Simon Pegg goes back to school
SLAUGHTERHOUSE RULEZ I Crispian Mills’ school-set horror sure ain’t no Hogwarts.
In Petts Wood, on the outskirts of London, a protest is taking place. “Don’t frack our future,” reads one sign, strung up in a makeshift camp. Oh, and there’s Nick Frost selling drugs. Sporting gold teeth and teardrop tattoo, “I got ’shrooms,” he yells. Thankfully, the Shaun Of The Dead star hasn’t turned to a life of skulduggery. He’s just one of the delicious elements in Crispian Mills’ new horror-comedy Slaughterhouse Rulez.
Set primarily at a posh boarding school, the story has it that a fracking company - hence the protestors - has created a sinkhole in the nearby woods, which in turn has unleashed an unimaginable horror. Right now, Frost’s character Woody is on a rant to a gaggle of pupils, including Asa Butterfield and Finn Cole. “He’s a very angry man,” explains Frost. “I think he’s angry because he’s quite shit! His gang are quite shit. He’s got a good heart, but he just hasn’t got the backing.”
He’s not the only one who is angry. Frost’s old mate Simon Pegg (who plays a teacher, alongside Michael Sheen’s headmaster) was due to shoot here today, but has been stuck in traffic.
“We lost the light, so he had to go home which was another two-hour trip,” chuckles Frost. “He was a bit cross! I don’t think it helped me sending a text that said: ‘You could’ve got to Gran Canaria in less time.’”
Both Frost and Pegg are heavily involved behind the scenes; Slaughterhouse is the first production for their new company Stolen Picture. “I just think they saw the opportunity here,” remarks writer-director Mills, who previously made 2012’s A Fantastic Fear Of Everything with Pegg. “It’s horror and comedy and recognisable, but it’s also its own thing.” Mills calls it a coming-of-age teen fantasy, like a blend of Lindsay Anderson’s If…. and the Frost-starring Attack The Block, with a bit of John Hughes for good measure. “The movie is about the kids. They are the leads. We’ve got this amazing ensemble of fresh blood,” he cackles, emphasising ‘blood’ in ghoulish tones.
While Peaky Blinders star Cole plays Don, “the new kid at the school” explains the director, there’s a complex hierarchy of fellow pupils, including Hermione Corfield’s Clemsie. “She’s a goddess prefect,” explains the actress. “And Don falls for her.” Then there’s Isabella Laughland as chess geek Kay and Butterfield as Willoughby, a pupil who understands the social structures all too well. With all these youngsters around, it’s left Frost and Pegg in a nostalgic frame of mind. “Simon sent me a little text when he was on last week,” explains Frost. “He said, ‘It’s like Shaun Of The Dead all over again, but this time we’re Bill Nighy!’” Scary thought.
ETA | 31 OCTOBER / SLAUGHTERHOUSE RULEZ OPENS NEXT MONTH.