Dragon Con welcomed actor Tyler Labine for a doozy of a panel, “You Want a Killer Hillbilly?—An Hour With Tyler Labine,” on Friday at 10AM in Hyatt Regency VI–VII. Known for portraying Dale in Tucker and Dale vs. Evil, this talented actor has many roles to his credit, including Dave Groves in Invasion, Bert “Sock” Wysocki in Reaper, and Sherlock Hobbs in the second season of Dirk Gently’s Holistic Detective Agency. Labine took the stage in a t-shirt and shorts. To the surprise of many, the man who played the lovable Dale is ripped! During the next hour of Q&A moderated by Bobby Blackwolf, Labine proved to be jovial and charming.
This is Labine’s first Dragon Con, and though he’d love to see some Dwayne Johnson lookalikes, he admitted that his default favorites are Tucker and Dale. He’s amazed that the fans’ love for the two hillbillies has endured so long. He’s also surprised when he sees fans cosplaying some of his other characters, too.
Labine didn’t audition for the role of Dale. While shooting Reaper, he got the offer. He read the script, and thought, “This is really funny.” When asked how he prepares for a role, he said he tries to find the character inside of himself, to exaggerate parts of himself. He loves playing a “know-it-all-idiot.” He decided to portray Dale as a very kind bear who just wants to be loved.
The plot, Labine said, is one long joke, which can be hard to pull off. To make it work, they had to make sure both sides, college kids and hillbillies, believed in the stakes.
The actor who was slated to play Tucker had to give up the role at the last minute. Alan Tudyk stepped in. Labine and Tudyk bonded immediately. According to Labine, they shot the whole film in 18 or 19 days. Initially, the two actors weren’t sure how much ad-libbing would be allowed, but after they improvised much of the first garage scene—which director Eli Craig and the producers loved—they were given free rein. In the end, about 25% of the film was ad-libbed, like Tudyk’s line, “He’s heavy for half a guy.”
Filming may have been done in a short amount of time, but it wasn’t easy. Most days, the actors were covered in fake blood, which would dry on their clothes. The next day, the cloth would be stiff. “They would wet us down,” Labine recalled, and filming continued—in Canada, in the middle of winter. At one point, Labine had to jump into a lake. It was frozen over in the morning but thawed by the time they needed to shoot. With no additional protection under his clothes other than a thin wet suit, hopping into that icy water felt “like running into a cactus.” After six or seven takes, Labine thought he was wading through clay. In actuality, his legs had gone numb.
One fond memory Labine recalled was of sitting in the trailer with Tudyk, drinking, writing, and recording a song for Tudyk’s girlfriend. Most memories weren’t that nice, though. The woodchipper scene was disgusting, Labine said, but he thinks it’s probably the best shot of a man jumping into one of the massive shredders. At one point Tudyk asked if he could drag the half-body over Labine’s face. It sounded like a good idea. “It was nasty in practice,” Labine said with a grin.
He also had quite a time with the pickled eggs. He had to down about 13 and choked on one. A piece got lodged in his sinuses. He ended up with an infection that resulted in ears so plugged he could hardly hear, and then he had to film the kissing scene. He thought viewers wouldn’t like that kiss and was surprised that everyone was happy Dale got the girl. “I put a lot of skin in this game for you guys!” The audience showed their appreciation with a hearty round of applause.
When asked what other eccentric roles he’d love to do, Labine joked, “Eccentric? How dare you!” He likes to think of roles as being eclectic. He thinks his character in Reaper was the most “out there.” After he finished filming, he buried that character and started asking for dramas. When he got the role in New Amsterdam, he liked getting to showcase mental health issues and was exited to try something different.
Labine started a podcast, ILYSM (I Love You So Much) with his friend Reed Fish. They want to be better men, more accountable. They’ve had lots of guests so far, including Tudyk. Labine has also joined the cast of the upcoming Baywatch reboot.
Fans were thrilled to hear that a sequel script to Tucker and Dale vs. Evil already exists, currently titled Tucker and Dale Go to Yale. Labine said they’re working on getting the rights. If all goes well, they hope to be able to say more about it soon.
