DOUG JONES INTERVIEW

DAVE: I had so much fun researching this. I had no idea you’d been in so many of my favorite projects. The best was finding out you did the cameo as Pencilhead in Mystery Men.

DOUG: Kinka Usher, the director, had used me in three of his commercials so when the call was heard for someone tall and skinny I just had a good feeling about it.

DAVE: Did you get to keep the costume?

DOUG: I was pretty sure Pencilhead wouldn’t spin-off into its own series so I didn’t fight for that.

DAVE: I would think Guillermo pretty much owes you Pencilhead VS. Hellboy at this point.

DOUG: Guillermo not so much.

DAVE: You trained as a mime, did the skills necessary for suit work and prosthetic work carry over or was a different set?

DOUG: It’s funny I never really set out to do creature work. I’m a tall skinny goofy white guy and when I set out for LA I just assumed I’d find my fame and fortune in sitcoms or something like that. But one of the first jobs I got was playing the McDonald’s Mac Tonight mascot. That was a huge break. I did 27 of those things. It’s where I met most of the people who’ve kept me working since then. They just happened to be special effects people, mechanics, sculptors, and mold makers. Bless their hearts they liked me enough that when they thought I had the right build or movement they’d pass my name around when they were hired out for creatures movies or TV.

DAVE: Has it been a frustration appearing in so many high profile projects where you were basically covered in head to toe in costume?

DOUG: Not at all. I’m grateful for any reason people want to hire me. Basically I’m an actor like any other. Every actor goes through hair and makeup and costume before they go on set. Mine just takes five to seven hours longer than most. I haven’t thought of myself as a mime since college.

DAVE: Mostly because of the jokes right?

DOUG: I’m sorry?

DAVE: You know, “A mime is a terrible thing to waste.” “How many mimes does it take to pretend to screw in a light bulb.” I’d imagine you’d get pretty sick of that after a while.

DOUG: Well…yeah, you see I wasn’t really a full fledged mime I….

DAVE: Doug! Baby, I’m a fan no need to feel ashamed. I mean we’ve all gotten carried away by the I Love Lucy episode where Harpo and Lucy imitate each other in front of the mirror. The point is you’ve grown, moved on as an artist….

DOUG: But…..

DAVE: I say good riddance. Ya live ya learn huh?

DOUG: Well…I guess what I’m getting at is it helps to be willing to bring yourself to whatever process is called for. I find my happy place pretty easily, and I discover my character like any other actor. I also like the athletic aspect of pushing through all that to bring my character to life.

DAVE: Growing up you might hear about Rick Baker who was famous for doing gorilla work, or the Henson Muppet guys, but that was about it. Now special effects and creature suit work have their own fan base. Why has that happened do you think- that growing public fascination? It seems like you could make some genuine connections back to performers like Lon Chaney Sr.

DOUG: The pool of talent in any field is bigger than the spotlight. To be equated with a Chaney, or a Lugosi or a Karloff is such an honor. But those are such big shoes to fill…

DAVE: But you’re good at filling enormous shoes.

DOUG: [Laughing]

DAVE: One name that comes up is Bill Irwin, who actually received a Genius Grant so that he could devote himself to studying physical comedy. You were in Lady in the Water with Bill did you have a chance to meet and share ideas?

DOUG: He’s brilliant but our shooting just didn’t coincide. Most of my work was on greenscreen.

DAVE: Is it your voice used for the fawn in Pan’s?

DOUG: You know when I was first approached about the film I realized I didn’t know any Spanish. Guillermo said that if I just faked my way through the lines by counting to ten he could dub it and synch later but I just couldn’t bring myself to leave him with that in the editing room. So I went through the hardest process of memorization I’ve ever been through and I was told that my phrasing, accent and whatnot was perfect but that it still wound up being easier to use another actor later for dubbing.

DAVE: It has to have occurred to you how nice it would be to have the opportunity to do the voice as well as the physical presence of a character- particularly now that you’re getting work creating characters that are iconic.

DOUG: Oh sure.

DAVE: I mean then you could the voices at parties and stuff.

DOUG: Well the good news on that front is I will be doing the voice of Abe Sapien for Hellboy 2 and of course I already did the voice of animated Abe for the Cartoon Network and will be for the Hellboy videogame as well. I had originally done Abe’s voice on set for the first Hellboy film but a decision was made by the studio to go with a marquee name and they asked David Hyde Pierce who, being the gentleman he is, agreed to to do it only if he would be uncredited.

DAVE: Now I heard that the studio has demanded that you at least be made up as David Hyde Pierce when you show up to record your dialogue for Hellboy 2.

DOUG: Uh…. No. As fine and handsome a man as David is I’ll have to make sure my contract is very clear on that point.

DAVE: What are some classic characters you would like to take a whack at?

DOUG: You mean harm physically?

DAVE: Yes.

DOUG: I was kidding.

DAVE: Oh….

DOUG: I wouldn’t mind having the chance to play an angel. Not a kicking demon butt sort of angel but more of a musical angel who wants to be a demon butt kicker but who is encouraged by his warrior angel friends to stick with what he’s good at.

I love parts like the train conductor from Polar Express. He moves the story along for all the other characters. That really appeals to me.

DAVE: You have a film called The Wager coming out Which is quite clearly a Christian based film. What drew you to that?

DOUG: Well I’ve been a Christian all my life and so that aspect really resonated. The story is about a very famous actor who’s bombarded by bad press. I play a paparazzi in the film who’s responsible for bringing him down.

But of course I bring my whole self to everything I do. It has to do with story. Does the film tell a story I want to tell? I never mind playing the bad guy. I was cast as the lead demon Lucius in This Present Darkness- which sadly never got made. And I once turned down the creature lead in a movie called Scarecrow because it just seemed pointlessly gratuitous and non-redemptive. But I hardly ever have to turn things down on those sorts of grounds. If a story is worth telling then I want to tell it.

DAVE: Like the Silver Surfer?

DOUG: Yeah. You know I’m not a comic book reader but I really came to love the character of the Silver Surfer when I was researching the role. He’s very Christlike interested in defending the underdog, seeking truth, even sacrificing himself to something that he didn’t really want to do just to save his own planet and his people.

DAVE: I’m wondering what your childhood was like. It can’t have been easy. We’re you taunted a lot?

DOUG: Taunted?

DAVE: You know…I’m rubber and your glue everything you say bounces off me and sticks to you.

DOUG: Actually I was the rubbery one.

DAVE: Oh…still rubber and glue, it does bespeak of a connection to prosthetics.

DOUG: Hmmmmm….rubber and glue….I never would have put that together.

DAVE: I’ve learned a lot of that from therapy.

DOUG: I’ll bet. The monsters I struggled with growing up had to do with my own insecurity. Believe it or not I was a tall skinny kid. Who would have thought that?! I wasn’t really good at athletics etc. so I got teased a lot. I guess my response to that was to become the class clown. Which in many ways is like hiding behind a mask which is what I do now- just sort of becoming whatever the directors dress me in.

DAVE: Dave: Is that why Guillermo called you Doug The Bug during the Mimic shoot.

DOUG: Guillermo didn’t…

DAVE: Oh come on… we both know you love it. After all you did the Weird Al Show.

DOUG: Oh man! I did five episodes! Al had this huge remote he would use to channel surf and he would stop at these clips we created where I was a fitness guru. Noone has ever asked me about that before. Thanks for digging it up. I wouldn’t turn down the chance to do a kids show.

DAVE: I was thinking a kid’s show featuring the hand eye creature from Pan’s …

DOUG: Actually that’s kind of disgusting.

DAVE: But you’re so good at disgusting!!

DOUG: UH… you know the room is filling up with people here and I guess I’m needed elsewhere.

DAVE: Sure just leave me your agents number so I can…hello...