Marriages are a funny thing. Each partnership operates differently; while some couples can work together, others need that time away from each other while making a living. And for Dave Franco and Alison Brie, it seems that collaborating together on a movie is actually a recipe for success. Franco recently made his directorial debut in the horror flick The Rental, with Brie playing one of the protagonists. And from the sound of it, this mixture of life and work was helpful while working on the project.
The Rental was released straight to homes over the weekend, and a ton of people rented Dave Franco's directorial debut for a good old fashioned summer scare. The movie is also faring well with critics, and Alison Brie recently revealed what it was like working with her husband in this capacity. As the GLOW actress explained,
It was wonderful. It was so easy. When I work with first-time directors, sometimes I feel like I can have a mistrust of them, and it's a horrible feeling, you know? You're sort of not sure if they know what they're doing. And Dave is probably the person I trust most in the world, and I was able to be privy to every step of his preparation process. I felt so confident in him as a director going into it, which was a really comforting feeling to me. And then, once we were actually physically on set together, it just was so nice for both of us. I think it was validating to be his main creative sounding board on set and to really feel like a team. We had little conversations here and there and little check-ins about how the process was going. And for him, I think I was a great source of emotional support.
There you have it. While many actors might be nervous to work with a first-time director, Alison Brie didn't have that experience on the set of The Rental. Mainly because she knew Dave Franco intimately, and knew the caliber of work he was going to bring to the horror movie. What's more, she could also provide moral and creative support during this high-stakes moment in Franco's career.
It's somewhat ironic to see how supportive and healthy this dynamic was on set, considering how The Rental is focused on such damaged relationships. While the two couples in the movie are being preyed upon by a mysterious villain, their interpersonal relationships that are also being tested. And what results is the vacation from hell.
Later on his Alison Brie's conversation with THR, she further described the collaborative relationship that she and husband Dave Franco shared while working on The Rental together. Because in addition to their work on set, they'd also continue brainstorming and planning once back in their own Airbnb. As she put it,
Even aside from being an actor, just truly being his wife and being there for the whole experience. He could come back to our Airbnb at night, debrief the day and get my more objective view, maybe, of things that happened. And I think that was really nice. We've spent over eight years working on our communication with one another, so talking to each other onset as actor and director was just seamless.
In the end, it looks like Dave Franco and Alison Brie both benefitted from their personal relationship while working on The Rental. They know each other and how to communicate, and ultimately translated those skills to the horror movie. And it looks like those efforts paid off, as The Rental fared well with critics and home audiences alike.
The Rental is currently available to rent on demand. Be sure to check out our 2020 release list to plan your next movie adventure.
