Most fans familiar with the gaming franchise will remember Mia franticly chainsawing her way towards them in RESIDENT EVIL BIOHAZARD! It was a terrifying moment, which reminded the players why they fell in love with RESIDENT EVIL in the first place. With VILLAGE, actor KATIE O’ HAGAN has returned as Mia, and in this instalment, we get much more depth and backstory to the character! STARBURST finds out all about her time working on RESIDENT EVIL VILLAGE, whilst also looking back on the now-classic BIOHAZARD…
STARBURST: How excited were you when you found out that Mia was coming back in Village, and that she is now an integral part of the Resident Evil fan community?
Katie O’Hagan: With Mia, there’s something about her that I always loved. With 7 I was so hopeful that they wouldn’t kill her off, you just never really knew, because I never knew the full story. You always got it in pieces. So I was very happy when 7 ended and she wasn’t completely dead, but at the same time, you don’t know if the next game or games down the line will bring back characters. You just never know, you always hope. If you’re not dead you at least have a little bit better of a chance. So, when I got the phone call for 8, I was ecstatic. Just knowing that they wanted to bring her back, which then meant that there was something about this character that they liked, which they wanted to expand upon, and grow. I definitely did not think that when I accepted this role in 2015 that it would have become this, but I am very grateful for all of it, and it has been so much fun.
What do you remember the most from your first day back on set playing Mia in Resident Evil Village?
My first day was actually that opening scene with the trailer, that kind of left everybody questioning what was real. If they did Mia wrong or not. So my first day on set was that scene, and that was the only part of the script that I got. I thought that they killed Mia off. I didn’t know originally. So I went in to shoot that day, and I was very excited because I got to see Todd Soley (Ethan), who I hadn’t seen in a few years, so that was really exciting to get to re-connect with him and work with him again, and then meet a couple of the new actors that I had never worked with, and it was the first time that I got to meet the director. That was really cool. This was all pre-covid. I actually got to be around people! I think on a lunch break, Todd and I were chatting, and I said “I’m just so bummed that they did Mia like that, they just killed her off so quickly.” Todd kind of looked at me, and was like “You don’t know do you?” and I was like “Know what? What do you mean?” Because I missed the table read, so everybody else knew the majority of the story, and I did not. So I had to find out that day that there was more to Mia than meets the eye. So that was really fun.
Leading on from that, how did the Motion Capture process compare this time around? Were there any changes with the technology, or the process in general since you worked on Biohazard?
I’d say that the biggest differences that I noticed were the helmet and the face cameras. As a woman with long hair, they definitely made them a bit more comfortable. If you’re doing Motion Capture, and you have long hair, you’ll want it up in a ponytail, out of the way. In 7 there were a lot of times where I had to try to have a low pigtail, get it out of the way so that I could fit the helmet on with the camera. They have these new helmets with a patch in the back so that your ponytail can stick out of it! As silly as it sounds, that was one of the most exciting things for me. I don’t know the technical side, I am sure things have advanced incredibly since 2015, but that’s a side that I’m still learning about, and I think it’s amazing. I really don’t know a ton about it, so I answer this question from the actor side, the comfortability of what they’re putting us in, and how that’s advanced. There was a lot less of having to deal with stuff on your face this time around. Just having a helmet and a camera, versus 2015, where I had face markers half of the time, so about 160 little dots all over my face. All of these drawings on my face. So that’s how it started, and then it shifted to a helmet with a camera. It kept progressing. So it was like a helmet with a camera but they still had to draw stuff on you, and then it became the helmet with the camera, and you just get to be you! I was like “Oh, there’s so much less that I have to worry about” A makeup person doesn’t have to be drawing things all over me. So for me, those were the biggest things that I noticed.
I think a lot of people remember Mia coming straight at them with crazed eyes and a chainsaw in Resident Evil Biohazard! However, in this one, it feels like we get to see much more of who she really is. So how exciting was it for you to explore this character’s background further, and to just give her more depth in Village?
I was so excited. I absolutely loved 7. I loved getting to play the crazy, and the confusion, that whole side. The biggest thing with 8, was that it was such a different side to Mia. It was really cool because you got to see more of the family element, her with Ethan, how she wanted to fight for her family, and just how much she truly loves Ethan. In 7…you question it! She did a lot of terrible stuff, that created what happened in 7. She was very selfish, and then in 8 I feel like this selfishness had faded, she grew up a lot, and she cared more about this family, Ethan, Rose. So when I got the script, and I got to see how in-depth Mia gets to be as an actor that was really exciting. With 7 it was just OK, over the top! It wasn’t as in-depth emotionally, it was just like “Possessed, scared, possessed, scared” This time I got to be a real human, and give those emotions. My goal was to make the gamers, and the fans feel something. It seems like I did it, I mean, I cried at the end, and I heard that other people have to.
Talking about the actual voice of Mia, how did that originally come together, and how would you say that it’s progressed/changed over the two games?
The voice just came out at the audition. I first auditioned back in 2014, and it was the possessed version. That was where it started, all of the possessed and crazy, and then from there it was basically like “Tone it down, can you be normal” For her voice, a lot of people see that her normal voice is very similar to my own voice, it’s a little different, but it’s very similar. Possessed definitely different, but no, I didn’t have to do any crazy accents. I got to just focus on the acting part of it, and just let the voice come. With Mia, it was a lot of the caring, contemplation, and the family, and that’s just kind of what I built on for everything. The voice just kind of came with the scenes. The moment I read the scenes, I knew what was going to come out. I knew that voice. It made it so much easier because they are such emotional scenes. You get a lot of flashbacks in 8, but when you do get Mia’s “scene scenes”, they are so emotional. So I just came out with it. I’m sure a lot of the actors will say this, but when you’re doing motion capture, you just throw yourself into it. You have to because you are in a spandex suit with a helmet, camera, and tons of people around you. Your props are just bars and tennis balls. You have to use so much imagination. I’ve been doing this character for so many years now, that she’s just there. She just pops out!
Can you tell us about what Todd Soley was like to work with this time around, and how you think the dynamic between Mia and Ethan has grown/changed over Resident Evil 7 and 8?
Jumping back in with Todd was like no time had passed, which was really great. I had seen him once or twice since 7, at other events and things. So when I found out Mia was coming back, I did find out right away that Mia and Ethan are coming back, they are married, and they now have a daughter. That was exciting. They said you and Todd are going to be the only ones that know this is Resident Evil Village right away. So a lot of people that were new to the franchise didn’t know right away that they were working on a Resident Evil game. So I felt a little special, like “I’m not clueless this time! I know, I can’t say anything, but I at least know!”. With Todd, it’s like seeing an old friend who you haven’t seen in a while, and you just jump back into it. That was great, and it reminded me of how well we worked together, it was just fun to do that.
Katie O’Hagan
When it comes to Mia and Ethan, you get such a different side of Ethan in Resident Evil Village, you get this whole new, more expanded character. I feel like you really get some depth with him in this game. So it was fun to see him get to do that. Then within the family dynamic, seeing what’s going on, and how far they’ve come in the three years since he found her. I always joke that in those three years, besides having a kid, I’m sure that a lot of couples therapy happened. He went through a lot with her. So I really hope that they went to couples therapy. Even if it was Umbrella couples therapy, just therapy! She chainsawed his hand off, that’s something that you are not going to forget very easily.
Also, going on from that, what do you think it brings to the game by not showing Ethan’s face, and for you playing Mia, do you feel like this brought more pressure, as the focus really is much more so, on the characters around him?
It didn’t feel like there’s pressure on myself. With 7 being in VR, it seemed like they wanted the players to feel like they were Ethan. So if you have a face connected with the character, it’s harder for me to feel like I’m that person when I’m playing because it is, it’s all first-person, except for a few cut scenes here and there. I always felt like I liked that, and I know there are some people that don’t like it, but I always thought that it was cool, because it gives you the chance to become the hero. You’re the one doing this. You’re the one fighting all of these molded. Trying to save everyone. So I get why they did that. In 8 it’s not VR but I think they stuck with the idea that they had in 7 because you still feel like you’re the character, but it also gives that intrigue of “What’s going on, why do we still not fully see him? What’s really happening?” Capcom sticks to ideas like that so that they can have their twists and turns. They can trick you into thinking something, and then all of a sudden it’s like “Nope! Over here! You thought we were going this way, but actually, this is the truth”.
Neil Newbon (Heisenberg) described Resident Evil 7 and 8 as Alien and Aliens. With Resident Evil 7 being straight-up scary, and with 8 being a little bit more action-heavy at times. But for yourself, how would you say that the two games compare to each other?
Neil nailed it with that, in 7 they wanted the scares, they wanted to bring back that horror, and they went for it. I love horror, so it was very exciting to be a part of that, but then they did get feedback saying that it was too scary. In 8 it’s like, they still wanted the horror, but they toned it back a little bit, there are of course fans that like 4,5,6, which are a bit more shoot ’em up, just grab some machine guns and start blowing things sky-high. So I feel like 8 kept with the horror, bringing that back, but they also wanted to give something for the people who liked 4,5,6. They let fans have the chance to do a bit of everything. I think that’s smart because you can’t please everyone, but at the same time, it’s so awesome to be able to get that mix of everything. It keeps it fresh because Resident Evil wouldn’t be 25 years old if they were doing the same thing every single game. They keep it fresh, and they keep people on their toes. It’s really smart how they linked them, but you can let go. At the same time, you have to remember that Ethan and I are supposed to be just normal people in 7 that got mixed up in all of this. In the three years between 7 and 8, you do find out that Ethan now has tactical training. Mia has some sort of training. So I think that’s why it made sense for them to do a bit more of that fighting.
Going back to 7 a little bit again here, I was wondering if there was anything you learned from working on that game, that you actually carried through to the creative process of Village?
7 was my first time doing Motion Capture and voice over, so I think that everything I learned within 7, being comfortable in the space, taking the direction, how to be comfortable with my body, and how to move it, because it’s so important in Motion Capture that you really know your body, and physically what you do. Before this, I did a lot of theatre, I was very wacky, and you don’t always know what your body is doing. So I had to kind of remember and keep track. So I learned all of that in 7, so when 8 came along, I feel like getting into character, and getting back on the stage was so much easier. There wasn’t a worry, and there wasn’t time needed to process everything. It was just go there, and then the moment I put on the Motion Capture suit I was like “Here we go, I’m ready!”
Okay, so tough question time. Looking back on Resident Evil Village, what would you say was the most memorable scene for you to work on as Mia, and why?
There are a lot of really good scenes. I have two favourites. Probably – spoiler – the scene where Chris Redfield finds the real Mia. I loved that scene, she’s weak again, so it gives you that vibe of 7 again where she’s been captured and imprisoned for who knows how long. Chris shows up, and he’s like “We’ve found her! Bye!” He is about to leave her there. So I always thought that scene was really fun to do. The way I get to snap, and give that mum voice of “What are you doing! You can’t leave me here! Are you insane?” I really liked that, and it felt like the first time where you really got emotion from Mia. You get little bits with the flashbacks of her and Ethan, but when she yells at Chris asking him “Where is my husband? Where is my daughter? You promised that this wouldn’t happen, we trusted you!” It’s gut-wrenching when you hear her saying that because it is. She was already screwed by this company in 7, and then, it’s happening again. There’s something, you feel it in your chest when she says that to him. I loved doing that scene, because not only was it slightly comical, when Chris is like “Hey, what’s up! I’m going back over here”, it then goes on to become very serious, and real. So I really really liked doing that scene.
For those that for some reason haven’t played Resident Evil Village yet, why should they check it out?
I think we already pinpointed what Capcom does best, which are the twists and turns, so if you haven’t played 8, not only are you getting the horror Resident Evil that you know from the past, but now you are also getting a kind of Tim Burton feel, fairytale story from it, or Brother’s Grimm. When you think of classic fairytales, pre-Disney, that’s the type of fairytale you are getting. Village of Shadows, it’s to teach you a lesson, there are things to be learned. You get to meet so many more and different characters in this one. Which is amazing. There are so many boss fights, again, the twists and turns, Capcom tells you one thing, but you’ve got to keep playing to see where it’s going to go, because it never goes, where you think it’s going to go. So! If you don’t play, you won’t know. Everybody is going to talk about it at the water cooler, and you are going to be like “Wait, what?” It’s going to be like Game of Thrones all over again. You’ve just got to do it. Get in there, play it, so you can then talk also instead of plugging your ears going “No don’t spoil it!”
What else can we expect to see from you as an actress in 2021!?
With COVID it’s been a little bit slower, but the world is opening back up, which is amazing. It’s very exciting. I’m working on a little project that we can’t talk about just yet. Just working on voice-over things, like usual. Auditioning every day, which is just fun, fun, fun. The biggest thing is to just follow my social media, where I’m all about giving a heads up to people when something is coming out, once they finally give you that checkmark of “You’re allowed to talk about this!” I’m just excited to let people know as the year progresses what is coming up, and then also right now, it’s all very RE Village related. I have a Streamily page, and I do live autograph signings, which has been so much fun, since cons went away for so long. The virtual cons have been really cool, to get to interact with fans. I hope to be this year, going to actual cons, and meeting people in person finally. So that’s what I’m looking forward to the most, being able to meet people in person. The RE fans are just AMAZING, I’ve never felt such love. It’s so cool, and it’s such an honour. I look forward to being able to give back. Going to these cons, meeting people, talking to them, and answering their questions. I’m very excited. Right now, until that happens, www.streamily.com/KatieOhagan is the place to go to see what’s available for live signings.
For more from KATIE O’HAGAN, check out his Twitter @KatieoActs, and Instagram @KatieActs. RESIDENT EVIL VILLAGE is available on Xbox One, Xbox Series X, PlayStation 4, and PC.
Read our other RESIDENT EVIL VILLAGE interviews here:
