Warped by a dark past, Adrian has some twisted views about women-and killed Silvia as a means of having Elaine as his "perfect woman". But what Elaine doesn't know is that her employer's kindness hides the obsession he's formed with her. Shocked and wanting to be there for the family, Elaine agrees to help Adrian with the girls and even begins to open up to the doctor. While her dance career has been on hold, Elaine has grown fond of taking care of the girls and is on friendly terms with both Silvia and Adrian (Simon Haycock), Silvia's psychiatrist husband and the children's stepfather.īut tragedy strikes the Cartwright family when Silvia suddenly dies in an apparent suicide. During that time, Elaine has been babysitting Lilly and Mackenzie Cartwright (Hannah Aniela and Lyla Emerson Booker), the children of Silvia Cartwright (Dominique Swain). "It was thrilling," he added.After an injury cost her a chance at a prestigious New York dance company, Elaine Davidson (Kristen Vaganos) is ecstatic when she learns she has the chance to finally have her audition now that she's recovered. "The next day, we're at the blues bar with that as playback, and we're lip syncing to it, but Albert Collins had never lip-synced in his life, so there was a learning curve." There was some structure for the song but they basically, in one or two takes, pounded out the music for it and Albert's part, brought us in, and did her part with Albert and we did our back-ups," he recalled.
"We went in on a Sunday to a recording studio in Chicago with Albert Collins and the Icebreakers. One example: the scene in which Shue and the kids sing "The Babysitting Blues" in a famed nightclub, FitzGerald's. Most of the production, he said, took place in Toronto, though there were some moments that had to be shot on location in and around Chicago. But I am amazed at the level of professionalism and the dedication to the work. "I've done a couple of films like 'Don't Tell Mom the Babysitter's Dead' with Christina Applegate, where I saw a very young woman carrying a multi-million dollar picture for a major studio and the pressure must be tremendous. "I still have a huge crush on Elisabeth Shue," Coogan said. But, he added, nobody quite captured the essence of the character like Shue. Coogan said he did screen tests with a number of actresses who went out for the part, including Phoebe Cates and Valerie Bertinelli. But he is Darryl! You can't get another Darryl."Ĭasting babysitter Chris Parker proved to be a challenge too. "I read for Darryl as well, and Anthony Rapp also read for Brad. This is going to be an issue," he said with laugh. I was like, 'He's the only one I could see as Brad. " Jonathan Ward was in there too, very close, and me and Jonathan had been up for many parts before. His agent set up an audition, and, at the advice of his mother, Coogan brought a computer to the waiting room in an attempt to distract the others who were trying out for the part. Coogan said that when he first heard about the project, he was desperate to be a part of it, as he wanted to work with director Christopher Columbus. After Chris' friend calls in need of help, the foursome ventures into downtown Chicago where they run into one problem after another. The PG-13 film centers on Chris Parker (Shue), who, after being stood up by her boyfriend, agrees to babysit for a Thor-obsessed girl, Sara (Maia Brewton), Sara's older brother Brad (Coogan) and Brad's friend Darryl (Anthony Rapp).
It's a loony bin in the city."įor many, including Coogan, "Adventures in Babysitting" is a classic. I think these kids leave the suburbs and they go into town and everybody they meet is absolutely crazy. "I've had people say that this was their first film that their parents took them too that they remember going to the theaters to watch," he said.
#Cast of obsessed with the babysitter movie#
- It's been 30 years since audiences watched Elisabeth Shue lead her babysitting charges around downtown Chicago in "Adventures in Babysitting," but for Keith Coogan, who played 15-year-old Brad in the film, the memories are still vivid.Ĭogan, who turned 17 at the start of production in 1987, said in a 2016 interview with ABC News that fans still love to discuss the movie with him.