Described as The Breakfast Club meets The Grudge, we caught up with the creators of the dark comedy-thriller mini-series titled: Bad Kids Go To Hell.
Dan Royer: Hey guys thanks for taking time to talk with me about Bad Kids Go to Hell. Would you mind sharing with us what the series is all about?
 Matt Spradlin: It's really about greed. And retribution. And the sins of the father.
And it all plays out in the library of a private school in an affluent
mid western suburb with 5 spoiled young kids who think there are no
consequences to being just like Mommy and Daddy. Imagine Paris Hilton,
Lindsay Lohan, and a few douche bags from 'The Hills' all being locked up
in detention for 8 hours.. when suddenly, the Reaper comes a callin' !
Barry "Bazza" Wernick: As cool, as popular, and as entitled as these “bad” kids think they are, even daddy’s money can’t save them. Simply put…it’s spoiled rotten rich kids getting their just desserts…who wouldn’t root against them?
Dan Royer: How did the idea for Bad Kids Go to Hell come about?
Barry "Bazza" Wernick: I love movies. Sit me down in a theater and when the lights go down, I am easily transported into another world. And after slapping down $10 for a movie, I’ll give just about any movie a chance…I mean I never walk out of a movie….well almost never…A few years ago I saw a movie (name withheld to protect the guilty) in which the teen stars’ acting was so atrocious that after about 15 minutes I couldn’t deal with it any longer. Just as I was getting up from my seat to leave...it happened…the only thing that could happen to get me to stay and want more…one of the characters in the film dies an inescapable harrowing death. It pulled me in…I sat right back down rooting out loud for the rest of the cast to die even more harrowing deaths. I realized I was rooting for these actual actors to die…not the actual characters they were playing. It wasn’t long after that I was working on an idea for movie with a different twist on a similar idea…one in which the audience would root for the next death of each character…not of the actor himself. Matthew and I had seen a couple of movies out in Beverly Hills one day, and I brought up the idea to him. He and I had grown up only a few miles apart from one another in affluent North Dallas . I was the private school kid and he had to go to the public school where all the rich kids went if they couldn’t get into mine…DIG! (TBC with MS)
Matt Spradlin: Barry and I were coming out of a movie in Beverly Hills when we caught
bits and pieces of a conversation between a group of high school kids.
They sounded like a group of jaded 40 yr olds who had gone through
rehab and divorce. They were just over it.
Barry and I started trading stories about our respective high schools
and basically came to the conclusion that Daniel Waters' film
'Heathers' and all the John Hughes movies would be rolling over in
their film vaults if they could hear what kids were like today... So
we agreed: An update on the 80's teen horror comedy was needed.
Dan Royer: The book is kinda a take on The Breakfast Club. Were you big fans?
Matt Spradlin: Absolutely, John Hughes really had his finger on the pulse on the
disenfranchised youth of the 80s , just as the real cynicism was
setting in... and then Daniel Waters' came along and nailed the coffin
shut. In my opinion those films STILL hit closer to the mark than most
"high school is hell" films today, which in itself, is a reflection of
kids today... meaning more films bump along the surface, cause, from
what I can observe, more kids are into creating a superficial
lifestyle.
Barry "Bazza" Wernick: Huge! All those movies…so good…But they needed a well deserved update.
Dan Royer: What kinds of things can we expect from this series?
Matt Spradlin: Blood, of course! But also, we wanted to make sure to keep touching
on the characters insecurities briefly as we go fifth gear into the
mystery, horror, and comedic aspects of the story.
I personally love physical comedy, so we decided to keep putting the
character 'Matt' through the wringer with some outrageous situations.
Hopefully, people dig on those flashbacks.
Barry "Bazza" Wernick:
The first issue is good…the second is killer…and it only gets better and “badder!”
Dan Royer: So how did you all come together to create this book?
Matt Spradlin: Barry and I wrote the script and then I set out to find the artist.
Tony Vargas was just the perfect match. His style is what I call
"realistically unrealistic". He draws characters just real enough to
let the serious moments play out, but is stylized in a way that lets
you get away with the sillier stuff.
Barry "Bazza" Wernick: Matthew introduced me to the whole idea of turning our script into a comic book. I was sold on the idea immediately. When Matthew showed me the first few rough sketches of the characters and scene settings that Tony had drawn…I knew he had read our script…but had know idea he had been reading my mind too!
Dan Royer: Was Antarctic Press quick to jump on board with the title? Personally I
haven't seen a lot of horror titles coming from them in the past.
Matt Spradlin: Yep. I pitched the idea at Lee Duhig and he said, "Let's do this." We
stayed out of each others way, which was ideal for both of us. After
I found the artist and they approved, things moved very quickly from
there.
Barry "Bazza" Wernick:
Way to go Mateo!
Dan Royer: So what types of books are you into?
Matt Spradlin: While I don't really read near as many comics as I use to.. I dig the
grittier 'non-fiction' stuff like Brian Michael Bendis' 'Torso', I
also loved Straczynski's 'Rising Stars'.. and Dave Sims' 'Cerebus'
will always have a place on my heart. I started reading that series
when I was in middle school and it was cool to watch it come to an end
with issue 300 (like he always said it would). That comic truly was a
labor of love and the work of a great artist.
Barry "Bazza" Wernick:
As a kid it was Captain America …I sort of zone in on what I like and stick with it for a while…Sometimes it’s a theme or genre…other times it’s the writer/creator or artist… The last several years it has been Frank Miller all the way for me…and for so many reasons (see Captain America above).
Anthony Vargas:
I have a whole range of indy books. Many "Fables" issues and trades are among my favorite to read. I also dip into the very mainstream comics too. I tend to pick up my old Spawn comics from time to time. Those are the ones that really got me into the idea of being a comic book artist. Greg Capullo was phenomenal.
Dan Royer: Were you into any horror titles growing up that lead you to want to create a book like this?
Matt Spradlin: Old school all the way for me - magazines like CREEPY and EERIE. And
then of course, Vault of Horror. Also, DC Comics put out this large
sized comic book that I still have stashed away which had some really
scary 'Creepshow' style stories that were awesome.
Barry "Bazza" Wernick:
I don’t know…my mom never allowed us to have comics in the house…but I found a way to get my hands on Tales from the Crypt…had no idea what I was reading until I got older…much older…I just knew it creeped me out and knew that at the same time I was being creeped out I really liked it…sort of warped…I know…but maybe that’s why I had to write a horror…
Anthony Vargas:
I didn't read many. I have one "Horror" book sitting in my collection right now. It was the only one that I ever read that actually scared me. Also, in the 90's I was really into Spawn. (as I mentioned) He was dead, does that count?
Dan Royer: Do you have any other books in the works?
Matt Spradlin: Yes. We have a couple of 'one-offs' (48 pages) that we plan to do..
It will be some fun stuff, but not horror.
Barry "Bazza" Wernick: We have a couple of more comedy oriented projects…mini-series and “one-offs.” I also have a comedy feature film I wrote, directed, and starred in called Shoots & Ladders which should be hitting the film festival circuit later this year.
Anthony Vargas:
Currently I'm in talks with another company to do a book with Scott Lobdell. We'll see what happens with that. Wish I could give you more details, but I'm afraid someone will send ninjas to poke me in raw areas.
>EEEowch<
Dan Royer: How does it make you feel finding out that issue #1 has sold out?
Matt Spradlin: That's just fantastic...it absolutely exceeds all my expectations, who woulda thunk it?
Barry "Bazza" Wernick: The buzz going around our bad “little” comic book is unreal. So many people have told us they wanted to give it a shot simply for its title. But what makes it even sweeter is when you see a posting on MTVSplashPage “unofficial” polls from someone whose favorite comic of the week was a tie between Green Lantern #43 and Bad Kids Go to Hell…How cool is that?!?!?
Dan Royer: Where can readers find out more about this book?
Matt Spradlin: We have a facebook group that is like a mini-mafia right now, but
we're thinking of expanding our ranks a little... and you can follow
us on that frikkin' twitter. (http://twitter.com/BadKidsGoToHell)
Barry "Bazza" Wernick: Search for us on Facebook, Follow us on Twitter @BadKidsGoToHell, or just check out our website www.badkidsgotohell.com …you can also register for email updates about all upcoming events, signings, and promotions at http://visitor.constantcontact.com/manage/optin/ea?v=001_Ke66uLjz74vzQNjERDTUA%3D%3D
Anthony Vargas:
Just simply type in Bad Kids Go to Hell in your favorite search engine to fine out more. Then take a trip to the comic book shop and get a copy!
Dan Royer: Any last words on the book or to possible readers out there?
Matt Spradlin: Yes, please spread the word! And pester your local comic store to
order the next issues. And make some serious racket about Tony
Vargas. The guy worked his ass off and this is his very first full
series. He's gonna be a hot shot and you can say. 'I've got the first
series that dude did!"
Barry "Bazza" Wernick:
Come see us at Comic-Con! We’ll all be at the Antarctic Press booth signing away…and don’t forget to dress up as a bad private school kid…in uniform…and the first 100 who do will get a free Bad Kids Go to Hell backpack…
Anthony Vargas: I hope you enjoy the book as much as I enjoyed working on it! Both Matt Spradlin and Barry "Bazza" Wernick are excellent writers, you won't be disappointed!
Dan Royer: Thank you for your time,
guys! Best of luck with this book!
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