With ICK hitting theaters this weekend, we caught up with Brandon Routh (Superman Returns; Legends of Tomorrow) to discuss his role as Hank in Joseph Kahn’s new horror-comedy.
During our conversation, Routh talked about what drew him to the script, the challenge of playing a grounded “straight man” amidst the film’s chaos, working with Mena Suvari, filming the now-famous upside-down scene, and his thoughts on James Gunn’s Superman movie.
Watch our full video interview with Brandon Routh below and/or keep scrolling to read the transcription. Plus, remember to subscribe to our YouTube channel for more exclusive content!
ROHAN: What initially drew you to ICK and to playing Hank?
BRANDON: Yeah, I mean, I had a good time reading it. And, you know, part of it definitely wasn't evident in the script what Joseph was going to really bring to it, because he had so much more planned than was on the page, even just so far as what the look of the Ick would be and how it would populate the screen. You can't really describe it in the script, but the story, the journey that Hank goes on, the anti-hero quality of him, sounded like a fun challenge to me, and just the horror comedy genre is one that I like. I'm not a big horror fan, but I do like horror comedy, and then juxtaposing the two, you know, life is in danger, yet we're somehow making light of it and moving forward the best we can.
ROHAN: Hank is essentially the “straight man” while chaos unfolds around him. How did you approach that challenge?
BRANDON: Yeah, to be straight, but also interesting, and to be the audience, you know, like Hank's working to be like the sane audience member. I think while all these people are having ridiculous responses to what's happening, you know, and they're denying the Ick or just running or, you know, not handling themselves well, and Hank has to be kind of a calm force. It was easy to play off everyone, I mean, it was nice. I just worked to stay grounded and to feel like Hank was gonna find an answer somehow, like he didn't know how, but he was gonna find the way out. I just tried to keep that kind of fire burning in him.
ROHAN: How did Joseph initially describe the Ick to you, and what did you visualize when filming?
BRANDON: Yeah, there was some art that had been rendered and stuff already to make an approximation of the black tendrils and the vein-like looking aspect of it. So, I felt like I got enough of an understanding of how it would grow, but in a random sort of way, that it was just kind of creepy, because it was everywhere, and could do anything at any moment, so you didn't know exactly what was going to happen. But, it wasn't really that present on set, other than, you know, green marks for eye lines of where it was going to be, because Joseph did such a great job of framing and directing us to know, like, what it would be doing in that one exact moment, and what its intent might be,
ROHAN: You also get to flash back to Hank’s high school days with Mena Suvari. How was that experience?
BRANDON: Yeah, it was cool to check off a couple things, you know, I don't know if they were necessarily in the bucket list, but the actor’s bucket list, I guess, kind of, and, you know, in Texas and for a movie that's going to be on the big screen, you know, it was pretty awesome. And, we got to do a lot of those little moments in one with all the flashbacks. So, it was kind of like shooting my own teen movie that I didn't get to shoot when I was a younger actor. And to work with such an amazing actor and as funny as Mena Suvari, and have her be my high school girlfriend for a couple days was cool. And to just try to pretend like I was in high school again.
ROHAN: What was it like working with Mena Suvari on this project?
BRANDON: It was great. You know, she's wonderful and incredibly talented and funny and very game to be silly. Like, we kind of had to be in that mindset to do all the flashback stuff and make fun of ourselves a little bit. And, you know, put up with the Texas heat, with the rest of us.
ROHAN: There's a great scene where you're hanging upside down and have to deliver a lot of dialogue. What was it like shooting that sequence?
BRANDON: Not the most fun, although I love those scenes, so I love the work that's in there. But the first day was the majority of me hanging upside down. And my stomach didn't mind, but I got a little nauseated after some time. So, the next day we tilted it less or we made some kind of fix for it anyway, so it wasn't so bad. But, you know, I hope people can watch it and understand me, because my voice sounds so funny because the blood is rushing to my head. It’s a ridiculous scene.
ROHAN: Hank is a very different character from roles like Superman, Ray Palmer, or Daniel Shaw - who are are very well put together whereas Hank is a bit of a mess. What was that acting challenge like for you?
BRANDON: It was nice. It was, I think, not something that, again, took me a little time to kind of allow myself to wallow in some of Hank's kind of misery and be upset with the world. I think he's blaming outwardly at the beginning of the movie, for a long time, not kind of understanding that he's more responsible for his state of affairs than he's giving himself credit for. And then, when the Ick comes, it's like he doesn't have to wallow, there's a more prescient issue, like he has to deal with the Ick, so he doesn't have time to wallow in his self pity and the fact that he's not the star quarterback anymore. He's got to possibly save, you know, somebody who might be his daughter and/or just the people in his town. So, he has to choose whether he's going to step into the hero moment that is available to him, or just continue being the old Hank. And thankfully, you know, the gamer Hank shows up and he takes on the challenge, and it sparks him back to life.
ROHAN: You’ve played Superman twice — once in Superman Returns and again in Crisis on Infinite Earths - seeing you in that Kingdom Come suit was a dream come true.
What are your thoughts on James Gunn’s new Superman, and the legacy now being passed on to David Corenswet?
BRANDON: I'm excited for everybody involved. I think the movie was a lot of fun. I saw it the other day. I think David is fantastic. I don't have any personal contact with him at this moment, but I was very happy - I was happy because it's easy for me to say that I really enjoyed his performance and thought he brought great spirit, charm, grounded, authenticity and, you know, Superman, the Superman quality to Superman, in my opinion.
From acclaimed director Joseph Kahn comes his latest film, ICK, a pulpy horror comedy bursting with splattery bedlam starring Brandon Routh, Malina Weissman, and Mena Suvari. For almost two decades, a viscous vine-like growth known colloquially as “The Ick” has benignly crept into every nook and cranny of American life while the residents of small town Eastbrook remain blasé about its existence. The exceptions are former high school football star-turned-hapless science teacher Hank (Routh) and his sardonically perceptive student Grace (Weissman) who are thrown together by Grace’s mom Staci’s (Suvari) closely-guarded secret and a mutual suspicion that the Ick is about to unleash some monstrous mayhem.
A wild ride driven by a power punk spirit, ICK is a dizzyingly fun and hilariously grotesque homage to throwback PG horror flicks, as well as an ode to Millennial nostalgia manifested in soundtrack needle drops by American Rejects, Paramore, and Blink 182.