The Grim Reaper returns in Bill & Ted Face the Music, the long-awaited final entry in the beloved comedy trilogy. It’s been 29 years since the release of Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey, but the new film doesn’t miss a beat, seamlessly picking up 25 years after the end of Bogus Journey. Bill S. Preston and Ted Theodore Logan were destined to change the world forever with their music, but have seemingly failed in that endeavor. Now firmly into middle-age, the two rockers must fulfill their ultimate destiny before the entire space time continuum is destroyed. To do so, they must embark on one last “excellent adventure” to save the universe.
Bill & Ted Face the Music is filled with new faces and returning champions, including William Sadler, who reprises his role as Death himself, the Grim Reaper. Aside from his turn in the Bill & Ted films, Sadler is arguably best known for his villainous turn in Die Hard 2 as well as his role as President Ellis in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. Casual fans almost certainly won’t recognize him underneath his black robes and ghostly makeup, but Sadler’s iconic take on the Reaper is as charming and hilarious in Face the Music as it was nearly three decades ago.
While promoting the release of Bill & Ted Face the Music, William Sadler spoke to Screen Rant about his work on the film. Despite his difficulty with the extensive makeup process, he clearly has a deep-rooted love and appreciation for the character, and it shines through in every moment he appears on screen. He discusses what it was like to return to the Reaper role after such a long time and shares an interesting story about real-life killer Robert Alton Harris, who famously quoted one of Sadler’s iconic lines from Bill & Ted’s Bogus Journey before being executed by the State of California.
Bill & Ted Face the Music is out now in theaters and on all digital platforms.
![William Sadler Interview: Bill & Ted Face The Music](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/William-Sadler-in-Bill-and-Ted.jpg)
Hello there!
Hey Zak, good to see you!
I thought it would be at least a few more years before I’d have to “dance with the Reaper,” but here we are.
You’ve had a brush with Death.
I’m sure every single interview is going to begin with something along those lines, but whatever!
You’re the first one I’ve said that to.
Well, thank you! First things first… Death plays a five-string bass.
He rocks out on it, too.
For my bass-playing friends, I haven’t told them anything about the movie, but I know they’re going to say something. LIke, “Ooh, five, huh?” Why didn’t they go for the classic four or the hardcore six? Why the five?
Why? Yeah. Why the five? I don’t know. I didn’t pick it out. I thought I was going to play the standup bass again, but it was funnier. If he’s gone off on… He’s sort of had a bit of a solo career. At the end of Bogus Journey, we see that Death has joined Wyld Stallyns, and then he goes off on his own solo career. But yeah, I got to the set, and they said, “No, he’s gotta have this cool five-string bass.” (Laughs) I don’t play the bass at all. I’ve played lots of guitars and ukuleles and banjos and mandolins, so it wasn’t that foreign to me, but… There you go. So your friends who play the bass… One of my best friends in the business is Leland Sklar. I don’t even think he plays a five string bass, does he?
I couldn’t tell you. So, obviously, it’s been a long time since you’ve been Death. When you’re coming back, obviously, the first thing is the makeup. For you, someone who doesn’t often play these types of physical transformation characters, is it a necessary evil, or are you like, “Hell yeah, let’s do it!”
I guess it’s a necessary evil, because it’s a pain in the butt. It’s less fun than it looks. This weird thing has happened to my skin. I dunno… Maybe ten or 15 years ago, my skin started reacting to makeups. Now my skin just hates it. You can’t put any kind of makeup on it without it reacting. So, all the way through the shooting of this thing… First of all, the makeup took about three hours to do, and then another 45 minutes to get it off. It’s just a necessary evil. There’s no Reaper if he’s not “the man with no tan,” you know?
![Bill and Ted play electronic football with the Death in Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Bogus-Journey-Death-Cropped-1.jpg)
Was it a different process than with Bogus Journey, in terms of the makeup?
No. It was basically the same thing. I didn’t shave my head for either of them. It’s a bald cap that’s glued down, and then it’s eyebrow covers. I guess they made my cheekbones stick out a little bit. And then they start painting! And then airbrushing. It’s just this big… And the hands, the bony hands… I have bony hands now. But yeah, it’s just a process. My skin was really fighting it. My skin was, like, my skin was really hating it. But it was worthwhile. The things we do for love. I really really enjoyed playing the Reaper again, and letting that character breathe and walk and come alive and interact with Alex and Keanu. You put up with whatever you have to put up with. The robes were big heavy black things, and it’s 150 degrees in New Orleans in the Summer… But you just… You know… It was worthwhile. It was really fun to do. And the minute we were on the set together, the minute Alex, Keanu, and I were back together, it was just like *boom* the energy was there, and the fun was there. That was really fun.
It’s not just the visuals, for you, it’s not just the makeup and everything. You’re not pigeonholed because you play a wide variety of characters, but I feel like your default, when your headshot gets passed around, is like the tough guy in Die Hard 2 or Memphis Beat.
Yeah. I don’t know why that is! I’m not a tough guy. I mean, I’m not any tougher than anybody else. I’m just an actor. I guess the Reaper is a big stretch. He’s a leap, you know? He doesn’t sound like me or look like me. And maybe that’s why he’s so much fun to play. Because there’s a lot of freedom in that. It’s almost like a clown. Like, the classic clowns who put on white makeup and whatever they do, and all of a sudden, they’re like… They can be huge! It’s very freeing. I sort of felt the same way with him. As soon as he was all together, he’s just a different creature.
![Bill And Ted’s Bogus Journey – Rat](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Bill-And-Teds-Bogus-Journey-Rat-Cropped.jpg)
Was there a learning curve to falling back into it, especially with the accent? Did you have to relearn it, or has it always been there?
It’s always been there. It’s always… Well, no. I watched Bogus Journey to get ready to play this one. I went back and watched the first two movies again, mostly to remind myself what I had done, what I sounded like, and what I looked like, and little gestures and things I did in Bogus Journey. But as soon as I put the robes on and the makeup and the Czechoslovakian accent, he just appeared. It didn’t really take much coaxing. He’d been waiting. It was like he was in a box all these years, and I let him out to play… And then he didn’t want to go away. He was like, he wanted to improvise, he wanted to dance. I really didn’t want to put him away again.
That’s awesome.
Yeah. (Laughs)
When you’re playing this role, and you’ve got that time on the set, I’ve heard the stories about Bogus Journey, you really getting to cut loose and make stuff up and write your own Reaper Rap. Did you have that room to… That sounds like the first question everyone always, “So, do you get to improvise on set?” But especially when you’ve got all the blue screens around, Hell is mostly, from what I can tell, a blue screen environment. Is that stifling creatively on set, or is it the opposite? Do you feel like you get to?
I didn’t find it stifling. The Reaper is pretty playful to begin with. And I always ad-lib. I’m always… I’ll try things. If they work. If I do it in the Reaper’s voice and it’s right for the scene, if it’s right for the moment, and the crew falls on the ground laughing, then it was probably right. I don’t recommend that actors improvise all over the place, but… And I didn’t, either! Things got in. There were a few personal… You make it personal, you make it your own. I guess that’s how I feel about it. It happened on Bogus Journey, too. Once the character comes alive and he’s there, he’s in the situation, sometimes a thing will occur, just by accident. Just kind of naturally. Again, if it’s right for the moment, if it’s right for the scene, it ends up in the scene. And if it’s not, then, you know, you just stick to the script. When I did the Reaper Rap, it was because they had written a little poem to be the rap, and I couldn’t make it make sense. I couldn’t make it scan and I couldn’t make it make sense! I asked them, “Would it be alright if I tried to write something?” And they said, “Yeah.” And that’s when I came up with, “You might be a king or a little street sweeper, but sooner or later you dance with the Reaper.” That’s gonna be on my tombstone, I think. Funny story: in 1991 (*actually 1992), the State of California executed a guy named Robert Alton Harris. When they read his last words, the warden or whoever does it, his last words were, “You might be a king or a little street sweeper, but sooner or later you dance with the Reaper.” And the press got a hold of it and said, “That’s from Bogus Journey!” And they started calling me and saying, “That’s something you added, how do you feel about, you know, writing this guy’s last words?” And I said, “I hate to lose a fan under any circumstances, but…” (Laughs) One fan in the world, and you killed him! I’m glad he found some comfort in that. I guess there’s an eternal truth in that.
![Bill and Ted standing with death in Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey](https://static1.srcdn.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2020/08/Alex-Winter-and-William-Sadler-and-Keanu-Reeves-in-Bill-and-Teds-Bogus-Journey.jpg)
Definitely. There’s something especially… Actors get recognized. It’s part of your trade, walking down the street and being recognized, and having to hide your annoyance or enjoy the moment, but there must be an extra special kick when someone recognizes you as the Reaper because he doesn’t look like you.
I think it’s only happened once… Well, I guess people know me more now than back when I did that. Police recognize me, for some reason. They’re really good with faces. But even under the three hours of makeup and the bald cap… I had a cop one time in an elevator say, “You’re William Sadler, the Grim Reaper, right?” And I’m like, “Phew. Yes.” Yeah! (pantomimes smoking and putting out a joint)
As opposed to, “William Sadler, come with us!”
Yeah! It wasn’t like, “Mr. Sadler, you have the right to remain silent.”
Right.
Yeah, that would have sucked.
It has been a delight to get to talk to you. It was a delight to watch this fantastic movie that I never thought I’d get… I remember, I think I was in high school when they announced they were going to be doing it, and that was like ten years ago or so, and I was like, “Yeah, I’ll believe it when I see it.” And I saw it last night, and I believe it, baby! So thank you for everything that you did in that movie and all your movies, I’m such a huge fan and it’s a delight to see the Reaper in action one more time.
Thank you so much, it means a lot.
Sure! Thanks so much, I’ll catch you on the next one!
Alright!
Bill & Ted Face the Music is out now in theaters and on all digital platforms.