Nick Wolfhard The Last Kids on Earth interview: Jack is the hero we need
Nick Wolfhard dropped by our offices to talk about The Last Kids on Earth and what we can expect from Jack Sullivan and the gang in Book 2 which is released today on Netflix.
Nick Wolfhard is a veteran voice actor who is known for his roles as Miyoshi in World Trigger and Yugo Nansui in Beyblade Burst. Currently, he is starring in the Netflix animated series based on Max Brallier’s line of bestselling books, The Last Kids on Earth.
We were fortunate enough to chat with Nick ahead of the premiere of Book 2 about what we can expect from his character, Jack Sullivan and his gang of friends as they try and outwit monsters and zombies after the apocalypse.
Navigating the World of Horror
1428 Elm: Hey, Nick! It’s a pleasure to speak with you again. We binged The Last Kids on Earth Book 2 and it was a thrill ride from start to finish. There is something for everyone. If you like animation, horror or comedy, your show covers all the bases. In the very first episode, Mall Quest, you guys have been holed up together in the treehouse for a while and everyone is disagreeing. Do you feel that with the current world situation, this will resonate with the audience?
Nick Wolfhard: I’m sure people will attribute real world events to what’s happening. I think at this point it’s unavoidable. At the end of the day, we’re just trying to be an entertaining show.
Again, the fact that this is coming out while there is a pandemic happening is a total coincidence. Hopefully, our show will be able to relieve some of the stress. Kids and parents can watch it together.
1428 Elm: Prior to your role as Jack, were you interested in the horror genre?
NW: As a kid, I never watched any horror movies. The most I would watch would be Alien and Predator. Alien is a straight up horror movie but I actually watched Aliens first. Predator is more of an action movie.
That being said, over the last two years as I have gotten older, I have gotten into the genre. I like The Thing. That is probably my favorite horror movie of all time. Kurt Russell and Keith David who is in the show playing Thrull.
I watched The Witch recently. That’s fantastic. The other movie that Robert Eggers did, The Lighthouse? That was great.
I prefer psychological horror over jump scary, rollercoaster horror. The thing about psychological horror is that the imagery sticks with you.
1428 Elm: Is there anyone in the genre that you would consider working with?
NW: Absolutely, Sam Raimi would be my first choice. I know he doesn’t just do horror but that would be awesome to work with him. Of course, Robert Eggers…
1428 Elm: Another thing that we noticed is in almost every episode, there were homages to various horror or sci-fi films. For example, Mall Quest was definitely very George Romero Dawn of the Dead. Then when you go to Joe’s Pizza with Thrull, it is like Star Wars and the Cantina scene. There is even a bit of Ghostbusters thrown in for good measure along with Evil Dead. Did you pick up on that when you read the script?
NW: For sure I did. There are homages everywhere in Last Kids on Earth. Actually, in the books there’s even more. The fact that we have Keith David and Bruce Campbell to begin with as well as Mark Hamill, Catherine O’Hara and Rosario Dawson, that shows that the people behind the scenes really know what they’re doing.