Liana Liberato on True Crime, Scream VI and ‘Based on a True Story’

liana liberato horror interview polyester zine based on a true story photoshoot savana ogburn — Make it stand out

2023 has been a banner year for actor Liana Liberato – over the past 12 months, she has found a firm niche, having established herself as one of the newest leading lights in contemporary horror. After an appearance alongside *Mad Men*’s Kiernan Shipka in the slasher *Totally Killer*, as well as donning the genre’s most iconic mask as one of three Ghostfaces in *Scream VI*, Liberato has since turned her hand to comedy-drama, in the Peacock series *Based on a True Story*.
Starring with *The Flight Attendant’*s Kaley Cuoco and *Sharp Objects*’ Chris Messina, Liberato plays Tory, the sister of a woman whose husband becomes embroiled in a murder case picked up by true crime obsessives. The series satirises our cultural obsession with true crime, and is part of the wave of pop culture critiquing our macabre tastes.
Polyester Deputy Editor Gina Tonic caught up with Liberato to chat about everything from her own thoughts on true crime, to how it felt to play one of horror’s most storied characters – alongside a shoot inspired by *Lizzie McGuire*, *Cheetah Girls* and all our other Disney Channel faves, by photographer Savana Ogburn.

GT: So you've been in the industry for a while, what have been like the major changes you've seen in the time since you were a younger actress?

LL: Oh, gosh, there's been a lot of changes. Honestly, I think there's just more opportunity, which is great. I remember when I first came out here, it was in 2005. And I remember being told at the age of nine, you know, “Don't sign your life away to a television show, just do movies, film is more respectable.” And now I feel like there's such great content in television, hence why I'm here right now, but I remember kind of carrying that with me for a while and being so scared to sign on to a show. And then it just becomes undeniable. There's definitely been some big shifts, especially with streaming. There's just so much out there. There's so much to watch.

Yeah, definitely. I think after Mad Men and Breaking Bad, it was so undeniable that like TVs is such a respectable platform to go into.

It's exciting, especially as an actor, because with television, you really get to spend a lot of time with each of your characters and you kind of get surprised too. Every time you receive a script, you don't know what you're about to read. And it feels a little bit more immersive and you feel a bit more like an audience member, which is fun.

I was reading one of your interviews about Scream and I saw that they surprised you in the costume fitting to tell you that you'd be Ghostface. I can't imagine being so shocked by something that you're already so involved with.

Yeah, it was so weird. Having received the first two acts – I thought I was dead! And then that being sprung on you. That doesn't happen that much in movies, so I wasn't expecting that. But yeah, that was pretty wild.

How was it playing such an iconic horror villain?

It was awesome. It was so cool. It was a little intimidating, but I was a huge fan of Radio Silence. They did the fifth instalment as well and knowing that they trusted me with such a beloved character made me feel more at peace with approaching the role. And it was really fun. I mean, there's something like really wild and feral about just letting yourself go in that way and it almost felt therapeutic. It was really fun. Kind of terrible to say but it was, it was fun.

Based on a True Story is definitely horror-adjacent, too. It dips in and out of genres, but you're very well versed in performing in horror genres. Why do you like working within that world?

I don't know. I always find myself gravitating towards that genre. I think it's really interesting to play characters in that world. I find it fascinating to see how each role that I've been handed kind of reacts to certain things especially like life and death. I think I just psychologically find that really fascinating. And I think especially with Based on a True Story, playing Tori felt really different for me. I haven't really played a character like her before and she feels a little bit like the moral compass of the show, which I liked and it felt like uncharted territory for me, which was really fun.

Definitely, it's such a departure from Scream. Did you enjoy the satirical nature of the series, especially satirising horror fans? I think that must be so tongue in cheek for someone who's worked so much within that genre?

Yeah, it's funny because I consider Scream also very aware of itself and meta, but in a bit of a different way. But I think that's a big reason why I also gravitated to this show is that it is a little bit of an over-dramatised version, like all of these characters, you're like, “How realistic is this reaction?” I think that's kind of fun. You know it kind of makes fun of people in a way and you can find little bits and pieces of your own personality in each of the characters but they're just a little bit more satirical or over-dramatised, which I think is really fun. I don't know how to explain it other than the fact that I just think that people are going to question their own morality and thought process when watching the show of like, “How would I react to this?”

Yeah, I think there's a lot of morality tied up in true crime as well – people have debates about the ethics of true crime and like, why we enjoy it and things like that. So I wonder: why do you think true crime as a genre is so popular?

It’s hard to say, because I don't want to say that I listen to it for entertainment because it is true and it's heartbreaking. But we are as a society so fascinated by it. I mean Serial was one of the first podcasts I listened to that was true crime, and S Town, and Root of Evil was really crazy. I don't know, it honestly made me reflect a lot on my own journey with true crime, doing this show, and especially Tori's opinion on it too, which I feel like is a little bit more grounded, which I appreciate. I think that there's probably a lot of pros and cons that come with the world we're living in right now and how accessible things are to us. And the show definitely touches on that as well.

I think it's nice to get a show that's kind of mocking that obsession, even in the first episode where a character says: “Do we have to wake up every morning to like, death?” Like, you log onto your phone and it’s all you see.”

Yeah, we are as a society, like quite desensitised to violence nowadays.

I really like that Based on a True Story and in Scream are part of this new genre of horror, that's really tapping into, Gen Z humour – Bodies, Bodies, Bodies too. Why do you think it's so important to ensure that Gen Z are relating to horror?

I mean, the best way to get anything out there right now is by targeting them as an audience. I feel like they have the biggest outreach on social media. And I mean, I listen to them. I'm like, “Whatever you say, I'll buy whatever you're telling me to buy on Amazon. I'll go to Target and get all of the tanning lotions and whatever.” I feel like they are very persuasive. And also, they're just wicked smart. You want them to like you.

They have this undiluted access to so much real life horror, like so many gross things going on. So I think it is interesting how much they seem to appreciate horror as a genre as well.

Yeah, absolutely. Again, it's sort of what we were talking about, about how we're all a little bit desensitised and like numb to violence and horror, I think that it has become a little bit more of a challenge to get more creative with that genre. I think when it's done right, that generation really do appreciate that. And I mean, honestly, I think one of the most innovative horror movies of recent times is It Follows. I think that's a really cool, cool film. And it's very introspective, it makes you think afterwards. And I feel like that Gen Z generation really liked that film, too. It’s definitely a little bit more challenging, but I think it's more gratifying.