Jordana Brewster connects with characters’ fertility struggles at the basement door

Jordana Brewster felt an instant connection with her Cellar door character, Sera, especially when it came to the duo’s shared experiences with infertility.

“My job is always to authentically portray my character’s experiences,” Brewster, 44, exclusively revealed. Us weekly while discussing the psychological thriller. “I fought to have sons and experienced Serah’s heartache first-hand. I didn’t want to sugarcoat her experience.”

Brewster and her ex-husband Andrew Formgave birth to sons Julian and Rowan via surrogacy in 2013 and 2016 respectively, after several failed rounds of IVF treatment. Because of her own path, the actress said Us she was keen to raise awareness of the “immense toll” infertility can take on couples. “I became driven and obsessed with fertility issues,” she recalled of her own experience. “And Serah is walking along the same road.”

Director Vaughn Stein, Cellar door follows Sarah Brewster and her husband John (Scott Speedman) as they seek a fresh start after a devastating pregnancy loss. Just as the search for a house seems fruitless, they discover that they have been given the house of their dreams by the mysteriously wealthy homeowner Emmett (Laurence Fishburne), which has only one caveat: they will never be able to open the basement door.

“When I first took over, it was in dire need of renovation,” Fishburne’s character says of the 1918 Jacobean revival. UsAn exclusive clip from the film, which you can watch above. “I spent the better part of a decade repairing it, but I was eventually able to restore it. … It’s cool, isn’t it?”

When Serah and John declare that they have “excelled” when it comes to finding a suitable location, Emmett invites them over for wine and dinner before ultimately suggesting the place permanently. “I like getting to know the people I help,” he tells them. “Can I persuade you to stay for an early dinner, to combine a little business with pleasure?”

Although a spacious home in the suburbs seems like the answer to all the couple’s problems, things quickly take a dark turn. The gripping thriller is full of unexpected twists and turns from start to finish, skillfully balancing the emotional trauma of Serah and John’s struggle to conceive while hiding secrets and suspense around every corner.

Brewster and Speedman, 49, are asked to create an undeniably complex and layered dynamic between the two of them, which Brewster revealed Us was easy thanks to the instant rapport between colleagues.

“Sometimes you really have to create chemistry, which can be difficult. Luckily, Scott and I hit it off right away,” Brewster recalls. “He is smart, charming and a very good actor. The most important thing is that we both have a strong work ethic, having been in business since we were 20 years old.”

Brewster joked that Sera and John’s “playful but intense dynamic” also came quite easily to her and Speedman due to their mutual “competitive” nature. “We teased each other a lot,” she admitted. “John and Sera call each other by their names… and so do we.”

Brewster’s connection to Serah was deep in many ways. From “mama bear” to the love she has for her husband. Mason Morfit — who she married in 2022 — Fast and Furious Star felt a connection with Serah on a primal level. “I understand her sense of loyalty and her sense of purpose,” Brewster said of the character. “I also feel strongly about taking decisive steps to correct the past.”

To be so in tune with a character in a film as psychologically twisted as Cellar door may be onerous, but Brewster said Us that she, along with Speedman and Stein, worked hard to keep things fun and light between scenes.

“Our director Vaughn is a witty Brit. After each take he exclaimed: “Amazing!” Amazing! Pitch perfect!’ I loved his endless variety of expressions,” she joked, adding that she and Speedman often “competed to see who could get the hardest compliment.”

Brewster also found her own ways to break away from the film’s dark material during the filming hiatus. “Running in the morning. Or tequila at night,” she said. Us. “(It) helped me cleanse Sera.”

Cellar door will be available in select theaters and on demand Friday, November 1st.