The cult-classic Ghoulies is universally hailed as one of the best so-bad-it’s-good-horror movies ever made. Indeed, the Luca Bercovici film has lived in infamy since its release in 1985 for the way it fuses cheap horror FX with campy humor. Now, as the film is set to celebrate its 35th anniversary, it’s time to take a closer look at the crazy production history.
The film follows a young man who inherits his father’s accursed estate. After a ritual summons a demon in the basement, a horde of slimy green ghouls overrun the place. So without further ado, here are 10 crazy things you didn’t know about Ghoulies!
Ghoulies Was Mariska Hargitay’s Film Debut
High-profile actors often make their film debuts in low-budget horror movies, and such was certainly the case for one of Law & Order: SVU’s most accomplished alums!
That’s right, Mariska Hargitay made her big-screen debut in Ghoulies. She plays Donna in the film, one of the teenage partygoers who attends the ill-fated abode of Jonathan Graves. What’s crazier is, due to Hargitay’s raspy voice, her iconic scream in the film was overdubbed with an archived sound effect. Not quite the first impression you want to leave!
Jeffrey Combs Almost Played A Role
In the same year that the great genre vet Jeffrey Combs rose to prominence as the iconic Dr. Herbert West in Re-Animator, he almost pulled double duty in Ghoulies. Oh, what could have been, indeed!
Combs reportedly auditioned for the lead role of Jonathan Graves, which ultimately went to actor Peter Liapis. While it’s crazy to think what could have been with Combs as the protagonist, it’s even crazier that Liapis only reprised his role a decade later in Ghoulies IV. As for West, missing out on the role led to a long-lasting collaboration with director Stuart Gordon.
Ghoulies Was Originally Conceived As A Children’s Film
Ghoulies was roughly made for a paltry $1 million. However, the initial concept for the film was much lighter and more family-friendly. As a result, Fox green-lit the project with a hefty budget of $12 million. So what happened?
Sadly, we may never know. Once the film was given the go-ahead by the studio, the project reportedly fell apart over time. When the original concept was scrapped, the script was rewritten to appeal to the teenage crowd. The story-line about a kid moving into his grandfather’s house was ditched in favor of a much gorier monster-movie.
The Meaning Of The Title
Off the top of your dome, do you have any clue what the word Ghoulies means? No, it’s not a silly combination of Gremlins and Goonies. Nice try, though.
No, the word “Ghoulie” translates to “small monster” in the Persian language. Therefore, the title perfectly describes what it’s about. It’s easy to overlook the meaning of the title due to the movie’s proximity with the similarly-themed Gremlins. However, the title was likely chosen to reflect the ancient chants during the ritual, which result in Jonathan speaking a different language.
The Original Title
As we’ve just learned, Ghoulies is a pretty crazy title on its own. But would the movie be as successful if it were called Beasties instead?
Tough to say. However, when the movie was first pitched in 1983, it was referred to as Beasties. At the time, producer Charles Band was slated to direct the film with the late great Stan Winston set to handle the makeup and FX work. The plan was to reunite Band and Winston after collaborating on the 1982 horror film Parasite. When the plans fell through, Band retained a producorial role and chose Bercovici to direct. The rest, as they say, is a mystery!
It Was Originally Conceived As A 3D Film
Who in their right mind wouldn’t want to see Ghoulies in 3D? Shame on you if not!
Believe it or not, Ghoulies was originally conceived as a 3D event movie. Production even began to accommodate the proper technology. The plan was to encourage audience members to put their 3D glasses on every time a character puts on a pair of sunglasses in the film. The movie would then switch from 2D to 3D at the precise moment.
However, producers realized how difficult it was to achieve after two days of filming and scrapped the idea. Still, notice the number of characters wearing shades in the flick!
Ghoulies Was Produced Concurrently With Gremlins
Often labeled as a B-grade imitation of Joe Dante’s Gremlins, it’s pretty crazy to think that both movies were filmed at the same time. But it gets even crazier.
When Warner Bros. caught wind of Ghoulies, they temporarily tried to sue the production from using the title. Warner Bros. lost that fight, and the title Ghoulies was allowed to be used. When producer Charles Band ran out of money during the production shoot, Dante was able to finish Gremlins and release it in theaters first. Ghoulies ultimately came out seven months later.
Critters Homaged Ghoulies
If Ghoulies owes a lot to Gremlins, then Critters owes a lot to Ghoulies. See how that works. Full circle, folks!
One of the most memorable scenes in Ghoulies, as posterized by the movies infamous one-sheet, is the iconic scene in which a Ghoulie leaps out of a toilet. Well, in a heartfelt homage to this very scene, a similar scenario takes place in the 1986 creature-feature Critters. When the titular monsters invade the Brown household, a quick shot of a Critter emerging from a toilet-bowl can be spotted.
The Toilet Scene Reshoot
Speaking of the infamous toilet scene in Ghoulies, would you believe the idea was conceived during post-production? That’s right, the scene came about as the result of reshoots!
When Charles Band was asked to help with the marketing campaign, he came up with the idea of having a Ghoulie pop up from a toilet-bowl. When the advertising team loved the idea, Band ordered the sequence to be shot well after production had already wrapped. It’s crazy to think the most iconic part of the movie almost never was, and only came as an afterthought.
The Poster & Trailer Inspired Hate Mail
For as successful as that toilet-themed afterthought proved to be, it didn’t come without consequence. Then again, there’s no such thing as bad publicity!
According to Charles Band, the studio was flooded with hate mail and angry letters from mothers who claimed their children were too petrified to go to the bathroom after seeing the film. The iconic image of a Ghoulie lunging from a toilet-bowl was not only used for the promotional poster for the film, but it was featured prominently in the trailer as well. The crazy amount of vitriol Band and fellow producers received has become as legendary as the film itself.
