Skinwalkers is based on Navajo legends. How does that set it apart from other werewolf movies?
“Well most of the werewolf stories and mythologies that we’ve seen before in cinema are Eastern European werewolves, and this is based on Native American folklore. The Navajo Skinwalker is said to be able to take the pelt of an animal, the skin of any animal, and put it on and become that animal - be it a bear, or a hawk, or deer, or the wolf. And I think that was the impetus for the writers to create an extended mythology on what it would be like for one of these people who would put on this wolf skin to become addicted to that power, and to that freedom. That was sort of like the genesis of this mythology.”
Why are we so fascinated with the idea of being able to transform into a wolf?
“I think just sort of that primal, instinctive freedom I think is very alluring and kind of romantic. I think that, you know, if someone were to be able to do and say and act upon any primal urges and just be completely free, I think that’s something that’s very alluring.”
Were you at all intrigued by the idea of werewolves prior to signing on to Skinwalkers?
“No. I mean, I grew up watching these kinds of films and watching these fantastical movies, a lot of which Stan Winston had worked on. I think that if you’re going to do a werewolf movie, Stan Winston is the only guy that I can think of to do it with. He’s a genius. He’s the best at what he does, and the werewolf is the whole reason why he got into this business in the first place. He’s always wanted to make a movie about werewolves and he’s never done it before.”
And you had to go in and do a fully body cast?
“Yeah, a full body cast, teeth molding, eye scan, the whole nine yards.”
How did that experience feel?
“It was a little… It was interesting. You sort of had to zen out and kind of find that nice calm place because you’re under all this plaster and you have two little breathing holes in your nose to keep you alive. But I was in good hands. Stan’s team is a top-notch crackerjack team. They took good care of me.”
Was it claustrophobic?
“Nope, not at all, not at all. There are two schools of casting, of head casting and body casting. Those who lose their s**t and feel claustrophobic, and those who kind of find that zen place. For whatever reason, I felt very much at peace with it.”
You also had to sit through a lot of makeup sessions. What were those like?
“The makeup was wonderful for me. It was a long process, but when you have Stan Winston…I was in great hands. I had Stan Winston making sure that every hair was in place and everything was just right. I think you find that zen place and you relax and you sort of give into the transformation. Once you put the claws on and the teeth in and the eyes, you just can’t help but be taken away by it and sort of become something else. You’re given permission as an actor and given the freedom to just play it full out.”
Can you describe the plot of Skinwalkers?
“It’s basically there are two very different groups - or packs, I should say - of Skinwalkers. The one side that we call the naturalists, that embraces that power and freedom, that instinct and that blood lust. They’re almost addicted to it; they believe it to be a gift. The other group believes it to be a curse and they have suppressed that primal urge. And I guess their only hope is this ancient prophecy that one day a child will be given the power to make that curse go away. All this is signaled by the rise of the red moon. Once that red moon goes up, the clock starts ticking. I think Varek and his group will do everything within their power to make sure it doesn’t happen.”
How would you describe the film’s tone?
“Jim, our director, wanted to have a Easy Rider meets Peckinpah’s Wild Bunch [feel]. He wanted to be very Western in feel and everything to be out in the light, and not to have too much nighttime stuff. Obviously you’re going to have that nighttime stuff, but he didn’t want to have too much of it. And the tone was just very playful for us on set. But doing a Native American mythology with sort of Western spin on it was pretty f**king cool.”
I understand you also studied wolves to get into character.
“Yeah, I wanted to start out with just watching the behavior because there are four of us in the badass squad and it was very important for us to really define our position in the pack, and how to behave accordingly. And outside of that, I mean, every wolf has a specific job to do to ensure the pack’s survival. They have to work in concert. It’s like a big family, and so we wanted to have that represented in the film. And also for me personally, I wanted to just observe how a wolf takes in information. How it takes in smell, and sight, and how it moves. They really are beautiful creatures and you want to kind of get that - you want to represent it well.”
Page 2: Jason Behr on His Character, Stunt Work, and Upcoming Movies
