Interview with Dee Wallace-Stone: Actress, Teacher, and Writer

Dee Wallace-Stone is an actress, a teacher, and a writer. She is best known for playing Elliot's mom in "E.T.," but is recognized in many other roles as well. While covering the Motor City Nightmares horror convention and film festival, I had the opportunity to sit down with her to discuss many of the projects that she has her hand in at the current time.

Note: This interview was done prior to the official release of her book.

LVP: I hear that you have a book coming out next week.

DWS: My newest venture is the fabulous book that I have coming out on April 26, 2011. It is entitled "Bright Light: Spiritual Lessons from a Life in Acting." There are amazing stories from all of the great directors like Spielberg, Blake Edwards, Rob Zombie, and all of the other great directors that I have worked with over the years. It is a journey throughout my entire career and my life. It mirrors everyone's life, though. We have all been dumped upon somehow. The point is to answer if we stay dumped on our entire lives, or do we bounce back and take our power back and create ourselves all over again?

LVP: I have seen your online acting class site. What was it that took you from the brick and mortar schools into an online environment?

DWS: I had one of the largest acting schools in L.A. Now I teach a Master's class in L.A. What got me started was the fact that I came to a number of great cities and people would ask how they could get into acting. They would tell me that there was no one in their area to learn from or to study with. It is true that most cities only have knock-off businesses that will make you pay thousands of dollars for them to simply take headshots of you. You don't learn anything, but if you do, it is usually the wrong stuff.

I created this set of lessons that is incredibly affordable, by the way. You can get all of the courses for a little over $100. They offer a wealth of information from how to join the union to technique. I teach my entire technique and how to use it.

Note: You can find that site by following this link.

LVP: Your name has been attached to "The Story of Bonnie and Clyde." What can you tell about where that project is at right now?

DWS: I have heard that someone is shooting a Bonnie and Clyde movie in Missouri right now. All I can tell you is that I have been promised for years that I was going to play the mother after two audition processes. It is one of those stories that we had the financing, then we lost it, then we had it, then we lost it. That is all I can really tell you about it.

LVP: You have been quoted as saying that "E.T. is the Wizard of Oz of our generation." Can you elaborate on that quote?

DWS: I believe that they are both total heart movies. They are both about taking a journey to find out what we are and who we are and to get back to our home. To get back to that place that makes us what we are. It does not matter if it is represented by Kansas or a galaxy that is far away. In both movies we find out at the end that we have had the power to go back all along, just by clicking our heals together three times. In fact, that is exactly what my book is about.

LVP: Even though you have done a number of horror movies in your career, you have been able to branch out into other genres. In your mind, what is it that separates you from the other women that get stuck in the horror genre for their entire careers and never have the opportunity to branch out?

DWS: Tenacity? I was lucky enough to have a plethora of types of roles before and during the horror movie part of my career. For me, it was not about getting into horror and trying to break out. It was that I had horror mixed in with a number of other good roles outside of the genre. I also think that I have become respected for my heart work.

The essence of my work, and of me, is the softer side of a strong woman and that goes into a number of different roles. Years ago, I told my management that I want to have good roles in good films. I explained that I did not want to limit it to any genre or anywhere. I just wanted them to bring me good roles in good films.