Penn Badgley steps into thriller genre in 'Stepfather'

Fans of the hit TV series Gossip Girl know Penn Badgley as Dan Humphrey-the sensitive, struggling writer from Brooklyn who is alienated from his Upper-East Side classmates. "Lonely Boy's" kind-heartedness combined with his awkward stammering caused all of his female fans to fall in love with him.

However, Badgley's fans will be pleasantly surprised when they see him star in a leading role in The Stepfather, a remake of the 1987 horror film. Badgley's character, Michael, returns from military school only to find his mother happily in love with a man named David, played by Dylan Walsh of Nip/Tuck. Michael suspects that David is not who he says he is, but no one seems to believe him. Michael starts to piece together mystery, but he may be too late.

This film is different than many other horror or thriller flicks because there's more of a storyline and a plot that will draw the audience in. There are more twists and turns that will keep you invested in the film as opposed to the 1987 version of The Stepfather, which relied more on horror gimmicks and a predatory killer-victim storyline.

In a college conference call that took place Monday, October 5, Badgley describes similarities and differences between his character in Gossip Girl and Michael: "Michael is similar to Dan Humphrey in that they are both alienated. Michael feels alienated from his family, while Dan is alienated from the Upper-East Side social scene. However, Michael is frustrated with his alienation while Dan accepts it."

The character Dan Humphrey comes naturally to Badgley. His role as Michael is more difficult in that "the character needs to get from point A to point B with the route that the script dictates and it's sometimes difficult to make it work and try and make the steps realistic. It was like mental gymnastics," he explains.

He also describes his role as being "much more physically challenging than anything I've ever done." Sometimes, there would be 30 minutes between takes and Badgley would have to pump himself up if it was a physical or emotionally intense scene. "I had to exhaust myself before takes to make the scene realistic. I'm sure it looked silly behind the scenes. I would run around in circles and scream to get my adrenaline going."

His most memorable scene was also one of his most challenging: "There's this scene where I go head to head with David on a roof. We were working with movie rain, which is really heavy and I was only wearing a cotton t-shirt and jeans. The scene was scheduled to be filmed over the course of probably the three coldest nights in L.A. I've ever experienced. It was impossible to get dry in between takes. It was almost unbearable, but it made me stronger as an actor."

The intense physicality of the role was what initially attracted him to it. He had to get into shape in order to perform some of the stunts. "I have the bruises and scrapes to prove it," he claims.

Staring in a film is a bit different than in a TV series, but Badgley felt that he was able to make the transition seamlessly. His biggest concern was that was not able to have much say in his role, whereas in television, he is able to make suggestions about his character. In The Stepfather, Michael is "borderline petulant and a insolent. I would have tried to soften his role up to make it more relatable, but I had to make it work."

Badgley also thinks that this film is important for young people as it follows the theme of teenagers having issues with their families. Not necessarily issues with a killer stepfather, but many teens deal with broken families.

"Many marriages go sour and it created a torn and tense family life. In my own life, my parents are separated and have had different partners here and there. It's an issue many people can relate to. "

College students may especially relate to the family issues in The Stepfather, because Michael is essentially returning from military school and comes back with a stranger in his home. Anyone who has had a stressful relationship with their family after coming home from college can relate to this.

The originality of the film lies with Badgley himself as one of the leading roles. Most horror flicks focus on a murderer preying on a female who is most likely weak and not able to stand up to the murderer by herself. In The Stepfather, Michael comes head to head with David, making it less predatory. It changes the dynamic of the killer to the victim in an exciting way that Badgley found to be most interesting.

Although Badgley regarded this role as a "positive experience," he would like to go in all different directions with films. Starring in a thriller was exciting for him, but he would love to try other genres as well.

"I'm not a huge fan of horror films myself; I love a good scare during this time of the year. However, starring in a thriller was great because it was fun trying to make it real in order to terrify the audience." Look for Badgley in The Stepfather October 16, in theaters everywhere. Gossip Girl fans, you won't be disappointed. Expect to see Badgley in one of his most challenging roles, filled with twists, turns, thrills, and of course, shirtless scenes.