Q&A: Director Matthew Currie Holmes Discusses THE CURSE OF BUCKOUT ROAD and How Working with Joe Lynch on WRONG TURN 2 Inspired Him to Become a Filmmaker

When it comes to real-life urban legends, New York's Buckout Road features a myriad of potential horrors that have been witnessed and passed down through generations, and in his new movie The Curse of Buckout Road, director Matthew Currie Holmes brings the road's haunted history to life on screen. With The Curse of Buckout Road coming to theaters and VOD on September 27th via Vertical Entertainment and Trimuse Entertainment, we caught up with Holmes to discuss working with a star-studded cast that included Danny Glover and Colm Feore, extensively researching Buckout Road and its plethora of urban legends, and he also reflected on how working with Joe Lynch on Wrong Turn 2: Dead End inspired him to become a director.

Congratulations on The Curse of Buckout Road, and thanks for taking the time to answer some questions for us, Matthew. When did you first become interested in the urban legends of Buckout Road, and what made you want to focus on that location in your first feature film as a writer/director?

Matthew Currie Holmes: Thank you for having me. I’m excited The Curse of Buckout Road is finally coming out! I’m really proud of what we were able to do.

Originally, I was hired to write the script. My producer (John Gillespie) already had two scripts he was working from, had some cast attached and a potential start date. They liked the scripts, but felt there was something better out there, so Paul Weber (casting director and producer) who had read some of my other screenplays, knew my sensibility, and really liked what I was doing, suggested me for the polish.

Originally, they wanted someone to take a little from column A and a little from column B and Frankenstein the two scripts into one… I read both scripts and felt, while there were some cool parts from each, there wasn’t a strong enough story.

During my extensive research on Buckout Road, the small stretch of road in New York State that is home to some 13 urban legends, I fell down an insane rabbit hole. I realized there was a rich, untapped story about the origin of these urban legends and the evil that dwelled here, so I pitched them a page one rewrite.

I wrote the treatment and both John and Paul thought it was better than what they had, so they hired me to write the script. About halfway through the process, they really liked what I was doing and offered me the directing gig.

I’m really humbled and grateful that Paul and John took the time to not only take a chance on a page one (when the clock was already ticking), but to trust me to direct this as well. It speaks volumes to their character and faith they had in my vision.

How much research did you do into people’s real-life experiences with Buckout Road? Did you learn anything about the area that surprised you?

Matthew Currie Holmes: I love research so much, it’s actually my favorite part of writing. Buckout Road has, at least, 13 urban legends attached to it. That fascinated me. One or two, sure, but 13?? What kind of a place was this?

I loved reading accounts of people, even to this day, who swear they’ve seen The Lady in White roaming the woods outside of the road. People’s cars have been known to just stop for no reason, fail for minutes at a time, and then randomly start again. I love hearing about that shit.

I was most surprised to learn that the urban legend of the Salem witches being burned at the stake was actually originally attributed to Buckout Road. We all know that no one accused of witchcraft was burned in America (they were drowned or died in jail of dysentery), but the legend of witches being burned at the stake is pervasive, to say the least, and what I found most interesting is that the original legend wasn’t of witches being burned in Salem… but on Buckout Road.

My favorite piece of history (not an urban legend) is that Buckout Road was a main artery that escaped slaves traveled in the underground railroad en route to Canada.

There’s a fun book by Eric Pleska called Buckout Road that illustrates all of these and more. This road is full of cool facts and legends.

You work with an incredible cast in this film, including the legendary Danny Glover and Colm Feore. How did you get them involved, and what did you learn from working with them?

Matthew Currie Holmes: Danny Glover (and Evan Ross) were already attached when I came on board. We were discussing great actors for some of the smaller, yet integral parts like Reverend Mike. As soon as Colm’s name came up, that was it. We knew there was no one better to deliver the film’s most important piece of exposition and offered it to him right away. Thankfully, there was a tiny hole in his very busy schedule and he agreed to do the part. And he is brilliant in the film. Just brilliant.

What I leaned was to get the f--k out of the way and let professionals do their thing. We directors sometimes feel the need to put our stamp on scenes, to always be directing. I think a lot of times this is ego. Not always, but sometimes. My approach is let’s see what you do and work from there and the best idea (even if it’s not yours) wins.

For example, Colm (who is unbelievably prepared) came up to me and said, “Look, with me you get ‘creepy’ for free.” And suggested we try some takes where he’s a little "off." I had always seen Reverend Mike as magnanimous and kind, Colm suggested we throw some "creepy" in there for fun, so we did two takes of everything: sincere and creepy, and the results are some of my favorite scenes in the film. Best idea wins.

I like that you not only focus on college students in this film, but an on-leave soldier as well. How important was it for you to include that character in this film?

Matthew Currie Holmes: It was very important. In an earlier draft, we had Aaron (Evan Ross) fight the evil demon one on one at the road’s Hell Mouth. So, I needed someone who could take on a demon in combat, I just didn’t think a college kid could do it… soldier, yes. Unfortunately, the scene was too expensive. I liked the idea that he was a soldier, and delved into the psychology more. Soldiers are trained to compartmentalize. They understand the mental essence of combat as well as the physical side. I leaned on the mental training, which pays off at the end… I won’t spoil it, but there’s a line Aaron says earlier in the movie: “Not all wars are fought on the battlefield; most are fought in the mind.”

Prior to writing and directing The Curse of Buckout Road, you worked extensively as an actor, including roles in 2005’s The Fog and Wrong Turn 2: Dead End. Did your experiences in front of the camera help you behind the camera on your first feature film?

Matthew Currie Holmes: Of course. I’ve been in the film industry in one capacity or another for 20 years. I started as a P.A. on movies like Shanghai Noon and Honey, I Shrunk the Kids (TV show) and before that, I was a film critic for various newspapers across Canada. Before THAT, I managed a video store for six years. Suffice it to say, film has been in my DNA forever.

When I started acting, I was also writing and producing. Every cog in this filmmaking wheel is fascinating to me. It was when I observed how Joe Lynch worked on his first film, Wrong Turn 2, that was the first time I thought I could actually do this. He has such passion and commitment and his enthusiasm is infectious. I’m wired similarly and figured anything I didn’t know about directing, I could learn… but emotionally, this was a good place to start and playing that role and watching Joe work gave me the confidence to pursue directing.

When you look back at your time on set, is there a particularly funny or memorable moment that stands out?

Matthew Currie Holmes: Nope. It was sheer terror and hell. I’m kidding, of course.

There was the dinner scene between Evan and Danny. It’s a word battle between a neglected grandson and his ward. It was Danny’s first big moment in the film. He and Evan ran a rehearsal and there were some line flubs and fumbling. When I went up to talk to Danny, he looked up at me and said, “Don’t talk to me about the lines, this is my process.” I asked if he was ready to go and he said, “Yes.” We shot the scene (in a master) and not only was it word-perfect, it was fu--ing compelling. Both men were on fire and EVERYBODY knew it. The scene was so good I didn’t want to shoot any coverage… of course that was out of the question. That one moment on set was magical and everyone in the room felt it.

Were you influenced or inspired by any other urban legend movies or real-life stories while writing The Curse of Buckout Road?

Matthew Currie Holmes: Not really. The legends surrounding the real Buckout Road are so compelling, it was an embarrassment of riches. I had plenty to work from.

With The Curse of Buckout Road coming to theaters and VOD on September 27th, what other projects do you have on deck that you’re excited about, and where can our readers find you online?

Matthew Currie Holmes: I have a subversive revenge thriller called Never Alone currently in development with producer Dean Devlin (Independence Day, Stargate) and his company Electric Entertainment.

And I’m thrilled to announce that I’ve recently signed a three-picture deal with the The Curse Of Buckout Road team at Trimuse Entertainment. The first film on the slate is a super gory, fun vampire horror film called Self Storage about a ragtag group of people who get locked inside a giant self-storage facility with the world’s oldest vampires and his minions. We are currently out to cast and are planning on a November start date in Canada.

You can find me on Twitter and Instagram @mch2k.