10 Horror Movies You Didn't Know Nearly Happened
Who knows what the genre would have looked like if these movies saw the light of day?
In an industry as unwieldy and unpredictable as Hollywood, it is not surprising for certain projects to be greenlit or at least be discussed only to be abandoned at different stages of the filmmaking process. Some are thrown to the curb even before a line of dialogue is written and others have the plug pulled on them in the final stretch.
Horror movies are not immune from the fickle nature of creating a film, as many ideas have been floated around for years but never took off. In a way, this is somewhat surprising as the genre for the most part is low-budget and there are virtually infinite sources of inspiration and/or storytelling directions for crafting a story full of memorable chills and terrifying antagonists.
Despite this, a lot of horror pictures were not made despite the level of development behind them. The reasons behind this range from collapsing studios, filmmaker-executive clashes, drastic changes in creative sensibilities or the simple fact that some ideas are best left on the drawing board.
Their absence in the annals of cinema history may be for better or for worse but there is no denying that seeing some of the entries on this list would have made for a unique viewing experience.
10. House Of Re-Animator
The H.P. Lovecraft-inspired trilogy (Curse of the Re-Animator is its own strange beast) unfortunately never lived up to the gory heights of its solid first entry but is a rare instance where the adaptation is vastly better than the source material. That said, according to series writer Dennis Paoli, it is possible that the franchise may have hit surreal highs with the proposed House of Re-Animator.
One of two proposed sequels (the other being an Island of Dr. Moreau-type of story), House of Re-Animator would have seen franchise stalwart Dan Cain (Bruce Abbott) attempt to revive the recently deceased George Bush and Dick Cheney after the diabolical Herbert West went on the lam following a prison break.
In addition to standard undead fare, the hypothetical tale would have been a critique of the Bush administration, the Iraq War as well as the general state of American politics during that era. Specifically, the inclusion of a zombie president would have served as commentary on Bush's ineffectiveness during his eight-year rule. Additional plot beats include a rivalry between Cain and a returning West as well as zombie soldiers.
Paoli revealed that the project did not get off the ground due to budgetary issues but also stated that he would be open to working with the studio on another go at the franchise.