New life for office supplies
In the satirical new movie“Mayhem,” out Friday, a virus is unleashed in an office building and causes the employees to go bonkers, acting out their wildest and most violent fantasies — using desk supplies. Call it a fed-up 9-to-5er’s daydream. “There’s been plenty of times when I’ve been, like,‘You know, this stapler could make for a fantastic blunt-forcetrauma object!’” director Joe Lynch tells The Post, with tongue in cheek.
Here are four office staples that the movie uses in badass ways. — Johnny Oleksinski
Scotch tape
“Wewere constantly coming up with stuff,” director Lynch says of the creativity behind the objects used on set.“Like wrapping Scotch tape around your fingers and mashing it into a bunch of thumbtacks, so you end up having these thumbtack knuckles.”
Staplers
“You know how, especially in superhero movies now, people will flick their wrists and swords will come out?” Lynch says.“This one guy had two staplers — and if you recall, with staplers, they have a kind of swinging, retractable arm. Well, this guy looked like a gladiator ... like Wolverine with staples.”
Paper cutter
That paper cutter in the mailroom has a sinister side.“If you just detach the screw at the end, you have this freakin’ scary-as-hell machete blade that looks like something out of a Jason movie,” says Lynch. An extra brought one to the set and, says Lynch,“They had to dull it down to make sure he wasn’t running around capping people in the head.”
Fire extinguisher
“I deliberately wanted to not have any guns in the film,” says Lynch.“I kinda miss the halcyon days where people would get into a fight ... where it was all fisticuffs.” Instead of firearms, he has leading man Steven Yeun (“TheWalking Dead”) conk two dudes with a fire extinguisher — before spraying them with it.