Horror fan favorite Bruce Campbell has finally made the movie he’s always wanted- a movie directed by him starring him playing himself!
My Name is Bruce is his second directorial outing after the critically panned The Man with the Screaming Brain. But no worries. Bruce has come back with a more entertaining ride and is slipping back into his former Evil Dead clothing. Well, sort of. Bruce plays himself, the actor who played Ash from the Evil Dead series, who becomes a real life hero when he is asked to protect a small town from an unleashed demon.
I had the pleasure of speaking with him about his project…and a few other ones like continuation of the Evil Dead series and Bubba Hotep 2.
Horror Yearbook: What was it like directing your second feature, My Name is Bruce, compared to The Man with the Screaming Brain?
Bruce Campbell: We had a lot of more money. That and everything else. We made that for Sci-Fi channel. We shot that in Bulgaria, which doesn’t necessarity mean it was good for the movie. The difference was pretty much night and day.
Mark Verheiden who wrote The Mask, Timecop, Battlestar Galatica, came to me with My Name is Bruce. And I said let’s go crazy; let’s do it. So that’s how it started a couple years ago.
HYB: So Mark wrote it without consulting you first? He pitched it to you?
BC: No, one of the producers pitched a rough concept and all that crap and then Mark went from there. You know, it’s a long process.
HYB: Is this movie similar to The 3 Amigos?
BC: The premise is similar, but it’s a horror movie disguised as a comedy.
HYB: I noticed it was rated R. Is this meant to be a comedy or a horror movie with some humor?
BC: Uh, I hope poeple do not come here looking for Saw 9. This is not Hostel. This is a bit of a throwback to a Bob Hope movie that happens to have a monster. This is more like Abbott and Costello Meets Frankenstein. Look, I don’t need to make people squirm and feel bad. This isn’t like Evil Dead. There are different types of horror and everything in between. With, My Name is Bruce, they will be entertained.
HYB: In this film, What is something you’ve been able to get away with that you might not have been otherwise?
BC: Haha, everything! There is nothing I wasn’t able to do with this and nothing is missing. So if it sucks, then I will absolutely take full responsibilty.
HYB: Was there anything you wanted to include, but couldn’t?
BC: No, not really. I’m a realist so when I write I know what I can direct. Sometimes we think, “That’s gonna cost too much, so let’s cut that back a little.” The whole movie takes place on my property. I built a whole western town on my property in OR.
HYB: Did you take it down?
BC: I can’t! So I’ll leave it there.
HYB: Now you’re going to have fans coming out there as tourists.
BC: Nah, I live out in the middle of nowhere. I don’t even have cell service there.
HYB: What kind of baddies are you fighting in My Name is Bruce? Is it one monster or multiple demons?
BC: There is one monster in a small town in OR- The Chinese God of War
HYB: Do you have your boomstick in this?
BC: There might be a reference to it…
HYB: Do you get a love interest in this one?
BC: Yes, a very sophmoric one. A small town girl, a small town mom.
HYB: Do you actually get her?
BC: Well, that’s debateable.
HYB: What’s (former co-star) Ellen Sandweiss doing in this?
BC: Her name is oddly Cheryl, a reference to her character in Evil Dead. She comes at him as the most terrifying thing of all- an ex wife.
HYB: Do you have any scenes with her?
BC: Not in this one.
HYB: Can I ask you about other films?
BC: I can talk about whatever I want.
HYB: I’m sure you’re sick of being asked about Evil Dead 4 or the remake.
BC: It’s difficult to make and it takes years.
HYB: If you had your chioce, Would you prefer the sequel following up where the third left off or you coming back as an older Ash? Or would you rather have the remake of the original featuring younger actors?
BC: I would rather… NEITHER one. Look, there’s a simple logic to it, if the opportunity presents itself. If there is a good story and Sam wants to do it and I want to do it, then sure, we’ll do a Part 4. A remake, I’m not interested. Maybe if it was done in a retro fashion like the original… You have to understand that the older we get and the more we do other movies, we think about that movie less and less. You have to understand that there is no ill will, that’s just life.
HYB: What if they remade it, but put in younger actors and Zac Efron played you and it was rated PG-13. Would that make you sick to yourstomach?
BC: Yes it would. First of all, there is no such thing as a PG-13 horror movie. If it is, then it’s not horror. My movie is rated R because there’s blood and such.
HYB: How do you feel about Ron Perlman taking over your role as Elvis in Bubba Hotep 2?
BC: It’s fine because as an actor you have to understand that you don’t own this character. There are a lot of cool ideas in this script. Ron has probably worn more SFX make up than I have, so if anyone’s going under the knife for 3 hours, it might as well be him.
HYB: So the problem was that you didn’t agree with some of the ideas in the script?
BC: Yeah we couldn’t agree on a couple of things. So I said, Let’s stop and walk away before it becomes something terrible. Paul Giammatti came on as Colonel Tom Parker and I think he brought in some of his own money.
HYB: Yes, I think he brought in his own company.
BC: It will be fun. And whatever. I look forward to seeing it.
HYB: What is your next big project or the thing you are most excited to promote besides My Name is Bruce?
BC: I’ve been working for over 2 seasons on cable’s number one show Burn Notice. So I’m going back to that.
HYB: How long is your contract? Just one more season?
BC: I signed a 5 year deal, but it is all up to them.
HYB: Are you developing anything new like another book or script?
BC: My Name Is the movie I’ve always wanted to make. I’m done with that. Just more of the same. It’s all about working with the freedoms you have. So that’s what I’m looking for. That’s what I’ve been doing for the last few years; writing books and directing movies.
I’m inclined to believe that My Name is Bruce will rock considering how passionate Bruce is about his project. Bruce will be touring around the country doing Q&A sessions for each of his major city theater openings, so make sure to catch him in person if you can. I for one, will try to catch him in California.
Wednesday, November 19th – Columbus, OH
Wednesday, November 19th – Toledo, OH
Friday, November 21st – Detroit, MI
Friday, November 28th – Chicago, IL
Friday, December 5th – Minneapolis, MN
Friday, December 12th – Seattle, WA
Friday, December 12th – Portland, OR
Wednesday, December 17th – San Francisco, CA
Wednesday, December 17th – Berkeley, CA
Friday, December 19th – Los Angeles, CA
