Andre Lamar" />
Psycho Drive-In logo
Search
  • PDI Press
    Featured
    • BETTY WHITE VS THE STUPID WORLD: The Movie

      Andre Lamar
      January 17, 2022
      Fiction, PDI Press, PDI Press Writers
    Recent
    • BETTY WHITE VS THE STUPID WORLD: The Movie

      John E. Meredith
      January 17, 2022
    • Betty White Vs the Stupid World (Chapter Seven)

      John E. Meredith
      January 16, 2022
    • Betty White Vs the Stupid World (Chapter Six)

      John E. Meredith
      January 15, 2022
    • PDI Press Catalog
    • PDI Press Writers
      • Fiction
  • Columns A-D
    • A Fistful of Dollar Comics
    • ABCs of Horror
    • All Binge… No Purge
    • Anything Joes
    • Beautiful Creatures
    • Big Eyes Smart Mouth
    • Big Sleeps and Long Goodbyes
    • Cahiers du Horror
    • Dispatches From the Field
    • Drive-In Saturday
    • Dungeons & D-Listers
  • Columns F-P
    • The Final Girl
    • First Looks… Second Thoughts
    • The Flesh is Weak
    • Innocence and Experience
    • Lost in Translation
    • Page to Screen
    • Popcorn Cinema
    • Psycho Essentials: The ’80s!
  • Columns S-Z
    • Schlock & Awe
    • Shakespeare on Film
    • Shot for Shot
    • Sick Flix
    • Unnatural Selections
    • Versus
    • Video Word Made Flesh
    • We Got Lists
    • Women in Horror
    • The Xeno File
    • Zombies 101
  • Reviews
    Featured
    • Heart of Stone (2023)

      Andre Lamar
      August 18, 2023
      Movies, Reviews
    Recent
    • Heart of Stone (2023)

      Nate Zoebl
      August 18, 2023
    • Obstacle Corpse (2022)

      Nate Zoebl
      July 20, 2023
    • Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One (2023)

      Paul Brian McCoy
      July 16, 2023
    • Books
    • Comics
    • DVD/Blu-ray
    • Movies
    • TV
    • Series
  • Interviews
    Featured
    • Interview with Indie Horror Master, Chris Bickel

      Andre Lamar
      July 13, 2018
      Interviews
    Recent
    • Interview with Indie Horror Master, Chris Bickel

      The Final Girl
      July 13, 2018
    • David Black: Carnies, Carnage, and the Creative Chaos of Darkness Visible

      Dan Lee
      March 7, 2017
    • Jaiden Kaine joins the Marvel Universe as new Luke Cage baddie, Zip

      Andre Lamar
      September 29, 2016
    • SDCC 2016 Interviews: The Cast and Creators of Batman: The Killing Joke

      Jason Sacks
      July 28, 2016
    • SDCC 2016 Interviews: The Cast and Creators of Syfy’s Van Helsing

      Dave Hearn, Paul Brian McCoy
      July 27, 2016
    • Wondercon Interview: The Cast of Damien

      Gary Richardson, Laura Akers
      April 16, 2016
  • News
    Featured
    • Breaking Down The Upcoming DC Studios Slate

      Andre Lamar
      February 1, 2023
      News, Shot for Shot
    Recent
    • Breaking Down The Upcoming DC Studios Slate

      Paul Brian McCoy
      February 1, 2023
    • John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum arrives on Digital 8/23 and 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray, DVD and On Demand 9/10

      psychodr
      July 30, 2019
    • X-Men: Dark Phoenix arrives on Digital 9/3 and 4K Ultra HD, Blu-ray and DVD 9/17

      Paul Brian McCoy
      July 16, 2019
    • Trailers
  • Psychos
  • Merchandise
Breaking
  • Heart of Stone (2023)
  • Obstacle Corpse (2022)
  • Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One (2023)
  • Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny (2023)
  • The Flash (2023) / Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023)
  • Evil Dead Rise (2023)
  • RSS
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • Tumblr
  • Who We Be
  • Contact
  • PDI Press
    • PDI Press Catalog
    • PDI Press Writers
      • Fiction
  • Columns A-D
    • A Fistful of Dollar Comics
    • ABCs of Horror
    • All Binge… No Purge
    • Anything Joes
    • Beautiful Creatures
    • Big Eyes Smart Mouth
    • Big Sleeps and Long Goodbyes
    • Cahiers du Horror
    • Dispatches From the Field
    • Drive-In Saturday
    • Dungeons & D-Listers
  • Columns F-P
    • The Final Girl
    • First Looks… Second Thoughts
    • The Flesh is Weak
    • Innocence and Experience
    • Lost in Translation
    • Page to Screen
    • Popcorn Cinema
    • Psycho Essentials: The ’80s!
  • Columns S-Z
    • Schlock & Awe
    • Shakespeare on Film
    • Shot for Shot
    • Sick Flix
    • Unnatural Selections
    • Versus
    • Video Word Made Flesh
    • We Got Lists
    • Women in Horror
    • The Xeno File
    • Zombies 101
  • Reviews
    • Books
    • Comics
    • DVD/Blu-ray
    • Movies
    • TV
    • Series
  • Interviews
  • News
    • Trailers
  • Psychos
  • Merchandise
Home
Interviews

Jaiden Kaine joins the Marvel Universe as new Luke Cage baddie, Zip

Andre Lamar
September 29, 2016
Interviews, TV

Harlem superhero Luke Cage will make many enemies in his self-titled Netflix series, debuting Sept. 30. One of the villains is the new character Zip, portrayed by Jaiden Kaine.

“He’s very complex,” Kaine said during a phone interview with Psycho Drive-In. “He’s a bad guy, or a good guy who’s just misunderstood. It’s really all about power and respect for him.”

Zip is a reoccurring character who, interestingly enough, was cleared by comic book legend Stan Lee.

“My character was created specifically for this [show],” Kaine explained. “I didn’t have anything to draw from, like pre-written material. This is somebody I created, who I thought would be really, really cool.”

luke-cage-logo

Marvel’s Luke Cage stars Mike Colter (Jessica Jones) as the title character. The show tells the story of the wrongfully accused Cage, a black man given super strength and durability by a sabotaged experiment, who escapes prison to become a superhero for hire.

However, nightclub owner Cornwell “Cottonmouth” Stokes becomes an unexpected foe for the hero. Stokes is portrayed by Mahershala Ali (House of Cards and The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Parts 1 and 2).

New York City native Kaine (Vampire Diaries and Hidden Figures) dished on breathing life into Zip, the impact of having black superheroes and why Colter is a great fit for Cage.

Psycho Drive-In: What was your reaction to landing a role in Luke Cage, your first Marvel project?

Jaiden Kaine: I already knew I was confirmed. But there’s a very specialized email that comes out. It kind of looks like it came out of Mission Impossible or something like that. It’s highly coded and has all of these back doors. It’s called the Fifth Element. It just says, “Welcome to Marvel. Welcome to the Marvel family.” That’s when it hit me and I said, “Oh my God, you’ve got to be kidding me – whoa.”

PDI: Since Zip is a new character, what did you rely on to bring him to life?

Kaine: If you saw Gary Oldman in True Romance or Larenz Tate from Menace II Society, I actually drew off those two movies to create the character Zip.  You never know what he’s going to do. Those are the characters I’ve always been most intrigued by, because when they smile they could be angry. When they look angry they could be cracking up inside just to get a rise out of you – so you don’t know. I think that’s what makes him interesting.

Jaiden Kaine and Mike Colter in a scene from the TV series Marvel's Luke Cage. Supplied by Netflix.

Jaiden Kaine and Mike Colter in a scene from the TV series Marvel’s Luke Cage. Supplied by Netflix.

PDI: How important is it for Luke Cage to come out now, at a time when racial tension is pretty high?

Kaine: There couldn’t be a better time for this to come out, because the way we are stereotypically portrayed, as we all well know, has not been in a fortuitous way. It hasn’t been in a way that would inspire and transform one’s life. We need to see our own folks, people who look like us, in great roles that inspire and move and show heart, love and respect.

There really hasn’t been people of color as superheroes. We are by large the minority. But look at the Olympics and sports in general, and even non-athletic mediums like medicine… when given the opportunity we’ve always thrived and a lot of that really hasn’t been put in the public eye, and certainly not enough of that for the kids. So with Luke Cage, Black Panther and that kind of thing, they’ll look at them like they looked to [Michael] Jordan and popular football players and rap artists.

PDI: Black Panther has a new movie coming out. The new Iron Man is a black girl. There’s also a rumor that Spider-Man: Homecoming will feature a black actress for the role of Mary Jane. What do you think of  Marvel shifting more black people into prominent roles in film and comics?

Kaine: They’re going against the grain. I think they’re using the marketing expertise of The Fast and the Furious, arguably one of the best-selling franchises in movie history. If you look at that franchise, it has a little bit of everybody. That’s why it sells so well all over the world, because everybody can look at that movie and say, “this person looks like me.”

PDI: What do you think of Mike Colter’s portrayal of Luke Cage?

Kaine: I love Mike. He’s authentic. I don’t think he can lie on camera. He always brings a high level of integrity to everything he touches. And he’s super consistent. He’s been an unknown mentor to me, for many, many years. A lot of people aren’t aware of this, but I started off doing background work. I stood in for him, maybe, about a year and a half on The Good Wife. I learned so much from Mike.

I think he’s as true to what I read about Luke Cage growing up, contemporarily speaking, of course, because this isn’t necessarily the “Luke Cage” of old. This is a much-updated version, but it’s still kept its integrity and it definitely has the soul and the flavor. It’s full of a lot of surprises. It’s nothing like Jessica Jones, even though we have a lot of similar people from that production as well. It’s a totally different beast.

luke-cage-cast

PDI: What comic books did you read as kid?

Kaine: “Spider-Man,” “Luke Cage,” “The Hulk,” “Thor,” “Silver Surfer,” “Black Panther.” I’ve got a box [of comics] floating around somewhere. I’ve moved around so much. I was a foster kid, so I bounced around a lot. But there’s a box somewhere and it’s worth a lot of money.

PDI: What is it about Marvel characters that draw you?

Kaine: I remember when I first saw Luke Cage, I was like, “Oh my goodness!” He’s from the inner city. He has an afro. He has a bald head. I could relate to people in those comics. I could relate to the dialogue in those comics. That comic was part of the reason why I started marketing myself as the tough guy, the guy who was still smart but could handle himself physically, because I wanted to do things like that.

PDI: Growing up in foster care, how were you able to overcome that and still carve out a career in acting?

Kaine: I wasn’t always in foster care. My mom had to give me up because the household was deemed unfit. So two things helped me: one was wanting to help my mom through her pain; and two, me seeing something else that was possible. When I was a kid there was something called The Fresh Air Fund. A family would be paid by the city and/or the government to host a kid from an impoverished neighborhood for a couple of months in the summer.

jaiden-kane-01

Even though I grew up in the lower, east side in the projects – we called it “the bricks” like they did in Newark, New Jersey, which is where I also lived for a time – I got out of there and experienced a family where the mom and dad were still together. They had a little boy and Labrador. They ate dinner together. They held hands and prayed. They didn’t yell at one another. It was very, very different.

After those two months were done, I would come back and what I realized was – because I grew up very angry – that I didn’t have to be angry at my own people I was surrounded by, because what I understood from seeing something different was a lot of what was going on was due to the fact that people had a choice.

Remember those old idioms: “You are who you hang with.” “Be careful of your surrounds.” “Show me your three closest friends and I’ll show you your future.” I said to myself, “God, I’m so happy I had that opportunity to have this experience of The Fresh Air Fund.” It was only for two summers, man, but it changed my life.

(Visited 625 times, 1 visits today)

Related

Andre LamarInterviewJaiden KaineMarvel's Luke Cagenetflix

Beautiful Creatures: John Carpenter’s The Thing
Lost in Translation 180: Insights from Can-ConSF 2016

About The Author

monsterid
Andre Lamar

Andre Lyrix Lamar is the fusion of Clark Kent and Peter Parker, yet without an S or spider emblem on his petite chest. Similar to Kent, Lamar earned a bachelor’s degree in journalism. All the while, he’s also a photo journalist (like Parker) and enjoys shooting just about everything, from cosplay events to concerts. You can see Lamar’s photos at flickr.com/photos/andrelamar.

Related Posts

  • Big Eyes Smart Mouth: The Seven Deadly Sins

    Jose San Mateo
    December 16, 2015
  • Who is Killgrave, The Purple Man?

    Jeffrey Roth
    November 22, 2015

Daily Top Ten

  • Uzumaki (2000)Uzumaki (2000) by Matthew Fantaci
  • If It Ain't Funk He Don't Feel It: Howard the Duck (1986)If It Ain’t Funk He Don’t Feel It:… by Paul Brian McCoy
  • Utopia 1.05Utopia 1.05 by Paul Brian McCoy
  • Jason Trost Needs Your Help to Create A World Without SuperheroesJason Trost Needs Your Help to Create A World… by Adam Barraclough
  • The Muppets (2011)The Muppets (2011) by Jessica Sowards
  • Justified 6.09 “Burned”Justified 6.09 “Burned” by Thom V. Young
  • Lost in Translation: The History of Adaptations, 1940-49Lost in Translation: The History of Adaptations, 1940-49 by Scott Delahunt
  • The Final Girl: I Spit on Your Grave (2010)The Final Girl: I Spit on Your Grave (2010) by The Final Girl
  • He Never Died (2015)He Never Died (2015) by Fred L. Taulbee Jr.
  • The Flash 1.18 “All Star Team-Up”The Flash 1.18 “All Star Team-Up” by Dave Hearn
400x400 GI Joe Funko Banner

Weekly Top Ten

  • The Final Girl: I Spit on Your Grave (2010)The Final Girl: I Spit on Your Grave (2010) by The Final Girl
  • Adventure Time 6.06 “Breezy”Adventure Time 6.06 “Breezy” by Dave Hearn
  • Lost in Translation 435: Remaking Blue Thunder (1983)Lost in Translation 435: Remaking Blue Thunder (1983) by Scott Delahunt
  • The Hills Have Eyes (1977) vs The Hills Have Eyes (2006)The Hills Have Eyes (1977) vs The Hills Have Eyes (2006) by Corin Totin
  • Haunted House on Sorority Row (2014)Haunted House on Sorority Row (2014) by Paul Brian McCoy
  • Drive-In Saturday: Heavy Metal 2000 (2000)Drive-In Saturday: Heavy Metal 2000 (2000) by Alex Wolfe
  • Advance Review: The Legend of Tarzan (2016) Blu-rayAdvance Review: The Legend of Tarzan (2016) Blu-ray by Paul Brian McCoy
  • Night of the Living Dead 30th Anniversary EditionNight of the Living Dead 30th Anniversary Edition by Dan Lee
  • The Xeno File: The Man Who Stole the Sun (1979)The Xeno File: The Man Who Stole the Sun (1979) by Serdar Yegulalp
  • Dungeons & D-Listers: Barbarian Queen (1985)Dungeons & D-Listers: Barbarian Queen (1985) by Alex Wolfe
400x400 UA Affiliate Banner

Latest Reviews

  • Heart of Stone (2023)

    Nate Zoebl
    August 18, 2023
  • Obstacle Corpse (2022)

    Nate Zoebl
    July 20, 2023
  • Mission Impossible: Dead Reckoning Part One (2023)

    Paul Brian McCoy
    July 16, 2023

psychodrivein

Today at https://psychodrivein.com Lost in Transl Today at https://psychodrivein.com

Lost in Translation 449: Gamera - Rebirth (2023)

Overall, Gamera: Rebirth takes the goofier aspects of the Gamera films and turns them into moments of awesome.
---
Read more of Scott's article at the link in our profile!

#LostInTranslation #Gamera #GameraRebirth #Netflix
Today at https://psychodrivein.com Anything Joes: Today at https://psychodrivein.com

Anything Joes: S01E66 - De-Classified Debt

Greg and Jaren talk news, acquisitions, and balancing the budget when all your toys are arriving at the same time.
---
Watch the @AnythingJoesPod guys at the link in our profile!

#Anything Joes #GIJoe #GIJoeDeclassified #WrathOfCobra
Today at https://psychodrivein.com Lost in Transl Today at https://psychodrivein.com

Lost in Translation - Defusing Bombs: Cutthroat Island (1995)

Cutthroat Island is worth a look, keeping in mind its weaknesses.
---
Read more of Scott's article at the link in our profile!

#LostInTranslation #CutthroatIsland #GeenaDavis #RennyHarlin #MatthewModine #FrankLangella
Today at https://psychodrivein.com Anything Joes: Today at https://psychodrivein.com

Anything Joes: S01E65 - Pyramid of Darkness (2): Rendezvous in the City of the Dead

Greg and Jaren continue their dive into the classic G.I. Joe mini-series Pyramid Of Darkness! 
---
Watch the @AnythingJoesPod gang at the link in our profile!

#AnythingJoes #GIJoe #GIJoeARealAmericanHero #PyramidOfDarkness
Today at https://psychodrivein.com Lost in Transl Today at https://psychodrivein.com

Lost in Translation 447: Batman: The Animated Series (1992)

Batman: the Animated Series demonstrates how to adapt a popular character without losing the character’s essence.
---
Read more of Scott's article at the link in our profile!

#Batman #BatmanTheAnimatedSeries #MarkHamill #KevinConroy #ArleenSorkin #WB #DC
Today at https://psychodrivein.com Heart of Stone Today at https://psychodrivein.com

Heart of Stone (2023)

It’s hard for me to envision anything Heart of Stone could offer that people would request a return visit.
---
Read more of Nate's review at the link in our profile!

#HeartOfStone #GalGadot #Netflix
Today at https://psychodrivein.com Anything Joes: Today at https://psychodrivein.com

Anything Joes: S01E64 - Pyramid of Darkness (1)

It's time! Greg introduces Jaren to the first episode of the iconic "Pyramid of Darkness" series from G.I. Joe: A Real American Hero!
---
Watch the @AnythingJoesPod guys watch the cartoon at the link in our profile!

#AnythingJoes #GIJoe #ARealAmericanHero #PyramidOfDarkness
Today at https://psychodrivein.com Anything Joes: Today at https://psychodrivein.com

Anything Joes: S01E63 - Kentuckiana 2023 

Greg and Jaren discuss the new layout, the vendors, and their recent acquisitions from attending The Kentuckiana G.I. Joe Toy Expo! 
---
Watch the new @AnythingJoesPod video at the link in our profile!

#AnythingJoes #Kentuckiana #KentuckianaGIJoeToyExpo #GIJoe #Kentuckiana2023 #KentuckianaGIJoeToyExpo2023
Today at https://psychodrivein.com Lost in Transl Today at https://psychodrivein.com

Lost in Translation 446: Cowboy Bebop (2021)

One snag the live-action Cowboy Bebop has is trying too hard to look like the anime.
---
Read more of Scott's article at the link in our profile!

#AnythingJoes #CowboyBebop #Netflix #Sunrise #HajimeYatate #ShinichiroWatanabe #YokoKanno #Seatbelts #JohnCho #MustafaShakir #DaniellaPineda #AlexHassell #ElenaSatine
Load More... Follow on Instagram

Latest Columns

  • Lost in Translation 449: Gamera – Rebirth (2023)

    Scott Delahunt
    September 22, 2023
  • Anything Joes: S01E66 – De-Classified Debt

    Greg Engle
    September 13, 2023
  • Lost in Translation 448 – Defusing Bombs: Cutthroat Island (1995)

    Scott Delahunt
    September 8, 2023

Look Who's Talking

Barbie Worldwide
Barbie Worldwide - 8/5/2023
Lost in Translation 429: The Barbie Movie Teaser
Barbie still in the driver's seat and the movie is speeding past a billion by August 7, 2023.
John E. Meredith
John E. Meredith - 4/5/2023
EZMM 2023 Day 3.1: Zombie for Sale (2019)
Of course, I just woke up from an old-man nap and had a strong urination before reading this, so now...
John E. Meredith
John E. Meredith - 4/3/2023
EZMM 2023 Day 1.1: I Am a Hero (2015)
Oh hell yeah. Looks like one more thing to add to my watch list.
RSSTwitterFacebookinstagramtumblr

Archives

Large_rectangle_336X280
All work on this site is Copyright © each individual writer.
  • PDI Press
    • PDI Press Catalog
    • PDI Press Writers
      • Fiction
  • Columns A-D
    • A Fistful of Dollar Comics
    • ABCs of Horror
    • All Binge… No Purge
    • Anything Joes
    • Beautiful Creatures
    • Big Eyes Smart Mouth
    • Big Sleeps and Long Goodbyes
    • Cahiers du Horror
    • Dispatches From the Field
    • Drive-In Saturday
    • Dungeons & D-Listers
  • Columns F-P
    • The Final Girl
    • First Looks… Second Thoughts
    • The Flesh is Weak
    • Innocence and Experience
    • Lost in Translation
    • Page to Screen
    • Popcorn Cinema
    • Psycho Essentials: The ’80s!
  • Columns S-Z
    • Schlock & Awe
    • Shakespeare on Film
    • Shot for Shot
    • Sick Flix
    • Unnatural Selections
    • Versus
    • Video Word Made Flesh
    • We Got Lists
    • Women in Horror
    • The Xeno File
    • Zombies 101
  • Reviews
    • Books
    • Comics
    • DVD/Blu-ray
    • Movies
    • TV
    • Series
  • Interviews
  • News
    • Trailers
  • Psychos
  • Merchandise