Feature by Brad Balfour
A Quiet Place Part II
Cast: John Krasinski, Emily Blunt, Millicent Simmonds, Noah Jupe, Cillian Murphy, Djimon Hounsou
In 2018’s hit sci-fi thriller, A Quiet Place, the Abbots find ways to survive in a post-apocalyptic world inhabited by vicious blind monsters with an acute sense of hearing who attack anything that makes a sound. Forced to live in silence, the family navigates a world where the creatures have overwhelmed and annihilated most of humanity. Lee Abbott (Krasinski) and wife Evelyn (Blunt) do their best to protect their three kids while trying to cope. When Evelyn gets pregnant, the situation becomes even more dire but thanks to their deaf daughter Regan (Simmonds) they’ve learned sign language and developed techniques that help them cope in a quiet world. By the end of that film, a noise-generating device is developed which can paralyze and destroy the creatures. The film ends on an optimistic note.
After its box-office success, Krasinski wrote this follow-up, A Quiet Place Part II, and again directed it. The sequel addresses what happens after this defense emerges which frees them up in some way to handle these monsters and move forward. Again written and directed by Krasinski, it stars Blunt, Simmonds and Noah Jupe reprising their roles in the first film. They are joined by Cillian Murphy and Djimon Hounsou who play characters that aid in advancing humanity’s effort to re-establish some kind of society.
The film then had a world premiere in NYC on March 8, 2020 but thanks to postponements due to the pandemic, it’s getting theatrically released at the end of this month. It will then be available to stream on Paramount+ 45 days after its theatrical debut.
This Q&A comes from interview sessions held at the time when this film was originally set to be released, just days before the lock-down started more than a year ago.
Q: Did you see the first film?
Cillian Murphy: I went to see the movie with my kids when it came out two years ago. I loved it, loved it, loved it, and my kids loved it. I thought it was one of the great movies of the year. They were 10 and 12, maybe, at the time.
Q: Is that a good age for them to see these kinds of films?
CM: They watch a lot of movies. Anyway, I loved it so much that I wrote John an email. I didn’t know him, but I was saying how great I thought the movie was and how fantastic a job he did. But then I didn’t send it because I just got too embarrassed. Then he emailed me a year later. So that’s the story.
Q: Sound in this film is about being quiet, silent. It’s like another character in the film.
CM: Obviously, it was an important factor for us as performers. When I saw the first movie, I thought it was such a brilliantly original but yet simple idea, like all the best ideas are simple, yet, no one else has thought of it. So it was great, it was a challenge, right? It’s so true and clever, actually.
Q: During production of the original movie, Millicent and Noah went to Emily and John’s house to have dinner. Did you have a bonding experience with them before the shoot; how did the bonding go?
CM: I spent time with John and Emily. We went for dinner and I hung out with them and talked about the character’s history a lot and, without giving anything away, [my character’s] backstory and how that story kind of goes [in a] circular way in the movie. There’s a sort of a before and after for my character. So yeah, we spent a good bit of time getting to know each other.
Q: What was would you say was fascinating them that led you to work with them?
CM: John and Emily, above all, are really talented artists. I’ve admired their work for a long, long time. I never met John or Emily before this, but I admired their work for so long, and that’s a talented couple right there. But also, they’re such wonderfully warm, generous, lovely people. I really admire their choices, as well, the way they live their lives, not in Hollywood and just being good people. That’s something that I admire.
Q: Is there a background story about life on the island?
CM: That’s a major spoiler, though.
Q: Is there an anecdote or some funny thing that happened while shooting regarding silence. Something that happened like somebody laughing, or speaking, or a cell phone ringing.
CM: I don’t remember anything like that. It was a professional set. People weren’t playing on their phones.
Q: Your character has a relationship with Millicent because, obviously, they rely on sign language and movement. Did you do any special preparation for the sign language? How did you actually talk with Millicent to develop that bond?
CM: We got to know each other through the course of the movie as the characters did. She’s a beautiful person, and she’s a really warm, generous, lovely person. She’s got a great sense of humor. We got on, but she’s also a very, very focused performer and it was great working with her. You learn a lot from younger performers because they’re so instinctual and so in the moment, which she always was. I really loved working with her.
Q: How was it navigating all the sets — they were so enormous, with so many obstacles.
CM: Many of the sets were built on actual steelworks in abandoned steel factories in Buffalo, and they looked like some sort of lost 
ancient civilization. They were just wild. It’s extraordinary, but we got access to these factories, and got to go everywhere. Then some of the sets were built in the factories themselves and there’s such detail. Like on the set where Emmett [Murphy’s character] lives, all the detail, all the books that he was reading, and all the drawings — they created everything for the film. Every single thing, absolutely beautiful, beautiful work. The production designer, whose name I cannot recall, designed all the Coen brothers’ sets so he designed them and it was just real artistry.
Q: How was the collaboration between John and Emily? They worked together on the original film and seemed perfect for each other. How do they work together on the set?
CM: They’re really, really talented and have such respect for each other’s talent.
Q: What kind of director is John and how does he directs — what are his main qualities?
CM: First of all, he is incredibly talented and that isn’t always a natural progression from actor to director. It doesn’t always work like that. But he’s very, very generous; he knows how to talk to actors. He understands the craft. And he’s generous and collaborative.
Q: If they make another sequel or a spin-off, do you think your character would be involved? These guys get to the island — how you survive over there [suggests] future stories. Was there a concept in mind of a further sequel or maybe in a spin-off.
CM: I think there’s a lot more story to tell. Still, because the story started so tiny and now is slightly bigger I think there is more room for the story to get bigger. And that’s a clever way to write rather than to start big but rather you start small.
Q: The producer offered an explanation about why you were using boots because at some point, yet the family decided to go barefoot because it was easier for them. Was it better for you to wear boots?
CM: Oh to wear boots? Well, yes and no. There was a lot of running in those boots that wasn’t fun. I would have preferred to have been barefoot for the running. That would have been easier. But yeah, that was a big story choice that they, the Abbotts, lived one way and my character, because of his tragedy and loss, lived a different way.
Q: Speaking of boots, what was the most challenging action sequence that you shot? There’s a lot of action on the island, obviously, but at the same time, you have to worry about the sounds. So what was the most difficult sequence for you?
CM: There were lots but I love that stuff; I’ve always liked the physical aspect of acting. I’ve always enjoyed stunt work. I’ve always liked that but there were times where you thought, “Man, this is hard.”
Q: Which one was that?
CM: I did stuff in the lake that was hard. But I never complained because you’re so pleased to be there and happy to be making the movie, that you want to do it as best as you can.
Q: What other plans do you have after this film? What are you doing next?
CM: I’m going to shoot Peaky Blinders [The Sixth Season] next week, or the week after next…