TV

Justin Theroux, Melissa George: Parenting difficult on way to 'Mosquito Coast'

By Fred Topel   |   April 30, 2021 at 3:00 AM
Allie (Justin Theroux) and Margot Fox (Melissa George) are on the run in "The Mosquito Coast." Photo courtesy of Apple The Fox family, from left Melissa George, Logan Polish, Gabriel Bateman and Justin Theroux flee America and society. Photo courtesy of Apple Justin Theroux plays Allie Fox, the main character in his uncle, Paul Theroux's book, "The Mosquito Coast." File Photo by Jim Ruymen/UPI Melissa George plays Margot Fox in the Apple TV+ adaptation of "The Mosquito Coast." File Photo by Jim Ruymen/UPI Allie (Justin Theroux) and Margot Fox (Melissa George) traverse the desert of Mexico on the way to "The Mosquito Fox." Photo courtesy of Apple Dina Fox (Logan Polish) rebels against her parents' ideals. Photo courtesy of Apple 

LOS ANGELES, April 30 (UPI) -- A new take on The Mosquito Coast has parents on the run, raising their teen children outside formal structures like school -- and with limited technology.

Parents Allie (Justin Theroux) and Margot Fox (Melissa George) find it challenging to maintain their authority.

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"Allie is so lashed to his own convictions," Theroux said in a recent roundtable discussion on Zoom. "There is this element of the cult of family."

The Mosquito Coast is based on the book by Paul Theroux, Justin's uncle. The book was previously adapted as a 1986 movie starring Harrison Ford as Allie.

Apple is calling the new series, premiering Friday on Apple TV+, a prequel to the book and film. While the film focused on the Fox family living in the jungle of Central America, the series focuses on their journey south.

The Foxes are on the run because of something in their past that the show is keeping a mystery. When Allie and Margot decide to uproot their family to run again, it compromises their authority as parents, George said.

"I would say her parenting is maxed out," George said. "They're just trying to make ends meet, survive and get the kids to safety."

As the Foxes' 15-year-old daughter, Dina, Logan Polish said her character rebels against her parents. Polish is 20 years old herself.

"She's sort of poking holes in the plan and I think is sort of the audience's point of view sometimes," Polish said.

George said Dina's rebellious spirit is akin to Allie's, even if Dina rebels against her own father. George said their 13-year-old son Charlie (Gabriel Bateman) has grown accommodating like Margot has.

"The kids are learning from these leaders that are just Bonnie and Clyde gone wrong," George said.

Bateman, who is 16 himself, said Charlie idolizes his father and doesn't question the journey.

"He kind of just goes along for the ride and is just a product of his environment, just adapts to whatever situation he's in," Bateman said.

George said she knows specifically what Margot and Allie did in the past, but would not spoil it. The 44-year-old actor said she keeps that backstory in her mind when she acts with Theroux.

"Every look you give has to be very thought out," George said. "If you're thinking it, the audience is going to see it, you hope."

For his part, Theroux said he can understand the appeal of a rebel like Allie. The 49-year-old actor said he also understands why others would have trouble humoring Allie after a while.

"He's the kind of guy that I would probably love to have dinner with, but I certainly wouldn't want to live with him," Theroux said.

The cast of The Mosquito Coast filmed the Foxes' journey in Mexico. George said the heat made the cast and 300 crew members feel like the Foxes on the run through the desert.

"There was no acting required in a lot of the moments," George said.

Bateman said the isolated shoot made the actors feel more like a family.

"At a certain point, we were pretty much all we had," Bateman said. "We were our only social interaction outside of filming."

The book was written and the film made before the invention of smartphones and technology that connects people at any moment. Theroux said the modern retelling of The Mosquito Coast incorporates technology in its story of a family rejecting modern society.

"It's one of the paradoxes of Allie in that he rejects it all, but he's also very good at it," Theroux said. "He's pretty facile with a hard drive, a keyboard and a sim card, which I think just speaks to what we might reveal as his previous life."

In the show's premiere episode, Dina sneaks a phone into her room. Polish said Allie's resistance to technology adds another level of conflict between him and his children.

"The stakes are raised in this, and everything gets a little bit more complicated because of it," Polish said.