Michelle Randolph’s path to the big screen was not due to childhood ambition or a long-term plan. “I honestly didn’t even think it was an option for me,” she says. While finishing school, Randolph was modeling when a few people encouraged her to explore film. Along the way, those conversations led her to her first audition. She later began studying film and acting out of curiosity rather than vocation, taking classes to understand the craft, not because she imagined it would become her career. The idea of pursuing it professionally only settled in once she realized how deeply she connected to the work. “I had absolutely no idea what I was doing, but I knew I loved it,” she notes.

What started as a suggestion became a steady process of learning her craft. She spent years moving through classes at UCB and different acting studios, trying to understand what the work demanded. “Every role is completely different, and just when you feel confident in one thing, you get challenged by something new,” she explains. “That is definitely part of the addiction for me.” The more she learned, the more she began to understand how emotional architecture operates within a role, and how a character’s private logic shapes how they move through a story. For Michelle, entering a character begins with observing how that person interprets the world. “I really try to immerse myself in who that person is and the lens through which they see the world.”

The television series 1923 introduced her to a level of scale she had never experienced before. It was a world built through atmosphere, detail, and physical distance, while learning to work inside a space made her more attuned to the internal tension shaping her performance. “It was [all about] taking in my surroundings; the beautiful yet isolating landscape of Montana, the incredible 1920s set design, the authentic wardrobe,” she says. In the series Landman, the work required a different approach. Because the story is built around power, consequences, and environment, she began by figuring out her character’s motives and reactions. “It was about becoming a wild Texas teenager and letting myself embody her energy and her vibrancy,” explains Michelle. The experience of filming on location became unexpectedly central to the development of her characters. “Filming on location for both of those became a really important part of my process, which I hadn’t expected going in,” she adds.

Yet, her role in the upcoming slasher film Scream 7 required a different type of preparation. Its cinematic universe is shaped by decades of audience expectations, with the stakes emotional as much as they are physical. She returned to the earlier films to understand that rhythm. “Watching all the previous films before filming helped me get into that mindset,” says Randolph, noting how working with director Kevin Williamson helped define the project. “He had such a clear vision, which made it even easier to understand the tone and the world we were creating.” She is still processing the experience of joining something so established. “I’m still in shock that I even got to be part of something so iconic. I just hope people enjoy it and feel like we honored the franchise.”

With many of her roles involving women who are easily misread,  Randolph approaches those characters by paying attention to what feels genuine beneath a scene’s tone. She looks for moments when comedy or pressure reveals something honest. “I played with the idea that satire doesn’t erase sincerity. I try to bring honesty to every character, no matter how they’re labeled or how heightened the tone is. You can play the joke and still mean the moment,” she notes. “Working across different genres lately has really reinforced that for me.”

Looking ahead, she is drawn to stories where women have complexity and power, not just plot function. “I’m looking for stories where women have real agency and dimension,” says Randolph. “I’m interested in anything that challenges me or lets me grow in a different direction. Discovery has been good to me so far, so I’m letting that guide me too.” 

This story appears in the pages of V158: now available for purchase!

Photography Dennis Leupold
Fashion Matthew Mazur
Hair Ericka Verrett (A-Frame)
Makeup Melissa Hernandez (A-Frame)
Set Design Ali Gallagher
Set Design Leadman Zoran Radanovich
Casting Kev Ponce
Production Sophie Meister (Locals Worldwide)
Photo Assistants Tom Blanco, Ben Chant
Fashion Assistant Zander Slayton
Hair Assistant Niko Verrett
Makeup Assistant Karissa O’Hanlon
Studio Agpwest Studio
Studio Manager Alexey Galetskiy (Agp NYC)