'Blood Quantum': Meet Michael Greyeyes, Forrest Goodluck and rest of the cast of the Canadian zombie movie
This horror drama titled 'Blood Quantum' brings to light the familiar narrative of the dead coming back to life, except with one twist, some are immune to the damning plague. The film grimly depicts an apocalyptic scenario wherein an isolated "Mi'gmaq" community living on Red Crow discover they are the only humans immune to a zombie plague. The people in the reserve are immune, but the tribal sheriff has a duty to help people that have come to his people for help as the white corpses start to close in on them. The community must choose whether to let the outsiders in and thus risk not just the extinction of their tribe but of humanity.
It's safe to say that if you're a fan of 'Game of Thrones' or 'The Walking Dead' franchise, you might enjoy the premise of this movie. Here is all you need to know about the cast bringing this doomsday film to life.
Michael Greyeyes as Traylor
Greyeyes is not only an actor but also a director and the founding artistic director of Singal theatre. According to the actor's IMDb page, he is from Muskeg Lake Cree Nation in Saskatchewan, Canada, and is Nêhiyaw (Plains Cree). You may remember the actor from his most recent role as Ralph Drinkwater in the HBO hit series 'I Know This Much is True' starring the talented Mark Ruffalo. He is also known for his roles as Brett Woodard from 'True Detective' and Sitting Bull from 'Woman Walks Ahead.' In 2001, Greyeyes won a FAITA Award for Outstanding Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role in a TV Movie/Special for 'The Lost Child' (2000) where he played the role of Eddie and in 2018, the actor was nominated for a Saturn Award for Best Guest Performance in a Television Series for AMC Television's third season of 'Fear The Walking Dead' (2015) where he played the role of Qaletaqa Walker. His other works include 'The New World' (2005), 'Sunshine state' (2002), 'Passchendaele' (2008), and 'Dance Me Outside' (1994).
Forrest Goodluck as Joseph
Goodluck first made his debut in FOX's 'The Revenant' starring alongside Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hardy, Domnhall Gleeson, and Will Poulter. According to reports, the actor is an award-winning youth filmmaker whose work has been part of the Seattle International Film Festival, Taos Shortz Film Festival, and LA Skins Festival - he is the Smithsonian's National Museum of the American Indian and SWAIA Santa Fe Indian Market Class X Youth Winner. He is known for his roles as Adam from 'The Miseducation of Cameron Post' (2018), and his directional credits for 'A Walk in Beauty' and 'Devon's Forrest' (2018). In 2016, the actor even won the Young Artist Award or Best Performance in a Feature Film - Supporting Young Actor (14 - 21) for his role in 'The Revenant.' His other works include 'Ink' (2016), 'Citizen' (2016), 'Indian Horse' (2017), and 'Scalped' (2017).
Kiowa Gordon as Lysol
Gordon is known for his role as Embry in 'The Twilight Saga' series, and Jhonny Beck in 'The Lesser Blessed' (2012) for which he won an American Indian Movie Award in 2013 for Best Supporting Actor. His other and most recent works include 'Shadow Wolves' (2019), 'Castle in the Ground' (2019), Flint Manes from 'Roswell, New Mexico' (2019-2020), and 'Two Eyes' (2020). Gordon also has two releases in post-production titled, 'The Boardinghouse Reach' and 'The Liberator.'
Elle-Máijá Tailfeathers as Joss
Tailfeathers is known for her roles as Aila from 'The Body Remembers When the World Broke Open' (2019), Nelly from 'A Red Girl's Reasoning' (2012), and Earth Woman from 'Bloodland' (2011). She is also a writer with credits in 'The Embargo Project' (2015) and 'Rebel' (2014). The actress is also a director, producer, and cinematographer who has won over 16 awards. Most recently Tailfeathers won the Canadian Screen Award in 2020 for Achievement in Direction for 'The Body Remembers When the World Broke Open' which she shared with Kathleen Hepburn and for Original Screenplay for the same production which she also shared with Hepburn. She and Hepburn also won a Grand Jury Prize at the Gimli Film Festival in 2020 for the same production. Some of her other awards include the Canadian Screen Award for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Dramatic Program or Limited Series for 'On the Farm' in 2017 and the Short Film Competition Award at the 2015 Seattle International Film Festival for 'Rebel.' Her other works include 'Love in Paradise' (2016), 'White Indians Walking' (2011), and 'Rez Carz' (2014).
Olivia Scriven as Charlie
Scriven is known for her role as Maya Matlin from 'Degrassi TV' (2015-2016) and 'Degrassi: Next Class' (2016-2017), Patti from 'The Yard' (2011) and Bailey Martel from 'Mistletoe over Manhattan' (2011). Her most recent works include 'Skal' (2017), 'Giant Little Ones' (2018), 'Black Conflux' (2019), and 'Mrs. America' (2020). She has one release in post-production titled 'Dancing for the Devil.'
The other cast members include Stonehorse Lone Goeman as Gisigu, Brandon Oakes as Bumper, William Belleau as Shooker, Devery Jacobs as James, Gary Farmer as Moon, Kent McQuaid as Shamu, Felicia Shulman as Doris Lake Delisle, Trevor Hayes, Marc Assiniwi, Natalie Liconti, Sylvano Harvey, Sébastien Bolduc and many more.
The official synopsis of the film reads, "The indigenous people in the isolated reserve of Red Crow are immune to the zombie plague that has taken over the nation, but that doesn’t mean their lives aren’t at risk. It’s up to Traylor (Michael Greyeyes), the tribal sheriff, to protect the families residing on the reserve and a flood of desperate refugees from the hordes of bloodthirsty, walking white corpses that are closing in."
Catch 'Blood Quantum' on Septemeber 1, 2020 on Vod. Watch the trailer below.