A Justice League movie by the man who brought you Mad Max?
The Ghostbusters taking on the devil himself? This isn't just fantasy,
this was almost real life. Would these movies have worked on the big screen?
"Space Jam" is a cinematic oddity if there ever was one, and a true time capsule of the '90s.
The film's development arose from the line of "Hare Jordan" commercials featuring both
Michael Jordan and Bugs Bunny promoting Air Jordan shoes. The film was a slam dunk at the box office,
bringing in $250.2 million on an $80 million budget. Naturally, a sequel seemed like the
logical next move for Warner Brothers — but this was easier said than done.
Bob Camp, best known for his work on "The Ren & Stimpy Show," was tasked with designing a
new alien threat for the sequel. Sadly, Michael Jordan bowed out of the project,
which was contingent on his involvement, so the second installment was shelved.
In the following years, various sequel concepts would be pitched, partially developed,
and then abandoned or reshaped into something else. This includes "Spy Jam," which would have
starred action icon Jackie Chan, "Race Jam," which would have starred NASCAR driver Jeff Gordon,
and even "Skate Jam," which would have been built around professional skateboarder Tony Hawk.
Although any one of these pitches certainly had the potential to be a hit, none of them
made it out of the development phase and onto the big screen. The prospect of a sequel didn't
reach fruition until 2021, with the release of "Space Jam: A New Legacy" featuring LeBron James.
If you've ever wondered why it's taken so long for a third proper Ghostbusters film
to see the light of day, you're not alone — but there's a good reason for it. The idea
of a third installment in the paranormal comedy franchise was first conceived shortly after the
release of "Ghostbusters II." The threequel, as indicated by the title of "Ghostbusters:
Hellbent," would have taken place in an alternate Manhattan known as Manhellton. This
would naturally lead to the Ghostbusters taking on their biggest threat to date: the Devil himself!
The idea remained in limbo for many years, largely due to a lack of interest from Bill
Murray in reprising his role as Peter Venkman. It was eventually decided the
film would respectfully pass the torch to a new team of quirky paranormal investigators
rather than the original cast. While several A-list comedians were name-dropped at the time,
including Chris Farley, nothing concrete ever materialized. Mainly due to Columbia's
concerns over the lackluster performance of "Ghostbusters II" and the multiple drafts of
the script that failed to impress Murray and producers alike, the ill-fated third
"Ghostbusters" film would enter an eternal state of, quite fittingly, development hell.
The year was 2008, and Sam Raimi was still licking his wounds from the poor reception
of "Spider-Man 3." Raimi has gone on record in years since attributing the film's critical
failure to studio meddling from Sony Pictures — specifically, the forced addition of Venom,
a villain whom Raimi didn't fully understand or wish to include.
Despite the third entry in the series performing well at the box office, there seemed to be little
faith that a fourth would materialize. Raimi was still passionate about the project, however,
and opted to move forward himself, going as far as to commission a screenplay and storyboards.
Commissioned illustrator Jeffrey Henderson made his artwork available online to show
fans what could have been. Based on his storyboards, one of the film's
main antagonists was planned to be Adrian Toomes, otherwise known as the Vulture.
It was Raimi's intention to reboot public perception of the more obscure character,
which could have solidified him as one of the Web-Head's most infamous enemies. Additionally,
there would have also been an appearance from Mysterio, potentially played by "Evil Dead"
star Bruce Campbell, who had previously made cameos in all three "Spider-Man" films so far.
"Are you ready for more?"
Raimi's "Spider-Man 4" would have gone to some amazing and unexplored places,
and we'd like to believe fans would have loved it. Sadly, despite the director's efforts,
Sony didn't see any value in the fourth film and, in 2010, officially killed the project – rebooting
the franchise instead with Marc Webb at the helm and Andrew Garfield in the starring role.
Though not quite as popular as "God of War" or "Jak and Daxter," the "Sly Cooper" games
are beloved by PlayStation owners of all ages for their unique art style and stealth-based gameplay.
The series focuses on master thief Sly Cooper and his partners in crime,
Bentley the turtle and Murray the hippo. Pursued by Interpol Inspector Carmelita Fox,
the trio balance a life of high-stakes thievery and globe-trotting adventure.
With a premise like that, a film adaptation sounds like a no-brainer that would lend
itself quite well to the world of animation. A teaser trailer arrived in January 2014,
animated by Mainframe Studios — at the time known as Rainmaker Entertainment — but that
was the only piece of the film that ever made its way to public eyes.
A major factor foreshadowing the project's termination was the poor box office performance
of "Ratchet & Clank" in 2016. The film, also animated by Rainmaker and based on a classic
PlayStation title, only grossed $14.4 million against its $20 million budget.
Following this development, Rainmaker was dropped from the project, and everything sadly imploded
from there. Despite rumblings of a television series, there have been no major updates for
animated adaptations of "Sly Cooper" since, and with the latest game in the series having been
released all the way back in 2013, the future of "Sly Cooper" isn't looking terribly bright.
The Beatles: a simple name for one of the most prominent and influential groups not just in
rock and roll, but in music as a whole. Composed of John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison,
and Ringo Starr, the group was behind some of history's most noteworthy albums and songs. The
group starred as fictionalized versions of themselves in several feature films,
including "Help!" and "A Hard Day's Night," but none of them have had the same lasting
impact as 1968's "Yellow Submarine."
The "Yellow Submarine" movie is a surreal and captivating animated romp that perfectly
captures the absurd images described in the original album. Upon release,
the film received rave reviews and is hailed as a landmark achievement in the
animated world to this day. The film's legacy was so enduring that in 2009,
Disney recruited "Back to the Future" director Robert Zemeckis to craft a new version.
Zemeckis' "Yellow Submarine" was set to be made using the same motion-capture animation style as
"The Polar Express." Unfortunately, the project was shuttered by Disney in 2011 due in part
to the critical and box office disasters that were "Mars Needs Moms" and "A Christmas Carol."
Zemeckis attempted to shop the idea around to other studios,
but ultimately gave up on the project in 2012. Since then,
there have been no further attempts to remake the original 1960s animated classic.
Since the big-budget retelling of "Dune" has arrived, it's important to remember the
cinematic adaptation that never was. That movie would have been the biggest and most ambitious
science-fiction film made up until that point, and it would have been directed by Alejandro
Jodorowsky — one of the most artistically daring creators in all of cinema. His most famous works,
"El Topo" and "The Holy Mountain," have both been praised for their surreal, yet violent visuals.
Following the success of "The Holy Mountain," Jodorowsky was offered the funding to helm a
cinematic adaptation of Frank Herbert's "Dune." He of course accepted the offer and began work
on the massive artistic undertaking. Per a lavish agreement to have his favorite chef
cook employed throughout the production, the legendary Orson Welles signed on to portray the
evil Baron Harkonnen The visuals would have been crafted by Dan O'Bannon and H.R. Giger most famous
for the nightmarish designs of Ridley Scott's "Alien." Finally, perhaps most impressively,
the film's soundtrack would have been performed in part by legendary rock band Pink Floyd.
Unfortunately, Jodorowsky's vision proved too unfeasible for any major studio,
and the adaptation rights were eventually sold off. They were picked up by Italian
producer Dino de Laurentiis, resulting in David Lynch's now-infamous adaptation from 1984.
Stanley Kubrick is a name synonymous with both cinematic brilliance and problematic genius.
Kubrick was a master of pushing the art of cinema to its most absurd possibilities, and to
breathtaking results. On the flip side, he was known for a harsh and borderline abusive
attitude when directing his films, especially toward his actors. For all his legendary work,
Kubrick wasn't always successful with his cinematic undertakings.
Case in point: his most notable canceled film, "Napoleon."
After wrapping on "2001: A Space Odyssey," Kubrick looked to direct a sizably-budgeted film about
French emperor Napoleon Bonaparte. Kubrick had an active fascination with the historical figure that
dated back to his early childhood. Obsessed with making the film as accurate as possible, Kubrick
insisted on watching every previous Napoleon film available. He even went as far as to replicate
Napoleon's real-life diet in order to fully immerse himself in Bonaparte's habits and mindset.
The film, much like Kubrick's other works, would have been predicated heavily on immense detail,
from the sets to the costumes. It was a project that Kubrick was truly passionate about.
"Napoleon is still in his grave, waiting, waiting to be brought back to life."
Sadly, due to the prohibitive costs of shooting on location, as well as the box office disappointment
of 1970's "Waterloo," the project was scrapped. It was a disappointing end to what could have
been one of the greatest period war films and character studies ever put to celluloid.
Pixar is one of the most successful names in mainstream animation,
and it's impossible not to see why. With films like the "Toy Story" series, "Finding Nemo,"
"Up," and countless others, the studio has captivated countless children and adults.
However, there was one Pixar project that was apparently immune to the studio's magic.
The film "Newt" would have followed the last remaining male and female blue-footed newts,
a duo forced to work together to repopulate their species — even though they can't stand each other.
Clearly, the project had lots of potential for comedy and heart, but that wasn't enough
to get it off the ground. The film's development remained very stagnant in the years following its
2008 announcement, and a few years later, it was officially announced that "Newt" had been scrapped
by Pixar, making it the only film in the studio's history to be announced and later canceled.
It's unclear what the true death blow was for "Newt," because there are actually
several likely contributing factors. The most likely reason was its similarities to another
animated film that was in production at the time, Blue Sky Studios' "Rio."
Universal Pictures, correctly flagging "E.T: The Extra-Terrestrial" as a surefire hit, approached
Steven Spielberg about a sequel shortly before the original's release. Spielberg, usually known
for not doing sequels, expressed interest and developed a nine-page treatment for a follow-up.
This treatment, which has been available online for years, was titled "E.T. II: Nocturnal Fears."
"Nocturnal Fears" would have followed the core cast from the original contending
with another — far deadlier — alien encounter. A mutated faction of E.T's
species would abduct Elliott along with his friends. At the climax of the film,
E.T. would make a dramatic return to vanquish the evil aliens and save his earthling friends.
"Nocturnal Fears" was written to be a more mature story, a far cry from the family-friendly nature
of the original. This is evident in the film's treatment, which describes the alien's horrific
treatment of the kids — especially poor Elliott, who is interrogated and implied to be tortured.
Eventually, Spielberg returned to his original stance against sequels and opted not to pursue
any follow-up to "E.T." It's fair to say that, if released, "E.T. II: Nocturnal Fears" would
have been a profitable Hollywood sequel, but based on the film's bizarre plot and tone,
it's debatable as to how well the film would've been critically received.
While fans are undoubtedly glad "The Snyder Cut" finally saw the light of day,
there is one "Justice League" film that no one will ever see,
no matter how much they ask for it. Back in 2007, just before the beginning of the
Marvel Cinematic Universe, Warner Bros. and DC Comics were planning something big.
WB struck a deal with husband-and-wife duo Michele and Kieran Mulroney to pen a massive "Justice
League" film meant to pave the way for sequels and various spin-offs for individual heroes.
The script was completed and the studio quickly put the wheels in motion to find a
director up to the task. After a long search, the powers that be decided on George Miller,
director of the "Mad Max" franchise. Production ultimately made it to the casting phase, where
young actors were given the chance to breathe new life into DC's legendary characters. Some of the
names chosen were D.J. Cotrona as Superman, Armie Hammer as Batman, and Adam Brody as The Flash.
Sadly, the production experienced numerous delays and setbacks,
due mainly to the 2007-2008 Writers Guild of America strike. Additionally, a discrepancy
between WB and the Australian government regarding an incentive tax rebate for film production
only compounded matters further. After "The Dark Knight" took the world by storm in 2008,
"Justice League: Mortal" was officially scrapped.
How many times can you be told no before it's finally time to throw in the towel for good?
Well, if you're Guillermo del Toro, you might be so utterly
dedicated to your vision that you'll never give up! Del Toro is best known for creating
lavish settings and otherworldly creatures that nearly defy description, as we've seen in his
genre-bending films like "Pan's Labyrinth" and his Best Picture winner "The Shape of Water."
Del Toro has been making visionary films for decades and shows no signs of slowing down.
H.P. Lovecraft's 1931 novella "At the Mountains of Madness" is the tale of a group of explorers
stranded in the Antarctic who are slowly picked off one by one by an otherworldly terror. It's
not surprising that del Toro fought long and hard to helm the first adaptation of the horrific tale.
The pet project was announced over a decade ago, but nothing has materialized since — much to the
disappointment of del Toro himself. The eventual cancellation of the project stemmed from a few
factors — most notably disputes over the film's rating. While Universal Studios was dead-set on
a PG-13 rating, del Toro stuck to his guns and continually pushed for an R-rated film.
Del Toro has gone on record saying the MPAA rating
issue was the nail in the coffin for the project. That's too bad,
as it would have likely been one of the best adaptations of any Lovecraft story to date.
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