Horror Movies That Were Canceled For Upsetting Reasons
There's no disappointment quite as confusing as when a film gets canceled. It might happen suddenly, or become inevitable as a passion project suffers delay after delay. Then, when it does happen, it's usually because of shrouded problems behind the scenes or other powers beyond our control, like luck and timing. Suddenly, an exciting project ceases to exist. For hard-working artists and eager cinephiles alike, it's like a rug getting pulled.
Horror films are a unique breed, often made with tiny budgets and by the skin of their teeth. Not all of them are exceptional, but the genre is so boundless in its creative possibilities that any shelved project represents a lost vision. These 11 films, from binned sequels to scrappy original stories, represent films that have all come close to glory but, for a variety of reasons, were kept from audiences' eyes. No matter the reason, we can assure you that each example will either have you scratching your head or flipping a table.
World War Z 2
On the surface, it isn't too surprising that we have yet to see a sequel to "World War Z." The film's belabored production process ballooned its budget to the point that Paramount didn't break even, despite the film's $540 million worldwide gross. Still, the studio had hope that the Brad Pitt-led zombie survival thriller had the makings of a heavyweight franchise. The sequel went into development with J.A. Bayona ("Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom") attached to direct. However, after Bayona dropped out in 2016, Pitt wound up convincing frequent collaborator David Fincher to take over. It was a shocking development and, ultimately, too good to be true. Paramount would delay the film until 2019, when they quietly pulled the plug.
Several factors appeared to be at play, including David Fincher's busy schedule on "Mindhunter" Season 2 and Paramount's commitment to massive budgets for the two parts of "Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning." In addition, the death of Plan B Entertainment producer Brad Grey in 2017 lost the film a key player in its production. However, according to The Hollywood Reporter, Paramount's main motivation was China's ban on science fiction films. The country has a long history of refusing topics that promote "superstition," including time travel, the occult, and yes, the undead. However, in a post-pandemic box office climate that has become less reliant on China, perhaps this sequel still has legs. If Brad Pitt's excitement is any indication, we at the very least deserve a Fincher-led zombie flick.
Many Reboots of Friday the 13th
Considering how seminal a series "Friday the 13th" is, it sure has been a while since we've visited Camp Crystal Lake, though not for lack of trying. Despite the 2009 reboot being financially successful, every attempt to get Jason back on the big screen has been foiled. It began when a sequel to the reboot was officially announced for a 2010 release, only to be pulled from the release calendar unceremoniously. Producer Brad Fuller would later confirm via tweet that the sequel had been canned. Speaking to Collider, he explained that Paramount and co-producer Warner Bros. would not commit to producing it, yet neither would walk away on the off-chance it would make money in the future. Make up your mind, Hollywood!
Eventually, Warner Bros. would relinquish the rights to Paramount, who picked up where Fuller and company left off. The script went through multiple writers before settling on a Jason origin story, while the studio mandated it be done in the style of found footage. The film was set to begin shooting in March 2017 but was, once again, randomly shelved and subsequently canceled. The Hollywood Reporter cited the underwhelming box office of "Rings," another sequel to a beloved horror staple, as Paramount's reasoning. Shortly after this mess, the "Friday" rights reverted back to Warner Bros. just in time for original screenwriter Victor Miller to smack them with a lawsuit over copyright ownership.
News finally broke at the end of 2022 about a "Crystal Lake" prequel TV series from A24 and Bryan Fuller, though most details about the project and its status remain shrouded in mystery.
The Collected
Usually, the third time's the charm. Sadly, not for Patrick Melton and Marcus Dunstan, the brains behind the still-incomplete "Collector" trilogy. Initially pitched as a "Saw" prequel, "The Collector" was retooled by the filmmakers as an original story, which wound up inspiring a sequel, "The Collection." Melton and Dunstan had already begun developing the next film in the series, "The Collected," when the sequel was released, but its disappointing box office slowed them down. However, hope was renewed in 2019 when star Josh Stewart tweeted a poster for the film and Clear Horizon Entertainment acquired international distribution rights.
Shooting for the third installment began in September 2019, but production was shut down eight days into filming. Though it was expected to resume shortly after, it never did and still hasn't. Dunstan and Melton spoke openly about their bizarre situation in a 2021 interview with The Thing with Two Heads. "We stopped hearing from anybody with the production," said Dunstan. "All calls and emails have gone unanswered." He also added that many of the props have since been stolen. "[There's only been] very, very little shot," Melton continued, "and there's no plans to start shooting it."
As of today, no statements have been made from the producers of the film, leaving "The Collected" in total limbo. Though Dunstan says he is still working to reclaim production, the sad truth is that we may never see The Collector get his comeuppance.
David Cronenberg's Frankenstein
It's hard to think of anybody -– or any body -– better suited for a "Frankenstein" reimagining than David Cronenberg (well, aside from Guillermo Del Toro). Who better than the master of body horror to tackle the genre's ultimate science project? Pierre David, a frequent producer of Cronenberg's work, saw the potential and pitched Cronenberg the idea in the 1980s.
In Chris Rodley's revised edition of "Cronenberg on Cronenberg," a series of interviews with the Canadian filmmaker, Cronenberg recounts what he planned on bringing to the material. "I'd try to retain [Mary] Shelley's original concept of the creature being an intelligent, sensitive man. Not just a beast." Rodley adds that Cronenberg planned on setting the film in the present day, which is supported by a full-page ad in Variety announcing the film sans release date.
According to Rodley, the project never materialized and much of his insight about it stops there. Cronenberg has never mentioned the project since then, so we can safely assume that this Frankenstein is not alive. However, the filmmaker went on to grapple with similar themes of science and humanity, most notably in his remake of "The Fly" as well as in his original films "eXistenZ" and "Crimes of the Future."
The Train
Most cinephiles would think it greedy to ask for another fusion of H. R. Giger's extraordinary designs and Ridley Scott's storytelling chops. "Alien" is already so perfect, how could you improve on it? Well, how about "'Alien' on a train?" This is how historian and writer David Hughes described the aptly-titled "The Train," a film set to reunite the two visionaries, in his book "Tales from Development Hell." As you can guess from the title, the film never came to pass, but the story behind it is enough to make you wish it did.
After signing onto the project in 1988, believing it to be a potential return to form following a string of critical and commercial flops, Scott called Giger and explained the story. Giger was excited to contribute and Scott insisted that he begin to sketch while they awaited an agreement with studio Carolco Pictures. Giger agreed, producing several black and white sketches over the course of nine months. However, unbeknownst to Giger, Scott had left the project during this time to film "Thelma & Louise," citing a lack of creative control. Giger, who didn't receive any communication of this until three weeks after Scott's departure, was never paid for his work. Justice for Giger!
Producer Joel Silver passed the script along to several other talents, including Arnold Schwarzenegger and Roland Emmerich, but it went through so many drastic rewrites that any interest in the film had left the station. It remains unproduced, but Giger thankfully repurposed his unpaid work for the film "Species."
This Man
Have you seen "This Man?" Well, probably not, since a film directly based on the viral conspiracy never got made. "Ever Dream This Man?" was a website that began circulating in 2009. Published by Andrea Natella at thisman.org, the site features an ominous sketch of an unnamed man, claiming that it was drawn by a woman who was seeing him in her dreams every night. This was given to her psychologist, whose other patients recognized the man from their own dreams. This spiraled into over 8,000 testimonies from around the world, all corroborating the presence of the same foreboding visage.
The site quickly became a worldwide phenomenon, inspiring internet memes and even an episode of "The X-Files." However, in 2010, the site was determined to be a hoax. Turns out Natella is the director of Guerriglia Marketing, an ad agency specializing in unconventional viral marketing tactics. Still, this didn't seem to deter director Bryan Bertino ("The Strangers") and producer Sam Raimi from purchasing the website and developing a film based on it.
The story would be from the perspective of "This Man," here portrayed as a Joe Schmoe who has unwittingly become the subject of everyone's dreams and attempts to figure out why. Nothing about the film has been discussed since, leaving us to assume that the project was canned somewhere along the way. However, it appears to live on in the comedic "Dream Scenario," an A24 film starring Nicolas Cage that appears to share the same premise.
Little Shop of Horrors
It's about time we went back to Skid Row. Released in 1986 after the stage show's stellar off-Broadway debut, "Little Shop of Horrors" was one of very few successful '80s movie musicals and remains a cult classic. Some consider the gonzo comedy sacred, but those familiar with the source material (itself based on a 1960 Roger Corman movie) know that "Little Shop" has always been ripe for reimagining. The musical remains a popular pick for community theaters and has seen a resurgence in popularity with several modern revivals, including one currently running off-Broadway. With a solid practical effects budget and unique vision, a full-on remake would be more than welcome.
For a moment, it looked like Warner Bros. was ready to go somewhere that's green. Full Circle Cinema first reported in early 2020 that Taron Egerton, Scarlett Johansson, and Billy Porter were circling a remake of "Little Shop" as Seymour, Audrey, and Audrey II respectively. Just one month later, the rumors snowballed to include Chris Evans as Orin Scrivello, D.D.S. and Greg Berlanti ("Love, Simon") in the director's chair. Then came the COVID-19 pandemic, which put the project on ice.
Finally, in a 2022 interview with Mirror, Egerton laid the final nail in the coffin. "At the moment, my understanding is it's completely dormant," the actor said. Just months before, Evans had expressed similar sentiments to MTV News, citing budget issues. However, both actors are still interested in seeing the project take shape — especially Evans, who says the musical is his personal favorite. Let's hope this plant actually gets fed.
The Hunt
"But wait," I hear you cry, "I've seen 'The Hunt!'" Yes, Craig Zobel's horror actioner was released -– you can watch it right now –- but only after it was resurrected from cancelation. One month before its scheduled September 2019 release, the devastating mass shootings in Dayton and El Paso pushed Universal to cancel the film's release. The story, which featured excessive gun violence and heavily satirized the kind of political rhetoric that inspired the shootings, was found to be too inflammatory during a time of national mourning.
So, technically, "The Hunt" was canceled. However, six months later, Universal began a re-release strategy, now using the film's generated controversy as fuel for the fire. However, the decision to bring it back wasn't purely financial. Speaking to The Hollywood Reporter, producer Jason Blum and co-writer Damon Lindelof said that they held a test screening just a few days after the shootings and, surprisingly, there wasn't a stir. "No one who has seen the movie has described [it] as provocative," said Lindelof.
"The audience is smart enough to know that what they're seeing is a satire and it's preposterous," Blum added.
It looked like the film was free of further trouble, but then that pesky p-word reared its ugly head. In response to global lockdowns following COVID-19, Universal included "The Hunt" in a collection of films released online early. Though the film did generate some box office returns, it was effectively killed as a conversation starter amidst COVID uncertainty. So much for all that hullabaloo.
The Weird Ones
It's one thing when a film gets canceled because of a studio's incompetence or even just bad timing. It's another when a film is physically destroyed. This was the fate of "The Weird Ones," an ultra-obscure horror comedy that was destroyed in a garage fire shortly after it premiered in San Antonio, Texas, in 1962. Pat Boyette's bizarre sexploitation flick joins a long list of films now considered lost, which includes a majority of silent era films and half of the films produced between 1927 and 1950.
Comic fans may recognize Boyette as co-creator of the now-beloved DC character "Peacemaker." However, before he would join Charlton Comics, Boyette was an aspiring filmmaker who directed, wrote, produced, and edited a few low-budget cult films. "The Weird Ones" was his first, but it screened only once. Thankfully, reviews in The New York Times and TV Guide give us an idea of what we were to expect.
Though we are sorry for Boyette's loss, the film sounded silly at best and misogynistic at worst. Two sleazy press agents try to stop an evil space alien, the Astronik, from capturing and killing young women. Good! They lure him in with the help of a "Cosmos-Cutie," a sexualized woman posing as an alien herself. Less good! TV Guide described the film's erotic exploits as "too brainless to be reckoned with" and, well, now nobody will be reckoning with them ever again.
Haunted
You may not be familiar with "Haunted," an original horror film set to be directed by Juan Carlos Fresnadillo ("28 Weeks Later") and produced by DreamWorks Pictures. Not much fanfare was made about its announcement, but it was notably a passion project for DreamWorks head Steven Spielberg, who had interest in producing a horror film. The script came from Chad and Carey Hayes, writers of "The Conjuring," who took inspiration from Henry James' haunting 1898 novella "The Turn of the Screw." Though plot details were never formally released, we can assume that it has something to do with an estate that has ghosts roaming its halls.
The film's budget was set for $17 million –- more than enough for a subtle horror film –- but pre-production alone took up $5 million. This was partially because writer Scott Z. Burns ("Contagion") was brought in to do a last-minute rewrite, which he did in partnership with Fresnadillo. However, according to JoBlo, the duo made so many changes to the original script that it strayed too far from Spielberg and DreamWorks' original vision. With only weeks left until filming and a script that still needed work, the studio canceled production and parted ways with Fresnadillo and Burns. The Hollywood Reporter noted that DreamWorks was interested in further developing the Hayes' script, but nothing has been said about the film since. Will Spielberg ever get to relive his "Poltergeist" days? Only time will tell.
The Dark Universe
It all started with a tweet. In an attempt to cash in on the reign of cinematic universes, Universal announced that it would reboot its definitive slate of monster movies as "The Dark Universe" in 2017. Their efforts would begin with "The Mummy," starring a tired Tom Cruise and a CGI-monsterfied Sofia Boutella, but the studio slated countless star-studded reimaginings right out of the gate: Angelina Jolie in "The Bride of Frankenstein," Russell Crowe in "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde," even Johnny Depp as the Invisible Man. Despite nobody really asking for it, the idea of an updated, darker take on horror's most quintessential characters could have been fun in the right hands.
Sadly, Universal's grasp on the entire ordeal crumbled faster than Boutella's brittle, mummified bones. "The Mummy" went through several rewrites and a hellish production process, delaying the film several times. Then, Universal uploaded a trailer with barely any music and only half of the sound effects. The film quickly became a laughing stock before it even came out. With a B- CinemaScore and $95 million lost at the box office, the ugly truth was clear: Universal had put the cart before the horse. Universal promptly and quietly canceled "The Dark Universe," instead opting to make individual takes on each monster. We've already seen this method bear fruit; Leigh Whannell's "The Invisible Man" was one of 2020's best films, while "Renfield" gave us Nicolas Cage as Dracula. For that, I suppose it was all worth it.