20 Things You Didn't Know About Waterworld

20. The Script Had 36 Drafts From Six Different Writers

Though it's totally common for huge tentpole movies to be endlessly rewritten before they go before cameras - and sometimes even during - Waterworld's screenplay went through a frankly alarming number of drafts before the shooting script was finally ready to go.

In the end, six writers took a pop at writing the movie, resulting in a stonking 36 (!) drafts before settling on the final script collaborated upon by Peter Rader and David Twohy.

A big part of the reason for the extensive rewrites was the fact that there were so many cooks in the kitchen, with four producers who each brought their own unique vision to the table, including Kevin Costner himself.

Even after a shooting script was settled on, however, rewrites continued during principal photography, likely explaining why the end result feels so shapeless and scattershot.