INTERVIEW: Jason Brooks tries to survive Animal Planet’s ‘Blood Lake’

In the spirit of 1950s monster movies, Animal Planet is set to premiere Blood Lake: Attack of the Killer Lampreys Sunday, May 25 at 9 p.m. Starring Shannen Doherty, Christopher Lloyd and Jason Brooks, the movie showcases a terrorized Michigan town that tries to fend off killer lampreys, a strange-looking, eel-like animal with rows of sharp teeth.

There’s tongue-in-cheek hysteria and plenty of bloodletting to go around.

Recently, Hollywood Soapbox exchanged emails with Brooks, an alum of Days of Our Lives.

These monster movies often have a fair balance of comedy and genuine scares. How did you approach your role? Was it all serious all the time?

I approached it seriously.  There are a lot of lighter moments and everyone played those, but I think a movie like this only works if there’s a serious crisis on hand. I think that allows the scarier moments to have a bigger payoff.

Growing up were you a big fan of monster movies? Are you still a fan?

What was the most challenging aspect of filming Blood Lake?

Working with the effects. It takes a lot of trust and imagination to play off of things that will be drawn in later.

Could you describe your experiences working with Shannen Doherty and Christopher Lloyd?

Working with Shannen was a blast!  She’s a very underrated actress and has a wicked sense of humor. Like pretty much everyone else on earth, I’m a huge fan of Christopher Lloyd. I used to watch him on Taxi and, of course, the Back To the Future movies. Working with him was awesome!

Had you ever heard of a lamprey before the project? Do you have a fear or love of the water and what possibly lurks beneath?

I’m pretty sure I had heard of them, but I had no idea what they really were. They’re really kind of creepy animals. They’re designed to suck blood from their prey! I do have a fear of lurking water creatures, which I acquired after Baywatch Hawaii. I feel like I used up all of my good luck in the water on that one.

By John Soltes / Publisher / John@HollywoodSoapbox.com

• Blood Lake: Attack of the Killer Lampreys premieres on Animal Planet Sunday, May 25 at 9 p.m.