Actress, comedian, and writer, Precious Chong is widely known for her roles in “Pearl Harbor,” “L.A. Confidential,” and “According to Spencer.” Fans also know her as Annette Morrison in the TV sci-fi drama “Falling Water” and as Pam in “Love You Like Christmas.”
Her other TV credits include Hallmark’s “Love’s Complicated,” “God and Country,” and “Playing it Cool.” Her short film, “Chinatown,” which she wrote and starred in, premiered at the Female Eye Film Festival and the New Hampshire Film Festival.
Her first full-length screenplay, “The Red Velvet Coat” won Best Screenplay at the 2015 Female Eye Film Festival, and her second screenplay “Myra and Susan,” won a Crowd Pleaser award at the 2017 Female Eye Film Festival. Her web series, “Sex and the Single Parent,” which she co-created with Melissa Story has been nominated three times for a Canadian Comedy Award for best web series.
Chong’s theater work includes “Real Estate” by Allana Harkin, “Bad Dates” by Theresa Rebeck at the MTC Warehouse/tour, and “Mating Dance of the Werewolf” at the MTC Warehouse. She most recently starred in the premiere of “Fair and Square” by Derek Ritschel at the Lighthouse Theatre.
In the comedy/horror indie, “Homewrecker,” Chong is Linda, a troubled woman who develops a neurotic obsession with a young married woman.
What drew you to the role of Linda in “Homewrecker”?
Precious Chong: Director Zach Gayne and I had collaborated on several projects over the last seven years. He had the initial logline and he was a good friend of Alex Essoe. She and I had wanted to work on something together. Zach mentioned that “Homewrecker” was a two-person idea. So I said perfect and I got to play this crazy Jack Nicholson character, which made me happy. It’s not often you get to play that part as a woman. We wrote the script together. It was peer collaboration.
“Homewrecker” skillfully combines menace with black comedy. What did you draw from to bring Linda to life?
Chong: I sort of amplified aspects of my home life—dealing with the frustration of ageism. And the kind of female tropes, like heavily working out, reading self-help books and engaging in affirmations. Basically, all the stuff that I’m into but exaggerated to create this kind of lonely alienated person.
Please tell me you don’t have a sledgehammer at home.
Chong: (laughs) Zach came up with these images. Like he wanted to have a sledgehammer hanging on the wall. That helped me as we collaborated artistically to justify my character. Like what kind of person would have that? It was also that little hammer she had on her keychain and all of those weird quirky moments that make up my character.
Whose idea was it to incorporate that silly dating game?
Chong: That was Zach’s idea. It was a spoof of a game his older sister had. He remembered the game with the video element. I never played those games but I knew exactly what he was talking about. When we were writing the script, Zach said we have to make the game playable. So we created this actual game called Party Hunks.
What did you find most challenging about being in this film?
Chong: OMG, I think it was wearing all those different ‘hats.’ We had a skeleton crew. I was the production designer and I had to set-dec the next shot and keep everything together. We just had to do it rather than wondering if we made the right choices. There’s an energy there that’s artistically freeing for me.
Every actor has a favorite scene or scenes. What were yours in “Homewrecker”?
Chong: There were a couple of things. Like I loved playing off of Alex. In playing Party Hunks, I was mesmerized by her connection in that scene. Then doing the Lisa Loeb video and that insanity—that was my favorite part. It was weird and quirky. And I got to be in a music video, which is something I always wanted to do. I was shy at first but then I really got into it.
The fight scenes between you and Alex were pretty intense. Was anyone injured?
Chong: Thankfully no one was injured. We were really careful about that. Although I noticed by the second week of shooting, I had a lot of bruises just from doing those scenes over and over. We had a fight choreographer who was really helpful, especially during the scene where I kick Alex down the stairs. We’d stop and start a lot. The editing helped quite a bit. Some people think that’s how women would fight—messy. And I think it helped show the chaos of those scenes.
The subtext of “Homewrecker” seems to suggest that these women were unable to deal with rejection. What do you see as the core message of the film?
Chong: For me, it’s a commentary, a satire of the female trope–the wronged woman and women fighting over a man. It’s about the romantic lies that women are told as we grow up. And about the true connection between these two women because I think they bonded in a weird way. It’s also about how women like to be intimate and share their feelings. I don’t think Michelle wanted to kill Alex. Michelle just wanted that intimacy, in a kind of masochistic way. It’s basically about that female connection and how gender expectations keep us isolated. There was also the generational divide, the feeling Michelle had of being left behind as she got older, that she was not the most current thing.
What were you like in high school? The girl most likely to…?
Chong: (laughs) I failed at being the popular girl. I wanted to fit that role, but I was too good a student. I went to a boarding school, which is a bit of an odd thing.
Were you in drama in school?
Chong: (laughs) We had lots of drama but it wasn’t in class. I did some theater back then, but I wasn’t good. I was too self-conscious. But I was a good writer.
Alex A. Kecskes is a published author of "Healer a Novel" available on Amazon. He has written hundreds of film reviews and celebrity interviews for a wide variety of online and print outlets. He has covered red carpet premieres and Comic-Con events for major films and independent releases.
