Meeting Mr. Crocket: An Interview With Brandon Espy And Elvis Nolasco

More than I consider him a community leader, Brandon Espy is quickly becoming the next name in the world of Afro-Horror, next to Akela Cooper and Jordan Peele. Espy is a prodigy of dread, with equally successful and decorated Black horror shorts under his belt. We Follow You, Head Bussa, and Kiara, all written and directed by Espy are considered mandatory homework for any student of the new school of Black horror.

Like clockwork, on October 11th via Hulu, Espy debuted his first feature length film Mr. Crocket– an expanded version of his 2022 short of the same name (which you can also watch on Hulu), lead by Jerrika Hinton (Hunters) and Elvis Nolasco (Godfather of Harlem, Da Sweet Blood of Jesus). The film follows a single mother who finds a VHS tape of a Reading Rainbow-esque children’s program for her young son. Unbeknownst to her, a menacing supernatural slasher waits to invade their home from inside the tape.

The film runs for 88 minutes, and every one of them is a sugar-coated blast coated in red 40 dye. It’s an ode to so many things, from the importance of solid parenting to the foundations of modern horror from the 70’s and 80’s. Even if it’s not your favorite horror this year, there’s something to be loved here.

What if we were wrong about Mr. Rogers Neighborhood? What if LeVar Burton was evil? Like, kid-snatching evil. The Black Phone came and went, and Freddy Krueger ain’t returning anytime soon. Excuse my morbid mind, but I think it’s time for some diversity in the kiddy pool, and Elvis Nolasco, AKA Mr. Crocket, just nails it.

Just last week I jumped at the chance to speak with Brandon and Elvis following the Mr. Crocket release to pick their brains from the inside on how exactly we got to this funky and colorful hell.

AFROPUNK: Mr. Crocket in short form was gas. As soon as that dropped, I knew your career in the genre had already started its exponential rise. When you got the green light for the feature, what changes or improvements did you imagine for a new Mr. Crocket?

Brandon Espy: I imagined more complexity within his character, you know. Exposing a little bit of childhood trauma, how he came to be, the building out of his world and the sidekicks within it. I just saw something very expansive. When you see Stranger Things in upside-down world, you’re thinking about the flip side version. Here, I’m thinking in a kids show host way. I thought, like, “wow, there’s always been creepiness within kids shows”. People never really addressed it, especially kids shows from that era. So, I really wanted to tackle that, and I thought there’s so much opportunity to play in such a colorful way.

AP: Where the hell did this idea come from? Walk me through the inception of the concept.

BE: So, my son is obsessed with kids shows. It would basically take him to a whole other world, to where I felt like that host was his daddy now, not me anymore. You lose your kid to something you don’t know the influence of, or what they’re really saying. In general, it’s like you’re not teaching them anymore; they are. That’s a really scary thought for me.

I grew up watching Mr. Rogers too, and you see this kind of patient, charismatic type of person. I thought, “okay, they’re like that to kids, but on the flip side with parents, they see a whole different side”, because that’s a person that they’re not trying to influence- it’s these kids. The ones who have vulnerable minds.

The character Blippi has a bow tie- that’s where that came from. The red is more so like Freddie and Mr. Rogers as well. Also, my dad, and a lot of Black men in the 70’s had this Afro with just the mustache, so that was more inspo. Then, when I met Elvis, it was like the icing on the cake.

AP: There we go. So, I’m watching your movie, and I’m tasting notes of Evil Dead 2, and a little bit of The Poltergeist. Horror speaks to whoever is listening, really, but as a fan, what influences did you throw in there?

BE: Yeah, definitely Poltergeist with the portal, Evil Dead 2 from the different characters, their voices, and the slight stint of comedy to the horror as well. A Nightmare on Elm Street was definitely heavy in inspo. Also, the movie Hook… maybe a little out there, but in a way, Crocket is pretty similar.

AP: Might be time for a rewatch of Hook, then. We touched a little bit on this, but casting may be one of the most important things when it comes to crafting a villain that sticks. This is no spoiler, but Brandon, dude, I think you found the right Crocket. Elvis, what’s your relationship with horror?

Elvis Nolasco: I grew up just watching horror movies. Poltergeist, you know, classics like Rosemary’s Baby, The Lost Boys. For me with Mr. Crocket, even though I’ve watched Candyman and other horror films, I really wanted to go into this without the knowledge or without any information of these past films. I wanted to make sure that I could create a character that had his own voice, his own walk, his own mannerisms, and to be able to tap into certain behaviors and emotions for him.

I just wanted to do something epic, something that hasn’t been done before, and something that the audience can relate with, you know? With Brandon’s writing, it was very specific, like, “here’s something for you to play with, and here’s something for you to create”. It was just a process where I can bring all my past experiences as an artist to this one place and have fun.

AP: You, sir, are a working actor. Your performance as Mr. Crocket is so blended, I fear you may become him. How’d you do that?! Can you take me through the Mr. Crocket transformation guide, both physically and mentally?

EN: It was a slow process… and it was a process that took various steps. Usually with characters like Carter Nix from American Crime, I have to dig deep and find an unfulfilled need of a character so that I’m able to perform it, not just from the external place, but from an internal place.

There was just so much information in the script that it was just a matter of me being able to do the right kind of exercises and the right type of work. One of those types of work that was very helpful for me was being able to grab a pen and and do a very intense, in depth, character history on Mr. Crocket. I would ask myself why he’s behaving this way and doing the things that he’s doing. Where does this laughter come from? Where did this anger come from? Where did this joy for being around kids and behaving like a kid come from? Well, maybe he wasn’t allowed to be a kid himself.

On the page, Mr. Crocket was very clearly described, so when I’m reading the script, and it constantly says that he smiles a lot, I’m asking myself, “how can I make that smile both welcoming and scary at the same time?”. The team over at WorthenBrooks were very helpful and provided me with the things that I needed. I immediately thought “if this guy has the perfect teeth…” [laughter], I was like, “I think if he has the perfect teeth, somehow that would come across a little creepy”.

AP: “A little creepy” is a stretch. Were those prosthetics or veneers or something?

BE, EN: Yeah [laughter].

AP: Selfishly though, about how long did you practice that horrifying laugh?

EN: Oh, man, that laugh is being asked about a lot. Again, it was in the writing. Once I was able to write enough and create this backstory, it hit me that his laugh came from pain. From not being able to speak, from not being able to retaliate, from not being able to explain himself. That moment that he can’t talk, it just created a sound. And that sound is the laughter, and once the laughter came out, his freedom came about.

AP: Brandon, all of your projects have been unapologetically Black, and the community adores you for that. How can you describe your style of highlighting and reinventing Black stories in the genre?

BE: I’m just writing from experiences that I know. For me to write a white protagonist, which I may not be able to connect with certain experiences that may be authentic… I think it would be a disservice to me. 

I would like to continue to do that, yeah, reinvent any type of narrative that Black people may have in horror. I think in general, I am writing from a place that also can resonate to other cultures, but happens to be from a Black perspective. My themes I try to hit on are ones that are a lot more universal, but coming from that Black cultural experience built within that environment that our people know really well.

AP: I know that’s right. I’m so proud of you and this project. There’s a lot of white money behind this industry, and a lot of executives breathing down creative’s necks in order to get a project that is widely consumable. With that, we see a lot of trauma that Black folk can relate to, and it takes the fantasy out. What I love about all of your films is that they’re projects that anyone can consume from a Black lens. That way, it’s still universal without having to cause our people to rip the wounds open and show us things that we would not like to see reflected about our experiences as Black Americans. We can have plenty of experiences that are the same as everyone else, they just have a little bit more flavor to ‘em, that’s a little bit more familiar to us.

We can scream, shout, and tweet all we want about diversity and inclusion in film, but we’ve got to remember that it’s up to us to support the new Black horror renaissance. If you’re curious at all, grease up the popcorn, head to Hulu and hit play on Mr. Crocket. If you rock with it; shout it out, or go tell a friend. It’s that easy.