Rena Riffel: The Mr. Skin Interview

Obviously, Showgirls and Striptease were big gigs for you and they helped to carve out a working niche. Was their popularity something you anticipated, and did you think that these would be the films that would so define your career?
Actually, I did see it coming like this. I first moved to Hollywood to be a dancer--a real dancer, not a stripper. My life's just like a movie, right? But then I became an actress. So it was amazing that I would end up in the two biggest dance movies of that time.

Showgirls was first up. Tell us about working with director Paul Verhoeven.
He was great! I was on cloud nine the whole time because he was one of my favorite directors, especially at that time right after Basic Instinct, which was my favorite movie. He was very sweet to me, very encouraging.

He must have been, especially when it came to some of your hotter scenes.
I knew what I had to do, that I had to take my clothes off. I agreed to it and he explained it to me. I trusted him and I knew what he was going to be shooting.

Did Verhoeven get a little "intimate" with your body at one point?
I was going to be the next Sharon Stone, right? I figured, "Well, he had success doing this in the last picture, so maybe it'll work for this one."

Was your appearance in Showgirls directly related for you being cast in Striptease?
Oh yes, I think it had a lot to do with it. I was in that mode, my body was in shape as a dancer and I was good at comedy. I also knew Marguerite Derricks very well. She choreographed Showgirls and she was also the choreographer of Striptease. She knew what I was capable of.

Following those films, you leapt into the direct-to-video arena with movies like Undercover (Picture: 1 - 2 - 3) and Dark Confessions.
People seem to love Undercover. Some people come up to me and say it's their favorite movie of all time, which means it must have a big following. It's art [laughs].

And speaking of art, let's talk about your work with David Lynch. Mulholland Dr. must have introduced you to a whole new audience. How did your casting in that film come about?
I think David Lynch saw me in Showgirls and that film's casting director, Johanna Ray, also did the casting for Mulholland Dr. First, they offered me a part in Lost Highway, right after Showgirls came out. My agents at the time told me that they didn't want me to do any more nudity and the part was a nude part. I was, like, "But I'd love to work with David Lynch!" So, five years later, I got my chance.

Wow!
He called me back in and he had this idea for me to play this mysterious drug addict, a whole different kind of character for me to play. I wouldn't be glamorous--I'd be this homeless girl that looks awful and has bruises!

You must have been psyched.
I was so excited, especially when I thought it was going to be a TV series. He had explained to me that he was going to develop my character and that there was going to be a big surprise at the end with what my character is all about. I thought I was set for life, but the series never happened.

You must have been discovered by a whole new audience.
Sometimes when I'm walking home from the gym and I'm sweaty and not wearing any make-up, people will actually pull over and open the window and say, "Aren't you the girl from Mulholland Dr.?"

We see that you've been involved in a lot of the promotions surrounding the recent release of the Showgirls VIP Edition DVD.
Yes, they were a blast! I missed the original theatrical premiere. I was in Florida at the time shooting Striptease and I didn't fly back for it. I ended up seeing it with the cast of Striptease. So they had another premiere for the DVD release and it was amazing. It was surreal, almost! A movie that people put down . . .

You were the only cast member in the film that did press for the DVD release.
I was surprised about that. I wish that Elizabeth [Berkley] and Gina [Gershon] were involved in the promotion and that they would embrace the movie that people seem to love so much.

Are you in touch with anyone from the movie anymore?
Yes, with Elizabeth. We run into each and say hi and talk. She's really sweet.

Something I was pleasantly surprised to see you were involved in is the indie Wild Roomies.
A lot of people have been asking me about that lately. I did a little voiceover as a phone caller in that movie, so I'm not really in the movie, but parts of me are. I had a song in that movie called "Geisha Girl".

Something a lot of people might not know about is that you're not just a dancer and an actress but also a composer.
Yes! One really great thing is that I got one of my songs in Showgirls! No one really knows that, only the hardcore fans who study the end credits and see my name right underneath Prince's symbol--that was when he was known as "The Artist Formerly Known as Prince." It's on during one of the later dance scenes when Elizabeth walks into a room and announces that she's going to change the music and then flicks it off. But it's on for about ten seconds.

Where else can we find other Riffel compositions?
In the indie movie Back in the U.S.S.R.--the whole three-minute song that time. And then I got another song in a vampire movie, Bloodthirsty.

With Monique Parent and Julie Strain. I like that one!
My song was used during a vampire love scene! Monique and I were in The Pornographer together.

So what's going on with you lately?
Currently I'm auditioning a lot and trying to get another movie, something spectacular, hopefully. I also have another movie coming out that I did with Lloyd Simandl called Bound Cargo, which is similar to Dark Obsessions. I play another Bettie Page kind of girl.

Have you ever been asked by a filmmaker to do something onscreen that you refused to do? Any love scenes ever get too racy?
I take them on as a challenge and I push myself to be uninhibited as an actress. I'll go as far as R-rated movies allow me to go. I would never do porn--unless I film my own video and accidentally release it!

You haven't done that many boy/girl love scenes, have you?
No, not many at all. I did one in Scandalous Behavior, and that was the most uncomfortable I've ever been. It was harder for me to have a love scene with a guy, I think because my co-star had a crush on me.

How do your love scenes go down with your real-life friends and lovers?
They don't have a problem. Whomever I'm dating at the time--I'm actually involved with someone now and I'm a very monogamous person--they usually like to watch my movies over and over.

With you or without you?
Usually without me!

That must make you feel good--or does it?
The guy I'm going with now always says, "I'm just gonna stay home and watch my favorite movie of all time, Undercover." Or he'll say, "I can't talk to you right now, Showgirls is on VH-1." It's silly. But who knows, maybe Undercover is his favorite movie!

If that's the case, you should marry him.

More details about Rena, including both her acting and work as a musician, are available at her website RenaRiffel.com