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As you are waiting for Behind the Mask II: The Return of Leslie Vernon, did you know there is a short film set in the same world? That’s right! David J. Stieve, the writer of the original as well as the upcoming sequel, has given us a further look into Glen Echo in his short film Wait For It. …and perhaps even a glimpse of our favorite Glen Echo killer…
To a New World of Killers and Monsters!
As established in Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon, the town of Glen Echo resides in a world where fictional slasher killers are real. Freddy Krueger, Jason Voorhees, Michael Myers, even Charles Lee Ray are all actual people; as are their killing sprees.
To the keen observer, the film is riddled with horror movie references. From props to locations, genre fans will enjoy a scavenger hunt of goodies!
When iHorror asked about a particular house with a red door in the background of a scene, Stieve confirmed our suspicions. The house behind actress Lily Ann Harrison on a darkened street is the actual house used in 1984’s A Nightmare On Elm Street!
“Yes! Talk about guerrilla filmmaking! My DP Franklin Guerrero, Jr. had to use this little handheld camera, and Lily Ann Harrison had to pretend to just be hanging out on a Hollywood sidewalk in the middle of the night until it was go-time. I think we shot it twice and ran away like we’d just TP’d the place!”
iHorror also took the opportunity to ask the writer and director how his affinity for horror began;
“Watching Frankenstein with my sister Christine and my cousins Julie and Lori, who were all older than me. So I was trying to be brave and not wet my pants when Karloff twitched to life.”
The Plot Thickens
Wait For It is described as a deconstruction of the slasher genre. It follows “survivor girl” Darcy (Lily Anne Harrison) as she attempts to live a normal life after being the victim of a brutal attack. As many horror movies are beginning to realize, such vicious attacks leave deep psychological scars. But can anyone really live a normal life in Glen Echo?
We asked David J. Stieve’s motivation was to have Wait For It set in Glen Echo. He responded with an answer that surprised us, studded with love for the Vernonites who have always supported Behind the Mask.
“I had the fortune of taking a meeting with Ryan Turek at Blumhouse, on another script. In that conversation, he strongly recommended that I shoot a short film so that I, as a writer, could expand my toolbox and better understand what it means to write words on a page that you then expect other people to do the heavy lifting of actually shooting. I had a concept of wanting to showcase all the moments in a slasher film that lead up to the jump scare or boogeyman reveal, while still making the audience… wait for it. Putting it in the “LVU” or Leslie Vernon Universe was born out of a desire to give SOMETHING, ANYTHING back to the fans who I figured had long given up on us. It was a peace offering, an inside joke for Vernonites. Asking Nathan was easy, because he’d become one of my closest friends, and I knew his presence would draw attention. I didn’t know it would work at the time, but the ending turned out to be incredibly prophetic! I’m beyond ecstatic to say that WAIT FOR IT now sits squarely in the timeline between the two BTM films. It’s canon, for sure.”
It’s all About Choices
It is obvious not only in BTM, but also seen even more so in Wait For It, Stieve has a gift for storytelling. In these films he tells so much through the use of imagery and very little dialogue. Unlike some writers and directors, he doesn’t consider his fans ignorant. Stieve allows his viewers to connect the dots he sprinkles throughout the script. Furthermore, a moment never goes wasted on screen. What his characters say is just as important as what they don’t.
iHorror asked the creator what other tools he has utilized in his world building when creating a story from the ground up;
“On WAIT FOR IT, probably that I had no idea what the HELL I was doing. Frankie saved my ass, and Lily Ann endured working alone in scenes, without much helpful direction from me. So not any tools, per se, but more that I was smart enough to surround myself with folks who did know what they were doing. That’s good advice in any setting.
In the larger sense of world building when writing a story, it’s immersion and dedication to the craft. There’s a misguided belief that anyone can write a good script if they’ve seen enough movies or have Final Draft. That’s not true any more than thinking you can become a chef by eating in a lot of restaurants, or become a detective by watching procedurals. Can anyone write a script? Of course. Chat GPT and Claude can, too. But can anyone write a great script? No, hardly anyone can do that. It takes as much study and practice as being a professional athlete or a heart surgeon. I have spent almost three decades trying to improve my screenwriting and I’m still not confident I have all the tools I need. But I keep climbing that mountain. …Just like Leslie.”
As you are waiting for Behind the Mask II: The Return of Leslie Vernon, watch Wait For It on Gathr!
To keep up to date with David J. Stieve, follow him on Facebook and Instagram! He and executive producer Aaron B. Koontz will be moderating AND interacting with members on a Discord channel dedicated to Behind the Mask II. This is an exclusive perk on the Kickstarter that will be closing at 7p.m. on Thursday, May 21, 2006!
Be sure to let us know what you think in the comments, and we will keep you informed of upcoming developments in the Leslie Vernon Universe here at iHorror.com!
