Unforgettable is a guilty pleasure thriller. At the same time it features two strong female characters battling over their right to happiness in a tale that is timely in this world of blended families.

Rosario Dawson is Julia. She leaves her northern California life to move to Los Angeles with her fiancé, David (Geoff Stults). He has a daughter whom he is blissfully raising with his ex-wife Tessa (Katherine Heigl). Things are perfect. But, when Julia’s mere presence becomes too much for Tessa to endure, the ex starts to unravel and everybody’s lives hang in the balance.

Directed by Denise Di Novi, Unforgettable features jaw-dropping moments throughout. Yet because it’s in the sensitive hands of a female helmer and stars, it never goes off the rails as many in this milieu tend to do.

We caught up with Heigl and Dawson, who discuss the challenge of bringing an abuse survivor’s character to the screen with sensitivity and power. Dawson reveals why having a female director gives us a sex scene that says so much without words being uttered, and Heigl dishes on how one crafts an insane villain that has the audience firmly understanding her actions. Hop to the next page to read the full interview.