CAMPO, Calif. — The Motor Transport Museum in Campo was the perfect location to film Slaughterhouse 2: Death Metal, the sequel to the 1987 horror movie, Slaughterhouse.
As it turned out, the old truck museum was also the perfect venue for the film's premiere. About 100 people showed up Monday night.
Producer Jerry Encoe and director Rick Roessler greeted the crowd, which included Campo residents who were recruited to appear in the movie, some of them with speaking roles.
The slasher film sequel focuses on a murderous father and son duo who live at the Campo museum. In an underground cellar, they produce homemade "wonder jerky" with a secret ingredient: the flesh of murder victims who get captured and killed while hiking on the nearby Pacific Crest Trail.
Bryan Butler, who is the museum's director in real life, plays the psycho father, Cleavon.
"The experience was incredible. It gave me a chance to die without dying, and that was wonderful," joked Butler.
In the film, a big-wig developer from Texas pays off the mayor of Campo, hoping to build a huge resort there. But the owner of the Campo museum is the last holdout, who refuses to sell his land.
Local high school senior, Remington Tully, plays the mute son of the museum owner. "Rem Dog" wields a flame thrower on the property to cook his beef jerky and his victims.
But it's not all blood and guts, there's also some cult-film humor.
“What we try to do with our two films, the Slaughterhouse films, is to make them comical as well as horrific,” said director Roessler.
“The movie was done very well. The picture’s brilliant. And I'm glad there's comedy in it, because if it was too serious it would be a down take and kind of scary,” said premiere attendee, Damien Bowles.
Slaughterhouse 2: Death Metal is set for worldwide distribution. An exact release date was not available, but the film is expected to open in theaters in the United States in 2025.
Watch: SLAUGHTERHOUSE 2: DEATH METAL trailer: