Every woman is strong in her own way: Kaya Scodelario

By Sugandha Rawal

New York, Aug 10 (IANS) "The Maze Runner" star Kaya Scodelario feels every woman is powerful, damaged and a million other things, and that is what she wants to reflect in her work. The actress says she isn't interested in playing female characters that are just one thing, because they don't exist.

"For me, it is important (to essay a strong character) because it is realistic. That is the world I know. Every woman I know is strong in her own way," Scodelario told IANS in an exclusive sit-down interview.

"Every woman is damaged, ferocious, powerful and a million other things. They aren't just one thing. I have never been interested in playing female characters that are just one thing, purely because they don't exist," added the actress.

Since her breakout role in British teen drama "Skins", Scodelario has portrayed different women character dipped in hues of various shades of womanhood -- be it "The Maze Runner", "Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales" or "Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile".

She will, once again, bring a strong woman in spotlight with her role as a high-achieving swimmer Haley Keller in "Crawl".

The film will narrate the struggle of Haley as she tries to save herself and her father (Barry Pepper) from alligators amidst a Florida hurricane. The horror thriller, directed by Alexandre Aja, will open in India on August 23. The movie will be distributed in India by Viacom18 Motion Pictures. It is written by Michael Rasmussen and Shawn Rasmussen, and produced by Craig Flores, Sam Raimi and Alexandre Aja.

Scodelario says shooting for "Crawl" was hard.

"It was the most physical job that I have ever done. I have started to connect with now because I forgot how hard it was. I would come home every day with bruises and cuts. But it was very important for me to add that to it.

"That was the big conversation between me and the producers during the shoot. They were worried about me not wearing shoes and I really fought to not wear shoes because I knew as a woman if you are in flip flops in the mud, the first thing you do is just take them off...Because it is not going to work and I wanted that for the character," she said.

And she had to face the consequences of her decision.

"It did mean that I had blisters and cuts everywhere. But I was excited to get to the physical side of it," said the 27-year-old.

(Sugandha Rawal was in New York at the invitation of Viacom18 Motion Pictures. She can be contacted at sugandha.r@ians.in)