10 Unexpected Reasons Behind Awesome Horror Movie Moments
5. The Graboids' Tongues Were Created To Save Money On Effects - Tremors
One of the greatest and most unforgettable moments in Tremors occurs when, despite the audience's belief that the heroes are facing off against a fleet of snake-like monsters, we discover that the snakes are in fact a trio of tongues belonging to the considerably larger, worm-like graboids.
It makes for one hell of a reveal, yet the snakes weren't originally part of the graboids' design at all, but were introduced in order to save precious money on the movie's costly practical effects.
During pre-production, there was much concern over how the crew could pull off an entire movie in which the heroes battle giant burrowing worms, given the time and costs involved in achieving these effects.
And so, the decision was made to change the graboids' design, giving them the snake-like tongues which were considerably cheaper and easier to operate from an effects standpoint, ensuring the film didn't need to focus explicitly on their more technically cumbersome worm form.
And in turn, it gave audiences one hell of a surprise when the graboid's full form first burst out of the earth.