“One of my favourite movies is Mary Shelley. I saw that in theatres, and that did it for me. I knew it right there and then.”
Kojima, with Elle Fanning present, explained how she came to Death Stranding 2: he had always been a fan and had followed Elle’s movies since she was a child actress, he had seen Super 8 and Neon Demon, and Nicolas Winding Refn had told him repeatedly what a great person Elle is. Even before he went independent he knew he wanted to cast her in one of his games. One of his favourite movies is Mary Shelley; he saw it in theatres and that convinced him, and he also has the Teen Spirit soundtrack. When planning Death Stranding 2 he wrote the story with Elle in mind, consulted Nicolas right away, and that is how he got in touch with Elle. The pitch was done over Zoom because of the pandemic; Kojima said that under normal circumstances he would have flown to give the pitch in person and that he was completely ready to fly out to see her.
“I've always been a fan, and I followed Elle's movies ever since she was a child actress. […] And Nicholas had told me time and time again just how great of a person Elle is. So even before I went independent, I knew that I wanted to cast her in one of my games. […] I consulted Nicholas right away, and that's how I was able to get in touch with Elle. […] because of the pandemic, we had to do it over Zoom. […] I was completely ready to fly out to see you.”