media, and I believe that there’s so much more fun in being an artist with a little bit of mystery, not wearing everything on my sleeve and saying everything publicly. But I do appreciate the freedom of being able to still feel like myself, so the things I choose to post to the world are usually authentic reflections of me. I make a lot of different types of art, I do photography, I make music, I make jewellery.

It’s nice that you’ve mentioned music because there are some videos of you singing and playing the guitar online. Do you wish to explore music professionally, or is it more of a hobby?

It’s always been a hobby for me. Truthfully, I can’t help it; I just do it naturally. I’ve always made music, and I always will, but it comes in waves for me. And, honestly, it feels depressing to think that there will ever be a time when I will have to execute it professionally. I’m pretty happy with letting it live as something that I explore when I have the means to.

Who are some of your favourite musical artists?

That’s hard! I guess I will give you the artists that I’ve been listening to this month, maybe. There’s an artist named Cameron Winter who just put out an album that I think is perfection. Grouper is someone I always go back to, especially when working, because they can be so transcendent, and the ambient music that they make sets a tone that is grounding, cold, and real. I guess that a happier or more upbeat artist that blows me away, her name is DJ Sabrina The Teenage DJ. [Laughs] A friend of mine showed them to me, and I had never heard anything like it before. It’s so expressive and intricate, it’s just good music to listen to if you want to put yourself in a good mood.

Oversized jacket **Dsquared2**, shoes **Zanotti**, earrings **Misho**, ring **Kevork**

Do you have an ultimate acting dream role?

I mean, of course. I love women and I love women talking to women, and stories about them that elevate other female voices. I just feel very in touch with my feminine side recently, and I think that’s just part of growing up. You get to reclaim your femininity so many different times and in so many different ways, and when you do, life just gets more colourful. I love the path that I’ve been on and being able to do that, and I would love to find other ways to do it again.

Interview by Ketlyn Araujo

Photography by Antoine Spignardo

Fashion by Daniela Romero

EIC Michael Marson

Hair by Kylie Fitzgerald

Make-Up by Allan Avendaño

Casting by Imagemachine cs

Photographer assistant by Gus Vasquez

Stylist's assistant Dakota Wallace

Make-Up assistant Ruby Vo