When most of us are seven years old, we spend our time running around pretending to be superheroes or plumbing the depths of our imaginations from the confines of our bedrooms and backyards. When Quinn Lord was seven years old, he put on a tiny burlap sack and prosthetic makeup and transformed into Samhain, the pint-sized spirit of Halloween that slashes throats and steals hearts in Michael Dougherty’s cult classic Trick ‘R Treat.

Tonight (October 28th) at 7:30 pm, you can follow the star-studded screening of the film online at Legendary Pictures’ Facebook page. With Dougherty, Brian Cox, Dylan Baker, and the orange pajama-clad one himself, Quinn Lord, in attendance, this livestream is going to be be so good it’s scary. But first, I caught up with Lord, now fourteen, to talk about the film’s cult audience, people getting tattoos of him, and more.

Nerdist: Thanks for taking the time to talk to me, man. I appreciate it.

Quinn Lord: Thanks. I appreciate you wanting to talk to me too.

N: [laughs] So, let’s talk Trick R Treat. Since its release in 2007, the film has taken on a new life of its own through DVD sales, attaining a cult status. How has it been seeing this project grow and find new audiences since its initial release?

QL: It’s been amazing. Seeing how many people liked it ever since it first came out and seeing more and more and more people become interested in the movie – it just grew and it’s continuing to grow. I’m just surprised that people like it. Movies tend to go up and then plateau, but this keeps going upwards, and I think that it’s because it’s rewatchable. You’re probably not going to get bored of it; I’m not. I watch it every year on Halloween. Also, watching it once every year, it’s like watching a brand new movie, because you don’t remember exactly how everything was, so it’s like watching a new movie all over again. The movie itself, the idea of the four story lines with how they intertwine with each other… I really love how intricate it is and how they affect one another.

N: I agree with you. I just watched it for the first time this week and I loved how interconnected the four story lines were. You get these fantastic snippets and moments in which they crossover and it really rewards repeat viewings. 

QL: Yeah, exactly!

N: So, your character Samhain – he’s such a little creeper – has become this cult figure amongst horror fans. He even has his own action figure! What has it been like seeing how people latch on to this character?

QL: It was quite an extraordinary experience seeing all these people almost, in a way, worship this character. I saw quite a few people posting on Facebook and Twitter, posting that they have Sam tattoos on their leg or whatever. I was like, “Wow, these people really love this movie!”

I have an older brother who lives in Alberta, and he was saying that he was invited over by some friends saying, “Do you want to come over and watch Trick R Treat this Halloween?” And he said, “Oh, my brother’s in that.” They were like, “Oh, who does he play?” “Oh, he’s the Sam character. The burlap sack kid that looks like Sackboy…”

N: [laughs] From LittleBigPlanet? Yes!

QL: Yeah! His friend was like, “Yeah, I got a tattoo of him on my leg!”

N: That’s pretty awesome, man. I don’t know how I’d react to seeing myself tattooed on someone. At least you’re wearing a burlap sack and it’s not just your face. You’ve done some other horror work too. Is this a genre you feel yourself drawn to?

QL: I really like serious movies overall. Horror is a serious kind of genre, but I really enjoy playing comedy, but not full-on completely-nothing-but comedy. One of the big reasons I like Trick ‘R Treat is that it’s serious, but it’s a combination of scary and comedy that I find quite enjoyable. It’s funny in some parts, but it’s terrifying in others. One of my favorite parts – I don’t even think it made it into the final cut – is my character Sam, he throws an egg at Charlie early in the film and he’s like, “Who did that?,” then I flip him the bird and run away.

N: That’s awesome.

QL: I also really liked how funny the scene was with Dylan Baker when he’s trying to hide the body. “You’ve got to be quiet!”

N: That’s such a twisted vignette. I think you have a good point though. Those moments of comedy serve to make the moments of horror have more punch. Do you have a favorite memory or moment on set while filming?

QL: I’d have to say when I egged Charlie [laughs], but I’d also say when I got to wear the full on prosthetic head when the mask got torn off. It was an amazing thing to do. It was heavy on my head at the time because I was seven, and I couldn’t see because it was completely animatronic on the front of my face. Luckily – thank you, Creed, for shooting me – I could slightly see out of the bullet wound so I’d tilt my head down to the right and see a little bit in front of me. Apart from that, I was pretty much blind when I was doing it. I thought it was a really fun thing to do, run around blindfolded while trying to kill Mr. Creed.

N: Well, it’s to your credit that you didn’t look like you were blind when you were doing that part. One last question: what are you being for Halloween?

QL: I have actually put a lot of thought into it. Originally, last year, I was so hyped up about Assassin’s Creed, and I was going to dress up as Connor, but I never got around to it. I was going to do that this year, but I may have to go as something else. The costume isn’t turning out as good as I hoped, but there’s always next year!

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There’s always next year, but you can watch Trick ‘R Treat live in person or online tonight at 7:30 pm PT.