Christopher Griffiths and Gary Smart, directors of “Hollywood Dreams & Nightmares: The Robert Englund Story” talks about their new documentary. The guys have also worked together on the following documentaries ” Pennywise: The Story of It” and “You’re So Cool, Brewster! The Story of Fright Night”. Media Mikes had a chance to chat with the guys about their love for Robert Englund and his amazing career.
A classically trained actor and director, Robert Englund has become one of the most revolutionary horror icons of our generation. Throughout his career, Englund starred in many well-known movies, but shot to super-stardom with his portrayal of supernatural serial killer Freddy Krueger in the NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET franchise. This unique and intimate portrait captures the man behind the glove and features interviews with Englund and his wife Nancy, Lin Shaye, Eli Roth, Tony Todd, Heather Langenkamp and more.
HOLLYWOOD DREAMS & NIGHTMARES: THE ROBERT ENGLUND STORY will be available on Screambox and Digital on June 6, 2023.
For Preston Truman Boyd, music runs in the family. His grandfather was an opera singer so when the young man showed some talent in church, people noticed. Eventually he made his way to New York City, appearing in “Sunset Boulevard” with Glenn Close as well as featured roles in the National tours of “Young Frankenstein” and “Jersey Boys.”
He is currently appearing in the National tour of “Les Misérables,” where he plays the “misunderstood” police inspector Javert. I spoke with Mr. Boyd while he was in Washington D.C., performing at the Kennedy Center.
MIKE SMITH: “Les Miserables” is an iconic show, and Javert is a truly iconic role. How do you prepare to tackle a role that so many people are familiar with and may have preconceived ideas on how it should be played?
PRESTON TRUMAN BOYD: I try to bring as much gravita as I can to the role. It IS an iconic role in an iconic show and I know there are fans who have their own ideas in how the want to see it done. It’s the added pressure of people having their favorite Javert. You definitely want to be the pivotal Ying to the Yang of Jean Valjean, which is not only important to the story but important in supporting the theme of the show. The survival of the human spirit. Javert is often referred to as “the bad guy” but I like to think he’s “the misunderstood guy.” At the end of the day, he’s just a guy doing his job. If you’ve fled your parole, I’ve got to come get you. That’s just how it is. (laughs)
MS: Javert the Bounty Hunter!
PTB: Exactly, yes.
MS: You mentioned that some people have a pre-conception of the role. Do you try to model portions of your performance on how others have played the role?
PTB: A lot of us in this business grew up listening to this show. We’d seek it out whenever it came to town. I was always a Philip Quast fan. I’d like to think I sound a little more like him then other Javerts. (NOTE: Philip Quast originated the role of Javert in the original Australian production of “Les Miz,” later playing the role on the West End in London. He also appeared in the hugely popular “Les Miserables: the Dream Cast in Concert). His voice stuck with me. That’s the beauty of our show. So many people have seen the show in so many incarnations and in different companies. The directors have looked at it from another angle. It’s the same story but you can really push certain themes a bit more. Even in the design. Some of Victor Hugo’s paintings are now projected on stage. (NOTE: Hugo wrote the novel “Les Misérables”).
Javert (Preston Truman Boyd) confronts Jean Valjean (Nick Cartell) (photo by Johan Perrson)
MS: What got you into musical theater?
PTB: I grew up in the church singing and once I heard from people that weren’t my parents that I might have a gift I began to seek out other opportunities in the community. I grew up in Fargo/Moorehead (North Dakota). I got involved in school programs and did a lot of speech and debate. A couple predecessors from my hometown ended up moving to the City and had some success so it didn’t seem like an absolute pipe dream. I sought out scholarship programs and what schools to attend. I did a program called The National Foundation for the Advancement of the Arts. They bring in (10) kids from each discipline every year and I went down to Miami for opera. We spent a week studying voice with Placido Domingo, which was absolutely incredible. After that I had a few people seek me out for different programs like voice and theater and I ended up at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music, where I did four years and a lot of great roles. The show moves you out to New York where you put on Senior Showcase for all of the casting directors and agents, who come each year to scout new talent. I signed with an agent there and the rest is history!
MS: Roger Maris left Fargo and went to New York. He did well.
PTB: (laughs) Exactly.
MS: Was there a show you saw that kind of triggered the bug?
PTB: Yeah. I think the very first show I saw was a production of “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” at the Guthrie Theater in Minneapolis. I had never seen production value like that. Ever. I was just in awe at how good the show looked. And once I was over that, I realized how much fun it looked like the people were having. One of my teachers added, “and their getting paid.” I realized I could live in New York , which sounded fun. I think it was just me realizing that I could have a good time in a show. That my job would be a really good time. I’ll get to tell stories and, hopefully, at the end of the day change some lives.
MS: What was your first professional gig
PTB: It was at the Muni in St. Louis. When I was in college I got my Equity card and I sang “Beautiful Girl” in “Singing in the Rain.” I did “Peter Pan” there. I did “Oklahoma there. I think I’ve done thirteen different shows at the Muni, mostly when I was in college, but I’ve been back a couple times since then. That’s where I got my start. When I moved to the City I went out on the National Tour of “Young Frankenstein.” A week after that contract was up I signed up for the National Tour of “Jersey Boys.” When that contract ended I went back to New York and did seven shows on Broadway. I haven’t been back on the road in quite some time so it’s been fun to get my tour legs again.
MS: Is there a role you’d like to play? Too bad “Phantom” just closed.
PTB: (laughing) Maybe in four years when it comes back. I’d love to play Sweeney Todd actually. It’s back and it’s on Broadway. Josh Grobin is doing it. Maybe when he’s out of there I can get seen for it. That would be great. I’d also love to play George Seurat in “Sunday in the Park with George.” I guess ultimately, I just want to do a Sondheim show! I’ve never done a Sondheim show and I’m really itching to do one.
“Les Miserables” opens in Kansas City on Tuesday, May 2. For tickets and information about this and futurte shows, please click HERE.
Broken Lizard comedy troupe consists, Jay Chandrasekhar, Kevin Heffernan, Steve Lemme, Paul Soter, and Erik Stolhanske. They are behind cult classics like SUPER TROOPERS and BEERFEST.
Media Mikes had a chance to discuss their new film QUASI as well as SUPER TROOPERS 3 & BEERFEST 2.
QUASI premise: Follow a hapless hunchback who yearns for love, but finds himself in the middle of a murderous feud between the Pope and the king of France when each orders the hunchback to kill the other.
Steve Wolsh is the man behind the new horror movie KILL HER GOATS starring Playboy Playmates and also horror legend, Kane Hodder!
Official Premise: Audra’s graduation gift is her dream house, but it soon becomes a living nightmare when some uninvited guests come to her homecoming party who aren’t very subtle about the fact they don’t approve of the home’s new owner.
KILL HER GOATS is Steve’s second movie after MUCK (2015), which both live inside the same film universe. It was funded by one of the most successful Kickstarters of all time and features 100% practical creature and gore effects…did I mention that it stars Playboy Playmates and horror legend, Kane Hodder!!?? This is a must see for all horror fans for sure!
You can purchased KILL HER GOATS from the official website along with tons of other additional merchandise, including a soundtrack album and even a GoatFace mask from Trick or Treat Studios: https://killhergoats.com/
Craig David Dowsett plays Pooh in the new horror film “Winnie-The-Pooh: Blood and Honey”. Media Mikes got to chat with him to discuss what it was like behind the mask and plans for the upcoming sequel due out February 2024!
The days of adventures and merriment have come to an end, as Christopher Robin, now a young man, has left Winnie-The-Pooh and Piglet to fend for themselves. As time passes, feeling angry and abandoned, the two become feral. After getting a taste for blood, Winnie-The-Pooh and Piglet set off to find a new source of food. It’s not long before their bloody rampage begins.
After growing up within the Child’s Play franchise, director Kyra Elise Gardner (daughter of special effects artist Tony Gardner) offers a unique perspective on Chucky’s reign of terror in Living with Chucky.
The feature documentary will stream exclusively on SCREAMBOX on April 4. It will also be available on VOD platforms the same day via Cinedigm and Bloody Disgusting before hitting Blu-ray on April 18.
Chucky creator Don Mancini and franchise alumni Brad Dourif, Jennifer Tilly, Fiona Dourif, Alex Vincent, Christine Elise, Billy Boyd, John Waters, Tony Gardner, David Kirshner, and more spill their guts along with notable fans like Marlon Wayans, Abigail Breslin, Lin Shaye, and Dan Povenmire, among others.
Storming into pop culture in 1988, the killer doll known as Chucky proved that Child’s Play was anything but. It went on to spawn six sequels, a TV series, a reboot, comic books, a video game, and extensive merchandise. Living with Chucky recounts the dedication, creativity, and sacrifice that went into making the franchise and its long-lasting impact on the horror community.
A 6’3″ former nightclub General Manager in the Los Angeles, CA market, C.J. Graham was spotted as a potential Jason Voorhees for Friday the 13th Part VI: Jason Lives when he was playing Jason in a night club act, impressing the casting people from Reel Effects who were in search of a new Jason since the stuntman wasn’t coming across as imposing or powerful as they had hoped for.
C.J. Graham even performed “all” of the character’s stunts, underwater and being set on fire, to name a few. He reprised this role for Alice Cooper’s video for “He’s Back (The Man Behind the Mask),” which was written for and featured in the film.
You can find C.J. at most horror conventions around the world, as he enjoys meeting his fans. Jason Voorhees has become a global icon brand known throughout the world. C.J. Graham respects all the actors/stuntmen who played Jason and their contribution to the iconic brand.
William Mark McCullough talks about not only directing the recent film A Savannah Haunting but also writing and co-starring. Mark also talks about his love of acting and what he has planned next!!
Official Premise: A family loses their young daughter in a tragic drowning and moves to Savannah, only to be haunted by her presence in their new home.
William Mark McCullough and Alexis Nelson discussing what it was like shooting the movie A SAVANNAH HAUNTING in a real haunted house! A SAVANNAH HAUNTING delivers a dread-filled supernatural drama about a mother grappling with her guilt stemming from the tragic drowning of her youngest daughter. When the family moves to Savannah to distance themselves from the tragedy, the mother slowly grows to believe she is being haunted by her dead daughter.
If you are curious at all about this film, check out a quote from their website below, which should seal the deal: “With the sexy undertones of AMERICAN HORROR STORY; the creeping dread of THE HAUNTING OF HILL HOUSE and the slow descent into madness of THE SHINING, A SAVANNAH HAUNTING will resonate with audiences who enjoy a thoughtful supernatural thriller.”
Visit A SAVANNAH HAUNTING Official Website to find out how to watch the film and support indie horror: https://www.asavannahhaunting.com/
MediaMikes had a chance to chat with writer/director Damien Leone and star David Howard Thornton of the new movie “Terrifier 2”, which will be in theaters on October 6, 2022 from Cinedigm in partnership with Iconic Events.
From Writer/Director Damien Leone (All Hallows’ Eve, Terrifier), the highly anticipated, ultra-gory slasher sequel Terrifier 2welcomes back David Howard Thornton as the demonic killer, Art the Clown, and introduces Lauren LaVera as Sienna, who is bound to become an instant fan favorite as the next Final Girl. Also returning is Samantha Scaffidi who reprises her role as Victoria Heyes, with horror icon Felissa Rose (Sleepaway Camp) and professional wrestler Chris Jericho also making appearances.
SYNOPSIS: After being resurrected by a sinister entity, Art the Clown returns to the timid town of Miles County where he targets a teenage girl and her younger brother on Halloween night.
Tia Carrere played Cassandra Wong in the films Wayne’s World and Wayne’s World 2; Juno Skinner in True Lies; Nani Pelekai in the Lilo & Stitch films and TV series; In addition to acting, Carrere has won two Grammy Awards for her music. Her new film Easter Sunday with Jo Koy comes out August 5, 2022 and is a ton of fun, check out our interview!
Lizzy Borden burst on to the Los Angeles heavy metal scene in the early 1980’s with their debut EP “Give ‘Em the Axe” and subsequent full-length release “Love You to Pieces”. The band also appeared in Penelope Spheeris rockumentary “The Decline of Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years”. Media Mikes had the chance recently to talk with Lizzy about his newest movie titled “Die Influencers Die” where he plays a dark and sinister character known only as Otherworld-Coyote.
Adam Lawton: Can you tell us how you got involved with the film “Die Influencers Die”?
Lizzy Borden: I was good friends with the director Gary Orona. We both were moving to Las Vegas around the same time and he mentioned he was thinking of doing a move. He had asked if I would be in it and I said yes but, I was heading out on touring. While I was out on the road, they contacted me about the part and said that they were going to be doing table reads. I missed all of those and only had gotten the script about a day and a half before I was set to film. Everything just sort of happened while I was out with the band.
AL: What can you tell us about your character?
LB: It’s kind of weird because when I first got the script was trying to figure out how this character was involved with everything. There was no backstory for him, so I tried to figure out what his motives are. This character literally has no name and appears out of nowhere. I had to try and figure out how to really play this character. I thought of things like “Othello” and made this guy a real instigator. We have actually talked about doing another film that would explore this guy’s back story. There is just this unexplained nature about this guy that made it a lot of fun.
AL: Being there wasn’t a lot that was known about the character were given creative freedom or did the director have you stay within certain parameters?
LB: We knew this was going to be a supernatural character so I kind of knew where to take things, but I still didn’t know even what he was going to look like. On the first day of shooting, I had about five or six different looks we could go with for this character. Gary came in and the one you see is what he picked. When I then went into hair and makeup, they suggested I should just put a ton of gel in my hair. They put probably a half gallon of gel in there and it really sold the character and took it in another direction. We were kind of improvising. As far as the acting went when I looked at the lines it always seemed to me that he was screaming and very angry. I thought back to all of the great scenes where someone has portrayed being angry and those were usually done in a very calm way. I wanted to bring his presentation down to a whisper and if he did get angry, I wanted whoever else was in the scene to feel his intensity without me having to scream at the top of my lungs. I remember the first thing we shot with everyone there Gary asked to do a practice. We did the scene and he ended up getting really mad. I asked what was wrong and he was mad that he didn’t film it because it was so good. From then on, he filmed everything.
AL: At what point did the option to have a song in the film come up?
LB: That was an afterthought. The film was finished however it was taking awhile to release. It was originally supposed to go to either Netflix or Amazon Prime but there were some paperwork problems. We couldn’t even promote the film. Then Covid-19 hit. We had planned to do a red-carpet event in Las Vegas where we showed the movie and then my band would play. We had it booked and set up but then COVID-19 happened. We had done a soundtrack video for the film “The Decline of Western Civilization Part II: The Metal Years” that turned out really good and a lot of people got to see clips of the movie through that video, so we started with that same idea. It came down to a matter of picking the song and the scenes and we landed on “My Midnight Things” which is the title track from our last album.
AL: Can you tell us a little bit about the video for the song?
LB: The whole point of the video was to make a commercial for the movie. I really wanted to do something interesting and asked how could we do some new shots of me singing the song while also incorporating the scenes from the film. We talked about a lot of things and a bunch of those were unrelated to the movie. I wanted for the video to look like it was another part of the movie. We ended up using the same studio we filmed in and we also brought in green screens which was a lot of fun. Ultimately, we needed something to promote the film and help tap into people who might not normally go see a movie like this. Through the video they can get a good representation of the film through the four-minute video.
AL: When you perform with the band it is very theatrical. Did you notice any similarities in how you prepare for a live show and how you prepared for the film?
LB: It was almost identical. Other than memorizing lines that was the only thing. I had the lines, but it was all about the delivery. That is where my focus was. I do the same thing backstage when I am working on the show. I think about the previous night’s performances and what I liked or didn’t like and how I can make those things better. I do a lot of pacing. (Laughs) They gave me my own spot at the studio and I just wandered around between shots until they were ready for me.
AL: Having now done the movie do you think you will take what you learned from there and apply it to your live performances?
LB: I think so. There is a subtlety to it as my live shows are pretty over the top. What I got out this character is that there was nothing flamboyant about him in any way. I tend to try and pull out all of the stops with my shows but, maybe if I am in a support slot where I am not able to do that by having played this character, I know I can go out there in a stripped-down format and still deliver a highly theatrical and interesting show.
AL: In 2020 you released “Best of Lizzy Borden” Pt. 2 which included two newly recorded cover songs. (Blue Oyster Cult’s “Burnin’ for You” and The Ramones “Pet Sematary”) How did you go about selecting those songs being they are quite different from one another?
LB: Almost all of my influences are set in the 1970’s. They are all established, big bands which I saw when I was a kid, so they are just imbedded in my brain. I could have chosen two hundred songs! There are just so many good songs. Blue Oyster Cult is one of my favorites and definitely one of the top ten best song writers that I love. On an earlier record we recorded a cover of their song “This Ain’t the Summer of Love” as we had been playing it at our live shows. I originally wanted to do “Burnin’ for You” for the album but was out voted by the producer so that was a song I have been wanting to do. I am a huge Ramones fan and love all their work. I thought about all of their songs and a majority of them have to be done in a punk a style. “Pet Sematary” is one that you really don’t have to do that. We did a Halloween show at the Whiskey in Los Angeles and I had the band learn the song prior to the show and people loved it. That’s ultimately how it ended up getting chosen.
AL: With the uncertainty of 2021 are there any other projects that you are currently working on or have coming up?
LB: I am almost halfway completed with a new album. It is coming along but it is very slow. I can imagine this being one of the most favorite albums I have ever done. I still see myself doing four or five more but this one is coming together in a really fun way. I have never had more fun putting a record together. I am not sure how that will translate over to people responding to it but as far as making it I am really enjoying it. I have been doing one song at a time and am about halfway done. I have been getting show offers as well but it doesn’t make sense to me to book shows only to have them cancelled. I see others starting to get out there, so we have to just wait and see. Everyone is ready to go we just don’t want to book something and have to cancel.
AL: When you are writing do you do that all your self or is it a more collective effort?
LB: I do it differently for every record. I have done records in the past where I record everything myself. On this new album I am having the musicians replace what I have already put down with their performances. I will play all the parts then have Joey Scott add in drums and then we build from there. Usually, my vocals are done as well so we kind of work backwards. I like to hear how it sounds in my head rather than putting just a scratch track out there for everyone. A lot of time when you do that a song can change quite a bit and when you are all done its not what you had envisioned. This way I get my idea out there the way I want it and if someone adds something really great to what I have already played we will keep. So far with this record things have stayed pretty much the same as I wrote it.
Clive Barker is an English playwright, novelist, film director, and visual artist. Barker came to prominence in the mid-1980s with a series of short stories, the Books of Blood, which established him as a leading horror writer. He has since written many novels and other works, and his fiction has been adapted into films, notably the Hellraiser and Candyman series.
On October 7th, 2020, Hulu is premiering the new horror anthology film, BOOKS OF BLOOD, which takes audiences on a journey into uncharted and forbidden territory through three uncanny tales tangled in space and time.
Media Mikes had a chance to chat with Clive about the new movie and how 2021 will be the year of Clive Barker with his upcoming books and the new Candyman film being released.
Iconic actor, best-selling author, Grammy Award-winning comedian, activist and America’s sweetheart of Cannabis Tommy Chong is legendary for his invaluable contribution to American counter-culture as part of the iconic comedy duo Cheech & Chong, and with a name synonymous with cannabis, has entered into dispensary license with Five Point Holdings Inc. and partnered with Cheech Marin to develop a five state dispensary chain. Media Mikes had a chance to chat about the dispensaries with Tommy as well as his new video game “Bud Farm”.
I first met Oscar and BAFTA nominated filmmaker Agnieszka Holland several years ago when I had the honor of introducing her amazing 1990 film “Europa, Europa.” In my introduction I noted that, when I first saw it I was a theatre manager and watched it at 430 in the morning. I then commented that I loved the film so much that I threaded up the projector and watched it again. She told me later in the evening that I had given her one of the best compliments she had ever received. She also very graciously signed my “Europa, Europa” DVD. Her latest film, “Mr. Jones,” tells the story of a Welsh journalist who broke the news in the western media of the famine in the Soviet Union in the early 1930s and is currently available via Video-on Demand. “Europa, Europa” recently received a beautiful CRITERION Blu-ray/DVD release. While awaiting start on her next project, Ms. Holland took the time to speak with me about “Mr. Jones.”
Mike Smith: What drew you to direct “Mr. Jones?”
Agnieszka Holland: The script was sent to me by a first-time screenwriter and when I read the script what struck me first was how personal it sounded as well as how relevant it was. A story about the manipulation of the media – the propaganda – fake news and the consequences of it and how they are relevant to our time. I realized at the time that the work of Stalin was virtually unknown to the masses and that what he allowed was unjust and wrong. And I knew the story had to be told. At the beginning, Mr. Jones is curious and bright and a businessman. He wants to discover some new things but what he finds are things that other people don’t see; this incredible tragedy happening to the entire population. He becomes the messenger that speaks for them.
MS: Were you familiar with Gareth Jones’s story before you were sent the script?
AH: Not really. It was only after I agreed to make the film and met with members of his family that I found out they were hearing the story for the first time. It was one of his grand-nephews that discovered the documents that center around the story. After his death his actions had been forgotten. He is best known in Ukraine where he is considered a national hero. Once I read the script I knew this young man’s work had to be brought to the light again
MS: “Europa, Europa” turns 30 this year. Do people still approach you and tell you the impact the film had on them?
AH: Yes, the film doesn’t seem to age. They’ve either seen it on television or they have purchased the new CRITERION Blu-ray/DVD. I hadn’t seen the film myself in quite a while and I recently introduced it at a film festival and I was surprised at how well it stood the test of time
MS: You work a lot in both film and television. As a director do you have a favorite medium?
AH: Television is easier because as a director you don’t have to be totally involved. You are just helping to tell the story. On a film the director is responsible for everything. On television you have several layers of responsibility from the show runner on down, and rarely does a director do the entire series. I will share my vision but it’s not entirely my own work so things go a lot smoother and entirely faster.
MS: What is your next project?
AH: I just finished a film called “Charlatan,” a Czech film that recently premiered at the Berlin Film Festival. It was supposed to open in European theaters in March but because of the Covid lockdown it will probably be released in the fall. It was well received in Berlin so I hope the people like it. I’m now preparing to shoot a television series for Apple TV which will be filmed in Paris but we are waiting to see when we can begin filming, again due to the current situation. Right now it would be impossible but we are continue to prepare it so will be ready when we are allowed to start.
