Billie Lourd isn’t a horror fan and, in fact, the scare factor of Fox’s new series Scream Queens is not what appealed to her when she read a script. At the 2015 San Diego Comic-Con, Lourd admits she wanted to be a part of Scream Queens because of her love of a different genre. “I appreciate the horror genre but I’m in it for the comedy because this show’s hilarious. This show is absolutely hilarious.”
Lourd, who describes life on the set as like going to camp, said she tapped into a side of herself she didn’t know she’d ever get to play in order to tackle her Scream Queens character. “She is a Chanel. She is a sorority sister. She’s one of Emma Roberts’ minions. She’s part of the head honcho crew, but she’s not a head honcho,” explained Lourd. “She is very sassy and dark, and I definitely have that side of me, so it allows me to tap into my weird, cynical, creepy side that I thought should stay home – but now it’s out!”
Lourd says she’s a big fan of Heathers starring Winona Ryder, and she’s thrilled to be able to play a sorority girl in a horror series. She’s also happy to be a part of a project that’s female-driven. “There’s no men helping us out. If we’re killing someone, we’re killing someone with our own hands. It’s really a little bit feminist. It’s really, really cool, in a very subtle, hip way,” said Lourd.
And speaking of killing someone on screen, Lourd has now experienced lots of stage blood. “It’s really, really hard to get off. Oh my lord it’s insane,” said Lourd. “We did that photo shoot with the bloody hands, and I literally had red-stained palms for weeks.”
Lourd comes from a show business family – her mother is actress/writer Carrie Fisher (Star Wars) and her father is the powerful Hollywood agent Bryan Lourd – and she admits that getting into acting probably wouldn’t have been their first choice of a profession for their only daughter. “This was their worst-case scenario. Not worst case, but it wasn’t their dream,” joked Lourd. “My dad probably would have preferred if I was a neurosurgeon or something. It was definitely [that] I put a lot of thought into it.”
Lourd’s mom may not have nudged her into acting, but she supports her daughter’s choice. Carrie Fisher even attended the Scream Queens premiere screening at Comic Con just to be there for her daughter. “It’s a trip. It’s so funny, my mom went to the Scream Queens premiere and there was some rumor going around that she waited in line all day. And she shows up in jeans and like sweaty hair, purple mascara… People are obviously like, ‘Oh my god, I want to take a picture with you!’ because she’s at Comic-Con. She’s like, ‘I don’t get it, babe. I went to this premiere and I’m not there to take pictures. I’m there to watch a premiere and people are wanting to take pictures with me.’ I’m like, ‘Mom, you’re Princess Leia. You’ve got to remember that. And, you’re at Comic-Con. So, like, maybe you should have brushed your hair,'” recalled Lourd, laughing.
More on Scream Queens: Jamie Lee Curtis Interview / Lea Michele and Emma Roberts Interview / Abigail Breslin Interview / Keke Palmer Interview
Watch the full interview with Billie Lourd on Scream Queens season one:
