Beautiful Virgin Islands

Monday, Aug 04, 2025

Victoria Pedretti is a Certified Scream Queen

Victoria Pedretti is a Certified Scream Queen

From hauntings to murders Victoria Pedretti-seen here in Fendi’s Winter capsule collection-is a modern horror darling whose on-screen roles are the perfect fright night companions.

Based on her work in horror hits like The Haunting anthology and psychological thriller series You, you may think Victoria Pedretti enjoys the genre. The 26-year-old actress, however, is a self-described “scaredy cat.” A fact she admits over a video call from her Los Angeles home, while her actual pet cat, Cayenne, crawls into her lap. At the time of our conversation, the third season of You is just about to be released, and Pedretti still has Love on the brain—that is, her character, Love Quinn, the now-wife and co-conspirator to Penn Badgley's obsessive serial-killing stalker Joe Goldberg. In Season 3, the couple move to the suburbs toget a fresh start for their growing family, but their murderous impulses inevitably catch up to them. “I love this character so much,” Pedretti says. “She’s just interesting, complex, fun,and relatable.”

Pedretti’s performance as the confident, cunning, andsarcastic Love does indeed prove that a murderess can feel relatable to the audience. It’s her ability to capture that complexity that’s made Pedretti a rising scream queen. After making her TV debut as Nell in Mike Flanagan’s The Haunting of Hill House miniseries, she was tapped toplay Dani in the follow-up Bly Manor. While both shows follow independent stories and new characters, Pedretti’s roles share a thematic framework: that of a young woman grappling with trauma from her past, while dealing with imminent paranormal activity.



Bra and tights FENDI

Even in her foray into film, Pedretti has leaned into themacabre. Landing her very first movie role in 2019’s Tarantino flick Once Upon a Time...In Hollywood, the actress appears as Leslie Van Houten, a real-life Manson Family member and convicted murderer known as Lulu. A year later, she had asupporting role in Shirley, a fictionalized drama based on the life of gothic novelist Shirley Jackson, played by Elizabeth Moss. Pedretti has also been cast as the lead in the upcoming film adaptation of Lucky, the memoir of writer Alice Sebold (author of The Lovely Bones).

While Pedretti admits that the darker themes of her work can weigh heavily at times, at the end of the day, they’re meant to entertain. And the collective desire for escapism during the pandemic led many to the fictional horrors found in film and TV. Even for scaredy cats like Pedretti, there’s comfort in losing yourself in the thrill of jump scares and fake blood. Here, the actress delves deeper into her role as Love, and how she separates herself from playing a murderer.



Jacket, pants, and bag FEND

L'OFFICIEL: In Season 3 of You, we learn that Love is just as good at playing the part, covering up her own violent impulses, as Joe. Was that part of her evolution a surprise to you?

VICTORIA PEDRETTI: I think that we all do that. We all have darker impulses that we’re uncomfortable with sharing with people. It kind of feels universal-it’s not that difficult to tap into. A lot of us are pretending that we’re someone that we’re not. That was pretty evident from the beginning. I don’tthink anybody’s naturally as confident and secure as she presents herself.


L'O: That’s a theme that is carried through to the other new characters in Madre Linda, the fictional suburb where Love and Joe settle down and start their family.

VP: I grew up in the suburbs, but that does not feel like what this is-this, like, uber-wealthy, private facade. I know nothing about that, so it was fun to delve into this very bougie, lots of money, lots of sex, lots of drugs drama that I guess super wealthy people find themselves in. Everybody’s got problems, but some people can put a lot of money towards their problems in a way that creates these very strange dynamics. For me, watching it, it’s so removed from my life and I feel like that’s part of the joy of it. Pointing your fingerat it and being like, “Fuck these people."



L’O: Are you the type of person who takes their work home and keeps thinking about it, even when you’re not on set?

VP: That always happens a little bit, but I always try to do things to combat that because I like who I am and I don’t want to take on the shit that isn't mine. I've got enough shit, you know what I mean? I don’t want to distract myself from my shit. You’ve got to stay focused and remember what’s yours. Ultimately, the story is written—and it’s not real! I think that’s a really important thing to remind yourself. When you take it too seriously, you can take it on. And I do take my work very seriously, which is OK, but there has to be an active reminder that it’s not real, that it’s work for the sake of entertainment and storytelling. I think my job should be enjoyable at the end of the day, and there are obviously elements of it that are uncomfortable or challenging, but it’s something I'm passionate about, so I dont want to be a burden.



L'O: What are some of those challenging aspects?

VP: Certain days, certain scenes. Every so often something really terrible happens, and then you have to go into work and play a scene where you’re happy and healthy. That’s the hardest-when you’re actually physically ill or sick and you have to pretend you’re healthy. But there areways to get there. It can be so empowering when you’re going through something really stressful-this happened somewhat recently, not on this project, but I was really stressed out, and then I meditated and I was able to focus on where I was and the work I was doing. I knew that the struggles weren’t going away, but I’m at work right now,so I gotta do this.


L’O: You’re pretty quiet on social media. Do you find the need to unplug?

VP: I just don’t think I have that much interesting stuff to say, to be honest. I feel like when I have something to share, I share it, but I’d much rather have a conversation like this. That’s how I like to communicate, get to know people, and connect. Instagram doesn’t seem conducive to that. And I don’t like that-I love the complicated, nuanced, messy aspects of pretty much every facet of life. I prefer to live in three dimensions, which is kind of ironic given the fact that we’re talking about a TV show.

Newsletter

Related Articles

Beautiful Virgin Islands
0:00
0:00
Close
Pilots Call for Mental Health Support Without Stigma
All Five Trapped Miners Found Dead After El Teniente Mine Collapse
Ong Beng Seng Pleads Guilty in Corruption Case Linked to Former Singapore Transport Minister
BP’s Largest Oil and Gas Find in 25 Years Uncovered Offshore Brazil
Italy Fines Shein One Million Euros for Misleading Sustainability Claims
JPMorgan and Coinbase Unveil Partnership to Let Chase Cardholders Buy Crypto Directly
Declassified Annex Links Soros‑Affiliated Officials and Clinton Campaign to ‘Russiagate’ Narrative
UK's Online Safety Law: A Front for Censorship
Nationwide Protests Erupt in Brazil Demanding Presidential Resignation
Parents Abandon Child at Barcelona Airport Over Passport Issue
Mystery Surrounds Death of Brazilian Woman with iPhones Glued to Her Body
Bus Driver Discovers Toddler Hidden in Suitcase in New Zealand
Switzerland Celebrates 734 Years of Independence Amid Global Changes
U.S. Opens Official Investigation into Former Trump Prosecutor Jack Smith
Leaked audio of Canada's new PM Mark Carney admitting the truth about the Net Zero agenda: "We're gonna make a lot of money off of this."
China Enforces Comprehensive Ban on Cryptocurrency Activities
Absolutely 100% Realistic EVO Series Doll by EXDOLL (Chinese Company) used mainly for carnal purposes
World Economic Forum founder Klaus Schwab: "In this new world, we must accept... total transparency. You have to get used to it. You have to behave accordingly. But if you have nothing to hide, you shouldn't be afraid."
Meet Mufti Hamid Patel, head of Office for Standards in Education in Pakistan
George Soros tells the World Economic Forum: "President Trump is a con man and the ultimate narcissist, who wants the world to revolve around him."
Hamas are STARVING the hostages.
Decline in Tourism in Majorca Amidst Ongoing Anti-Tourism Protests
British Tourist Dies Following Hair Transplant in Turkey, Police Investigate
Poland Begins Excavation at Dziemiany After New Clue to World War II‑Era Nazi Treasure
WhatsApp Users Targeted in New Scam Involving Account Takeovers
Trump Threatens Canada with Tariffs Over Palestinian State Recognition
Trump Deploys Nuclear Submarines After Threats from Former Russian President Medvedev
Trump Sues Murdoch in “Heavyweight Bout”: Lawsuit Over Alleged Epstein Letter Sets Stage for Courtroom Showdown
Germany Enters Fiscal Crisis as Cabinet Approves €174 Billion in New Debt
Trump Administration Finalizes Broad Tariff Increases on Global Trade Partners
J.K. Rowling Limits Public Engagements Citing Safety Fears
JD.com Launches €2.2 Billion Bid for German Electronics Retailer Ceconomy
Azerbaijan Proceeds with Plan to Legalise Casinos on Artificial Islands
Former Judge Charged After Drunk Driving Crash Kills Comedian in Brazil
Jeff Bezos hasn’t paid a dollar in taxes for decades. He makes billions and pays $0 in taxes, LEGALLY
China Increases Use of Exit Bans Amid Rising U.S. Tensions
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
Procter & Gamble to Raise U.S. Prices to Offset One‑Billion‑Dollar Tariff Cost
House Republicans Move to Defund OECD Over Global Tax Dispute
Botswana Seeks Controlling Stake in De Beers as Anglo American Prepares Exit
Trump Administration Proposes Repeal of Obama‑Era Endangerment Finding, Dismantling Regulatory Basis for CO₂ Emissions Limits
France Opens Criminal Investigation into X Over Algorithm Manipulation Allegations
A family has been arrested in the UK for displaying the British flag
Mel Gibson refuses to work with Robert De Niro, saying, "Keep that woke clown away from me."
Trump Steamrolls EU in Landmark Trade Win: US–EU Trade Deal Imposes 15% Tariff on European Imports
ChatGPT CEO Sam Altman says people share personal info with ChatGPT but don’t know chats can be used as court evidence in legal cases.
The British propaganda channel BBC News lies again.
Deputy attorney general's second day of meeting with Ghislaine Maxwell has concluded
Controversial March in Switzerland Features Men Dressed in Nazi Uniforms
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
×