Aidan Monaghan/NETFLIX © 2020(NEW YORK) — Wunmi Mosaku admits she had to dig deep to play her His House character Rial, a woman who is haunted by the ghost of her daughter and other refugees lost at sea.
“I found playing her quite extraordinary because she’s just different from me,” Mosaku tells ABC Audio. “I’m not as composed.”
In the Netflix horror film, Mosaku and actor Sope Dìrísù play a married couple who react very differently to the paranormal activity going on in their temporary housing. While Sope attempts to ignore the spirits, Mosaku seems attentive to them. The actress says Rial’s reaction is nothing like her own.
“Like I am someone who would run for the hills,” Mosaku jokes. “Like… Jurassic Park is scary for me.”
Even though Mosaku admits Rial’s behavior and reactions are very surprising, the Lovecraft Country star said she loved the challenge of playing an unpredictable character.
“I really love Rial because she dealt with this whole haunting in such an unusual way,” Mosaku says. “Whereas someone would probably respond how Bo does in his fear, and like push it away, saying ‘It doesn’t exist.’ Rial’s like, ‘What are you gonna say, let me hear.’ She like listens to this thing and she’s just feels fearless to me.”
It’s that fearlessness and confidence that Mosaku says ultimately attracted her to the role.
“There’s just something about her that’s just so intriguing and… [her] humor,” she says. “She’s the first to make a joke. She’s also so in sync with her husband that she knows that he’s no longer the same person. She knows that he’s changed. And she’s waiting for him to kind of get to that realization too.”
His House is now available on Netflix.
By Candice Williams
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