We caught up with Neil Jackson and asked him about Blade the Series as well as his new film, The Passage.

TheBigBadWolf: Tell us about your new film, The Passage.


Neil Jackson: It's a thriller set in Morocco about an American man who falls for a Moroccan woman. The couple quickly become scorned for their relationship due to Islamic custom until their very lives are in danger.

I got the idea for the film when shooting Alexander in Marrakech, the idea never came into fruition until summer 2005 when I was living in LA. I was at home with my room mate, Mark Heller (who directed The Passage), and we were talking about horror movies and what made good one. I then told him the creepy idea I had had 2 years earlier. He loved it. We pitched it to a producer friend of our and 1 year later we were filming it. It was an incredibly fast turn around, and we ended up attracting the most amazing talent to the project from cinematographers, line producers and costume to the cast themselves, and the post production team.

TheBigBadWolf: Who are the cast members?


Neil Jackson: Stephen Dorff and I play friends Luke and Adam. A new actress, Sarai Givaty, plays the lead girl, Zahra.

TheBigBadWolf: How long did it take you to write this?


Neil Jackson: It was a hard script to write. I had the main idea or device for the ending. We talked long and hard about what makes movies scary and I am not a fan of gore for gores sake. I love hitchcock and the horrors of the seventies that explored suspense. With this end device in place I then had to work backwards to find the script. A little like having the punch line and finding the joke from there.

TheBigBadWolf: Any idea of a release date, yet?

Neil Jackson: Nope. we're in post production now and the film looks amazing. Score is added in April from the composer of "300"'s score, so we're excited about that.

TheBigBadWolf: Is there an official site for the movie yet?


Neil Jackson: Not yet, but I will notify you as soon as there is.

TheBigBadWolf: You have something in common with the lead actor for The Passage, Stephen Dorff. You have both been a thorn in Blade's side. Have you and Stephen Dorff talked Blade at all?


Neil Jackson: Yeah. When we first met we talked about it. He said that he watched the pilot of the TV show and enjoyed it, but didn't realize that was me until the day we met.


TheBigBadWolf: Speaking of Blade, what are your thoughts on how the project left off?

Neil Jackson: All of us involved in it were both surprised and disappointed. We all wanted the show to be a success and also believed that we had the right ingredients to make it so. And the support that was given to us by everyone at Comic Monsters was so en heartening. Thank you.

TheBigBadWolf: Do you have any ill feelings toward Spike TV for letting the show hang in the air for so long before deciding not to pick it up?

Neil Jackson: No. Its a business and they simply made a business decision. I personally think it was the wrong decision, and they currently have nothing on their
schedule, so it that would support my opinion. The show did have a shaky start, with great ratings for the pilot that steadily dropped off as the show continued. The writing however improved and the entire show seemed to find its feet around episodes 5 and 6. From there on the viewing figures started to grow, but it was a case of too little too late for Spike.


TheBigBadWolf: Is there still hope of Blade the Series making a comeback?

Neil Jackson: Not really. there is the glimmer of hope that lessens every day we hear nothing.

TheBigBadWolf: Do you still keep in touch with Jessica, Jill, Nelson and Sticky?


Neil Jackson: Yep, they're all doing great. I had my birthday recently and we all met up for drinks, good guys.


TheBigBadWolf: What was your favorite episode to film?


Neil Jackson: Episode 10, Marcus' flashback sequence. The chance to put more humanity into that character was fun, not to mention finally getting to beat up on someone. The whole episode came out very well I thought.


TheBigBadWolf: Have you ever been out eating somewhere and a Blade fan approached you? Any interesting stories, do you remember the first time?


Neil Jackson: It's happened a few times. It's normally just a bark across a room of "Blade Rocks" or "Yo, Marcus!".

TheBigBadWolf: What would you have liked to become of Marcus Van Sciver?


Neil Jackson: We had already talked about the next season. We all wanted to see Marcus lose that rigid control of his and start getting lost in his own sense of power and grandeur. I know that seems a little more towards the Deacon Frost side of things, but we would have made that very unique. Overall there would have been a lot more fighting for Marcus as he now had enemies on all sides of him. I had trained very hard in Vancouver for the fight scenes, and was very much looking forward to having a few more throw downs with Blade.

TheBigBadWolf: Anything else you would like to say in regards to Blade the Series?


Neil Jackson: Thank you to everyone who watched and supported the show, and for your continued support.

TheBigBadWolf: Thanks for taking the time to do an interview Neil, it was a pleasure to speak with you again. We look forward to your film, THE PASSAGE. You can check out Neil's MYSpace page here or visit his website NeilJackson.net.

Talk about this interview on the BLADE FORUM.