By Eric Myford
5 Behind The Scenes Controversies In Horror
Poltergeist (1982)
The Curse That Keeps On Killing
Poltergeist is a beloved film that spawned two sequels, a remake and spin-off (mostly unrelated) TV series. But there's something sinister behind the series. While likely all coincidence speaking in real terms, it is a hell of a lot of coincidence. First, the older sister Dana in the original movie, played by Dominique Dunne, was viciously murdered by an ex-boyfriend right after the movie premiered. He went to her house and strangled her, she fell into a coma and never woke up. She died in 1982, she was only 23. Julian Beck, who famously played the preacher Kane in Poltergeist II died months before the movie's release after a battle with Cancer. He fought the disease all through filming, but succumbed before the premiere and died in 1985 at the age of 60. Will Sampson, who played the shaman Taylor in Poltergeist II famously stated he performed an exorcism on the set itself because of all the bad vibes. Sampson had a degenerative condition known as Scleroderma which caused him to lose weight rapidly and he became severely malnourished. He required a heart and lung transplant, but died during surgery in 1987. He was 54. Most famously of all was Carol Anne herself, Heather O'Rourke. She died shortly after the filming of Poltergeist III of a bowel obstruction. Initially she was incorrectly diagnosed with Crohn's Disease, but the bowel obstruction worsened, causing septic shock. This was also misdiagnosed, as the flu this time, and no treatment was rendered. The obstruction released toxins into her body that killed her in 1988. She was 12 years old. Lou Perryman, who played the small role of Pugsley in the original film, although many years later, also had a bizarre death. A man who was on the run from the police broke into Perryman's home and hacked him to death with an ax in 2009. He was 68.
But in addition to deaths, there were other strange happenings. For example, on the set of the original film, Oliver Robins, who played Robbie, was filming that very iconic scene with the clown doll when it malfunctioned. The mechanical clown began to choke the boy and since the scene was meant to be a struggle, no one noticed until Robins started to turn blue, and the clown was pulled off him, saving his life. Another near miss was with actor Richard Lawson, who played Ryan in the original film. Lawson had boarded a flight in 1992 headed for Cleveland and started to feel very uneasy. A flight attendant recognized him and upgraded him to first class, and then the plane took off only to crash after a mechanical failure. Twenty-seven people died, including an individual who was in Lawson's original row. And there are other tales as well including strange paranormal incidents, a lightning strike and even equipment failures and odd sights on the set of the remake. Curse or coincidence? Either way, so much unfortunate tragedy for such a beloved franchise.
Cannibal Holocaust (1980)
Ruggero Deodato Arrested for Murder
Cannibal Holocaust is forever part of the horror lexicon for many reasons, but most notorious of all is what occurred after the movie was released. The brilliance of the film is its realism. It is technically the first found footage horror movie as there had never been anything released quite like it. Billed as footage from a documentary gone wrong, it was filled to the brim with violence and depravity. Most controversial of all was the use of real animal death. Several animals were killed on screen, many quite viciously. And this is what ultimately led to the death scenes of humans in the movie to look that much more realistic. The viewer having already witnessed real death allows their brain to connect that death to the actors as well. And this is exactly why Deodato was arrested. First on charges of obscenity, and finally murder.
The film was confiscated by authorities ten days after its premiere and all copies were burned. However, some copies had already left the country and therefore left the authority of Italian officials. The only reason the film still exists today. After an article in a magazine suggested that the main cast and some natives were killed in the movie, and it was actually a snuff film, charges were amended to include murder. This ended up being a very complex issue as all the actors involved had signed a contract to not appear in the public eye for one year following the release of the film to lend to the credibility of it being real. This marketing technique would cause Deodato to sit in jail while his assistant went to task tracking down the missing actors. Of course it would be proven in court that no murder took place as all the supposed victims showed up alive, and the charges were dropped.
Cannibal Holocaust is still regarded as one of the most disturbing movies of all time, and it is still banned in multiple countries.
Salo; or the 120 Days of Sodom (1975)
The Murder of Pier Paolo Passolini
If you have ever seen Salo, you know it's an intense film, and to this day it is one of the most disturbing movies ever made. It was released in May of 1975 and immediately met with disdain, in particular by his Italian countrymen. Italy, being a very religious nation, viewed the film as obscenity, especially given that a cardinal and others were portrayed in the film as raping young boys and girls. On November 2nd, 1975, Pasolini was viciously murdered. A 17 year old boy was arrested for the murder and subsequently jailed after confessing to the crime. 29 years after the fact, he would recant his confession, claiming to have been forced to confess by a trio of men who threatened his family. The case was reopened, but no one found reason for a new trial. The killer died in 2017. We may never know exactly who killed Pasolini or exactly why, but there are many theories. One being that he was killed for being openly homosexual. Another may be because he was also a communist. There is even a newer theory that his murder was a result of an extortion gone wrong. But the most common reason believed by many is that he murdered for making Salo, and angered the wrong people with its creation. Salo was actually the first movie of a planned trilogy, a trilogy that of course would never exist. One must wonder what might have been. The detail of the murder will be laid out below, warning, the details are extremely graphic.
Pasolini was murdered on the beach in Ostia. He had been run over several times with his own car, resulting in a multitude of broken bones. His testicles were crushed, likely by a metal pipe of some sort. His body was also partially burned, with gasoline used as an accelerant.
Many believe the mafia was involved and also that the 17 year old pegged for the crime could not have done it alone. If he was involved at all. But one thing is for sure, a film that created mass revulsion in his home country of Italy was very likely a factor in his assassination.
Twilight Zone – The Movie (1983)
Fatal Crash Claims the Lives of 3 Actors
A beloved film based off a beloved TV series, but sadly not without its tragedy. On July 23rd, 1982, a Bell UH-1Iroquis helicopter crashed during the filming of a scene for the segment based off the classic Twilight Zone episode “A Quality of Mercy”. The crash injured six aboard the helicopter but three on the ground were not so lucky. Adult actor Vic Morrow and child actors Myca Dinh Le and Renee Shin-Yi Chen were killed. Morrow and Le were decapitated by the rotor blades and Chen was crushed the helicopter body. It is believed that all three died instantly however. The crash occurred when a pyrotechnic was set off while the helicopter's rotor blade was still above it. The rotor failed and detached, causing the helicopter to spin out of control. But this tragedy would not be the end, as the investigation began.
A nine month criminal trial between 86-87 would see director John Landis, producer George Folsey Jr., pilot Dorcey Wingo, production manager Dan Allingham and explosives specialist Paul Stewart acquitted of manslaughter charges, but not without controversy. The civil suits would rage on for a decade, resulting in millions of dollars being awarded to both Morrow's family and the families of the children. The children were paid under the table in order to circumvent child labor laws, as they could not work at night or around explosives, both of which led to their deaths. They were even hidden from the fire safety officer and no one was told they were a part of the scene until it came to shoot.
If anything good came out of this, safety regulations were enhanced and changed following this accident, but the movie will always be tainted for what occurred that fateful night back in 1982.
Clownhouse Victor Salva (1989)
Rapes 12 Year Old Star of Film
Victor Salva prepares to make his first feature film after capturing the attention of Francis Ford Coppola, who would act as producer. This film would be Clownhouse, a slasher movie where a clown follows around two brothers and kills anyone who gets in his way. It's a good, if not unexceptional movie that would mostly fly under the radar when it was released in 1989. But this may also have to do with Salva being convicted of: “Lewd and lascivious conduct, oral sex with a person under 14, and procuring a child for pornography” in 1988. The victim was twelve year old star of the movie, Nathan Forrest Winters. Salva had raped the boy and filmed the act. Upon his arrest, other child pornography was found in his possession as well. He was sentenced to a mere three years in prison, of which he only served fifteen months. After his release, he would keep a low profile for a few years.
In 1995, Salva would resurface first with a low budget horror film called The Nature of the Beast, which would be quickly followed up with a major studio picture. That movie was Powder, a movie in which Salva worked with children. And the production company behind this film was owned by none other than Disney. There was controversy upon its release, but as Hollywood does, it was all swept under the rug. Salva would go on to direct multiple movies after this, mostly horror, and somehow no one ever seems to have an issue with him working with children.
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