Oscar winner Helen Hunt to appear at Motor City Comic Con and live screening of 'Twister'

The smash 1996 blockbuster movie “Twister” is celebrating its 28th anniversary this year. One of its stars, Oscar- and Emmy-winning actress Helen Hunt, will appear at Motor City Comic Con and at a live Q&A following a screening of the film at Emagine Novi on Saturday.

Hunt, who won four Emmys in the 1990s for her work on the sitcom “Mad About You” and a Best Actress Academy Award for 1997’s “As Good as It Gets,” told the Free Press she’s excited for the “Twister” screening.

“That’s going to be extra special,” she said, as the film approaches 30 years of movie magic. “It resonates because it’s good. I watched it during COVID. And I certainly don’t go back and rewatch (my work). I find it sort of depressing. But I think my daughter had never seen it. I was with a group of people and we watched it, and we all kind of couldn’t believe how much it held up.

“I think it’s the filmmaking and the acting. (Director Jan de Bont) chose great actors, and it was before a lot of CGI, so they were really pummeling us with all sorts of stuff. And there were good writers that worked on it. All the ingredients you need came together for this really unique, fun action movie with no guns and a lot of camaraderie, and some humor and some jump scares, but not ones where someone’s about to be murdered.”

Hunt also took a moment to acknowledge her late costars from the film, Bill Paxton and Philip Seymour Hoffman.

“Bill and Phil Hoffman … I feel sad to be the one left from that trio,” she admitted. “But the contribution is that (Paxton) was a great actor. And we were very different and brought our differences to the relationship and the movie. The thing you remember from a movie like ‘Twister’ is the action, but the thing that makes it good is the directing, the writing, and the acting, and he was a world-class actor.”

Aside from celebrating the anniversary of “Twister,” Hunt is working on a film with Dustin Hoffman and British director Peter Greenaway (“The Cook, The Thief, His Wife & Her Lover”).

“A family comes from New York to a small, little walled city in Italy,” she said, “so that this man can know his death, and Death is a character in the movie… It’s just wild and impossible to describe, which is probably the best thing I can say about it.”

Hunt also is in several episodes of the hit HBO comedy “Hacks,” starring another multi-Emmy-winning actress, Jean Smart. The role is a departure from her typically likable roles, and she revels in playing an over-the-top nasty guest character.

“I play a really fun part,” Hunt said. “A screaming, bad sport, pickleball player network president. So that’s really fun.”

In the meantime, the actress is looking forward to her first trip to metro Detroit.

“I have friends and even family in Grand Rapids, and I went to Beaver Island last year. I’ve been in your state, but not in your city. I’m super excited to attend the ‘Twister’ screening, and I’m going to be taking my picture with any poor soul that wants it.”

The Motor City Comic Con spring convention is May 17-19 at the Suburban Collection Showplace in Novi. Helen Hunt will appear at the convention for just one day, Saturday, May 18, during convention hours, from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Convention hours are noon to 7 p.m. Friday, May 17, and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Sunday, May 19.

The “Twister” screening will take place at 8 p.m. on May 18 at Emagine Novi. Hunt will make a special appearance and host a Q&A panel discussion.

Standard package is $40 and includes a movie poster, pre-movie Q&A, and free admission to see Twister. The silver package is $115 and includes one autograph during convention hours on Saturday, the movie poster, the Q&A, and free admission to the movie. The gold package, at $220, includes one autograph and one professional photo opportunity during Saturday's convention hours, the poster, Q&A panel, and free admission to the movie.

Jennifer Dixon contributed to this report.

Contact Free Press arts and culture reporter Duante Beddingfield at [email protected].

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Helen Hunt to appear at Motor City Comic Con, live screening of 'Twister'