I chat with actress and author Dee Wallace, who discusses her role in the film Roswell Delirium and the emotional connection she felt to the character. She emphasizes the importance of being present in the moment and fully immersing oneself in a role. The film raises questions about aliens, mental illness, and perception. Wallace also talks about her books, Born and Bapalapaloo, which explore the power of self-creation and manifestation. She shares her writing process and discusses her upcoming book, Horror Stories from a Life in Horror Films. Wallace encourages self-love and embracing one’s creative power as the key to creating the life you want.
Dee Wallace (00:03.992)
Hi, I’m Dee Wallace and I’m here with Chris Gordon on Hellblazer Biz.
Chris (00:11.253)
Thank you very much, Dee. Thank you. Okay, we’ll crack this on. Everybody, I have the absolute awesome pleasure and honor to be talking with the award -winning and actress and author as well, six -time author, Dee Wallace. Dee, I’ve admired you for a long time as an actress, and I’ve got to say, this is why I’m a little bit starstruck, perhaps, which is nuts, seeing you here.
Dee Wallace (00:30.968)
Oh, thank you sweetheart. I’ll take all of that I can get.
Chris (00:36.761)
really no worries. So we’re here to talk about Roswell Delirium as well. So I’m trying to keep this very brief. Now I’ve watched the show, the film, it’s not a show, I’ve watched the film recently and I loved it. I thought it was absolutely brilliant and so I thought I’d have to reach out to you guys and your character in there as well is so powerful. Even for a short time it’s very very emotional.
Dee Wallace (00:50.454)
Mm -hmm.
Dee Wallace (00:54.392)
Yeah, it is brilliant. Oh.
Dee Wallace (01:03.544)
Yeah, it was an emotional ride for me too, especially that last scene. I didn’t really expect it to be quite that emotional, but when I got there and got into the character, she wanted it that way. And I mean, I think if you can understand that, if you have children,
Chris (01:10.259)
Mm -hmm.
Dee Wallace (01:34.04)
If you put your children in someone’s trust, I don’t want to give the plot away. And everything gets upended and you don’t even know what’s happened to your child. It’s probably the most frightening thing for a parent. I know I lost my daughter in F .A .O. Schwartz one day in New York. And I.
Chris (01:38.869)
Yeah.
Chris (01:45.683)
Mm -hmm.
Chris (01:59.285)
Mm -hmm.
Dee Wallace (02:02.008)
can close my eyes and literally, viscerally go back to the panic of that moment.
Chris (02:07.029)
I can imagine I can imagine it’s a FAO Schwartz is a huge store as well.
Dee Wallace (02:14.52)
Yeah, yeah. But you know, I love this film because it’s intellectual and yet incredibly creatively entertaining and powerful, you know? And it brings up all kinds of questions also.
Chris (02:16.085)
But yeah, you do get that, you get that panic of where have they gone and…
Chris (02:33.397)
Yeah, definitely, definitely. So is that what attracted? It does. I mean, I was speaking to Rick and I told him I had to watch it twice because I must have been working on the, you know, at the time and watching the first time and I kind of missed the end bit. And then the second time I was like, oh, wow. And it really does hit. So what?
Dee Wallace (02:51.16)
Yeah.
Yeah, it’s not like a Marvel movie that you can do the laundry and polish your nails and everything while it’s on. To get the full impact of the movie, you have to be very present to follow what’s happening. It’s really a psychological drama is what it is.
Chris (02:57.813)
No, no.
Chris (03:10.005)
You do definitely, definitely. That’s the kind of movie I love. It is definitely. That’s kind of film I love. You you say you’ve got the popcorn movies, but I really love one where you can get your teeth into it and you can just sit and concentrate and focus. Okay. So what kind of attracted you to the story? I mean, was it the script? Is that what you saw in the script when you read it through?
Dee Wallace (03:25.826)
Yeah, me too.
Dee Wallace (03:33.624)
Well, sure. First, I look at the script and see if it’s written well. And secondly, most importantly, do I know and understand the character and can I do service to bringing her to life? You know, because if I don’t feel her right away, if I don’t know her right away, I usually don’t take the part.
Chris (03:59.477)
Mm -hmm.
Chris (04:04.821)
Okay, that’s very interesting. That was another question of mine actually was how do you prepare for the role? So when you, it’s lovely to hear that when you read that script, you’ve got to feel that character straight away. So how would you, how do you go? What kind of preparations do you do yourself when you’ve got the role and you’re about to go in?
Dee Wallace (04:23.8)
Uh, you know, I…
get my energy up very, very high. And I throw all my energy toward the person or the rabid dog or the werewolf or whatever my connection is. And then I turn it over to the character. I know that sounds very, very, but it really is a definitive technique.
Chris (04:30.707)
Mm -hmm.
Chris (04:41.045)
You
Chris (04:57.845)
Mm -hmm.
Dee Wallace (04:57.848)
that I learned when I studied with Charles Conrad. And when I found that technique, it gave me freedom as an actress. So from E .T., Kujo, all the main films, major films that I’ve done, I’ve always used this technique. And magical things happen, like the…
Chris (05:16.659)
Mm -hmm.
Chris (05:20.789)
Yeah.
Dee Wallace (05:27.736)
the scene that I did in ET, the big dinner table scene, and he ends up saying, well, dad’s in Mexico with Sally, and I took, Mary took such a hit on that, and I felt the tears coming up, and I got up and left the table because I thought I don’t want the kids to see me cry.
So Steven came over and said, Dee, why did you get up and leave the table? That’s not in the script. And I explained to him what happened. And he looked at me and turned around and said, guys, you have 30 minutes. I need you to put in a wall here and build a sink with running water so he could take me over to the sink from the table and then bring me into.
Chris (05:56.949)
Mm -hmm.
Chris (06:18.355)
Mm -hmm.
Dee Wallace (06:22.04)
that big close -up where I say, he hates Mexico. And it all happened because all of us trusted following that very real instinct that the character had.
Chris (06:41.653)
fascinating that really is especially about things I grew up with ET. It’s still one of my favorite films. It’s brilliant. It’s such a great thing to hear. I mean, I’ve heard it a few times. That’s the way to get into it. There’s one as a lovely actress called Erin Burns. And she worked on a film called Cell with Samuel Jackson. And you’ve just you’ve just explained exactly because she’s I think there’s a scene where her brother had died in the film.
Dee Wallace (06:49.24)
Me too!
Dee Wallace (06:59.542)
Uh -huh.
Chris (07:07.989)
and they were walking off and she just decided in the moment her character would turn, would want to see him again. And she said, she turned to go back and she just felt this big arm come across her chest because Sam Jackson, again, knew exactly instinctively what she was doing. I was like, you don’t want to do it. Remember him how he was and all that, you know, just like that, it was just all ad -libbed because it’s such a great way to learn your craft, to be able to just…
Dee Wallace (07:24.822)
Yeah.
Chris (07:35.901)
let the character take it, I believe.
Dee Wallace (07:38.636)
Oh yeah, and it’s really freedom because you don’t have to worry about making wrong or right choices. You’re not in your head. You really are able to live in the moment and bring the moment alive in a very real way.
Chris (07:48.179)
Mm -hmm.
Chris (07:57.685)
Definitely, definitely. It’s fascinating. And it makes it so much better to watch a film, you know, when you can see the cast and everyone getting so involved in that way, because it makes something special of the movie itself. Like Roswell Delirium, I think everyone in that film really sort of jowled. And yeah, the performances were just phenomenal from everybody in there. Yeah. Like I say, without spoiling it again, I say the scenes which you’re in.
Dee Wallace (08:13.656)
Totally invested. Yeah.
Dee Wallace (08:19.8)
Yeah, they are.
Chris (08:26.453)
it really does hit because you can you can you can relate so well to the character and yourself obviously in the film and you’re just like wow it’s yeah it was it was a good powerful film so let’s see um how would you describe was the overall theme or message from the film from your perspective?
Dee Wallace (08:33.592)
Thank you. Not one of my prettier parts, is it?
Dee Wallace (08:51.)
Oh, I think there’s several, actually. I think it asks the audience to really, what do I believe about aliens? What do I believe about them visiting? It brings up a lot about mental illness. And it brings up a lot of questions about perception.
Chris (09:05.011)
Mm -hmm.
Dee Wallace (09:19.576)
I think that’s one of the things that it’s serving right now, especially in our country, because how you see the world and the perception that you have of the world literally defines your experience in the world. And those lines get very crossed for
many of us these days. It’s like we don’t know what to believe. And so we go, oh my God, I’ve got to believe something. I’ve got to make up my mind and believe something. And oftentimes it’s not the truth that we’re believing.
Chris (10:07.229)
Yeah, very eloquently put that day. But you’re right. It’s, yeah, it’s not just in America. It’s over here as well. You know, it’s very, very current topic some things and what you what you do believe. And I was going to say speaking to Richard the other day, and that’s pretty much the message as well was the power of it. But it’s all the visual cinematography of like making it in the setting in the 80s. And I said there was obviously that you had the
Dee Wallace (10:11.704)
Thank you.
Dee Wallace (10:19.958)
Yeah.
Chris (10:37.245)
likenesses to COVID because of the masks and you know all the the way people were behaving and like the cough so that’s probably just supported for some but you know that kind of thing it was very much it was so fantastically well thought out in that respect as well I thought it was linking the current with some of the past and
Dee Wallace (10:41.174)
Uh huh.
Dee Wallace (10:47.008)
Yeah.
Dee Wallace (10:54.978)
Absolutely. And that takes a very sensitive director who knows what they want and is open to, well, again, the magic of the moment that the actor or the cinematographer or even the editor, when he’s putting it together, brings in. You have to…
Chris (11:02.643)
Mm -hmm.
Dee Wallace (11:28.024)
I think in any creative endeavor, you have to go into it knowing exactly what your purpose is, what your choices are, where you want to take it, and then let go and let the magic happen.
Chris (11:45.877)
Excellent. And like you say, when everyone does that, it’s going to make such a great product at the end of it as well, because you can all feed off each other. It’s great. So not just the actual actors, as like you say, the directors, even the cast and the crew, that everyone symbiotic, I think Richard’s explained it lovely. I think it was the final scene, the last scene, I think it was with Ashton and Ari, you know, the prison, there’s a prison scene, but he said they hadn’t met each other for three months and…
Dee Wallace (11:54.998)
Yes.
Chris (12:13.755)
apparently all after they did the scene that even the crew were just like, they’re like your jaws on the floor. It’s just everyone just so blown away by it because it was just one of those moments that everyone was so engrossed and involved in the film. It just comes through on screen. It really does.
Dee Wallace (12:30.206)
Yeah, and Richard created a beautiful, trusting, warm, and yet very focused set. You know, we all had a lot of respect for each other.
Chris (12:42.855)
Yeah.
Dee Wallace (12:50.232)
You know, I don’t know, maybe I had more credits than a lot of people, but that was never a focus on this set. The focus was how do we serve the material and bring this to life in the best way possible. And that’s always when you get the best product.
Chris (12:58.749)
Mm -hmm.
Chris (13:10.653)
Excellent, excellent. Definitely, definitely everyone comes together and works just works together in harmony. It’s.
Dee Wallace (13:19.128)
Actually, it’s a really good metaphor for life.
Chris (13:23.477)
It is basically. Yeah. That’s all we need to do. If everyone did that.
Dee Wallace (13:25.016)
Yeah, if we could just come together, stop judging each other, and work together for the greater good, it would be so simple.
Chris (13:30.429)
Mm -hmm.
Chris (13:35.669)
It would be, it would be. That kind of brings me on to my next questions because not only with the film, you are also a six time author and the latest ones I believe are Born and I’m going to try and pronounce Bubbalapaloo appaloo. Is that correct?
Dee Wallace (13:40.086)
Okay
Dee Wallace (13:48.984)
Yes, yay for you, Bubbalapaloo you got it. Bubbalapaloo is a children’s book that teaches at a very early age the power of self -creation. You know, I’m a clairaudient channel and I have been doing healing work for 35 years.
Chris (13:53.237)
way. That’s
Chris (14:15.925)
Mm -hmm.
Dee Wallace (14:18.616)
Born is literally the formula for the creation process. The first thing you have to get in place is you have to know what you want. And you would be surprised how almost everybody I work with, because I do privates with people all over the world every day.
Chris (14:40.797)
Mm -hmm.
Dee Wallace (14:43.16)
It takes us a good 10 minutes for them to actually say succinctly what it is they want. And most people, by the way, start saying what they want by saying what they don’t want. So I’ll say, OK, what do you want to work on? Well, I don’t like it because I don’t have enough money.
Chris (15:02.741)
Right.
Chris (15:13.397)
Mm -hmm.
Dee Wallace (15:14.264)
Good, what do you want to work on? Well, you know, I feel unsafe in the world because I don’t have enough money. This can go on for 10 minutes until they get so annoyed with me. They go, God, do I want more money? And I said, yes, but that’s the first time you’ve told me what you want. So if the universe is partnering with us and it is, you don’t want to keep saying what you don’t want.
Chris (15:24.629)
No.
Chris (15:38.899)
Mm -hmm.
Dee Wallace (15:43.736)
because brain science will tell you that your brain sees you not having what you want. So you gotta know what you want, you gotta commit to it, and then you gotta love it. If you want money, love money. If you want health, love a healthy body, quit focusing on what’s wrong with your body. Because…
Chris (15:52.085)
Yeah.
Chris (15:57.075)
Mm -hmm.
Chris (16:10.645)
Mm -hmm. That’s sound.
Dee Wallace (16:12.216)
whatever you focus on, you create more of and that’s brain science. So I combine brain science and spirituality and all that in describing the formula for manifestation in Born.
Chris (16:14.663)
Yeah.
Chris (16:18.773)
That’s fascinating.
Chris (16:30.741)
I’m gonna have to read that now because that actually sounds really interesting. I may even end up booking a session with you to go through it because it sounds…
Dee Wallace (16:34.456)
Oh, yeah, I think. I mean, I get emails daily. Oh, my God, I. I picked up your book, Born and I looked at I went, oh, this is looks awful simple. Yes. You know, I often joke God created the world in seven days. How hard could it be? But we just want to struggle and make it hard.
Chris (16:50.323)
Mm -hmm.
Dee Wallace (17:03.704)
because we have been taught from verbally and from watching all of the first gods in our lives, our parents and our grandparents, that the harder you work, the more you struggle, the more you deserve to get part of what you want. That’s what most of us are taught. And we’ve got to reteach ourselves because they ain’t gonna.
Chris (17:31.827)
That’s very true. Very apt as well at the moment because you’re right. Because I you know, my normal day job is 40 odd hours a week working and all it’s doing is paying the bills and you know, not much enjoyment is kind of gone because this is like all you do work to live. No, you live to work, should I say? And that’s not right. And so
Dee Wallace (17:48.952)
Well, I get up every day, Chris, and I would say, OK, I’m the creator of my life. I’m here to learn free will. How can I make my job more exciting today?
Chris (18:05.749)
Great way to look at it.
Dee Wallace (18:06.072)
Just give it a go and see what changes at work. You’ll be surprised.
Chris (18:11.797)
a great way to look at it. I do start doing a little bit of that and by throwing different, you know, different aspects of training and stuff and reaching out and being proactive to try like to make it interesting. But I’m definitely going to buy I’m definitely going to buy Born and read it. And you might hear from me again as I reach out to maybe take one of your sessions on that one.
Dee Wallace (18:16.088)
Good!
Dee Wallace (18:28.6)
Well, you let me know how you like the book. Again, it’s a very easy read, everybody. I have great respect for Eckhart Tolle. Cannot get through his books. I wanted to write a book that was simple and to the point where every Joe Blow could understand it. So I did.
Chris (18:34.483)
Mm -hmm.
Chris (18:53.853)
which is what we need because I say there are there there are books out there like you say they just they just get so complex like by you know chapter one or chapter two and it’s just blown because you can’t follow it.
Dee Wallace (19:03.96)
Yeah, the world is complex enough, I think.
Chris (19:09.823)
It is, it is. So what’s your writing process then? Because obviously you’ve written quite a few of these books and obviously you’ve had 35 years of this.
Dee Wallace (19:15.192)
I write actually, I write like I act, I channel. Sometimes I, you know, I’ll sit down and go, okay, what should this chapter be? What can I write in this chapter that will serve the most people to expand in their lives? And I work with a pendulum.
Chris (19:22.289)
Okay.
Dee Wallace (19:44.856)
And I always get an answer like that. And then I’ve got where I’m going to go, the choice of what that chapter is. And I sit down and start writing. And it just kind of writes itself. You know what I’m writing now? I’m very excited about this. I’m writing a book called Horror Stories from a Life in Horror Films.
Chris (19:52.339)
Mm -hmm.
Chris (20:03.911)
Go on.
Chris (20:15.325)
Oh wow.
Dee Wallace (20:15.8)
about all the behind the scenes, horrific stuff that happens when you’re shooting horror films.
Chris (20:20.051)
Mm -hmm.
Chris (20:26.873)
I can imagine. I mean, some of the ones you’ve been like, you know, the Cujo and everything.
Dee Wallace (20:31.032)
Yeah, I have a very long chapter on Cujo.
Chris (20:34.837)
Oh, that sounds awesome. I’m a huge horror fan. So that’s another one which I’m going to put on my list to when it comes out to read. It just sounds great because I say, talking to you as well, the whole experience of you seem to be able to live your life in that such a way that you do your channel, the way you can channel your, say the spirituality side of where you live.
Dee Wallace (20:44.856)
Yeah, it’s gonna be fun.
Chris (21:02.261)
just channels its way through into all these artistic outlets and artistic talents over the years and
Dee Wallace (21:05.176)
Yeah. Yeah. And you know, anybody can channel. Everybody does channel. Kids channel all the time. We call them their imaginary friends and we discount the information that comes into them. But, you know, if anybody’s ever gone, oh, you know, I haven’t talked to so and so and so long. I should call them in the next day they call. That’s channeling.
Chris (21:16.243)
Mm -hmm.
Dee Wallace (21:32.44)
You’re picking up the information of the connection of energy between the two of you. That’s all channeling is. It’s understanding the information that comes in that’s the biggest challenge.
Chris (21:50.229)
I’m blown away. That’s fantastic. That’s really fantastic. It’s really good. And you’re right, the kids do have the imagination. I keep you know, I’m 48 and I’ve still got a really big imagination as well. So I’m quite proud of that people. People always ridicule me for it. Yeah. No, people always ridicule me for it. They say, Come on, you’re, you know, you’re an adult. It’s like, Why? Why should I?
Dee Wallace (22:00.92)
Yeah, you don’t ever want to lose your imagination.
Dee Wallace (22:09.624)
Well, according to Einstein, all of his greatest breakthroughs were through his imagination, not through his mental mind. So throw that back at him, Chris.
Chris (22:21.717)
Yeah, I will do. Einstein wouldn’t have had half the stuff or any of the stuff if it hadn’t been for his imagination. I’m sure that’s probably the same for Da Vinci and everybody like that as you go back in history. Da Vinci especially, you know, helicopters and everything. That’s pure imagination at the time. We wouldn’t have any of those designs. Excellent. And as I come to the end now, is there a message that you’d like to get out to people who are watching or listening to this show?
Dee Wallace (22:38.84)
Yeah, you bet.
Dee Wallace (22:50.964)
Yeah, love yourself. Love yourself more. You want to create the life you want, it’s got to start with self -love. Look, who do we want to give everything to? The people we love. We are, if we’re on the list at all, we’re at the end. So again,
God and society and your friends and your family are going to love you a lot more if you’re humble, if you keep yourself small, and if you give yourself up to take care of everybody else. It’s a false teaching.
Dee Wallace (23:34.424)
In the good book, it says these miracles and more will you do also. Can’t perform miracles if you don’t accept your own creative power.
Chris (23:48.789)
Fantastic. Thank you. I’ll stop recording on that because that was very powerful.
Dee Wallace (23:51.956)
Yeah.
SummaryDee Wallace discusses her role in the film Roswell Delirium and the emotional connection she felt to the character. She emphasizes the importance of being present in the moment and […]
