In an exclusive interview, director Austin Peters delves into the creative inspiration behind Skincare, his decision to cast Elizabeth Banks, and the film‘s nuanced look at image obsession in a social media-driven world.
Austin Peters, the director behind Skincare, gives us an inside look at his feature directorial debut, a dark thriller set against the backdrop of Los Angeles’ beauty industry. Inspired by real events but crafted into a fictional narrative, Skincare tackles themes of identity, image, and the lengths people go to maintain a carefully curated persona. Peters explains how he wanted the film to showcase both the allure and the dark side of the beauty industry, using Los Angeles as a setting that combines the glamorous with the gritty.
Elizabeth Banks stars as Hope, a woman navigating the intense pressures of the beauty industry, facing personal and professional trials that resonate with the anxieties of modern society. In this interview, Peters shares his thoughts on balancing the film’s suspenseful tone with dark humor, casting Banks in a role unlike any she’s done before, and exploring privacy issues relevant in today’s digital landscape.
Skincare is based on the true story of Dawn DaLuise, but you chose not to depict the events exactly as they happened. Why you took this creative approach? How did you balance the real events with the fictional elements to create an engaging narrative?
Austin: Well, the film is a fictional story inspired by real events. But that was really just the starting point, I think, for creating the film. Early on, we made a conscious decision not to make a documentary. I’ve worked in that space before, and we didn’t want to make a film that was an act of journalism—that’s a different thing. So what we really wanted to do was tell a story that felt like a modern «sunshine noir» in Los Angeles, inspired by all those films, books, and works of art that had influenced us and that we wanted to channel into this story.
The movie dives into the beauty industry. What motivated you to explore both the glamorous and the dark sides of the modern world?
Austin: I think one of the things that really draws me in is that duality: the dirty and the beautiful. I’m fascinated by how these two aspects can be so closely intertwined. What really intrigued me about this story was that it’s about beautiful people doing really ugly things. I thought that was interesting. I liked how it starts in this shiny, overexposed world of beauty and glamour, then descends into the dark and sordid side of Los Angeles, those unseen corners. That was something that immediately pulled me in.
I never expected to see Elizabeth in a role like this, but she fits perfectly. How was it working with her?
Austin: She was always my first choice for the role. I’m a huge fan of hers; she’s such an incredible actress. I’ve seen her in everything, and I’ve always admired how fearless she is. In our first meeting, I told her I loved how daring she is, how she’s not afraid to push the character to places it needs to go, even if that means doing something ugly or something that might embarrass someone else. That kind of bravery is one of the things I admire about her. I first saw her in Wet Hot American Summer, where she’s covered in barbecue sauce, and I thought, “This is incredible.” Then I saw her in W. by Oliver Stone, and also as Effie Trinket in The Hunger Games. She disappears into those characters. I always dreamed she’d want to do this film, even though I thought it was almost impossible, because she’s such a big star, director, and producer. I didn’t know how she’d find the time or the desire to do such an indie, dark film like this. But she responded to the material, and I’m eternally grateful for that.
The character of Hope (Banks) faces a lot of competition and pressure. How did you want her character to reflect the experiences of women in this industry?
Austin: Hope is a product of her environment; she’s living in a very treacherous landscape. There are a lot of questionable characters in the movie, but she doesn’t always make the best choices either. From the beginning, we wanted to show a character who makes decisions that the audience might not necessarily agree with but has to make to survive in her world. Every time she does something brilliant, she also does something that makes us think, “Why is she doing this?” That tension is really at the heart of the film, and that’s the kind of anxiety we wanted to convey.
The film has both suspense and dark humor. How did you find the balance between those tones while telling the story?
Austin: That was one of our biggest concerns from the beginning. We knew we wanted a very specific tone for the film, something that was present in every aspect: from the cinematography to the costumes. We also wanted everything to feel real. My instinct with comedy is always to keep it very grounded—not to make it silly, but it has to feel authentic to the characters. And with the thriller, we wanted that to be the primary tone, then layer the humor on top of that. It was a tug-of-war during the shooting and in editing, but the important thing was that the film kept its momentum and didn’t lose its core essence.
In the film, Hope’s email is hacked, leading to significant personal and professional consequences. How did you want to explore themes of privacy and trust in the digital age?
Austin: The hacking of Hope’s email is really just the beginning of her unraveling. In today’s world, we’re all so connected and so vulnerable at the same time. This idea of someone breaking into your personal space, accessing things that are supposed to be private, is a huge breach of trust. It’s something that everyone can relate to, and it’s a major theme in the film. The digital age has changed everything about how we interact with each other, and I wanted to explore how these new vulnerabilities affect us emotionally and psychologically.
What do you hope viewers take away from Skin Care?
Austin: I hope they leave the film thinking about the way we present ourselves to the world, the masks we wear, and what happens when those masks start to crack. It’s really a film about identity—how we shape it and how it shapes us. I want viewers to question the ways in which society’s pressures impact us and maybe even think a little deeper about the role that beauty, fame, and success play in our lives.
In this high-stakes thriller, Skincare forces viewers to question the price of perfection in an image-conscious world. The compelling performances, led by Elizabeth Banks, and a sharp narrative driven by Austin Peters’ direction, bring to life the dark side of beauty and the devastating consequences of living under constant scrutiny. As the plot intensifies, Skincare offers more than just suspense; it is a cautionary tale about the lengths people will go to protect their business, their image, and their lives. The haunting final scenes leave audiences reflecting on the fragility of privacy in the digital age.
Skincare is available on digital release from 11 November
