Interview: Xander Berkeley Talks Scares And Spirituality In THE DARK AND THE WICKED
Drew Tinnin
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Xander Berkeley isn’t really a horror fan, aside from the fact that he’s appeared in Candyman and The Walking Dead. But the legacy actor knows quality when he sees it and Bryan Bertino’s latest The Dark and The Wicked (review HERE) was simply too good for Berkeley to pass up. In fact, when we spoke, Berkeley suspected that this unrelenting story of a family being torn about by a demonic force just might be the most frightening film he’s ever been a part of.
In the below interview, we went into detail on his mysterious character, The Priest, and the unexpected turn in The Dark and the Wicked proving that you don’t always have to be a believer in order for the devil to torment you. Real evil doesn’t really care if you believe in it or not. Berkeley also gave us a quick update on his new pandemic film Lockdown about an actor forced to pass a series of tests to save the lives of the people he loves.
Synopsis: On a secluded farm, a man is slowly dying. Bedridden and fighting through his final breaths, his wife is slowly succumbing to overwhelming grief. To help their mother and say goodbye to their father, siblings Louise (Marin Ireland) and Michael (Michael Abbott Jr.) return to their family farm. It doesn’t take long for them to see that something’s wrong with mom, though—something more than her heavy sorrow. Gradually, as their own grief mounts, Louise and Michael begin suffering from a darkness similar to their mother’s, marked by waking nightmares and a growing sense that something evil is taking over their family.
Dread Central: Have you seen Dark and the Wicked yet? Do you think it’s maybe one of the scariest films you’ve been a part of?
Xander Berkeley: Yeah, you know I, for the most part, didn’t go for the horror genre early on. I think there used to be a different kind of stigma on it. I grew up as a huge fan of gothic horror films, I watched a lot of them on 16mm projected onto screen, the gothic black & white Universal horror films. So, I was a huge monster fan when I was little. I wasn’t into slasher…my first and almost really only other horror film was Candyman. The thing that distinguished that and The Dark and the Wicked for me is the fact that it’s a subgenre of horror that I like to call smart art horror. There was just something about the way Bryan [Bertino] was approaching the script and what I knew he wanted to do with it soundwise and cinematically that it put it into a different category. I’m glad that I’ve left the genre alone so that I can really make a thing of it now. Even working on The Walking Dead, I played a more comedic role in that than anything actively scary. I love the idea of moving into this phase of my career and playing scarier characters.
DC: You’re definitely doing a fantastic job of it. I was going to mention Candyman because I’m going to be speaking with Ted Raimi a little bit later today and you both appeared in that. You’re right, it is nice to see that movie garnering a lot more respect over the years, especially with the new remake that’s going to be coming out eventually.
XB: Yeah, I ‘m curious to see how that goes. Ted and Tony [Todd] and Bernard [Rose] and I had a panel at Horror Hound in Indianapolis. It was good to see Ted, say hi to him for me. He feels, as I did, that it’s always a treat to listen to Bernard Rose talk about Candyman because he put so much into it and it’s not surprising to me that people still keep getting so much out of it because of that.
DC: Getting to Dark and the Wicked, as The Priest it really felt like you were, at least the first time I watched it, that you were channeling Kane – Julian Beck’s character in Poltergeist II. Did his character cross your mind at all or any other frightening priests?
XB: I don’t believe I’ve ever seen Poltergeist II. I do love Julian Beck! From my early days at the theatre, I got to see him once and I’m a huge fan of his and his movement in experimental theatre. When I was like 15, I was adopted by a troupe that did a method of theatre outside of New York. I was influenced by Max Von Sydow when I was a little boy, he was a huge movie star. I idolized him and thought he was super cool and loved that he went there in The Exorcist. More than anything, I was influenced by scary relatives in Texas that would come to visit us. They seemed like they were from another world. They’ve got those heavy accents and will slap you on the back a little harder than you’re used to. Those were the people I was channeling in that.
DC: I’m from Texas so I’ve been slapped on the back like that before. I love the moment when you compare the devil and the wolf together saying they don’t care if you believe in them or not in order to exist. Usually, it’s the people that have faith that are tested, not the ones that don’t. I thought that was a really original approach.
XB: Yes, so did I. That was really the thing that urged me to do it. It wasn’t a big role but the impact of that line just when I read was like, ‘Wow, I like that. That’s a twist.’ I think Bryan’s a brilliant guy and I’m really glad he made another movie and I hope he makes another one again real soon. His crafting of the script and his whole approach to use of camera and music and atmosphere, everything I thought was just brilliantly executed.
DC: I wish he was out talking about the film a little more but I like the fact that he prefers to stay behind the curtain, so to speak.
XB: Yeah, he does. He’s a mysterious and interesting fellow.
DC: I was just watching Gargoyles, the animated series on Disney Plus and I heard your voice with so much other talent like Keith David, Clancy Brown and Tim Curry. Are you doing any voiceover work right now? It seems like animation is still moving full steam.
XB: Yeah, you know when I lived in L.A. you go down these certain rides. There was a guy that cast that, this guy Jamie was the casting director for a lot of the Disney stuff and Gargoyles. I had a manager that was good friends with him so you get on a roll where you’re doing a bunch and they knew I could do a Scottish accent like I did on Gargoyles. So I was a utility guy…I also became part of the repertory company for a lot of the DC stuff. I always got a huge kick out of it. I’ve done like two or three different sort of pilots, experimental things, that people reached out to me and asked me to do. That’d be fun if they go. I’m hoping to do a lot more of that.
DC: What’s happening with that film Lockdown that you’re doing based on the pandemic, is that still happening? The premise of a an actor having to pass tests to keep people alive is intriguing.
XB: Yeah, I’m shooting that starting on Thursday. Really interesting guy that’s directing it, young, bright, thinking outside the box. It’s very much in tune with what’s going on inside of Hong Kong and the UK. I’m the only one from The States involved. I’ve always enjoyed being involved in those kinds of, both experimental and international, undertakings.
DC: I think it’s important to do films like that right now. We’ll look back at the films that were made around this time, I think they will have a lot of staying power. I love Dark and the Wicked, I watched it again last night, it’s fantastic.
XB: Glad you’re supporting the film, I love it, too. Really nice to meet and talk to you.
RLJE Films will release the horror film The Dark and the Wicked In Theaters, On Digital and On Demand November 6, 2020.
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