Megan Lawless

I’ve never been one to jump at horror films. I love the genre, and I’m the type who will sit through them unfazed, waiting for the next scare to land, but it never did.

Obsession was different. There were moments watching it where I found myself genuinely thinking “what the fuck just happened?” and immediately needing to know what comes next. It’s been a while since I was this intrigued with the definition of desire, belonging, and what we are willing to convince ourselves when it comes to love.

What Curry Barker does with Obsession is unique as he builds each moment that doesn’t just startle you, it lingers. The film follows Bear (Michael Johnston), a hopeless romantic who makes a wish on a mysterious “One Wish Willow” to win the heart of his longtime crush, Nikki (Inde Navarrette). His wish is granted. But what follows you can probably guess the rest, or can you? Through the film, I keep raising this one single question: who is really the obsessed one here? Is it Nikki, who is now trapped in the curse of uncontrollable, consuming attention? Is it Bear, who has the hunger of getting out of loneliness? Or is it us, the audience, who are now in the trance of wanting the film to last just a little bit longer?

And then there’s Sarah. Played by Megan Lawless, Sarah exists within Bear’s orbit as a kind of quiet witness, someone who is always present, grounded, watching. There’s a sense of ease to how Lawless plays the role that just feels natural rather than performed.

Though she is still early in her acting career, Lawless has already begun to establish herself in the independent horror genre through projects like Killer Rental (2025) and The Death That Awaits (2024). In the past, she has also appeared in the Hulu series The Girl from Plainville (2022) and the films The Hate U Give (2018) and Table 19 (2017).

There’s no doubt that Lawless leaves a captivating presence in Obsession, bringing a feeling of grounded awareness and emotional subtlety amid Bear’s increasingly toxic spiral. Sitting down with Timid, Lawless recounts the preparation behind her character, the chemistry developed on set, and the lessons learned from making unnecessary wishes.

Timid Magazine: Walk me through the first time you read the script. Where in the script did you know it was a yes for you?

Megan Lawless: As soon as I started reading it, I did not stop. I finished it in one sitting. It's not very often that I lock my phone away, but I didn't touch my phone once. As soon as she starts becoming obsessed with him, and he breaks the One Wish Willow, and she starts exhibiting these weird things—that's when you're like, “What is going on?” You're constantly asking questions and waiting for them to be answered. And Curry moves the goalposts constantly. I don't know what page that happens on, maybe page 15—it's pretty early—but as soon as that, I was locked in.

TM: Curry Barker wrote, directed, and edited this. Was there a moment on set where you could feel him cutting the scene already in his head while you were still doing your take?

ML: Yeah, I love Curry because he has such a clear vision and he knows exactly what he wants to get. And to me, that makes it very clear as the actor what we're trying to achieve and what I need to do to help him make this film. Just in the way he would set up the shot and direct us, I could see his gears turning. He would talk about the shots he wanted before we even started a scene. As an actor, I really love that approach. It made it easier for me.

TM: Sarah and Bear have this quiet chemistry that doesn't really come into focus until later in the film, which ends horribly. How did you and Michael find that chemistry together?

ML: Before we even started filming, Curry set aside time for all of us to get to know each other and hang out. We watched Hereditary the first day and played a bunch of games. Off the bat, Curry wanted us to be friends, and we became friends. We're all the same age, and that was something I really appreciated about the approach with this film. And Michael—I've just always loved Michael ever since I met him. Soon after the cast bonding day, we hung out. He has an incredible apartment and such a nice eye, and he hosted a dinner party and game night. I came along because I was in the area. I just love Michael, and I think that really helped.

TM: Hereditary is such an interesting movie to watch as a first cast hang.

ML: It is interesting. Inde hated it because she doesn't love horror movies. She loves being in this horror movie, but she can get scared, and we were holding her hand the whole time. Curry was very inspired by Ari Aster. He was like, we're not copying Hereditary, but a lot of my vision was birthed from this film.

TM: That tracks. Now that you say it, the build-up has that DNA. Did you and Michael talk about what Sarah actually knows versus what she lets herself know? She has that intuition that we as the audience pick up on, like, “Okay, we're calling that bullshit.” What was that environment like?

ML: Me and Michael, I don't think we really talked about it. I talked about it with Curry. It is something I thought about a lot, because obviously I knew, as the actor, everything that was going on. But I kept trying to be like, “Sarah knows nothing. How would I feel about this situation if I had no idea the One Wish Willow even existed and I'm just seeing all of these things pan out from a third-party perspective?” It was really important to me to make that distinction and approach every scene with that. I mapped it out: Okay, from my perspective, what has happened? What do I know as Sarah? How would I respond to this scene and these events with my limited knowledge?

TM: Sarah works in a music store, and you're a classically trained musician. Did anything from your real music life sneak into how you played her?

ML: I don't play any instruments in this film. I wish I played some piano. Bear actually plays piano. I'm like, “Get me in there, coach.” But something I did bring to Sarah is I imagined her kind of like myself. This is where we're similar: we're both artists, we have dreams, ambitions, a creative mind, and a lot of empathy. I think she's an empath and very sensitive to things. But this is where she deviates from me, Megan, as a person. She's so strong-willed and really good at telling it how it is. She has this very strong, protective—not mask, but presence—that she gives off. She's true to herself and knows how to hold her friends accountable. I wanted to incorporate that level of empathy but also the strength in her. I loved thinking about that type of stuff.

TM: When I was watching her, I was like, “That's literally me. Leo sun, Scorpio rising, Pisces moon.”

ML: Oh my gosh, Scorpio rising and Pisces moon. Oh my god.

TM: I'm an Aries empath.

ML: Yeah! I'm an Aries sun, Cancer moon, and Libra rising. So I have those different elements too.

TM: Is there a scene from filming that you keep coming back to? Why that one?

ML: My scene in the car. I think about it a lot.

TM: I did not expect that at all. I kind of knew something was going to happen, but—Jesus Christ.

ML: It's so shocking. It's out of nowhere. I don't think anyone anticipates it. When I was reading the script, I did not expect it. And it's so brutal. But I loved that scene. Me and Michael kept saying this is one of our favorite scenes, because for a moment it's so raw and real and sweet. You're like, oh my god, are they going to kiss?

TM: Kiss the steering wheel, for sure.

ML: Right. Kiss the brick.

TM: Horror is such a hard genre to get right, and Obsession knows exactly when to hold back the suspense. What did this genre teach you that you'll carry into your future projects?

ML: That's such a good question—not one I've been asked, or thought about. I think this project really showed me how important collaboration is, and how important that close relationship with the crew is. I've never been so close with the director and the producers and all the people on the crew. That's a big takeaway for me as a whole. And in terms of the genre and the way Curry approaches things—what you were saying about how he moves the goalposts, withholds a little to build tension—that's really interesting to me. The way he deals with tension is something I thought about as an actor. Understanding where you are in the story, how much to give away, how much to hold back to maintain that level of tension—that's something I notice now when I read scripts. As the actor, how much do I want to leave on the table?

TM: Leaving something so people want more.

ML: Exactly.

TM: Obsession is about wishing for the wrong thing in the right way. Did playing Sarah make you think differently about your own wants?

ML: Oh, yeah. Someone told me a long time ago—I think my mom—that what you want isn't always what you need. I think about that all the time, especially in my love life. Sometimes you want someone, but it's not destined for you. And actually what you need, or what's on the other side, is better. Just trusting the universe that this wasn't meant for you, that something better is coming, that you're being led to the right place. I try to remember that all the time. Obviously, it's one of the most relevant takeaways with Obsession. So I've really nailed that theme home, even in my own life. As an actor, it can be hard, because you're auditioning for things, you hope you get it, you get really close, and then you get rejected. You deal with so much rejection. That's something I always think about, and now it's even more relevant in my life. So funny how that works.

TM: So if you were to think about it right now—what would you wish for?

ML: Nothing.

TM: Nothing? Too scared to make wishes?

ML: I'm not supposed to. I'm not supposed to wish for anything. I mean, I wish everyone would go see Obsession. I hope the film's release is so well-received. I'm very optimistic. I just know there's so much good coming from this. I hope for all of us, all of our careers, all of our lives, that it just continues. It's been so good. And I hope we continue to be connected, because I love everyone involved in this film so much, and I don't want to lose them.

TM: What do you hope the film stirs up in people after they see it?

ML: I hope they think about it for a long time. As crazy as this film is, there are some really important takeaways and relevant topics of conversation, especially for my generation—for young people, dating, everything we've been talking about. I hope people have those major takeaways about their love life. Just letting things be. Not forcing love. It's so relevant to everyone. Something I think about a lot.

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Disclaimer: This interview was edited for length and clarity.

Obsession is scheduled for theatrical release in the United States on May 15, 2026.