Interview With Danielle Harris For ‘Roadkill’

If you’re my age, you probably grew up watching Danielle Harris in such fan favorites as Halloween 4 and 5, Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead (which I saw TWICE in the theater), and my own personal favorites, Roseanne and Urban Legend. More recently, Danielle has made quite the name for herself in the horror genre with films like Rob Zombie’s Halloween and Halloween II, Fear Clinic, and Adam Green’s Hatchet Series, as well as her directorial debut, Among Friends. She’s very much earned the title of “scream queen.” No matter the size of her role, I am always happy to see that Danielle is in a new genre film, which is how I came to view Warren Fast’s Roadkill, her first project released in 2024.

Vengeance rides the open road when a young woman, traveling alone, encounters a renegade drifter and ends up in a fight for her life.

To celebrate the release of Roadkill, I chatted with Danielle via Zoom about her role as Allison, perfecting the scream, why she loves horror, and more!

PopHorror: Roadkill was a lot of fun so I’m super excited to talk today.

Danielle Harris: Awesome, thank you!

PopHorror: What intrigued you about the role of Allison and how did you become part of the project?

Danielle Harris: Actually, I was interested in the role of The Driver when I first read it, but was like oh wait, I’m not 19? I can’t play the role of The Driver? What? So obviously, there were very few options after that, so Allison just seemed the go-to. And it’s always fun to kind of pop-in and support new filmmakers. And I liked the simplicity of it. I take movies for different reasons, and this was one that I was like, okay, this is a lot of character stuff, there’s a lot of simple dialogue, easy, stylistic. You never know what it’s going to be like until you see it so I thought i could have fun with Allison and make her the kooky, quirky lightness that the movie needed right around that point. Just have a little bit of fun with her. That’s what drew me to it.

PopHorror: She was pretty sassy, and I liked that.

Danielle Harris: Yeah, the movie has such a serious tone and there’s a lot of room to breathe. and then she comes on and just sort of stirs everything up. And then between her and her boss gives it a different flair, which I liked.

PopHorror: Yes! We needed that comedic relief.

Danielle Harris: Yeah, for sure.

PopHorror: In the movie, you give us a pretty amazing scream, which you’re no stranger to. Do you feel like you’ve perfected the art of the scream?

Danielle Harris It’s funny because I was telling this story earlier about how I did a movie called Natty Knocks that unfortunately I didn’t get to do press for because we were in our SAG strike. I was with Bill Moseley and Robert Englund, and Dwight Little directed it, who we teamed back up after Halloween 4, and I was on set, and I screamed in a scene with Bill. Afterwards, after they yelled cut, he looked at me and was just like, “That is the best scream I have ever heard. Ever. You have the best scream!” And I was like, wow! Coming from Bill Moseley, who’s killed how many people on film, and hear how many people scream? He still talks about it when we’re out at conventions or whatever. I think there are a handful of us that it comes so easily. I don’t know, but I remember, I guess when there would be screaming competitions or when I do see movies with newer horror actors and actresses, I guess that it’s something you do kind of have to perfect. I just maybe sort of happened over time. But I know when I yell, I’m not a yeller. I grew up with a lot of yelling around my house, so I don’t like to yell at my kids. When Scout, my podcast partner Scout Compton, when she was over a couple months ago and my kids were being crazy and I didn’t want to yell, I was like, “Scout, cover your ears.” She’s like, “What?” I’m just like, “Cover your ears.” She covered her ears and then I yelled at my kids, and she liked, “Girl, that wasn’t even that loud! I’ve heard you scream louder than that.” So, I guess we’ve all had a lot of practice, I’ll put it that way.

PopHorror: I’ve heard it’s not easy to give a scream like that, that it can hurt your vocal cords, it doesn’t sound right. I’ve heard that it’s just not an easy thing to do, so to be able to perfect something like that and have it stand out, I think it’s an art. You may have had a lot of practice, but you’ve been able to nail it, which takes a lot of work.

Danielle Harris: I don’t get to do that unless I’m working on a movie where I have to do that. You don’t really get those big ones, so that’s why in Roadkill they were like, “We want her to do this scene because we’ve got this. We need that iconic scream in this scene.”

PopHorror: Speaking of screams, you are a horror scream queen icon. I’m sure you hear that all the time. What is it that keeps you coming back to the horror genre?

Danielle Harris: Aside from that it’s what I know and I’m the most comfortable in, it’s the community. It’s the opportunity to be leads in a film, to carry the weight of a film without having to be a movie star, which we don’t really get that opportunity that much. If I wanted to do television, I would have to audition and go through that whole process which is so painstaking that I was not interested. So at least this way, I get to show up on set, I feel super confident that I can play, and also because we keep working with the same people over and over again. It’s the same group of us. Every time I’m on a movie I’m like, “Of course Felissa Rose is here!” “Of course, so and so is here!” It’s the way that it works. For as big as horror is, the community is very small, so you know what you’re getting yourself involved in. Also, it’s the only genre where the filmmakers are fanboys or girls. You’re getting a lot of respect and you’re being part of their creative process, and being along with them for the journey, especially when they’re like, “Oh, my first movie that I ever saw was Halloween 4 and that got me hooked. Look at me now and I’m working with you, and this is so cool.” I really love that. I love being a part of that process and supporting it and encouraging it and being there, and learning. Learning from these newer generations, dare I say, filmmakers, kids, whatever. That’s what keeps me there. It’s really the community and the fans that have been there to support. I feel like I’ve got a pillow to fall on. I feel like I can do whatever and I’ll always have a safe soft spot to land on in the horror community and that’s a nice feeling.

PopHorror: I love that. I agree with a lot of what you said. A lot of indie films are made by fans. They’re fans making the movies that they love.

Danielle Harris: Yup!

PopHorror: You and I are very close in age, so I feel like… I don’t want to say “grew up with you” because that’s such a cliché but watching you on Roseanne and also Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead, and then to see you find a home in my favorite genre, to me it’s like coming home. Like, “Oh, Danielle Harris is in it? Awesome, I can’t wait to see it!” I’m so glad that you keep coming back.

Danielle Harris: Yes! I’m not going anywhere anytime soon.

PopHorror: We appreciate that. You mentioned conventions. You are beloved on the horror convention circuit. What does it mean to you to be able to connect with your fans?

Danielle Harris I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for them. I wouldn’t have a career if it wasn’t for the support of the fans. I didn’t do horror movies for 20 years. It’s crazy that so much time had passed, and that love was still there and always there. Yes, I did do a lot of pop culture, cool icon like Roseanne and Don’t Tell Mom and stuff that we all grew up with. My fan base is all my age. I rarely see younger people, but if there are, they’re the kids of us, that their parents have turned them on to stuff. It’s been pretty awesome to say the least. After Halloween 5, what was that, 1990? I only did Urban Legend in between 1990 and 2007. I had only done one movie in the genre. But everybody still kept watching the other things. It’s cool to still talk about that, and that the love is still there and I get to sort of… Thank God Rob Zombie relaunched… Right about the time I got that movie I was considering not being in the business anymore.

PopHorror: Oh wow!

Danielle Harris: I didn’t know what I wanted to do. I didn’t know… I got my real estate license; I was doing other things. I was like, I don’t want to have to fight for roles anymore and auditions and all the girls that were on TV were like, 95 pounds and blonde. I just didn’t really fit into the character roles, and I didn’t fit into the pretty girl roles, so I was just trying to find my way. I looked younger than I was, I was shorter than most people were, so it was a hard transition for me to stay in it from a kid but I wanted to continue to do it so I was ready to go, “I’m going to hang up my hat and get on the other side of the camera, or do something else in the business because I don’t want to keep fighting this fight if it’s not going to go anywhere.” I had my time and I survived it. I didn’t become a drug addict. I didn’t die. I stayed in the business, which was a feat in itself. Rob kind of brought back that spark, not in me as much as in the community I think. Like, whoa, holy shit! We’re the ones that are going and seeing these movies so I feel like that’s where a lot of the studios are getting it wrong because they’re marketing to the wrong crowd. I feel like that’s why I like doing these indie horror films because even if they’re super low budget, even if they don’t get a huge release or people don’t love them, they’re always going to find a home. There are some movies that I’ve done where I’m like, “Oh I didn’t see it coming out that way,” are the ones that people come up to me and they’re like, “That’s my favorite movie of yours!” So, you know, you just do your best. You have no control of the outcome and hopefully something lands with somebody, and that’s why we’re artists.

PopHorror: You know an indie horror film is going to be seen, regardless of if it’s small budget or no budget, or whatever. You know it’s going to be seen because of all of the conventions, fans that have been in it for life, the film festivals. There are so many horror film festivals.

Danielle Harris: Yeah!

PopHorror: I have to say, Urban Legend is one of my comfort movies. I watch it all the time.

Danielle Harris: It’s so good! And see, he was a first-time director. He was like 27 years old and to carry that studio film? That’s a big deal. Jamie’s (Blanks) pretty remarkable for doing that. I don’t know if I would have had the balls at 27. But again, he’s a fan, so when you do what you love and what you know, it’s not work. It comes easy and I think that’s what makes the project so good.

PopHorror: And the stacked cast too! That’s impressive.

Danielle Harris: Yeah! He got everyone at the beginning of their hotness. That movie is so good. I just actually saw Rebecca Gayheart at a convention in Florida. I’m a fan of hers and have watched her for years. I never met her on set so of course I had no idea that she would know me or not, and she came up and gave me a huge hug and said, “I’m Rebecca! It’s so good to see you.” I was like, “Oh my god, you know who I am?! You’re freaking Rebecca Gayheart. That’s so cool!” I still get starstruck. To her, we were just like the same but for me, I’m like wow. She’s Rebecca Gayheart.

PopHorror: That’s interesting. I don’t know anything about filmmaking. I’ve never been in one and that’s just not my thing. You didn’t meet her while making this movie together?

Danielle Harris: No!

PopHorror: I hear stories about not having any scenes together, so the actors don’t meet everyone but wow. To me, I’m thinking you’re all on set just hanging out and you’re all there all the time. But in reality, I know that’s not how it is. It never occurred to me that you could make a movie with someone and not even meet them.

Danielle Harris Yeah, until after. I did an animated series for Nickelodeon for seven years called The Wild Thornberrys, and I never worked with like, Flea from the Chili Peppers who played my brother. I’ve never met him, but he played my brother in seven seasons of a TV series. I still have never met him.

PopHorror: Wow!

Danielle Harris Yeah, it’s a bit crazy. And then on the flipside, you’ve got some indie films where we’re all on location. We’re all staying in the same hotel. It’s some podunk, middle of nowhere, and it’s just a party for three weeks. So, you have both of those where you know everybody, and it becomes a family and then you’ve got the other ones that just come in for a day or two and are in and out. It just depends.

PopHorror: What is one piece of advice that you wish someone had given to you when you first started?

Danielle Harris: Oh, geez… I read this somewhere or someone had told me years ago and it stuck with me, that they want you to be the one when you walk in the room. We always as actors felt like that, they’re judging us or they’re against us – the producers, the director, casting director – and we have to win them over. The reality is, they don’t want to have to keep looking. They want you when you walk in the room to get the job, to be perfect. I think if I would have gone into it feeling like they were on my side and not like they were against me and I had to fight for it, I think it would have been a lot easier with disappointment. Even though I didn’t really take many things to heart. There were very few movies or shows that I didn’t get. I could count two that I cried over in my whole career, that I was actually really, really invested in and wanted to do and didn’t get it, and I was very upset. Actually, there’s three.

PopHorror: That’s pretty good, though!

Danielle Harris: Yeah! Not bad, so I didn’t really take it all too seriously. Even some of my actor and actress friends now that are very invested in the business, I’m kind of like, “Don’t take it too seriously. It’s really like, you’re not curing cancer. We’re on television. It’s not that hard of a job, really, in comparison to many other people’s jobs.” But I guess it is for some people. I see some roles that I don’t know how they did that. I wish I could be that kind of actor. And then there’s other roles where I’m like, I could have totally done that. Totally have done that! That wasn’t that difficult. I just saw a movie with Julianne Moore, who I love, and Natalie Portman, that was called May December. Just watched it the other day, and Natalie Portman has this beautiful monologue scene – she’s an actress in the movie getting ready to play the role of a real person so she’s doing her discovery – and I thought oh my god, I totally have done that many times where I’ve been in the bathroom at a hotel I’m staying at and I’m working on a movie and I’ve had to say it in a mirror just to see what it would look like, how it would sound, just to perfect it. She seemed pretty proud of her performance and I’ve had that same moment. And then of course you get on film and you’re like, it never went that way, the way that I expected, or the opposite where you’re like, well that’s a nice surprise, I didn’t expect it to go that way. That’s the advice, not to take yourself so seriously. Know they want you to have the job.

PopHorror: I love that. What is up next for you?

Danielle Harris: Well, our podcast, Talk Scary to Me, that Scout Compton and I do, we joined forces with Bloody FM, Bloody Disgusting. We are on their network now. We’re just planning a whole tour for this year. Ideally we’re going to take our show on the road. I do have some conventions. I’m not doing many conventions this year because I’m going to focus on getting in front of the camera and doing some stuff with Scout, as well as on my own. I’m writing a book for the first time so I’m going to be doing that starting in January. My writer’s coming to Texas and we’re going to dig in and have you get to know another side of me. I feel like now’s the time. Ten years ago or 15 years ago I tried to do it with a writer and my voice hadn’t been found yet and I feel like I’m at that stage in my life where I have a lot to say and a lot to share, and I think now’s the time. So I’m going to start doing it. All the secrets and all the behind-the-scenes secrets and juicy gossip too will all be in there, of course.

PopHorror: Oh, I am intrigued and very much look forward to that!

Danielle Harris: Thank you!

PopHorror: Tell me more about the tour. Just conventions?

Danielle Harris: Ideally, there will be non-conventions too. We like to piggyback because the fans have already traveled there. For me, it was like people don’t really go to the VIP parties that much anymore, the karaoke or whatever that goes on on a Saturday night, so we started doing the show on a Saturday night. And then the guests are there. We don’t have to go search for our guests for the show, we just go up and ask. So that’s been really fun. And also, it just kind of lightens up the mood a little bit, the monotony of how things have been going for so many years. But the goal is to take our show on the road and do multiple cities. But doing it at shows is always the best way because everybody’s already there.

PopHorror: That is a good point. We would love to see you here in Phoenix! One last question for you today. What is your favorite scary movie?

Danielle Harris Poltergeist is probably my favorite. I don’t know, it’s probably why people love Halloween 4 so much. Poltergeist was the first movie I remember seeing that I shouldn’t have been watching, and because Carol Anne was so much like me. Back then, my grandma had the TV. It was like, 2, 4, 6, 8, 13 and then the U and when it got to the U it was that static on the screen. Unfortunately, they don’t make TVs like that anymore. I think that just resonated with me.

Thank you so much to Danielle for taking the time to speak with us. Roadkill is now available on to rent.