For those of you who love a good horror film, for those of you who love the high-art visuals of a great graphic novel, for those of you who love great music in a kick-ass, driving rock-opera — Paris Hilton (non-blond but hot-as-ever) has just co-starred in a major artistic film. Buzzine’s Izumi Hasegawa sits down with the much-chronicled starlet and gets the inside story on Paris’s evolving life, career, and wild, new character, Amber Sweet, in Repo! The Genetic Opera.

Izumi Hasegawa: Your character, Amber Sweet, is obsessed with plastic surgery, and she’s also from a wealthy family and very spoiled. How did you see this character?

Paris Hilton: Well, Amber is sweet and she’s a very tortured girl. I think the main thing is she wants attention from her father and he runs GeneCo, this huge corporation. They’re very wealthy. You can have all the money in the world, but you can still be unhappy — so she gets addicted to Zydrate, this futuristic drug, as well as plastic surgery — because she keeps wanting to change her appearance to get attention from her father. So all of his children in the film, I think, are just wanting to be loved and they’re trying to get it in the wrong ways. It was such an honor to be offered a role like this because I usually get cast as the blonde airhead/blonde bombshell, and I think this time I was cast as something completely different. It was a lot of fun playing someone who looks nothing like me and playing someone who’s so crazy. And the music is fantastic! It was such a fun film to do, and we all became so close in our Repo family.

IH: You must get scripts offered to you all day long. Can you talk about why this script? Why now? Why this time?

PH: Well, I love Darren (Bousman) as a director. I’m a big fan of his Saw films. I love musicals and I thought this was different from every musical. I just thought this was the perfect thing for me right now. I’ve really grown up a lot this year, and I wanted to show people there’s a lot more to me than they think.

IH: In what ways have you grown up, and what was the experience co-starring with Sarah (Brightman)?

PH: I’ve just been through a lot in the past year, and I’ve really just grown up and become an adult. I think I was just living like a teenager, very carelessly, for a long time, and now I realize I’m running a huge corporation, a huge empire, and I thought working in a great ensemble film was something perfect to add to my brand — something very different. And it was an honor working with Sarah Brightman. I think she’s incredible — her voice… She’s an icon and she’s so sweet and down-to-earth, and no one could have played Blind Mag like she did. She really just made this part amazing.

IH: Did you learn anything from her?

PH: Just her skill on stage. She has such a presence and has so much confidence. It’s very inspiring to watch her.

IH: Why should people see this movie? Why a rock opera?

PH: There are so many movies out right now which are the same thing. You know what’s going to happen in the end, all the same storylines with different actors, and this movie is so unique and so different, and we’re already having screenings where people are coming dressed as the characters. They know all the words to the songs; it’s already having a cult following and it’s not even in theatres yet. It’s an experience. It’s something you have to see on the big screen. It’s an event. It’s like watching this amazing story.

IH: When did you get into rock opera? Did you see The Rocky Horror Picture Show? Do you like opera?

PH: I think everyone has seen that movie. Yes, I love opera. I was actually at the Vienna Opera Ball last year, and it was beautiful to watch. Sarah Brightman, of course, I’d seen in Phantom of the Opera – everyone’s seen that. And with this, it’s not your typical opera at all — it’s completely different. It’s based in the future, and all the songs really have a story to them. Every word is not spoken, it’s sung, and it’s fun because there’s all sorts of music in it. There’s opera, there’s industrial music, there’s rock, there’s pop, some rap…it has all different genres of music in the movie.

IH: Your character is addicted to plastic surgery. What is your opinion on surgery, and would you consider it in the future?

PH: Well, I have never had any surgery. I’m way too scared. I hate needles, I hate blood, I hate thinking of just looking in the mirror and looking different every day. I don’t have anything against it. A lot of my friends… Living in Hollywood, basically all my friends have it, but it’s something that I’ve chosen not to do because I like being all-natural.

IH: You said you don’t like blood and needles, but these horror movies are hard to watch, and with House of Wax, you obviously like horror movies. Can you watch them?

PH: I love watching it in a film, and especially when you’re in the movie, you realize that it’s not real, but in real life, I wouldn’t want to do it. But in a movie, I love watching all the blood and the gore and the guts.

IH: Would you like to do something like this on stage?

PH: I’ve been offered roles on Broadway to do, and if they did Repo on stage, I’d do it because I really believe in it and I love it, but I wouldn’t do anything else besides Repo, no.

IH: When you walked off the set with your brunette wig, did people recognize you?

PH: Well, sometimes, when we were working very late, I’d sometimes go back to my hotel in my Amber Sweet getup, and it was quite surprising to people, and probably before the movie comes out you’ll be seeing Amber Sweet walk the streets.

IH: Do you like being a blonde better?

PH: I love being a blonde. It’s fun, but brunettes have fun too. With Amber, she got to have red hair, black hair, blue hair…I was never a blonde. I never looked like myself. It was a lot of fun just to have a very different appearance.

IH: Would you play this role again?

PH: Yes. If they did a sequel, I would want to.

IH: Has Benji [Madden] seen the movie yet?

PH: Benji has seen the movie, like, four times. He loves it. We have a screening room in my house and I screened it to a lot of my friends, and Benji is obsessed with it. He thinks it’s amazing.

IH: Can you tell us about some other things going on in your life right now, like your next single, “Jailhouse Baby”? Is it true that it’s inspired by Kylie Minogue?

PH: Well, my whole album was really inspired by Kylie Minogue. I love her, I love her music, and I wanted to do a dance album. I wrote every song on the album and so I wrote “Paris for President,” which is on the website Swag House Media, and “Jailhouse Baby” is on there as well. I just wrote it in my time in there. [Laughs]

IH: Do you know Kylie?

PH: I haven’t met her, but I love her. She’s so hot.

IH: Will you vote tomorrow?

PH: Yes.

IH: What do you expect from the next president?

PH: Well, whoever becomes the next president has a lot on their hands. It’s going to be hard for anyone, so hopefully the best man will win.

IH: Last time we interviewed you, you gave me some great excuse on being newly single. What are some more tips I could use?

PH: Just going on dates and wear Paris Hilton Perfume. It smells really nice.

IH: George Clooney is your neighbor. Do you ever see him?

PH: No, we live in a gated community so we don’t really see anyone. [Laughs] The houses are so big, it’s hard to see your neighbors.

IH: What are your plans for the rest of the year?

PH: I’m not sure yet. I’ll be working and I have an album coming out, so I’ll be promoting that. I’ll be with my family and my boyfriend.

Repo! The Genetic Opera
Opens November 7th in selected theaters.