TWS Week of Horror Day 3: Sadie Katz [Interview]

Oh, we got another great one for you fine readers today! We managed to steal some words from the amazingly talented actress that this win the horror world will definitely recognize. The wonderful Sadie Katz! We will just go ahead knock this out first….she is obviously a stunningly beautiful woman, and does not shy away from on screen nudity. Alright? We got that out, now back to what really matters….she’s cool as fuck! And she is talented as all hell, in and out of the world of horror. We take a bit of focus on horror for this interview, but she is an all around delight and has contributed so much to the world of cinema, and it is an honor to have her grace these digital page. We will be forever grateful! Yes she is a beautiful person on the outside, but her wit and charisma on the inside is what really knocks us dead! She’s been the hero, the villain, the tortured, the torturer, the dying, the dead, and so much more!

So with that, let’s stop gushing over the lady and check out what she has to say! Enjoy!

When do you think it was that you first realized you wanted to get into the world of acting? And what keeps you wanting to continue on?

The first part of your question is a crazy easy one- it’s sorta silly and obvious for me but, and I hope I don’t sound like an asshole but, I’m just an actress by nature. Like, I just have alway been an actress. Like that little girl who is overly dramatic and intense and everyone in their family goes…oh that’s Sadie…she’s such an “actress.” So, as a kid when there was a talent show (I’m showing that I’m a kid of the 80’s) you’re like oh, I’m an actress I’m suppose to sign up for those. Or if there’s a community theatre play I’m like dying to audition and it’s the only thing I think about all year waiting for the annual auditions because I’ve already been identified as an “actress” the same way when a boy (or girl) grows up he’s a sports nut and knows all the baseball players and his whole room is baseball- I had Marilyn Monroe pictures and did monologues and such. I was always writing plays and forcing my friends to watch me perform. My grade school didn’t have drama so I wrote a play and asked my principal to let me have an assembly and put it on in front of the entire school. I’m sorta bragging, but not really, I was a nerdy kid. I’m a nerdy adult. Loving acting is kind of a curse. It’s something you have such little control over. You are constantly scared of never working. They call it getting the “fever.” It’s a sickness. When you’re working you’re stoked when you’re not you’re obsessing about when you’re going to be working again. My son is the only thing that keeps me kind of chill about the whole thing.

I don’t have a lot of reasons why I want to continue really except I’m in too deep. It’s like I’m a gambler and I’ve already kind of been at the table a little longer than I should have…I put all my damn chips at the table. I have like, twenty dollars in my pocket not really enough to walk away and I’m competitive I hate to lose and maybe I’m in Vegas- not like at the high end table but, broke Vegas. So, I put the $20 bucks down on double zeros because, I’m silly like that (I’m talking roulette) and I hit it…I think I’m gonna win millions but, it’s old Vegas so I get just enough to keep playing. I’m making it sound really sad but, truthfully it’s fun when you’re up. I mean I’m a grown up and my job is basically to run around playing pretend. It beats sitting at an office.

It wouldn’t be completely fair to simply label you as a “horror actress” or “scream queen”, as your work is all across the board. But, being that this is our Week of Horror, I have to ask what do you enjoy about working in the world of horror/suspense films?

Being on a horror set is really, really crazy. But, as an actor it’s so very strange. Here’s the idea at some point you are going to be doing something super embarrassing in front of a lot of people and they’re going to be hoping that you are fully committed. Let me explain- normally in a horror film you are going to be doing one of two things: either begging for your life or taking someone else’s life…this will probably involve a lot of screaming and slobbering or a superiorty complex in buckets. And let’s be honest maybe, possibly after you do this screaming and sobbing you might have to a couple scenes later [where you] maybe show a boob or two. This is weird. What’s weirder is having a bunch of people watching this happen and then having lunch with them later. A horror crew works their asses off because the commitment has got to be in such heightened levels from everyone- I feel like I fall in love with everyone on set because I’m trusting them with the rawest emotions I can bring and they act like I’m a normal person after.

Another thing…this being Week of Horror- I’ve been lucky enough to play the “evil” character on a few occasions- this is so damn fun to me because, you really have to get in the head of the other actor you’re playing opposite of or you’ve failed. You want them to believe you for a second because, ultimately that’s what acting comes down to the suspension of disbelief. Horror films are super fun because they’re normally ridiculously crazy circumstances if you can get your brain to get lost in that…it’s different than acting in any other genre. I’m not sure how healthy it is for you long term, but it’s a rush.

When I did Wrong Turn 6 I was working with a bunch of cuties fresh from very elite schools in London I fell in love with all these boys they were wonderful and well trained in theater and this was their first film I had the privilege to rape them in the woods, smother them with my vagina you know a normal day at work all while trying to play an actually sweet, broken character. In Blood Feast, I got to play against seasoned film actor Robert Rustler as the Goddess Ishtar who was the yin to my yang there’s something so strange about trying to provoke someones deepest darkest sickest side in the space of a film set and let them tweak with yours that I would say is oddly therapeutic. Hmmm…this is turning out to be a very strange reply…I’ll let you and your readers mull over that for a while.

I have recently become informed about a great little film that you co wrote with writer/director Mark Jones that is absolutely intriguing known as Scorned. I know there is an interesting back story to this one, and I was wondering if you wouldn’t mind sharing a bit about that to our readers, and what are your overall thoughts of this project as a whole?

Scorned! This is my first Writer’s Guild Credit and I feel like it’s Christmas every time I get a green envelope in the mail. Here’s the real story of how it all came about that I haven’t really shared with anyone before so…Exclusive!!!

I’m feeling cheeky! Mark Jones and I were fans of Misery…we were going thru break ups and talking about crazy women. I was acting especially crazy towards a boyfriend who cheated on me – forgive me this was a long time ago and I grew from that. Promise. Anyway. I hadn’t had a lead in a film yet and truthfully it was fucking killing me. Killing me. K-ill-ing me. Mark wanted to direct a film too and hadn’t directed anything since this really cool little sleeper called Triloquist. Check it out it’s pretty weird and funny and kind of got buried.

Anyway, we had just finished writing a really cool script together we couldn’t get sold because the budget was too high so we decided to write a single location low-budget- that I could be the lead in about a girl off her meds, whose boyfriend cheats on her with her best friend and she lures them to the beach house and she tortures them and tries to teach them a lesson…kind of a Misery but with younger people. We even named the lead character Sadie. Which in retrospect was kind of embarrassing because she’s not a nice character.

Well…two years later I’m now a working actress but, nothing really has been released and it’s just sorta the beginning. We get a call and Anchor Bay picks up Scorned which is a big fucking deal. Very exciting. But, when I was there on the phone with our agent and Mark I knew that meant I wouldn’t even get a chance to audition so we are being offered a lot more money on the script from Anchor Bay but, tears are running down my face because, I didn’t care about the money I wanted to play the character… it was a strange feeling to know it’s a huge damn deal to get your script picked up as a writer by a very cool company like Anchor Bay but, to not even be in the running or considered to act in the project… Anchor Bay gets to pick the leads- their money their choice- Anna Lynn McCord ended up playing the lead and you know what? She’s fucking brilliant. She carries the film. She makes a lot of the same choices I would have made. I hope that doesn’t sound – well, whatever I mean that sincerely, Mark and I wrote that character with a specific voice and she picks up exactly in that voice. I have a feeling she understands crazy. The film is fun. It was suppose to be fun. That’s all. It’s suppose to be tongue in cheek. A lot of reviewers missed that. It’s like…What’s that movie James Franco just did? Oh, umm…Mother, May I Sleep With Danger? I loved that movie. Sue me.

And to bring it all back around, you were featured in the great horror/thriller House of Bad, created by our old friend and former TWS interviewee Jim Towns. Can you tell us a bit about your experience on this project? Was it as exciting as the film turned out to be?

I love that you asked me this question! I’d marry you but, my boyfriend would get super pissed. It’s so weird now because Towns is like a major part of my life. I mean he’s an editor producer on my doc but, when I’m not working with him I am texting him or bitching with him about something. I should include I love his wife Betty Lou too…she’s a belly dancer by the way. Anyway House of Bad. I have a lot of friends from that project because, it was a film family. For real. One of the producers, Dorota is having a birthday this weekend. I don’t remember what it’s like not to have HOB as part of my life. It was a crazy shoot because Sirah was just going thru it. Every fucking scene was so intense. We shot so fast and furious I felt like Jim and I really trusted each other in filming just naturally. When I was cast I originally read for Teig- Which would have been strange because I gave a pretty spazzy read for Teig and I think it would have made for a long ass movie. Sirah is me. I am naturally a very vulnerable person but, I’m not a dummy. I’m so proud of that film because it’s not your normal cabin in the woods film and as much as we were all working our asses off there was genuinely a lot of love and respect between the cast and crew and that’s mostly because Towns was super prepared. I’ll say too that a lot of work was put in by the producers of the film in the film’s ending to make sure everyone got it right – reshoots and just attention to detail, inserts- I mean I’ve done some “cabin in the woods” films since and my heart’s breaking because really everyone just like “moving forward, fuck it…” and I’m like why aren’t we giving it 100 percent? Sometimes when people do low budget horror they don’t really care about the finished product. I was spoiled by House of Bad because, I kind of assumed everybody would be like this. They’re not. Sorry this answer is long…Ha, so in summary – what made the process so damn exciting is when people care a lot to give 150 percent. You feel that on set and the cast and crew start to realize you may have something special, that’s how it felt on the set of HOB. That’s why it felt special.

I noticed that you are set to be an “remake”(?) of the classic Blood Feast, which was originally directed by a past TWS interviewee Herschell Gordon Lewis (Another past TWS interviewee). He even has a role in the new film, over 50 years after the original! So, is there anything you can tell us about this film? What has been your experience?

We made it! It’s out! Well it came out at Frightfest in London and then it’s coming out in New York in October! It’s got awesome reviews! Look it up on IMDB and Facebook! Okay, I know I just gushed about House of Bad…so, I don’t want you to think I just gush about everything I’m in. Or to take away from one project to the other because, these are special…Marcel Walz is the director of Bloodfeast. He’s the sweetest! He’s a genius! He’s in Germany- which is where we filmed. Herschel Gordon Lewis makes a guest appearance!!! As well as starring Robert Rustler, Caroline Williams and Sophie Monk. This film was a-ma-zing to make. And it looked unfuckingbelieveable. If you don’t like remakes…this is one film where it’s not like an insult to the original. I mean the original was made on a shoe string so, it’s like okay and cool. Marcel is very stylish- he adds a lot of glamour to a very gory, blood bath. The score of the film is just amazing. Roland Freitag is the DP and it just has this quality. I think it’s really special… I play the Goddess Ishtar which truthfully kind of scared the fuck outta me! Everyone called me Goddess on set which was funny and fun but, I was like oh god- I’m walking around basically naked and what if everyone is like, really? Goddess? But, we did something really cool with her character that is really smart- and played really well with Robert Rustler’s character that I think puts him in league with a lot of the horror villains- also Roland made me look great and for that I should send him a big smooch! Also, I should add there was a hell of a lot of love on that set. Just buckets full.

Photo by Alexander Desch

What exactly does Sadie Katz do in her down time? When you’re not playing different characters on screen as a job, what else do you do to enjoy your life?

I have a 15 year old son, Griffin who is the funniest person on the planet who I get to drive around a lot which as you can imagine is really fun. When he hangs out with me I pretend I’m 15 which I actually feel like I am most the time anyway. My boyfriend Nick who is British which means he talks a lot fancier than I do and everyone thinks he way more interesting than I am…has been making me watch the show The Magicians which I started off saying is really nerdy but, now I am kind of secretly obsessed with it’s like Buffy 2.0 (well, almost) I’m also really in to playing Rummy and Board games, cooking and a lot of stuff that makes me sound really boring. I love live theater which also means that normally I’m one of the younger people in the audience! Why don’t more people see live theater??? I like yoga and lots of other stuff too. You know, groupon stuff.

So what is new for you? You’re constantly working, is there anything we can expect to see you doing in the near future?

Yes! I’m so excited and proud of this I’ve been working on it forever…well over two years, my first directing project! I have a documentary coming out in 2017 called Bill Murray Experience about my quest to have a “Bill Murray Experience”. Please be on the look out for it and tell your friends! It’s been a passion project and I am very indebted to anyone who shares anything about it!

Here’s the trailer check it out if you will :

What is your favorite scary movie?

My answer to this sometimes changes I don’t know why but, I will say Black Swan was so damn scary to me. I watched it in the theater and I was like having serious anxiety. Cringing and freaking the hell out. My friend I was with was like why are you so quiet? And I was like: That is my biggest fear ever. He goes turning into a swan? No, like, losing yourself so much you just stop knowing what’s real or not and the crazy mom. Yeah. Mila is pretty hot in that too.

What was the last thing that made you smile?

My boyfriend and my son and my dog make make smile every single day.