INTERVIEW: This Halloween, find out ‘Where Monsters Lie’
Image courtesy of Dark Horse / Provided with permission.
Dark Horse’s Where Monsters Lie is back with an all-new volume called Cull-De-Sac. For the unbeknownst, this monstrous comic series follows the character of Connor Hayes, everyone’s favorite final boy. This time around, he’s not only surviving the monsters, he’s actively hunting them down and dispatching them. Issue #1 of this four-issue miniseries is due Wednesday, Oct. 16.
Here’s how Hollywood Soapbox described the first volume of this horrifying series: “The protagonist of Where the Monsters Lie is Connor Hayes, who has lived an unbelievable life of survival against a horde of baddies in the world. He barely escaped a slasher attempt at his summer camp while growing up, and a serial killer almost nabbed him in an orphanage. Now, as an adult and special agent, he wants some revenge on these terrifying monstrosities, and luckily for him, he knows “where the monsters lie.””
Where Monsters Lie is the brainchild of writer Kyle Starks and illustrator Piotr Kowalski, with colors by Vladimir Popov and letters by Joshua Reed. Their collaboration, according to Dark Horse, imagines what would happen if Cabin in the Woods was crossed with Tucker and Dale vs. Evil.
Recently Starks exchanged emails with Hollywood Soapbox to talk about all things Cull-De-Sac. Questions and answers have been slightly edited for style.
Were you delighted by the response to the original Where Monsters Lie?
I was extremely pleased by the response. I was very excited about the premise when I came up with it. I was very pleased with the script, and then I was blown away by Piotr Kowalski’s work on it. Where Monsters Lie, for me, was something that was so much fun to make, and to see that be reflected by readership and retailers responses is, like, everything to a creator. You like to see the work land; you like to see people enjoy it. It’s basically the best thing.
What can fans expect from Cull-De-Sac?
Sincerely? More of the same. Once I heard we were getting to do a sequel, I spent a lot of time getting pretty fancy with the plot for it. Trying to be very clever and highbrow, and I realized that is the wrong direction. To me, Where Monsters Lie is a very tight two-hour horror movie in comic form over four issues. That makes Cull-De-Sac a horror movie sequel. Horror movies sequels are more of the same.
We have a new gated community for slasher killers. We have new monsters! What happens when you dump a final girl turned monster hunting special agent into that mix? I bet nothing good! Oh, and the other survivors from the end of Volume 1 are out there, too — and maybe stopping in a third gated community to find sanctuary?
There’s a lot happening! If you loved Where Monsters Lie’s first volume, you’ll love this one, I hope!
Will Connor Hayes be much older in Cull-De-Sac? Do you feel he has changed since the first story?
Cull-De-Sac starts basically a couple weeks maybe at most after the end of Volume 1. Whether or not Connor has changed is a big aspect of the book. When we end Volume 1 (spoilers) the slasher monsters point out that he’s as good at killing as they are, and they want him on their team — especially since he just offed so many of their killers — and that if he wanted his family safe, including his unborn child, he would come in and do their bidding. Is Connor going to lean into this new psycho cop role and be the new worst monster?
How into horror movies are you? Any favorites that are on repeat viewing?
Oh yeah, I love a good spooky movie, for sure. I am not sure if I have any comfort repeats offhand, but my top modern horror that I’ve definitely watched repeatedly are (in no order): Get Out, It Follows, Barbarian and Cabin In The Woods. I know there are some that I throw on if I see them when looking for a new watch, but I’m blanking outside of my favorite horror-comedies like Tremors or Tucker And Dale.
What’s your working relationship like with Piotr Kowalski?
Piotr was an absolute dream. I know no writer ever says anything bad about their artists, and it probably feels like an expected trope response, but I mean it sincerely. Piotr is very good, and he’s widely professional. Like, he’s a machine and I think a really great fit for this story and the characters. Piotr is great, will work with again happily.
When does the Halloween season start in your house?
Oh man, I am 100% the only person in this house who likes horror movies and spooky things. I have two daughters and a wife, and they all are “hard nopes” when it comes to scary stuff. I got my youngest and a nephew to go with me to a local haunted house a couple years, and they were both like “never again.” I do a lot of spooky reading and research year round, and I watch horror movies all year round. But that film watching definitely starts to ramp up in August and September leading into October where it’s full bore.
What are some Halloween season rituals that you participate in every year?
Haha, like I said, my family is not having it at all. And my girls are grown, but they never [do that much] with it outside of the costumes and candy. But we do do a fair amount of jack-o’-lantern carving in this house. I am an isolated spooky lover here.
By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com
Where Monsters Lie: Cull-De-Sac, written by Kyle Starks and illustrated by Piotr Kowalski, will be released Wednesday, Oct. 16. Click here for more information.
