How An Oscar-Nominated Actor Got A Secret Cameo In ‘10 Cloverfield Lane’
If there’s one thing we’ve come to expect from a Bad Robot production, it’s heavy-duty secrecy. ProducerJ.J. Abramsloves his mystery box, to the point that we didn’t know10 Cloverfield Lanewas even coming until two months ago. And even then, the trailers and TV spots left a lot to the imagination. What kind of strange and twisted horrors might await the characters in the new movie?
Well, you’ll have to find out for yourself when the film opens this weekend. But there is one surprise that really threw us for a loop, and it had nothing to do with monsters or aliens or zombies or whatever else you’re imagining. It’s a cameo by a certain A-list, Oscar-nominated movie star. Speaking to directorDan Trachtenbergthis weekend, I got the details on how said star ended up in said role — as well as some tips from on surviving the apocalypse. Find out after the jump.
Note: Minor spoilers after the jump. This cameo is probably not even something you would recognize when seeing the film.
In the very first scene of10 Cloverfield Lane, we see Michelle (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) hurriedly packing a suitcase so she can walk out on her fiancé Ben. He is not present in the scene, and we don’t ever actually see him in the movie. But we do hear him later on, when he calls Michelle as she’s driving away. The voice sounded familiar to me, but I couldn’t quite place it until the end credits revealed it wasBradley Cooperwe’d heard on the other end of that line.
10 Cloverfield Lanehas a pretty small core cast — Winstead,John Goodman, andJohn Gallagher Jr.— so it was a surprise to realize someone as big as Cooper had snuck into the film. When I sat down with Trachtenberg at the10 Cloverfield Lanejunket in New York this past weekend, I seized the opportunity to ask how that cameo had come together. Here’s what Trachtenberg had to say:
Moral of the story: it helps to be friends with J.J. Abrams.
Trachntenberg and I also discussed the nascent “Cloververse,” including10 Cloverfield Lane’s connection (or lack thereof) to the originalCloverfieldand his thoughts on fan theories. He also reveals what he’s learned about prepping for doomsday, and offers some advice for surviving the apocalypse. Watch our full chat below.
