Interview: Adam Green On 'Holliston' Season Two Premiere

BY AARON SAGERS
(Originally reported at MTV Geek)

It feels like a classic opening setup for most sitcoms: Buddies Adam and Joe bicker as they rush to prepare the big anniversary dinner double-date before the girls arrive. The laugh track responds in kind to the buffoonery. That’s when the blood starts to spill. Fingers are cut to the bone, faces are melted off, a corkscrew screws a Corri -- then there’s a bad banana cream pie incident. And still the laugh track responds, growing in a maniacal intensity.

Such is the set up for Holliston, FEARnet’s comedy that is something of a Big Bang Theory for horror nerds.

Created and starring director Adam Green (Frozen, Hatchet, Hatchet II, Chillerama), the show plays with situational comedy conventions but turns them on a decapitated head by introducing gore and scary movie tropes, such as in the scene described above. Holliston, which has its second season premiere tonight at 10 p.m., also stars director Joe Lynch (Wrong Turn 2, the much-anticipated Knights of Badassdom), as well as Corri English and Laura Ortiz. Oh yeah, and then there’s Twisted Sister’s Dee Snider as Adam and Joe’s boss and GWAR’s Oderus Urungus who is Adam’s imaginary friend, Oderus.

The show revolves primarily around Adam and Joe’s attempt to get their zombie soccer movie Shinpads made whilst working as horror-show hosts as a low-rent local cable company, and during their adventures, a rogues gallery of scary movie icons appear as skewed versions of themselves. For instance, in the Season Two premiere, the imposing Kane Hodder (the Hatchet series and Friday the 13th parts 7-10) appears as a sensitive and precious actor who attempts suicide when he hears he’s been replaced as Jason Voorhees.

Granted, a segment of the population may not know who Hodder is or, for that matter, other guest stars such as Danielle Harris, Tony Todd and Derek Mears. Hopefully they at least know who John Landis is, but that’s not what Holliston is going for. Loaded with horror movie quotations and background Easter Eggs from the genre, there is a sense that if you get it, you’re one of “us,” but if not, well … you really won’t get it.

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FEARnet announces holiday 'Holliston,' 'Tales From The Crypt'

FEARnet isn’t just a channel to indulge in at Halloween, they also like to get into the spirit of Yule! They’ve announced their HoHoHo-rifically awesome holiday line-up and promise a sack full of screams.

Among the highlights are a Holliston marathon and Christmas special, Christmas Eve "Killer Kringle" marathon and a New Year's Eve Tales from the Crypt marathon.

First up is a marathon of the horror-nerd sitcom Holliston,beginning at 3:30 p.m. ET. Starring director Adam Green and Joe Lynch, the show revolves around the aspiring genre filmmakers as they deal with romance and run-ins with horror legends Kane Hodder, Tony Todd and John Landis - not to mention GWAR's Oderus Urungus and Dee Snider. Then, at 8 p.m., is the Holliston Christmas Special.

Says a FEARnet press release, "the most wonderful time of the year quickly turns into 'Black Christmas,' when a blizzard strikes the town of Holliston, trapping Adam, Joe, Corri and Laura inside with no power. Of course, being a horror sitcom, it makes sense that a "crazed serial killer" is loose in the area, which interrupts the gangs reminiscing about their time together. Derek Mears (Friday the 13th, Community) guests.

Then, the Christmas Eve "Killer Kringle" marathon begins at noon ET with the promise that "Santa Claus is comin’ to town… and he’s out for blood in a four-film frightfest "dedicated to the not-so-nice side of Old St. Nick." The programming block includes The Traveler, starring Val Kilmer, about a stranger with a secret. Then there's Santa's Slay, about Santa (aka the Son of Satan) whose deal with an angel to play nice for a 1,000 years is up. Up next is Saint, a Dutch flick about a really pissed off Santa. Finally the Spanish movie A Christmas Tale involves a captured woman in a Santa suit who decides to seek revenge against her captors.

And on New Year's Eve, if you're not into The Twilight Zone marathon on Syfy, check out the Tales from the Crypt one. Beginning at 4 p.m. ET, the marathon is hosted by The CryptKeeper, with his first new appearances in 15 years. The 24 episodes include many great classic Crypt eps, including "Dead Wait" ( 8:30 p.m. ET) and "Yellow," (2:30 a.m. ET) but none more appropriate than "And All Through The House," about a "murderous woman terrorized by a maniacal Santa Claus" (6:30 p.m. ET).

Con of the Dead: A horribly good Comic-Con party

San Diego Comic-Con International (SDCC) news is heating up as the July 11 kick off is less than a month away. And along with reports of cool giveaways and panels, there's also reports of awesome parties coming in.

Just such a party "Con-of-the-Dead," the Friday the 13th bash hosted by FEARnet in conjunction with our friends over at Dread Central and Capcom's Resident Evil 6, as well as FANGORIA Entertainment, Screamfest Horror Film Festival and ShockTillYouDrop.com.

Taking place Friday, July 13, at San Diego’s Gothic-inspired Voyeur nightclub from 6:00 to 8:30 p.m., PT, FEARnet reports "guests will experience an interactive event complete with playable demo stations featuring Resident Evil 6, a VIP suite decked out by Dark Sky Films, music spun by LA’s DJ Amanda Jones, go-go ghoul dancers, customized refreshments, and 'zombie-fied' photo booth."

FEARnet will also be leading the 6th Annual Zombie Walk, held the same day, where some winners of the more-than 300 participants will be able to enter the event.

"Our main goal at Comic-Con is to build an event that would allow fans to engage with our network firsthand," said Peter Block, President and General Manager of FEARnet. "We are excited for the chance to showcase our network to invited members of the media and entertainment industry, as well as selected participants from San Diego’s famous Zombie Walk."

Also, cast members of FEARnet’s first original TV series, Holliston, featuring Adam Green, Joe Lynch, Corri English, Laura Ortiz, and GWAR front man Oderus Urungus, will also be on hand, taking part in a panel presentation hosted by a surprise celebrity.

-Aaron Sagers