ComingSoon Editor-in-Chief Tyler Treese spoke with Skincare star Elizabeth Banks about the upcoming thriller directed by Austin Peters. IFC Films will release the film exclusively in theaters on August 16, 2024.

"Celebrity esthetician Hope Goldman (Elizabeth Banks) is on the verge of taking her career to the next level by launching her own skincare line, but her personal and professional lives are put to the test when rival esthetician Angel Vergara (Luis Gerardo Méndez) opens a new skincare boutique right across the street from her shop. She begins to suspect that someone is trying to sabotage her reputation and business, and together with her boyfriend Jordan (Lewis Pullman), she sets out on a mission to unravel the mystery of who is trying to destroy her life," the synopsis reads.

Tyler Treese: Congratulations on Skincare. What I loved about the film is that it’s really fun, but it’s also a great character study of who you play, Hope Goldman. I read that you didn’t find out until later in production that it was based on a true story. I think that helps the film because you can really focus on the character and not feel tied to anything. So I wanted to know what you thought about that.

Elizabeth Banks: I read a great script with a beautiful letter from Austin about why I had to be Hope Goldman, and then I watched his documentary, and it really struck me. It was about Diplo doing a concert. I just thought, "Wow, this guy knows how to pull emotion out of a really surprising scenario." I thought Hope was amazing. I agree. She was super complex, really interesting, struggling for relevance as an aging woman in an industry that values beauty and youth and newness above all else. I really connected with that as a middle-aged woman in Hollywood. Then I thought the layers of stress and pressure that builds up on her throughout the film and the sense of desperation that she feels to understand what the hell is happening to her and who is out to get her in that layer of paranoia.