The Movie Waffler Interview - BUS PARTY TO HELL Star Sadie Katz | The Movie Waffler

Interview - BUS PARTY TO HELL Star Sadie Katz

sadie katz
Actress Sadie Katz discusses her role in Bus Party to Hell and her quest to track down Bill Murray.







In Bus Party to Hell, out this April, iconic horror actress Sadie Katz plays “a sexed up demon worshiper who wants to f*ck everyone she meets.” The talented and very pleasant actress fills us in on the part, whether she crafted up a backstory for the character, and working with director Rolfe Kanefsky.


bus party to hell poster



Sadie, hello! Lovely to chat! You’re a leading force in indie horror films. I imagine you’ve got to be fond of the genre to do so many horror movies?

Thanks for having me! I think I’ve always been a fan of the genre. Growing up in the '80s, how couldn’t you be? I was a big fan of the Fear Street books...remember those? I also loved Tales from the Darkside and Tales from the Crypt. I was always a chicken though; I still am!  



With your star on the up and up each year, have you noticed the quality of scripts getting better?

Ummm...yes and no. I think sometimes people get a little lazy and I get scripts where someone is like, “horror is so easy and my friend has a camera.” I’d rather not do a script if no one cares about it being good. When you do get a good script though, there’s nothing more thrilling. 



Being a writer, do you ever get to suggest fix-ups or tweaks to films you’re working on? Anything in Bus Party to Hell that you might have suggested?

When I did Blood Feast, I suggested a few changes. Mostly because Goddess Ishtar was sorta a different beast and I wanted to protect the character and myself - and it was a remake and I wanted her presence in the story to feel modern and work in a retelling. I’m so grateful that Marcel Walz (director of Blood Feast) was open to that discussion. Although, I have to say I actually lost some scenes because of it... it just made sense for my character to not always be chatting it up. With Bus Party, Rolfe had a pretty formed character with Joan, and I just sorta had to figure out how to deliver the outrageous dialogue. 



Such a great cast! Did you know any of your co-stars, or the crew, before signing on?

I knew some of them, like Devanny Pinn, because we all sorta hang around the same horror circles. I actually met Corpsy Rhine (the driver at the end of Bus Party) over a decade ago at a Kinko’s when he was only on his second issue of Girls & Corpses. I actually got to write an article for him as well.



How close to the real Sadie Katz is this character? Or is it a radical departure?

To Joan The Bus Driver? A sexed up demon worshiper who wants to fuck everyone she meets? Depends on how many drinks I have. Ha. Kidding. Not really. 



What did you bring to the character besides your performance Anything you were solely responsible for?

I’m sorta proud of bringing the funny and crazy. I haven’t really done horror comedy and I was excited to work with Rolfe on this for that reason. I think my main responsibility was to commit one hundred percent to what was on the page and I’m hoping the audience enjoys it as much as I did playing her. 



Who came up with her look?

The funniest guy, Rick Tripp of Tripp Ink in Las Vegas, who is an award winning tattoo artist and actually hand painted the tattoos on me at his tattoo parlor. He spent a lot of time staring at my tits. The tattoos ended up being a bit of a hassle to figure out but, it was pretty wild on my day off going to lay out at the Vegas pool and being covered in black pentagrams. Crazy.



Did you have a backstory in mind for the character - one that you came up with?

I love this question so much. I always write a complete backstory and journal for the character before I play her. I think it was along the lines of her being raised by her father and brothers and that not going too well for her... they joined the cult and then dragged Joan into it, her being sexualised. I won’t give away more but there’s some demon stuff that gave me nightmares. I’m not great at delivering dialogue but I’m great at pretending - so I try and get my brain really into it and then the dialogue pops out. It’s easy though when the characters have juicy dialogue.



In terms of how you mixed with your co-stars, did you get a lot of rehearsal time beforehand in which you could all get to know each other?

Most of the shooting I did took place in a bus... Rolfe was pretty great at staging it in a way that worked and still allowed some movement. Let’s just say we all got to be pretty close fast in that bus.



We’d be remiss to ask you about The Bill Murray Experience. First up, was it worth it? Was it worth all that work to find the legendary actor?

It was a life journey that I’m really glad I finished. That unto itself is a lesson. The screenings I had were amazing experiences that I think gave me a little respect for finishing a project I talked about for so long. Was it worth it? I don’t know but, I didn’t really have a choice in it - I felt called to the quest. Which, I know is ridiculous but, it’s true. 



When did you decide to make that movie and what was the impetus?

I really was just depressed and wanting to do something fun and something I could control - which, is silly to say really when you’re talking about a film but... I was innocent then! When I started it Bill Murray was doing crazy stuff and was everywhere and honestly, I was lonely and wanted to hear what he might have to say to me. 



Joel Murray mentions that he thinks Bill was aware of your film. Did you ever find out if he was, for sure?

Yes, I had reached out during the process several times to his lawyers. I didn’t want to do anything that offended him and his whole family knew and he saw me with the balloons and all.



Did your experience change you? How rewarding was it, for you, to not only try and chase a Bill Murray experience but make the movie?

It’s funny to me but making this film broke my heart, really. But, also made me proud of myself. The post and even release on the film has been a whole other journey... I don’t know right now because I’m still in the middle of it - I wonder how I’ll feel another year from now. I don’t know. Truthfully, I miss the chase.