An Interview with Alex Vincent

At Orlando’s Spooky Empire, Andrew and Kinsey had the opportunity to speak with Alex Vincent, best known for portraying Andy Barclay in the “Child’s Play” movie series. Be sure to check it out only at Conventional Relations! Happy Halloween!

How did you get into acting at such a young age?

There was a girl who lived down the street from me and she did commercials and I saw her on TV when I was five. I was like “That’s cool, I want to be on TV,” so that’s how it started.

Was “Child’s Play” the first acting job that you had?

It was my first film that I wasn’t an extra in.

Do you remember what the audition process was like?

Yeah. I had a couple of auditions in New York and a call-back out in LA, where they flew me in. I auditioned against a couple of other kids with the director and producers and everything and I just got lucky.

What was it like acting alongside someone that wasn’t real?

It was challenging because there’s seven puppeteers controlling this doll – seven to nine guys trying to make him move and look just right for the camera. If you’re sharing the screen with Chucky, the take where the doll does the right thing is the one they are keeping, so you have to be “on” every time.

You did a great job! I was rewatching the first movie last week and there are parts where you genuinely looked terrified.

I had a good acting coach.

Did you ever actually meet with Brad Dourif when you were filming the movie?

Yes, beforehand.

Did the movie scare you at all when you first saw it?

Never. It was too much fun: working and doing the same thing over and over again all day. It was a different perspective entirely.

Did your family have any hesitation about letting you be in a horror movie?

My mother didn’t want Andy to die. Besides that, we were all good.

That worked out for you!

Yeah, thank God.

Were there any big differences in making the first one and making the sequel?

I was two years older. You grow up a lot in two years so I was a little more mature. I knew the responsibility I had because I saw the last one in theatres. I knew we were making a sequel. I knew what that meant, to make a sequel. It was a lot more responsibility the second time.

One of the coolest parts of the series is in the second movie where you are in the toy factory fighting Chucky. Is there anything memorable about shooting on that specific set?

All of it was very cool. They made a big maze of all the doll boxes. I remember crawling through a big maze of Good Guy doll boxes. We shot for a long time there, Christine [Elise] would remember it better than I would, but it was very fun.

What was it like revisiting your character as an adult so many years later in “Cult of Chucky”?

It was surreal. We made the first “Child’s Play” in Chicago in the winter, freezing cold. 30 years later, I was playing Andy again in Winnipeg, Canada in the winter, freezing cold. It was really weird. I don’t do much acting really, so it was a lot of pressure and responsibility for me. People had been saying, “Oh they’ve gotta bring you back to this series” for so long. If they brought me back and I sucked up the whole film, that would have been really disappointing.

Did you ever get to keep any of the dolls from the films you worked on?

This one right here is from “Cult of Chucky.”

I know you’ve been doing music production and you have an Associate’s Degree in Recording Arts. Is there anything or anybody that inspired you to go into that field?

Trent Reznor, absolutely. I’ve seen Nine Inch Nails sixty-six times. I bought “The Downward Spiral” the day it came out when I was thirteen years old, so he’s absolutely my biggest inspiration. I have a studio called AV Productions in Clearwater. I’ve been doing that for the past five years and we’ve worked with three hundred artists. It’s been really fun.

I know you’ve also written some poetry books and a few screenplays. Is there anything creatively that you haven’t tackled yet?

I’d like to direct films. I’ve assistant directed on a few independent projects, but never something I took credit for. I just helped. I would really enjoy that. I’d like to direct something that I’ve written. I have a couple screenplays that have been on the shelf, but I hope to make them someday.

I hope that happens too! Since we are at a horror themed convention, are there any horror movies that you consider yourself to be a fan of?

“The Shining.” I’m a big fan of “The Shining.” “Strangers,” I really like that movie. I like horror films that are possible. Mine do not fit in that category, but generally I like the ones that you can relate to as much as possible.

Do you have any upcoming projects?

We’re trying to make a television series that continues where we left off with “Cult of Chucky,” so I really hope that happens.

Would you have a hand in directing that?

No, I wouldn’t expect that at all.

I’ve heard different different things online that they might be remaking the movie. Would you be involved in that?

If the TV series happens, I’d be involved. I think MGM is making some reimagined “Child’s Play” film that has nothing to do with any of us. That’s its own thing.