Lacey Katena Discusses Her Role In The New Human Trafficking Thriller “Sugarcane” (Review)

Sugarcane is a film that attempts to tackle the horrific subject of human trafficking. While it doesn’t completely stick the landing in this regard, it does make some interesting points on the subject. Primarily, just how little can be done if a loved one goes missing.

Sugarcane focuses its social commentary on the existence of “Red Rooms.” These are supposedly dark web torture rooms where individuals pay money to see people tortured or killed. While there doesn’t seem to be any evidence that these rooms actually exist, they work as a terrific visual medium to terrify moviegoers.

However, what the movie excels in is showing the paranoia and fear that people can experience when someone goes missing. It also features a villain that is both interesting and terrifying. Known in the film as “The Bunny Man,” This character is a blend of Buffalo Bill from The Silence of the Lambs and Norman Bates from Psycho.

The interaction between this villain and our final girl, Phoebe, creates a tense atmosphere and helps to draw the audience into the action. All in all, Sugarcane is a tight indie thriller that is worth a watch. It doesn’t break any new ground in the genre, but the concept is interesting enough to leave viewers wanting to see more.

Interview

Luckily, I was lucky enough to sit down and talk with our final girl, Lacey Katena, and discuss her experience working on such a dark film.

iHorror: You drew inspiration for this role from “Scream Queens” such as Neve Campbell and Jodie Foster. Can you elaborate on why these women inspire you and how you incorporated that into your role?

Lacey Katena: Scream is one of my favorite movies of all time. Every October, I watch all of them like clockwork. It was the first film where I understood the concept of a ‘Scream Queen.” Neve Campbell in that role made me realize she was a baddie, and I wanted to be like her.

Then I started getting really into horror. I noticed the depth and the work that they were putting into these films. Specifically in horror, it’s a lot of hard work that requires dedication from everybody on the team. I drew inspiration from how dedicated they were and realized I wanted to do that.

iHorror: The term “Scream Queen” gets thrown around a lot. Can you tell us what it means to you?

Lacey Katena: I feel like it’s hard because I know that perception isn’t reality. My perception of a “Scream Queen” is the final girl or the second-to-last girl who is letting out those blood-curdling screams. They are putting it all out there and driving the story. They are the one who gets the last laugh, that is a “Scream Queen” to me.

iHorror: How did you get into the mindset to play this victim turned “Scream Queen?

Lacey Katena: In the months leading up to production, I wanted to get into the mindset of who Phoebe was before the events of Sugarcane. I felt that would influence how she reacted to certain things. I found that me and Phoebe were very similar. This allowed me to react very genuinely to a lot of stuff.

iHorror: What would you say to our readers to get them interested in viewing Sugarcane?

Lacey Katena: Sugarcane is a very unique film. This is something I hadn’t seen before. I have seen webcam killers, but this is a new genre that is accurate to the world as we see it. The film goes into the dark web and specifically how human trafficking has become so rampant, and how the internet is meshing with it. It makes you think about the rise of technology and how that impacts how we see the world.

Sugarcane is set to release on Amazon Prime and Fandango on June 13, 2025

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