Actress Gillian (pronounced Gill, not Jill) Jacobs, 38, was raised in Mt. Lebanon and her mother still lives here. The Juilliard-trained actress is known for her roles on the NBC sitcom “Community” and Netflix comedy “Love.” Her newest role is in the horror film “Come Play,” which opens Friday and features a fearful creature that reachs out through our screens and devices.
“Come Play” reminded me of a modern-day morality play with the underlying message “Too much screen time can be very bad for you.”
Wow, I never thought about that before, but that is cool (laughing). That is certainly one component of the story! I am trying to cut down on the amount of my screen time. When that weekly report comes up on my phone, it makes me feel not so great. I get a message every Sunday that pops up telling me how many hours I have spent on my phone. I don’t like the number.
Without giving anything away, it ends in a creepy moment with your character. Does that mean sequel?
Oh, that is the first I have heard of it. But put it in the article and you know, maybe it will happen!
Is this the first horror film you have done? Do you find yourself feeling differently? Does it make a difference?
I did a movie called “Visions” and I did this movie “Bad Milo!” that was kind of a horror comedy. But I think people certainly know me more for comedy than they would for horror. I get scared watching the movie even though I was in the movie and I know how it was made. I still feel the same excitment and fear an audience member feels. I get scared watching movies I am not in even though I try and tell myself, “You know none of this is real.”
Do you believe in ghosts or evil spirits?
I have never had any direct experiences, but I realize there is a lot I probably don’t know about that universe. I will remain open to the possibilities. I can scare myself alone in the house, you know, noises, wind (laughs). I am not hard to scare. A creaky floor board, basically any kind of haunted house thing. Jacob [Chase], who wrote and directed [“Come Play”], loves haunted houses and I think he used to work at haunted houses. I can’t remember the last time I voluntarily went to something like a haunted house.
Is there anything you miss about Pittsburgh?
Dave & Andy’s Ice Cream [in Oakland], for sure. Pittsburgh is such a beautiful city. I miss going to the parks and Phipps Conservatory. I was actually talking to someone about how incredible the Carnegie Art Museum, the main Carnegie Library and the Natural History Museum are. My mom worked at the Natural History Museum when I was really, really little. I got to spend a lot of time there. I also used to love going to the library and sitting and reading there on one of the window sills. I realize now how lucky I was to grow up with such beautiful civic buildings like we have in Pittsburgh. I grew up reading the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette so this is a thrill for me.
Patricia Sheridan: psheridan@post-gazette.com.
First Published: October 30, 2020, 11:00 a.m.
