‘Dead of Summer’ Cast Recalls Their Creepy Time Shooting the Series
Still waters run deep, but the mysteries of Camp Stillwater run even deeper in Freeform’s new horror series Dead of Summer. Set in 1989, five years after the camp closed under rather ominous circumstances, the drama centers on a group of counselors who reunite to get the woodsy haven ready for its reopening. And while the camp’s notorious history may make for a killer Summer, the cast had a much more chilling experience shooting deep in the woods of Vancouver this winter.
RELATED: Lost Alum Joins Freeform’s Dead of Summer
Bonding was easy because shared body heat was required to look summer-camp casual in subzero temps. “It was quite cold during our filming of the pilot, and we were often in nothing but our bathing suits,” says Mark Indelicato (Ugly Betty), second from left in the photo above, snuggling with castmates Zachary Gordon, Amber Coney and Elizabeth Mitchell (Lost). “Luckily, our costume crew was always lingering right off camera to give us our coats when the director yelled cut!” Mitchell says.
Look out behind you! Elizabeth Lail’s “new girl,” Amy, and Ronen Rubinstein’s prepster hottie, Alex, get a fright in the campfire scene above, where even a pile of burning wood wasn’t enough to scare off the cold. “Right before they call action I have to take a moment to stop my body from shivering,” Lail confesses. “I’ve also taken to doing squats in between takes in an effort to warm my legs.”
RELATED: Freeform Unveils Summer 2016 Schedule, Offers Peek at 2017
It wasn’t all coats and cold weather. “Sometimes it feels like an actual summer camp on set,” Lail acknowledges, letting loose in a flashback scene (above) with Morgan Taylor Campbell, who plays her pal Margo. Indelicato echoes: “The sense of kinship among us definitely mimicked the relationships one develops at summer camp. From inside jokes to nicknames, we truly have become close friends.”
Dead of Summer, Series Premiere, Tuesday, June 28, 9/8c, Freeform.