INTERVIEW: Actor Malcom McDowell talks about Halloween, horror and his favorite Zombie

Malcom McDowell isn't one of the most obvious actors to be appearing at a horror convention, but he's definitely one of the most deserving. He gained cinema immortality with his portrayal of Alex in the 1971 sci-fi classic A Clockwork Orange, and has become one of the more widely recognized and dynamic actors of our time, starring in hundreds of movies and television shows in a career that spans five decades. While his whole catalog will be fair game at this weekend's Fangoria Trinity of Terrors in Las Vegas - where he'll be hosting an exclusive question and answer session tomorrow afternoon at the Palms Casino & Resort's Brenden Theaters - expect a lot of attention to be paid to his role as Dr. Samuel Loomis in Rob Zombie's Halloween and Halloween II.

If you haven't seen Zombie's take on the Halloween classics, it's not too late - The first Halloween is available on DVD, and the remake has been re-released for its current (and timely) return engagement in theaters nationwide. McDowell, meanwhile, can be seen and heard on screens of all sizes. He's currently recurring in Entourage, Heroes and Metalocalypse, was a starring voice in the Disney cartoon Bolt, portrays the President of the United States in the video game Fallout 3, can be caught in syndication on Frasier, and even resurrected Mr. Rourke in the 1998 remake of Fantasy Island. In honor of this weekend's Trinity of Terror festivities, we limited this portion of our exclusive interview to his work with Rob Zombie on the Halloween pictures, but stay tuned for more pieces of our conversation in the coming week...

I’ve know Rob Zombie for years from the musical side of things – What’s it been like working with him as a Director?
Well, I don’t know him as a music guy – I mean, I know his music, of course, but I know him primarily as a director from making the two Halloween movies. He’s a great guy. He’s very relaxed, and he’s very fun on the set. He’s a very smart guy and he’s a lot of fun to work with.

You’ve had such a wide variety of roles and worked with on such a broad range of movies, how much of an impact does the director make when you’re considering a job?
If I was asked to do Halloween by someone I didn’t know anything about, I probably wouldn’t have done it – I can’t say that for sure, because it’s a hypothetical, but the fact that it was Rob… Whether you like him or not, he’s definitely got a great style. He’s an authentic filmmaker, and you want to work with people like that. I’m not particularly a great fan of horror, but having said that, I don’t need to be a fan of it to do it.

It’s interesting that you say that, because when I had the opportunity to talk to you, I was more interested in the diversity of the roles you've played than I was the Halloween movies in particular.
I’m just an actor who wants to entertain people. I don't have anything against horror movies, per say. I don't make moral judgments on the characters I play - If I did, I'd have a very slim career! [Laughing] I’ve played some of the most reprehensible people on the planet, but they’re usually pretty interesting parts. I like to diversify and do different stuff, it keeps me going, keeps it fresh, and it’s fun – the main thing is to have fun and enjoy doing it, because then you can turn the light on behind the eyes. If it’s really just a grind, then you don’t get that and the spark goes out. I haven’t experienced that, and I’m lucky. I’ve done so many weird things sprinkled around good things, my main thing is keeping the standards as high as I can - keeping in mind, of course, that you can only do what you’re offered!

There was so much brutality in the first Halloween movie, I found your character to be one of the film’s more human diversions.
I do play a sort of character that you can work through in a conscious way. He is a doctor trying to do something with a patient… He’s obviously not a brilliant doctor, because he’s had that patient butcher half a town [laughing], but he’s an interesting character. I like him for his buffoonish sort of side. He’s an egomaniac… He’s right all the time, and he tells you why he’s right. When Rob said he was doing the next one, I said I didn’t want to play the same part and asked if we could make it different. He thought that was a good idea, so we sort of made him into a total a--hole in the second one, which I thought was fabulous. Here he was making money out of the tragedy of this poor family, on his book tour riding limos and staying in presidential suites while the rest of the family are drug addicts and completely down and out, the whole deal. It’s fun to do that, because then in the end he can have a little bit of redemption.

You mentioned Rob’s style as being a factor when you chose to take the role in Halloween, so you’d obviously seen his work before and were familiar with his style?
I’d seen his first movie, but I hadn’t seen the second one until I started working with him. I saw The Devil’s Rejects one afternoon, and I was like, “Oh my God!” It’s brilliant! It’s an amazing piece of work!

It is. It’s sadistic and brilliant at the same time.
Holy God, what a mind! He’s really something… It’s not just a slasher movie, it’s way more interesting than that. Yet Rob seems such a calm, cool guy, nothing really bothers him too much. I’ll say, “what about this…” and he’ll say, “yeah, change it…” He’ll tell you if he doesn’t like something, but he’s so relaxed, he’s fabulous! And he’s seen every movie made. Every movie, he knows something about! He’s so knowledgeable, he’s just amazing. I love the guy.

You’re creating a niche for yourself with the metal crowd, between working with Rob Zombie and being one of the voices on Metalacalypse.
It’s more my luck than judgment! I guess it’s because of Clockwork – once you make a movie like that, it stays with you forever and there it is, forever.

A Clockwork Orange definitely isn’t a bad thing to have as the foundation of your legacy.
It’s just such a wonderful, amazingly lucky thing – it was such a great movie to be involved with, and it holds up over time. It’s sort of a gift that keeps on giving! Of course, I’m such a different person than what I was when I made it, but I suppose the voice is the same, and the energy and the point of view, but when you make a movie like that it’s definitely a two-edged sword. People don’t want you to make anything else that’s not like that, yet it’s such a unique work, there’s just one and that’s it… Until they remake it, which I’m sure they will at some point.

(to be continued - click subscribe above to make sure you don't miss Malcom McDowell talking about Fantasy Island, Entourage, and the shows his TiVo is set to record...)