RESOLVING THE LEDGER
This is one outlet's own report from The Hollywood Reporter — the article as it was filed. Other outlets are covering the same event; open the full story to compare every source side by side.
See the full story · 1 sources
Logo text Whenever a new final girl rises in the genre space, those of us in entertainment media are quick — perhaps too quick — to crown the next "scream queen." There are no hard and fast rules for such a designation; you simply know it when you see it.
In Kathryn Newton 's case, she's been a fixture in the horror world since she led Paranormal Activity 4 (2012) at just 15 years old. Since then, she's amassed a total of seven horror films, including Jeff Wadlow's new shark-infused survival thriller, The Devil's Mouth , for Amazon Prime Video. (Prior to casting her, Wadlow received a testimonial from Newton's Paranormal Activity 4 writer, Christopher Landon.) Related Stories Movies Robert Downey Jr.'s Doctor Doom Voice Gave 'Avengers: Doomsday' Directors "Chills" Movies Marvel, 'Lanterns' and Johnny Depp: Here's What Hit (and Missed) at Comic-Con 2026
Considering she's been fighting for her life on screen for half of her own life, it seems like Newton has moved past the term scream queen. "Empress" has always seemed like the logical next step if royal titles are the basis of the moniker. But Newton says there's no consensus for any of it despite a horror filmography that also includes Landon's Freaky , Lisa Frankenstein , Abigail , Ready or Not 2: Here I Come and the upcoming White Elephant .
"I've done a lot of interviews, and some people have said, 'You're becoming a scream queen.' Others have said, 'You are a scream queen.' And now you're calling me an empress," Newton tells The Hollywood Reporter in support of the July 29 release of The Devil's Mouth . "So it depends on who you talk to, and time will tell."
In The Devil's Mouth , the Miami and Los Angeles-raised actor plays Sara, who's the fifth wheel during a college friend group's Thailand vacation. The quintet decide to tour an underwater cave system along the coast, and as expected, the experience quickly goes awry. The story, in a way, is about the danger of not being able to take direction. In other words, it's important to understand when to lead and when to be led.
For Newton, the shark-centric horror of The Devil's Mouth was not what compelled her to accept the Thailand-set film that shot immediately after wrapping Radio Silence's Ready or Not 2: Here I Come .
"I've wanted to do more action. I've felt like there's something that I can bring to an action film because I can do [the action]," Newton says. "That was why I did this one. I wanted to test myself and see where I'm really at, physically."
Newton shot a handful of movies last year, one of which is Marvel Studios' highly anticipated Avengers: Doomsday . Newton conducted Devil 's Mouth interviews just a couple days before she'd appear as Scott Lang/Ant-Man's daughter, Cassie Lang, in the first official trailer . Thus, she was extra paranoid about saying anything consequential, but the experience with Avengers: Infinity War and Endgame directors, the Russo brothers, far exceeded her preconceived notions.
"It was better [than expected]. The Russo brothers love these movies. I felt it, and I felt empowered," Newton says.
Below, during a conversation with THR , Newton, who's widely considered to be Hollywood's best golfer, also discusses how Ready or Not 2: Here I Come was written for her in more ways than one.
Did you basically say goodbye to your pet goat on the Toronto set of Ready or Not 2 and fly straight to Thailand for The Devil's Mouth ?
NEWTON How did you know!? Yeah, there were two days in between. I went home, changed my suitcase and then flew out again.
That's two physically challenging jobs back to back.
NEWTON Yeah, I remember talking to Jeff [Wadlow] when I was on set of Ready or Not 2 , and he was worried about me. He was like, "Are you working out? Are you going to be in shape?" And I was like, "You have no idea." ( Laughs .) We were running for our lives every day on Ready or Not , and I was in the best shape of my life, so I was excited for The Devil's Mouth . I did four or five movies last year, and it was a dream come true. That's really all you want.
You and Jeff Wadlow hadn't worked together before, but you've both worked with Jason Blum a lot. Did either of you talk to Jason about the other person?
[ Writer's Note: Wadlow explains below that he reached out to another Blumhouse vet about Newton. ]
WADLOW I'd been a fan of Kathryn's for a while, and I knew she'd practically grown up on Chris Landon's sets [ Paranormal Activity 4 and Freaky ]. So right before I jumped on a Zoom with her, I texted Chris to see if he had any insights, and he replied immediately: "She's incredibly talented, a total pro and an absolute assassin on the golf course."
You do spend most of your time walking on fresh-cut grass, so what was your relationship to water before this movie?
NEWTON That's funny, and while you're right, I haven't seen grass in a while because I've been a little busy. I grew up in Miami, swimming and snorkeling in the ocean. So I thought that I could handle this, and that's why I wanted to do the film. I knew my physicality as an athlete was going to be highlighted and that I could make the film better. I also knew how to rock climb. So Jeff really knew what he wanted, and he kept it really simple. Sometimes, I would look at him and be like, "I can do that. I don't need a harness." And he was like, "You're right. Let's shoot it." So it was fun to be able to do something and make it better because I had the physical capability.
Considering that almost the entire movie is set in an underwater cave system, I think you've undersold how impossible this movie must have been to shoot. Even if the caves were tank sets, it still looks impossible.
NEWTON Well, it wasn't because we did it. ( Laughs .) But what I really mean is that I think I can do anything now. I had never done a movie like this before; none of us had ever done a movie like this before. One day, we were in the middle of the ocean, and I was waiting. I was like, "Jeff, what'...
AIPROPX is an independent multi-source news index — we track, compare, and connect coverage from across the web into one place you won't find anywhere else.