EXCLUSIVE: Jessica Stroup on Wes Craven's The Hills Have Eyes 2

Jessica Stroup getting down and dirty against the mutant monsters in the horror sequel

It's the sequel to one of the most horrific movies in recent years - Wes Craven's The Hills Have Eyes 2. This time around, it's the National Guard who gets tortured by the mutated human monsters.

Jessica Stroup is one of those soldiers on that mission in the desert of New Mexico. She spoke with us about getting down and dirty for the role. Check out what she had to say:

So how did you get this part?

Jessica Stroup: For me, it was a long process, a lot of auditions. I loved the first movie, and a friend of mine was in the first and told me about it; it was really exciting! The only thing was, they had the character set as a blonde, and I'm a brunette, but we compromised.

And to work in Morocco, that wasn't too bad either.

Jessica Stroup: No, you're so right. I love traveling, so that was great! Also, it added to the energy of the shoot; you really felt like you were in the middle of the desert. You could tell also there was non-stop action and it was fast paced.

What about the training?

Jessica Stroup: Oh my gosh, we wanted to represent; we knew what was going on. There was marching, shooting; our trainer was a British Military officer. Everything was real; he wanted us to feel what it would be like with the real packs on - we were wearing full-on packs the whole time. He showed us how to hold a gun, shoot someone; we just had to get it right.

So does that mean you're a pretty good shot now?

Jessica Stroup: Oh, yeah, take me out back; I'm better than some of the boys. I can definitely hold my own.

What was the shooting schedule like? Did you hang out with the mutants?

Jessica Stroup: Yeah, that was great! We would be finishing up a scene and then we would see them at lunch with their full make-up on. I love that stuff! I like to live off the moment; I wanted to see them on set. The guys at KNB are amazing, they are masters of their craft. Those guys they created with make-up look terrifying in real life; they're nasty!

What did you think of the final movie? Were you surprised at how much action and blood were shown?

Jessica Stroup: It blew my mind! Oh yeah, watching it and being involved in this project, it was amazing. We obviously didn't see it with everything complete while we were making it, so seeing the final movie was awesome with all the color corrected. It's always a gamble on something like this, but they got it right. There really is non-stop action - and a lot of blood!

So what are you working on now?

Jessica Stroup: Well, when I got back home, I did a guest spot on Grey's Anatomy; that was great, but it was here. Morocco was a life-changing experience for me, and so it felt different. But I'm also working on This Christmas which is a family drama - it's a very different movie than Hills; there are great people in that as well.

You can see The Hills Have Eyes 2 in theaters March 23rd; it's rated R.