INTERVIEW: Rob Zombie Says 'The Lords of Salem' Is 'Pretty Out There' But 'The Walking Dead' Is Not
What horror fan doesn't watch The Walking Dead? Musician and filmmaker Rob Zombie jokes it's because he needs to catch up on Cheers first, but the reality is he's a horror purist who takes the genre very seriously. That dedication led to Bob Weinstein handpicking him to relaunch the Halloween franchise back in 2007, and Paranormal Activity and Insidious producers Jason Blum and Oren Peli seeking out Zombie to direct an original horror flick.
They certainly got one in The Lords of Salem. Blum and Peli gave Zombie complete creative control over the feature, and he marvels at what that freedom allowed him to accomplish. "I remember the first time I watched this movie with an audience. The whole last chunk of the movie I was like 'Wow. This really could only be made without studio meddling," Zombie told me, adding: "' Cause it's pretty out there."
How out there? Zombie said friends have told him "Man, it's weird. No, it's weirder than that...No, it's still weirder than that!"
But Zombie says he doesn't worry about his work being accepted by the mainstream. "I really just do what I like," he explained. "I don't understand what the general public likes sometimes."
In fact, Zombie feels there's only two things you can count on with universal appeal: Coca-Cola and the Beatles.
Check out my full in-depth interview below:
More on The Lords of Salem:
WATCH: Rob Zombie's 'The Lords Of Salem' Trailer Looks Like A Crust-Punk 'Rosemary's Baby'
WATCH: 'The Lords of Salem' Video − Rob Zombie Channels Rodgers & Hammerstein
Follow Grace Randolph on Twitter.
Follow Movieline on Twitter.
Subscribe to the new Movieline on YouTube
Comments
Dear Rob, if you should read this comment, please know in all sincerity that very soon all the evil & horror that you fantasize about & glorify will be a nightmarish reality, to say the least.
Like you & countless others out there, I've grown up on horror movies (literally) but have since been 'saved', as much as humanly possible, from preferring the darkness over the light.
I have nothing but great memories of watching scary movies throughout my youth & middle-adulthood, but since coming to know Jesus Christ, I have definitely been convicted on occasion & have learned to use discernment, though my flesh still wants to indulge from time to time.
As visually striking & 'safely-disturbing' ("it's only a movie!") as I'm sure this film is, I cannot bring myself to view it b/c of the blasphemy.
Please be careful of glorifying the devil & all things Satanic; it's fun for a season but will eventually destroy you, whether you realize it or not.
The devil is not your friend; he's not cool, & he will have no mercy on his followers during the 2nd half of the Tribulation; he's a lier who seeks only to steal, kill & destroy & very soon people who think he's awesome are going to get their wish.
Praying for you & Sherri & all your cast & crew; it's not easy but that's why I received Jesus as my Lord & Savior; we need supernatural help from the Holy Spirit to battle the invisible war for our soul. I say this not condescendingly or with malintent; I say it out of an understanding for the creepy & macabre that will always have some type of allure, b/c we are all sinners & need Jesus Christ. God bless you Rob:)
^fuck you dont pray for anybody that doesnt want it