The term “B-movie” brings to mind various types of monsters, laughable dialogue and low production values. The recent screening of The Omega Man at Witherspoon Theatre confirmed these initial mental images.

The screening was part of an event that featured an appearance by the film’s supporting actor, Anthony Zerbe. Zerbe has made a career out of being a character actor, though his higher-profile roles have included Councillor Hamann in the Matrix trilogy and Bond villain Milton Krest in 1989s License to Kill.

Devin Orgeron, associate professor of film studies and organizer of the event, said Zerbe has been a family friend for years.

“My dad visited the set of The Omega Man while it was filming, so it’s always had a mystique for me. It’s a very important film from my childhood,” Orgeron said.

Orgeron had also been told by his older siblings not to see the movie because it was too scary.

“The movie has changed my life in pretty peculiar ways,” Orgeron said.

Orgeron said another reason for the event is that most students in his film classes cite the “zombie movie” as their favorite genre.

The plot of The Omega Man centers around Robert Neville, played by Charlton Heston, who is the last man to have survived a biological attack that took place two years previously. He creates a vaccine that makes him immune to the disease, but must contend with those who have fallen prey to the disease and mutated beyond recognition. Zerbe plays Matthias, leader of The Family, the renegade albino group that is out to kill Neville. Neville eventually finds other survivors of the plague like himself, and the movie becomes a race against time to inoculate the survivors before The Family can get to them.  

The Omega Man is based on the 1954 novel I Am Legend, written by Richard Matheson. It was recently re-made into I Am Legend (the movie) with Will Smith, released in 2007.

During the screening, it was evident the audience was aware of the film’s B-movie status. Giggles occasionally broke out, such as seeing an eight-track cassette and player prominently displayed in Neville’s car . Certain lines also warranted mirth, such as “OK baby, hitch up your drawers” (uttered by Heston) as well as “shut yo’ mouth,” spoken by the Neville’s afro-sporting female counterpart Lisa. Seeing the film removed from a distance of 38 years rendered some of the dialogue laughable, especially the attempt at the infusion of blaxploitation, which was the height of hip at that time.

According to Zerbe, he first knew he wanted to pursue acting when he saw his first play at 17 years old. The play was “Picnic”, playing on Broadway with Paul Newman, with whom he later worked in The Life and Times of Judge Roy Bean in 1972.

“I had seen a lot of movies, but seeing a play made me want to be an actor,” Zerbe said.

Zerbe’s part in The Omega Man was offered to him. Shooting took around six to eight weeks, and the whole thing was shot on the back lot at Warner Brothers studio. The film marked the second time Zerbe had appeared in a film opposite Charlton Heston, the first being 1968’s western Will Penny. 

Zerbe also spent time before and after the screening to discuss his film career and to take questions from the audience. Zerbe specifically spoke about his 1978 television movie KISS Meets the Phantom of the Park.

After shooting the film, Zerbe went to New Orleans to promote the movie during an annual get-together of journalists, where new television series and specials were introduced. Zerbe asked to see the film prior to promoting it, and watched it in the screening room of Paramount studios.

“It was the worst thing I’d ever seen. I was alone in the room and blushing because it was so bad,” Zerbe said.

Zerbe then contacted publicity and implored them not to screen the movie at the upcoming press junket. The film was not screened in New Orleans.

“When journalists asked me about it, I’d say, ‘you have to see this for yourself, I’m not going to spoil it for you,'” Zerbe said.

Orgeron said he remembered pestering Zerbe for information on the members of KISS, who were never seen out of makeup at the time.

Zerbe also spoke about his stage background. He has played characters such as Macbeth, Cyrano de Bergerac, and will next play Iago in a Spanish production of “Othello” with James Earl Jones.

“My heart is in the theatre, and that’s where the human experience occurs. You’re traveling a journey every night,” Zerbe said.

Audience members were pleased with the event.

“I had heard of the movie beforehand, but it was my first time seeing it. I heard about it at a Retrofantasma event,” Jason Horne, a PhD student in capacities research, said.

Retrofantasma is a film series that features classic horror movies and takes place at Carolina Theatre in Durham.

For alum Mike Sink, it was also his first time seeing the film.

“Seeing the movie and hearing Zerbe talk made me want to go back and watch his other movies now,” Sink said.

Jason Fox, a junior in mechanical engineering, said he found out about the event through the Campus Cinema Web site.

“I had seen the movie before, but it was definitely better watching it with someone who was in the movie,” Fox said.

Fox said he was more interested in what Zerbe had to say than seeing the movie a second time.

Orgeron said that he was excited to see how Zerbe would react on seeing the movie for the first time since he completed it.

“His reaction was about what I expected,” Orgeron said.