In director Nick Rowland’s “She Rides Shotgun,” an adaptation of Jordan Harper’s novel of the same name, young Polly Huff (Ana Sophia Heger) embarks on an emotionally and physically arduous journey alongside her estranged father, Nathan (Taron Egerton). Set against the barren landscape of the Southwest, Polly finds herself in the liminal space between adult and child. The film’s effectiveness hinges entirely on Heger’s ability to navigate this complex emotional terrain—which the young actor, who filmed the movie just after turning 10, has accomplished with grace far beyond her years.
Casting the perfect Polly
Finding the right child to play Polly was vital for the project, not just because the character is the lead in a story Harper considers “ ‘Paper Moon’ with a body count,” but because she’s the emotional heart of the film.
“Ana had all the cliche things you can say about an actor her age,” says Rowland. “She’s wise beyond her years, which is certainly true. She’s incredibly well-trained and disciplined, and she’s so passionate about what she does. She loves acting so much, but she revels in connecting to truth and emotion.”
What truly sealed the deal was how easily Heger meshed with Egerton during their chemistry read. “Taron, beforehand, said, ‘If you’re nervous, don’t worry. We all get nervous. I’m nervous. It’s completely natural,’ ” Rowland explains. “And she said, ‘I am nervous, but I also know I’m ready,’ and that was the moment when we knew that she was the one.”
The importance of genuine connection
Creating what Heger calls the kind of “really strong bond” needed for her and Egerton to authentically portray Polly and Nathan’s relationship was a matter of practicing together, becoming better acquainted, and even exercising. “We would go over the scenes and try to get to know each other a little bit more to make that special bond,” then do “lunges before scenes to warm up,” she says.
“I learned a lot,” Egerton adds. “It reminded me of a type of acting that it’s easy to forget about, where you are out on a limb and you aren’t manufacturing it, and you aren’t pre-planning it.”
Working opposite an established actor like Egerton also gave Heger valuable insights on the craft. “I always noticed that he was always focused when he came on set,” she says. “He was always super prepared, even if it’s a super crazy, emotional, intense scene.”
Ana Sophia Heger and Taron Edgerton in “She Rides Shotgun” Courtesy Lionsgate
Crafting their characters
Heger’s process of building her character entailed script analysis with her real-life father. “We go through the script a bunch of times to know what it’s about and what my character is about,” she says. “I had this journal where I would write notes about her character, what she feels throughout the movie, who she interacts with, and then we practice the scenes. I just try to live as the character, feel what she’s feeling. It really just comes naturally to me. Sometimes me and my dad also improvise so it feels like I’m just having a conversation.”
Egerton focused on Nathan’s “calloused quality, this damaged, repressed quality,” to embody the hardened ex-con who is simultaneously and paradoxically a loving father who wants nothing more than to keep his daughter safe.
An extraordinary talent
Not only is Polly in nearly every scene in “She Rides Shotgun,” but she’s also the focus of the powerfully poignant final shot. This meant that Heger’s ability to “deliver a very emotionally complex [performance] with subtlety and nuance” was integral to the film, which “only works because of her and her performance,” according to Rowland. “Without that, the whole thing falls apart.”
The child actor “has this incredible quality of raw talent and the ability to be authentically herself,” Egerton says. “She hasn’t yet had the time to develop all of the weirdness that we sometimes develop when we grow up, and that’s a wonderfully childlike quality. That, combined with her extraordinary talent, her extraordinary emotional intelligence, her extraordinary empathy, meant that we had this pull at the center of the production, and that was hugely inspiring to all of us.”