Tilda Swinton Faces A Parent's Nightmare In 'Kevin'

Published January 10, 2012 at 11:00 AM MST

Actor Tilda Swinton plays the mother of a child who commits a horrific crime in the film <em>We Need To Talk About Kevin</em>. — Actor Tilda Swinton plays the mother of a child who commits a horrific crime in the film *We Need To Talk About Kevin*.

In the film We Need To Talk About Kevin, Oscar-winning actor Tilda Swinton plays the tortured mother of a disturbed, disruptive and manipulative son.

As he gets older, Kevin — played as a child by Rocky Duer, and by Ezra Miller as a teen — systematically undermines his mother and his parents' marriage, and then goes on a horrific, Columbine-reminiscent killing spree.

The film, based on a novel by Lionel Shriver, follows Swinton's character, Eva Khatchadourian, as she attempts to grapple with her son's shocking crime.

Swinton talks with NPR's Neal Conan about We Need To Talk About Kevin and the challenge of playing such a sober role.