Write On with 'Dual' Writer-Director Riley Stearns

Write On: A Screenwriting Podcast

Starring Karen Gillan and Aaron Paul, Dual follows a woman (Gillan) who has to fight a clone of herself to the death after she unexpectedly recovers from a terminal illness. Writer-director Riley Stearns discusses how he crafted the film's out-of-this-world sci-fi premise while staying grounded in reality: "I didn't want the world to feel like this futuristic sci-fi space. I wanted it to still feel like we could relate to it... It's like another alternate reality where everything's the same except for this... How do people interact with each other in a world where this procedure exists?" Stearns goes on to describe how he's evolved as a filmmaker since directing his first feature in 2014: "I would say that making Dual was the most confident and comfortable I've felt on set... There are times where you second guess yourself, and I still had those moments on Dual, but I think that knowing that your ideas have value, and trusting that, and trusting the people around you, I felt like Dual was just that experience that maybe... you wouldn't be the same person if you didn't learn those lessons." Dual is now available in select theaters and will be available On Demand on May 20.

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