If you don’t know the name Brian Krause by now, then chances are you are living under a rock. Having been in the industry for nearly three decades, Krause has been seen in films like Return to the Blue Lagoon and Stephen King’s Sleepwalkers. Most audiences will remember him for his role of Leo Wyatt on the hit TV series Charmed. Krause stars as the titular hero in The Demonologist, which has hit VOD and Digital HD to start off the new year!
During the hiatus of the last week of 2018, World Film Geek got to talk to Krause about his new role in a phone interview.
Thank you so much Brian for talking about The Demonologist. I’ve been a fan of your work and this is one of your best roles, such a great story with twists and turns and a badass character in you.
Nice! Thanks!
What attracted you to the role of Damien, the titular Demonologist?
Ah, I think initially it is the anti-Leo. I wanted to do something darker than what I’ve been doing for the last couple of years. To start getting a little “badassery” if you will.
Well, you sort of did that when you played the monster in Sleepwalkers, so you know that level of badassery, I think. (Laughs). What was it like working with writer-director J.M. Stelly? Did he give you any free reign on how to bring Damien to life?
Stelly’s great! He’s become a great friend. He talked a lot about the character and yeah, he did give me plenty of free reign. And not just him. Working with Dane Rhodes (who plays Damian’s partner Frank), he is just a master. It was all about being a detective and then the transition. As Stelly said on the set, he wants more. Wants more! (Laughs)
(Laughs) That is awesome! What would you consider to be your favorite scene of the film? Mine is when you finally unleash your powers for the first time to save Abigail. After what you did, without spoiling it, it left my jaw dropping!
That is an awesome scene! It was his first metamorphosis, like coming out the cocoon. I think my favorite scene is when I’m searching the house and then Frank shows up and asks him what he is doing there, and you have to go home and all that. That whole scene was improvised. Stelly just set up the cameras and said go for it!
That is amazing! I never imagined that scene would be improvised but only showed that natural chemistry and it was so emotional.
Yeah! Like I said, Dane is a master and I think we did five different takes of that one scene. I haven’t actually seen the movie yet, so I don’t know which one they took. There was a multitude, but this was definitely one of my favorite to shoot. We had that freedom and it was actually the last day of shooting. We’ve already been there and developed everything, so we know what we had gone through. It was what I know and what’s in store for Damian. I think it was that spontaneity of life.
Did you face any challenges during shooting?
We films in 10 days. Very low-budget movie. The challenge was just getting it done. It was like we didn’t have time to do all these takes. We had to do maybe one take, then keep going. For me, the challenge was getting it down on one take but I think it was more of a challenge for the crew. I mean everyone from the make-up artists to cameraman, moving everything around and it was a challenge for them to get it all done within ten days.
I can imagine. Well, you’ve done practically all genres of film, from horror to drama. What would you consider to be your favorite genre to work with?
I love horror, sci-fi, and the make believe. They are so much fun to shoot. Whether it is a fantasy film or a horror film, it is just so much fun. Drama is great as well, I like sinking my teeth into something that’s real or something that’s really real. Some of the movies I’ve done have been quirky and silly. But, it’s so much fun to make, man!
Well, many know you for your role as Leo in Charmed. What are your thoughts on the recent reboot that is airing on the CW?
I haven’t watched it, but my honest opinion is that I feel quite flattered that they did something that the fans wanted to see more of. It’s a compliment to what the girls created, what the writers created, and the whole world that was created. So, it is quite flattering. But I haven’t seen it. I do hope it takes off though for the fans sake. I hope they did what the fans wanted.
This film looks like it could be a set up for a sequel and I for one, would love to see Damian return and kicking some more demon butt! Are you willing to return to the role if it comes up?
Nice! I think Stelly has something in mind with what he wants to do with it, making this a set up film. For me, it would be fantastic because there’s no real transformation here. We’re badass. We’re kicking ass! So, hopefully this becomes a success and goes over the world with the fans. If we do a sequel, I hope we don’t have just ten days. I hope we will be able to make something more amazing.
Finally, are there any new projects you are working on?
I just finished a movie called Wendigo, but that won’t be out for a while, but yes, I am working on a film with my good friend Mark Rolston called Michael with Me. It’s a docudrama about homelessness in America It’s about the unlikely friendship between this man and a homeless man, which changes the man’s views on homelessness. It comes from the streets so it’s about recovery and mental health.
It’s actually based on the true story of Mark Rolston, who you might know from Aliens and Shawshank Redemption (and Best of the Best 3 and Rush Hour). It’s about his friendship with Michael Testano, who is actually homeless, and he is playing himself in the film. He’s phenomenal and it’s a great story. We’re trying to change to a different look and show people that homeless are people too. That’s something we’ve been working on for the past few days. We’re shooting it out of our backyard basically.
The Demonologist comes to VOD and Digital today! Any fan of supernatural films, horror films, and superhero like films will want to see this to see Brian Krause kicking all sorts of demon butt and I do hope there will be a sequel. Thank you so much for talking about the film!
Yeah!!! Thank you so much for having me!
A special Thank You goes to October Coast and Brian Krause for making this interview possible.
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