Ron Perlman at the Los Angeles Film Festival premiere of "Hellboy II: The Golden Army" held at the Mann Village Theater in Westwood, Calif. on June 28, 2008.

Bringing bigger muscle, badder weapons, multitudes of monsters and a little domestic conflict at home, everyone’s favorite kitten-loving red hero is back, in Universal Pictures’ action thriller Hellboy 2: The Golden Army. Hellboy (Ron Perlman) fights the good fight when duty calls from his employer, the top-secret Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense (aka B.P.R.D), who use a network of operatives with otherworldly powers to defend the world against the more violent supernatural. Although Hellboy would rather kick back with a cigar, a six-pack, his pyrokinetic girlfriend Liz Sherman (Selma Blair) and their clutter of cats, when an ancient truce between humankind and the original sons of the Earth is broken, he must step up and stop the dark ruler of the underworld, Prince Nuada (Luke Goss) and save our world from annihilation.

Getting back into the Hellboy character is easy for 58-year-old New Yorker Ron Perlman, a classically trained actor, who spoke to MediaBlvd Magazine about what it’s like to work in all that make-up. 

MediaBlvd Magazine> With a four-year break between these two films, was it easy getting back into character?

Ron Perlman> It’s probably the least adjustment I make, from the conversation to the action, that I’ve ever had to make, as an actor. I didn’t make any alterations, behaviorally or voice-wise. Guillermo kept reminding me, “When you start acting, you’re going to screw up because I’ve done everything in my power to make Hellboy you, and you Hellboy. Don’t make any adjustments. Just do it.” And, that was very freeing, actually. That was the most freeing direction I’ve ever been given. There was no real adjustment, either for Hellboy 1 or for Hellboy 2. The only thing that changes are the circumstances of which scene we’re shooting, on any given day.

MediaBlvd> How hard is it to maneuver in the Hellboy costume?

Ron> It’s not that bad. The tail is probably my biggest obstacle because it sometimes zigs when I zag. And, you don’t want to trip over the tail because then you squish the rubber.

MediaBlvd> How much fun was it to embrace Hellboy’s humorous side?

Ron> It was great. My favorite aspect of Hellboy is the trash talk and the cynicism. The humor is real east coast. I’m a New Yorker by birth, and spent almost my whole life there, so I know that humor. I know that kind of gamesmanship that jocks have. Guillermo somehow captured it in a way that was hard to believe and too good to be true, all at the same time.

MediaBlvd> There were a lot of classic lines in the film. How much did you improv?

Ron> That’s simply the way Guillermo writes. It sounded like I was making the whole movie up in Hellboy 1, and yet I think there was maybe one improv in the whole movie. He’s got this idiom down -- this longshoreman guy, who’s raised in New Jersey, with an eastern kind of bar-room American slang -- for a guy where English is his second language. It’s remarkable.

MediaBlvd> How much input did you have with Guillermo before shooting?

Ron> Zero. I didn’t want any input. Why would I ever think that I’m going to come up with a better idea than this guy who’s truly got a handle on this thing, in a way that’s complete, holistic and profound? You just bask in his glow, thank him and be grateful for the amazing dramatic opportunity he’s given you.

MediaBlvd> Does that make the make-up more tolerable?

Ron> For some strange reason, the make-up has never been a burden. When it comes on the heels of absolutely no sleep, then everything’s a burden. But, I regard the transition into the make-up every day as a ritual of preparing to become Hellboy, almost like a samurai goes through with that highly ritualistic transformation from mortal to warrior. And, I come out the other side looking a whole lot cooler than I do in real life, so why would anybody complain about that?

MediaBlvd> Has the make-up application process changed since the first film?

Ron> Not a whole lot. It moved from being Rick Baker make-up in Hellboy 1 to a Mike Elizalde Spectral Motion make-up in Hellboy 2. But, everything remained the same, except for some slight alterations. He looks a little younger, a little bit more energetic and a little sexier.       

MediaBlvd> What is it like to work with Doug Jones? Did the use of his actual voice change your interaction with Abe Sapien?

Ron> It didn’t change my performance, in any way, shape, or form. I thought it was phenomenal that we finally got a chance to bask in the greatness of Doug Jones -- times three, by the way, because he’s also the Chamberlain and the Angel of Death. He’s a major talent who’s finally getting the attention that he so richly deserves.

MediaBlvd> When you signed on for Hellboy 2, did you have any idea there was going to be singing?

Ron> No. I’m very happy. What a bonus.

MediaBlvd> Can you talk about how Hellboy goes from hell-spawn to cynical New York trash talker?

Ron> The cynical New York-ish guy is strictly a product of his environment. He grew up in New Jersey. He didn’t get to go out very much, but I’m sure that there were an awful lot of local people that intersected with him in his youth that gave him the accent, gave him the swagger and gave him that sort of worldly, world-weary New York/New Jersey kind of vibe. At least, that’s what I decided. With regard to the heart of the guy, that was completely a gift from Professor Broom to Hellboy, and I think it’s so strongly embedded in him that, even though he has these primal impulses that come with his DNA, somehow the heart triumphs over the nature. The nurtured aspect triumphs over the nature aspect with Hellboy. At least, so far. He’s been tested, but not nearly as much as he will be, if there is a third film.

MediaBlvd> Do you think a third movie is a distinct possibility?

Ron> I think it’s a possibility. It’s completely a function as to how Hellboy 2 does in the marketplace. If it does quite well, then I’m pretty sure there’ll be a third one.

MediaBlvd> How would you like to see the character development in the third one?

Ron> I don’t have an agenda. I’m completely in the hands of Guillermo because where he takes it is going to be fine with me. He has given me a rough idea about the direction the third one will take and I can tell you that, in true trilogy fashion, it’s the closing of all of the things that have been built up in the first two films. It gets very, very heavy, and very dark, and very cinematic.

MediaBlvd> Hellboy has a love for kittens and television. Are you a TV junkie or a cat person?

Ron> I love cats, and I love television. And, I love to watch cats on television.

MediaBlvd> Do you have any favorite TV shows?

Ron> When I was a kid, Superman was my favorite show, and Soupy Sales. What else did I love? I loved The Dick Van Dyke Show. I loved The Danny Kaye Show. I loved Dean Martin.

MediaBlvd> Did you love horror/sci-fi before you were an actor, or has the passion come from the roles that have been offered to you?

Ron> The work that I’ve gotten, and the work that makes up my resume, is purely coincidental. It has nothing to do with my own personal aesthetic. When you do one horror/sci-fi film, you’re on the shortlist to do a second and then a third. And, the proclivity of the guys who found me acceptable to work with, and that’s a very short list, happen to be sci-fi oriented. There’s Guillermo, there’s Jean-Pierre Jeunet and there’s Joe Dante.

 MediaBlvd> Are you doing any voice work?

Ron> I do voice work all the time.

MediaBlvd> Are you doing the new Batman cartoon?

Ron> I can’t do the new Batman cartoon because they were looking for people who are here all the time, and I’m traveling too much. But, I love doing voice work.

MediaBlvd> What do you love about it?

Ron> I love acting, and I love acting quick. The process of voice work is very result-oriented. You really go for the big performance, the first time out. My favorite way to work is on a purely instinctive level. And, voice work is fun to do. You don’t have to shave. You don’t even have to put on pants. And, there’s a nice little check in the mail.

MediaBlvd> What else are you currently working on?

Ron> Right now, I’ve had to put everything aside because I just started a new TV series, called Sons of Anarchy, which will premiere on the FX channel, about September 4.

MediaBlvd> Who do you play?

Ron> It’s about a motorcycle club, not unlike the Hell’s Angels, in a town called Charming, California. I’m the president of the club. And, it’s written by the guy who was the head writer on The Shield. We have an order for 13 episodes on the air, so we’re going to get a chance to spread our wings a little bit and truly begin to explore this twisted, sick world.

MediaBlvd> FX really pushes the envelope with their TV shows. Is this in the vein of things like The Shield?

Ron> Yeah. It’s The Shield on steroids.

MediaBlvd> What boundaries does this show push?

Ron>  Not so much sex, but definitely violence. These guys are completely ruthless. The character I’m playing has the least feminine side of any character I’ve ever played. In fact, he has no feminine side. Hellboy has a huge feminine side compared to this character, Clay Morrow. He is the quintessential alpha male, in terms of anything that I’ve ever attempted to do.

MediaBlvd> Does it take place in modern day?

Ron> Yeah.

MediaBlvd> What is Mutant Chronicles?

Ron> Mutant Chronicles is a picture that is finished, but yet not finished because there are problems with it. We’re actually going to take it to the San Diego Comic-Con and have a fan screening on the night of Saturday, July 26^th, to find out what is right and what is wrong with it. There’s a huge amount of great work in it, particularly on the part of Simon Hunter, the director. And, Thomas Jane, John Malkovich and I are incredibly proud of the picture, and we’re going to do everything we can to help get it out to the marketplace.

MediaBlvd> How do Uwe Boll and Guillermo del Toro compare as directors?

Ron> They’re both foreigners. That’s where the similarity ends. Uwe Boll is kind of like a P.T. Barnum. He’s a guy who makes the show possible, in a very good way. He loves movies, but he hasn’t devoted his life to filmmaking, as Guillermo has. Anything more I would say would be unfair to both people. You can’t name those two people in the same sentence, even though you just did.

 MediaBlvd> Having worked with Uwe Boll, what do you think of his reputation?

Ron> I’m not going to comment on Uwe. I never saw the film (In the Name of the King: A Dungeon Siege Tale). I hear it’s got problems. I like the guy a lot, and I’m not going to say anything negative about him, ever, because he’s a really good-hearted guy. That’s all I have to say.                             

MediaBlvd> Why do you think Guillermo is the right person to do The Hobbit?

Ron> I think Guillermo’s the right person to do any movie that you can think of. He was born to be a filmmaker. He occupies a class unto himself, as a filmmaker. He’s already made one movie in his short career, which is on the list of 100 Best Movies Ever Made, with Pan’s Labyrinth. The Hobbit, which is an exercise in fantasy, is very, very lucky to have Guillermo del Toro at the helm.

MediaBlvd> It’s a given that you’ll be in The Hobbit, right?

Ron> Well, I hope so. We haven’t discussed it. When I found out he was going to be out of the country for four years, I did say, “I’m going to miss you, pal,” and he said, “No, you won’t!” That’s all he said.                    

MediaBlvd> Are there any characters you might want to play?

Ron> I haven’t read The Hobbit since I was in sixth grade, so that’s about four and a half decades ago. If you wanted to give me a test on comparing and contrasting The Hobbit to the works of Carl Jung, I’d probably fail.