John Krasinski discusses his chilling new thriller- A Quiet Place

Who doesn’t love the hilariously-deadpan Jim from the hit TV series, The Office?  Since the series ended in 2013, John Krasinski has moved on to a successful career both in front of and behind the camera.

His third directorial effort is a bit out of his comfort zone. A Quiet Place (opening next week) is an intense thriller set in the near future after an apocalyptic event. It follows a family of survivors and stars Krasinski, his wife Emily Blunt with Millicent Simmonds (Wonderstruck) and Noah Jupe playing their children. They are terrified, alone and just trying to stay alive remaining totally silent while a trio of sharp-toothed creatures lurk in the distance. Making even the slightest noise is enough to prompt an attack.

At SXSW - Emily Blunt, Millicent Simmonds, Noah Jupe and John Krasinski

At its core the film is about a family that has no choice but to lean on one another to survive. Even though the film is quite frightening and intense, A Quiet Place has much more to say about its humans than its monsters and is especially invested in the ways families fail to communicate even their most basic needs to each other.

A Quiet Place marks Krasinski’s third time in the director’s chair. Vanity Fair notes, however, that it’s his “first home run.” Prior to this film, the former The Office star directed Brief Interviews with Hideous Man in 2009 and The Hollars. He also directed three episodes of The Office between 2010 and 2012.

I met with writer, director and star John Krasinski in Toronto to talk about the daunting task of working on this film and why he would literally jump through hoops to work with his wife again.

A Quiet Place opens on April 6th. After that, Blunt will appear as Mary Poppins in the newest adaptation of the classic children’s movie, playing the iconic role with support from Lin-Manuel Miranda, Colin Firth and Meryl Streep, out in theatres next Christmas.