Interview: Barbara Crampton Talks To JoBlo About Her Recent Horror Hits!

Last Updated on November 1, 2024

Barbara Crampton managed to be a horror darling in the 80s with films like Re-Animator and From Beyond. Then she had a major career resurgence in the 2010s with films like You’re Next and Jacob’s Wife. This has led to her producing and being a beloved name in the horror genre. She’s become a voice and champion of underheard creatives and is always a big cheerleader for Independent Horror. So to see Crampton’s name attached to any project is enough to build intrigue, as it carries a lot of weight. Hell, Suitable Flesh was one of last year’s best movies and this year’s Last Stop In Yuma County has a similar privilege. She knows how to pick great roles.

When I spoke to Barbara last year, it was in the midst of the strikes, so she was only allowed to talk about a film that had a strike exclusion: Onyx the Fortuitous and the Talisman of Evil. Which really sucked as the wonderful Suitable Flesh had also just released. But fortunately this time, we were not constrained by any pesky SAG rules, so we were able to talk about all sorts of great films from her career. So we touched on the short film The Blue Diamond, where she continues to champion creative minds and gets a very fun role out of it. We discussed her working relationship with Joe Lynch, who she absolutely adores. This was a great chat where we talked about the difficulties of the strike, how the industry is still struggling, and why it’s so important to support new voices.