Broken Frontier

The second issue of Devil’s Due’s inaugural Chucky mini-series hit stands today, so BF turned to the title’s mastermind, Brian Pulido, for a quick chat on the star of Child’s Play.

BROKEN FRONTIER: How big of a Chucky fan are you? Were you digging the Child’s Play franchise right from the start?

BRIAN PULIDO: I’m a huge super-slasher fan. 80’s horror rules. The first Child’s Play was a great combination of horror, action and irony. I mean, he’s a doll, right? But if you go back and look at that flick, Chucky is driven and relentless like the Terminator.

BF: In light of that, what was it like getting offered the chance to write his comic book?

BP: Totally exciting! As soon as I heard DDP had the rights, I went right up to them and asked for the opportunity to pitch. After I sent in my story idea I figured it would take a few weeks to hear back. Both DDP and Universal approved the story in less than an hour.

BF: Going into the adaptation, what did you single out as the key elements that had to be included in the comic?

BP: From the git go, I let everyone know that I saw this story more more “saw” than “Seed”, if you know what I mean. I like Chucky pissed off and tortured. He’s really a criminal, serial killer stuck in a doll body. Being plastic, there’s only so much he can feel when he’s killing. Hell, his wiener is plastic. How fun can that be?

I see Chucky as having a chip on his shoulder. He’s never been hailed as one of the great serial killers like Dahmer or Gacy. That pisses him off.

Key elements – horror, suspense, irony, characters you may care about. As fun as Chucky is, you need to be invested in the good guys.

BF: Was it difficult to ‘get’ Chucky, and to have him come across like he should on the printed page?

BP: For whatever reason, when I write horror franchises like Chucky, I simply channel the character. Whether it is Freddy, Jason , Leatherface or Chucky, I seem to “get” the character, their story franchise, everything about them, at a subconscious level.

The fans have been telling me that when they read the story, they hear Brad Doriff, they hear Chucky.  That is very gratifying because that is my goal. I want to give them the character they love in a story that is a bit of a twist on their expectations.

I never want to change the character. The characters in their essence are terrific. Some of the movies veer off from the story design, but the characters are eternal.

BF: How does writing a licensed property compare to scripting something of your own creation, like your various series at Avatar Press? Do you have a lot of creative freedom doing Chucky?

BP: It is surprisingly easy, though I expected it to be very challenging. Out of all the New Line books I wrote – about 14, I think – I was only asked to re-write one scene (and honestly that scene was deliberately over the top. I wanted to see how far they were willing to go).

Chucky has been a breeze. Universal, DDP and my editor Mike Sullivan have given me all the freedom in the world to tell my story. I appreciate their trust. I see myself as a caretaker of a great American Icon!

BF: The reviews for the first issue have been positive. Where’s the story going from here?

BP: Chucky is feeling empty simply killing people off and he’s psychotically angry at Jade and Jessie. After all, they prevented him from assuming a human body.

Though he cold kill Jade and Jessie easily, he decides it would be much more satisfying to dismantle their lives.

All goes according to his plan, but maybe Jade has been prepared for Chucky’s return. Maybe Chucky has inadvertently forged her into something even he can’t imagine. Something horrifying.

BF: Are you going to be involved in any future Chucky projects following the current miniseries’ conclusion?

BP: At the moment, no, but I’m always up for more horror!

Check back here tomorrow for an Inside Look with Brian Pulido on Chucky #2.