Geekscape Interviews: Dylan Baker and Quinn Lord of Trick ‘R Treat

Cult favorite Trick ‘R Treat is set to close out Beyond Fest this Monday, October 28th at 7:30 p.m. with a theatrical screening and a subsequent panel which will include Dylan Baker (Steven), Brian Cox (Mr. Kregg), Quinn Lord (Sam) and Jean-Luc Bilodeau (Schrader). Seth Green (Dads, Robot Chicken) will be moderating the panel. Fans who may not be able to get to the Egyptian Theatre in Los Angeles can watch the entire event via live-streaming on Legendary’s Facebook page.

We recently had the opportunity to interview Dylan Baker (The Good Wife, Smash) and Quinn Lord (The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, Once Upon a Time) about their experiences filming Trick ‘R Treat, and now we’re here to share their insights and on-set antics with you.

Q. What drew you to this film/role initially?

Baker: I was really intrigued by the script, and with Michael’s (Dougherty, director) excitement about the holiday, his love of it. He really imbued the script with this sense of Halloween having a guardian spirit; that the rules of Halloween were, in fact, very strict and were enforced by this really spooky, child-like presence, Sam. And that these rules had to be taught; that my role, the Principal role, was about really being serious about teaching children the importance of honoring these unwritten rules and traditions of Halloween.

Lord: I don’t really remember the process exactly, but I do remember being in the auditioning room with Michael (Dougherty, Director) and I had just done the audition for Sam, and I asked Michael if he would like to see what I thought Sam would do if he had a cat? And Michael said sure, so I improv’ed, started walking around the room and mimed gently petting a cat and saying (creepy voice):  “Nice kitty.”  And then I picked it up by the tail and just walked off-screen. And I think that might have been it.

Q. What was your favorite part about filming Trick ‘R Treat?

Baker: Well, the set was just a lot of fun. Michael–Dougherty, the Director–Michael was a great guy to work with, he was always joking–one of the actresses, Leslie Bibb (Emma), she was really easily scared. And Michael used to do things–this one time he hid in her trailer and when she went in during break he jumped out. She screamed bloody murder.

Lord: I had this one scene where I had to throw an egg at Charlie (Brett Kelly); and when he turns around, I flip him the bird and run away. I remember thinking it was a ton of fun to do, for a seven-year-old.

Q. What was your favorite part of the movie?

Baker: Ha, that’s a hard question. Every aspect of it was just so much fun; Anna Paquin’s character was amazing. And it certainly gave her a taste for blood that has proven quite successful for her!

Lord: The four girls–spoiler alert (laughs)–the whole twist at the end of that story, I really enjoyed that; but my favorite part isn’t a finished scene, actually. I really liked wearing the mask; getting a mold made of my face–they just dumped all this plaster on me and I was like ‘ahhh’–and having this latex mask for the moment when the burlap sack  is removed, that was really cool. When I was wearing the mask I could only see out of the top corner of the mask and it was really interesting to me.

Q. Why do you think this film as become such a fan favorite? 

Baker: Well, it’s really one of a kind, isn’t it? I mean, I can’t think of another movie that explores the traditions and rules of Halloween like this one; Halloween even gets a mascot, in Sam, which isn’t something that had been done. And it combines it all with some horror, suspense, some humor; and the fans just love it. It’s a movie you can watch over and over–in fact, I ran into Brian Cox in London a few months ago and we were talking about Trick ‘R Treat and how enduring it is, and how the fans are just so appreciative of it.

Lord: All these people have enjoyed this movie for so long, and I think the key is because you can watch it over and over again; I think you can watch it ten times in a month before you start to know exactly what is going to happen in each scene; I watch it every year at Halloween; because it’s so re-watchable. It allows you to catch different things, almost like easter eggs. It’s almost like watching a new movie, of re-experiencing it, that “oh, this is going to be awesome!” feeling.

Q. Trick ‘R Treat will be live-streamed during it’s theatrical screening on Oct 28th; what are your thoughts on Facebook and other  social media in the film industry?

Baker: I think it’s amazing. It’s such an amazing tool–I mean, the whole live streaming is great, but also there’s the fact that it just adds so much to who you can reach. I just left the Heartland Film Festival, where I was showing my newest movie, 23 Blast, and Facebook was such a huge help just in getting the word out to people in Indianapolis and letting them know we were going to be there, and getting information out about the movie and the festival. I think it’s great.

Lord: They play such a large role. It allows for so much communication across such great distances. It plays such a big role in movies these days; people can participate in things if they can’t make it in person and share their art and thoughts with other people who like the same thing.

Tickets for the screening on October 28th can be purchased from the Legendary Facebook page.