Bruce Campbell reveals why he wanted role on Hysteria! despite hating the 80s

Bruce Campbell has a formula when it comes to picking which roles he wants to pursue.“As you get to be an old actor, all you care about is good writing,” the Hollywood icon, 66, exclusively told The Post.“Because as a young actor, you don’t even know what good writing is.

You get the part, you’re so excited, and you’ll say any line of dialog that anybody writes.And as you get more experience, you start to identify what’s actually a well-written piece.”When it came to starring in the new Peacock thriller “Hysteria!,” which follows the “Satanic Panic” of the late 1980s, Campbell knew Chief Dandridge was a character he wanted to play. “This one caught my attention because of how well-written it was,” he confessed.

“And horror is a tough genre to get a fresh angle on.So, I thought they were pretty good.

There’s not a lot of horror shows out.There are movies that have that kind of satanic panic as a base.

So I thought they did a good job with it.”Despite being involved in “Hysteria!” and the “Evil Dead” series, Campbell isn’t the biggest horror buff.“I am not a huge fan of it myself,” he admitted.“But what I like is that it’s one of the few genres that gets a visceral reaction from the crowd.

Someone watches a drama, they’re eating popcorn, their face isn’t changing – maybe a couple of tears.Horror movies, they’re jumping out of their seats.

You want the popcorn to go airborne, you know?”“Same with comedies,” continued Campbell.“So, comedies and horror are about the only ones where the audience really gets riled up.

And as a presenter, actor, filmmaker, that’s what you want.You want to get the audience engaged.

So that’s the fun of horror.And I’m also just glad horror is a little more mainstream now.

When I started, horror was a little more taboo.”“Hysteria!” brought back the gems of the ’80s, including big hair and Walkmans, but in 2024, the “Knots Landing” alum isn’t looki...