Andrew E interviews Colton Wheeler (Lilith)

Gruemonkeys Andrew E sat down with actor Colton Wheeler for a chat about his latest film LILITH and what he has got coming up. Also a Gruemonkey first, Colton turns the tables and interviews Andrew E!

Colton Forrest Wheeler is an American film and television actor who is best known for his roles in television series such as Bones (TV Series), Extant (TV Series), American Horror Story (TV Series) and The Mindy Project (TV Series) . Colton Wheeler is also known for his lead roles in movies such as The Pine Tar Incident: Making of Tar Wars (2017) a documentary which has been getting a lot of Buzz lately by critics and fans alike, Serena Waits (post-production) and Ugly Sweater Party. 

Andrew E: Can you tell me about “Lilith” and your character within it?

Colton: Lilith is a wonderful compilation of a story expertly told by Alex T Hwang and Anthony Werley about a demoness monster that seeks sin. My character is a cheating husband that gets what’s coming to him AND LET ME TELL YA, it ain’t Divorce Court.

Andrew E: It looked a lot of fun the shoot, what was the hardest bit about filming?

Colton: Tough question. Alex T Hwang is just so damn good at what he does, the environment on set is almost effortless. But, if I had to choose something, I would say, the idea of being intimate with someone I hardly know, in front of a whole crew and set up directly at your attention. No matter how involved or how “in character” you may be, the idea of being present in that surrounding can be distracting. I’ve never filmed an intimate moment with an actually loved one, but like, please don’t go scouring the internet for it.

Andrew E: You had some rather raunchy scenes in your segment, were they difficult to film? I can imagine it can be intimidating?

Colton: Absolutely. In the case of my intimate scenes, I only knew the opposite actress for maybe 2 days. That’s hardly enough time to even figure out how she likes her coffee. But at the end of the day, I just hunker down and imagine it’s an easy going girlfriend I’ve had.

Andrew E: Can you tell us any behind the scenes moments from Lilith that were fun?

Colton:  Again, this is what makes Alex T Hwang great. He does a damn good job of hiring incredibly hardworking people that all get along. If you notice, a lot of his cast/crew have meshed together in multiple films. The sound guy, Richard Trejo, is one of my favorite people to be around. I’ve worked with him so many times, it’s unreal. But if he and I get on a tangent of doing stupid loud shenanigans, Alex T Hwang usually does a good job of shutting us up.

Andrew E: I thought you were a very strong actor among many great stars – do you have a way of preparing before a shoot?

Colton:  WHOA, DUDE. ME? AMONGST ALL THESE KILLERS HERE?! Honored. But, I do. My background has always been improv, from performing to practice. And it’s more in the realm of character performance, so I try to live in the life of who I’m portraying. Everything from how he walks, to how he would interact with a stranger. That’s how I did it with my improv characters, I would constantly practice in “real life”, by practicing mannerisms and keeping little notes in the back of my head like “Oh, he would totally say THIS, instead of what I just said.” Then, when I’m on set, it’s second nature.

Andrew E: You also starred in Ugly Sweater Party, which I recently reviewed and was a lot of fun, you are getting a name for yourself in horror – would you pursue more work in the horror genre / what attracted you to both of them?

Colton: Horror is where my heart is. I owe any success I’ve had to the horror family that adopted me into their world, and I’m eternally grateful. Horror has the absolute BEST fans and the hardest working people behind the scenes. I plan on spending my career with the same people who brought me here now. I love them all.

Andrew E: You have worked now in two movies with Charles Chadabala – and he is a friend of Gruemonkey, do you guys get on / what is it like working together?

Colton:  Oh man. ACTUALLY. Charles and I have worked COUNTLESS times together. He’s a true artist, and genuinely the nicest guy I know. He’s part of my horror family, and I love the guy dearly. All we do is joke around and have a good time. I also recall have some of the most philosophical conversations with the guy too, he’s crazy intelligent.

Andrew E: You have (excuse the pervyness) a killer body – Is that hard to maintain / what is your workout routine like?

Colton: Again, killing me with kindness, man. Working out has become a lifestyle for me. I’m easily in the gym 6 days a week. My workouts revolve around powerlifting particularly, and I’m highly competitive with myself about how much weight I’m throwing around, it’s a lot of fun. But most of my work comes from dieting even harder.

Andrew E: What is next for you, where can we see you next?

Colton:  I have a couple films in pre-production and a couple others in post-production. But mostly, what’s “next” for me is giving back. My career is finally on a steady position for auditioning, so I’m using this free time to focus on helping my friends and family. I’m working close to a stunt team called Brazen Action Design, and they are doing a kick-ass job of producing award winning material.

Andrew E: What is your favourite scary movie?

Colton:  Have you ever seen Baby Genius’ 2? It’s horrifyingly bad. But other than that, the next one that scares the Jesus out of me is The Midnight Meat Train. With it’s low budget, it’s definitely a sleeper. Bradley Cooper gives an incredible performance, and it’s just genuinely underrated.

Andrew E: Having done scary movies, what is your biggest fear?

Colton:  Getting home, and realizing the Chic Fil A employee didn’t give me any Chic Fil A sauce. It’s a genuine concern.

Andrew E: Where can people follow your work ?

Colton: You can mostly laugh at me on Instagram: @CAPTA1Ncool and I have a quick link to my IMDB that is always updated at www.ColtonWheeler.com thank you for reading, GrueMonkey fans! Love you all. Before we end; I always like to finish interviews with my own questions, only feels fair, let’s turn the tables:

Colton: With a name like GrueMonkey, have you thought of a minions crossover?

Andrew E: It keeps me awake at night wanting this to be a thing!

Colton: If you had to make up a Power Ranger right now, what color would he be? What would his dinosaur be?

Andrew E: Well I think I could be Rainbow Ranger, then I would have all the powers of all the rangers? Plus merchandise for Rainbow Ranger would be a toy manufacturers dream. Maybe I could be the first LGBT power ranger, I can see potential here, my dinosaur would be a Caihong juji, its a newly discovered dinosaur “the rainbow dinosaur”. I literally googled Gay Dinasour and this is a thing!

Colton: What makes you most passionate about GrueMonkey?

Andrew E: I am passionate about film. The film is the true love of my life. I have been lucky enough to write and direct now two movies myself (low budget, but mine). And I love seeing what the rest of the world is doing, I have so much admiration for independent films and actors and I think that’s where the true talent is. Not hiding behind big budgets. So for me getting to review indie movies, and speak with the actors makes me feel a small part of that world.

Colton: If you had to give my interview a Yelp review, how many stars would you give and reasons?

Andrew E: Top Marks! I loved it. Thanks for being so kind and giving up your time!

Colton: If Charles Chudabala ran for president, what would his campaign slogan be?

Andrew E: GO BIG OR GO HOME. Purely based on the size of his manhood revealed in Ugly Sweater Party.

Colton: Thank you!

Andrew E: Thank you!