The What Occurred to This Horror Film episode on Highlander was written by Jaime Vasquez:
Highlander premiered within the spring of 1986, incomes reward for its distinctive mix of epic style weirdness… however its field workplace? Yeah, it may’ve been higher. Loads higher. Over time, although, the movie earned a fiercely loyal cult following. However the street from flop to phenomenon was something however easy. So how did a film with disappointing ticket gross sales spawn not one sequel, however a complete franchise of sequels, spin-offs, comics, video games, and extra? Who was initially solid as Connor MacLeod? How did manufacturing persuade Queen to create a number of authentic songs for the soundtrack? And which co-star turned shut pals with Sean Connery… and which one nearly decapitated him? Seize your defend, your kilt, and your sword as a result of we’re heading again to Sixteenth-century Scotland to seek out out what occurred to Highlander.
Gregory Widen, who would later write Backdraft, was simply 20 when he got here up with the concept that turned Highlander. A tour of London’s Tower of London sparked the idea: as he watched guides in interval clothes, he puzzled, What if these costumes weren’t props? What in the event that they’ve been alive since that period? That easy query turned the seed for the immortal protagonist, Connor MacLeod.
Widen was a UCLA movie pupil and a full-time firefighter. He mentioned leaping into burning buildings by day and analyzing Japanese cinematography by night time could have influenced the script’s fixed shifting between modern-day New York and Sixteenth-century Scotland. He even admitted he wrote a lot of the script on the hearth station, axe in hand – which could clarify the visceral, brutal battle scenes. He was additionally impressed by Ridley Scott’s The Duellists, a narrative a few rivalry spanning years, an concept that advanced into Highlander’s mythic immortal battle.
Initially titled Shadow Clan, Widen submitted his script to screenwriting professor Richard Walter at UCLA. Walter gave it an A and insisted he take it to an agent. Widen offered it for $200,000, and the venture quickly concerned three manufacturing corporations, together with Davis-Panzer Productions. Writers Peter Bellwood and Larry Ferguson, who had beforehand collaborated on HBO’s St. Helens, have been introduced in to transform the script. Their revisions added humor and emotional texture, however Widen later famous one inconsistency: MacLeod is stabbed, survives, and laughs it off, suggesting ache doesn’t matter, which Widen by no means meant. Nonetheless, the rewrites helped form the model that finally made it to digital camera.
By the mid-80s, Russell Mulcahy was a big in music movies, directing hits for Elton John, Duran Duran, AC/DC, Fleetwood Mac, and Billy Joel. His movie profession, nevertheless, hadn’t reached that very same stage—though his 1984 cult creature characteristic Razorback had already gained a loyal fanbase. Mulcahy was drawn to the tragic love story on the middle of Highlander. Immortality meant MacLeod would outlive everybody he ever cared about. That emotional core made the fantasy really feel human.
Bellwood talked about Mulcahy’s Duran Duran movies and the finale of Razorback to co-writer Ferguson. Ferguson thought for a second and mentioned, “This may be our guy.” He was proper.
Discovering the lead actor proved difficult. The studio thought-about Michael Douglas, Mickey Rourke, Kevin Costner, Mel Gibson, and others. Ultimately, Kurt Russell was solid… however pulled out on the request of Goldie Hawn to shoot John Carpenter’s Huge Bother in Little China. Then Mulcahy noticed a photograph of Christopher Lambert as Tarzan in Greystoke in {a magazine} and declared, “This is our guy.” Producers hesitated, as Lambert didn’t converse English. However after hiring a language coach, Lambert realized quick sufficient to safe the function. Mulcahy mentioned Lambert’s eyes offered him: “piercing, ancient,” like a person who had lived for hundreds of years.
So as to add star energy, the studio introduced in Sean Connery as Juan Sánchez-Villalobos Ramírez, MacLeod’s immortal mentor. Lambert and Connery’s chemistry made the mentor-student relationship each heartfelt and hilarious. Connery shot all his scenes in a single week for a $1 million paycheck. Lambert cherished working with him a lot he refused to do the sequel except Connery returned.
Clancy Brown, advisable by Sting, was solid as The Kurgan, the large warrior looking MacLeod by modern-day New York. Brown later claimed he wasn’t paid as a result of he was nonetheless largely unknown. He additionally terrified the crew along with his depth. On his first day, he by chance struck a desk with the flat of his sword, snapping the blade and sending a shard flying previous Sean Connery’s head. Connery stormed off, understandably, however returned after Brown apologized. Connery joked he would possibly wish to use his stuntman subsequent time.
Roxanne Hart joined the solid as Brenda Wyatt, a forensic scientist investigating a string of mysterious beheadings. Initially hesitant as a result of script’s violence, she accepted after producer Peter Davis assured her the beheadings have been grounded in mythology, not gore.
Mulcahy cherished Queen’s Flash Gordon soundtrack and approached them to put in writing a theme track. The band was reluctant—till they noticed footage and skim the script. After that, all 4 members wrote songs for the movie. Brian Might wrote “Who Wants to Live Forever” on the cab journey residence after his first screening. A deliberate Highlander soundtrack album was scrapped, so most songs appeared on Queen’s 1986 album A Type of Magic, named after a line from the movie. “Princes of the Universe” turned the movie’s opening theme and later the theme track for Highlander: The Sequence.
Filming occurred throughout New York, Scotland, and England. Scotland’s brutal climate meant taking pictures in freezing rain and dirt. The opening battle was initially set at a hockey recreation (with a supposed Wayne Gretzky cameo) however the NHL rejected the thought. It was modified to a pro-wrestling occasion, which Mulcahy by some means made work.
The ultimate duel went by a number of rewrites, with the setting altering from the Statue of Liberty to an amusement park to the Silvercup Studios rooftop.
Ten weeks of sword coaching nonetheless didn’t forestall chaos, just like the Connery incident.
Highlander debuted in March 1986 and grossed simply $2.5 million its opening weekend.
Its complete worldwide field workplace: $12.9 million on a $16 million finances.
However critics didn’t hate it. It holds:
- 69% Critics Rating on Rotten Tomatoes
- 79% Viewers Rating
- 7.0 IMDb score
As one critic put it, “People hate Highlander because it’s cheesy, bombastic, and absurd. And people love it for the same reasons.” House video turned it right into a cult phenomenon – and from there, the franchise exploded.
The sequels:
- Highlander II: The Quickening (1991)
- Highlander III: The Sorcerer (1994)
- Highlander: Endgame (2000)
- Highlander: The Supply (2007)
The TV universe:
- Highlander: The Sequence
- Highlander: The Raven
- Highlander: The Animated Sequence
Plus: novels, comics, and video video games. And at the moment, a reboot is in growth, with Henry Cavill set to star and Chad Stahelski (director of John Wick) hooked up to direct.
Regardless of all of the sequels and spinoffs, each Christopher Lambert and Gregory Widen nonetheless insist nothing has topped the unique. Mulcahy’s daring course, Queen’s music, and Widen’s emotional core of loss, love, and tragedy give the movie a timeless resonance.
Almost 4 a long time later, Highlander retains discovering new followers. Just like the immortals themselves, it refuses to die. And the followers know that ultimately… there might be just one.
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