ARTHUR CONTI’S VERY FIRST FEATURE FILM OPENED THIS YEAR’S VENICE FILM FESTIVAL – TALK ABOUT A DREAM DEBUT SCENARIO! CONTI’S LUCK DOESN’T END THERE. IN BEETLEJUICE BEETLEJUICE, TIM BURTON’S SEQUEL TO THE CULT DARK COMEDY FROM 1988, THE ACTOR GOT TO PRACTICE HIS ACTING CHOPS ALONGSIDE INDUSTRY LEGENDS (MICHAEL KEATON! WINONA RYDER! CATHERINE O’HARA! WILLEM DEFOE! MONICA BELLUCCI!), AS WELL AS JENNA ORTEGA, ONE OF THE MOST EXCITING YOUNG TALENTS IN HOLLYWOOD. WE CAUGHT UP WITH CONTI A COUPLE OF DAYS AFTER HIS RETURN FROM THE FLOATING CITY TO CHAT ABOUT THE MOVIE’S GLITZY PREMIERE, THE JOYS OF PLAYING AN UNSETTLING CHARACTER AND BURTON’S IMMERSIVE SET EXPERIENCE.

Left Coat **John Lawrence Sullivan**, shirt **Connolly**, tie **Celine Homme**
Right Suit **John Lawrence Sullivan**, shirt and tie **Oliver Spencer**, shoes **Manolo Blahnik**

You just attended the premiere of Beetlejuice Beetlejuice during the Venice Film Festival. What did it feel like to have your very first movie screened in such a prestigious context?

I had a surreal, amazing time in Venice, and it felt like a real honour to be there opening the festival. I was incredibly anxious at times though, as someone who’s never been to anything like that – I kept having to look at my castmates to know when to clap and when to stand and all that kind of thing. I felt I needed to be on my best behaviour. Seeing close-ups of my face on that big of a screen in front of that big of an audience, knowing people like Sigourney Weaver and Isabelle Huppert were watching it, was very exhilarating and a bit horrifying. I was ridiculously happy though.

What’s been your favourite part of the Venice experience? Any moments that you think will stay with you forever?

In the best way possible, it was hard to believe the whole thing was happening. I also hadn’t met a lot of the cast until Venice, so that was lovely. I think just being there alongside these people that I’ve grown up watching and idolising as the film got a standing ovation was something I’ll never forget.

Left Full look **Ferragamo**
Right Coat **John Lawrence Sullivan**, shirt **Connolly**, tie **Celine Homme**

How did this role come about for you?

I sent in a self-tape, and a few weeks later I got sent the whole script. When I’m going up for things, I normally try very hard to not get too excited and put too much pressure on myself. This was a rare occasion where as soon as I read it, I decided I needed to get it and thought about nothing else for weeks. I did one re-call on Zoom with Tim [Burton] and Jenna [Ortega], and I found out about two hours later that I’d got the part.

Were you a fan of Tim Burton’s work prior to being chosen for this project? If so, what do you enjoy the most about his films and the signature visual language he has built over the years?

I was very much a Tim Burton fan before this film. I’ve told this story a few times now, but I was terrified of him for a long time as a child because I saw a trailer for Coraline when I was 4 and couldn’t sleep for days. He didn’t direct or have anything to do with that film, my mum just thought he did and so he was blamed, unfairly. I do now love his films, Sweeney Todd and Ed Wood being favourites. It’s obvious that so much love and care and attention to detail goes into Tim’s films, and they’re all incredible to look at. The great thing about this film being mainly practical effects was that you got instant gratification on set. You’d look around and be completely immersed which definitely helped with my performance.

Which aspects of your character were the most fun to explore?

I will now spoil the film because it’s hard not to when talking about my character. The reason this part was so fun to play and why it would be a gift to any actor was that there are so many twists and turns to him. You essentially get to play two characters in one. I’d never played evil in anything before, and I enjoyed it immensely. I was debating whether to have him sort of switch up and become this maniacal serial killer once the twist is revealed, but I decided it would be more unsettling and more fun to have him stay this sweet, giggly weirdo throughout the whole thing, and hopefully that translates.

In the movie, you play a love interest to Jenna Ortega’s character — what was it like to work with her on this?

She’s as lovely and as talented a person as you could hope to meet. I think she was an ideal person to act alongside and to ease me into what it’s like working on a film set, being my age and having had similar experiences. She made going to work a lot less intimidating than it could have been - she is so easy to talk to and just as easy to act with. Her performance in the film is so grounded and funny and good, and I’m happy to have shared the screen with her.

Which of the cast members made you feel most starstruck?

I had a moment very early on, probably only two weeks after getting the part, coming in for a costume fitting and sitting in a makeup trailer with Winona [Ryder] and Jenna, and thinking how insane it was that I was there. The film has a ridiculously star-studded cast, so meeting every one of them was almost equally hard to get my head around. What I realised very quickly is that everyone is so sweet and normal and there is really nothing to freak out about. Didn’t stop me from having a heart attack the first time I saw Willem Dafoe though.

Given this great debut, what sort of roles you’re hoping to do in the future? Any genres you’re particularly keen to explore?

I want to do everything. It’s hard to pick one thing. My favourite films tend to be comedies, that have something strange, unsettling or experimental about them. I recently loved The Curse with Nathan Fielder and Emma Stone, and I love everything that Ruben Östlund, Ari Aster and Charlie Kaufman do. To work on something with that sort of tone would be a dream. It’s also a bit of a goal of mine to work on a sci-fi film. I grew up watching and am quite nerdy about Alien, Blade Runner and Star Wars, and it’s always been a genre very close to my heart.

Left Full look **Celine Homme**
Right Jacket, trousers and boots **Marni**, shirt and tie **Paul Smith**, belt **Moncler**, gloves **Dolce&Gabbana**

When did you first realize that acting was something that you wanted to pursue?

I’ve always been interested in it, but I think the moment I realised I wanted to properly pursue it was when I was in a school production of The Drowsy Chaperone aged 13, playing the best man George. The cast was supposed to be Year 10 and older, but they let me be in it when I was in Year 9, and that genuinely could have been the little ego boost that made me think I could do it as a job.

Who are the actors you look up to the most?

There are so many and I want to name them all, but I’ll try not to. Philip Seymour Hoffman is my favourite actor of all time. His performances in Doubt and Synecdoche, New York to me are two of the best ever. More recently, I would say Kieran Culkin in Succession. Sometimes he’ll deliver lines in such a lifelike and yet weird and interesting way that I have to keep rewinding to watch him say things again. Nicolas Cage and Mark Rylance are two others that have that same effect on me.

Coat **John Lawrence Sullivan**, vest **Moschino**, glasses **Gentle Monster**

What’s one movie you can watch over and over again?

I’m not a big re-watcher of things, but there’s a horror film called Creep which is my most rewatched film on Letterboxd. I think it’s because it’s short and simple but very effective, it’s good to watch with other people and it’s my favourite combination of funny and scary. Very rewatchable indeed.

Coat and brooch **Moschino**, knit, shorts and belt **Louis Vuitton**, shirt **Paul Smith**

Coat **John Lawrence Sullivan**, vest and pants **Moschino**

Jacket, trousers and boots **Marni**, shirt and tie **Paul Smith**, belt **Moncler**, gloves **Dolce&Gabbana**

Interview by Martin Onufrowicz

Photography by Jason Hetherington

Fashion by Michael Miller

Grooming by Nadia Altinbas

TWISTS AND TURNS

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