Brad Dourif will probably always be known as Billy Bibbit, the role he was nominated for in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. But for people like me, those who grew up with franchise horror in the ’80s, he’s known as the guy who voiced Chucky. And the guy who was the Gemini Killer in Exorcist 3. And the guy who was the racist wife beater Clinton Pell in Mississippi Burning. Basically, a bunch of really, really evil guys.
But then a funny thing happened. In the last couple of years, Dourif has had the opportunity to show his considerable acting chops in some high profile good guy roles. From Deadwood to Rob Zombie’s Halloween, he’s shined in roles of men trying to do the right thing. Mr. Dourif was good enough to sit down for a conversation about these projects and discuss the process of moving from bad guys to good guys.
ST: First of all, thanks for making time to speak with me. I really want to discuss some of this work that you’ve been doing over the last couple years, this transition from playing people like the Gemini Killer and Clinton Pell to having more roles that showcase your good side. It seemed to me that that really started with Deadwood and Doc Cochran. How did that role come about? Had you worked with (series creator) David Milch before?
BD: Actually, I auditioned for David Milch on that. The character originally was just this kind of, you know, a fucked up doctor. And while we were shooting, David began to feel that there was this certain amount of decency about the guy. And he kind of changed into something. [Milch] developed the character as we went and he became one of the few decent guys in Deadwood. You know, he was really trying to help people and save their lives. Cochran became a really decent guy.
ST: Yeah, and I thought he provided a good grounding for the Seth Bullock character, too. A lot of fans of Deadwood were shocked when the show came to what many felt was an abrupt end. HBO had a conversation with David Milch where it was apparent he had to go with Deadwood or his new show, John in Cincinnati, and he picked John. Were there any scripts or story ideas outlined for a fourth season of Deadwood? Did they give you any idea of what Cochran would be doing in season four or the proposed TV movie sequels?
BD: No, I think they were just beginning that process. David really would have some general discussions about what he was going to do. Before we were going to shoot the next episode, we maybe had one scene written. The writing kinda went as we were shooting. If we really needed a scene, he would get in there and write it and break it down for us.
ST: Did that allow for a lot of collaboration between the actors, the writers, and Milch?
BD: He was open to that. He would come on a set and kinda feel his way. He works very instinctively. Sometimes he would just write a scene on the spot. He would say, you know, “you stand over there, you stand over there, now say this and say this back,” and we would, and he just built the scene right there. He didn’t do that so much because the dialogue on the show was so precise, but there were days that we worked a scene like that.
ST: I can imagine that would be difficult with the way that dialogue was structured. It’s too bad that show wasn’t able to play out. But around the time it was being canceled, news had started to emerge that Rob Zombie was going to tackle a remake of Halloween. And as he was filling out the cast with genre heavy hitters, it was announced that you had been cast to play Sheriff Lee Brackett. How did that come about? What were the conversations like that brought you to that role?
BD: Well that one, the first one, was really quick and there wasn’t much time to react. They sent the script, I said okay, and went in for a meeting and just in that meeting it was pretty clear on who Brackett was. It didn’t deviate too much from (Carpenter’s) Halloween version. Now the second one that we did, we really went in there and improvised and expanded.
ST: Right. It’s interesting because the jump between Halloween and Halloween 2 was pretty big for your character. It seemed like in a movie with no positive male characters, Brackett became the defacto hero and inherited many of the qualities that were given to Dr. Loomis in the Carpenter films. You have these great scenes with Scout Taylor-Compton and Danielle Harris where it really seemed more warm, more fatherly. Who kind of made the decision to go the route? Did you suggest it to Rob?
BD: Well, yeah, it was fatherly. And, what Rob–how he saw these films is that they were films about family and family dynamics. Both of them. And he was kind of saying this is the dark shadow of what a family can be. That was the thematic difference between (Zombie’s and Carpenter’s).
ST: Similar to some of themes he was working with on his previous films–especially The Devil’s Rejects.
BD: Right, yeah. And the second film was really about the devastation on Brackett’s family, caused by the Myers family. And we tried to look at what a series of murders in a small town does to people. You look at Brackett in Halloween 2, and he doesn’t give a fuck about the way he looks. He’s got this long hair, you know, a pony tail. He’s getting ready to retire, his daughter’s scarred. Everyone’s damaged. And they’re all sitting around pretending they can live a normal life.
ST: You’ve said in the past that you try to find a human theme that you attach yourself to with each character you put together. I was curious as to what that theme was with Brackett.
BD: With Brackett it was working through those emotions from the point of view of a father who failed. He has a damaged daughter, and that was at the core of what I was trying to get at. You know, your daughter, your child is injured. She’s trying to lead a normal life and she’s got these scars all over her face and she can’t.
ST: So the scars, the physical scars, became the starting point for what the Brackett family was going through. They became the visual reminder of saying, hey this happened once and I need to step up and be more of a protector?
BD: Yeah, exactly. And more really trying to find that path of how to go on with your life after you’ve been badly damaged. How do you do that for your daughter? How do you do that for yourself?
ST: I’m glad you guys tackled that angle. I’m pretty surprised that it hasn’t really been dealt with before. Because if you were to experience some kind of extraordinary horror on the level of Michael Myers or Chucky or Freddy, you’d probably be pretty messed up, mentally. Somehow though, those surviving characters seem to bounce back pretty well by the next installment which was usually, like, six months or a year later.
BD: I know. (laughter)
ST: You’ve often stated your love for experimenting, going back to your Circle Repertory theater days. Is that kind of your favorite part of the process, the ad-libbing and pulling the material apart to see what can be done with it?
BD: Oh yeah, of course. I think it’s that way for most actors. When you come from the theater, the rehearsal process is all about discovery, and that’s separate from performance. Performance is performance. And you want to be good at both. You want to work as authentically out of yourself as you can. And for me, that’s the most exciting part. I enjoy rehearsals more than I enjoy performance. That’s just me.
ST: That kind of leads me to the next movie I want to talk about, which was your performance as bookie Ned Schoenholtz in Werner Herzog’s Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans. That movie has such a wild energy about it. The first scene your character is introduced in, Nicholas Cage comes in with this unhinged, over-the-top line delivery. And it seemed like you guys were really experimenting with every scene in that movie. Was that the case?
BD: Well, we had a script, but we improvised a lot. You know, Nick would cut loose and my job in those scenes was to be like what the fuck are you doing? You’re acting like a crazy person. Now settle down, let’s make some bets. This is a fucking office. So my job was to calm him down, and that’s how those scenes developed. And of course, Werner did some of that with the reptile shots–
ST: Oh yeah, the iguana in the office shot. That got a big reaction.
BD: That, and the alligator car wreck scene. Where you’re looking at the wreck from the living alligator’s point-of-view. It’s this wild change in perspective.
ST: How did you come to be a part of that project?
BD: Oh, I’ve worked with Werner tons of times. We’ve had a very long ongoing relationship. I did a feature film with him where it was just me doing monologues set against NASA images called Wild Blue Yonder. I’ve worked with him a lot. And he’s the one person I would work for free for. I think Werner is good for movies, in that he does things and tries things that nobody else does. Everything that he does is unique, and pushes the envelope of film making. And even his failures, of which there’s been many, are worthwhile. They’re good for the world. So he’s somebody in my opinion who needs to be supported.
ST: Absolutely. That’s a very touching sentiment. One last film that I want to touch on before we go is the Child’s Play remake. Besides Billy Bribbit, Chucky will probably be remembered as one of your legacy characters. I read that a remake was happening, and that you would be returning to voice Chucky and series creator Don Mancini would return to write and direct. Is this really happening?
BD: Well, it hasn’t been greenlit, but that’s the plan.
ST: So if were greenlit, how would you approach that role? It’s such an iconic piece of voice work, and it tends to go to the comedic side, how would you adapt it to a movie that’s supposed to be darker in tone?
BD: You can’t. Chucky’s Chucky. I mean, look at an example of Mickey Mouse. The voice is the same even when the animation style is different. Even though Chucky’s a bit comedic, he serves as a monster you can’t negotiate with. The horror is found through the horror of being prey–being hunted. That’s the basis of horror, absent of the direction or tone. Whether it moves toward horror or comedy, (a horror film) has to have that.
ST: So the performance will stay consistent with the Chucky everyone knows and loves?
BD: There’s an essential ingredient which I try to bring to Chucky, and that is he means it. And then he can enjoy his job. He’s a man who enjoys his job. (laughter). The joke is not lost on him. But the bottom line is he means it. He’s a character that is obsessed with life, and doing everything he can to live on, even while he’s causing death.
ST: Will we see Charles Lee Ray in this version?
BD: Uh, yes. Now if you want to talk about experimenting, there are all kinds of ideas around what to do with Charles Lee Ray. But I’m not going to talk about those quite yet.
ST: Understandable. So what’s coming up for you next? What are you working on?
BD: I’m working with Brian Metcalf on a project based on an alchemist. I worked with Brian on Fading of the Cries, which has gotten some good traction. And this project is going to be a series. I’ll be working on the writing as well as performing.
ST: Like a web series?
BD: Yeah. We’re still in the writing phase of it, so I’m not sure if it’s going to be until next year. But we’re heavily into working on it. Right now it’s called Black Lands.
ST: Sounds cool. It’s great how the internet has created a new distribution system for these projects. I hope it goes well for you and I look forward to catching up with it. Well, I guess we should wrap this up. Thanks so much for your time and candor. It was really great getting to pick your brain.
BD: No problem, thanks for the call. You take care, pal.
So there we go. It was good to hear his thoughts on Zombie’s Halloween movies. I wasn’t entirely sold on those films, but I did like a lot of what part 2 was going for, even if it wasn’t entirely successful. For me, the best part of that movie was the Brackett family stuff.
I want to thank Brad Dourif for making the time, and his agent’s office for arranging the interview.
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