Although the idea of a Hollow Earth may seem ridiculous now, scientists and politicians once considered it to be true.

In addition to being a talented writer, Owen Egerton has directed scary movies like Mercy Black and Blood Fest. A religious studies professor who is mourning the death of his son in his new book Hollow becomes attracted by the idea that an intelligent civilisation exists in the Earth’s core.

Egerton claims that “Hollow is the confluence of two interests, one being the Book of Job and the other being Hollow Earth Theory” in Episode 444 of the Geek’s Guide to the Galaxy podcast. “Who would have thought those two would meet?” But I think they were intended to be.

Although the idea of a Hollow Earth may seem ludicrous, it has a few enthusiastic advocates and was previously considered seriously by academics and politicians. There were usually one or two people in the back of the room at almost every book signing I did for Hollow who were incredibly happy that I had written this book and, I suppose, really disappointed when I started saying the Earth isn’t hollow.

In an effort to uncover an entrance to the Hollow Earth to support his theory, Egerton even offered to volunteer to travel to the North Pole aboard a Russian icebreaker. (According to the hollow Earth myth, there may be enormous holes called Symmes Holes close to each pole.) Unfortunately, as far as he knows, the trip did not take place.

Egerton continues, “It went in and out of being able to happen. It was initially supported by individual donations, which fluctuated after it was funded. However, who knows. They may go years without communicating with us before coming out of the South Pole and altering the planet.

Egerton initially rejected the Hollow Earth Theory as harmless nonsense when he was writing the book, but later events have led him to reconsider his opinion. When he wrote about the Hollow Earth, he says, “I was praising people’s ability to believe what was obviously not true.” But as the book went on and Donald Trump won the election, I came to see that those conspiracies weren’t so appealing and that power may change in a number of horrific ways.

Listen to the whole exchange between Owen Egerton and the Geek’s Guide to the Galaxy cast in episode 444. (above). Here are a few of the debate’s highlights as well.

Owen Egerton comments on the Alamo Drafthouse as follows:

I met a bunch of jerks who shared my views there, and it served as my film school, too. I would continue to watch these odd films, some of which Tim League had purchased as drive-in movies and others which were works of art. Tim League went through a phase where he genuinely found that a drive-in was shutting and bought all of the films they had. He didn’t know what they were. In essence, he said, “Once a week, anybody can come in for free—since I have no idea what these movies are because they’re not labeled—and we’ll just watch them and figure it out as we go along.” He then drove up to Oklahoma, broke the pickup truck he had loaded all of these prints into.

Regarding directing, Owen Egerton explains:

“Jason Blum called me one day and said, ‘Yes, we want to get this script.’ That’s amazing, I said in return. There’s only one thing left. It piqued the curiosity of another group, which consented to my leading it. ’ He responds, “Oh, you want to direct, huh?” Yes, I replied. Have you ever carried it out? he asked. I respond, “Yes, my first film just had its Fantastic Fest premiere last week. He requests, “Send me the link.” I’ll watch it during lunch. That’s what I did, and let me tell you, it was not a simple day for me. “What is happening?” I questioned. My film is being seen by Jason Blum! Later that day, he got in touch with me and said, “We’ll work something out.” We’ll come up with a solution for you. “Let’s get going.

According to Owen Egerton, terrorism

“All too often, I believe, a studio rushes in and says, “Let’s take that and clean it up, and we’re going to polish all the rough edges, and we’re going to give people something much safer and much more commercialized. ” This happens, I believe, when the bigger studios get excited about horror when they see what a low-budget film can do—that sort of breaks the rules and frightens people by giving them something outside of the lines. And you’ll observe that frightening intellectual properties and numerous franchises show that this occurs frequently. But I think horror is in a fantastic place right now. The horror subgenre has just begun. It is still functioning well. It’s excellent. And by that, I don’t only mean in terms of financial benefit. More voices and different points of view are entering these stories, which just enhances how delicious the buffet is.

According to Owen Egerton, hollow

The concepts that I think will work best for me start with a persistent query. And I was wondering: What is at the heart of the cosmos? Even if awful things occur, people suffer, are alone, and are cut off from one another, there is still beauty, such as sunrises and newborns.

I was trying to figure out what that meant, both of these things exist at the same time. Does the universe include a heart at its core? In actuality, the Book of Job poses this query. I read several translations, and Stephen Mitchell’s translation and observations on it had a significant influence on me. There are several articles and viewpoints on the topic. What does it mean for the cosmos to be both ruthless and beautiful, I keep asking myself.