The intensely sexy Erin Cahill survived the kitschy horror film Boogeyman 3. Now, can she handle David Cross?
-By Mac Montandon
She plays lead shrieker in the new, scareslinging DVD Boogeyman 3, but it might be a pair of smaller parts that propels our new favorite tank-top wearer, Erin Cahill. When we spoke with the actress, the winner of the Mary Louise Parker look-alike contest of our dreams, she’d just been a guest star on CBS’s How I Met Your Mother (hey, if it’s good enough for Britney …). And this year, catch her yukking it up with David Cross and Michael Vartan in a comedy about competing tire-store owners. (Don’t worry: We’re not about to make the obvious joke about how if you combine Cahill and tire stores, you’re sure to get burnt rubber. Oops.) Anyway, Cahill proved to be lively, game, and … very busy, as her cellphone kept blowing up. Happily, she didn’t put us on hold every time it rang!
[Laughs] Wait a minute, you got to see it, right?
Yeah. Have you watched it?
Yes, they had a screening in L.A., so I had about 50 friends and family there. But I have friends who are grown men that were like, Uhhh! And then I had other friends who are like me, die-hard horror fans, who were like, Yeah, you know?
Does it ever get scary on the set, or is that just ridiculous since there are a million people and a boom operator?
Oh, it’s not really scary; you have to work from within to get the scary. It was really funny on our set because we were in Bulgaria and the … guys, I’m so sorry; my mom is getting out of the hospital. I swear on a stack of bibles I’m not going to put you on hold again. [Erin answers the other phone: “Hey, Mom, I’m doing my interview with Penthouse. How are you feeling? I’ll call you when I’m done with the interview, okay? Okay, you sound great. Okay, I love you. Bye.”] Thanks, sorry.
That’s all right. But if your mom is recovering from something and you tell her you’re doing an interview with Penthouse, is that going to send her over the edge?
[Laughs] No! You don’t know me at all, but I’m not a
quiet person …
Your mom is cool with it?
Oh, she’s totally rad. She’s the coolest.
So anyway, there were two guys playing the Boogeyman. And they are both just so sweet! The scene where I’m in the closet and I’m all, whatever, not afraid of him, he was standing behind me and I’m getting in the moment, and he’s like [putting on a foreign accent], “Erin, I just have to tell you—you are doing a very great job.” And I was like, “Aw, thanks so much.”
You did excellent tank-top work in this. But what the hell did your character have against sleeves?
Well, working at Penthouse, you should automatically be happy I was not covering up more of my flesh.
Good point. You grew up in Virginia—I’m sure you are aware of the state motto.
Oh, yeah—Virginia is for looovvveerrs!
Yes. Did you find that to be true?
Um. [Laughs.]
Did it seem to be a land full of lovers?
Yes, Virginia is very romantic and loving in every sense of the word.
You probably know that in the presidential election last fall, Virginia voted democratic for the first time in 44 years.
I know! My dad’s a Republican, and of course all my friends are Democrats—so when it came out that it was blue, I texted him, “Ha-ha, Virginia turned blue!” It was like 11 o’clock at night and it was awful to text my dad, but I had to. It was really fun to be able to rub that in.
Okay, let’s talk about some of your earlier work. I haven’t seen this one, but Nina and the Mystery of the Secret Room—what’s the mystery?
One of the best things about that was getting to work with Kelly LeBrock, she’s just—
She holds a special place in every former adolescent male heart.
Oh, God, I can’t even tell you! I have friends who—and knock on wood, I’ve been a working actor for like eight years—they never cared about coming to set, and I’ve worked on some really fun stuff with great people. When I told guys I was working with Kelly LeBrock—
Every male friend called …
Totally!
You were once also a Power Ranger. Pink, I believe. A nice perk of having been one, I imagine, is now you never need to buy another Halloween costume.
No one knows this, but those suits are wickedly expensive—the helmets are like the cost of a car, $15,000 or something ridiculous. They have them locked up in a warehouse somewhere in Valencia.
No employee discount?
No, no, no. I don’t even know where the suit is.
This year you’re in Demoted, with David Cross and that little hobbit guy.
Sean Astin!
That seems like it could get some good attention.
I only have a couple of scenes in it but I play Constance Zimmer’s sister; she’s on Entourage.
So it’s a smaller part in a fairly large production.
I’ve heard there are no small parts, only small actors.
Who told you that, Sean Astin?
Ohhh!
