Syfy's new horror television series Day of the Dead reimagines the undead legacy of filmmaker George A. Romero. One of the series stars, Christopher Russell, actually had the privilege of starting their career working directly with Romero, having appeared in Romero's 2005 horror movie, Land of the Dead. For Day of the Dead, Russell portrays Trey Bowman, husband of the ambitious Mayor Paula Bowman. However, her reelection campaign is put on hold as zombie hordes suddenly sweep their town, and they face their ravenous hunger for human flesh.
In an exclusive interview with CBR, Russell reflected on what it was like working with Romero and the all-star cast of Land of the Dead. He also explained how he blended fun and a survival horror instinct into his role of Trey for Syfy's Day of the Dead series.
Chris, by my math, you're the only person on Day of the Dead with a direct link to George A. Romero after working with him on Land of the Dead. How is it to come and continue his legacy on this television series?
Christopher Russell: I'm glad when people ask this question because I was wondering if they'd catch on.
I haven't done the math myself, so I'll take your word for it but Land of the Dead was one of my first professional acting roles. It came at a time when I was auditioning a ton and not really getting any work. When I booked it, I was excited I got a job and, to be on a George Romero set was also so exciting for me. He didn't let me down. I'm 6'2" and he towered over me. I don't know how tall he actually was but he was a very tall, striking-looking man. [laughs] When I worked with him, it was almost like he was on borrowed time, with his long white hair and beard and wearing his sunglasses at night. [laughs] He was so kind, generous, encouraging, and able to communicate his vision to the actors and crew in such a collaborative way. For one of my first acting jobs, I couldn't have asked for a better director.
Dennis Hopper and John Leguizamo were on set, so I was really excited to see them at work and basically just study them and see how they roll. It was a great experience all around. Eugene Clark played the lead zombie in that movie and he took it very seriously... Eugene stayed in character even after they called cut. He was playing a zombie so that's an incredible amount of method acting. [laughs] He would be terrorizing me between takes and at first I'd laugh it off but he was in character the whole way -- not in a malicious way where I'd have to call HR -- he was just keeping the tension up, which was great. I loved being part of that.
What was the biggest lesson you walked away from working on Land of the Dead?
Be willing to roll with the punches, I would say.
A lot of actors come to the set with a preconceived notion of how it's got to be. They've got all their beats and moments planned out. A lot of times, that's just not going to jive with what the director had envisioned or what the practical applications for the physical aspects of the set requirements. To be prepared to the point where you can let go of everything you've prepared and still do a good job -- that's what I learned on that set, for sure.
Fast-forwarding a couple of years, you're a family man yourself and you're playing a family man as Trey on Day of the Dead. What was it that first drew you to this role and project?
Initially, when they were doing the casting call for it, I saw it come through and I read the breakdown of Trey. From the breakdown alone, I could see where they were going with this and thought this could be a lot of fun. I didn't get a full script but got some scenes of Trey's and it just gave me a clear indication of the direction that the writers wanted to go with it. I thought it was very cleverly written. There are some things you read as an actor and think they're going to be really hard, but I read that and it clicked. I thought, "I know this guy and I really want to do this one."
When I sent the audition tape, the way I played him is, he's not a very bright individual. For lack of a better term, he's pretty dumb and could be referred to as a buffoon. [laughs] What's interesting to me about those characters is, on the surface level, no matter how stupid and idiotic they can be in situations -- and you're playing for laughs on purpose -- there's also the side of it where what if Trey believes everything he's saying? What if he's not just saying things that are stupid but believes them to be true and intelligent, great ideas. I went with that. I think it worked out, and I had a great time doing it. There's nothing more fun than being convinced what you're saying is the truth when it's the most outlandish, ridiculous thing possible.
I was talking with Keenan Tracey and he was saying there's something instinctual about being covered in stage blood and viscera while being chased by a dozen extras dressed as zombies. With that in mind, how much that performance is gut instinct?
Most of it, I would get dizzy after those scenes because I wasn't breathing properly because I was in panic mode. [laughs]
There are a few close calls for Trey and, to go back to Eugene Clark, nobody was in zombie character after the cut. I've worked with a lot of stunt guys and quite a few really get into it. Sometimes you're not sure if they change their mind and don't like you anymore and if they're acting, so that definitely puts you on the edge. [laughs] I definitely got dizzy spells and feared for my life at moments, solely based on the stunt performers' acting skills as zombies: you really don't have to act that if you've got the right crew, for sure.
From Star Trek: Discovery to your horror work, there has to be a suspension of disbelief and dialing up the emotion to match the stakes. How is it weaving that into your performance?
To speak to Star Trek real quick, I didn't have to suspend my belief at all because the prosthetics and costumes were so good. I never saw the application of it. When I'd get to set, everyone would already be aliens. I literally had no idea what half the cast looked like in real life until I looked at their IMDB or something because they'd always get there four hours before me to turn into these aliens and robots. I was on the USS Discovery bridge and it was pretty surreal.
For Day of the Dead, I don't know if other actors say this but the more you work your imagination as an actor, you ground it in some reality from your life. There's this technique called substitution that I maybe use subconsciously to draw up any sort of emotion, feeling, or fear that you can use at any given moment as an actor in a scene. For something like the horror of Day of the Dead, I think how I'd react if this was really happening and I would just commit to it and instinctually feel it. If all of the sudden there was a zombie horde descending on my neighborhood, I have a pretty good idea how I'd react. [laughs]
I hope I would defend my family like Rick Grimes in The Walking Dead and keep them all safe, but I don't know. I'd get a car and drive as fast as I could to get out of there. As Trey, he'd definitely be getting in the car to drive as fast as he can to get out there, and to get to that car. The escape route is his motivation at any given moment when the zombies are coming. Some characters, their instinctual reaction would be to defend and destroy the zombie horde whereas others would be self-preservation.
No matter how outlandish the stakes can get, be it horror or science fiction, there's always that level of emotional authenticity to your performances.
I appreciate that! I do try my best and the circumstances on a given show can sometimes lean towards a bit more unrealistic. It's been a work-in-progress. I try to be as prepared as possible and approach each scene and character with as naturalistic performance as possible -- given the circumstances. A lot of people can misinterpret being natural as being stoic, but I try to react to what's happening in the scene and internally for the character in regards to a given situation.
Specifically speaking to Day of the Dead, I had a couple of months before we even started shooting to build this character. It's really helpful to have a really solid foundation of who the character is, especially on a TV show. And then whatever happens in the script doesn't matter because you just know who you are, it naturally comes out in whatever you say or do.
In addition to Day of the Dead, Chris, where can audiences see you next?
I play Joe Reacher in the upcoming Amazon Prime series Reacher, based on Lee Child's series of novels. Alan Ritchson plays Jack Reacher, Joe Reacher's brother, and that's coming out in 2022. I'm very excited about that and I also have a Christmas movie coming out called A Lot Like Christmas for GAC with Maggie Lawson that's coming out Dec. 5!
Developed for television by Jed Elinoff and Scott Thomas, Day of the Dead airs new episodes Fridays on Syfy.
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