First off, let me say congratulations. I really enjoyed the movie, and I’ll admit that there was some doubt on my part, initially.
Paul: No, that’s understandable.
But, let me also reiterate that it wasn’t doubt that I had toward you. It was if Gary [Tunnicliffe] could make a solid Hellraiser film. As far as your performance, you killed it.
Paul: THANKS MAN! I love when I get to hear that, and I’m so excited when I hear that kind of stuff. I’ve been waiting two years. I’ve been worried for two years. But hearing from fans that I worked as Pinhead, I am so grateful.
No, I really enjoyed it. The arc puts a new spin on things and places it into the mythology. It was a solid work, compared to many of the films in later years.
Paul: Well, Gary definitely wanted to bring back the Clive Barker flavor, and he also wanted to add more to the story. The movie took two years to come out and now it has been released, it’s only a few days, but I’m excited and also a little depressed. I’ve always wanted to see praise and positive energy on social media, but I’m starting to see the other side too.
You don’t want to go snooping around, and I’ve conquered beating myself but this is the first film where many eyes are on me. But, with that said, everything’s been positive, and I’m so happy. The point of this particular story was to reveal a more somber Pinhead. He’s doing a job and he’s not making jokes. He has wisdom and he’s doing his work. Pinhead is not exactly bored, but he’s more sedate.
Well, let’s talk about some of your life and other work. I want the fans to get to know a little more about you. Was acting something that you’ve always wanted to do, and what was it exactly that sparked that desire?
Paul: Well, my grandfather was in vaudeville, he was a comedian and trumpet player. When he started a family he ran a hardware store, but my dad always wanted to become an actor, and I also saw him do community theater. I was probably waist high when I did my first play. It was so long ago, I don’t remember what it was. But I’ve heard I did it though. (Laughs)
I was in Kansas, so there was very little there in commercial film, but I did a lot of theater there. Later I moved to Texas which was called the Third Coast, and I began doing theater there, too. I moved to New York after that and was in survival mode when I was working there. Things were working out, and I was getting tons of theater work, until 9/11 happened. My roommate also left, and I had to go through finding a new one, and it all became a mess.
Then one day, I thought to myself, “What the f*** am I doing here? I don’t want to be here.” So I moved back to Dallas and I started working immediately. I was really poor, so I was donating plasma and was told I had Hepatitis C. This was around the time the cure had a forty percent success rate. I felt fine, until eight years or so later when I started feeling it. I was getting fat and I was depressed, it was not a good place.
In 2011, I went to a hematologist and went on a drug trial which cured me. Suddenly, I had my life back, and I wasn’t sure I wanted my life back. (Laughs) I attempted to change my outlook, because I had anxiety and I was so hard on myself. I began chanting, meditating, and hopefully learned to manifest peace in my own life, and maybe some solid work.
