LOS ANGELES?Fil-Am actor Reggie Lee has fun as the world?s most ?sipsip? (suck-up) employee in ?Drag Me to Hell,? director Sam Raimi?s delightful return to the horror genre.

It has been a long time since we had laughs and scares at the same time while watching a movie. Critics and fans are cheering that Sam is back with a movie that harkens back to his ?The Evil Dead? films, which combines horror and humor. Sam, of course, went on to direct ?A Simple Plan? and a certain series of films that features a man in spandex who can climb buildings. He is planning a new ?Evil Dead? movie that will be released next year.

In ?Drag Me to Hell,? which was shown recently in Cannes, Alison Lohman stars as Christine, a bank loan officer desperately hoping to fill a vacant assistant manager position. The boss (David Paymer) is considering both her and Stu Rubin (Reggie) for the promotion. But Stu has the edge because he has perfected his ass-kissing skills. (A reviewer described Reggie?s Stu character as slimy?a compliment to the Quezon City native?s performance.)

When a strange old woman, Mrs. Ganush (Lorna Raver), comes to plead for an extension of her mortgage loan, Christine goes against her good nature and ignores the elderly?s tearful begging to impress the boss.

Christine?s hard-line approach sets into motion the turn of events that lets Sam unleash his mastery of B-movie horror schlock which will make moviegoers giggle and sit on the edge of their seats at the same time. Suffice it to say Lorna goes to town in her vengeful, gypsy crone role that will make Bella Flores proud. Also in the cast of ?Drag Me?? are Justin Long, Adriana Barraza and Dileep Rao.

In keeping with the playful spirit of ?Drag Me?,? we conducted the following Q&A with the LA-based Reggie, who also appeared in ?Star Trek,? ?Tropic Thunder,? the ?Pirates of the Caribbean? and numerous TV shows.

I read that Sam Raimi and his brother, Ivan, wrote your part originally for their other brother, Ted. But Sam was quoted as saying that you were ?great? during the casting process. So you ended up with the role while Ted had a one line only as another character.

Ummm ? thank you, Sam?! Sam and Ivan, and for that matter, the entire production team, were great from pre-production to post-production. So even if the role was written for Ted, I never would?ve known it by how incredibly collaborative Sam was with my ideas about the character. But I heard it may have been a scheduling issue with Ted so ? thank you, Ted?

Was Ted sport about it?

I never had the pleasure of actually crossing paths with Ted but in my idealistic imagination?yes, he was the best sport ever and I wish that Sam would use me in every one of his movies!

As an actor in Hollywood, how much of a suck-up (like your character is) do you have to be sometimes to get those roles?

Was my character a suck-up? God, I thought I was pretty subtle about that ? oh well! In Hollywood? Umm ? 99.99 percent. No, just kidding. I would hope that I?ve gotten my roles based on the merit of my work and a bit from being a nice person which, OK, may be misconstrued as sucking up. But hopefully not!

Your character?s name, Stu Rubin, is definitely not Asian-sounding. Do Sam and Ivan have an inside joke about the name?

Well, I did find out from some of Sam?s relatives at the premiere that the name comes from a relation. Subsequently, after the premiere, some of Sam?s family came up to me and said that Stu was their favorite character. Woohoo! Go figure. I do give Sam great credit for not changing the name to something more ?Asian? sounding?it was never even brought up!

How much did you enjoy poking fun at a stereotype, the over-achieving Asian?

I felt right at home. Although I don?t think the word ?conniving? falls into the category of Asian stereotype.

Does this role mean that you might have a stronger chance now of appearing in Sam?s coming ?Spider-Man? 4 and 5?

God, I hope so.

Complete the sentence: Alison Lohman is?

A total sweetheart and powerhouse of an actress!

And David Paymer, who plays your boss, the one you suck up to, is?

Dry and funny ? if only I could have half of his comic brilliance!

Lorna Raver was absolutely convincing as a gross, scary character?she might have a hit franchise beginning with this movie. How is she in person, when she was not in character?

Focused. So much so that I don?t think I ever encountered her not in character during the filming. But at the premiere, she was gracious, lovely, with a much more beautiful smile than the character she plays.

How was Sam different from the directors you?ve worked with?

One word?collaborative. OK, two?witty. OK, three? brilliant.

How much fun did you have filming ?Star Trek?? Were you tempted to challenge John Cho to a martial arts showdown for the right to play Sulu, a role originated by George Takei?

I had a great time filming ?Star Trek.? It was one of those roles that was just offered to me and I thought, heck, it will be fun just to be a part of the project. And I do know John. I don?t think he has a martial arts background so I?d definitely have the upper hand on that one. Thank you for that idea! Just kidding. John is a great person and deserves his success.

And can you talk about Takei as a pioneering Asian-American actor in Hollywood? He paved the way for the Reggie Lees and John Chos in this world.

He definitely made a name for himself as an actor at a time when there weren?t many prominent Asian-American actors on the scene, especially on television. George helped promote the awareness of the Asian as a human being rather than just a race. The way he has handled his professional and personal life is exemplary. He continues to make us proud and thankful for his contribution.

Were you surprised at how much the critics and awards groups loved Tom Cruise and Robert Downey Jr.?s performances in ?Tropic Thunder??

No. Well, OK, for a comedy ?which rarely gets lauded? yes. But for the amazing work that they did?no.

What?s next for you?

Hopefully more Sam Raimi movies! Just kidding ? but not really! OK, for real, I?m filming a television series written by Christopher McQuarrie (?The Usual Suspects,? ?Valkyrie?). I was in Mexico City on and off from October last year to March of this year. We are on hiatus now. It?s for Fox Studios and it?s an incredibly fulfilling, exhausting and creative experience! I?m still recovering!

E-mail the columnist at rvnepales_5585@yahoo.com and read his blog, ?The Nepales Report,? on http://blogs.inquirer.net/nepalesreport.