<\/p>\n
Matthew Lillard has been campaigning for a while.<\/p>\n
He wanted to get back into the \u201cScream\u201d franchise. Of course<\/i> his character, Stu Macher, could survive a television being dropped on his head (though it\u2019s said that he was electrocuted<\/a>). Lillard even thought about dropping an actual TV on his head to prove that it was possible. Luckily, he didn\u2019t go through with it, becausea lot of TV figuratively dropped on his head anyway.<\/p>\n The \u201cScooby-Doo\u201d actor has been cast in several high-profile projects. He\u2019s on \u201cCross,\u201d the Amazon Prime show starring Aldis Hodge as a homicide detective and forensic psychologist. He will be in the eight-episode \u201cCarrie\u201d miniseries \u2014 yes, that<\/i> Carrie \u2014 developed by filmmaker Mike Flanagan for Amazon MGM Studios. He\u2019s dipping his toes in the Marvel cinematic pond with a role in Netflix\u2019s \u201cDaredevil: Born Again.\u201d<\/p>\n On the big screen, he\u2019s prepping a third \u201cFive Nights at Freddy\u2019s.\u201d <\/p>\n And his campaign paid off: He\u2019s in the newest chapter of the popular \u201cScream\u201d franchise \u2014 which just released its final trailer earlier this week<\/a>.<\/p>\n All of this from an actor whom Quentin Tarantino (speaking on \u201cThe Bret Easton Ellis Podcast\u201d<\/a>) \u201cdoesn\u2019t care for.\u201d Lillard has answered questions about and commented on Tarantino\u2019s viral comments often in the last few months. An actor for almost four decades, Lillard says he has built up a thick skin, but the comments were hurtful. <\/p>\n He talks about those comments, along with his recent projects, working with friends and his constant desire to say \u201cF\u2014 ICE.\u201d<\/p>\n So. Tarantino said some things about your (and <\/b>Paul Dano\u2019s<\/b><\/a>) acting prowess …<\/b><\/p>\n Look, candidly, it was a weird moment. It was a bummer. It was a drag at the beginning. But I\u2019ll say this \u2014 I have never felt so seen by this industry. My entire career, I felt like a blue-collar working-class actor trying to be in the best movies and do the best work I possibly can. In that moment, along comes an industry that I\u2019ve served now for 35 years, rising up and saying really lovely things. I said, in the past, it felt like I was living through my own wake. You don\u2019t normally see that outpouring of love until after somebody passes. At the end of the day, it ends up being a really beautiful moment for me.<\/p>\n It\u2019s not like I\u2019m this fragile little thing. I\u2019ve been around a long time. Did it suck? Sure. <\/p>\n This Quentin Tarantino thing … I\u2019m good. I love his films. It also sucked because I was like, \u201cOh, I would love to get in there and kick ass for him.\u201d But whatever. It is not about the box office wins that week. It\u2019s about a body of work, a community of friends, and longevity that really defines. Which is the goal, and it defines a life well spent.<\/p>\n You mentioned longevity, and a quick IMDb search shows that Shaggy is your world! There\u2019s so much \u201cScooby<\/b>–<\/b>Doo.\u201d Straight-to-video. Live-action. Video games. <\/b><\/p>\n Yeah. Isn\u2019t that crazy?<\/p>\n Looking back, how did you approach doing the voice work and being in the movies, and what was your thought process when that first came to you?<\/b><\/p>\n My first thought process was, \u201cI\u2019m getting that job.\u201d I\u2019m like, \u201cI will kill that.\u201d The way I got into the voice was that I would have to scream myself hoarse. I\u2019ll never forget coming down and being in the car, an empty Warner Bros. lot, screaming to prepare my voice for the audition, and having Chuck Roven, the producer, walk by and knock on the window and be like, \u201cDude, are you OK?\u201d<\/p>\n The first movie was so successful that I felt like I was launched. James Gunn and I went in and pitched \u201cPlastic Man\u201d at Warner Bros. I felt like, \u201cOh, I\u2019m now an option to be No. 1 on a call sheet.\u201d Then \u201cScooby-Doo 2\u201d came out, didn\u2019t do great, and started a reset of my career that took a couple of years. <\/p>\n I look back now at 56 years old and think, without that, I wouldn\u2019t be in this career. I don\u2019t know if I would have been around long enough to get this comeback that I\u2019m in the middle of and enjoying.<\/p>\n \u201cScream 7\u201d revisits one of the most successful horror franchises ever. How did you feel about being approached to come back? <\/b>C<\/b>an <\/b>you<\/b> say <\/b>much <\/b>about your role? <\/b><\/p>\n Ghostface in Paramount Pictures and Spyglass Media Group\u2019s \u201cScream.\u201d<\/p>\n (Brownie Harris \/ Paramount Pictures \/ Spyglass Media Group)<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n I\u2019m not going to lie, I was over the moon. At some point, right before I got the offer, probably three or four months before I got the offer, [\u201cScream\u201d franchise creator] Kevin Williamson put it out in the world that the \u201cScream\u201d franchise does not need Matthew Lillard. I remember reading that and thinking to myself, \u201cWhy don\u2019t you just leave me alone? I\u2019m planning on getting back in.\u201d<\/p>\n