Actor Grayson Kilpatrick Discusses New Halloween Horror Movie BLACK PUMPKIN and Paying Tribute to Chris Farley in Short Film JOHN FOLEY: MOTIVATIONALLY SPEAKING

If the phrase "living in a van down by the river" brings a smile to your face, then you're likely a fan of the late comedian extraordinaire Chris Farley and his iconic motivational speaker character from Saturday Night Live. A passionate fan of Farley's work and the Matt Foley character, actor Grayson Kilpatrick imagines what Matt's son would be like in John Foley: Motivationally Speaking. In our latest Q&A feature, we caught up with Grayson to discuss his new short film, as well as his work in the horror genre, including the upcoming Halloween horror movie Black Pumpkin. 

Thanks for taking the time to answer some questions for us, Grayson! How and when did you originally become interested in acting?

Grayson Kilpatrick: I became interested in acting when I met an actor named Grayson Russell. I met Grayson in 2012 at an early screening of Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Dog Days at a local theater in Huntsville, Alabama. At the screening, I made an impression on him and he invited me to be an extra in the movie he was filming at the time, Space Warriors. I filled in as an extra. When I got there, I was the only one that was enjoying being on the set and all the retakes. I enjoyed it so much that I started taking acting classes.

You’ve been staying very busy in recent years with acting classes and film and TV projects. What have you enjoyed the most about the craft of acting and really diving into these projects over these past few years?

Grayson Kilpatrick: I have enjoyed meeting new people and going to different acting classes. I like to learn new techniques that each acting teacher uses. And playing different characters is amazing. I like going from horror to comedy to drama in roles. It keeps my acting life interesting.

You’ve worked with a wide range of actors, including Shia LeBeouf, Will Ferrell, Mark Wahlberg, Bill Hader, Fred Armisen, and many more. What have you learned from working with your co-stars over the past few years?

Grayson Kilpatrick: I have learned different things from each of these amazing actors. I will never forget how kind they were to me and how grounded they were. Shia was amazing to me. As soon as I got on set, he came up and welcomed me to set. It was a great experience meeting him!

Mark Wahlberg was so much fun on set. My name on Daddy’s Home was going to be “Big Kid at Half Pipe”, but after Mark and I fist bumped most of the time on set, he had production change my character name to “Fist Bump Kid at Half Pipe.” I had an amazing scene with Mark where he called me “peanut butter”—kind of funny since I am allergic to nuts. It was great, but the scene got cut and ended up on the editing floor.

You’ve been no stranger to the horror genre, with roles in films such as Bad Blood: The Movie and the upcoming Black Pumpkin. Are you a fan of horror? What do you enjoy the most about working on scary movies?

Grayson Kilpatrick: I love horror movies! At first, I wasn’t so sure, but after being on set and filming, I really love it. I had a role in the Cinemax series Outcast episode 9, but it got cut. But each horror movie I have been in had a different feel. Black Pumpkin by far, has been my favorite. I have learned how they do the special effects that go into these horror movies and it is beyond cool. In Black Pumpkin, I have been able to use a little comedy along with the horror which makes this the best by far.

In addition to horror, you’ve also worked on comedy projects such as Wet Hot American Summer: Ten Years Later and Daddy’s Home. What was it like to work on sets with some of the top modern comedians?

Grayson Kilpatrick: There have been some big personalities for sure! Will Ferrell is so animated. It is amazing and mesmerizing to watch him in action. I was in awe! On the set of Wet Hot American Summer, it was like going to summer camp. We laughed and kidded around on set and behind the camera. It was so easy to bring the comedy out with these actors and actresses.

You recently paid tribute to one of the all-time funniest comedians, Chris Farley, with your short film John Foley: Motivationally Speaking, which you wrote, starred in, and directed. Has Farley been an inspiration to you as an actor? What was it like to play your own version of Matt Foley?

Grayson Kilpatrick: Chris Farley has been a huge part of my comedic acting. I have watched every movie and SNL skit he has done. I didn’t want to take away from his character of Matt Foley, so that is why I wanted to play his son John. It was so fun becoming what I had envisioned as what his son would be like. I wish he was still around to let me know if I honored his skit with this tribute to this great legend.

Did you enjoy the writing and directing process in addition to acting? Would you like to write and direct more in the future?

Grayson Kilpatrick: Definitely, yes, I will be writing more episodes of John Foley. Several people on social media have asked for more short films and some have requested to be in my next film. I love doing these and hope I do justice to the memory of Chris Farley.

Looking back at your time on film and TV sets over the past few years, is there a favorite or funny moment in particular that stands out?

Grayson Kilpatrick: Yes, I have a few silly moments that come to mind, but there was one during the filming of John Foley when I was supposed to burst through the door, but ended up running into the door. I needed a moment to recover and start the scene over. It hurt a little, but we were all laughing.

Do you have any projects coming up that you’d like to let our readers know about? Also, where can our readers go online to keep up to date on your work?

Grayson Kilpatrick: There are a few projects I have worked on that are in post-production, but I cannot talk about those right now. One I can talk about is Black Pumpkin, which is still filming. It is a Halloween story about a local legend. It’s due out later this year before Halloween.

You can keep up with my projects and find out more details on these sites:

IMDb – https://www.imdb.com/name/nm6345366/

Web page – http://www.graysonkilpatrick.com/

Twitter - https://twitter.com/graysont04

Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/graysonkilpatrick/

Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/graysonthornekilpatrick/

Photo credit: Above photo by Kenneth Dolin.