by Mike Fish
MOVIE:
MY NAME IS BRUCE – Coming Soon
COMIC BOOK:
THE EVIL DEAD
Available Now at Your Local Comic Book Shop
HORROR YEARBOOK: Mark, my man. What’s the word?
MARK VERHEIDEN: The word, as always, is “groovy”.
HORROR YEARBOOK: So you’re the writer of Bruce Campbell’s eagerly anticipated film, My Name is Bruce. What’s the status on that sucker?
MARK VERHEIDEN: Bruce has delivered the final master to the DVD company, so were on schedule to make our loose Summer 2008 release date. Oh, and it’s in color.
HORROR YEARBOOK: Sweet. How did you get the writing gig?
MARK VERHEIDEN: It was a self-generated position. I’ve been a fan of Mr. Campbell since the first Evil Dead movie and worked with him briefly when he did a guest-shot on my short-lived TV series Timecop, but I always wanted to do something that was all Bruce. I also love old comic books, and somewhere around 2004 or so I came across a crazy DC Comics series from the early 50’s called The Adventures of Alan Ladd. What intrigued me about the comic was that the stories were actually about Ladd the movie star, being shanghaied by pirates and other dilemmas. From that kernel, I thought Bruce! Around this time, my friend Mike Richardson at Dark Horse was putting together an indie film company, so I pitched him the idea with Bruce in mind, Bruce climbed on board, we met, I wrote, and we were off!
HORROR YEARBOOK: How is it working with dear old Ashley J. Williams?
MARK VERHEIDEN: You know the current controversy over waterboarding? I say, screw that, just put those guys in a room with Bruce Campbell for an hour, and they’ll be giving up their grandmothers. Yes, everything you’ve heard about Bruce is true. (By the way, what have you heard?) If you actually want a serious answer, truth is Bruce is great. Besides being a dedicated filmmaker, he made me tomato soup! And his Oregon farm smells of sweet, sweet lavender.
HORROR YEARBOOK: Bruce is such a joker. He signed the back of my Army of Darkness shirt with a “Hi I’m Mike. Kick Me” and I still wore it despite the bruises on my shins. Wouldn’t you?
MARK VERHEIDEN: I’m a Hollywood screenwriter, I don’t need to wear a shirt to have people kick me. And besides, my name’s not Mike.
HORROR YEARBOOK: True. True. You’re currently writing The Evil Dead comic book for Dark Horse Comics, and its good stuff! I can tell you’re a big fan of the movie. What interested you in retelling that classic horror film as a comic book?
MARK VERHEIDEN: I absolutely do love the series and I think Evil Dead 2 is one of the best films of the 80’s (honest! Really!), but to be honest I wasn’t particularly interested in doing a slavish comic book recreation of the first movie. You want to watch the movie, Anchor Bay has about fifteen different DVD editions to choose from! So it was decided early on that this Evil Dead comic would be an adaptation/expansion of the first film, not changing the plot but digging a little deeper into the characters, and bringing Ash’s voice from the first film more in line with the “gimme some sugar” fella of the later films. The other reason to do the book was artist John Bolton. Aside from being a class act, John is one of the finest artists to ever grace the comic’s page, and his work on the Evil Dead book is spectacular. Every page is a painted masterpiece, just a knock-out in every respect. You might buy it because it’s Evil Dead, but you’ll stay because of the artwork.
HORROR YEARBOOK: Did Sam Raimi and Robert Tapert have a lot of input in the series or just let you run wild with it?
MARK VERHEIDEN: They had final approval and didn’t change a word so I’m assuming they were happy with it.
HORROR YEARBOOK: It’s kind of like the movie with deleted and extended scenes. Did you feel there was something missing that needed to be told?
MARK VERHEIDEN: I think the movie is great, so needed may not be the right word, but there were certainly opportunities to explore other avenues. For instance, in the comic we start a few hours earlier than the movie and meet Ash, his pal Scotty and the girls before they start out for the haunted cabin. Probably one of the biggest additions fills the gap after Scotty bravely runs away from the cabin, only to stagger back a bloody mess. In the film, Scotty’s fate is ambiguous, but in the comic we go into the gory details. There’s also new ending that well, just read it!
HORROR YEARBOOK: You’ve managed to capture Ash’s voice perfectly in this series; a feat many writers have struggled to get a hold of since the transition to comics. Any secrets you’d like to share about getting that Ashley Vibe in the dialogue?
MARK VERHEIDEN: I think you have to remember that Ash is pretty much just another horny moke looking to score. Even as demons are raining hell down on him and his friends, in the back of his mind he’s still cranky that he hasn’t managed to get his girlfriend in the sack. These demons are just cramping his style. Ash is also one of those classic guys who thinks they’re really smart, “thinks” being the operative word. The one thing Ash is not, in any sense of the word, is a hero. He is resourceful and can do heroic things, but always to save his own pathetic ass. Just like most of us, unfortunately
HORROR YEARBOOK: Does this put you into the running of writer for the Evil Dead remake?
MARK VERHEIDEN: From your mouth to God’s ears. Really, though, from my fans perspective, I would love to see the Sam Raimi/Rob Tapert/Bruce Campbell team put together one more Evil Dead epic, because whatever that bunch comes up with is bound to rupture brain-pans everywhere.
HORROR YEARBOOK: Who would you want to play Ash in the remake if Bruce said no?
MARK VERHEIDEN: No one should ever play Ash except Bruce Campbell.
HORROR YEARBOOK: Did you ever see the Evil Dead stage play? I thought it was fun.
MARK VERHEIDEN: Never saw it, unfortunately. I have the original cast album somewhere around here, and mean to listen to it soon.
HORROR YEARBOOK: You write for television mainly with stints on Smallville and Battlestar Galactica. Is TV your day job and writing film your night time stripper pole?
MARK VERHEIDEN: I’m not sure I can differentiate them like that. I’d put the quality of the writing on Battlestar up against any feature, so it’s not like one is the poor cousin of the other or anything. I’ve spent my entire so-called career bouncing between features, comics and television, and from my perspective they all have their pluses and minuses. But bottom line, it makes life interesting to mix things up a bit. We won a Peabody Award for Battlestar in 2006 and three weeks later I was visiting the set of My Name Is Bruce. Whatta world!
HORROR YEARBOOK: What TV show would you most like to write for right now? And my editor will love you if you say Desperate Housewives.
MARK VERHEIDEN: This is going to sound exceptionally suck-up, but far as I’m concerned Battlestar is the best show on TV and I’m happy right where I am. Unfortunately, this is Battlestar’s last season, so if I have to pick another show, I’m just praying someone brings back The New Munsters.
HORROR YEARBOOK: Are there any other comic book, film, or TV projects in the works?
MARK VERHEIDEN: Funny you should ask. Aside from finishing up the last season of Battlestar when the writers strike finally concludes, I’m writing a live action Teen Titans movie for Warner Bros. and producer Akiva Goldsman, and a big sci-fi tentpole project called Ark for Sony and producers Neal (I Am Legend) Moritz and Mike Richardson.
HORROR YEARBOOK: You think Bruce could get you a stint writing an episode of Burn Notice with just him in it?
MARK VERHEIDEN: Funny, I met some of the Burn Notice writers on the picket line, and boy, I don’t know what kind of nonsense Bruce has been pulling down there in Florida, but there were epithets I’ve never even heard of! Stuff like great guy and dedicated actor. I think Burn Notice is a great show and if Bruce could pull a few strings for me, who knows?
HORROR YEARBOOK: Alrighty Mark. Glad to have you stop by Horror Yearbook for some chit chat. Any last words to those Evil Dead fans?
MARK VERHEIDEN: Five words: My Name is Still Bruce. Keep watching the skies!
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