Multitalented Entertainer Joel Ezra Hebner Looking To 'Set Hollywood On Fire'

It takes years to be an overnight success and with actor, producer, stuntman, and the face of "Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare" among many other accolades, success has followed Joel Ezra Hebner everywhere he has gone and it seems to be continuing with recent amazing roles as the terrifying Grimcutty in the Hulu horror film with the same name. Add to that a host of incredible upcoming projects, it is only getting him closer to being that overnight success he deserves to be.

The Blast was able to speak with Hebner EXCLUSIVELY on Grimcutty, his continued Hollywood dreams, and how he wants to in his own words, "Set Hollywood on fire!''.

Hebner stands 6'5 in height, along with his acting and stunt skills he is looking to make his mark in Hollywood as a leading man in ways we haven't seen before on TV and in film. He also wants to do more action and superhero roles and looks up to amazing actors like Tom Cruise as inspiration.

The classically trained actor has booked creature and suit roles which he used to Segway into stunt work that he feels will only help in his quest for future roles saying, "I think being able to do stunts, I think later on in my career I might want a stuntman for things but I think it is very important nowadays. Because a lot of times, they want actors who are able to do all the stuff. The term actor is now loose nowadays, it is like, 'Yeah he is a trained thespian but he also can ride motorcycles and jump out of a moving car and that sort of Segway into the world I want to break into which is the superhero action genre."

And what Hebner is saying actually makes a lot of sense because it really adds to the films an actor or actress does when they can do everything as he added, "I think it helps the audience having one steady shot of your actor doing the lines and delivering a really cool monologue and being able to play in a great fight sequence. I am seeing that with a lot of actors, I see Chris Hemsworth is one who really has set the bar so high with all the action films he is doing, he is doing a lot of stunts, not them all but I think it is helpful to help create the story and allowing the audience to maintain a connection with the character."

It certainly helped in his recent role as the new horror movie icon Grimcutty.

This recent Halloween was actually Huluween, where the streaming service described their programming as follows, "Huluween has escaped and it's taking over. Beware! Next thing you know, you might just find your next obsession: a chilling classic, a spine-tingling show, or a horrifying original." And one of the horrifying originals was 'Grimcutty' which is a story best described as a monstrous internet meme that comes to life and encourages teens to hurt themselves and their families." Hebner, who played the role of Grimcutty spoke on the process of taking on the suit as he told us EXCLUSIVELY:

"I mean, the process was really exciting for me and I was very, very lucky. And I actually worked with John Ross, the director years ago on another project that he did. I did another suit for him, called 'Gregory.' And so years past, you know, we had all sort of gone our way and I get a call from CCE, Creative Character Engineering, they do amazing suits over there and I'm very blessed to work with them a lot."

He continued, "They call me up and they're like, "Hey we have a project, you know we pitched you to the producers, would you be interested in jumping in a suit again?" And for them, I'm always like, absolutely. Let's do it. And so we went in and the process was, it was a couple of weeks in the making. You go in, you do the live cast, you do the face mold, hand molds, feet molds. They did the whole body cast essentially for me. You start to see the progress of what the Grimcutty would eventually become. Because at that point it's a lot of research and development. It's a lot of what works, what reads, what doesn't read, how do we make this so that way our performer can survive, because a lot of these outfits for people who don't know wearing suits like that, it can be extremely taxing on the body and this one, I always find the best suits do. They are little, there's a level of uncomfortableness. It actually is a sort of a blessing and a curse. You know it's a blessing because they let you really dig into this character and really sort of find nuances in the movement, in the actions that you wouldn't normally have. The curse side is sometimes it can be extremely uncomfortable."

But the curse was actually good for him because it got him into the part even more as he told us;

"This one, for instance, we actually, the headpiece was kind of like a Captain America helmet that had to be cinched down with a socket wrench. To the point where you could almost feel the brain squeezing out? But that's how it was really good. And that's how that's why I could emote using the Grimcutty face because it was so good. And it was, you know, for a lot of the emotions, I was able to do and then they came in obviously with digital and did some really cool polish to that. But a lot of that was because the suit was so well constructed. I was able to really be able to play with moving the face, looking more sinister than the Grimcutty already is, and yeah, it's a lot of fun. I mean, it's such a process and it's stages and step by step by step, but when we finally got the Grimcutty, right? It was a lot of fun. It was such a, such a great suit."

The suit and Hebner's acting made the film. If you haven't seen it yet, it is always a good time to watch a good horror film any time of the year. Especially something so new and especially something that could be the new face of horror. In a sea of horror legends, there is always room for new ones, so we asked Hebner how Grimcutty would handle some other horror legends like Chucky, Freddy Krueger, and Michael Myers and he was quick to add others in the mix:

"You know, it's a great question and you know, I would put a Grimcutty up there with Freddy. I think he is a, I think he is right up there with Candyman and Freddy. I think I think he has that sort of power. And again a lot of you know, your belief is what fuels.. oh no, spoiler alerts! You know, it's your belief that fuels the Grimcutty, very similar to how Freddy, you know the dreams and nightmares or what kept him strong and powerful. And I think that's where John Ross came up with such a cool modern creature for the times which I think is really, I think it's almost more terrifying. You know that it is, you know, so socially relevant, social media angst is the ultimate strength of this creature. I'm like that thing is I think the Incredible Hulk of horror films."

But as Hebner continues his career in Hollywood, being a horror movie icon is all sorts of great, but he also has other dreams to fulfill.

When it comes to what is next, Hebner has his eyes set on a few dream roles and what he would like to dive into. He told us EXCLUSIVELY his thoughts, "I love this question, you know I am a big guy and I was told in my first ten years in Hollywood that, "I was too big and I would never work in this town!" There was a casting director that used to do CSI and CSI: Miami and she would be like, "Joel, I love you but you are too big! If you were ever to do one of these things, then the husband comes home and finds you, you would just beat him up and continue to do what you are doing!" And I was like, "That is the most flattering rejection I have ever had!"

He added, "But now, I have had a lot of luck with superheroes, the world of superheroes and comic books has been very exciting for me. I have had a lot of close calls with that. I have been up for some big roles and got callbacks but the perfect role is Lobo, I would love to take a bite of that and play Lobo. I think that would be an excellent role. A couple of years back I was up for Conan the Barbarian and it came down to me and Jason Mamoa, and he did a great job with that but that is one that I would love to delve into that a little bit. The Viking world would be a dream, Game of Thrones, I am a huge dork. Fantasy and playing D&D, I was that guy. I would play football and then dive into a D&D game. So anything mythical like that would be a ton of fun. So many options and possibilities to play in."

So as of right now, the sky is the limit and we will be seeing a lot more from Hebner who has already delivered so much. It shall be fun to see his journey continue and we look forward to seeing him be that overnight success. It is just a matter of time because the talent is already there. We will enjoy the ride just as much as he will.