From the chilling depths of Camp Crystal Lake to the fiery streets of Hell, Kane Hodder has terrified audiences and crafted a legacy as one of horror’s most iconic figures. Known for his unparalleled portrayal of Jason Voorhees in the Friday the 13th series and his spine-chilling performance as Victor Crowley in Hatchet, Hodder is a living legend among horror aficionados. But beyond the mask, hockey or otherwise, lies a man whose dedication to the genre and respect for his craft have cemented him as a beloved figure in Hollywood.
Recently, we had the privilege of sitting down with Kane Hodder for an exclusive interview at the Famous Monsters Fest. Moderated by Levi Tinker—respected host, interviewer, and authority on Hollywood history—it was a conversation that cast light on the actor’s storied career, his methods, and his commitment to horror.
Famous Monsters: How did you get into being a stuntman and working in the stunt industry? Can you talk a little bit about what kind of first inspired you to wanna do stunts? And what was it like getting into it?
Kane Hodder: I was really inspired to think about doing stunts when I saw the Wild West Stunt Show at Universal Studios. And I thought, man, this is, seems like a job that I was born to do. Cause I always did crazy stuff as a kid. And then I found out there’s a career where you could make a lot of money doing the same stuff instead of doing it for free. So I decided to try to see about getting into the stunt business, which was very, very difficult. If you don’t have any legacy family members who have had a career or something, you don’t audition for stunts like acting. You might audition for a part and possibly get it, which could kick off everything. It doesn’t work that way with stunts. You have to be known, and how do you get known if nobody will hire you because you’re unknown?
So, you know, it’s very, very hard. And the first few years, I didn’t even make a living, really. I was living on unemployment, doing a stunt job here and there, wherever I could get it.
Famous Monsters: When you first got your first, you know, big stunt that you worked on, what was that like for you? And can you go through what the setup for?
Kane Hodder: Well, I mean, the first few things I did were not that big. I was just given an opportunity, and that’s how it works if you’re unknown. You know, you start out doing easy things and gradually get more of the dangerous stuff. And first thing that I really did was an episode of a show called Emergency. And that was the very first thing I did after I got into the Screen Actor’s Guild, for my first job. And I was playing a guy that had been in an explosion on top of a tower. I had to go to the other tower across on a rope in a stretcher. They call it a Stokes basket. And you know, I thought it was simple. I mean, if you have a fear of heights, maybe it’s not as as easy, but I’ve never had any fear of heights or any of the typical ones. Not, you know, heights or fire or anything, even though, you know, fire almost killed me. Yeah. I kept doing fire stunts.
Famous Monsters: Now excluding, of course, the fire stunt, what would you say is the most challenging stunt of your career?
Kane Hodder: Oh boy. There’s been a few, but the one I usually talk about is a movie called Fair Game with Cindy Crawford. And four of us had to jump out of a flying helicopter on top of a moving train. And it was difficult because we couldn’t figure out if when you drop from a flying helicopter, and you hit the moving train it. After all, the train’s moving; is it gonna make you fall backward as you hit?
And I kept trying to decide the physics of it. Whether that, in fact, would happen or not. Yeah. And it turns out it does not because when you jump from a helicopter that’s flying forward, you don’t fall straight down. You fall this way because it’s moving forward. So you do this, and then you hit the train, which is going the same speed. So it’s as if both of ’em were motionless, which surprised me a bit. But it made it easier ’cause we had to do four takes of that scene. And you know, it’s not that dangerous. It’s a little scary if you fall between the train cars. You’re basically dead. But it was challenging. And also because every time somebody jumped, the helicopter was compensating for that person on the skid, then they jump, and the thing goes like this because he was compensating for the weight there that suddenly disappears. And I was the fourth person to jump. So it was pretty squirrely in the end, by the time it was my turn.
Famous Monsters: Well, jumping over to Friday the 13th and being cast as Jason. Can you talk about coming on board as Jason and how that changed everything as well?
Kane Hodder: Yeah, I mean, you know, I had always been a fan of the Jason character in earlier films and did a movie with John Buechler called Prison; Randy Harlan directed I was the stunt coordinator. I played a character just in a couple of scenes coming out of the ground, strapped to an electric chair, all rotted and everything, kinda like similar to what I ended up looking at, like as Jason in Part VII.
So it was a similar makeup, and John enjoyed me in that makeup. I had never done a full body makeup before with, you know, the appliances and everything, three and a half hours to put it on. And you know, John just liked how I worked in it because it’s not easy. To be scary, especially without making it look like you’re acting. Seems easy to do, but it is not. And I just didn’t want to look phony.
And I guess based on that movie, John was hired to direct Friday the 13th Part VII and started campaigning for me to play the character. And I thought CJ had done a good job in part six. So even though John kept saying, I want you to play Jason, I figured it was probably not gonna happen. I don’t want to give my hopes up. And he would hear no from Paramount. He just kept insisting, saying, you know, trust me, this guy will be the one. And they’re like, we’ve heard that before. So, but you know, based on that performance, I did four in a row, so it just changed everything.
You don’t really become known for anything unless you do some huge stunt that an actor takes credit for. Tom Cruise, but he does do a lot of stuff, but not everything. And you know, it just all of a sudden, people wanted me to sign stuff, and I just never expected that. I just wanted to make a living doing what I loved, which was stunts. And, you know, when that happened, now it’s a different side of the business, and I was just very excited and still feel honored that I was chosen.
Famous Monsters: Now, playing a role like Jason or Victor Crowley, you’re in these prosthetics, makeups, and appliances; how does that impact your ability to do those stunts?
Kane Hodder: Yeah, that’s a good question because, with the prosthetics glued on your face and dentures, you can’t breathe properly. And then lenses that you can’t see very well out of because, you know, it’s a cloudy-looking thing. So you have limited vision and limited motion, and then you have to do stunts. It makes it a little trickier. But I got used to it pretty quickly. And, you know, it’s doing some of the, the fire stuff and, and everything with that kind of things on, because I didn’t want it to look any different. Yeah. Even though the makeup was a different material when I was on fire, it was not as flammable as foam latex. So yeah. I mean, it did make some stuff a little harder. Especially with the vision. ’cause you know, if one eye is covered, your depth perception is affected. And you don’t like to see that if you’re doing some stunt that takes a lot of timing or anything and you can’t really see. So, it did make it difficult, but it was still so much fun.
Famous Monsters: What do you look for as an actor or stuntman when going for a project? What do you look for, especially now? What do you look for in a role?
Kane Hodder: I’ve done so much of the violent, horrible killing of people that, which I’ll always love. But you know, any actor, I think if you’ve been around long enough, what really appeals to you is to do something different.
Just to challenge yourself. And that’s what I liked in 13 Fanboy. I had an emotional scene where I asked if we could write it a certain way so I could do some, you know, very sad, emotional stuff. Because that’s, you know, not what I’m known for. So anybody likes to do something different. It’s, you know, I, I would say that’s the thing that interests me the most nowadays. If I’m offered something, I didn’t ever consider being offered.
Final Thoughts: Kane Hodder Interview
Kane Hodder’s impact on the horror genre is immeasurable. He revolutionized how masked killers are portrayed, brought depth to characters often dismissed as one-dimensional, and served as a champion for the community of horror creators and enthusiasts alike.
This exclusive interview with Kane Hodder took place at Famous Monsters Fest and was masterfully conducted by Levi Tinker, whose decades of experience in Hollywood shine through in his meticulous yet relaxed approach to panel hosting. Tinker’s tenure at the TCL Chinese Theatre, red carpet interviews, and contributions to events like Mad Monster Party solidify his reputation as an expert moderator in genre spaces.
What’s your favorite Kane Hodder moment? Did Victor Crowley’s rage leave you speechless, or did Jason haunt your teenage dreams? Share your thoughts in the comments.