arts & entertainment
Anthony Anderson: will the Black Guy Survive ‘Scream 4’?
by brian Stimson
of The Skanner News
F
rom his comedic roles
in Barbershop, Bernie
Mac Show and the
Scary Movie franchise to
more serious roles in Hustle
and Flow, The Shield and
Law and Order, Actor
Anthony Anderson has one
diverse resume.
Anderson is appearing as
Deputy Perkins in “Scream
4,” the latest in the Wes
Craven horror franchise due
out on April 15. Here,
Anderson spoke with the
Skanner news about being
the black character in a hor-
ror film, the similarities
between “Scream” and
“Scary Movie” and what his
worst day on set has ever
been.
the Skanner news: Hey,
Anthony.
anthony
anderson:
What’s going on brother?
tSn: Not a lot, just ending
the work day. How about
you, how you doing?
aa: Oh shit, man, I wish
my workday was ending.
tSn: How many reporters
do they put you through on
these days?
aa:AAaaaaaaaaahhhhhh,
too many to name, brother,
it started at 10 o’clock and
it’s 5:30 and I’m still going
through the ringer. From 10
to 1 we sit in a room and
they send people in for
three hours, every three
minutes it was a different
reporter. Straight to lunch
and after lunch, you do your
Entertainment
Tonight,
Access Hollywood and
shows like that. Then after
that, you have your foreign
press. And there are maybe
10 of those. And then after
that, which I’ve never done,
we had two press confer-
ences brother. And there
were 25 to 30 people in each
room and we sat on a panel
and discussed the movie
with people on the film.
And then after that, I shot
some more video interviews
and then after that I’m sit-
ting here talking to you.
tSn: Well, I’ll try to make
this quick and painless as
possible. You’ve acted in
two ‘Scary Movies’ (3 and
4) and now you’re doing an
actual scary movie, ‘Scream
4.’ Is there any real differ-
ence between acting in a
comedy horror movie and
acting in an actual horror
film?
aa: no man, cause if you
Page 8 The Portland Skanner march 30, 2011
Anthony Anderson, far right, is Deputy Perkins in wes
Craven’s ‘Scream 4’
were doing behind the
scenes footage while we
were making “Scream,” you
would think this was a com-
edy. Just the fun we had as a
cast and crew. Wes Craven
is a practical joker and we
can only be but serious
when if you were getting
stabbed in the forehead, cut
off and all that. So, we
laugh because it’s silly fun.
The horror doesn’t really
come together until Wes is
in the editing room putting
the finishing touches on
what we shot. It’s not unlike
the filming of a scary
tSn: Historically, Black
characters tend to not fare
very well in terms of their
survival ..
aa: You can say it, they
always die first before the
opening credits. But it’s a
new decade, new rules,
those rules don’t apply. At
least that’s what the poster
says (maniacal laughter
ensues)!
tSn: The “Scream”
movies are renowned for
their dissection of horror
movies clichés. Was that
particular cliché something
that people talked about
during the filming or was
mentioned in the movie?
aa: The fact that if you’re
gay you may survive, there
are new clichés we come up
with in Scream, if you’re a
virgin you live, that’s not
true anymore. But yeah, we
talk about it. Things you
never say or do in a horror
film to survive. Never say
I’ll be right back, never say,
after you hear a noise, let
me go check that out, never
go into the bathroom and
turn on the shower water
and then go back in and take
that shower. They’re trying
to flip everything on its ear
and it’s kind of fun.
tSn: You haven’t been in
a whole lot of horror
movies, what made you
decide to do this one?
aa: One, the franchise
itself. I grew up watching
these movies. Two, Wes
Craven. Three, to be the
Black guy in a horror film,
it’s fun unto itself. And four,
I was actually in the Scary
Movie
franchise
that
spoofed this franchise. And
now I’m a part of this fran-
chise. That was fun to be a
part of as well.
tSn: And a question I like
to ask a lot of actors: What
was the absolute worst day
on set you had?
aa: Wow, the absolute
worst day on set?
tSn: Was there one?
aa: There were several
days, I’m just trying to pick
one. There are days you just
don’t have it. You know,
you don’t have it as an actor.
You can’t remember a line,
you’ve been in is really,
really diverse. Is there any
rhyme or reason to the stuff
you pick?
aa: There is. From an
early age, I’ve always said
I’d like to have a long
career. To have a career at
this and not be the flavor of
the month. You have to pick
your projects. None of us
can be picky in the begin-
ning because we’re just
starting out but once you’ve
established yourself and
some kind of body of work.
You want to pick things that
really showcase your talent.
I’ve always said I want to
work with the best from the
best material and that what
drives me. It’s not always
if you were doing behind the
scenes footage while we were
making ‘Scream,’ you would
think this was a comedy
you can’t remember block-
ing, and it happens to all of
us every now and again. I
didn’t have a bad day on
Scream 4, but I just finished
this independent film down
in Albuquerque, New
Mexico, never had allergies
before going to New
Mexico, but juniper pollen
was at all time record high,
so I could barely see, my
eyes were swelling up, my
nose was running, my eyes
were watering, it just had
me feeling lethargic, it was
my last day on set and I
could not remember my
lines because so much was
going on in my head. So
that was it. I’m snotting, I’m
sniffling, I’m crying, I’m
sneezing and I could not hit
this mark and remember my
lines. So I say go with that.
tSn: The history of
movies and TV shows
about a payday, because
paydays come and go. But
when people see and really
feel the work on screen,
that’s when they call you
back. That’s one reason I’ve
been dancing in this dramat-
ic world for quite some time
because I didn’t want to be
typecast as the comic relief,
as the funny guy. So, I made
a conscious choice to target
shows like The Shield, I tar-
geted Law and Order, I tar-
geted other shows and they
came to fruition. I targeted
movies in the vein of The
Departed and Hustle and
Flow, those movies came to
fruition. So now I’m known
as an actor, not just the
funny guy. When you say
Anthony Anderson, you say,
‘oh wow, what’s he going to
do next, what’s he doing
now? Because I remember
him in this.’