Peter Schink - Exclusive Interview with LEGION screenwriter
Peter Schink - Exclusive Interview with LEGION screenwriter
The scribe talks scares and "Angel-fu" (not to be confused with angel food).
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Staci Layne Wilson / Horror.com: This theme is as old as the Old Testament -- so why'd you want to try your hand at a story about God wanting to smite mankind? What did you think you could do to bring a new twist?
Peter Schink: Well, the story of "Legion" has evolved quite a bit, since my first draft. My original inspiration came from a road trip I took quite a few years ago. Many years back I was driving through Mojave, California and I got snowed in during this freak snowstorm. Mojave is a small town and all the motels were quickly booked up. So I was stranded in a Carl's Jr. for a whole night. There was a pretty unusual crowd stuck in that restaurant with me but one person stuck out. It was this old lady who must have been a wee bit out of her mind. She just kept babbling incoherently all night and it was kind of creeping me out. So, when the sun came up and the snow cleared, I got out of there as quickly as I could. And later I wrote down some notes about the old lady in the Carl's Jr. in this journal I keep with snippets of screenplay ideas. Most of the ideas aren't completed story ideas; they're just little scenes that interest me.
So many years later I decided that I was interested in writing a movie about what could happen at the coming of the Apocalypse. It was something that I had wanted to write ever since the coming of the new Millennium. Back then, you'll remember, there was all this Y2K fear in the media. The common concern was this imagined technological collapse. But coming out of ten years of Catholic school I was more interested in the angle of biblical prophecy. I was aware that back in the Middle Ages there was a pervasive belief that there would be an apocalyptic event at the end of the first millennium. So I combined the idea of the event of Kingdom Come with my experience in the Carl's Jr. and the first draft of "Legion" was born. The character of Gladys you see in the trailer to "Legion" is inspired by that crazy old woman. In that early draft the diner was surrounded by demons, when hell spilled over onto earth. I was really interested in the demons depicted in Medieval art, especially Bosch. The art Gustav Dore did for his edition of "Paradise Lost" was an inspiration as well. So the creatures were in that vein.
Then when Scott Stewart came on board he had the idea of changing the demons to angels. It's a really interesting angle. It's certainly less obvious than demons. I think it's great. You mention the Old Testament. Actually, the origins of this script stemmed more from the books of the New Testament, specifically "Revelations". When Scott came on, he was more interested The Old Testament perspective – that being a vengeful God. As for what's new in this story, I think Legion's take on angels is new and different. They have a sort of Divine technology that I think is interesting. But also I think what makes the story unique is the characters. In writing this I was always much more interested in the humans stuck in the middle of this cosmic battle and how they responded to the crisis. I'm less interested in what the supernatural threat is. I hope that distinguishes this story.
SLW: I liked the slow-takeover of the humans by the evil forces -- like, when Gladys is just talking normally in the diner, and then suddenly there's this barrage of insane filth coming out her mouth. It was sort of reminiscent of the film FALLEN, where people would start singing "Time is on my side..." really eerily. Was this idea, which I would imagine is hard to do on the page, brought out by you or by Scott? (Who, I see, shares a writing credit with you -- at least it says so on the all-seeing, all-knowing IMDb! So it must be true!)
PS: I'm glad you liked it. Well, as I said, the Gladys scene was a key scene since the very first draft of the script. I think both Scott and I wanted to see that sort of gradual build. I feel it's been inherent in every draft of the script. I generally like genre movies that slowly lead the main characters from the accepted realities that you and I live in (places where we don't see Angels or Demons on a daily basis) into places of the fantastic. I think audiences can relate better when characters gradually have to accept the rules of a new supernatural world. If in the first scene, SATAN just strolls in the front door with his pointed ears and cloven hooves, it's too much to take it. It's no longer creepy. It can just be silly.
SLW: Even for people who aren't religious, these themes are inherently scary in horror movies. Why do you think we, as sophisticated audiences, can still be freaked out by the threat of Armageddon?
PS: Well, I think interest in films about the Armageddon has gone in waves. They were very popular in the ‘80s at the height of the Cold War and now they're popular again. I think it's not coincidence that they're popular again either. In many ways it might appears that the End of Days is coming if you watch the evening news. Between our concerns about global warming, viral pandemics, terrorism, holy wars, and rogue nukes – the world we live in can look pretty scary. I think often people go to scary movies to control and contain the fears they have. If they leave the local movie theater, having seen a film about dire global threats, and they've survived the experience, they feel just a little better about their odds at the end of the day. It's a catharsis of fear. It's also a rush.
Hopefully there's also another element at play here with "Legion". It's the reason why I'm interested in writing about things like angels and demons. When I'm dealing with films that involve the supernatural, some things interest me more than others. Films about the invincible serial killer have been kind of done to death in my opinion. Stories about vampires and werewolves can be really cool but most people over age eight don't really believe in vampires and werewolves. But, when it comes to ANGELS and DEMONS, these are entities that many people truly believe in. I think that's what makes a movie like "The Exorcist" so truly frightening. We kind of believe it could happen in our world.
SLW: In the course of your research, what did you learn about angels that most surprised you?
PS: Interesting question. I don't know how much I was surprised by anything I learned about angels but I have a funny story about learning about demons. Before Scott was involved in the project, another director was interested in the project. That was when the script still focused on this demonic invasion.
Well, I had done a little bit of research on demonology to write the script and then, frankly, winged it a bit. I figured "how many people really know Gog from Magog from Belial?" Well, it turned out this director's father was a professor of cultural anthropology with an emphasis in Occultism! He knew the difference! So he asked me to do a rewrite after a little more research. So I went over to his house to visit his private library of books on demons and the occult. He loaded me up. I took these antique, dusty books home and did the necessary research. Then I was anxious to get these spooky books back to the director. Unfortunately, by then he'd moved on to another project and I had to live with those books for over a year. I kept them all out in my garage because having them in my house freaked me out. I guess I'm a chicken about these things.
SLW: What do you think of the "angel-fu" the actors had to learn for their fight sequences? When I asked Paul Bettany the other day at the junket how Michael picked up these skills, he said, "He's an angel -- he just knows these things!" Makes sense, I guess. I mean, when they're not out to eradicate mankind, which is probably most of the time, angels must have a lot of time on their hands. So tell me about the fight sequences, and what makes them badass.
PS: I just think Gabriel's wings are badass. Bulletproof wings! Come on – that's cool! I know there was a huge amount of focus on making the battle between Michael and Gabriel cool and I think it works. I don't think we've ever seen angels battle in quite this context. As for the logic behind it – well, in the world that "Legion" is set in Angels are warriors and, as the superior beings they are, they're going to be damn good warriors. And yes, they've had since the dawn of time to perfect their fighting skills. They've had eons to perfect all of their abilities. You should see Michael's macramé skills!!
SLW: Oh, good. I need a new keychain. Now, Dennis Quaid's been doing some Armageddon-themed / wiping out of the earth genre pics lately (Horsemen, Pandorum, Terra, and even going back to The Day After Tomorrow). People like him in these kinds of roles. So why do you think he is right to play Bob Hansen? (explain a little bit about who Bob is)
PS: Ha – I hadn't thought of it that way! I just see Dennis Quaid as a great actor and a guy who can express a lot of humanity. There's a funny story about Dennis being cast. . When I write, I put up pictures of known actors to help me imagine who my characters are. For the character of Bob Hansen, I had a picture of Dennis Quaid. Now bear in mind that this film has grown quite a bit in scope since I first imagined it (thanks to the efforts of producer David Lancaster and Scott Stewart). At the time I thought I was writing for a much smaller budget. In my mind I thought, "We'll never get Dennis Quaid, but Bob Hansen is a Dennis Quaid type". I never expressed that to David or Scott but I guess it came across on the page because, sure enough, Scott got Dennis Quaid. The REAL Dennis Quaid. I was elated and stunned.
SLW: On the other hand, Paul Bettany has NOT done many genre pictures at all (aside from Inkheart, which I enjoyed). What does it mean, having an actor with such gravitas who's grounded in projects with serious meaning (The Secret Life of Bees, Creation, etc.) bring to LEGION as far as the general (non-horror) audience might go? As a screenwriter, is this important to you -- getting a mixture of different people to see the movie?
PS: Well, as I said, this movie to me was always about having a great ensemble cast whether of notable name or just of notable skill. The interaction of these characters was at least as important to me as the action and the effects. But again – I was (perhaps myopically) seeing this film as happening on a smaller budget. There were no Paul Bettanys in my frame of reference. That being said – Paul is one of my favorite actors. I think he's amazing. When, I heard Scott and David were going after him. I thought to myself, "I love this script but Paul Bettany isn't going to do this little genre movie." Well, little did I know that Scott had bigger things in mind and Paul Bettany has always wanted to be an action star. Who knew?!? And when talents like Paul Bettany and Dennis Quaid sign on, it just instantly elevates the respectability of a project like this. I mean look at the rest of the ensemble cast. They're all great! There's not a throwaway bit of casting in the lot. To this day I'm still wowed by the casting. And to your question – sure having some like Paul Bettany, Dennis Quaid, or Kate Walsh certainly makes this film seem more intriguing to audience members who aren't diehard genre fans. It lends a level of respectability.
SLW: So "Legion" is coming out January 22, 2010 – what's next for you?
PS: Right now I'm working on a couple of scripts. One's in a similar vein to "Legion". The other is an action movie. I'm also teaching the aesthetics of film editing at Emerson College because I was a feature film editor for many years and I like to keep my hands in it. In fact, I've been working on a book about the Art of Film Editing, because I've learned so much having been given the opportunity to teach. I hope it will be an educational book and still be entertaining by sharing some crazy cutting room stories. Beyond that I'm just so excited to see "Legion" coming out. And then we'll see how the movie does. Screen Gems has full confidence in it and there have already been talks about two sequels. For now I just have my fingers crossed.
SLW: Thanks, Peter. And thanks to our mutual friend Tim Sullivan for connecting us. It's been a pleasure.
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Stay tuned for Horror.com's video interviews with Paul Bettany and his "Legion" costars.
