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Chris Columbus Reveals Darker Details of Gremlins' Original Script Before Spielberg’s Crucial Changes: 'One Thing I Did Fight For'
Chris Columbus reveals the shocking deaths and even darker elements in the original Gremlins 1984 script. Find details inside.
If you thought Chris Columbus' Gremlins is one of the darkest Christmas movies ever, it could have been even more chilling. Columbus recently revealed details of an even darker original script of the 1984 film including one scene he fought to retain.
Gremlins is a classic dark comedy holiday movie directed by Joe Dante and written by Chris Columbus. It features Howie Mandel as Gizmo, as well as Zach Galligan who plays Billy Peltzer, Phoebe Cates as Kate Beringer, Hoyt Axton as Randall, Polly Holliday who plays Ruby Deagle, and Frances Lee McCain as Lynn.
In an interview recently, Columbus talked about how the script in the original 1984 version was much darker than what he actually filmed. He revealed that in the first draft, more characters were killed off in violent ways. For instance, Billy's mom, played by Polly Holliday, was beheaded, and her head rolled down the stairs. Also, the family dog, Barney, was not only tangled in Christmas lights; he was hung by his neck and slaughtered as the Gremlins ate him.
Colombus told Vanity Fair, "I think the dad stayed behind and fought the Gremlins, I don’t quite remember if he survived. The mom certainly didn’t. Billy ran into the foyer of his house, and his mom’s head came rolling down the stairs. So there were some deaths. And Barney the dog was not so lucky to just be hung up in the Christmas lights. He was actually hung up by his neck and died. We killed the dog!"
He added, "We ended up with the story of Phoebe Cates’s father dying in the chimney, and the studio wanted to cut it. Steven and Joe Dante and I fought for that. That was one thing I did fight for at the time."
Columbus, who most recently worked on Nosferatu, also spoke about how some of the darker elements were left out. For example, "they went into McDonald’s and ate the people—but not the food," he added.
Columbus later reflected that, as a newcomer to the industry, he did not have the standing to disagree with producer Steven Spielberg. In fact, Spielberg made one important change to the script: he thought that it was a bad idea for Gizmo to turn into a Gremlin early in the movie.
He said, "The audience needed someone to relate to in terms of the gremlins, and that was Gizmo." Chris Columbus concurred that audiences needed to see Gizmo with Billy for most of the movie, even if that was not what was intended.
ALSO READ: Nosferatu Reminds Us Hollywood Still Hasn’t Nailed Bram Stoker’s Dracula
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