John Krasinski wouldn’t have filmed ‘A Quiet Place’ without using a deaf actress.
The 39-year-old star says it was "non-negotionable" having someone with the disability in real life portraying Regan Abbott in the horror movie because they could be his "guide".
Millicent Simmonds played the daughter of John and his wife Emily Blunt’s characters Lee and Evelyn Abbott in the film, which follows the married couple who must protect their children – including son Marcus (Noah Jupe) – from monsters who are blind but have an acute sense of hearing.
In an interview with Variety, he admitted: "It was a non-negotiable thing for me.
"The more important reason to me was I needed a guide.
"I was writing a movie about a family who had a deaf child, and I know nothing about that.
"I needed someone to walk me through, ‘What do you feel when you wake up in the morning to be the only person who can’t hear in your family?’"
One of the most rewarding experiences for Krasinski – who has daughters Hazel, four and two-year-old Violet with Emily – was filming in silence from the perspective of Simmonds’, which made her mother burst into tears because it allowed her to experience just what it’s like for her daughter to not hear.
He admitted: "To see her mom come up to me crying as hard as she was, was the most moving experience.
"She said, ‘I’ve always wanted to know what the experience was with my daughter and I finally have it.’"
The ‘Office’ actor previously admitted he doesn’t think a film will ever have the same effect on him again.
He said: "This movie has changed my life in every single way, not just my career; I’ve not given my total sense to anything before, and I don’t mean that I’ve been lazy, but there was something extremely personal about this movie. I said to my wife, ‘I don’t think it ever will be like this again’. And my wife, who is a brilliant sage, said, ‘Of course there won’t. This is special and we did it together and there was something about it for your daughters.’ "
John Krasinski: Deaf actress was non-negotionable in A Quiet Place
