ChromeSkull: The Reflection of Fear comic book coming from Laid to Rest star Nick Principe

Back in 2009, director Robert Green Hall introduced the world to a chrome-masked maniac called ChromeSkull in the very cool slasher Laid to Rest. A divisive sequel called ChromeSkull: Laid to Rest 2 followed two years later – and as the years went by, Hall let it be known that he intended to make another sequel called Laid to Rest: Exhumed. Sadly, he wasn’t able to make that movie before he passed away unexpectedly back in 2021. But Nick Principe – who recently wrote and starred in the horror thriller Johnny & Clyde and also played ChromeSkull in both Laid to Rest movies – has revealed to our friends at Bloody Disgusting that he intends to continue the Laid to Rest franchise with a comic book called The Reflection of Fear!

Principe explained why he’s moving forward with a comic book instead of trying to get another Laid to Rest movie into production: “To be totally honest, Rob didn’t have a screenplay for the third film. He alluded to it and he hinted, but it was never actually completed. There wasn’t even a full outline. We just had some ideas that we had, going back and forth. We knew we wanted to go in that direction, but there was nothing on paper. Now, it just does not feel like I can bring myself to go through the heartbreak and the pressure and the pain of starting a film up from scratch. I simply don’t have it in me. On top of that, the legality of it is a mess as far as who has proper ownership of this or that. It’s a lot of paperwork, a bunch of lawyers, and a bunch of money. But the one thing that I do know for a fact, legally as co-creator of the character, I have image rights. So a comic book just kind of makes sense. A comic book is the only thing that I feel comfortable with doing, because it’s something me and Rob had discussed many, many moons ago, and he wanted me to do it. So it’s just cool. It’s a medium that I’ve been in love with since I was like a little boy. I’ve always been kind of looking for something to do a comic with, but this just made sense, because a movie – if it were ever to happen – is years away. This is something that I can have complete control of, and have it come out and just give something to the fans, give ’em some kind of resolve.“

As for whether or not The Reflection of Fear will contain the ideas Principe and Hall had for Laid to Rest: Exhumed, “It will have a bunch of things that the third film would’ve had, but you’re also getting – and this is something I think people are gonna really love – a bit of an origin story for Chromeskull. You’re not gonna get the full picture of why he became what he did, but after this you’ll have a better grasp of who he is as a human being. It’s titled The Reflection of Fear, and you’ll find out why he wears a shiny metal mask. He gets off on the fact that his victims see their reflection as he kills them. That’s why he records them, to capture the look on their face as they see themselves dying. It’s tough, because it is basically everything that I wanted to see in a third film, but with a little bit more. Especially with the origin, because me and Rob went back and forth all the time. He wanted to give him an origin story. I didn’t, because I just think that the less you know, the scarier it becomes. It doesn’t matter what origin story you could come up with, I always think it’s just gonna be ten times cooler not knowing why this person is an insane murderer. As soon as you get the reasoning, then you understand him more, and then I think he’s just not as scary. For me, I like keeping it blank, but this is a dedication to Rob. So for Rob, I’m including an origin story that we kicked around in our heads. Basically, the story is, we’re going to start off in the early 90s, where a very young Chromeskull makes a very horrible impression on a little boy by killing his mom in front of him. Chromeskull lets this kid live for a reason that we find out much later. This new character grows up and dedicates his life to hunting Chromeskull down. In between all of that, you’re going to get the pieces of the origin, though most of it is in the first issue.“

Principe added that the comic book will be returning to the vibe of the first film and getting rid of the elements from the sequel that didn’t go over well with some fans.

The Reflection of Fear will run for six issues, thirty pages each. Fábio Simão is providing the artwork. A couple sample pages from the comic can be seen at the bottom of this article, and more from the interview with Principe can be found at the Bloody Disgusting link.

Principe is aiming to get the comic book out into the world in 2024.

Are you a fan of Laid to Rest, and are you interested in following the story of ChromeSkull into the comic book realm with The Reflection of Fear? Let us know by leaving a comment below.