He received national attention for playing the starring role of Pepe in the award-winning film “Requiescat,” and he co-starred opposite Laurence Fishburne in the upcoming theatrical release of “Under the Stadium Lights.” And now, you catch Adrian Favela in the horror film “Wrong Turn” which is debuting on digital and physical media and serves as a reboot of the long-running franchise. In it he plays Luis, a member of the LGBT community who is vacationing with his friends in Virginia where they go hiking around the Appalachian Trail. But as the title implies, they go in the wrong direction and find themselves at the mercy of a community of villagers who are not the least bit happy to deal with outsiders.

I got to speak with Adrian over the phone while he was in Los Angeles, and we talked about how this “Wrong Turn” reboot proves to be a lot more grounded in reality than its predecessors ever were. We also talked about his character and the others are a bit different from others the horror genre typically has to offer.  

Ben Kenber: This “Wrong Turn” film was not at all what I expected. It feels a lot more grounded in reality, and the characters including yours are not your typical horror movie cliches. Your character of Luis Ortiz is part of the LGBT community and has a boyfriend, and this is something we do not always see in a film like this. How do you feel about that?

Adrian Favela: I think it’s really amazing. We don’t always get to see other LGBT characters represented in a non-stereotypical way. The way Alan B. McElroy wrote the script, he made the characters very normalized and I think that’s really special. I have tons and tons of fans reaching out saying how represented they felt, and I really truly feel special for that.

BK: I love the scene where the characters including yours are in the bar and this redneck-like character comes up to insult them. In the process, we come to discover how educated you and the others are.

AF: Yeah, I loved the idea behind it. Instead of the typical dumb kids in the woods doing dumb things, it was really smart everyday people in a terrible situation which I really appreciate.

BK: I expect most actors in horror films to overact or emote to a ridiculous extent. How did you and the filmmakers work at keeping your character so grounded?

AF: Originally what he (director Mike P. Nelson) did to make us all really blend into the characters is he made all of the cast hang out and become really good friends before we even started shooting, so that really grounded us in the space. So, when got to the points of huge emotions, we run into a big ravine scene with Gary and Luis, when you actually know the person next to you personally, it really opens you up to new emotions. It’s not like the fake emotions that you want to put on for show, but it is also your own personal emotions that you are able to attach to the character and magnify the extent of what Luis is going through. So, it was really cool and special. Mike also is huge on horror with heart, so he wanted us to dig within ourselves so it’s not just like, oh somebody died, let’s run away. It’s like, somebody died, let’s feel what happened.

BK: I read that when you auditioned for this film, you had to act in a blank space and pretend things were there when they were not. How did you go about doing that?

AF: Through the audition there was traps, there was the character Adam getting sucked into the hole by chains, and snakes, etc. It was one of the craziest auditions I had ever seen. So, the way I really approached it was I wanted just to take to my imagination. I really have to sell the idea these things are happening to me, but if you do it in a way which is too structured, you get lost and you’re trying to play something compared to seeing somebody living in this imaginary world. I think that’s what ultimately helped me book the role, just taking to my imagination and playing in the space.

BK: Were you at all familiar with the “Wrong Turn” franchise before you were cast in this reboot?

AF: The first one came out when I was around 10 (years old) and I remembered watching bits of it with my dad and just being absolutely horrified. It was burned into my mind. I don’t know if you’ve seen the first one where they are chopping up the person on the table. I was just remember being mind blown and horrified and had nightmares for months and months. So, when I got the audition I was like, oh my god, is that the movie which just horrified me my entire childhood? (Laughs.) It was like a full circle.

BK: This film was shot in the wilderness. What challenges did this present to you and the other actors?

AF: It was definitely really tough. I will say the terrain was really brutal. There are some real falls which made the final cut. We were out in the place called Hocking Hills. It is a state park, and it is full of caves and caverns. The trails were really, really thin, so we’re filming with tons and tons of crew and we’re just trying to act and not fall down the hill at the same time (laughs). The night shots, especially the outer foundation area, it was in the middle of the night and there were no lights. I remember being carted to set and you couldn’t see anything in front of you. It was just the headlights, and it was insane. It was brutal, but it really kept us in character for what these characters were actually going through.

BK: It really shows up onscreen. You really can’t fake that.

AF: Yeah (laughs).

BK: What I liked about the screenplay is how it does not reveal its secrets right away. When you first read it, did you get all the information you needed, or was it a situation where the filmmakers revealed things to you as production went on?

AF: The original script is a little bit different than the final cut of the film, but we still got the same idea. In the original script we found a reveal at the very end that a ton of time has passed and Jen has been in the Foundation for months. This is why she is so incredible at her kills and survival skills. I was very surprised at how they approached it. I think the approach that Michael did was absolutely perfect. It explains to the audience that there is a time lapse happening. It says right at the top that this is six weeks prior (to what we just saw in the prologue). That way we were just led in, and it all leads up to when Matthew Modine’s character finds Jen.

BK: Did you have a small role in Olivia Wilde’s “Booksmart?”

AF: Yeah, there was this casting for a bunch of party guys. The original script of “Booksmart” was supposed to be something along the lines of a female version of “Superbad.” It was a crazy (party) scene, and they ended up cutting all that out. It was definitely a bummer, but it was really cool to see everybody working and that kind of giant cast ensemble feeling and how to work in that space.

BK: “Booksmart” was one of my favorite movies of 2019, and it’s the kind of teen movie I like best as it takes the problems adolescents go through more seriously as opposed to joking about them endlessly.

AF:  Yeah, ”Booksmart” was incredible. When I saw the final cut of it, I was like wow, this movie is amazing.

BK: Did you get to work with Olivia Wilde at all?

AF: Yeah, just a bit. I met her. She was super, super kind and loving and sweet. You don’t always get that with directors, so it was really cool to see her giving her everything.

BK: How do you feel about the response this “Wrong Turn” has received thus far?

AF: Of course, we are going to get mixed reviews. Horror always has mixed reviews (laughs).

BK: Yes, I tend to moderate my expectations when I watch any movie these days. There have been many horror movie reboots over the years, but this is really one of the better ones.

AF: Oh, thank you!

BK: This film has the same screenwriter as the original “Wrong Turn” film, Alan B. McElroy, and this is the same man who wrote “Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers.” This is a guy who clearly knows how to put a fresh spin on a long running horror franchise.

AF: I think the thing with “Wrong Turn” was it was moving in a single direction for so long. We had the standard of the flesh-eating cannibals and the classic tire pop as they are moving toward West Virginia. I think what Alan B. McElroy did was he flipped it on its head. Instead of giving you the same path, he flipped it in a new direction. At the end of the day, horror fans are really, really, really smart fans. They know everything. We pulled a lot of the flesh-eating cannibals and we traded it for food for thought which I think was really smart and an interesting move and something you don’t always see in horror. If you go into this film with an open mind and an open heart for something new and something fresh, I think you will find it in this film. But if you are looking for something along the lines of, I want to see a flesh-eating cannibal, you might not like it (laughs).

“Wrong Turn” will be available to own and rent on VOD, Digital, DVD and Blu-ray starting on February 23, 2021.