Silent Night was just released to Blu-ray and DVD today, and I recently had the opportunity to talk with director Steven C. Miller about the making of the film. Continue reading to learn about his childhood experience with Silent Night, Deadly Night, casting Malcolm McDowell in the movie, and his interest in returning for a sequel:
What was your first experience with Silent Night, Deadly Night and why was this something you wanted to remake?
Steven C. Miller: When I was growing up, me and my brothers would huddle down to the basement with our friends during the holidays. I remember going to the mom and pop video shops looking for all the movies. The movie we always went to on Christmas was the one that had Santa's hand with an axe hanging out of the chimney. We watched that religiously and it really resonated with me.
When I was finally able to get out to LA and make my mark, a remake of Silent Night, Deadly Night was something I pursued. Lucky enough, I was able to find the people doing it and they enjoyed my take on it.
Did you have a lot of input on the script or were you working mainly off of pre-existing material?
Steven C. Miller: Three year ago, Richard Saperstein bought my first movie when he was at The Weinstein Company and they were putting together a Silent Night remake then. I pitched it to them and they were really happy with it, but it sort of fell apart.
A year ago, Richard left the Weinsteins and called me. He said he took Silent Night, Deadly Night with him and they were going to start shooting at the first of the year. He thought I would be great for the project and asked me to read the script.
I read the script and said that it wasn't like the original movie, and that I needed to find spots to include homages to the movie and the sequels. It was important for me to find places that really made this different and unique, but also have some of the original tone and mean spiritedness. The producers were really good with me, and gave me a few weeks to get those items into the script.
Did it take some convincing to get Malcolm McDowell to play the role of Sheriff Cooper?
Steven C. Miller: It's difficult when you're reading this character on paper, because it could be really bad or really good depending on who is in the role. The material is so over-the-top and we needed someone to make it feel reel. Luckily, Malcolm was in Winnipeg shooting another movie. I'm a huge fan of Malcolm and it was an excuse for me to go to breakfast with the guy. We talked for an hour over breakfast and he jumped on board.
I thought he did a great job with that character. I really can't imagine too many actors being able to take on that "avocado on the burger" line without laughing or making it sound too much like a comedy.
Steven C. Miller: Yeah, it's tough to imagine saying it without losing it. Even on set, I'm losing it behind the camera. We had so many conversations about what would work or didn't work, but in the end, I just let Malcolm be Malcolm. I let him do what he felt was best and we just rolled with it.
What would you say was your biggest challenge during the filming of the movie?
Steven C. Miller: The end of the film was the most challenging. I had seventeen days to shoot this movie and literally only had five hours the shoot ending, which included from the fight with Santa Jim to the fight with Jaime. There were some big stunts, glass, and rain. It was a massive undertaking to get that done and I have to give huge credit to the cast and crew.
Were you happy with how all of the kill scenes turned out?
Steven C. Miller: Oh, yeah. Everything landed with the kill scenes. The kid death was a big "should we do this" and people were fighting me on that from day one. The compromise was that I toned what was shown, but at least they had faith enough to let me keep it in there. That's the only kill I toned down a bit because I lingered on it a bit too much [laughs].
I think that scene in particular helps set the tone for the movie. After that, you know that the movie isn't just being played straight and there is some dark humor here.
Steven C. Miller: I would say all the time that it sets the tone for the movie. After that scene, all bets are off. People see that this movie could go anywhere and is kind of fun.
Are you interested in returning for a sequel if Silent Night has the sales and fan response to make it a reality?
Steven C. Miller: Yeah, I think so. I've talked with the producers and have said that we'd have to do it bigger. I want to do something where we have even more fun with the kills and have some bigger chase sequences. I would definitely be willing to come back. I think it would be fun to have more horror movies every Christmas.
It was recently announced that you were looking to direct a movie called Scavengers. Is that going to be your next project?
Steven C. Miller: It's looking that way, but this sort of got out there without being a done deal. I'm looking at a few things and Scavengers is one of them. I'm really trying to mix it up and do something out of the horror space. Maybe something like The Aggression Scale, but with more action.
You've completed Under the Bed and I've been hearing great things about it. Do you know when that is going to be released?
Steven C. Miller: XLrator Media just bought the film and I believe they are going to team up with someone. They expressed that they want to do a 2013 summer theatrical release, so that should say a lot about the movie. It's a very fun film and hopefully that plays out the way they want it to.
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I'd like to thank Steven C. Miller for taking the time to talk with us. Interested in learning more about Silent Night? Check out our recent coverage links and the trailer below
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