Star gazing is unavoidable whenever watching Tales from the Crypt. In this beloved anthology series, you typically find actors who were in the early days of their career, but there were also occasions where even more established celebs were dying to work with the Cryptkeeper. One notable instance of the latter was in Season Two’s opener “Dead Right” — this macabre delivery of just deserts featured Demi Moore after she starred in Ghost, the top-grossing film of 1990, and it was shortly before she would go on to become the highest-paid actress of the decade.
Unlike other actors who sought out their spots in Tales from the Crypt, Moore was directly asked to star in an episode. “We were looking for the perfect person, and it occurred to us that the role [of Cathy Marno] was tailor-made for Demi Moore,” recalled Crypt producer William Teitler. And as luck would have it, Moore was a friend of co-producer Joel Silver. As he told Tales from the Crypt: The Official Archives, Teitler first suspected Moore would decline a TV show, even a one-off, however, she not only accepted the offer, she brought “something very unusual and wonderful” to the production.
“Dead Right” was a series milestone because it was the first episode to have a period setting, which made it feel more in tune with the source material. And if there was ever a perfect past decade to house a character like Cathy Marno née Finch, it would have to be the 1950s. Moore played a down-on-her-luck single gal who hadn’t been touched by the so-called “booms” of the era. Yet despite her cynicism in life, Cathy stops by a fortune-teller one day — an activity people would have done more readily and commonly earlier that century. By then, though, clairvoyance was passé in the public’s eye, and until the renewed interest in the ‘70s, perhaps only the desperate or deeply curious would fork over their hard-earned cash to someone like Madame Vorna (Natalija Nogulich).
Tales from the Crypt was a magnet for talent both behind and in front of the camera. Demi Moore, whose acting résumé is only dusted with horror, didn’t seem too out of place in Crypt; only two years before “Dead Right,” Moore had starred in The Seventh Sign. This episode’s director, on the other hand, is more of a surprise; Pretty in Pink and Some Kind of Wonderful helmer Howard Deutch made his horror debut with this series. Deutch’s first offering, “Only Sin Deep,” starred wife Lea Thompson in a role that, coincidentally enough, resonates with Moore’s future horror film The Substance. “Dead Right,” however, is played for laughs, albeit cheap ones.
Humor is, of course, another blessing of this episode. After the more severe “Only Sin Deep,” director Deutch emphasized the levity of Andy Wolk’s script. Moore as a would-be femme fatale takes no stretch of the imagination, but a sardonic personality only improves the characterization. Mind you, the Cathy from the comic inspiration, the sixth issue of EC’s Shock SuspenStories, is also a beautiful wiseass and swindler. Nevertheless, “Dead Right” brings the darkly fun and campy energy that Tales from the Crypt is now celebrated for.
As much as Moore steals the show here, her co-star in this near two-hander also deserves praise. A good ten-plus years before he became the patriarch in Arrested Development, Jeffrey Tambor was Charlie Marno, the one man who could make Cathy a wealthy woman. And juxtaposed with Moore’s knockout self is the theatrically grotesque Tambor, whose hulking and off-putting appearance is really the work of makeup artist Greg Cannom and costume designer Linda Benavente-Notaro. The latter would, coincidentally, cook up a similar physical getup for Robert John Burke’s afflicted character in 1996’s Thinner.
The clairvoyant Vorna predicts Cathy will inherit a hefty sum of money if she weds an oaf like Charlie. This chancy proposal then becomes the intended horror of this episode; the idea of a gorgeous woman getting with a repulsive and obese man is meant to unsettle you. That idea is aimed to be more dreadful and plausible than the many uncanny terrors found throughout this anthology. Nowadays, most assuredly, more enlightened viewers will think twice about this episode’s message, not to mention the depiction of Charlie — one achieved with a “fat suit.” It should go without saying that the show’s basis is a product of its time, so expecting these 1950s comics to be morally sound and sensitive is asking too much. EC, and in turn Tales from the Crypt, also didn’t get where it was by holding back and playing nice.
Despite a rather straightforward execution, “Dead Right” sits high in fans’ Crypt rankings, although that assessment may be based on Moore herself than the actual story. After all, there are no amazing twists in this relatively grounded rehash of the ol’ “be careful what you wish for” pitch. Even that plot curveball concerning Cathy’s sudden as well as brief windfall reeks of W. W. Jacobs’ story “The Monkey’s Paw,” albeit less clever. Even still, “Dead Right” is an enjoyable case of waiting for that other shoe to drop; there’s also a feeling of anticipation to Cathy’s foreboding choices. And despite the episode all but telling the fate now awaiting Cathy, that grisly comeuppance is the kind of instant gratification that Crypt always did so well. There are no ifs, ands or buts about being a bad person in this universe — you get exactly what you deserve.
When it comes to anthologies, Tales from the Crypt was like the hottest club in town — for a short time, everyone wanted to be seen there. Not every star made an impression once they got through the door, but Demi Moore isn’t like every star. Simply put, “Dead Right” just wouldn’t have been the same without her singular presence.
