The horror genre is a significant constant in your filmography, with titles such as “The Slaughter – La Mattanza”, “Me and the Devil”, and your appearance in “7 Sins”. What fascinates you most about horror and stories that explore the darker side of the human soul?

Yes, that’s true — horror has indeed been a constant presence in my filmography, perhaps because I have a rather unsettling face, who knows. In recent years, I’ve often found myself working in horror films. Besides the ones you mentioned, I’ve made “L’isola maledetta” and the zombie short “Non mangiare Hamill”, both directed by Dario Germani. I’ve also collaborated with Dario Almerighi, not only on “Me and the Devil” and “7 Sins”, but also on “Amore Acido”, “4266 – Le origini del male”, and the short film “In Umbra Rosae”, with which we won numerous awards around the world, including “Best Actor: Diamond Award” at the Los Angeles Horror Competition. What fascinates me most is what Stephen King describes as the very essence of horror: “a lens through which we examine human truth — a truth within fiction that reveals our deepest fears and darkness through tales of the supernatural and the macabre, yet always rooted in the existential.”

In “The Slaughter – La Mattanza” you played “The Guardian,” a disturbing and menacing figure. How do you prepare for roles that require conveying tension and fear, and what’s your approach to making a horror character both believable and frightening?

 

“The Slaughter – La Mattanza”, directed by Dario Germani under the supervision of Claudio Fragasso and written by Antonio Tentori — a true legend of Italian horror who’s worked with the likes of Lucio Fulci and Dario Argento — was a truly fascinating and fun experience. We shot it in English, with an international cast. For most of the time, I performed wearing a doll-like mask — a sort of “Argento-style” homage, masterfully crafted by Davide Bracci. I could barely see or hear anything: chasing victims to kill them was really challenging! But we had an incredible time. I always try to bring truth to the characters I play, even the most extreme ones. Then, of course, the magic of cinema takes over — which in Italy still remains a wonderful form of craftsmanship.

​In “Me and the Devil”, you played Father Fabrizio. Horror often blends the sacred and the profane. What challenges or opportunities did you encounter in portraying a religious character within this kind of story?

I’ve played several priests throughout my career. After one of those performances, a critic once wrote that I was “one of the most believable priests in Italian film and television.” That really made me happy, because it meant I had achieved what I set out to do. Religion is an integral part of our country’s social fabric, so it’s only natural that many horror stories intertwine the sacred and the profane — it’s a powerful contrast, deeply rooted in our culture.

Many of your projects, such as “7 Sins”, are independent or Italian genre productions. In your opinion, what makes contemporary Italian horror unique, and how does it differ from international productions?

 

The main difference lies in the means available: we have fewer financial resources, so we have to rely on creativity and ingenuity to bring projects to life. But that limitation often becomes a strength. Independence allows filmmakers to realize their true visions, without external impositions or compromises of any kind.

Working on a horror set can be intense. What has been the most difficult or emotionally demanding scene you’ve filmed, and how do you “detach” from your character once shooting ends?

 

Detaching from a character after filming is always a bit complicated — something always stays with you. However, I find that playing negative characters is far more interesting than playing “good guys,” who often risk being two-dimensional. The most challenging scene I’ve ever shot was in “Amore Acido”: after killing and dismembering a girl, my character had to dissolve her body in acid in a bathtub. The space was tiny, the stench of the (animal) flesh was terrible, and the smoke made everything even more difficult. But in the end, we pulled it off.

​After your success in the genre, do you have any new horror film or TV projects coming up?

 

Absolutely. My next project is “Al termine del sole”, inspired by Fernando Di Leo’s “Avere vent’anni” (1978) — probably his most daring and violent work, which was heavily censored at the time. I play a sort of transgender guru called “Il Nazariota,” a role originally portrayed by the great Vittorio Caprioli — a brilliant actor, sadly forgotten too soon. The original film starred Gloria Guida and Lilli Carati; directors Lorenzo Lepori and Dario Almerighi worked hard to find their modern counterparts, and eventually succeeded with Francesca Montuori and Elena Silvi. We’ll premiere the film at the Italian Horror Fantasy Fest, on November 1st at the Casa del Cinema in Rome.

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​Beyond your own performances, is there a horror film — classic or modern — that has particularly influenced you or that you consider a benchmark for the genre?

 

It may sound absurd, but I can’t actually watch horror films — they scare me too much! Making them is fun, but watching them is a completely different story. For example, I started “The Shining” by Stanley Kubrick several times but could never finish it. Then one night I said, “Enough!” and, with all the lights in the house on, I finally managed to watch it to the end. Unforgettable, of course, is the scene where Jack Nicholson says, “I’m the Big Bad Wolf!”

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