David Arquette is a man of many interests. The “Scream” star talks to spot on news about his new game “The Quarry” and clowns.
It was “really exciting” for Hollywood star David Arquette (50) to work on the teen horror game “The Quarry”, which will be released on June 10 for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S. to contribute In an interview with the news agency spot on news, the “Scream” star talks about, among other things, his role in the new horror adventure and his current training as a professional clown.
Nine teenagers, a summer camp and the horror
In conversation, the actor is charming and funny in his unmistakable way. He seems a bit erratic when he talks about his life and his work. “I love video games,” Arquette explains, wide-eyed and smiling. He is happy to “be able to be a part of it” and to have seen the talented developers at work.
The Quarry was developed by Supermassive Games, best known for their hit song Until Dawn and The Dark Pictures Anthology. The game feels like a homage to several horror subgenres. Players make momentous decisions and intervene in the fate of a group of nine teenagers, either alone or together with friends. On the last day of a summer camp, the young caregivers want to throw a party – without the children who have already left or the intervention of adults. However, after weeks in the remote summer camp, a night of terror awaits them. Alternatively, if you want, you can simply watch the whole thing via a film mode without pressing any buttons, which the actor finds “really cool”.
He likes to play himself, prefers sports, adventure and horror games – and of course he also loves horror films. “But I have kids in the house who aren’t old enough to see this game, so I have to play it while they’re at school or something,” laughs Arquette. In fact, “The Quarry” isn’t exactly squeamish. For him, the fun thing about a horror game or film is that while it’s scary, you’re still fine afterwards.
David Arquette is Chris Hackett, the owner and manager of the camp. Many other film and series stars can be seen alongside him – including Ariel Winter (24), Brenda Song (34), Justice Smith (26), Ted Raimi (56), Lance Henriksen (82) and Skyler Gisondo (25) . “On the other hand, it was also kind of bizarre,” Arquette elaborates. Because of the corona pandemic, his work had to be interrupted at one point and was only resumed later. “It was at the very beginning, there were these many protocols. I was able to work directly with Justice, but not many other actors.”
The actors end up in the game via a motion capture process. “It was really wild. They put all these things on your face, you wear these funny bodysuits, at one point they scanned our body and our face. And then you just act. […] But a lot of everything is sort of in your head, in your imagination.”
“All the teen caregivers have their little relationship dramas […] I kind of lead it all, but I really want them gone before the night falls,” says the actor. There is a good reason for this, which of course will not be revealed at this point.
What doesn’t kill you…
In particular, many horror fans love Arquette for his role as Dewey Riley in “Scream,” one of the genre’s most important series in recent decades. He played the character almost half his life. Personal experiences also flowed into Dewey. But what traits of David Arquette are in Chris Hackett?
It’s not always easy to stay calm, the family man describes a page that comes to light with the camp director. He himself has two sons, Charlie and Gus, with his wife Christina (41), and his daughter Coco comes from a previous marriage to “Friends” star and “Scream” colleague Courteney Cox (57). Arquette is a real family man: “If anyone out there has kids, do your best to be a good role model, to keep your composure, to guide them through their tantrums and things like that.” But sometimes it just happens that you have to give the offspring an emphatic “Guys, you have to stop” on their way.
The motto of the summer camp also reflects in some parts the career and life of David Arquette: “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.” He briefly became the World Championship Wrestling (WCW) World Heavyweight Champion in 2000 as part of a promotion for the release of his film, Ready to Rumble. Arquette, himself a big fan of the sport, was hated by many a fan for it.
He was spat on and yelled at – and apparently many in the film business no longer wanted to take him seriously. To clear his name, the actor trained and returned to the ring many years later, even after suffering a heart attack. He didn’t want to be seen as a “joke” anymore, as seen in the rousing documentary You Cannot Kill David Arquette. In 2019, Pro Wrestling Illustrated named him one of the top 500 wrestlers in the world.
“Yes, absolutely. I believe that what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger,” affirms Arquette. “You have to keep going. Life has its challenges.” He himself suffers from depression and there are difficult days or phases. “But it’s really important to go hiking, to be creative.” Things like that would have helped him a lot. As is “hanging out with people who help you feel better and who you can laugh with. Laughing is a big part of not feeling too bad.”
“There is a clown element in my entire life”
A few months ago he bought the rights to the character Bozo the Clown and he’s learning the fine art himself under “Cirque du Soleil” performer Misha Usov – even if he’s always been a clown of sorts. “It’s going really well. It’s an ongoing experience and there’s a lot to learn. There’s also a long history of clowns out there and a lot of fantastic books to read,” says Arquette. “I think a lot of people, but some especially, are kind of clowns at heart. And once you learn how to let that clown out, you can really have fun with life and do things that entertain you and others. You you can find much joy in it.”
Arquette was already a clown as a child and chose the name “Tiny Billy Bo” at the time. Now he’s “just going to be a professional clown. There’s a clown element in my entire life.” His father dressed up as Butter the Clown for his birthdays. He also dressed up for his children, which is now “like a tradition”. While they weren’t crazy about Bozo at first, that all changed with the help of Jozo Bozo, a female form of the character. “Now they love Bozo.”
Arquette also supports charities like Healthy Humor. The organization works with 15 hospitals across the US where professional clowns aim to bring joy, especially to sick children. He hopes to draw more attention to the organization’s work.
A man of many interests and talents
While other people have trouble finding a hobby at all, Arquette seems to find it difficult to limit herself to a few areas of interest. He is best known as an actor, but he is also a director, author, producer, as well as a wrestler and clown. He owns a nightclub, was on the US version of “Let’s Dance”, devoted himself to breakdancing and graffiti when he was younger, has two gold records with his band and is certified to train people to create Bob Ross-style images to draw.
Is he not interested in anything? “Oh my goodness, I don’t know,” laughs Arquette. “I don’t like being mean to people, I’m not interested in that.” But of course sometimes you have to “stand up for yourself and set clear boundaries. I think life is really about these little journeys that you go on and the different experiences that you have. So it’s really important for people to learn something new – whether it’s a new art technique, how to bake bread, or even how to connect with friends and family. That’s what it’s ultimately about.”
