Exclusive: Jim Mahoney on His New Horror-Comedy Gatlopp and Writing Netflix’s Klaus

When faced with a night in with friends and a board game, cozy thoughts of laughter, storytelling, and beverages come to mind. However, the new horror-comedy Gatlopp puts a devilish twist on what should be an uneventful gathering of friends. Directed by Alberto Belli and written by Jim Mahoney, the film stars Mahoney, Emmy Raver-Lampman, Sarunas J. Jackson, Jon Bass, and Shelley Hennig.

A group of old friends reunites for a nostalgic evening of fun and games after a decade apart. After one too many, they decide to play a drinking game, but it’s quickly revealed that this game comes with supernatural stakes. Mischief leads to mayhem, and the group realizes that if they can’t come together to win the game by sunrise, they will be forced to play for eternity — in hell.

For the film’s June 16th release On Demand on Digital via XYZ Films, we talked with writer and star Mahoney. He talks about his inspiration for Gatlopp and takes us behind the scenes for one of the movie’s best moments. Mahoney also describes how writing Netflix’s Klaus has changed his life since becoming a modern holiday classic.

Writing (And Dancing In) Gatlopp

MovieWeb: Hi, Jim! Audiences have seen the board game gone wrong scenario before, with Jumanji coming to mind, and Gatlopp is a fresh take on it. What served as your inspiration to write the film?

Jim Mahoney: Thank you, I really appreciate that. It means a lot. It came from an experience when I was meeting a few friends to go to Main Street in Santa Monica and have several beers out on the town. Like ten years ago. One of my friends was like, you guys want to play a game before we go out? We played this stupid drinking game, and all of a sudden, it was like four hours later, and we’re like, let’s just stay in. We were having so much fun. Of course, my brain was like, what if this was a trick and the whole point is to have fun, relax, have a few drinks, laugh, and enjoy and now you will be tested? That’s where it came from and was the launching point in my brain for years before, ultimately, I sat down with Alberto [Belli], the director.

He was trying to get his directing career off the ground, and I wanted to reignite my acting as well. I was working as a writer here and there, but I moved to Los Angeles for performing. Although I will say, I do love the creative process so much. Acting is just so much fun but creating stories is great. So, I said I have an idea for something we can make our own. It could take place in one location.

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The Invitation was a movie that was very helpful because it was such a wonderful, dynamic, tense, and exciting story that took place in a house. I love movies like Clue and Green Room that basically take place in one space, yet you can escalate the stakes.

I came up with the characters. I had to find ways to test what they were specifically dealing with. I kept playing and playing until I found what, hopefully, was the most interesting way of addressing their issues.

MovieWeb: I must ask about a highlight of Gatlopp – the jazzercise scene! It was hilarious to watch. Can you take us behind the scenes?

Jim Mahoney: It was so hard [Laughter]! We had one day to do it, and it was shot during Covid, so we had almost no time or ability to prep. I didn’t get to meet the cast in person until day one. Luckily, we had all these nice conversations, and they’re all such awesome people that we bonded so quickly.

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But we were shooting the end of the movie at this location — it was a big house — that final scene at the end of the movie with Alice’s ex. Afterward, we went out back to rehearse this dance sequence with Kobi [Rodenfild], this amazing choreographer who came up with this awesome dance sequence. We only had maybe an hour to practice that night and the next day was all that one location. So, while they were setting up that stage, the four of us, with Kobi and his assistant, rehearsed this crazy dance sequence as much as we could. It was very tricky. We found it moments before it was time to shoot.

I wrote it because they can be bad at dancing. That’s fine. We’re not going to be great at it. It’s a matter of finding a way to solve the very last moment. Luckily, it was written in a way where like, even if we don’t get it right, it’s okay. It was super hard and so stressful leading up to it, but then we started shooting. It got more and more fun as we shot it, but it was definitely hard to do.

Klaus: A Beloved Holiday Film

MovieWeb: Well, it paid off because it is a great scene. I also wanted to ask about a 2019 film you wrote for Netflix – Klaus. It has become a new holiday classic for many people. Did you ever imagine it would become so instantly beloved?

Jim Mahoney: No. I mean, it really is a modern classic, and I have to give a lot of credit to Sergio [Pablos, the director]. He came up with that idea shortly after selling his concept of Despicable Me to Illumination. He was trying to get it set up for years. Zach Lewis, my writing partner I worked with for years, we were trying to get our writing career off the ground. We got in touch with him through an executive we met randomly. We were writing R-rated comedies, and we were like, we’re not gonna get this job. But he read our scripts, and he was like, perfect.

We worked with him for a year in 2015, and he was trying to get it sold. When he got it sold, it was kind of amazing. I had no idea the response would be an outpouring of love and excitement for the movie. It gets better every time. You hope to have some people enjoy it, but to have this… and it was the first thing we produced. It legitimately changed my life.

MovieWeb: As a fan, it’s wonderful to hear that! Are there any other projects you have on the horizon?

Jim Mahoney: Yeah! I was hired by the same company, producers, and studio to write and direct an R-rated rom-com. It’s called Bar Fight, and it will be coming out this Christmastime. It has Melissa Fumero, Rachel Bloom, Luka Jones, and Julian Gant. It’s about a couple that has a competition over who gets to keep their favorite local bar after they have a breakup. Insanity will ensue, but it will be fun. I’m excited to share that with the world this year.

MovieWeb: Is Bar Fight an actual Christmas movie or just getting released at Christmastime?

Jim Mahoney: It’s actually taking place during Christmas, but it’s kind of like how Die Hard is a Christmas movie [laughter].