Johnathon Schaech Discusses The Atypical Body Swapping Movie ‘Suitable Flesh’ And Working With Heather Graham

When hearing ”body swap film”, you might think ”, Oh, here we go again! It’s going to be another Freaky Friday or Freaky”. That’s not what Suitable Flesh, the latest movie by director Joe Lynch (My Dead Ex), is. There’s some body swapping going on, but not in the way you think. It’s an H.P. Lovecraft story turned upside down with a unique twist. We were able to have a chat with actor Johnathon Schaech, who described his character as “a housewife” (we promise that it’s much more interesting than it sounds), and we talked about this head-twisting horror movie, working with Heather Graham (Boogie Nights) and his love for horror.

Geek Vibes Nation: What about this movie made you want to be part of it?

Actor Johnathon Schaech: I already worked with Joe Lynch on Creepshow, and he knew I loved the horror world. He told me that we would make the protagonist female instead of male. The movie is based on the story by H.P. Lovecraft [The Thing on the Doorstep], and his work isn’t very female-friendly. Most of the time, it’s a male protagonist and female support, and this time, Lynch wanted to change that. He told me that I would play a housewife and that my on-screen wife, Dr. Elizabeth Derby (Heather Graham), would be the main character. It’s a body swap movie we don’t see often on screen. It would be a lot of fun, and that’s one of the reasons why I said yes to that project.

Another reason was that I could work together with Heather. She’s a fantastic actress. We’ve never made a movie together, and having the chance to work together was one that I definitely wanted to take. We’ve known each other for years, and that friendship resulted in an even bigger chemistry and better intimacy. The scenes between her and me were very intimate, and it was great to play those with someone you already knew and trusted before filming. We were able to push each other’s boundaries because there was a lot of trust.

GVN: While the other on-screen characters, such as Asa Waite (Judah Lewis) and Dr. Daniella Upton (Barbara Crampton ), see early on what impact that dark force has on Elizabeth, your character Edward Derby, only sees the effect more towards the end of the movie. How was that for you to see a different side of Heather than you’ve seen during the rest of your scenes?

JS: It was just amazing to see! The way she switches from one character to another was just a pleasure to watch. She brought so much sexiness, fun and horror to this movie.

GVN: The scenes between you and Heather weren’t as bloody as the ones she had with other people. Were you able to see any of those more gory moments before the film release, or did you see all of that for the first time when watching the entire film?

JS: I drove back and forth many hours whenever I had a film day, so I wasn’t there when I wasn’t needed on set. Therefore, I saw those scenes for the first time when I saw the whole movie.

GVN: While the film is now being released on Shudder, it got a cinematic release and festival run first as it went to FrightFest, Fantasia Festival and Toronto After Dark Film Festival. How was it to see the movie with an audience on the big screen?

JS: Suitable Flesh is over-the-top and bloody, but that’s precisely what makes the movie such a pleasure to watch. Seeing and hearing the audience having a lot of fun, laughing loudly and applauding is excellent. We had a blast making the feature, and the audience certainly had a blast watching this film.

GVN: You mentioned already that you’re a horror lover. What horror character would you love to play if they would recast them?

JS: Oh, I would love to play Freddy Krueger!

GVN: What made you want to be part of the film industry?

JS: When I was at school, I wasn’t very good at reading textbooks, and when the school got a theatre/drama department, I loved that. From that moment on, I knew that I wanted to act.

GVN: Last question: Apart from Suitable Flesh, do you have other upcoming projects?

JS: Yes, I have one coming out in April called Blue Ridge. It’s a television series that I’m very proud of. I can’t wait for people to see it.

Suitable Flesh is now available on Shudder. Check out our review here.