They say you should never meet your heroes, so I — an avid horror fan and, very specifically, longtime stan of Stu Macher — worried heading into my Zoom with Matthew Lillard that somehow I’d walk away disappointed. And, honestly, the actor and dad-of-three wasn’t exactly how I’d imagined him.
He was even better.
As many of us who first fell in love with Lillard watching Hackers in ‘95, the OG Scream in ‘96, or SLC Punk in ‘98 have long suspected, this man is a f*cking treasure. He’s kind, funny, down-to-earth, and endearingly self-deprecating. He’s been happily married to his wife, Heather, for more than two decades, which should be made into a case study in Hollywood. He lights up when he talks about his three kids, 22-year-old Addison, 20-year-old Macey, and 16-year-old Liam.
And fortunately for those of us who make up his fervent fanbase, he’s busier than ever: In addition to signing on for a multi-movie deal to play William Afton from the wildly successful Five Nights At Freddy’s, Lillard can be seen in a small part on Mike Flanagan’s Stephen King adaptation, The Life of Chuck.
He’s also looped Flanagan (Midnight Mass, The Haunting of Hill House) into his new venture — horror-branded tequila Macabre Spirits, the latest line from Lillard’s fandom-centric company, Find Familiar Spirits. The collection’s first release, a premier reposado tequila, is currently available for pre-order and comes with an original novella by Flanagan.
So, there’s a lot to look forward to from our favorite guy. When we caught up, he filled me in on his current projects, whether or not he’d return to the Scream universe, and the one holiday tradition that he looks forward to every year (did not see this one coming).
SM: The entire concept around Macabre is so cool. How did this come to be?
Matthew Lillard: Our belief is that you should provide something to a community that no other brand really acknowledges. It’s not like there’s a whiskey out there building a horror theme — and if they are, they’re just trying to get people to buy their product. Like, slapping a skeleton on a product is not an authentic approach to community.
So, we built this tequila, Macabre Spirits. It’s reposado; it’s delicious. Each bottle is shipped directly to your home, and the whole thing is an unboxing experience. On top of that, you get a scary story written by Mike Flanagan that is incredible. It’s terrifying to read.
SM: What horror fan wouldn’t want that novella?
ML: Right? And it’s so good. It was supposed to be 15k words, and Mike Flanagan was like, ‘Hey, do you mind if I go over? I’m in love with the story.’ Now it’s like 80 pages. I mean, it’s crazy. So our hope is that if fans out there see it, they understand that if you’re going to drink tequila, you might as well drink ours and enjoy a book.
SM: Hell yeah. Now that you and Flanagan are linked, horror fans are definitely going to want more of you two teaming up. Any future plans?
ML: Here’s the good news — he is very busy, and I am very available. If Mike Flanagan is interested in me being in the Flana Fam, I am 100% there for it. I get asked all the time: What movie would you want to be in someday? And my answer has always been the same, which is whatever James Gunn is doing next. We’re good buddies; I love him to death. And now the answer is whatever James Gunn and Mike Flanagan are doing. I just think the world of [Flanagan]. The way he makes movies is delightful, and I hope to be included in this journey again at some point.
SM: One horror franchise you’re definitely signed on for is Five Nights at Freddy’s. I read that your middle child had an emotional reaction to you getting the role because they were so happy for you. Have they given you any feedback now that the first movie is out?
ML: Oh, that’s a good question. They didn’t really give me feedback … I don’t know if we watched the movie together, which would be crazy. I did fly everyone to Toronto to experience the world premiere of Life of Chuck, and I’ll never forget that experience.
The good thing about my family — and it comes directly from my wife — is nobody gives two sh*ts about what I do for a job. They all like the fact that we have a great house and that I can feed the kids, but when it comes to my work, it’s not something that we sit around and celebrate.
So they were very excited I got the job, and then I think the movie came out and they were off at college … My middle kid is an actor in their own right; they’re an incredible actor. And I do think that them seeing me act in films and being able to directly have conversations about it afterward has been really powerful.
SM: I am in a few horror movie groups, and I’ve never seen people talk so kindly or so much about someone as they do you. I know you’re very serious about that connection with your fans. Do you see cons as something you’ll keep doing?
ML: First of all, thank you very much. I really appreciate that. I say it to my wife all the time: If you just say nice things to me, I will take it; I hear it in a very different way. So to say thank you for saying something nice, it’s really lovely. Listen, my whole approach to being famous is that I don’t really care about being famous. The only thing I care about is the value it has for other people.
So, if I have somebody in my line — a queer, non-binary kid in the middle of Kansas, or somebody battling addiction in the middle of any state, USA — and have the ability to make them feel seen or give them a moment of a deep embrace, you just try to pour love into somebody else … That has value in the world and that has value to me, so I’m going to keep doing that.
I say it all the time: You can save a kid’s life in less than a minute. If you can make somebody feel seen, if you make somebody feel important, you could save that kid’s life. It’s exhausting at times, but if you can be present for people, it’s a super powerful moment.
SM: That is a lovely answer. OK, we have to talk about Scream and Stu, the beginning of my unhealthy fixation on bad boys. There was a callback in Scream 6 to whether “you believe he’s really dead.” Did you know that line would be in there?
ML: No, I had no idea. I mean, those boys are, they’re incredible directors. I thought what they did with the last two movies was really fantastic, and I’m sorry to see them leave the franchise. Although that said, Kevin Williamson coming back is great. I think the franchise is in the best hands possible. Look, the reality is that I have no idea what will happen in the future. I am available for the franchise if it makes sense to them and if it makes sense to the fans. I think it’d be fun, but it’s got to make sense.
SM: That’s fair. I’d also settle for a 13 Ghosts sequel with Dennis as the new Withered Lover.
ML: The funny thing is that they’re in the process of making a TV show, and I reached out, like, ‘I don’t think you realize that movie’s so popular.’ So many people like 13 Ghosts. So I was like, ‘You can make me a ghost. I can be available.’ But Hollywood has a very long track record of not caring what I think about what parts I think I’m good for. (laughs)
SM: Oh, god. Yes. We’re putting it out there.
ML: There we go. We’ll take it.
SM: So, what horror movies do you watch every year? I just did my annual Scream rewatch.
ML: I don’t have that… that’s not my jam. The one thing we do have is every year, we go away for Thanksgiving. My family and I go up to Seattle — where my mom and dad are, where my sister is — and our family, the five of us, will sit on the couch and watch The Great Pottery Throw Down, which is like a pottery competition show that we watch every year and I’m absolutely in love with.
Actually, that’s my No. 1 holiday. It’s zero pressure. It’s a lot of time with my kids, and we get to watch The Great Pottery Throw Down. So, I’m excited.
