The body-swapping genre is getting a fresh and energetic twist with Greg Jardin’sIt’s What’s Inside. The sci-fi horror-comedy serves as Jardin’s feature directorial debut, with the filmmaker having previously made a name for himself as a director both in shorts and in music videos. Some of Jardin’s more notable previous productions include the teaser promos for Netflix’s13 Reasons Whyseasons 2 and 3,When They See UsandColin in Black & White: The Path is Power, as well as the short film teaserCowboy Bebop: The Lost Sessionfor the streamer’s live-action adaptation.
Jardin wears the hats of writer, director and editor for the movie, withIt’s What’s Insidefocusing onShelby, Cyrus, Reuben, Dennis, Nikki, Brooke, Maya and Forbes, a group of friends who reunite at Reuben’s family home to celebrate his upcoming wedding. Forbes, who has been estranged from the group since college when a party went awry and he was expelled, shows up with a device that allows them all to swap bodies. What starts out as a fun night of exploration becomes a tension-filled one as they revisit old secrets, grudges and desires.
It’s What’s Inside Ending Explained: Who Ends Up In Which Body
Netflix’s It’s What’s Inside has no shortage of twists, leading up to a fast-paced ending that shocks viewers while answering important questions.
Jardin has put together an impressive young ensemblecast forIt’s What’s Inside, includingFear the Walking Dead’s Alycia Debnam-Carey,Chilling Adventures of Sabrina’s Gavin Leatherwood,The Resort’s Nina Bloomgarden,Barry’s Devon Terrell,The White Lotus' Brittany O’Grady,I Love My Dad’s James Morosini,Brockmire’s Reina Hardesty andFear Street’s David Thompson. Having first premiered at 2024’s Sundance Film Festival followed by South by Southwest, Jardin’s feature debut proves to be the perfect mix of visually inventive direction and balance of comedy and thrills, currently holding an 81% “Certified Fresh” approval rating from critics on Rotten Tomatoes.
Prior to the movie’s Netflix premiere,Screen Rantinterviewed writer/director/editor Greg Jardin to discussIt’s What’s Inside, how his original concept evolved from a comedy to a genre mix with thriller, how the movie’s single location boosted his creativity while writing it, and doing multiple table reads to help his cast discover their characters.
Jardin’s Unique Musical Taste Led ToIt’s What’s Inside’s Genre Change
“…it was just a matter of maintaining, on set, a pervasive sense of suspense and anxiety…”
Screen Rant: Greg, you are a genius.It’s What’s Insideis so much fun, it had me guessing all the way until the end. Now you describe It’s What’s Inside as a sci-fi thriller with jokes. How challenging was it to balance the thriller and comedy elements without making sure they overshadowed each other?
Greg Jardin: Yeah, I initially conceived it as just a straight-up sci-fi comedy. It wasn’t until I was really writing the actual script that I started listening to music, and that music I started listening to was more thriller, psychological horror-type stuff. Specifically, I listened to the score for the movie The Double with Jesse Eisenberg and Mia Wasikowska.
That score is great. The guy who did it, Andrew Hewitt, amazing. We got him to do the score for our movie. So, really, the kind of thriller stuff came in from that. And then, it was just a matter of maintaining, on set, a pervasive sense of suspense and anxiety while also just giving the actors their freedom to kind of be funny.
Developing The Ensemble Cast’s Backstories “Took A While” For Jardin
“That just seemed like a good source of conflict.”
Now, the reunion of old friends with unresolved rivalries adds a fascinating layer to this story. How did you approach developing the characters' backstories with these complex relationships?
Greg Jardin: Yeah, it took a while, honestly, but it just kind of started from I knew I wanted the story to be about a relationship in crisis, and a woman who did not feel valued by her partner as a result of his diet of social media, media, et cetera, et cetera. And then, the idea that there was a woman from their past that he may have never gotten over, and that she has always felt like a consolation prize. That just seemed like a good source of conflict. I guess it was really just built out from that initial triangle. And then, of course, there’s Forbes, who is the mystery guy in the room. So yeah, it kind of started from there.
Jardin Finds Constraints Like Single-Location Stories “Very Helpful”
Now, you gave yourself a mandate to write a contained film in one location with a small cast. How did that constriction boost your creativity?
Greg Jardin: Yeah, great question. I think I find constraints like that very helpful. You often have constraints like that within promos and music videos and stuff, and it almost takes the burden off of, “I could do anything.” It’s like, “Okay, well now, I can only do this.” And then once I had that constraint specifically, once we had the house, it was like, “Okay, how can we make this movie, this house, look and feel and sound totally different than any other house that we’ve seen in a movie in this subgenre?” So, it was honestly freeing to know that it had to be in this house. And then, at that point, the challenge was, “What can we do to the house?”
Jardin Wanted Multiple Table Reads To Give His Cast A “Baseline” For Multiple Personalities
“…it also really just came from them bonding, spending time together.”
Now, a lot of the cast really credits the rehearsal process as when they really found the character. Correct me if I’m wrong, but you did two table reads, one from the perspective of the souls, and one from the perspective of the bodies. Can you talk about how that helped inform the cast of playing the through ine of those characters?
Greg Jardin: Yeah, so we did the souls table read first, and I think that was just helpful for everyone to hear and to have a baseline for everyone’s general mannerisms, the way they spoke, et cetera. And then, after that, we essentially had a whole week of rehearsal, where that baseline helped, and then informed the final table read, which was at the end of the week. But, it also really just came from them bonding, spending time together. They all stayed at the same hotel and just kind of getting to know each other, and teaching their characters, too, and learning from their castmates, I think, was very paramount to how the movie came out.
If I’m not mistaken, they also recorded each other as their characters to help kind of prepare them and get some of the mannerisms down for some of these characters. Can you talk about where that idea came from?
Greg Jardin: Them recording each other? That honestly wasn’t even really my idea. They honestly just kind of started. I didn’t even realize that they were doing that. And at a certain point, I’m seeing David walk around listening to his AirPods, and I’m like, “Oh, what song are you listening to?” He’s like, “Oh, I’m listening to James say this line.” I was like, “Oh, interesting. Fascinating.” I had the idea for them to record each other for just the first Brady Bunch test rounds. That we almost did as an exercise, but everything beyond that, they all just kind of did on their own.
AboutIt’s What’s Inside
A group of friends gathers for a pre-wedding party that descends into an existential nightmare when an estranged friend arrives with a mysterious game that awakens long-hidden secrets, desires, and grudges.
It’s What’s Inside
Cast
It’s What’s Inside is a film centered around a high-stakes narrative involving complex character dynamics that explore internal and external conflicts. Throughout the storyline, characters face personal challenges as they navigate their intertwined fates, providing a gripping view of their struggles and transformations.
