Actress Alicia Silverstone continues to expand her over three-decade career with her latest project Pretty Thing. Her cinematic adventures have ranged from William Shakespeare’s Love’s Labour’s Lost to the Barbershop franchise, and she’s acted on Broadway, led multiple television series and executive produced the documentary I Could Never Go Vegan.
In some ways, Pretty Thing is a return to her obsessive character roots when she starred as Adrian Forrester in her film debut in The Crush. In other ways, the storyline pushes the boundaries much further, with unexpected plot twists and turns surrounding a toxic relationship.
Silverstone portrays Sophie in Pretty Thing opposite Elliot, played by Karl Blanchard. She explained that either one of the main characters could be described as “pretty,” depending on interpretation, in an exclusive interview with Windy City Times.
When questioned about having guidance on the set with sexually charged scenes, she said, “Karl is a very talented actor, and his performance is so nuanced. We were going to have an intimacy coordinator at first, but we aborted the mission on that because we wanted to figure it out on our own and we just trusted each other.
“We were great scene partners, and we felt bringing in another element to the set wasn’t necessary for us. I was filming Krazy House in Amsterdam last year, and it was really helpful to have an intimacy coordinator in that case, even though that movie was a comedy. Pretty Thing was a different situation and Justin brought in a feeling of fun. I felt very comfortable with him and that was grounding for me.”
This is her second time working with director Justin Kelly after King Cobra, the biographical film about gay adult film star Sean Paul Lockhart. She played Janette Lockhart, the mother of Sean, and confessed that her time was short with Kelly on King Cobra, but Pretty Thing was a completely different experience.
Silverstone said, “Karl and Justin called me three weeks before shooting, which was crazy, but I trusted Justin’s vision. The aesthetic and team he brought to the table were beautiful. It was the perfect storm to work together again.”
Pretty’s cinematographer Matt Klammer was another supportive part of the team for Alicia. “Matthew was the one who asked me to dye my hair darker and he showed me Helmut Lang’s photographs to see how she might dress. We called Christian Siriano for his clothing designs. I told Christian that he would be very proud because all of his costumes were worn when I was having sex.”
Siriano is not the only member of the LGBTQ+ community who has supported Alicia’s lengthy career. The humble actress showed her appreciation by saying, “I have always felt loved and respected by my gay fans and friends. Most of my friends are queer and I have very few straight friends. There is something about people who have struggled that makes them very interesting and maybe that’s why we have a connection.”
Her breakout role as Cher Horowitz in Clueless cemented her place in queer culture and that crucial segment of her career celebrates a 30th anniversary this year. The popular 1995 film was recently featured on RuPaul’s Drag Race All Stars season 10, with the eighth episode during a photoshoot mini challenge with looks inspired by her iconic role.
The California native mentioned the prospects of a Clueless Part 2. “I’m excited about the possibility of it for sure and we have been talking about it for years,” she said. “We are in the early days of getting it up and running, but I hope we can honor the film that people love so much and bring something fresh and new to it at the same time. I think we will find that balance.”
In the meantime, she produced a television series titled Irish Blood, which premieres on August 11, 2025, on Acorn TV, followed by a new Netflix romantic comedy called A Merry Little Ex-Mas. She collaborates again with Yorgos Lanthimos in the science fiction film Bugonia scheduled for a wide release on Halloween this year. She worked with the esteemed director in 2017 in the thriller The Killing of a Sacred Deer.
Silverstone ended the interview by describing how passionate she is about Pretty Thing. “It’s interesting and beautiful. I am so proud of everyone who worked on it,” she said.
Pretty Thing explodes like a firework onto the big screen in select theaters and digitally on small screens on July 4. For more information, visit shoutstudios.com.