Every Cancelled John Carpenter Film We NEVER Got To See
John Carpenter may be the Master of Horror, but he's also secretly the master of cancelled movies.
John Carpenter is one of the most influential and legendary voices in horror cinema. Halloween kickstarted and arguably defined the slasher genre in one move in 1978, while classics like Assault on Precinct 13, Escape from New York and They Live have maintained their relevance decades on from their respective premieres.
Elsewhere, Big Trouble in Little China and The Thing may not have fared well at the box office or with critics, but are now considered quintessential eighties classics, with the latter signposted by many genre aficionados as Carpenter's masterpiece.
But for all the masterpieces Carpenter delivered across his career, the writer and director wasn't able to see every project through to completion. Although this is a common issue with filmmakers, it's hard to think of an auteur who almost directed as many movies as Carpenter (aside from maybe Guillermo del Toro).
Throughout his prolific career, Carpenter came close to making a They Live sequel, a Hellraiser and Halloween crossover, and even an additional chapter to the Escape from New York saga, among many others.
Some projects were handed off to somebody else, while others faded from existence, incentivising cinephiles to ponder what could've been. Even though John Carpenter's filmography is filled with an enviable amount of masterpieces, some of these cancelled projects would've made it even more stacked.
22. They Bite
After his feature-length debut, Dark Star, John Carpenter and Dan O'Bannon hoped to collaborate for another movie, They Bite (also known as Drone and Omnivore). The story centred around prehistoric insects that were unearthed in an archaeological dig. Rather than being run-of-the-mill monsters, these creepy-crawlies could mimic whatever they consumed, allowing them to blend in with humanity.
Though Carpenter and O'Bannon's previous collaboration, Dark Star, spoofed the sci-fi genre, They Bite took matters seriously, meshing creature feature conventions with body horror.
Although O’Bannon completed the screenplay and Carpenter intended to direct, They Bite faltered in development. Studios were reluctant to finance the film, knowing the practical effects required could be challenging and expensive.
The fact They Bite didn't see the light of day was probably a blessing in disguise, though. If Carpenter had seen the project through, he may never have reinvented the slasher franchise with Halloween several years later.
On top of that, They Bite's cancellation inspired Dan O'Bannon to tweak it into Alien, ushering in a new era of sci-fi horror. Had They Bite gotten greenlit, many classic horror franchises may have never come to pass.