Tales From Development Hell (46 page)

CAST INTO MOUNT DOOM

Page 49
:
“When Gandalf is vanquished...” John Boorman, quoted on The South Bank Show edited and presented by Melvyn Bragg, LWT Productions, 2001. “In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit” is from The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien, London: Allen & Unwin, 1937. “My work has escaped from my control...” J.R.R. Tolkien, quoted in The Letters of JRR Tolkien, edited by Humphrey Carpenter with the assistance of Christopher Tolkien, New York: HarperCollins, 1985.
Page 50
:
“I had no sooner landed in London...” and all other Forrest J Ackerman quotes, AI. “I should welcome the idea...”; “entirely ignorant of the process of producing an ‘animated picture’...”; “very unhappy about the extreme silliness...” Tolkien, quoted in The Letters of JRR Tolkien, edited by Humphrey Carpenter with the assistance of Christopher Tolkien, New York: HarperCollins 1985.
Page 52
:
“The problem was that, because Tolkien was not a regular moviegoer...” Brian Sibley, quoted in ‘Middle-Earth Man’, uncredited, Starlog, January 2002. “We talked about it for a while...” Paul McCartney, quoted in Beatles at the Movies by Roy Carr, London: UFOMusic, 1996. “After reading the book...” and all other Gene Deitch quotes, quoted in How to Succeed In Animation (Don’t Let A Little Thing Like Failure Stop You) by Gene Deitch, published on
awn.com/genedeitch
.
Page 54
:
“as a kind of opera, or a sort of...” and all other Heinz Edelmann quotes are from ‘Tolkien: The Road Not Taken’ by Ross Pleset, Outre, circa 2001.
Page 55
:
“like a Fellini movie in a never-land...” and all other Rospo Pallenberg quotes, ibid.
Page 56
:
“When you’re faced with adapting...” Peter Jackson, quoted on The South Bank Show edited and presented by Melvyn Bragg, LWT Productions, 2001. “[We] used to get the giggles...” Boorman, ibid.
Page 57
:
“Look – only seven colours...” is from the unproduced Lord of the Rings screenplay by Rospo Pallenberg. “I was a Tolkien fan...” and all other Ralph Bakshi quotes, AI.
Page 60
:
“that was the key to it”, Jackson, quoted in ‘The Once and Future King’ by Jenny Cooney Carillo, Dreamwatch, October 2003. “presents the characters that people love, and...” Jackson, quoted on The South Bank Show edited and presented by Melvyn Bragg, LWT Productions, 2001. “It’s a huge uphill struggle...” Boorman, ibid.

WE CAN REWRITE IT FOR YOU WHOLESALE

Page 61
:
“Ron [Shusett] said, ‘You’ve done the Philip K. Dick version...” David Cronenberg, AI.
Page 62
:
“I think it was probably 1974...”; “This was the first story...” Ronald D. Shusett, quoted in the Artisan documentary Imagining Total Recall, circa 2001. “Ronny Shusett walked into my apartment...”; “Dick’s story is short...”; “Quaid, Earth’s top secret agent...” Dan O’Bannon, quoted in ‘Dan O’Bannon On Why It Doesn’t Work’ by Carl Brandon, Cinefantastique, April 1991.
Page 63
:
“At the that time I was not a Philip Dick fan...” Cronenberg, quoted in David Cronenberg by Serge Grünberg, Paris: Cahiers Du Cinema, 2000. “It’s a good thing I had a computer...” Cronenberg, AI. “I didn’t want to do it as serious...” Shusett, AI. “I went to Dino...” Cronenberg, quoted in David Cronenberg by Serge Grunberg, Paris: Cahiers Du Cinema, 2000.
Page 64
:
“Cronenberg quit for a number of reasons...” Shusett, quoted in ‘The Bizarre Mars of David Cronenberg’ by Bill Florence, Cinefantastique, April 1991. “It’s dead for me now...” Cronenberg, quoted in David Cronenberg by Serge Grünberg, Paris: Cahiers Du Cinema, 2000. Page 65 “First of all, I really wanted to cast William Hurt...” Cronenberg, AI. “Quaid takes a cab driven by Benny...” is from ‘The Bizarre Mars of David Cronenberg’ by Bill Florence, Cinefantastique, April 1991.
Page 65
:
“They were creatures that lived in the sewers...” and other Ron Miller quotes are from ‘The Bizarre Mars of David Cronenberg’ by Bill Florence, Cinefantastique, April 1991.
Page 66
:
“I thought it was a bad movie...” Cronenberg, quoted in David Cronenberg by Serge Grunberg, Paris: Cahiers Du Cinema, 2000. “With Arnold Schwarzenegger in the main part...” Paul Verhoeven, quoted in commentary for Total Recall DVD. “Also I thought it was very tacky...” Cronenberg, quoted in David Cronenberg by Serge Grünberg, Paris: Cahiers Du Cinema, 2000. “As I recall it was seven directors...” Shusett, quoted in the Artisan documentary Imagining Total Recall, circa 2001.
Page 67
:
“I was asked to do a polish” and all other Gary Goldman quotes, AI. “Within a few hours...” Arnold Schwarzenegger, quoted in commentary for Total Recall DVD. “In 1981, eight years before I got the movie financed...” and all remaining Shusett quotes, AI. “about thirty” Verhoeven, AI.
Page 68
:
“Everything we have seen before...” Verhoeven, quoted in commentary for Total Recall DVD. “What’s bullshit? That you’re having a paranoid episode...” is dialogue from Total Recall. “That’s the great thing about the movie...” Schwarzenegger, quoted in commentary for Total Recall DVD. “As much as possible...” Verhoeven, AI. “You are a top operative under deep cover...” is dialogue from Total Recall.
Page 69
:
“McClane tells him everything...”; “That part of the narrative...” Verhoeven, quoted in commentary for Total Recall DVD.
Page 70
:
“I think we were a very writer-friendly group...”; “There was an introduction...” Verhoeven, quoted in commentary for Total Recall DVD. p74 “Somebody whose name I won’t name...” Verhoeven, AI.
Page 76
:
“This is the perfect franchise opportunity...” Bob Weinstein, quoted in ‘Recall in New Dimension’ by Rex Weiner and Anita M. Busch, Daily Variety, 15 January 1997.
Page 76
:
“Immediately after turning in that script...” and all other Matthew Cirulnick quotes, AI. p79 “actively involved” is from ‘Dimension eyes Recall 2’ by Benedict Carver and Chris Petrikin, Daily Variety, 12 May 1998.
Page 80
:
“I’m very jazzed...” Jonathan Frakes, quoted in ‘Inside Trek’ by Ian Spelling,
www.geocities.com/Hollywood/6952/st9.htm
, March 1998. “Arnold is serious...” Frakes, quoted in interview with Louis B. Hobson, Calgary Sun, circa December 1998. “waiting for Mr Schwarzenegger’s hands to free up...” Frakes, quoted in uncredited interview on Tripod (
www.tripod.com
), circa 1998. “Totall Recall is an old movie...” Frakes, quoted in Starburst, February 2000.
Page 82
:
“That way, should we want to betray the agency...”; “Scientists say the Mars explosion...” are from unproduced script for Total Recall 2 by Matthew Cirulnick.
Page 86
:
“Nowadays I think it’s hard...” Vincent Moore, quoted in ‘Vincent Moore has Total Recall’ by Steve Sunu,
comicbookresources.com
, 27 April 2011. “After all, the real one...” is from ‘We Can Remember It For You Wholesale’ by Philip K. Dick.

KEEPING UP WITH THE JONESES

Page 87
:
“I was done with the...” Steven Spielberg, quoted in Dreamwatch, January 2003. “reading scripts” Harrison Ford, quoted at Venice Film Festival press conference, circa 1994.
Page 88
:
“Indy was always...” “He got very excited...” George Lucas, quoted in a documentary included on the ‘Raiders of the Lost Ark’ DVD, circa 2003. “I said, ‘I’ve always wanted to direct.” Spielberg, ibid. “I said, ‘All right...’” Lucas, ibid. “Larry added.” Spielberg, ibid. “I was really tired.” Spielberg, quoted in ‘Indiana Jones and the Ultimate Tribute’ by Ian Freer, Empire, October 2006.
Page 89
:
“I didn’t want him to be.” Lucas, quoted in a documentary included on the ‘Raiders of the Lost Ark’ DVD, circa 2003.
Page 90
:
“When Jones gets wind...” is from ‘From Speed to Ford Escort’ by Baz Bamigboye, Daily Mail, 11 November 1994. “Baz Bamigboye was hungry for stories...” anonymous, AI. “While Nazis and various cultists...” is from ‘Indy IV Delayed’ by Michael Fleming, Variety, 21 March 1995.
Page 92
:
“About a year later...” and other Robert Smith quotes are from interview with Charles Deemer of the Internet Screenwriters Network, circa 1996. “In a New York minute...” Ford, quoted in interview with Barbara Walters, 24 March 1997.
Page 93
:
“We’re working on a screenplay...” George Lucas, quoted at press conference for Star Wars Episode I: The Phantom Menace, circa 1997.
Page 93
:
“The script had to do with the lost city...” is from ‘Indy IV Draft That Will Never Be!!’ by Harry Knowles, Ain’t It Cool News (
www.aintitcool.com
), 24 October 1997.
Page 94
:
“a fake or at the very least...” is from Cinescape, 11 April 1998. “We finished the script...” is from Cinescape Online (
www.cinescape.com
), 17 May 1998. “they would probably stick with...” is from Ain’t It Cool News (
www.aintitcool.com
), 27 May 1998. “We just haven’t really settled...” Ford, quoted in interview with Earvin Johnson on Magic Hour, 9 June 1998. “The Indiana Jones 4 hat...” Spielberg, quoted in interview with Cindy Pearlman, Chicago Herald-Tribune, circa July 1998. “We don’t have a start date...” Spielberg, quoted on Ain’t It Cool News (
www.aintitcool.com
), 25 July 1998. “there is no official...” Paramount spokesperson, quoted in AI for Empire, November 1998.
Page 95
:
“The script, labelled as the final draft...” is from
Indyfan.com
, 2 December 1998. “The Russians, having packed Indy...” is from ‘Indiana Jones and the City of the Gods’ screenplay by Frank Darabont, 4 April 2003.
Page 96
:
“Indy, working in Egypt...” is from Ain’t It Cool News (
www.aintitcool.com
), 13 December 1998.
Page 97
:
“The two of us wrote...” Michael Prentice, quoted in interview with Micah Johnson,
Indyfan.com
, circa January 1999. “We’ve got a fantastic script...” McCallum, quoted at press conference for Lucasfilm/ LucasArts, 14 July 1999.
Page 98
:
“It takes place...” Makman, quoted on Ain’t It Cool News (
www.aintitcool.com
), 17 July 1999. “I’m still quite fit...” Ford, quoted on Entertainment Tonight, 15 September 1999. “All I’m waiting for...” Lucas, quoted on Entertainment Tonight, circa October 1999. “ready when they’re ready” Ford, quoted on E! Online, circa October 1999.
Page 99
:
“We don’t want the fourth...” Spielberg, quoted on Cinescape Insider and elsewhere, circa October 1999. “If there was a script...” Patricia McQueeney, quoted in interview with Jeannie Williams, USA Today, 24 January 2000. “everybody having commitments...” McCallum, quoted in The Sunday Express, circa 2000. “Steven and George will not...” Ford, quoted on The Big Breakfast, 22 November 1999. “Harrison isn’t too old...” Spielberg, quoted in interview with Larry King on Larry King Live, 10 December 1999. “I want it to happen...” Ford, quoted on Inside the Actor’s Studio, 15 February 2000. “Dad, when are you going to...” Spielberg, quoted at Director’s Guild of America, circa March 2000. “completely unconfirmed and graded as an 8...” is from Cinescape Online (
www.cinescape.com
), 15 February 2000.
Page 100
:
“in the process...” is from ‘Arnold & Indy: They’ll Be Back’, uncredited, Variety, 22 June 2000. “There are a lot of things...” M. Night Shyamalan, quoted on
MovieHeadlines.com
, 29 November 2000. “I was never contacted...” Shyamalan, quoted on Ain’t It Cool News (
www.aintitcool.com
), 31 July 2001. “looking forward...” Ford, quoted on the Internet Movie Database, circa October 2000.
Page 101
:
“but to be honest...” Kathleen Kennedy, quoted in interview with the Calgary Sun, February 2001. “We have a title...” Spielberg, quoted in interview with Roger Friedman for Fox News, 21 January 2002.
Page 102
:
“Right now, Steven’s been described...” Marvin Levy, quoted in interview with E! Online, 22 January 2002. “We’re in the process of hiring...” Lucas, quoted in interview with Master P for MTV Movie House, 24 May 2002. “George called about a month...” Frank Darabont, quoted in Cinescape, June 2002. “It’s official that we have an ambition...” Ford, ibid. “wonderful” Spielberg, quoted in ‘Indy Scriptwriter Signed’, uncredited, Dreamwatch, June 2002.
Page 103
:
“Steven, Harrison and I...” Lucas, quoted on
www.starwars.com
, 25 June 2002. “Indy’s pop will be back...” Spielberg, quoted in ‘Indy Doesn’t Get the Willies’, uncredited, Dreamwatch, January 2003. “I absolutely don’t want to do things...” Darabont, quoted in Alameda Times-Star Online, circa 2003. “huge cavern filled with...” is from ‘Indiana Jones and the City of the Gods’ screenplay by Frank Darabont, 4 April 2003.
Page 104
:
“Death in a homburg hat”; “It appears.” “Perfectly formed...” “There are thirteen skulls...” “we are the ones...” ibid. “It was a terrible disappointment...” Darabont, quoted in ‘After “Waste Of A Year” On “Indy 4,” Director Rebounds With Stephen King’s “Mist”’ by Josh Horowitz,
MTV.com
, 17 April 2007.
Page 106
:
“He put some really good...” “What I did later on...” Spielberg, quoted in the documentary ‘The Return of a Legend’ for the Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull DVD, circa 2008. “I spent about a year on it...” David Koepp, ibid. “I feel like I dropped the ball...” Shia LaBeouf, quoted in ‘Cannes 2010: Shia LaBeouf: We botched the last Indiana Jones’ by Steven Zeitchik,
LATimes.com
, 15 May 2010. “I was the hold out....” Spielberg, quoted in ‘Indy Doesn’t Get the Willies’, uncredited, Dreamwatch, January 2003. “Steven didn’t like...” Lucas, quoted in ‘The Return of a Legend,’ ibid.

THE LOST CRUSADE

Page 107
:
“The story of the Crusades...” Verhoeven, quoted in interview with Neil Young posted on
www.jigsawlounge.co.uk
, 18 April 2002.
Page 108
:
“We were sitting outside Arnold’s trailer...”; “Walon wrote a script...”; “We wanted to be honest...” Verhoeven, AI.
Page 110
:
“to wed and bed the true love...” is from the unproduced script Crusades by Walon Green.
Page 112
:
“It was always supposed to be a movie for Arnold...”; “There are touches of lightness...” Verhoeven, AI. “They came up with a draft or two...” and all other Gary Goldman quotes, AI.
Page 113
:
“We presented it in the way of Total Recall...”; “If you see other movies about the Crusades...” Verhoeven, AI.
Page 115
:
“the greatest unproduced script...” Damien Thorn, quoted on Ain’t It Cool News (
aintitcool.com
). “Crusade doesn’t want to take a religious stand...” anonymous, ibid.
Page 116
:
“I tested a lot of women...”; “I was too honest...”;
Page 117
:
“Carolco went through a terrible...” Verhoeven, AI. “serious talks”;
Page 118
:
“Long considered one of the best unproduced scripts...” is from ‘Schwarzenegger Wooing Milchan to Join Crusade’ by Michael Fleming, Daily Variety, 5 February 1999. “Even the word Crusade...” Verhoeven, quoted in DVD Monthly, circa 2001. “Of course, Bush not knowing what...” Verhoeven, AI. “We have to bring it up to date...” Schwarzenegger, quoted on Cinescape Online (
www.cinescape.com
), 9 November 2001.
Page 119
:
“At its core, it harkens to what’s going on today...” is from ‘Now Showing: The Flag’ by Mike Medavoy, Washington Post, 6 February 2002. “In the end, you see the stupidity...” Walon Green, ibid. “The story of the Crusades...” Verhoeven, quoted in interview with Neil Young posted on Jigsaw Lounge (
www.jigsawlounge.co.uk
), 18 April 2002. “The Crusades, which began in the 11th century...” is from ‘Fox, Scott Plot Crusade’ by Michael Fleming, Variety, 3 Mar 2002. p122 “It’s a movie I’ve been thinking about for twenty years...” Scott, quoted in The San Bernadino County Sun, circa September 2003.
Page 120
:
“The subject has to be dealt with...” Scott, from a press conference for Matchstick Men, circa September 2003. “I think it’s a great script...” and all remaining Verhoeven quotes, AI.