Inde Navarrette’s role as Sarah Cortez in Superman & Lois was supposed to be her moment. After gaining attention in the final season of 13 Reasons Why, the now-25-year-old actor finally got to play a character she could grow with.

However, last-minute budget cuts meant that during The CW series’ final season, Inde and several of her costars dropped to guest star status. It could have been a major setback in a rising career, but instead it opened the door to something bigger.

“It really was just divine timing,” she told Cosmopolitan in NYC. “If I had done the fourth season of Superman & Lois, if I hadn’t had that disappointment, it wouldn’t have led me to Obsession.”

The horror film, created by Curry Barker, defied all expectations, turning a $750,000 budget into a multimillion-dollar box office smash thanks largely to word of mouth about Inde’s performance as Nikki, a young woman who is forced through supernatural forces to become fixated on a man after he wishes she loved him.

Her facial expressions have become memes. The film’s practical effects mark a big win in the fight against SFX overload and AI. The plot has spawned discussions about consent and dating in the modern age. And Inde has gotten a level of exposure that seems like it must have come from One Wish Willow.

But don’t let the overnight success of Obsession fool you; Inde has earned this moment. She chatted with Cosmopolitan about her new scream queen status, the new Latina wave in horror, and why she might have a second act as Nikki.

Your breakout moment has been a long time coming, but now we’re finally here! What has the journey been like?

13 Reasons Why was an insane moment, and for that to be the first show that I ever did was an honor. If my career had stopped, then I would have been happy. And being on Superman & Lois for four years felt like college. I grew up with those people. Me and Alex Garfin are still really good friends, Tayler Buck, Tyler Hoechlin. And I don’t know how I can get bigger than this.

There was the low before the high. Your role on Superman & Lois got cut in the final season.

Honestly, I’ve thought a lot about that time, and as disappointed and sad as it was to not be able to go back as a series regular, it really was just divine timing. I was allowed to do Trap House with Capstone, which funded Obsession. They saw me and were like, “If Inde is attached to this, we’d love to see her in that.”

Some of your facial expressions and iconic moments in Obsession have become memes online. Do you feel like this downplays the seriousness of Nikki’s story?

We never know where Nikki is coming from and that’s terrifying. The story is told only through Bear [the other half of this twisted relationship]’s perspective. If it feels absurd, that’s because it’s absurd to Bear. He wants the girl of his dreams and she isn’t acting the way that he wants her to. That aids the horror, because one of the most terrifying experiences to go through is to not know a person’s intentions. There are moments with Bear where you notice that Bear is lying, where he’s saying all of these things to his friends and not to Nikki. I think it’s very human and very natural, and that’s what makes it horrific.

Do you consider yourself a scream queen yet?

In my head, I think scream queens are supposed to have this really high-pitched girl scream. And I’ve never had that. I’ve always had a deeper register. Whenever I would scream on set, I wasn’t thinking too much about that. And so then to be coined that, I go, Oh, you know, there’s different versions of these icons.

Yeah, like the final girl! Was it something you thought about as you were filming?

I didn’t think about Nikki being a final girl until the end, because while I was filming it, I didn’t think of it as a horror film. I didn’t want Nikki to be quote-unquote “insane or crazy.” I wanted her to feel like a girl.

There’s been a lot of conversation about how having a Latina in this role helps subvert the idea of the “crazy Latina girlfriend,” especially considering it’s not the real Nikki that we’re seeing.

Curry Barker did such a beautiful job writing a character that felt human and natural and real, and then they just happened to cast me. I just happened to be good for this role. She could have been North African or could have been Iranian. It could have been anybody! I just so happen to play the character.

Between you, Jenna Ortega, and Melissa Barrera, there is a new Latina wave in horror that is happening.

Oh my god, I love it. I used to go to my tia’s house and watch horror movies that scared the crap out of me as a kid. Horror has been important to my family, even though it’s very scary to me. So I felt like every time that I would say, I’m not a fan of horror because it scares me, I never wanted to distance myself from it, because it feels so culturally close to me.

It still surprises people how much we enjoy it, even with stories like La Llorona that have been in our culture for so long.

They should do, like, a science experiment behind why Latinos love horror. We’re obsessed, but it’s true. Also, I feel like Mexicans, we really love rock music. Like my cousin just tore his ACL in a mosh pit, so he couldn’t go watch my movie with us. Why do we love this high adrenaline? I love my culture, and I love my people, and I love that I’m a part of something that is so deeply cultural.

Did being on a set that leans so much heavier into the practical effects make the fear more real? Or did it ruin the illusion?

No, not at all. I think it aided it. I have blood being thrown on me in the party scene when I’m smashing my face. I felt the blood going down. In the scene where Nikki smashes her face and she kind of makes her jawline go down and her eyes get big, that just kind of happened because of the way that I felt the blood on my face.

What was the last scene that y’all shot?

We reshot the beginning of the movie, so the last shot that we filmed was the trivia scene. It was really interesting to play “Real Nikki” right after playing “Wish Nikki,” because I feel so protective over “Wish Nikki” and so in love with her. I could play her for the rest of my life.

A big part of the movie’s success is the fandom behind it. You’ve gotten to interact with some fans on the internet, including an artist whose work went viral after you commented on it. What has it been like to see that sort of impact that you now have?

It’s been great. Going back to my family, my tia has Chucky dolls and all of these knickknacks. How cool would it have been if Jennifer Tilly, who was Chucky’s bride, had been able to comment on my tia’s stuff. She would have lost her mind.

I know exactly how much it means to that person, and it’s sick artwork! Everything that I’ve been seeing. The edits, the Blythe dolls—I’m like, How can I buy that?

There’s a girl who did Nikki on a Steve Madden bag and it’s gorgeous. Of course, I’m gonna comment and say something because it’s phenomenal artwork…and then I’m gonna rob them.

Speaking of fan experiences, people are really hoping for a Halloween Horror Nights house at Universal.

That is my dream. I don’t know if it’s gonna be able to happen this year.

Yeah, no, this year it’s Sinners.

When I tell you I’m going to Sinners, I’m going! I probably shouldn’t say that publicly, but it’s okay. I’ll bring a security guard. I love Halloween Horror Nights! I go every year, even though I get scared easily. I imagine myself as the biggest man ever and tell myself over and over again, I’m a thug! I’m the scariest person in here!

Well, if you go in costume, you would be!

Next year, if they do a HHN, I want to do a couple days where I’m Nikki. Like at Disneyland with Johnny Depp being Jack Sparrow. That would be so much fun!

Lead image: Dress, shoes, and belt Versace.

Styled by Jessica Neises. Hair by Davide Perfetti for amika. Makeup by Mollie Gloss at Forward Artists. Special thanks to Russian Samovar NYC.