Tom Holland is 31,000 words into Fright Night 2: Resurrection, and yes, Evil Ed is back – SYFY WIRE

Though Fright Night turns 35 this year, writer/director Tom Holland (Spider-Man be damned!) feels like his 1985 horror-comedy is more popular now than ever. Which may be why hes finally getting around to writing his own sequel (that apparently doesnt account for 1988s Fright Night Part 2)...well, that and the fact that he wouldnt want someone else to screw it up.

Im still trying, Im writing a sequel to Fright Night now... Im calling it Fright Night 2: Resurrection. Well, its the only way to protect myself:If you wanna see something done right, do it yourself, Holland toldSYFY WIRE while discussing the original in honor of its big anniversary.

Of course, Charlies back, and so is Evil Ed. Im bringing back everybody I can. Im calling it Resurrection because weve got to resurrect Billy Cole and Jerry Dandridge. And now Ill say no more, Holland says, though he did note that hes 31,000 words into the sequel.

While Holland stayed true to his word and said no more about Fright Night 2, he did have plenty to say about the 1985 original and its continuing haunting power. Thats thanks in part to bloody rich characters like teenage horror fan Charley Brewster (William Ragsdale), who, aided by his girlfriend, Amy Peterson, (Amanda Bearse) and an even bigger horror fan, Evil Ed (Stephen Geoffreys), tries to thwart the evildoing of the charming vampire next store, Jerry Dandridge (inconceivably handsome Chris Sarandon), and his willing assistant Billy Cole (Jonathan Stark). Alas, when Ed gets turned actually evil, Charley and Amy must convince television horror host Peter Vincent (Roddy McDowall) to help them get rid of the bloodsucking neighbor for good.

Or at least until a proper resurrection can be performed. Granted, the high body count from the original film might be a tricky thing to navigate for a sequel, but the Childs Play writer/director and two-time Saturn Award winner has a long history of pulling off good horror.

Writing a taut Psycho II script in 1983when no one else could seem to figure out howfinally afforded Holland the chance hed been looking for to make the move from acting to writing and directing. But while horror in general and vampires specifically were at a low point, Holland picked Fright Night to be his directorial debut.

I was lucky enough to pull off Fright Night, which was sort of amazingbecause no one wanted anything to do with vampires at the time, Holland says, while noting the huge failure of 1979s Dracula starring Frank Langella. And then George Hamilton spoofed it in Love at First Bite, and if you go into farce, it means the genre is dead. It means that its exhausted itself, and thats where we were the moment that I did Fright Night."

At the time, movies didnt last, certainly horror movies didnt last. In fact the horror genre at that time was sort of the red-headed stepchild of Hollywood, Holland continues, recalling the genres low repute due to sequelizing summer camp, and Halloween, and April the first, whatever it was.

But if youve got the goods, youve got the goods, regardless of the times.

If I say so myself, the script was pretty good. And I got very, very lucky and it found a home [at Columbia Pictures], he continues.

As far as why the script, and ultimately the film, worked though, its arguably because the vampire tale was also deeply personal for Holland.

The story of Fright Night was very specific. Its about a teenage horror movie fan who becomes convinced the neighbor next door is a vampire. OK? That was me. And I was writing about the movies that I loved when I was 15, 16, 17, and they were the AIP and Hammer Horror films, which starred Christopher Lee, Peter Cushing, and Vincent Price...thats how you get Peter Vincent, the horror movie host, Holland says. And so I was writing about myself and my growing up. And I thought the story was so strong and had such human values, especially in the person of Peter Vincent, the Roddy McDowall character...the story was strong, and the vampires were right for that.

So, being sick of slashers, Holland wanted to get away from that, and he wanted to expand the horror genre back into what hed grown up with. So he leaned into the nostalgia, frequently wondering what hed do in Charlies situation. And since Holland religiously watched the Friday Night Frights on the independent television channel every Friday night at 11 oclock, Peter Vincent became the obvious choice.

And thats when the endearing tone of the horror truly started to shine.

Well, what I did is I, inadvertently with no forethought, mixed horror and comedy. But thats because the concept of the movie was delightful it was a giggle. I mean, whos going to believe you when you say the next door neighbor is a vampire, especially when youre a horror movie fan? I mean, its a funny situation. And I found the humor in it before I got to the horror and the effects.

Of course, those effects were pretty important too.

I was so lucky, I inherited the effects crew from Ghostbusters, which was the No. 1 effects crew in Hollywood, that was Richard Edlund and Steve Johnson and Randy Cook, and they were brilliant, Holland says. So my little film all of a sudden had effects that were equal to Ghostbusters...Thats called dumb luck.

Though Holland wrote the totally vital effects into the movie script, he really didnt know how they would get pulled off. You have no movie without em. But I didnt know how to do em, I wrote em, but I didnt know how to do em."

Holland also recalled the scene where Jerry dives off the bannister and then turns into a bat to attack Charley and Peter.

I didnt have a clue how to do that. That was Richard Edlund who said, Lets take the stuntman, go to a shadow on the wall, well redraw the shadow on the wall, and then when it turns around and we see whats flying at em, well have the bat, Holland says. I didnt know how to do that. I was very lucky that I had people who took me by the hand, but they were really, really talented.

To really bite into that point, Holland brought up his favorite effect, and perhaps the films most iconic image: the scene down in the basement when Annie first reveals her vampire teeth to Charlie. I didnt have anything written in there for her turning around with a sharks mouth, but I watched it play, and I said, Theres a huge scream here.

So he asked Steve Johnson to make Amys teeth over a weekend. And he did it, and it worked. Of course, I promised him that Id always make sure it was covered, that if he did a bad job he wouldnt have to worry about it. And then it turned out to be the graphic on the one-sheet!

Its just one of the many memorable scenes that have continued to capture the imagination of happy horror fans around the globe.

It feels to me that Fright Night is hotter now than its ever been, Holland says. All I know is that people love that movie, its heartwarming. I mean, its a family movie. Thats whats amazing about Fright Night.

Well, theres a family in it. And its a relatable family at that, which is another reason the film stands the test of time.

If you can find themes that are understandable worldwide...with Childs Play, what little kid hasnt looked around his room as hes falling asleep and wished that his play things came alive? Right? I mean, everybodys experienced that. Thats why I did Childs Play, one of the reasons...because this is what happens if your plaything comes alive, Holland says.

For Fright Night, Holland sunk into the simplicity of the set up of what if youre a teenage horror fan and you become convinced your next-door neighbor is a vampire, and nobody is going to believe you!

And thats just a very funny situation, but its also a situation where you have no safe spaces. Theres nobody you can go to, you cant go to the police, you cant go to your parents, you cant go to your best friends, or theyll think youre kidding them or youre nuts. And I thought that was a very edgy situation, Holland says. So much of horror is about cutting off safe spaces. You take em out one by one. Youre trying to find people caught in those situations that the audience is going to sympathize with. I mean, you like everyone in Fright Night; you like Charlie, you like his girlfriend Amy, you adore Evil Ed and Peter Vincent.

Sounds like its a good time for a Resurrection, eh?

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Tom Holland is 31,000 words into Fright Night 2: Resurrection, and yes, Evil Ed is back - SYFY WIRE

Reviewed and Recommended by Erik Baquero