Kevin Smith, long known for his “cuming-of-age” man-child comedies, is hard at work on production for his latest film — a genuine, honest-to-god horror film. Cameras started rolling on Smith’s Red State this week — just in time to welcome the latest addition to the cast: John Goodman.
As revealed on Smith’s podcast Hollywood Babylon, Goodman joins a pretty stellar cast that includes Kevin Pollack, Dermot Mulroney, Kyle Gallner, Michael Angarano, Stephen Root, Ralph Garman and Michael Parks. Melissa Leo has long been rumored to be a part of the cast but at this time there has been no confirmation one way or another. Besides the fact that Parks will play the lead role (a villain allegedly inspired by infamous preacher Fred Phelps), nothing is known about the rest of the cast’s characters.
The film will deal with a group of kids who encounter a crazed fundamentalist preacher. I remember reading an interview with Kevin Smith about ten years ago where he said he would like to do a remake of Race with the Devil. Could this be a fundamentalist Christian take on the classic Peter Fonda-starring cult movie about a pair of couples who must escape in their R.V. after they witness a murder during a Satanic mass? It makes sense to me, at least.
I, for one, am really anticipating Smith’s venture into the horror genre. The concept of a dark horror movie from the man who brought the world Mallrats seems as foreign an idea as a comedy from Alexandre Aja, the director of High Tension. But you know what? Piranha 3D was pretty damn funny. I’m hoping Smith will surprise his doubters with Red State. If anything, the production should provide plenty of great stories for Smith’s network of podcasts.
