Ted Raimi Reveals Why Until Dawn Inspired Him In Joining The Quarry - Exclusive
With a history that includes the "Evil Dead" franchise, the Bruce Campbell meta horror comedy "My Name is Bruce," and most recently an episode of "Creepshow," actor Ted Raimi has no doubt worked hard to obtain his iconic status in the horror genre in both film and television over the past 40 years. Not resting on his laurels, though, Raimi has been looking for new avenues of horror to explore, which has led him to "The Quarry," a new, interactive video game that finds the actor in a much different creative space than before.
In "The Quarry," Raimi stars as Trevor, a creepy sheriff in the small town of North Kill — one in a group of terrifying people who nine camp counselors encounter during a deadly night in a remote, wooded area of upstate New York. "The Quarry" attracted a lot of attention leading up to its release since it's the follow-up game to the worldwide smash "Until Dawn" — a 2015 video game about a group of eight young adults who try surviving a harrowing night at a distant mountain retreat.
Among the faithful fans of "Until Dawn" is Raimi, but for reasons that go beyond what players generally expect out of a horror video game.
Raimi loves the combination of jump scares and dread
In an exclusive interview with Looper, Raimi revealed that since he's a big fan of "Until Dawn," it made his decision to become a part of "The Quarry" all the easier. A longtime horror gamer, the actor said he is looking for something beyond jump scares — and both "Until Dawn' and "The Quarry" have that sort of X factor.
"Sometimes, when I play the games, I get bored rather quickly. I'll play it for a couple hours, and I'm like, 'Okay, it's just a bunch of scares,' and then I get bored," Raimi explained. "Honestly, part of the reason I'm so excited to do 'The Quarry' is because I have played 'Until Dawn' extensively. That has got a great combo of jump scares. [It] goes to, 'Bah!' you know? That stuff. But also, you really have to think and get yourself out of those situations. Those tend to interest me more. When I was younger, I liked more of the jump-scare stuff, but now it's getting older, I like the stuff that's a little more dread-oriented as opposed to just jump-scare-oriented."
Raimi says director Will Byles elevates the horror in his games
While "Until Dawn" is unrelated to "The Quarry" from a narrative standpoint, Raimi said the common denominator that takes both games to the next level is director Will Byles.
"You'll find a similar style, but the story is very different, and the style will come from primarily the same director, which is Will Byles," Raimi offered. "Will gets a lot of credit and is notable, for the most part, in the press because of his frenetic directing style and his beautiful lighting and his interesting camera angles."
However, what separates Byles' work from other video games, Raimi said, is the attention the director pays to the casts he works with.
"The reason that game ['Until Dawn'] works so well, and the reason 'The Quarry' is going to work so well is because Will is equally adept at working with actors. It's a very unusual skill," Raimi observed. "Typically, especially video game directors, they're good with actors or they're technically proficient, but Will is both. He puts them together in this to create a truly frightening experience. This is going to blow people away once they start playing it."
Also starring David Arquette, Siobhan Williams, Skyler Gisondo, Lin Shaye, and Lance Henriksen, "The Quarry" is now available in stories and online from Supermassive Games and 2K Games.