Jordan Gavaris dishes on horror-comedy ‘Touch Me,’ ‘Orphan Black’s legacy & falling in love at first sight
unnerving supernatural horror Hypochondriac, in 2022. Now, three years later, it’s Gavaris’ turn, co-starring in Heimann’s sophomore feature Touch Me, a gonzo, supernatural horror-comedy which is… well, out of this world.
It’s the story of two aimless, codependent best friends (Gavaris & The Magicians‘ Olivia Taylor Dudley) who become addicting to the touch of a narcissistic alien (You‘s Lou Taylor Pucci) “who may or may not be trying to take over the world.”Subscribe to our newsletter for your front-row seat to all things entertainment with a sprinkle of everything else queer.The role felt like a real change-of-pace for Gavaris—a self-proclaimed “tidy, organized, Type A person” who is not at all like the slacker character he plays.
But also because, up until this point, the booked & busy actor’s career has largely been in the realm of TV, from his sci-fi breakthrough Orphan Black, to charming Canadian dramedy The Lake, to his role in the most recent season of Hacks.A scrappy indie production with a pop culture-referencing sense of humor and some ambitious genre-bending, Touch Me was an exciting risk for the actor—and it’s one that’s already paid off!
With its premiere in the Midnight section of the Sundance Film Festival, Gavaris came to Park City, Utah for the first time to promote the feature, which is where we caught up with him and invited him into the hot seat for our rapid-fire Q&A series, Dishin’ It.In our conversation, Gavaris shares what excited—and scared—him most about diving into Touch Me, reflects on why genre movies often have such a strong appeal to queer audiences, and shares the super sweet story of how he and his husband first met.A post shared by Jordan Gavaris (@jordanjgavaris)Is there a piece of media—whether a movie, TV series, book, album, theater, video game, etc…—that has played an important role in your own understanding of queerness and the queer community?
