PopHorror Let's Get Scared
When Rob Zombie announced 3 From Hell, the long-awaited follow-up to his cult hit The Devil’s Rejects, fans across the world noticed something different. It was very apparent that there was a new member joining the beloved Firefly clan, and the mystery surrounding the already highly anticipated film continued to grow.
Who was this new addition? I was lucky enough to speak to Richard Brake, the talented man behind Winslow Foxworth Coltrane, and we discussed joining the family, his expansive career, and of course, horror movies.
PopHorror: Hi Richard. I know you’re super busy, and I really appreciate the time you’re taking today.
Richard Brake: Thank you.
PopHorror: How did you prepare for your role as Winslow in 3 From Hell?
Richard Brake: I always sort of prepare similar to most roles, whether they’re psychotic maniacs in a Rob Zombie film, or whether it’s another psychotic maniac, because I tend to play a lot of those. But I have a whole process that I’d bore the pants off you going over, I always work out a history for the character. Obviously, what I love about Rob’s characters, in particular, is there’s always a great deal of depth to them. I try and find that depth because nobody is just inherently evil without things going on in their past or whatever. I do all of that. And really with Rob, I just go in and have a great time. It’s so inspiring and there’s so much creativity on set and the other actors… he always has such fine actors. It’s really then just a question of letting all that preparation that I do on airplanes – usually because I fly around most of the time, and then let that go and just have an absolute blast. Which is what we do when we’re making a film with Rob.
PopHorror: It looks like it would be a lot of fun. I can only imagine. Speaking of that fun, what is your fondest memory filming 3 From Hell?
Richard Brake: God, there’s so many. One thing I’ll never forget is, I was doing another film before, and they’d already started. They were a couple of days in. And I flew from Spain to London, changed my underwear, and got on a plane and was in LA the next day. They were on lunch break, and I walked in. I think my fondest memory would be seeing Sheri again, and Rob, they were all having lunch, and Jeff Daniel Phillips, a dear friend. Being greeted like you’re back seeing your family again. A moment I’ll never forget. A huge hug from Sheri, and everybody just looking like they were so happy to be all back together making this movie. I don’t think I’ve ever been so high in my life on life itself. It’s great. It’s really that moment of joining them was such a buzz. The whole experience was… when I work with Rob it’s just absolutely lovely.
That moment, and definitely my first-day shooting, which was a scene with both Sheri and Bill, the three of us. And I’m with Bill, and the camera was on me. And Sheri comes in and she’s in full Baby mode. And these guys are so, so good at playing those roles, and they’re just so brilliant. They’ve been doing it for two other movies, and here they are again. And I’m watching Sheri being absolutely brilliant as crazy Baby, and I’m thinking, “Gosh, she’s good.” All of a sudden I remember the camera is on me, and I’m supposed to be Foxy, not Richard and I thought, “Nah, this is perfect. Foxy would be thinking about her.” It was at that moment it all kind of clicked. From that moment on, the sort of vibe between the three of us really just grew and grew over the course of the shoot.
PopHorror: Aw, I love that. There’s a reason why he works with the same people on just about every project because you guys just all work so well together.
Richard Brake: Yeah, it really is. And that includes the crew as well because many of the crew we’ve worked together before. So there’s a real feeling of people all getting together trying to absolutely make the best film they can make. This one, from the moment we read it, I know all of us felt this is going to be Rob’s masterpiece. I think Bill said that soon after wrapping. I remember seeing it on one of the websites, that Bill Moseley said this was Rob’s masterpiece. And I think we all really felt that we were here to make this real wonderful piece of film, both for Rob and obviously for all ourselves, and ultimately for all of the fans.
PopHorror: That’s fantastic. The fans are just rabid about this coming out. From the initial announcement to the day that tickets went on sale. It was all that I saw all over social media. You had mentioned some of your other roles playing psychotics and all that. You’ve taken roles in several horror films. What is it about the genre that you find so appealing?
Richard Brake: I’ve always loved the genre. I was thinking back to when I was really young, it must have been the early 70s. There used to be a late night, er not late night, maybe early morning maybe like a horror film they showed. It was probably after the cartoons. I can’t quite remember. It was Hammer horror, that kind of thing. And I would watch those, and then I would not be able to sleep. My mom would have to sleep with me, or my brother until I fell asleep. And I did that every week, and they couldn’t work out what was wrong. But I knew it was because I was watching these horror films. And then through the 70s, I loved the gritty stuff like Texas Chainsaw, and so I’ve always had an affinity for horror films. I just loved them.
And to be a part of that world now… and the great thing about making horror films is, especially when you make them with someone like Rob who is obviously just a huge fan of the genre, is it’s just so much fun making them. So much joy making them. I remember at one point, the Zombies are both vegan, I’m a vegetarian. Bill and I are non-drinkers for quite a number of years. And I remember we had just sort of slaughtered a bunch of people, and I’m thinking, we’re making a movie. We’re making a horror movie slaughtering people being made by a bunch of vegans and sober people. This is just totally brilliant. Everybody thinks we’re crazy mad people. We’re really just a bunch of quite sweet people.
PopHorror: I love that so much. You’ve had a very extensive career. But if you could collaborate with anyone living or dead, who would it be?
Richard Brake: Oh, God. That’s such a hard question. Living or dead… these questions are always really tough. There are so many brilliant filmmakers that I would have loved to have worked with. I mean I love films… Hal Roach is a filmmaker. Sam Peckinpah. I love the 60s and 70s sort of gritty films, so I would have loved to have been in one of those with loads of character actors like Warren Oates, young Jack Nicholson. There was just some great film making in the 60s and 70s. It would have been nice to have been born about 20 years earlier and be hanging out with those guys making those crazy films, the counterculture films they made in those days. I would have loved to have done that.
PopHorror: That’s why you fit in so well with Rob. I only have one last question, and that is what is your favorite scary movie?
Richard Brake: I have to choose one? Well, probably the one that really got me was Texas Chainsaw Massacre, the first. That was the one that just… I can never get that one out of my head. But weirdly, there’s a movie that scared the bejeebies out of me.
Thank you so much to Richard Brake for taking the time to speak with me. Tickets for the September 16/17/18th nationwide release of 3 From Hell are available at FathomEvents.com/3FromHell.
