‘Good One’ Breakout Star Lily Collias Is Launching a Great Career

The last 18 months of Lily Collias’ life have been transformative, to say the least. “So I graduated high school, worked on the movie, moved here for college, and then Sundance happened,” she recalled during an early dinner in downtown Manhattan.

The movie in question is India Donaldson’s acclaimed feature debut, “Good One.” Premiering at Sundance in January, it is now set for limited release by Metrograph Pictures. Collias’ brief summary of her recent milestones left out other notable achievements, including starting at NYU, taking the film to Cannes in May, and signing on for her next feature in Winnipeg.

On the day of our meeting, Collias was busy focusing on more immediate concerns, such as finding a new apartment with her best friend and roommate, likely in Brooklyn. Wondering if she could tolerate living next to an elevated subway track, she ultimately heeded my advice: “No, it’s way too loud.”

Much like her character in “Good One,” Collias is sensible, easy to talk to, and wise beyond her years. She plays Sam, a role that required her to lead the film, appear in nearly every scene, and serve as its moral center. Remarkably, this is her first leading role.

Collias didn’t follow the usual path of Los Angeles high school theater. “I never did theater there because I thought it was very cliquey and weird, and I couldn’t grasp it,” she said. Nevertheless, she trained rigorously, including early work with the Meisner Technique and later at LA’s Lee Strasberg Institute.

“When I was really young, [acting] piqued my interest,” she explained. With parents who had little grasp of the industry, Collias found her own way into acting schools. Her father, a business professional, saw the value and encouraged her.

Her early viewing habits included a mix of TV shows and movies, from strongmen to adult animations and more sophisticated films. “After school, there was a period where I watched ‘Hercules’ for a month straight,” she recalled. She also often watched her older brother’s picks, like “Family Guy” and “Happy Tree Friends.”

Collias credits her French mother for introducing her to “cool movies,” particularly “Amélie.” “I would watch ‘Amélie’ all the time with my mom as a kid, and I remember just being like, ‘I want to be just like her,’” she said. Initially, she struggled to distinguish between actor and character: “I thought that’s just who she was.”

Over time, and with more study, her understanding deepened. “Whenever I see a really interesting character, I think about what that would have been like to do [what they did],” she said, though she still enjoys seeing how others interpret roles.

Donaldson had a tough time finding the perfect Sam. It was her younger sister Octavia who finally steered her toward Collias. They met over coffee, which led to an audition tape that Donaldson loved. “I can’t imagine that position of searching for so long and not feeling it,” Collias said, but Donaldson’s instincts paid off.

Collias had an initial Zoom call with co-star James Le Gros, who plays her father in the film. “We were supposed to be family, and he just picked up our conversation and ran with it,” she said. Their chemistry was immediate and natural, a promising sign for their on-screen relationship.

The premise of “Good One” is straightforward: 17-year-old Sam embarks on a camping trip with her father Chris (James Le Gros), his best friend Matt (Danny McCarthy), and Matt’s teenage son. However, Matt’s son never shows up, leaving Sam alone with two older men in the wilderness.

The film was shot over just 12 days during the summer of 2023, starting with two days in the city before moving upstate. Collias recalled, “I’ve never camped before, not like that,” despite their accommodations being more comfortable than those in the film.

During the first two days upstate, the cast shot the film’s ending before most of the journey’s events had been filmed. “It was more of a psychological exercise, of not letting that affect the way that I was going to perform,” Collias said. But Donaldson’s guidance made the process smooth.

“Good One” sparks many discussions, especially regarding the film’s shifting tone and character motivations. After a pre-Sundance screening, critics debated when they first sensed the tension. Collias noted that female audience members often notice the tension much earlier than males.

“All of my guy friends are like, ‘I feel really badly, but I don’t think I noticed something was wrong for the longest time,’” Collias said, while her female friends detected issues within the first 10 minutes.

So, what’s it like watching a film about paternal relationships with her own father? “At the Sundance premiere, he sat next to me, and I saw him become emotional,” Collias said. Her father’s reaction during an emotional scene was unforgettable: “I just don’t know if I’ll ever get used to seeing my daughter cry.”

Much has changed for Collias over the past 18 months. She is no longer attending NYU due to financial reasons, but she’s thrilled with her current life. “My roommate’s one of my best friends, so us living together is just a happy time,” she said. “I have ‘Good One’ released in August, and then I’m working on my next project.”

That project, Egor Abramenko’s A24 horror film “Altar,” will take her to Winnipeg, a promising new adventure. “I’m excited for some fresh air,” she added.

Metrograph Pictures will release “Good One” in limited theaters on Friday, August 9, with nationwide expansion to follow.

Source: IndieWire