‘Bad Santa 2’ Has More Heart, More Story, More Nastiness, Says Billy Bob Thornton [TCA 2016]
Billy Bob Thorntonwas on a Television Critics Association panel for his upcoming Amazon original seriesGoliath, in which he plays an alcoholic lawyer seeking redemption in a new case. The legal drama was co-created byBoston Legal,The Practice, andAlly McBealcreatorDavid E. Kelley. After the panel, Thornton stayed to talk to reporters further. We asked him about the long-awaited sequelBad Santa 2, which finds his raunchy department store Santa Claus return 13 years after the original was released.
“I think we pushed it even a little further this time, not only in the sort of dark humor but also in the emotion,” Thornton said. “This one has more of a heart, more of a story you would say, but it also went a little further with some of the nasty stuff.”
The then-shocking jokes ofBad Santaincluded Willie having anal sex with Octavia Spencer, promising that when he was done, she wouldn’t be able to “shit right for a week.” Comedy keeps escalating, with films likeBridesmaids,The Hangover, andThis Is the Endtrying to top what came before. Thorton assuredBad Santafans that they’re aware of the competition.
“We try to keep up with the times,” he said.
The originalBad Santafeatured Thornton as Willie, a hard-drinking, womanizing criminal who used his department store Santa gig as cover to rob said department stores during their lucrative Christmas season. Willie was taken in by Thurman Merman (Brett Kelly), who gave him a little bit of a sense of family, but only in the way Willie taught Thurman to be naughtier. Kelly returns for the sequel along withTony Cox.
Terry Zwigoff directedBad Santa.Mark Waterssteps in forBad Santa 2, along with new screenwritersShauna Cross,Doug Ellin,John Phillips, andJohnny Rosenthal. That’s a mix of filmmakers behindMean Girls,What to Expect When You’re Expecting,Entourage, andDirty Grandpa. If that givesBad Santa 2a slightly different perspective, Thornton is clear that he still has a handle on who Willie is, especially 13 years past the events ofBad Santa.
“If anything, he’s probably gotten a little more world-weary,” Thornton said.
Bad Santa 2also starsKathy BatesandChristina Hendricks. It will be in theatersNovember 23, 2016.Goliathpremieres October 14.
