Zack Snyder’s Army of the Dead arrives in theaters and HBO Max on May 21, and it brings a whole new kind of zombie apocalypse with it. In addition, it centers on a group of mercenaries who try to pull off the biggest Las Vegas heist of their lives in the midst of the chaos.
Actress Ana de la Reguera, who plays Cruz in the film, spoke to Screen Rant about her character’s backstory and the joy of watching Snyder at work.
There's a lot of zombie properties out there, but Zack Snyder shoots and tells his stories through a very unique lens. How does his style and approach to this film separate itself from the genre films that have come before?
Ana de la Reguera: I feel like a lot of it, first of all, has to do with the script. It always has to start with that. I think he does care a lot about the characters. It's not only about, "I want to scare people with zombies." He always has those extra three, four, five layers in the script. And it's always about love. I think everything he does is about pretty much love and the relationship between two persons, like a daughter and a father. So, that's one.
Also, the way he shoots. It's incredible. I was shooting the movie, and I didn't know how it was going to look. So, for me, it was the same thing. It was a surprise. I was like, "How the hell did he do this?" I know it was unique because he was there with us the whole time, and he was being the DP. It was all natural light. We didn't have to wait until someone changes the lighting. He was just there and following us.
The way he shot is very [instinctive]. He's not like, "Oh, I need this shot with her here and then here." He can be shooting your legs and then your hands only, and then just your ear or whatever is working for him and he finds interesting. But I think his aesthetic and the lenses he uses, and the filters and the color correction and all that, is just so detailed. I don't think anyone, or not many people, does that.
What did you take away from this film that you'll utilize in future projects?
Ana de la Reguera: Actually, I did use it already. After I finished, I remember that I started The Purge, which is gonna come out in in July. I could tell actually, that I'd already grown, that I've learned as an actress. Doing an action movie helped me a lot, because that my first time. So I did learn already, and especially in that genre, that you have to be very specific. I think I'll be more prepared for next time. It's just that was my first time, and it was with the best. I can't go wrong.
It's also super cool. I can really brag about it.
If a real zombie apocalypse broke out, how do you think you'd fare in real life?
Ana de la Reguera: Oh, super bad. I would just hide in my house, order a lot of food. Probably like everyone did with pandemic, like they went crazy, bought a lot of toilet paper, being super stupid. Stupid human being. Something like that. I would definitely order a lot of food, good movies; lock my doors and hope for the best.
And if a zombie would come in, I wouldn't fight. I would just get it over with. I'll become one of you, that's fine.
Cruz has known Scott Ward for a very long time. What did you want to bring to Cruz that wasn't necessarily on the page?
Ana de la Reguera: I wanted to get her to be a woman. I think all the characters are great because they're badasss, but I just didn't want to be like "Aah! Badass!" I just feel like you don't need to be showing off that. She's comfortable with the guns and being there, and she's a team player that trusts her teammates, especially Dave and Omari, because she's been working with them their whole life. She's good at following the instructions and helping when she can.
But I didn't want to have her be the cliche of the badass. Because I was looking at a lot of pictures of women, even police women or whoever they are. They wear makeup, and they look pretty. We have this idea that badass women have to be tough and tomboys, but I think she's very sensitive. And she can... sense things. She reads people very well.
How did Cruz view Scott in the past, and what has changed in their relationship now?
Ana de la Reguera: There's things that we shot that are not in the movie, unfortunately. But I think you'll see them in the prequel. You'll get a lot of that information in the animated prequel.
I think in the past, I saw him as a leader and as someone I look up to. But at the same time, I think we have great chemistry, and that I think we are kind of soulmates and are perfect for each other. But I think I'm kind of bombed about it. I think Scott is not good with his feelings. I think he's not great at communicating, especially in his feelings. In the rest, he's great. But emotionally, he is a little traumatized.
He's having problems with his daughter, and with the death of his ex-wife, so he's not open. After a long time, when I see him again, I feel like this is the right time; the perfect timing for us right now. She hasn't been waiting to be with him, but I think she feels that he probably has changed and that time has healed him. But no, he didn't work on that. He's been such a man, just being very closed.
Scott is a little emotionally closed off, and that is pretty apparent in his relationship with his daughter. How does Cruz feel about Kate coming on the mission with the team?
Ana de la Reguera: Not happy at all. There's actually something that we missed in the movie - we shot it, but it's a little bit there. But Kate and Cruz don't get along that well, especially because Kate feels that she's betraying her mom. And I'm there - it's not [in the movie], but we shot it - when Scott kills his wife. I witnessed it, and Kate is there with me. She blames us, so that's why she's not that crazy about me.
And I'm not crazy about it either, that she's there with us. I think it's not a good idea. She doesn't know how to fight, so there's going to be something else that we're going to have to be worried about. And also, I feel a little betrayed because I thought it was more about us as a team, and I sense that he's doing it for something else - probably to get closer to his daughter. And that's good, that's okay, but he should have said that.
Matthias and Nora both told me interesting stories about the hotel that you guys had to shoot in and stay at. Do you have stories that you can tell?
Ana de la Reguera: A lot of nights; we spent weeks there in Atlantic City. It was very creepy, because it was abandoned and the rooms were kind of old and dated. They were huge rooms - you can roller skat in my room, they were huge. But you can tell that the best years have passed. It was kind of sad to see that happen to that city that never kicked off.
For me, it was better in Albuquerque, because we were in those rooms and we'd go downstairs and be in the dark all day with the zombies the whole time. We couldn't leave the hotel much, but I did escape a lot with Raúl [Castillo]. When no one was shooting or looking at us, we just crossed the street to the ocean - because we were right by the ocean. And we just sat there with our gear.
And then we find out they were always looking at us and spying; someone from production was there. But we thought we were being super bad, because we were just sneaking out of the hotel. It was draining, because we were just there all the time, and it smelled bad. There was this restaurant that was all fast food, and you just smell like fries; old fries forever there. But we used to hang out [and have] pajama parties. Me, Ella, Samantha. We did a lot of those. And some of the makeup girls.
Zack Snyder is known for his enthusiasm and energy on set. Can you talk to me about him as a collaborator? Because one of the other things I hear is that Zack is so good at collaborating with the people that he's around.
Ana de la Reguera: You can tell that he is good, because he's been working with the same people for years. When you see that, it's like, "Okay, this guy, they probably adore him and they are very faithful to him. They love working with him." I remember the first day I met him - first of all, I thought I was gonna get fired the first day, because they offered me the role, and he's never met me. So I was thinking, "Oh, he's gonna fire me ss soon as he sees me. He's going to think I'm not good for the role, and I'm going to get a phone call after that they changed their minds."
But I got there, and I remember the makeup team and the hair team. They were just so happy working with him again. They've been doing all his movies, and they were just saying all these wonderful things about him. You can tell how much they admire him since day one. And then everyone, the first AD, the costume designers, everyone has worked with him. That was beautiful to witness. And then to witness him as a person, he was always in the best mood. He never complained, and h was happy as a kid.
I know you guys are fans of these movies and are excited about things - he is like that. He's excited about everything, and he makes a joke about it, and he looks around and sees something else. And he's touching it and talking to someone and telling you a story about it. He is just like a kid enjoying his work. And there's nothing nicer than seeing someone that loves what he does. Immediately, you are there with him. So yeah, it was great.
That's why I love his enthusiasm. It feels like one of us getting to direct a movie essentially.
Ana de la Reguera: And he does also think about the fans a lot. You guys are the core of what [he does]. I couldn't believe when I was looking at the trailer. I was looking at the comments on YouTube channels, what they say about it, and you guys just look into every single detail. You don't take anything for granted, and he doesn't either.
I think it's kind of like a collaboration between you guys. That's what I felt. And I've never been in this situation, where the fans adore this filmmaker so much. I think he knows it, and he feeds this, and he just wants you guys to be happy. I don't know; it's very interesting to watch.
- Army of the Dead (2021)Release date: May 21, 2021
