Unlike Halley’s Comet, movies about meteors come along every couple of years or so, and fall into one of two categories plotwise: giant space rock about to crash into Earth and almost ending human existence, or parasite-inhabiting meteorite crashing into Earth with monstrous results. However, DEAD SHADOWS, an upcoming French horror film from director David Cholewa, serves up a new take on the space-rock subgenre, as actor John Fallon (of whom we have a couple of exclusive pics) tells Fango.

In DEAD SHADOWS, which we last reported on here, a new comet is about to appear in the night sky over Paris, and everyone in Chris’ (Wolfrom Fabian) apartment building is gathering for “apocalypse parties.” However, the young man (whose parents were brutally killed 11 years ago, the same night Halley’s Comet flew over Earth) soon notices that people are beginning to act strangely disoriented, soon escalating into violence and then mutating into otherworldly creatures. With the help of gun-toting ne’er-do-well John (John Fallon), Chris must fight to make it out of the building alive. Fallon, whose credits include DEADEN and DEATH RACE, tells us that while the film is still in post, “From what [I’ve seen] thus far, the flick is closer to NIGHT OF THE COMET than SLITHER in feel—mixed in with a pinch of DEMONS 2 and PITCH BLACK for good measure.”

Sounds promising enough, though time will tell if DEAD SHADOWS will be able to top SLITHER in at least two aspects: the excellent blend of CGI and prosthetic FX and the high body count. Fallon doesn’t seem worried: “There’s definitely a lot of death. There are a lot of messy mutations. There’s a mix of practical [FX] and CGI. Some of it is practical enhanced with CGI, other times it’s just one or the other. But there are a lot of visual effects in the picture—and a lot of kills.”

The mayhem provides the backdrop for an emotional story of an orphaned young man in need of a (homicidal) male role model, according to Fallon. “Once all hell breaks loose, my character becomes a father figure to the young lead—one who is all about tough love, and has no time for weak-tit behavior, but a father figure nonetheless.” The character, also named John (“Big stretch there,” the actor deadpans), left a lot of room for interpretation. “When I got the script, he was very vague and mysterious, which I thought was kind of cool because it gave me the opportunity to make my own decisions and define him the way I saw him—come up with a background, why’s he like this, why’s he like that. John was always basically a man who hates people, is very angry, and once the shit hits the fan, he finally finds himself in a scenario he’s comfortable in. Basically, he’s good at killing, and it’s time to kill.”

Good thing, too, as the genetically altered creatures they’re up against are on the same wavelength. “The mutants’ behavior varies from one to another. Some are total off their rocker, while others are more controlled in their evil ways. They're not happy campers, and have pretty much one thing on their minds: kill.” 

It’s perhaps no coincidence that Fallon’s character is named after him, as he and first-time director Cholewa are good friends. “I knew David from a couple of years back,” the actor notes. “He was a fan of my [Arrow in the Head] site, we met at the Cannes Film Festival and just hit it off. He had told me back then, ‘One day I’ll make a movie, and I want you in it.’ He stayed true to his word, and offered me the role. The script [by Jule Vincent] looked good, I dug it and I took [the part]. In terms of working with him, it was an immense pleasure. He was open—open to suggestions, open to feedback. He didn’t take anything personally; he just took in what you told him and made his own decision accordingly, and I appreciated that. We had a very good chemistry, and we’re pretty good friends at this point.”

Up next for Fallon is a project he has written himself, which doesn’t sound like it’ll disappoint as far as hard-R hellraising goes. “I’ve finished a script for an American movie company, and part of the deal is that I have a lead in it. I can’t really say anything because the producers haven’t released it to the media yet and I don’t want to get in trouble, but needless to say, the script is incredibly violent, with a lot of sex—like, really smutty. It’s kind of like a throwback to ’70s grindhouse pictures but on steroids and LSD. They’re going to be shooting in LA, and should be announcing it pretty soon. That’s supposed to start shooting at the end of March.”

Watch DEAD SHADOWS’ trailer below, and check out its official site and Facebook page, as well as Fallon’s blog. 

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