{"id":553810,"date":"2025-11-06T22:27:16","date_gmt":"2025-11-06T22:27:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/553810\/"},"modified":"2025-11-06T22:27:16","modified_gmt":"2025-11-06T22:27:16","slug":"jill-schoelen-is-back-and-ready-to-take-horror-by-storm-with-multiple-projects-on-the-way-exclusive","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/553810\/","title":{"rendered":"Jill Schoelen is Back and Ready to Take Horror By Storm with Multiple Projects on the Way! [Exclusive]"},"content":{"rendered":"

Actor, writer, and producer Jill Schoelen<\/strong> was at the height of her career when she left Hollywood in the \u201990s to pursue the ultimate role: motherhood. Now armed with a new lease on life and boundless creativity, the multihyphenate talent has huge plans for her return to horror and beyond.<\/p>\n

The in-demand actress kept busy throughout the \u201980s and early \u201990s in television, film, and the stage, including Sean Penn\u2019s writing and directorial debut of his stage production of\u00a0The Kindness of Women. Horror fans know Schoelen for her work in fan favorite films like The Stepfather<\/a>, Cutting Class, Curse II: The Bite, Phantom of the Opera with recent Hollywood Walk of Fame star recipient Robert Englund<\/a><\/strong>, Popcorn<\/a>, and When a Stranger Calls Back<\/a>.<\/p>\n

In truth, Schoelen reveals to Bloody Disgusting in exclusive chat, the actress was initially cautious about the genre, leaning \u201cmore into the horrific than the horror.\u201d That slowly shifted when she was cast in Wes Craven<\/strong>\u2018s 1985 made-for-television movie Chiller<\/a>, then fully once she starred in The Stepfather.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m pretty sure what happened was The Stepfather, which was originally not really part of the horror genre. I don\u2019t think it was meant to be part of the horror genre at all. You know, that movie died on a vine when it was released until Pauline Kael<\/strong> and all these other amazing critics started giving it these outrageous reviews. Then they re-released it, and they pulled it pretty quickly, even though it was completely sold out everywhere where they re-released it. It was still a small release until home video. But I think the critical reviews got it into a lot of filmmakers\u2019 minds. So it was, like, scary movies. I just think it just kind of went that direction. I don\u2019t really know, because if you look at my resume, most of it was not scary,\u201d Schoelen reflects.<\/p>\n

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Jill Schoelen in \u2018The Stepfather\u2019<\/p>\n

It\u2019s her roles in The Stepfather and When a Stranger Calls Back that mean the most to Schoelen. \u201cWhen a Stranger Calls Back was really, really different, because my kind of horror was When a Stranger Calls<\/strong>. That\u2019s terrifying to me<\/strong>.\u201d It wasn\u2019t just that their style of horror spoke more to what scares her, but also that she put in the most work to earn those parts. \u201cBecause I always found in every movie I did, the ones that I feel like I did by far the best in, I had to work for it. I had to prove myself<\/strong>,\u201d Schoelen explains.<\/p>\n

They weren\u2019t just the roles Schoelen fought hardest for, but they also matched her fighting spirit. She recalls, \u201cI scream in Phantom of the Opera. And I didn\u2019t want to scream there, because I felt very adamant about not wanting to be that girl. I mean, it made sense; it\u2019s pretty horrific. But I\u2019m not a damsel in distress. Once when my purse <\/strong>was stolen<\/strong>, I ran after the person and fought them for it, physically fought them.<\/strong>\u201c<\/p>\n

Yet, she very nearly missed her chance to even fight for a part in the sequel to her favorite horror movie.<\/p>\n

\"When<\/p>\n

Jill Schoelen in \u2018When a Stranger Calls Back\u2019<\/p>\n

\u201cFred Walton told me he didn\u2019t even want me for When a Stranger Calls Back, before he saw me read. He saw my name on that list and said, \u2018Take her off. It\u2019s a waste of my time to see her.\u2019 Then, he later told me at the end of the film, \u2018You walked in, then you read, and done. You won the part.\u201d Schoelen\u2019s turn as the smart but vulnerable Julia Jenz, subjected to a bone-chilling night of babysitting, elevates this sequel, easily winning over even stubborn skeptics.<\/p>\n

By this stage of her career, Schoelen wasn\u2019t just deftly changing the minds of directors on horror sequels with her talent. She was in frequent contention for A-list parts and carving out an illustrious career on the stage, too. Two years later, she met the man she\u2019d marry, who would dramatically shift her career trajectory.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I met my husband, he was a film composer doing quite well. We were personally at a place in our lives doing well. We felt traditional about having children. I really wanted to have children. So, that happened quickly, and that\u2019s why that was one of the last movies I did.\u201d Supporting her husband\u2019s prolific career meant less time for acting, until the day Schoelen discovered she was pregnant.<\/p>\n

That was when Schoelen retired from the entertainment business. \u201cI left when I got pregnant with Dante, my oldest son. I called my agent that day. That very day, I found out I was pregnant and said, \u2018<\/strong>I\u2019m done<\/strong>.\u2019<\/strong>\u201d Her retirement from Hollywood didn\u2019t diminish her creativity, though, especially when it comes to writing and music.<\/p>\n

That creativity went into overdrive after Schoelen suffered a personal loss and a particularly vicious and lengthy fight with long COVID, one that wreaked serious havoc on her health. It reignited her zest for life and artistic pursuits with a new fury, and she\u2019s officially come out of retirement with an already impressive slate of projects in development geared toward the devoted fans who refuse to let go of her work in horror.<\/p>\n

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Jill Schoelen and Tom McLaren in \u2018Ralph\u2019s Perfekt Christmas.\u2019 Photo Credit: Next Chapter Entertainment<\/p>\n

Much of Schoelen\u2019s renewed zest for acting, in particular, can be owed to the upcoming feature Ralph\u2019s Perfekt Christmas<\/strong><\/a>, a darkly comedic genre-bender from directors Matthew Bellamy<\/strong> and Mary & Tom McLaren<\/strong> targeting next holiday season for release. \u201cI play the female lead, which was great. I mean, to come back after all of these years, and at my age.<\/strong> I\u2019m playing a man\u2019s wife, Ralph, played by Tom McLaren, and he\u2019s trying to get his wife back. Everything spirals to a point where it really has a quite wonderful horror twist to it, as it moves on down along the line<\/strong>,\u201d Schoelen says.<\/p>\n

The holiday genre pic didn\u2019t just reinvigorate Schoelen\u2019s passion for acting on screen; it inspired a new holiday album, Christmas is Forever<\/strong>, releasing next week on November 12<\/strong>.<\/p>\n

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Tom McLaren and Jill Schoelen in \u2018Ralph\u2019s Perfekt Christmas.\u2019 Photo Credit: Next Chapter Entertainment<\/p>\n

\u201cWhat happened was, I did that film, which I was so happy about doing, and then, in post-production, I was meeting the producers every now and then for lunch, a quick hello. At one point, they said, \u2018We\u2019re working on the music and looking into Christmas songs.\u2019 I just flippantly went, \u2018Oh, I recorded some Christmas songs!\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cBecause my ex-husband and I, with our kids, both my kids are so musical, instead of doing a traditional Christmas card, we would record Christmas songs, and then we would put out a Christmas CD to family and friends. I had recorded some of those songs; my ex-husband and I had a beautiful recording studio, and we had lots of work there. We just recorded our album with top musicians, and my husband at the time was very popular. Our recordings were quite nice, not quite homespun. So, I had some of them. I just sent one of the songs to the producers months later, because I was so shy. Well, next thing I know, they take me out for lunch or dinner and say, \u2018We loved that song, and we put it in the film.\u2019 I\u2019ve always loved Christmas. I\u2019ve always loved Halloween.<\/strong> I have a huge storage unit, like many people do, and it\u2019s just filled with nothing but Halloween decorations.\u201d<\/p>\n

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\u201cI did bring a horror element into these first five songs. Which I\u2019ll be very, very, very excited to talk about right around the corner,\u201d Schoelen teases.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n

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Tom McLaren and Jill Schoelen in \u2018Ralph\u2019s Perfekt Christmas.\u2019 Photo credit: Next Chapter Entertainment<\/p>\n

That\u2019s not all that\u2019s on the way from Jill Schoelen, either.<\/p>\n

\u201cI did another horror movie,\u201d she teases of the currently titled A Dying Art<\/strong><\/a>. \u201cI did a horror movie with Logan Miller<\/strong>. I love him. I did not know anything about him, and I\u2019m a fan now! I\u2019m a fan of Logan Miller now that I not only worked with him, but then I finally saw him in Escape Room. Horror fans are gonna love this one, too. It\u2019s at a Pacific Northwest university. I play one of the professors in it.<\/strong> The film students are studying film, and then these murders start happening, and they\u2019re in the vein of these classic horror films. They\u2019re stunning. Who\u2019s the killer? It\u2019s got great people in it and was so much fun to make.\u201d<\/p>\n

Horror fans have been at the forefront of Schoelen\u2019s mind with nearly every step of her return so far, and that extends to her newly launched website JillSchoelen.com<\/a><\/strong>, where fans can find limited merch you won\u2019t find anywhere else. \u201cBecause I know all the fans of horror love the physical! Also, thank you, fans. So, last minute, I thought, because my producer is totally not from this world. Even though he\u2019s a film composer, too, he\u2019s digital. While we want to push that as well, I thought, for the <\/strong>fans of horror<\/strong>, I have to have the physical. So I did do a vinyl. Very, very limited edition vinyl. There are only 100 of them. I only printed 100<\/strong>.\u201d<\/p>\n

While you can preorder the album now, fans will want to bookmark the site for future collectibles. Schoelen also teases a special, limited signed collectible for \u201990s slasher Popcorn timed around the film\u2019s anniversary. \u201cBecause, especially with Popcorn, there is almost nothing out there available for fans,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n

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Schoelen is only getting warmed up and eager to dive even further into horror. She cites Mike Flanagan<\/strong> as a filmmaker she\u2019d love to work with, but notes particular interest in notching a horror film first for her. \u201cI do feel a lot of people don\u2019t know me. I feel like there\u2019s a group of people that know me, but there\u2019s a ton of the horror audience out there that has no idea who I am, because I never did that franchise film.<\/strong> Even though Stepfather had a few movies, I\u2019ve never been associated with a franchise film.\u201d<\/p>\n

Follow Jill Schoelen on X<\/a> and Instagram<\/a>; she notes her Facebook account was previously hacked and is still in a recovery process.<\/p>\n

And stay tuned for another surprise the actress has up her sleeves.\u00a0<\/p>\n

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