Felissa Rose Esposito (born May 23, 1969), better known as simply Felissa Rose, is an American actress and producer. Rose has amassed over 150 film credits, and is best known for her work in the horror genre, for which she is recognized as a "scream queen".[1][2]
Felissa Rose | |
|---|---|
 Rose in 2023 | |
| Born | Felissa Rose Esposito May 23, 1969 New York City, U.S. |
| Other names | Felissa Rose Esposito Miller |
| Alma mater | New York University |
| Occupation(s) | Actress, producer |
| Years active | 1982–present |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 3 |
| Website | felissarose.com |
Rose made her film debut as Angela Baker in the cult horror film Sleepaway Camp (1983), which established her as a horror icon.[3] She reprised the role in the 2008 sequel Return to Sleepaway Camp. Her other horror roles include Elsa Lansing in Silent Night, Zombie Night (2009), Mother in The Perfect House (2012), Rachel Steele in Camp Dread (2014), Angela Freeman in Death House (2018), Kathleen in Victor Crowley (2018), Ms. Crowell in Bloody Summer Camp (2022), and Ms. Principe in Terrifier 2 (2022). Rose continues to make regular appearances on The Joe Bob Briggs Show, The Last Drive-In on Shudder, and appeared in The Boulet Brothers's Halfway to Halloween special in 2023.
In 2016, Rose produced a number of music videos for the metal band Slayer.[2]
Early life
editFelissa Rose Esposito was born on May 23, 1969 in Greenwich Village in New York City and raised in Syosset on Long Island.[4][5] Rose graduated from Syosset High School[4] and later earned a degree from New York University.
Career
editRose made her debut film appearance in the 1983 horror film Sleepaway Camp, in which she plays Angela Baker.[6] She later said of the film, "It was such a big part of my childhood. It's really hard to look at it objectively. On opening night I went to the theater with all my friends and watched it for the first time with a public audience. It was the best feeling. The energy in the theater was intense. People were really freaked out by the ending. I felt really good about the film."[7]
After appearing in Sleepaway Camp, she made some more sporadic appearances in a few films and television series, including the 1993 romantic comedy film The Night We Never Met and an episode of the short-lived 1998 television series Prey. In 1999, she was contacted by Jeff Hayes, who operates the official Sleepaway Camp website, via a letter in the mail asking her to do an interview for the website and gauge her interest in doing a new Sleepaway Camp sequel. Shortly thereafter, Hayes met with Rose in New York.
She has since returned to cinema and has appeared in such films as Zombiegeddon (2003), Nikos (2003), and Sludge (2005). She has also appeared in two films by New Jersey filmmaker Dante Tomaselli: Horror (2002) and Satan's Playground (2005).[8] In addition Felissa co-hosted the 2005 Village Halloween Parade in New York City with fellow scream queens Debbie Rochon and Raine Brown.[9] She also had a cameo role in the sequel to the 2008 Sleepaway Camp sequel Return to Sleepaway Camp. In the sequel, she reprises the role of Angela Baker.[10] The movie had a straight to DVD release on November 4, 2008. She also appears in Hotdog Casserole, written and directed by Chris Raab, as the mother in a dysfunctional family.[11] Rose starred in a role as Mother in the segment "Dinner Guest" in the anthology horror film, The Perfect House.[12] She also portrayed forensic pathologist Amy Short in the thriller Poe.[13]
In 2016, Felissa starred in the paranormal horror film Family Possessions, written and directed by Tommy Faircloth. The film also starred Mark Patton. In May 2017, she helped produce and acted in the horror film Death House. That same year, she appeared in Victor Crowley. In November 2022, Rose worked with Shelley Duvall on the film The Forest Hills.
Personal life
editRose lives in California with her husband, former CKY singer/guitarist Deron Miller, and their two daughters, Bianca Rose (born 2005) and Lola Marue (born 2007), and son Thomas Carver (born 2009). Rose and Miller were co-stars in Dave Campfield's 2008 horror comedy Caesar and Otto's Summer Camp Massacre.
Partial filmography
editFilm
edit| Year | Film | Role | Notes | Ref(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | Sleepaway Camp | Angela / Peter Baker | ||
| 1993 | The Night We Never Met | Young Girl | Uncredited | [7] |
| 1995 | Get with a Safe Food Attitude | 2-B Mom Rapper | ||
| 2002 | Horror | Art Therapist | [7] | |
| 2003 | Zombiegeddon | Melissa | Direct-to-video | [7] |
| Corpses Are Forever | Gina Matthews | [7] | ||
| Nikos the Impaler | Sandra Kane | [7][14] | ||
| 2005 | Cerebral Print: The Secret Files | Carolyn the M.I.L.F. / Tiffany | ||
| Slaughter Party | Tara | Direct-to-video | ||
| Dead Serious | Susan Rosario | |||
| 2006 | Evil Ever After | Neighbor | Direct-to-video | |
| Satan's Playground | Donna Bruno | [7] | ||
| Under Surveillance | Heidi Broonen | [7] | ||
| 2007 | Sludge | Sandra | ||
| Trite This Way | Narrator | |||
| 2008 | Return to Sleepaway Camp | Angela Baker / Sheriff Jerry | ||
| Zombie Killers: Elephant's Graveyard | Lia | [15] | ||
| 2009 | Silent Night, Zombie Night | Elsa Lansing | ||
| Caesar and Otto's Summer Camp Massacre | Angela Baker / Carrie | |||
| 2010 | Dahmer vs. Gacy | Joanie Farana | [16] | |
| 2012 | Sleepaway Camp IV: The Survivor | Angela Baker | Archive footage | |
| Caesar and Otto's Deadly Xmas | ||||
| 2014 | Camp Dread | Rachel Steele | ||
| 2015 | Caesar and Otto's Paranormal Halloween | Lakota | ||
| 2016 | 2 Jennifer | Jennifer Smith | ||
| 2017 | Death House | Dr. Angela Freeman | ||
| 2018 | Victor Crowley | Kathleen | ||
| Family Possessions | Susan | |||
| Rootwood | Laura Benott | |||
| 2020 | A Nun's Curse | Sister Monday | [17] | |
| 2021 | Bloody Summer Camp | Ms. Crowell | [18] | |
| 2022 | How to Kill Your Roommates and Get Away With It | Agent Denver | ||
| ShadowMarsh | Jill | |||
| Shriekshow | Gloria | |||
| Mike & Fred vs The Dead | Mom | |||
| The Spirit Board Sessions | Unknown | |||
| Terrifier 2 | Ms. Principe | [3] | ||
| 2023 | Craving | Les | [18] | |
| The Omicron Killer | Edie Schaefer / Necromancer | |||
| The New Hands | Dr. Pretorius | |||
| The Forest Hills | Dr. Gonzalez | |||
| Go Away | Aunt Mary | [19][20] | ||
| 2024 | Stream | Donna | [21][22][23] |
Television
edit| Year | Film | Role | Notes | Ref(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | NYC Halloween Parade | Host | Television film | |
| 2009 | His Name Was Jason: 30 Years of Friday the 13th | Herself | Documentary | |
| 2019 | The Boulet Brothers' Dragula | Herself | Guest judge | [6][24] |
| 2024 | Meat the Carvers | Delores Carver |
References
edit- ^ Norman, Jason (2014). Welcome to Our Nightmares: Behind the Scene with Today's Horror Actors. McFarland & Company. p. 166. ISBN 978-0786479863.
- ^ a b Price, Jason (April 7, 2020). "Horror Business: Scream Queen Felissa Rose Talks Blood, Guts and Gratitude!". Icon vs. Icon. Retrieved December 29, 2022.
- ^ a b Squires, John (October 25, 2019). "'Sleepaway Camp' Icon Felissa Rose Has Joined the Cast of 'Terrifier 2'". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved December 29, 2022.
- ^ a b Greenblatt, Lowell (December 27, 2023). "Felissa Rose talks to Macabre Daily at Necromantic Brew Co.'s Dismember to Remember!". Macabre Daily. Archived from the original on October 13, 2024.
- ^ "That Girl from Camp Arawak: An Interview with Felissa Rose". The Terror Trap. Archived from the original on October 13, 2024.
- ^ a b Kenny, Oisin (August 9, 2019). "Meet the spooktacular judges of Boulet Brothers' Dragula season 3". GCN.ie. Retrieved December 29, 2022.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Collum, Jason Paul (2004). Assault of the Killer B's: Interviews with 20 Cult Film Actresses. McFarland & Company. p. 143. ISBN 978-0786418183.
- ^ Bloody Disgusting – Interview Satan's Playground: Star Felissa Rose
- ^ The Terror Trap: That Girl from Camp Arawak: Felissa Rose
- ^ Felissa Rose interview – "Angela" from Sleepaway Camp
- ^ "Day Of The Woman: Felissa Rose Is Making a Move!". Archived from the original on July 8, 2011. Retrieved July 14, 2010.
- ^ "The Perfect House". Archived from the original on July 19, 2010. Retrieved July 14, 2010.
- ^ Cast and Crew of Poe to Hold Autograph Session at Dark Delicacies
- ^ "Nikos the Impaler". Radio Times. Retrieved December 29, 2022.
- ^ Barton, Steve (January 20, 2015). "Zombie Killers: Elephant's Graveyard Trailer Shoots Down the Dead". Dread Central. Retrieved January 20, 2015.
- ^ Foy, Scott (August 12, 2009). "Dahmer Vs. Gacy: Whoever Wins … WTF?!?". Dread Central. Retrieved December 29, 2022.
- ^ Gingold, Michael (May 8, 2020). "Exclusive Clip: Felissa Rose Delivers "A Nun's Curse"". Rue Morgue. Retrieved December 29, 2022.
- ^ a b "Felissa Rose". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved June 2, 2023.
- ^ Hamman, Cody (February 8, 2022). "Go Away trailer: Thom Mathews, Tuesday Knight, Felissa Rose star in home invasion slasher". JoBlo.com. Retrieved December 29, 2022.
- ^ Gingold, Matthew (December 18, 2022). "Thom Mathews, Felissa Rose et al. in Home-Invasion Horror "Go Away"; Trailer & Poster". Rue Morgue. Retrieved December 29, 2022.
- ^ Millican, Josh (September 3, 2021). "Gallery: New Vacation Horror 'Stream' Coming Soon From the Producers of 'Terrifier 2'". Dread Central. Retrieved September 14, 2021.
- ^ Squires, John (September 10, 2021). "From the Team Behind 'Terrifier 2' Comes Horror Movie 'Stream' Starring Danielle Harris and Jeffrey Combs!". Bloody Disgusting. Retrieved September 14, 2021.
- ^ Gingold, Michael (September 14, 2021). "Exclusive Interview: Director Michael Leavy on His All-Horror-Star Movie "Stream"". Rue Morgue. Retrieved September 14, 2021.
- ^ Jones, Tamera (September 12, 2022). "'The Boulet Brothers' Dragula: Titans' Brings Back Fan Favorites in All New Competition". Collider. Retrieved December 29, 2022.