Director and Holliston native Adam Green (Frozen, Hatchet) knows a thing or two about what it's like to be stuck in your hometown post-college, working a dead-end job, and pining for the high school girl of your dreams. Green parlayed all that angst into Holliston, a new television series for FEARnet. Green writes, directs, and stars (as himself) — alongside Joe Lynch (director of Wrong Turn 2) — in this "horror buddy comedy" about two average schmoes living in their eponymous hometown. A first for FEARnet — which, until now, has only played horror films and mini-series — the show also co-stars GWAR's Oderus Urungus as Green's imaginary pal and mentor, and Twisted Sister's Dee Snider as the pair's sexually-ambiguous boss, a washed-up rocker who's convinced his Van Halen tribute band is still going to make it. Sound weird? It totally is. I spoke to Green, who was in town to screen the show, about his departure from the movies, working with GWAR's alien leader, and the weird allure of Market Basket.
HOW HAVE THE PRELIMINARY SCREENINGS GONE SO FAR?
Amazing, it’s been a sleepless and crazy trip so far, but last night’s screening in Holliston was easily the highlight of this whole experience. It was crazy. I didn’t know how many people were going to come, or if anyone was even going to care, or if they knew about it and it was standing room only. People sitting on the floor, standing everywhere. It was nuts, and they just loved it. And we got a huge standing ovation at the end, which was amazing and the best homecoming anybody could ever ask for.
HOW MANY PEOPLE WOULD YOU SAY SHOWED UP?
There had to have been maybe 220 or 225, which is probably half the town. So we only had chairs for 150, and were expecting maybe 50 to 100 people to come, and then they just kept coming and coming. So we opened the balcony, and then people started sitting on the floor and they were standing. It was great.
SO I GUESS YOU’RE SOMETHING OF A HOMETOWN CELEBRITY AT THIS POINT?
Um, I guess. But it’s like, just from my class alone, we had so many people to go on to do so many great things that people know about it. Like Kara Wolters — who played basketball in the Olympics — was from my class. She was a huge story because she was, like, seven feet tall in the fourth grade and it’s just a remarkable story about what she went through, and how awful it was growing up, and what she accomplished. And Mike Grier is a National Hockey League player, I think he’s the first American-trained African American hockey player, and he was from my class as well.
MUST BE SOMETHING IN THE WATER.
I guess so. More than fluoride!
