Calum Waddell is one of the most popular genre journalists around today. He writes for most of the major horror and sci-fi magazines in newsagents at the moment and is also carving himself a name as an author. So we thought it was time to track down this talented guy and learn how he got he got started in the writing business.

ZH: When did your interest in horror movies begin?»

Stunning actress Tracy Coogan has just wrapped up shooting her new movie, Dark Woods. This mystery thriller follows a couple who move to a secluded cabin in the woods to cope with a terminal illness of the wife. As the wife’s condition drags her deeper into dementia and darkness, the husband’s friendship with a local teenage girl takes a dangerous and obsessive turn. Tracy is an Associate Producer on this movie so we thought we’d have a chat with this very interesting lady.

ZH: You were born in County Meath, Ireland; did you always know that you wanted to be an actress?

TC: I think so, I wasn’t very confident about it when I was younger but I loved creating these stories for myself, creating my own world. I watched all the old movies with my mother. She loved Tyrone Power, Marlene Diet ... »

Andy Nyman is a man of many talents and a real star on the rise. At the moment he’s appearing in one of the most talked about shows in years, E4’s Dead Set so we thought it was time we caught up with this in demand performer and see what makes him tick.

ZH: Did you always want to be a performer?

AN: Yep! From the moment saw ‘Jaws’ at the pictures I knew I wanted to act.

ZH: Your big break came with a role in the controversial piece ‘Dead Babies’, how did this change your career direction?

AN: I always knew that movies were what I wanted to be doing. To be able to go to the pictures and see yourself was something I always dreamt of. When I made ‘Dead Babies’ it was a lifetimes ambition fulfilled, in that respect it freed me to do whatever I wanted in my career, it also took me to the Cannes Film Festival and LA which was a great launch.

ZH: You made a huge impact in the fabulo ... »

Matthew Hope is one of the brightest stars in the industry at the moment. His latest movie, The Vanguard has just been released onto DVD to great critical acclaim so we decided that we should talk to this talented chap and see what makes him tick.

Zone Horror: Did you know from an early age that you wanted to be in the movie making business?

Matthew Hope: Yes, from about the age of 8, after seeing the first Rocky film. Originally I wanted to work in Special Make-up Effects, but when my parents bought a video camera and I started making films with it I decided to become a director instead.

ZH: Have you always been a big fan of horror movies?

MH: I’m probably a bigger fan of post-apocalyptic movies along the lines of Mad Max and The Omega Man because I always felt they presented a more frightening scenario. That said I love The Exorcist and The Shining, and have a soft spot for Friday 13th: The Final Chapter.

ZH: Can y ... »

On October 6th cult television series Millenniun comes to Zone Horror. This terrifying drama series horror in its purest form with a leading man that really knows how to make the skin on your neck crawl, Lance Henriksen. Here we speak exclusively to Executive Producer Frank Spotnitz about his involvement with a series that changed TV drama forever.

Zone Horror: Is it true you began your working life as a journalist?

Frank Spotnitz: Yes. I was editor of my college paper at UCLA, then went to work for United Press International, first in Indiana, then in New York City. I later wrote for the Associated Press in Paris and freelanced for a number of magazines, including Entertainment Weekly and Rolling Stone.

ZH: How did you get into television work?

FS: I decided I didn’t want to be a journalist anymore! I moved back to Los Angeles from Paris so I could study screenwriting at the American Film Institute. The X-Files was my first job in ... »

Paul Shrimpton won The Zone Horror CUT! Short Film Competition 2008. Here he lets us in on how the story came about, what he’s going to do with the £5000 that he won an his plans for the future.

ZH: Have you always been a fan of the horror genre?

PS: Yeah. I remember being about seven and staying up late to watch the BBC horror double bills, things like ‘The Reincarnation of Peter Proud’, ‘Horror at 37,000 Feet’, all the Hammer stuff and some of the Roger Corman ‘Poe’ adaptations. The first video I ever rented was ‘The Deadly Spawn’ in the early eighties, then the next week it was ‘Night Beast’, ‘The Exterminator’ . . .all the classics, ahem.

ZH: What’s your daytime profession?

PS: I’m a Postman, and it’s pants. Really, really, really pants.

ZH: How did you learn about the Cut! Competition?

PS: I’d se ... »

At FrightFest 2008, Zone Horror sponsored the premiere of one of the most talked about movies of the whole event, Bubba’s Chili Parlor. We caught up with the writer and director Joey Evans and asked him what it was like to get to realise a lifelong dream.

ZH: Bubba’s Chili Parlor is your first movie, what inspired you to just go out and make your own film?

JE: Well I really, really wanted to make a movie and it became apparent unless you’re a Spielberg or Tarantino nobody is going to help you. That became obvious, you’ve just got to go out and do it yourself. So I said to myself that I’d figure out a way. I took out a loan on my retirement, not a lot of money but it was enough and for 3 or 4 months we prepared, meticulously everything was planned, a shooting sc ... »

Kane Hodder is one of the most famous names in the horror industry today. His work on films such as Hatchet and the Friday the 13th franchise has earned him a legion of fans. Recently he could be seen on Zone Horror in the movie Room 6 and his latest movie, B.T.K. is due on DVD September 8th. So we decided to chat to Kane about his work and how he prepared for one of the strongest acting jobs of his career.

ZH: Did you know from an early age that you wanted to be in the cinema industry?

KH: I had always entertained my friends in high school by doing crazy stunts on my bicycle and dangerous acts on top of high buildings and ledges but it wasn’t until I was 19 that I really considered a career as a professional stuntman.

ZH: When did you get your big break and what production was it?

KH: After 2 solid years ... »

Joby Harold is an up and coming talent in Hollywood. His first movie, Awake was a tense shocker that dealt with a rather unusual situation so we though it was the right time to catch up with him and see what things scare him the most.

ZH: Did you know from an early age that you wanted to be a director?

JH: When I was a kid I was obsessed with the idea of working in special effects and I would devour books on ILM and Harryhausen and anything that was to do with creating the illusion. That turned into staring at posters of The Thing and An American Werewolf in London outside cinemas, imagining what watching those movies would be like if I were old enough to get in. Movies served as a good place to ground my rather overactive imagination as a kid.

ZH: Which writers or directors did you admire whilst growing up?

JH: It pretty much ran the gamut. William Goldman, Shane Black, Paddy Chayefsky - all sorts, all ... »

Multi-talented Axelle Carolyn is one of the most talked about people in the horror industry today. She’s a writer, columnist, actress and model to name only a few of her qualities so we thought it was time to track her down and have a chat about all things horror.

ZH: Have you always had an interest in horror movies?

AC: Movies, no. But horror, absolutely. I’ve always been interested in the dark side of everything. As a kid I was fascinated by ghosts and skeletons…

ZH: You hail from Belgium; does the horror genre have a big following there? 

AC: No. But Brussels, where I grew up, does have an amazing horror festival called the Brussels International Festival of Fantastic Film (BIFFF). I’ve been going for about twelve years to every single edition. It’s 12 to 15 days, dozens of premieres and all the coolest guests. Plus, that’s where I met my husband!

ZH: How did you get into horror journalism?»

It’s been nearly a year since Diva of the Darkside Emily Booth joined Zone Horror so we decided to track down this horror hottie to see what she’s thought of the last 12 months working for the world’s scariest channel.

Zone Horror: Emily, it’s been a year since you joined Zone Horror, what’s the past 12 months been like?

Emily Booth: The last 12 months have been brilliant – it feels like coming home! Zone Horror is my comfort zone. I’ve interviewed Josh Hartnett (yum) for 30 Days of Night, and Lloyd Kauffman as well as helped host the Troll 2 night at Memroblilia, and of course got to report from Frightfest which I’m hoping to do this year too, it’s such a great festival that really keeps you ahead of the game in the world of horror. I really enjoy filming for them; ... »

Irwin Keyes is one of America’s favourite character actors and has appeared in many of their favourite TV shows. His movie CV is just as impressive and this month on Zone Horror he stars in one of the best horror movies of recent years, Wrestlemaniac. We caught up with this in demand star for this exclusive interview. 

ZH: Did you always want to be an actor from an early age? 

IK: I didn’t find acting was the thing for me till I was in college Suny New Paltz, N.Y. That’s when I did the stage play The Lower Depths role Kletch and found out  I was actually good at something! Did Summerstock, then on to NYC to follow my dreams. 

ZH: Where did you get your big break? 

IK: I never had a big break. I just worked from day one. Extra work to bit parts in movies Friday the 13th and The Warriors to title roles in The Prize Fighter and The Private Eyes. Then I moved to LA and started o ... »

The highly anticipated horror comedy Botched is coming to UK cinemas on April 18th. The movie concerns Ritchie Donovan (Stephen Dorff) who is a professional thief but whose luck has just run out. The only survivor from a heist that goes terribly wrong, Ritchie is forced to take the rap and is sent to Russia to steal a priceless antique cross, locked in a safe on the penthouse floor of a Moscow skyscraper. Things start badly and go rapidly downhill when, during the robbery, Ritchie and his Russian accomplices are forced to take hostages because they are trapped by the police, on the unused 13th floor. We caught up with the director Kit Ryan to find out more about Botched. 

Zone Horror: Is it right in saying that Botched is your first major picture?

Kit Ryan: Yep.

ZH: So how exciting was it?

KR: I’m excited now. I wasn’t at the time as it was a bit nerve wracking to be hon ... »

Last year, Rob Zombie decided to tackle one of the most respected horror movies ever made, Halloween and remake it with his own vision. With its DVD release due on April 28th we thought it was time to track down this musician, writer, director and ask why he took the project on and what his plans are for the future. Horror journalist Robin Pierce reports.

Zone Horror: Can you recall watching your very first horror movie? If so what was it?

Rob Zombie: I’m pretty sure it was “King Kong”

ZH: Why did you go into directing when your music career was at such a height?

RZ: I started directing early, early on with White Zombie in, I think, 1990. That’s when I started directing videos. I’ve done all mine, and I’ve done them for other people too. I don’t do them for other people so much now, I don’t really have time but I’ve done then for Ozzy [Osborne] and some other people.

ZH ... »

Mention the name George A. Romero and one instantly thinks of the black and white horror classic Night of the Living Dead. Well Mr Romero is back with his fifth “dead” movie, Diary of the Dead and we were lucky enough to be able to grab him for a few moments for this exclusive interview. 

ZONE HORROR: Where did the idea for Night of the Living Dead come from and how has the huge success of the film changed your life?

GEORGE A ROMERO: (laughs) Well it changed my life meaning that is the only reason that I’m talking to you! (laughs) While the idea was not necessarily original, the idea came from the Richard Matheson novel I Am Legend which is back with us now with Will Smith and big Hollywood effects. But I had read that novel and thought that it was about revolution and ... »

Victoria Aitken is a star on the rise and one of the many fresh faces you’ll see in the Zone Horror mobile movie, When Evil Calls. Here in this exclusive interview, Victoria reveals how she got involved with this exciting project, her many thoughts on the production itself and her busy plans for the future.

Zone Horror: Victoria, you studied acting at New York’s Lee Strasburg Institute, did you decide from an early age that acting was for you?

Victoria Aitken: Well while I was at University (Georgetown) I started to write a novel and through that process I realized that I was playing all the characters in the book, doing their voices while I was writing them out, that it was really the same as acting. So I took drama classes while at Georgetown and Bada (Rada’s Shakespeare Course) and then onto Lee Strasberg which I did not like, and p ... »

She’s the Queen of the horror entertainment scene and has been for over 25 years! Yes folks I’m talking about Elvira, Mistress of the Dark. We caught up with her alter ego, the charming and utterly gorgeous Cassandra Peterson and asked her a few questions about her cult character.

Zone Horror: First of all, can you tell us why you went into show business in the first place?

Cassandra Peterson: I think I got my first taste of audience adulation in Grand Junction, Kansas when I was two years old and my Dad ran out and stuck me on top of a horse with Hop-a-Long Cassidy, the BIGGEST TV star at the time. I heard the crowd applaud as we made our way down a parade route and I was hooked. I took up dancing when I was five and then became obsessed with becoming Ann-Margret when I was hitting puberty. Specifically Ann-Margret’s character in Viva Las Vegas with Elvis. Being the center of attention was all I ever really wanted to do.

»

One of the main highlights of this year’s FrightFest was the world premier of Joe Lynch’s much-anticipated movie Wrong Turn 2, which was sponsored by Zone Horror. This very likable guy granted us an interview that lasted over forty minutes! Here are the edited highlights.

ZH: How did you feel after Wrong Turn 2 premiered?

JL: I felt on top of the world, it was really one of the greatest experiences of my life. I mean, seriously this was a labour of love for me; there was passion project for me. I really wanted to make a great horror movie that made me feel the way I did way back when I was a little kid, and being able to do that and bring it to the home of the video nasty. It was a dream.

ZH: How did you pitch the movie?

JL: Well my original pitch to (20th Century Fox) was “What if the director of City of Lost Children made Cannibal Holocaust”. That really was my pitch and thankfu ... »