Mark Dacascos is a name that any action fan should be familiar with. He’s fought alongside Keanu Reeves, Jet Li, David Bradley and Robert Patrick. He’s also the Chairman in Iron Chef America. But in 2001, he starred in Christophe Gans’ Brotherhood of the Wolf, an action-horror film that’s recently been restored for UHD and Blu-ray by Studio Canal. I had the pleasure of chatting with Mark about Brotherhood’s upcoming re-release, the legacy of the film as well as his thoughts on John Wick: Chapter 4 and more!
How’s your day going?
It’s going really well! It’s interesting because you’re the fourth interview today regarding Brotherhood of the Wolf. I’m so grateful that 23 years after we made the movie, people remember the movie, people are watching the movie and we’re able to have this new release on Blu-ray. I’m honoured and grateful that people want to talk about it. Tons of gratitude so I’m happy to be here talking to you. How was your day?
My day was really good! I actually watched Brotherhood for the first time last night and thought it was fantastic.
Fantastic!
With the new restoration just around the corner, how do you feel that both fans of the film as well as newcomers are going to be able to experience the film again or for the first time?
Wow, well, again, very honoured and grateful. I’m wondering how the sensibility for your generation is watching a film that’s over two decades old.
I really enjoyed it! I’m somebody who really enjoys older films. For me, most of my favourite films are from the 80s, 90s, 2000s. For example, I absolutely love your film Drive.
Thank you!
I thought it was brilliant! I discovered the film from its 4K Blu-ray release last year and it’s become one of my new favourites. I love discovering older classics that my generation might not know about.
Thank you, man. I’m wondering if the reason for Brotherhood, if it still has legs, is that most of our action is practical. It’s not CGI, it’s just us doing stuff in camera.
You do some really amazing stunt-work in the film and whenever action is done practically, it really helps films maintain a long-lasting legacy.
As we know, technology evolves and progresses so fast. So, if you’re used to watching the latest technology and then you go back to an older film, which used state-of-the-art technology back then, you can tell the difference. But if it’s practical, it’s practical.
Absolutely! One of the great things about Brotherhood is that it’s a film made in the early 2000s that was shot on film, so it’ll look stunning on 4K UHD and Blu-ray. Going back to Drive once again, I watched that film for the first time last year on 4K and it looks like a movie that could have been released this year.
What about Brittany Murphy, right? Wasn’t she funny? Between Brittany and Kadeem, and that romance that they had, it’s so hilarious!
That entire set-piece in the motel is so much fun! Going back to Brotherhood of the Wolf, you’ve worked with Christophe Gans a couple of times in the past, first on Crying Freeman and then Brotherhood. Is there any possibility of a third collaboration in the future?
Man, my fingers and toes are crossed. I hope so. I feel very blessed and fortunate to have worked on two of his movies and he has that sensibility, I mean, talk about Brotherhood of the Wolf! How many genres can you get into one film? And it works! And on Crying Freeman, I know that was a famous manga that we did the live-action version of, and I met my wonderful, talented, beautiful wife on the set. We’re still married, we’ve got three kids. Well, three two-legged and three four-legged. We have three 35kg dogs roaming around the house in addition to our three kids, you know? But yeah, I would love to work with Christophe again and I’m hoping as long as we’re still breathing and still working that there’s still an opportunity, still a possibility. I believe I’ve grown as an actor and I’d like to put that on screen for him.
I loved your performance in Brotherhood! The film has so many different genres, there’s some excellent action sequences but also some intense horror sequences too. I was curious, do you have a favourite horror film?
You know, to be quite honest, I don’t watch a lot of horror because I’m a scaredy cat. It’s true. I’ve got two brothers, and my middle brother, Craig used to have this glow-in-the-dark witch with this big urn and a boiling pot which I found really scary when I was younger. He used to keep it right by the nightstand near his bed every night to scare me, so I would take it and put it in the closet, right? And then five minutes later, he’d put it right back and it’d freak me out, man! We’d go to Disneyland and of course, he wanted to go on The Haunted Mansion ride. I was frightened, and I wasn’t ashamed to tell my mom I don’t want to go but she said “You’re going with your brother.” So I’ve always been like that, I’ve always loved action and martial arts but horror freaks me out. I mean, I know I’ve seen some great ones, I think what I do is I watch them, I enjoy the thrills but they freak me out so I tend to put it aside, you know? I’ve seen some great ones, I know that, but I can’t remember the titles, and I think that’s intentional!
Did you see John Wick: Chapter 4?
I did! I think that every time there’s a John Wick movie, they’ve upped the bar, I don’t know how they keep doing it!
I saw it three times, it was great! You’re fantastic in John Wick: Chapter 3, your character Zero is so entertaining and I wanted to ask if you see yourself returning in a future film or series in the Wick universe?
I always like to believe that there’s a possibility. I’ve talked to some of the powers that be and I was told that they very much feel that Zero is still alive, that he caught his breath. So, I think the possibility is there, I would love that. I love that character, I love Chad Stahelski and Keanu’s work. The universe that they’ve built is incredible and I’d love to do more in it.
I rewatched the trilogy with my partner before seeing Chapter 4 and she really enjoyed them, they’re so much fun!
Yeah, with Chapter 4, you knew that they were going to try and up the ante and they blew the roof off.
I loved the section in the middle of the film with Scott Adkins as Killa.
It was so funny! He was fantastic. He’s wonderful. We did an interview a while back and he was so cool and I only met him in person for the first time during the L.A. premiere of Chapter 4 and he was so cool!
Going back to Brotherhood of the Wolf’s new Blu-ray/4K UHD release on the horizon, I wanted to ask if you’re a physical media collector yourself?
You know, I have a lot but I love books. I’ve always been a big reader, I like holding them and reading them so I’ve gone more in that direction, but I do have some DVDs of special movies. I have Seven Samurai, and a few others that are very much prized. But I haven’t collected many recently.
Brotherhood of the Wolf isn’t the only recent film of yours to get a brand new restoration. Are there any other films of yours that you would like to see get a special edition or a new restoration?
Oh my goodness, I think they’ve done a couple of editions of Crying Freeman. Maybe Only the Strong would be really fun. That’s how I met Samuel Hadida who was the producer of Crying Freeman and Brotherhood of the Wolf.
Are there any upcoming projects of yours that you’re excited for audiences to see? TV, movies, etc.?
Yes, thank you for asking! We have Knights of the Zodiac, which is a live-action film based on a manga which comes out May 12th in the US. It stars Mackenyu, Sean Bean, Famke Janssen, Diego Tinoco, Madison Iseman and Nick Stahl. And then, there’s season three of Warrior on HBO Max in June.
What’s your dream collaboration? Are there any actors or directors who you’d love to work with?
Putting this out there again, I would love to go back and have one more shot with Christophe Gans.
And my last question is, for people trying to discover your work for the first time, do you have any favourite films of yours or recommendations for people to check out?
Okay, I would say Only the Strong, Drive, Crying Freeman, Brotherhood of the Wolf and John Wick: Chapter 3.
Studio Canal’s upcoming release of Brotherhood of the Wolf’s new 4K restoration of the director’s cut is out May 15th on 4K UHD, Blu-ray and DVD.