The cast of A24’s Eternity sits down with Collider to share the surprisingly physical, often hilarious, and sometimes frigid realities of shooting their afterlife drama.
In this exclusive Eternity behind-the-scenes interview, Miles Teller, Elizabeth Olsen, and Callum Turner walk us through icy river shoots, intricate practical sets, and the unexpected moments that shaped their performances. If you're looking for a smart, candid conversation about A24 filmmaking, this is the one to watch.
The trio breaks down filming in near-freezing glacial water, how the production design team built the fully functional “Junction” (complete with hand-written pamphlets), and why their improvisation-heavy fight scene became one of the movie’s most unpredictable days. They also share stories from the mountain shoot—where all three actors got sick within the first week—and the on-set rituals that kept them sane, from Ugg boots to thermoses to Turner’s constant reading.
A highlight of the conversation is the “Demon Martin” sequence, featuring an actual Dean Martin impressionist who, according to the cast, stunned them on the day and delivered some of the film’s biggest laughs.
Smart, funny, and full of tactile filmmaking detail, this Eternity cast interview offers the kind of honest creative insights Collider fans love.
0:00 Introduction – Teller, Olsen & Turner on Eternity 1:12 Filming in Freezing Glacial Water 2:35 Building the Junction Set & Tactile World 3:48 The Demon Martin Sequence Breakdown 5:10 Improvised Chaos in the Bedroom Fight 6:22 Getting Sick on Week One & Surviving the Mountain 7:40 On-Set Comforts: Uggs, Books & Thermoses 8:55 Raw Garlic Therapy & Final Reflections #film#entertainment#ElizabethOlsen#actress
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And that was my first day and they were all sick and I was like, what did you do to my wife?
Lizzie said, I've got a really cool thing for you to try.
Because I thought it was funny.
I mean, the mountains are beautiful, but it just made things a little bit complicated.
It was freezing.
Yeah, it was like really hard to go to the bathroom, you know, things like that.
They were like, go in, you know, I haven't seen where you're swimming in the river,
and the river was like, it was freezing.
It was freezing, actually, it was a melted glacier.
We were like, we'll go up to our knees.
And the archive tunnel, because as a performer,
you felt like you were doing like community theater or something.
That was really sweet.
I think in that junction, going back to the junction, the set that they built,
it felt like real life.
You didn't have to imagine anything.
No, everything that you can interact with.
Yeah, exactly.
Even the pamphlets had proper writing in them.
David wrote it all.
Like it was really a tactile set that we could interact with.
Inevitably, if you're not a part of the scene,
often you don't see it until you watch the movie.
And I just love when you and Karen are going into the different,
it's kind of like lounging there in the space,
or drinking the champagne or the wine.
Getting our foot massages.
Yeah, I love that.
That stuff cracked me up.
I know for you, it was the archive tunnel.
Mine, no, but for all three of us,
we had the argument scene in the woods.
But the three of us together.
That was our first day.
The three of us together.
Would have been something in Joan's room, I imagine.
That's what it would have been.
Yeah.
Or was it the junction?
No, that was after.
Yeah.
It would have been in my bedroom.
We had our individual moments,
and then when we all got together,
the sparks were flying,
and with the vine and John.
Yeah, it was all five of us.
It just lit up, and it was fun.
Weird and random.
You know, my favorite scene really is the Dean Martin.
I was going to say the Dean Martin.
That whole sequence, when I read that in the script,
I laughed out loud every time,
and it didn't fail when we did it in real life.
His falls were very good.
But also, they didn't look for an actor
who could do Dean Martin.
This was a Dean Martin impressionist.
They found a Dean Martin impressionist,
and then, yeah, he was great.
That was some of those.
You killed it every time.
I think it often was when the camera
was just on John and Devine,
and they were just improvising interjections
when the three of us were fighting.
Yeah.
I think that was getting us.
That scene.
Yeah.
In your bedroom.
Yeah.
You don't have to lose your voice from acting.
Well, we actually did.
We both got sick the first week, remember?
We did.
And we were in the mountains.
That's not from screaming.
No, but I lost my voice.
We shot on the Friday, and then Monday,
we were both in the trailer trying to stifle coughs.
And that was my first day, and they were all sick.
And I was like, what did you do to my wife?
Uggs.
He's got a cozy way of entering the set.
Absolutely.
And it's so funny.
I remember my mom gave me a pair of Uggs.
I was like 24 or something.
I was like, I'm never wearing these things.
Every day to set is like sweatpants, sweatpants, shorts.
Game changer.
Yeah, dude.
Absolutely.
That is correct.
Callum usually would have a book.
I'd always see you reading.
Yeah, I was reading a lot, yeah.
A water bottle and a thermos.
I like my liquids when I'm on set.
I loved my little red one.
Kind of Joan's first outfit when she gets into the junction.
But I also liked being in my hospital robe, because I thought it was funny.
I liked, yeah, my jacket.
My character puts on when he first gets there.
It's kind of a la, like, The Graduate.
I liked that.
I liked that jacket.
Just one of the suits that I got to wear, the 50s style suit.
It's a comedy.
You know, it's a fight in the comedic world.
But also, we were trying to figure out the levels of it.
You don't want to make it too, like, silly or slapstick.
But I do think it's funny that neither of them can fight, like, at all.
And I love when Dave Hines is like, that's it?
You guys done already?
That's it?
Well, Lizzie was, like, day one, day 30.
She was...
That's right.
The whole...
She opened it and closed the production.
I learned from both of you what I'm supposed to put in my contracts next time.
Have outs.
Like, you two.
You guys both have outs.
I didn't know about those things.
I just knew I'd only need 21 days.
Yeah, to get it all in.
I looked at the script.
I said, guys, I can get this done.
Right.
Yeah.
Four full weeks in one day.
Yeah, and I was like, don't worry.
I'll be first.
No, but you guys, I mean, I think your guys' mountain stuff was...
That's probably the most challenging.
So when we got sick, I remember the most challenging moment.
Lizzie said, I've got a really cool thing for you to try.
It's raw garlic.
That'll make you feel a lot better.
Yeah.
So I did it and it made me feel worse.
It made you feel nauseous.
And then we had to go to the mountain.
Yeah, exactly.
It was, like, 7.30 in the morning.
I think you're supposed to put garlic under your pillow, too.
Really?
You eat a lot of raw garlic.
It's a natural antibacterial.
That was crazy.
Honestly, that garlic is so nuts.
That was sick.
Yeah, we did one together.
That's why the shoot took so long, too.
