The legendary director who was “terrified” to meet David Cronenberg
People have this idea that if you make weird and distressing art, then you’re going to be a weird and distressing person in real life. A silly thought, but then you watch any movie by David Cronenberg, and can’t escape that line of thinking.
Cronenberg has become such an accepted byword for “intensely fucked up, visceral body horror” that it’s gone beyond David himself and even extends to his son, Brandon. If it wasn’t in his blood to go down this route, Cronenberg Jr might have taken up a career in golfing, or music, or whatever it is that other nepo babies do with their time.
While his son might be making headlines for the same kind of disgusting imagery, there really is nothing quite like the original. The Fly, Videodrome, Crash, Scanners, all unforgettable works of sci-fi horror containing some of the most gruesome visions in mainstream American cinema. He’s no one-trick shock merchant either. The man made A History of Violence and A Dangerous Method, proving he’s got range for days, but simply chooses to make movies like this.
Perhaps that’s why he’s got something of a reputation that precedes him even within his own industry. People are afraid to meet him in person and that can only come from the content of his works. To be a hundred per cent clear, Cronenberg seems like an absolute delight to work with. A model professional who might put his characters through nightmarish horrors the human mind can barely comprehend, but treats his cast and crew with utmost respect.
Even people who’ve made similarly disturbing movies seem intimidated by him due to the sheer grotesqueness of his creations.
Cronenberg said as much in an interview with The Guardian when he was asked about his public persona, sharing, “It’s out of control. I remember when Marty Scorsese confessed to me that he was terrified to meet me and I said, ‘You’re the guy who make Taxi Driver and you’re afraid to meet me?’ I thought if Marty could have that happen to him then it’s understandable that anybody could. People confuse you with your work. You make scary horror films so you must be a scary, horrible person.”
Oftentimes, the opposite is true, especially if you have a long career making weird genre movies in Hollywood that often bring in only a little more money than they were made for.
While there are horror stories of tyrannical directors throwing their weight around their sets and making everyone around them fear for their lives, the truth of the matter is that they’re either making hundreds of millions of dollars for their studios or going to get barred from the industry pretty quick. Very few horror directors become cash cows on that level.
So, if they get a career in the industry that lasts six decades like Cronenberg, there’s a pretty good chance it’s because they’re model professionals that people enjoy working with who bring their pictures in under budget. There’ll be exceptions to this rule, but David Cronenberg himself isn’t one of them.
In fact, it sounds like he’s the one who defines it.