The man most responsible for a generation of kids’ sleepless nights? One Mr. Tom Holland. Writer and director of the infamous Child’s Play. Holland’s 1988 signature film shocked a jaded ’80s horror audience that had been saturated by a relentless barrage of subpar slasher films replacing the stab happy maniac in a hokey mask with an ugly looking child s doll possessed by the spirit of a serial killer not bad for a man that previously shook up the vampire genre with a perfect blend of scares and laughs with Fright Night.
Jump forward many years later and Child’s Play has far transcended its slasher roots,spawning four sequels to become one of horror’s most enduring franchises and Fright Night recently got dragged kicking and screaming into the present day with the inevitable remake treatment.
More recently Tom stepped from behind the camera to play a small role alongside genre greats such as Tony Todd and Kane Hodder in Adam Green’s splatter comedy Hatchet 2.
Shock catches up with Tom to talk briefly about scripting duties on Psycho 2, adapting Stephen King’s stories and what the future holds for him and his production company, Dead Rabbit films.
Shock Till You Drop: With the script for Psycho 2, you managed to do the impossible – create a strong follow up to a mind blowing masterpiece – can you tell us about the writing process?
Tom Holland: It was a killer opportunity. It was Richard Franklin, the director, now passed, that made it so special. He was a Hitchcock scholar. had interviewed mister Hitchcock when he was at USC. We knew we going to get killed by the critics, going in. doing it was a terrible risk, if we failed, or, worse, insulted Mr. Hitchcock’s memory. Therefore, the sequel is totally faithful to the given circumstances of the original. that is, it lives within that world. The real trick was to pull Tony Perkins in. I wrote that script for him. Without him, it wouldn’t have gotten a theatrical release. It was originally a cable movie. Tony’s brilliance was that he made Norman sympathetic. it wasn’t his fault he was a serial murderer. It was his mother. it was creating that character for him that made him commit. Psycho 2 started as a cable movie. The studio had no idea of the audience for a sequel, especially one where Tony recreated Norman. When the news hit, the worldwide interest convinced the studio to give us a shot at as theatrical film, even though the cheapest ever done. I think without the studio overhead, was $3.4. million. We did it like the original, all on the back lot.
Holland: I liked Langoliers a lot. Thinner was a failure, in that the studio made me soften the original ending. It was too bitter for the public. they loved the movie, hated the ending in the previews. there was no answer to it. in the original, Bill realizes his wife on cheating on him and leave the poisoned pie for her to eat overnight, as is her want. he gets up in the morning, sees a piece of the pie is missing, and thinks he has accomplished his ending – then he realizes it is his beloved daughter who has eaten the pie. he has killed the thing he loves most. he eats a piece of the pie, committing suicide. Needless to say, the audience was truly horrified. It was the right ending.
Shock: You co-founded Dead Rabbit films, the company behind the recent Fright Night remake – what was behind the decision to jump on the remake bandwagon? How happy are you with the film?
Holland: I had no choice in the remake. Columbia, controlled by Sony, sold the rights to DreamWorks.
Shock: Was there any pressure to keep the horror violence to a minimum?
Holland: I wasn’t involved.
Shock: You recently appeared in Hatchet 2 alongside other fellow genre legends – how did this come to be?
Holland: Adam Green and I are friends. I like his work. It was a lot of fun.
Shock: Whats next for and your company Dead Rabbit films?
Holland: Tom Holland’s Twisted Tales, due by July 6th, on FEARnet. A series of ten, plus a special for the DVD release.
Shock: Can you talk about how you came about the idea for Child’s Play?
Holland: I was hired to write it. There was an existing original script.
Shock: What are you thoughts on the controversy that surrounded the film and it’s sequels? (Hysterical parents claiming it would incite violence in children)
Holland: I got boxes of letters from kids condemning the movie, urged on by their teachers. A lot came from England.
Holland: None, but you just know the doll will be CGI.
Shock: Which do you prefer – directing or writing?
Holland: That’s hard. Both. I originally started to direct to protect the writing; than I realized that directing can be a form of writing, story telling. it all goes to “voice,” which is to say getting yourself into your work, which is to say making a personal commitment to it.
Shock: Any horror films or film makers out there impressing you at the moment?
Holland: Oh, gosh, I’m sure they’re all great. I feel anybody who finishes anything, a movie, a novel, a short story or video, has won.
