Glen Powell Reveals The Secret To Making His A24 Murderer Likable In Divisive New Comedy

A24’s latest offering, How to Make a Killing, is a dark comedy about one man’s unconventional pursuit of success. Glen Powell leads the ensemble as Becket Redfellow, whose mother was thrown out of her ultra-wealthy home for the crime of giving birth to him, and who therefore decides to take back his family fortune by offing the rest of his relatives.

The film also stars Margaret Qualley as Julia, a childhood friend who serves as the devil on his shoulder, and Jessica Henwick as Ruth, a new girlfriend who might be considered a voice of reason for Becket’s conscience. Ed Harris, Topher Grace, Zach Woods, Bill Camp, Bianca Amato, and Raff Law all play various Redfellows who must be eliminated if Becket’s plan is to succeed. How to Make a Killing treads a fascinating line between making Becket a rootworthy character despite his dark deeds and making his relatives enjoyable to watch despite their odious personalities.

ScreenRant interviewed Powell, Henwick, and Grace about How to Make a Killing‘s charming antihero, how each actor approached their role, and which Redfellow family member they would rescue from their terrible fate.

Glen Powell Knows How To Make A Killing’s Murderer Relatable

ScreenRant: Glen, you make Becket very likable despite the slaughter. Did you make any conscious choices, or were you just born with it?

Glen Powell: Whenever I look at any [role], I just look at, “What’s the universal thing that makes anybody relatable? What bonds people together?” Anybody who’s watching the movie has experienced the idea of not getting what you deserve, or of feeling slighted by the world. I think we all feel that to a degree. Everybody’s got a little bit of a bone to pick, and our relationships with our parents are very complicated.
We can relate especially to the loss of his mother, especially the way that she sends Becket off into the world when she passes. The idea of, “Get what you deserve,” is sort of a weird thing that echoes. When people who mean a lot to you pass, those [last words] become their defining truths, and that’s the relationship that meant the most to him in his life. So, her words do become this call to action, for good or bad – mostly bad – and it’s a very interesting study.
That’s why having the conversations with the whole cast about what this movie’s about – what it’s kind of driving towards, and how to ground it in all of its insanity – helped. That’s why everybody put in so much work to try to make this thing work, and it’s really great. I’m really proud of it.

Understanding The Most Grounded (And Most Ridiculous) Characters In The Movie

Jessica Henwick as Ruth in How To Make A Killing

Though he is laser-focused on his path towards revenge, Becket does find light and love in his life. The romance at the heart of the story is not with Qualley’s Julia, but with Henwick’s Ruth, who has chosen a more modest lifestyle after rejecting the trappings of wealth and the world of fashion. When asked what experiences shaped a perspective so opposite to Becket’s, and how she herself stepped into the role, Henwick had the following explanation:

Jessica Henwick: It helps that I feel like I was going through a similar journey in my life, wondering what I really want to do at the core of this craft. What is it that appeals to me, and how do I get back to that? It can be really easy to get messed up in the noise of this industry, so I felt like I could really relate to her trying to scale back.
Why is she blind to Becket’s perspective? Because she’s been him. I think it’s not that she’s blind, it’s that she was him before. She was part of that hustle culture, trying to become someone in fashion, and she saw that down that path lies only misery.

On the other end of the spectrum lies Grace’s character, Steven Redfellow, a high-energy megachurch pastor who claims to have the balm for everyone’s souls. He is perhaps the most larger-than-life character in the whole movie, and Grace took that to heart.

Topher Grace: Before I even knew this film existed, I’ve had a fascination with people who get out in front of the world and say, “I know how to make your life better.” I mean, barely anyone can make their own lives livable! So, to say, “I’m going to tell you how to solve all your problems,” is crazy. That’s not even just religious leaders; it could be self-help gurus or anyone. So, I’ve always had a fascination with people like that.
And then, on top of that, to have it in this scene where we’re both kind of trying to murder each other? When I first talked with John, the director, I was like, “Give me a shot, Coach. I know it’s just a very small part of the film, but it will be the most fun I’ve ever had on film.” And it kind of was.

Which Redfellow Would You Save From Glen Powell’s Revenge?

ScreenRant: Not counting your own character, who would you spare from the Redfellow revenge, if you could?

Glen Powell: Oh, man. Obviously, Topher and I are pals. I didn’t want to kill you. I just had to.
Topher Grace: Thank you. It felt like an accident, how I died.

But as friendly as Powell and Grace may be, the real winner of the “wish you were here” contest was another family member, whose scenes left a lasting impression on their costars.

Jessica Henwick: Raff [Law]’s character, Taylor. I’d spare Taylor. He’s just young. He’s just young and dumb. He’ll grow out of it!
Glen Powell: I will say, watching Raf in the karaoke scene was like watching a Jude Law impression. It was incredible. There were so many moments like that, because he’s wearing Sperrys and button-downs. It was such a Talented Mr. Ripley send-off, which was unbelievable. He’s also charismatic as hell and just the sweetest kid.
Jessica Henwick: Yeah, save him.
Glen Powell: We’ll save him.

How to Make a Killing is now playing in theaters.