Studio:
New Line Cinema.
Production Company:
Unknown.
Project Phase: Development Hell.
Who's In It:
Unknown. We're assuming that mainstays Robert Englund (Freddy Krueger) and Kane Hodder (Jason
Voorhees) will be coming back...won't they, New Line?
Who's Making It:
Rob Bottin (Director); James Robinson (Screenwriter).
Premise: From what I understand, we could fill an entire website (and some people have) concerning all the different ideas, plots, rumors, etc. about how the two wind up at each others' throats. See below for some choice parts of the gory details. No pun intended.
Release Date: June 1999 (tentative).
Comments: None.
Rumors: Unknown.
Scoop Feedback:
[Page draft submitted (sure, if you could call it that - it was hacked into the floorboards of a wooden pier sometime last week at Camp Crystal Lake) by 'Widgett'. We're also missing a hockey mask.]
March 21, 1997... At the ShoWest convention, New Line Cinema announced their intentions to fast-track Freddy vs. Jason movie. Movie conventions are just as notorius as any other field for trying to attract attention towards their booth and products: at ShoWest Freddy and Jason both appeared and had a little faux boxing match. D'you think the success of Scream had anything to do with this announcment? Hmm... [Thanks to 'bdog' and 'H.B.' for the clippings.]
August 19, 1997... After veritable aeons of speculation, it looks like this sucker might fly, so tell Orville to sell that bike shop: New Line releases a press statement announcing the directorial debut of effects god Rob Bottin. Bottin has stated that he wants to "reinvent" the two characters, making them "larger than life" (which is not a bad idea considering they're certainly much larger than death by now...)
As stated above, speculations have been running rampant since, well, since as long as we can recall. The titles rumored to be rolling out with this thing alone are guaranteed to destroy a normal person's bandwidth. Some examples: Friday the 13th X: The Freddy Vs. Jason Movie; A Nightmare on Elm Street 8; A Nightmare on Friday the 13th.
Apparently, one of the more recent rumors has picked up momentum; it states that not only would Freddy and Jason be going at it, but other modern horror movie icons would return (and which have fallen from healthy box office grosses.) Pinhead, Pumpkinhead, Michael Myers, Chucky the doll, and Candyman would be getting in on the cinematic cage match. Fortunately, this was just a rumor, but anything is possible (just ask Mike Tyson...)
Right now there are three major versions of the script (not counting all of the "fan-written" ones). These were devised by writers David Schow, Peter Briggs, and Brannon Braga. It's uncertain at this point which version (if any) will be used, or if Bottin/New Line will just amalgamate them all into one big uberscript.
Braga's script was the first. Reportedly it features Freddy and Jason usurping the devil's rule in Hell and trying to rule the world themselves. New Line rejected the work once, but apparently is taking a second look.
Briggs' script was next and concerns both Freddy and Jason being pawns in a plan for the end of the world, and draws upon the phenomenon known as "millennium fever". The script begins in 17th century Italy and literally deals with the end of the universe. It also neatly wrapped up the two series completely, leaving no plot thread unused. At one point it was announced that Briggs would direct from his own script; however, New Line thought it would be too expensive to produce and said, "Uh-uh." This script also reveals that the origins of the two villains are entwined; a young Jason Voorhees lived on a certain Elm Street, and Jason's parents had a hand in doing something very, very horrible to a certain janitor. Then that recently-risen-from-the-dead custodian paid a visit to Jason at a certain summer camp... (it almost sounds like what really happens out on the schoolyards everyday...well, minus the demonic and supernatural elements...)
Schow's script, the third, has a bunch of sweater and fedora-wearing Freddy worshippers bringing the Kruegerman back from the dead, and Jason being brought back to stop him by a teenage girl. (That would have been my first thought for an anti-Freddy plan.) This version was to be directed by Sean S. Cunningham, the director of the first Jason/Friday the 13th outing.
(It should also be mentioned that Ethan Reiff, Cyrus Voris and Mark Bishop were the ones mentioned as screenwriters for the proposed Cunningham film, as taken from David J. Schow's story. We're not sure if Schow would have continued to receive credit on the film, or to what extent each group of writers were involved with the Cunningham version.)
At this point, Deborah Fine is said to be reworking the Braga script while Schow is reworking the Briggs script. Does your head hurt yet? Keep reading.
Who will be in it? Who will play what?
And as 'Qeelocke17' said upon hearing the annoucment, perhaps summing it up for all those who've sent in scoops for the past two years about this much-delayed project: "Personally, I can't wait for it!"
[Complete summary of the project written up by 'Widgett'.]
[Special thanks to Diane who provided us with the additional writers named in the Cunningham version and the identity of the 'special' Cyrstal Lake summer kid.]
[Special thanks to the, literally, hundreds of scoopers who contributed to this page. Extra special thanks must be mentioned to 'Spaceboy', 'bickel' and 'Gralex'.]
This scooper mentions a recent interview he read about Robert Englund. In it the actor confirmed that he was signed to do at least two more projects with New Line...which increases the chances for one being the grudge match from Hell. [Scrawled in blood by 'rvelasco' (and that's pretty darn hard to do in an email, guys.]
August 26, 1997... According to this scooper, New Line has also confirmed Sean S. Cunningham's involvement with the project. He'll produce the film. [Sent to us by 'bickel'.]
October 5, 1997... An anonymous person writes to inform us that the latest Comic Shop News lists the screenwriter of the Freddy vs. Jason movie as none other than... James Robinson. His DC comic book Starman is so hip that the book's been featured in Entertainment Weekly. We'll try to confirm this rumor. [Submitted anonymously.]
November 6, 1997... ZENtertainment goes to Newsarama for this little tidbit. According to X-Men associate editor Mark Powers, the aforementioned James Robinson is leaving the X-title Cable in order to free up more of his time to work on the Freddy vs. Jason project. [Information covered by 'Widgett' and 'ZENtertainment'; first scooped by Newsarama.]
August 11, 1998... So it's been almost a year. What the hell's happening with this one?
"I recently had the pleasure of talking to Mr. Robert Englund during the filming of his new movie, Urban Legend, I found out that this movie is, again, put on hold due to legal matters concerning the copyrights of both the characters of Freddy and Jason etc. As far as I know, Robert Englund is, also, going to be an executive producer on this movie. He expects that these matters will be resolved shortly and they will be able to commence filming and with a 1999 release."
Oh. [Thanks, 'hupp'.]
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