Rooming with a gossip

The MUSE recently spoke with Leighton Meester ahead of the Friday release of the Gossip Girl star’s newest film The Roommate and talked about acting, becoming a character and the future of Blair Waldorf.

Q: After watching yourself in this movie, what kind of an impact did playing Rebecca have on you?
Leighton Meester: I tried to share something in common with her and try to understand her motives and relations in some way. It was extremely difficult for me to do that with her starting off because of how she unravels. In the beginning she seems like a really good friend and a good person…but then eventually she just completely loses that. During filming, I did my best to maintain and was really lucky because I all I had to do was work on this movie. I got to be really involved and focused which was a pleasure.
Q: This was your first thriller, what was it like to play the villain?
LM: I saw the movie, and a couple of my friends were asking me, Oh, how did you like it? I would tell them it was scary, and I was genuinely scared at points. It’s sort of funny that I’m what’s scary in the movie. I’m really proud of how it turned out though… I can’t say that I wasn’t at all affected by it. It stays with you when you’re terrorizing people all day.
Q: How did you prepare for your role in The Roommate?
LM: Well, I got a lot of great psychology books and information on delusion mental disorders in women, and I had the chance to speak with different psychiatrists about the disorder. The psychiatrists that I talked to were helpful and would describe in gross detail different cases that they worked on defending their patients that had been convicted of crimes. It’s definitely dark in the mind of someone who is living like this.
Q: Who was your favorite person to work with on the set and why?
LM: I love Minka [Kelly], and I was so lucky to work with her. She has a light around her. She’s beautiful and kind and talented and giving, and she was really supportive throughout the whole thing. She had a way of making things light and easy on set. She’s brilliant.
Q: What attracted you to this particular script?
LM: The character. I love to break down and see where I can relate to somebody and find the humanity in her… It was not easy with Rebecca… I think that if you track her actions, they’re always motivated by something internal and not based in reality at all. I thought it was really interesting that it’s a movie and subject that most people can relate to. It’s about friends, not necessarily roommates, and [their friendship] goes terribly wrong. One person is really invested in the friendship and becomes unhealthily attached to her friend. I think a lot of people have been there, [but] probably not to this extreme.
Q: How was this role similar/different from your role as Blair on Gossip Girl?
LM: It couldn’t have been more different. She has different parents, and a different background [than Blair]. Rebecca has a history of having mental disorders and it’s not the same as what I play day to day on my show. It’s a pleasure to break from that and do something different. It’s also different from whom I am as a person as well. She’s not making decisions based in reality and she doesn’t find pleasure in pleasurable things. She uses her intelligence and sexuality to gain control of other people. It’s a very far cry from what I do on my show.
Q: Do you see yourself playing more roles similar to Rebecca or to Blair Waldorf in the future?
LM: I think that the best part about my job is that I can do different things all the time. I would never want to do the same thing twice. I’d like to do something new and fresh for myself [in the future].
Q: What would you be looking for in the perfect roommate?
LM: I actually love living alone. I used to have roommates when I first moved into my own place, and it’s a challenge to live with people. Obviously the best thing about a roommate is if you’re friends. If you’re not, you have no idea what their habits might be. You’re kind of taking on their life and their habits and their friends into your home. Of course, good roommates are really fun and for the most part I was really lucky. I have had some not so good experiences with roommates who eat all your food or take all your clothes though.