Behind the Mask: Crafting a Horror Icon in Leslie Vernon with Nathan Baesel & David J. Stieve

<p>Twenty years after Behind the Mask: The Rise of Leslie Vernon quietly left theaters and found its true home in the horror community&#39;s hearts — and Blockbuster aisles — Leslie Vernon is coming back. And on this episode of Midnight Horror Picture Show, we sat down with the two people most responsible for making him an icon.Nathan Baesel, the Juilliard- and UCLA-trained actor who brought Leslie to life with that impossible mix of charisma and menace, and David J. Stieve, the screenwriter who built the character from the ground up and is now writing Behind the Mask 2: The Return of Leslie Vernon, join us for one of the most in-depth conversations about this cult classic we&#39;ve ever put on record.We also go deep on:</p><ul><li>Why Leslie Vernon isn&#39;t a villain (at least not to his creators)</li><li>Nathan&#39;s personal connection to the character — and how his own hunger for validation became the performance</li><li>David&#39;s philosophy on writing Leslie as a metaphor for any outsider trying to break into a difficult world</li><li>Why the original script ended completely differently — and how the entire third act was a late addition</li><li>The future of indie horror distribution, and why the team is bypassing traditional Hollywood for Behind the Mask 2🎃 LINKS:Behind the Mask 2 Kickstarter (late pledges still open): <a href="https://www.youtube.com/redirect?event=video_description&redir_token=QUFFLUhqbVQ0WVhHWWp4OVkyRGR2YWdWSGZBNS1FYlp6d3xBQ3Jtc0ttdFJDMDFjUDFTWXFkbEVsME9oc3BhdlotWHkyanJPSThPbkhPWkNzY0ZNRGpva3pmVkpqcTlUSzNXVFl3NVhEX1RZaWNObGdadi1DM0RxMXQ5Qmo3X1JVakVxOUFYZjMxYUVVaFVFYnh6SmppUTllTQ&q=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.kickstarter.com%2Fprojects%2Fbtm2%2Fbehind-the-mask-ii-the-return-of-leslie-vernon&v=IWIn1Rw5bKs" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/...</a>Leslie Vernon Returns on Instagram: @LeslieVernonReturnsNathan Baesel on Instagram: @nathanbaeselDavid J. Stieve on Instagram &amp; Bluesky: @DjStieveCatch Nathan at Midsummer Scream in Long Beach, CA — August 7–9Nathan will also be at Triangle Terror Con in Durham, NC — September 26 Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts, and find us on Instagram @MidnightHorrorPictureShow.Theme music by <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@nick_ferreri" target="_blank" rel="ugc noopener noreferrer">‪@nick_ferreri‬</a></li></ul><p>Chapters:</p><p>(0:00) Welcome to Midnight Horror Picture Show &amp; Episode Intro</p><p>(1:35) Meet Nathan Baesel &amp; David J. Stieve