PopHorror Let's Get Scared
Over the years, I have had the pleasure of getting a sit down interview with some of my favorite celebrities. Being able to be press for events is possibly my favorite thing in the entire world. I have now been able top cover three conventions for the beloved Wizard World, and this time, my stop was in Chicago. It did not disappoint! This time, I had the honor of getting to meet the amazingly talented Michael Rooker. He let me pick his brain for a few. Check it out here!
PopHorror: Hi, Michael! How are you today?
Michael Rooker: Hello! I’m good!
PopHorror: So how did you get your start in film?
Michael Rooker: I went to a theater school called the Goodman School of Drama out of Chicago, and I did theater for about four or five years until I did my first film, where I had a lead role. People would consider it to be horror. It’s called Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer. So that was my first real film.
PopHorror: How do you feel about the horror genre in general? You’ve done quite a few horror films!
Michael Rooker: It’s still going very strong, and it will continue to be strong because the fan base is so loyal. Horror fans are the best fans.
PopHorror: Do you have a favorite role that you’ve done?
Michael Rooker: I really don’t have a favorite role. I like everything I do!
PopHorror: I have to say I was pretty disappointed with The Belko Experiment [read my review of the film here] and how quickly your character was killed. I was like, “NO!!!!”
Michael Rooker: (laughs) Oh, yeah, I died off pretty fast!
PopHorror: My favorite role of yours, though, is actually in Mallrats. What was it like working on that?
Michael Rooker: A little crazy… Kevin Smith’s a nice guy and everything! Loved working with him!
PopHorror: Do you have any fun behind the scenes stories?
Michael Rooker: Yeah there’s a lot of behind the scenes stories.
PopHorror: Any that you can tell me?
Michael Rooker: Probably not. (laughs) That tells you a lot right there. No, we all hung out together, we partied and went out to eat all the time together. It was a very social, connected group of actors, and that made the filming of it a lot of fun.
PopHorror: Do you have any upcoming projects that you are working on?
Michael Rooker: Umm, maybe. (laughs) Maybe. I wish I could tell you more.
PopHorror: No worries! What is your favorite horror movie?
Michael Rooker: When I was a kid, I didn’t like horror movies, but I kept watching them mainly because the parents would take the kids and drop us off at the theater, and it would be some Dracula movie or something. Horror was very big when I was around ten, eleven, twelve, and thirteen. There was a lot of horror in big cinema. I dug Night of the Living Dead, the original one. And I like comedy a lot. I like when they mix it a little bit. Horror with comedy is almost as fun as action with comedy. Like Guardians of the Galaxy. You know, action, sci fi with comedy. Good, dry humor is always good. I like slapstick, myself.
PopHorror: What is your go to movie? One that you’ve seen more than any other?
Michael Rooker: One that I’ve gone back and watched again? Night of the Living Dead. I think it’s very well done. It cost them nothing to do. I did a film with George Romero once called The Dark Half, and he told me all their secrets, how they did everything and all the special effects guys would show me what they did on that movie vs. what they were doing on our movie, and how it’s grown over the years. All the techniques they’ve developed – and they’ve developed a lot of techniques.
Even what types of flies should be over a dead carcass. Different flies will invade the carcass at certain times during the decomposition. And then some will not even be there after a while. They will just lay their eggs and split. And others will come later on in the process. So they were very, very detailed, and very into it. I was very interested. I was like “Dude, you have trained flies?” Because he would get the fly out of the jar, and he would bring it over on his finger, and he would flick it over to the space where he wanted it to stay and fly around, and it would! He’s not really training them, he’s just using what that specific fly is needed for. So it depends on what they like, what kind of sweetness, and what kind of smell. And they did all that research.
PopHorror: So you had more of an appreciation after learning all that?
Michael Rooker: Oh, yeah! A lot more appreciation for the good stuff! And the detailed stuff.
PopHorror: You never know what goes into making those kinds of scenes
Michael Rooker: Most people are not going to notice and say, “Oh, that fly would never be on that carcass! That person just died!” They were very detailed. I was extremely impressed. I think some of those guys have actually given lessons to the FBI. Filmmakers really do a lot of research. Even the horror genre. Most people think “horror genre…” No, man. These guys do their research. First off, they know what scares people. The good ones know what’s going to give you a scare, even if it’s not a jump scare. I don’t really get scared with jump scares, but a lot of people do. And they get good at it. I like more of the psychological stuff.
PopHorror: Well, I want to thank you for the interview!
Michael Rooker: My pleasure!
Stay tuned to PopHorror for all of your horror news, review and interviews! And when we find out what Michael Rooker is doing next, we’ll be sure to let you know!
