Horror movies &stuff Interviews "Hybrid" comic and film writer Peter Kwong
We recently got an opportunity to talk to "Hybrid" comic writer Peter Kwong, who's 4-issue Horror/SCI-FI Comic series "Hybrid" (Review), has gotten rave reviews ever since it's initial release. The comic focuses on four college students who come across what appears to be an abandoned trawler while on a sailing trip. They soon discover it is the nest of a mutant creature, born of environmental abuse, who "fishes" for humans in the open water. Studio 407 and Myriad Pictures recently announced that they're moving forward with a film adaptation of the comic, which is slated to begin production this year. In this interview, we talk with Kwong about the comic, the film, and more!
MR. H:Tell us about your background, where were you born and raised, and how did you get into comic writing?
Peter:I was born in Hong Kong, but my family immigrated to Sacramento when I was 4, so all my memories of growing up are from there. Of course, like a lot of children in the age before the internet, Napster, and Wii, my imagination was fired by things like comic books and movies. I gravitated to comic books at first, especially the DC line. Not only reading them, but creating, writing, and drawing my own. I think I figured out pretty early that my skills didn't lay in the field of comic book artist. But it did teach me to think graphically, and conceptually. This was really my first encounter with how to tell a story, so I naturally brought those skills over to when I became more and more involved in filmmaking.
MR. H:How did you originally come up with the story for "Hybrid"?
Peter:I was thinking of doing something that was conceptually simple, which is always the best way to go with a genre, yet, something in a setting where I could play with established rules and make it more interesting. I have a natural fear of the water, being the only adult in the world who can't swim, so that was a good place to start. And tales of the open water have always fascinated me, ever since I read Rudyard Kipling's "Captain's Courageous" as a kid. There's something about it that screams strange and adventurous. Even in our interconnected world, the water remains a vast enigma. It's such a natural for a scare piece. I mean, you look around you, and there's nothing! And it's not like the woods, where you can keep running. Once I came up with the setting, it was a matter of figuring out exactly what kind of horror I wanted to make.
I thought of doing something ghostly, but that never worked for me, and I think a movie called "Ghost Ship" had just been released. The other option was to do a creature movie, and that's when things clicked. It'd been awhile since we'd seen a really good, original creature in the pop lexicon. I don't know if I've got something THAT good - I'll leave that up to the audience - but this became a real opportunity to add to the dialogue. And a creature movie also brings along elements of social commentary (at least the good ones do), that helped me think of this not simply as just a "dead teenager" story. Everything kind of sprung from those two elements: setting and villain.
MR. H:Did you use any previous sea-monster movies, stories, etc. as your inspiration for the comic?
Peter:Obviously anyone doing a suspense story on the water is going to be compared to JAWS. It's pretty much the hoop through which all sea monster movies have to jump through, and I did adopt elements of that, particularly in the humor and warmth of the characters, which is an underrated asset of that movie. I also looked at DEAD CALM, OPEN WATER, and KNIFE IN THE WATER, because they specifically weren't horror movies, but character driven thrillers. I think you fall into a trap of looking at horror when you're writing horror, or looking at comedy when writing comedy. I try to do the opposite: writing horror but thinking comedy; or writing comedy, but thinking drama. I actually avoided looking at things like ALIEN or PITCH BLACK or even the original CREATURE FROM THE BLACK LAGOON. It helps keep you from being sub-consciously influenced by things that might be similar to what you're doing.
MR. H:I noticed that in the comic, the lead female Brooke is a very gentle, typical college girl at the beginning of the story. But once she is faced with this monstrosity, along with the kidnappers she quickly kicks into survival mode. Where did you come up with the idea for her character to be the tough one as opposed to one of the male characters being the tough one?
Peter:There's a common belief, which I just happen to agree with, that a horror story is more effective when the protagonist is female. There is just a greater element of emotion and fear, as opposed to having an alpha male as the lead. Also, it's an opportunity to surprise the audience, especially when, as in the case of Brooke, she begins meek then has to become a bit of a warrior in order to survive. It's not terribly original, but if you do it right, if you make it believable and back the character in a corner where the audience agrees she has no other option but to fight back, then I think that makes it dramatically sound. I asked myself a lot how I would react in those situations, as fantastic as they are. Sharing a common anxiety about the water with Brooke helped me find those moments and, hopefully, made them believable.
MR. H:How long did it take you to come up with the specific visual design for the Hybrid creature?
Peter:Believe it or not, this has always been the conundrum of this project. As a screenplay, the studios rejected it because people said they "couldn't visualize the creature". I myself had an idea of what the creature should look like, but translating it was left to the artist. The bottom line was we didn't want it to be cheesy. That can mean a lot of things, but some of the designs were clearly going in that direction. Balancing the fish and the man aspect was the tough part, and then making it threatening. I also was adamant that when the audience/reader sees it, they believe that it's possible this thing exists. The creature does do a lot of unique things, but the trick was to not take it so far that people can no longer suspend disbelief. That figured into the look of it, too.
MR. H:Myriad Pictures and Studio 407 will now be teaming up to make the feature film version of "Hybrid". And most people, myself included...would like to know if there have been any talks between Myriad and you about penning the script for the movie?
Peter:Yes. Myriad optioned the draft that was originally done. I did some rewrites based on notes, as is normal in the development process. But the script hasn't changed that much. It's definitely been embellished, and things accented. This was an unusual case where the development process actually helped the script.
MR. H:Ernie Barabrash has been chosen to direct "Hybrid". Have you talked with him as of yet, and what do you think of his vision for the movie?
Peter:Yeah, Ernie and I are in fairly regular contact. I think Ernie and I are pretty much on the same page as far as seeing the story on the screen. We both know that it won't work if we just do a straight forward gore film. One thing I've been pleasantly surprised about Ernie is that a lot of his comments revolve around getting the characters right. Normally, it's "we're ten pages into the script and nobody's died or taken their top off". But with Ernie, he's really taken the character's to heart, and that is promising.
MR. H:Are you going to be involved in the movie on any other level as far as producing, consulting, etc. is concerned?
Peter:I would love to be. It really depends on the director's comfort level with having the writer hovering around. My door is always open, let's put it that way. I volunteered to be in the creature suit, but I don't think I make the height requirements.
MR. H:In the comic, the Hybrid is a pretty big, hulking fish-creature. How big would you like to see him be in the feature film? For example, as big as Nemesis from "Resident Evil:Apocalypse", as big as the "Cloverfield" monster, or smaller than both?
Peter:Oh it's not a gi-normous monster. At least not how I envisioned it. I think of it more in line with the Alien, large and agile.
MR. H:As far as the film is concerned, are they talking trilogy yet, sequel....or will the movie simply be a one-picture deal for now?
Peter:You know, I have a fantastic idea for a sequel. But a lot of that depends on how the first one does. It certainly screams franchise potential, but I think Myriad is really only focused on getting this one off the ground, and we'll take it from there. But did I mention I had a fantastic idea for the sequel?
MR. H:If you were in charge of casting, who would your dream cast be for "Hybrid" the movie?
Peter:When I write, I always do fantasy casting, putting faces to characters helps me flesh them out. Back 3-4 years when I originally started HYBRID, I always envisioned Mandy Moore as Brooke. I think she's a really good actress, naturally empathetic, with a down to earth quality that makes her believable. I think a strong character actor like Brian Cox would be great for Captain North. Alex Leung, the head of Studio 407, suggested Thomas Jane for Martin, which I thought was an interesting choice. Of course, I don't know who Myriad and Ernie have in mind. I will say, I'm not entirely married to the idea of movie stars for this project. I was thinking about that movie, "Wolf Creek", where the actors are all unknown, and very, very good. There's also a great tradition of movie stars getting their start in horror movies: Jennifer Aniston, Johnny Depp, and, of course, Jamie Lee Curtis. I wouldn't mind playing some small part in finding the next Johnny Depp!
MR. H:What shooting locations are currently being batted around for the feature film version of "Hybrid"?
Peter:They've discussed Thailand, but I think they're settling on Puerto Rico now. It's 97% set on the open water, so story-wise, it's somewhat irrelevant the actual location.
MR. H:What are some of your favorite horror/sci-fi comics, past and present?
Peter:You know, I just watched a lot of the "Twilight Zone" marathon on the Sci Fi Channel, and was reminded how formative those stories were in my early storytelling education. Like I said earlier, HYBRID was a chance to take the monster movie and move it into the 21st century, using elements of what's going on in our world today. A lot of that came from a childhood spent watching "Twilight Zone". As far as comics go, I have a soft spot in my heart for the DC line "House of Mystery". Great anthology series. I also loved the Specter and the Phantom Stranger. When Jim Aparo was drawing those titles, they were just graphically brilliant. There are images that I still find chilling. I'm not as embedded in the current horror comic scene, but I thought Neil Gaiman's "Sandman" series was great, and I loved "From Hell". Alan Moore is a great writer.
End.
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