On July 6th, Columbia lost beloved actor Lou Kaplan. Lou was the star of one of our favorite scenes in the screenplay: when a man with a walker encounters Gabriel and backs up crossing himself. Lou played the scene with the perfect amount of fear with undercurrents of comedy that we imagined when we wrote it. Unfortunately, due to timing issues, we had to cut the scene, but our production was better off for having Lou on set.
He brought with him a joy and enthusiasm that perked all of us up after several long days of shooting. It was hard to believe he was 95 years old since his energy put the rest of us young whippersnappers to shame. Because he shared his scene with the contrary cat, he had to repeat his takes many times, but he met it all with good humor as can be seen in this funny behind-the-scenes interview with him.
May his wit and zeal for life be an inspiration for all of us. Our condolences go out to Lou’s family and friends.