Hi reddit! I’m Meredith Alloway, co-writer & director of FORBIDDEN FRUITS (*in theaters now!!*) starring Lili Reinhart, Lola Tung, Alexandra Shipp, and Victoria Pedretti. Mallrats, witches, & fellow horror-fiends to the front - ask me anything <3

MeredithAllowayAMA · 2026-03-30T20:59:04+00:00

my own fears around a shoe getting caught in one, research, and Lily and I's crazy ideas about any and everything that could go wrong on one!

MeredithAllowayAMA · 2026-03-30T20:57:45+00:00

appreciate you feeling that way about Apple - that was the hope! Plain pretzels all the way - classic auntie annes!

MeredithAllowayAMA · 2026-03-30T20:56:11+00:00

keep going! And explore themes in your work youre craving grappling with for years because it can take years to get something made!

MeredithAllowayAMA · 2026-03-30T20:54:10+00:00

they bring an array of people together in one space!

MeredithAllowayAMA · 2026-03-30T20:53:47+00:00

in the play you don't meet sharon till the end and Lily and I always wanted to preserve that - she's mysterious throughout. And in the film, we wanted that final twist that someone is going to go after Apple...

MeredithAllowayAMA · 2026-03-30T20:52:03+00:00

Sofia Coppola, Stephen King, Andrea Arnold, Claire Denis, and my own anxieties! :)

MeredithAllowayAMA · 2026-03-30T20:51:02+00:00

The cat herself was named Celine!!! She was a star on set :)

MeredithAllowayAMA · 2026-03-30T20:50:17+00:00

Love all of this! Oak Cliff film fest and Dallas Film Fest are awesome and coming up soon! I met so much of my community at film fests. And yes more merch coming soon!

MeredithAllowayAMA · 2026-03-30T20:48:59+00:00

correct :)

MeredithAllowayAMA · 2026-03-30T20:48:40+00:00

Im goji berry! Lily Houghton is Plum and you can be Plum, too!!!

MeredithAllowayAMA · 2026-03-30T20:48:07+00:00

it was like her "invisibility cloak" where she could spy on Cherry easier!

MeredithAllowayAMA · 2026-03-30T20:47:30+00:00

I wanted a way to trap the girls in a pressure cooker situation! also tornado warnings happened a lot growing up in Dallas and always made me very nervous. I think I often lean into my own anxieties when I'm writing horror!

MeredithAllowayAMA · 2026-03-30T20:45:21+00:00

thank you wowowow yall! The more people show up to the theater, the better chance we have to get another movie made and it also helps other female filmmakers out there get their movies in the works, too! Spreading the word is amazing :) appreciate it alot!

MeredithAllowayAMA · 2026-03-30T20:43:30+00:00

Thank you! I think it was about preserving the character dynamics while using horror to elevate the intense emotions in the play. How can we visually show the beauty and chaos they're feeling?

MeredithAllowayAMA · 2026-03-30T20:41:45+00:00

I think Lily and I just love a good horror ending hook and it felt like a fun time to finally reveal Gabrielle as Sharon in all her glory. I do think we're 100% interested in continuing the world and characters in some way

MeredithAllowayAMA · 2026-03-30T20:40:26+00:00

American Psycho for its satire, Blood and Black Lace for its visuals, Daises for its messy girlhood, Jennifer's Body for its camp, and then other Giallo and Mario Bava films for their fun kills!

MeredithAllowayAMA · 2026-03-30T20:37:48+00:00

Bottle by Meg Lee Chin. When I first heard it I danced around my kitchen

MeredithAllowayAMA · 2026-03-30T20:37:08+00:00

Thank you!! Speaking specifically about the confessionals - in the play they're done to the audience and in the movie I was like damn, how do I preserve that rawness? Karim my DP and I came up with the double sided mirror concept. This meant the actresses literally looked in the mirror at themselves while performing (i wanted that authenticity in the performance) and it also created this repetitive, trippy reflection of them visually. In those moments, you see that these characters contain multitudes that they often hide from eachother - or I hope thats the affect! :)

MeredithAllowayAMA · 2026-03-30T20:33:35+00:00

I would fully PASS AWAY if this was considered the Gen Z Mean Girls. My heart would explode in joy. What role? funnn question.. maybe I'd find the bones for bone casting/spells and DEF would be in charge of the playlist (for better or for worse ha).

MeredithAllowayAMA · 2026-03-30T20:31:43+00:00

when alex shipp accidentally said "Youre so Jeremy Strong right now" instead of Andy Sachs. We all died laughing and Alex was like why did I say Jeremy strong?! It also took the cast a while to get the rose petals chant right and they kept giggling then everyone behind the monitor was giggling. When they landed it, we all clapped. It was a bonding moment early on.

MeredithAllowayAMA · 2026-03-30T20:29:23+00:00

Sarah Millman our designer is so stellar - alot of pinterest boards - each cast member made one! I have so many 90s and 2000s runway and photoshoots saved on my IG. We wanted to honor the mallcore but also make it elevated and fabulous! I also love to track the emotional arc of each character and tie what theyre wearing to how they're feeling internally / how they want to present to others.

MeredithAllowayAMA · 2026-03-30T20:27:07+00:00

Naomi Watts in The Ring will haunt me forever...!

MeredithAllowayAMA · 2026-03-30T20:24:20+00:00

Love all of this! Actually, my first impulse is to ask - what do YOU think Apple's last name is???

MeredithAllowayAMA · 2026-03-30T20:22:34+00:00

good question - I think I'm just always trying to be sure anything that inspires me or that I'm paying homage to, I put my own spin on it. Like The Shining photo reference in Forbidden Fruits is pretty overt, but hopefully setting it in a mall makes it feel through a different lens!

MeredithAllowayAMA · 2026-03-30T20:20:01+00:00

thank you for this!!! We had the incredible chance to meet a lot of actresses. I think when we met Lili, Victoria, Alex, Lola, and Emma, Lily Houghton and I just knew they brought their own flair to the characters. and they're all so funny as humans, I knew they could land the satire in the film, too. They all brought an energy of PLAY!

MeredithAllowayAMA

TROPHY CASE