Exclusives
Eli Roth on ‘Hostel 3’, Return to Directing!
This past week we caught up with writer-director-actor-producer Eli Roth to talk about The Last Exorcism, his horror flick that began a slew of special screenings at the San Diego Comic-Con (more on this soon). While a full report is forthcoming, we did have a chance to briefly talk to Roth about Hostel: Part 3, and his highly anticipated return to the director’s chair.
While Eli is listed as a producer on Sony Stage 6’s Hostel: Part III, he explains that he won’t be involved… at all.
“I’m not involved in any way,” Roth tells Bloody Disgusting in an exclusive chat. “Any information that says I’m a producer on it is false. I think they’re shooting in August, but Scott Spiegel is the one who can answer all questions on the film. I wish those guys the best of luck and hope they come back with a great film, but I have nothing to do with it.”
Spiegel is directing the sequel from a screenplay by Michael Weiss that takes an interesting turn: it will head to Vegas where a bachelor party goes horribly wrong. The groom could have a price on his head…
We also talked to Roth about his experience acting in Quentin Tarantino’s Inglourious Basterds and his time away from directing. How much Eli will be see in the next few years?
“I don’t consider working on Basterds being out of action, it’s all part of a body of work I’ve done,” he explains. “It’s different from directing, but I still put 100% of myself into everything I do. The Hostel films were 3 years nonstop with no breaks. And by no breaks I mean there was not a single day off. I needed to recharge my batteries and refocus where I wanted to go from here creatively. I could feel I needed to pace myself, so Basterds was a great way to keep working without burning out. The film business can chew people up and spit them out and I want to be careful and smart about each film I get involved in.”
When asked if he has even more projects in the works outside of Endangered Species, Thanksgiving and Funhouse, he proclaimed, “Of course. All will be revealed in due time.”
The Last Exorcism arrives in theaters August 27.
Out today in select theaters and on digital platforms is heartfelt and playful documentary Mockbuster, which sees a director cold call a studio and ask to helm a lost-world dinosaur epic.
Inexplicably, they say yes.
Our exclusive clip below highlights both the comedic nature of this bizarre scenario as well as the pressures of shooting dino feature The Land That Time Forgot in a mere six days, with no real feature experience.
A dino attack scene causes friction on set in this scene.
In the documentary, “A struggling filmmaker’s opportunity collides with chaos and compromise when Sharknado’s notorious studio, The Asylum, invites him to direct a ‘mockbuster.’ With six days, a micro budget, and mounting pressure, Mockbuster is a comedic, behind-the-scenes documentary exploring the balance between low-budget filmmaking and creative ambition.”
More than just an inside look at filmmaking via low-budget film studio The Asylum, it doubles as one man’s pursuit of his dreams to charming, humorous effect.
“Mockbuster is a documentary about my own journey, but it’s also a love letter to one of the last grindhouses still functioning in Hollywood. We get to meet the characters and creators of some of the most infamous (and most hated) B-movies of the last few decades. People who make movies purely for profit – no pretension, no artistry, just monsters, C-listers, and chaos. A film that both genre fans and cinephiles can enjoy. But Mockbuster isn’t just about filmmaking, it’s about losing sight of your dreams, and reclaiming them in your own twisted way,” Director Anthony Frith said in a statement.
From Executive Producer and famed documentarian David Farrier, Mockbuster opens in select theaters and on digital platforms beginning July 10.