Even after four decades, the film Gremlins holds a reputation as one of the most macabre holiday movies, though it could have taken a much darker path if scriptwriter Chris Columbus had his way.
Chris Columbus recently shared his thoughts on the 1984 holiday horror film, directed by Joe Dante. He reflected on the final version, which he described as “sufficiently dark,” but also shared details about the original script, which included who lived, who died, and whether Gizmo transformed into a Gremlin.
“I believed the father stayed back to fight off the Gremlins, though I’m not certain of his survival,” Columbus shared with Vanity Fair. “The mother, however, did not survive. Zach Galligan’s character, Billy, found his mother’s decapitated head rolling down the stairs when he entered the house’s foyer. Some characters did die, including Barney, the dog, who didn’t merely get tangled in Christmas lights but was actually hanged and killed. That’s how we portrayed the dog’s demise!”
Columbus, who is also a producer for Nosferatu, added, “Barney was consumed by them! They then proceeded to a McDonald’s, where they devoured the people, but not the food. Many elements didn’t make it to the final script, but that’s the kind of stuff that’s in my DNA. It’s always a pleasure to revisit a project like Nosferatu.”
The Oscar-nominated writer explained that during his early career, he didn’t have the influence to push back against producer Steven Spielberg’s vision for the movie. He mentioned that Spielberg introduced a significant change to the script.
Phoebe Cates in Gremlins (1984)
“Columbus said, “He was absolutely correct. Gizmo transformed into a gremlin on page 30 and did not stay [cute and fluffy] throughout the entire film. That was one of Steven’s best ideas—that Gizmo remained by Billy’s side. He understood something I didn’t: the audience needed a relatable character among the gremlins, and that character was Gizmo.”
However, Columbus did fight to retain some parts of his script in the movie. “We were sufficiently dark, in my opinion,” he said. “We included the story of Phoebe Cates’s character’s father dying in the chimney, which the studio wanted to remove. Steven, Joe Dante, and I fought to keep it. That was one aspect I stood up for.”
After the 1990 sequel, Gremlins 2: The New Batch, the animated series spinoff, The Wild Batch, aired its second season in October on Max.
Credit: deadline.com
