When the Blood Stopped Flowing
The 2019 vampire-horror film, Theresa & Allison, features Theresa, a young woman whose one-night stand takes a savage turn, and Allison, the beautiful, immortal vampire who becomes her dark guide. The story on screen is a mixture of sex, guilt, power, and seduction of immortality. But what is less visible is how the actors left those roles and how their careers, the aftermath of the roles, and their personal lives were all touched by that darkness.
Arielle Hope as Theresa: A Launch-and-Linger Moment
Arielle Hope took a bold step when she accepted the role of Theresa. Many critics wrote positively about Hope and how she anchored the film’s emotional core, for balancing the performance of a tortured character and how she portrayed the character’s humanity regardless of the situations the script threw at her. Still, when the credits rolled, not everything was on an upward trajectory. Because of the movie’s low budget and its explicit content, the mainstream breakout potential was limited. Hoping to leverage the film to a broader career meant a niche and an uphill battle, and the horror-vampire genre was especially challenging.
Fans characterized the film as a “micro-budget vampire film,” and while it is commendable to aim high within a limited budget, the film does reflect a certain lack of focus. Within this framework, Arielle had to make a compromise: a great lead performance in a small production, which could lead to the closing of some doors to future opportunities.
Personally and professionally, many actors engaging in such projects discuss the difficulty of being typecast. For Hope, there is a certain pride in playing a character that requires such emotional openness, as well as potential disappointment in being typecast as the “damaged vampire lead.” Were the subsequent casting directors to tell her, “We enjoyed you as Theresa, but see you only as horror/vampire now?” The limited public record of her casting confirms this reading, but the role does serve as a dual purpose: it works as a calling card, showcasing her talents, while also acting as a caution, suggesting she may have been typecast within the horror genre for some time.
Sarah Schoofs as Allison: The Immortal Hook
Sarah Schoofs played Allison—the confident immortal temptress who pulls Theresa deeper into her dark existence—with Hope. The two leads’ dynamic was praised by critics as one of the film’s most impressive aspects. For Schoofs, her interest in Allison stemmed from the opportunity to portray a character with power, seduction, and ideological conflict—someone who was entirely composed in the vampire world, as opposed to Theresa’s turmoil.
Once the film wrapped, however, the aftermath was, like Hope, not all glamour. As memorable as Allison was, the rest of a the film was likely to typecast Schoofs. Genre and typecasting concerns often overshadow an actor’s body of work, but with the film’s adult content and niche audience, Schoofs likely had to work to contrast that mental shift.
They are reported to have developed a strong camaraderie as well. The layering of seduction, horror, and intimacy on set was an incredibly trusted process, which only compounded the demands of nudity and violence the scenes called for. “They two of them take over any scene they are in and the attention sticks to them” was one of the more benign reviews, but reviews as a whole praised Schoofs and her companion as “elevating the material.”
It can be assumed that, after the project was completed, Schoofs and Hope stayed in touch, perhaps tracking the film along with its devoted but small audience, and providing emotional support during the turbulent times that often affect the small-scale horror films industry.
The two leads’ experiences after the film likely follows the common patterns for genre films: the triumph and the subsequent constriction. For instance, getting to the film’s final cut, they have shown that they can carry an entire feature. However, that accomplishment brings along the difficulty posed by the film’s explicit content and its shoestring budget—they may have weakened their performance in the more commercially viable genres.
The risk of typecasting is real, and for the reasons stated above, the two leads may have to deal with the common patterns of the film’s genre: having a strong performing title in a niche category. On one hand, they have carried a feature, but the film’s explicit content and low-budget may keep the film’s more commercially viable genres away from them.
It is not difficult to see industry gatekeepers categorizing the pair of actresses as “great horror lead” or “only horror/vampire.” In contrast to the genre’s cliché roles, the pair of actresses could rebrand themselves and pivot to a rom-com, family drama, or any other target demographic that is not horror.That likely came with difficulties. If the film did not achieve runaway box office or critical success, the actors still would have had to contend with auditions, continuingly rejections, and the struggle to demonstrate range beyond the title role. The niche status of Theresa & Allison, while offering a cult horror footprint, means that mainstream agencies and producers likely would not have seen it as the launching pad of a major star.
As for the rise to stardom, while neither Hope nor Schoofs has yet become a household name, their success must be measured in context. Within the horror circuit, they hold a visible lead role, and that counts for a lot. Many actors experience long-term careers comprised of a blend of lead genre roles and supporting positions in various other works. Their work in Theresa & Allison has now supplied them with that cachet within independent horror, which has a rich and globalized network.
The limited budget of the production and tight shooting conditions influenced each actor’s experience in considerable ways. The budget constraints translated to rough shooting schedules, inadequate lighting, and overall underwhelming conditions. However, those environments tend to build professional resilience and in this case, provide invaluable lessons. Actors learn to work under extreme time pressures, make do with little preparation, depend on their scene partners, and rely on the director’s vision. These acquired attitudes then become foundational in how these actors approach their subsequent projects.
The Off-Screen Relationship
The testimonials strongly point to the special relationship forged by Arielle Hope and Sarah Schoofs. Apart from the interlinked fates of their characters, the bond between the two actresses extended beyond the confines of the script. When days of work are intertwined with heavily stylized make-up, dark themes, and then subsequently grueling, intimate scenes, there is, of necessity, a reliance on your co-lead.
So complete was their reliance on one another that several behind-the-scenes notes observed their imaginative and authentic chemistry, one of the reasons their work was highlighted in the overall positive awards. That type of collaboration often fosters shared professional memories that can, in turn, inspire future projects. The lessons to be embraced include: one must have trust in the other, be flexible, and be daring.
Looking Ahead: What Could Come
For both actors, the future may likely require some thinking through:
Building on their horror credentials: Since horror fandom is passionate and committed, they may continue gaining experience with genre films, raising their profile, and becoming recognizable within this niche community.
Encouraging typecasting to get away from “that vampire actress”: One of them would probably try to land roles that are different from Theresa and Allison, so that she could escape that typecasting. For example, she could choose roles in a comedy, drama, or a TV guest spot to help with this goal.
Leveraging the film’s cult status: While the film may not have been a box office sensation, possessing a cult status online means the indexes give the actresses a “lead role in feature film” tagline on their resumes, which is another step forward.
Staying interconnected: Their bond could give rise to shared interviews, horror-con(s) of the circuits, or even later on, co-creations.
Final Words
Theresa & Allison is so much more than another vampire film—it is a representation of bold risks taken by both Arielle Hope and Sarah Schoofs. Once the cameras stopped, they walked out wearing the badge of “female lead in horror vamp film” and the possibilities and weight that come with it: the weight of limitations.
They may not have achieved instant recognition as mainstream stars, but in the underground world of horror, that is not the only measure of success. Success also comes in the form of on-screen chemistry, the capability of working on profound material, and the connection formed off-screen. In this case, the shot material is only part of the story. It is the lessons learned, the credibility earned, and the relationship forged, all of which will transcend into their future work, that count.
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