Adam Green’s gory slasher sequel!
A hospitalization. A crew member walking off the set because of the nature of the story’s ribald subject matter. Gallons upon gallons of bloodshed. There’s never a dull day on the set of Hatchet 2 now lensing in Los Angeles for Dark Sky Films.
It’s been nearly three years since Adam Green took us deep into Louisiana where limbs were hacked, faces were torn asunder and a murderous being named Victor Crowley, who looked like the love child of John Merrick and Madman Marz, attempted to keep some meddling tourists out of his swamp in Hatchet. Starring Avatar‘s Joel Moore, Tamara Feldman and an ensemble cast peppered with genre vets like Robert Englund, Tony Todd and Kane Hodder – slipping into the skin of Crowley – Green’s film proved to be both an original cinematic beast, blending horror and humor, as well as a loving nod to the â80s slasher fare he grew up on.
Shock Till You Drop is exclusively invited as the first press outlet to visit the set of Hatchet 2 and it’s not a bad day to drop by. The thunder rolling through the L.A. skies overhead is matched by the grappling and set-shaking force that is taking place in the two soundstages the production is occupying. The whole Hatchet family is here: director of photography Will Barrett, producer Sarah Elbert, FX head Robert Pendergraft, composer Andy Garfield, camera op BJ McDonnell, makeup artists Rileah Vanderbilt and Shyann Swisher, co-producer Jason Miller and more. It’s a gore-drenched reunion of sorts with many welcome new faces.
Returning to the cast is Hodder, now in a new Crowley suit that allows him more mobility, Tony Todd and Parry Shen. Newcomers include Danielle Harris (taking over for Feldman’s role as Marybeth), AJ Bowen, Kathryn Fiore, Alexis Peters and Tom Holland (director of Fright Night and Child’s Play, here returning to his acting roots). Then there’s R.A. Mihailoff (Leatherface) who’s here with us on set and taking on a formidable foe. Nor far, Pendergraft readies four fire extinguishers filled with blood.
Can I say much more right now? No way, but what I see and the set I’m on definitely invokes the feeling that this Hatchet is broadening its scope.
“Adam has always had a large vision for this film. When he talks about this film, he’s talking about the franchise which is something he’s talked about from the beginning,” says Elbert. “I just remember him telling Tony [Todd] a while ago, ‘You can’t be killed in the first one because you’re in the second film.’ He hadn’t even finished shooting Hatchet at that time, and here we are.”
Green, who never really distanced himself from Hatchet after its release but ventured off to direct Spiral, with Joel Moore, and Frozen, says the time was right to fire up the sequel. “I’m so happy,” he enthuses between takes. “I’m glad we waited so we could get this right. This one has a bigger, better and more involved story than the first one. Some of the great slashers that inspired me, that’s what they did. They were very straight forward and then they started introducing things [in the sequels].”
A full exclusive set report is to come with details on what Shock saw and interviews with Hodder, Bowen, Mihailoff, Green and more! Stay tuned, and for cryin’ out loud, stay out of the swamp!
Source: Ryan Rotten, Managing Editor
