Twilight Zone: The Movie - Trivia, Questions and Fun Facts

[discussimdb]

Fan of Twilight Zone: The Movie or just want to share your movie knowledge? This topic is dedicated to all trivia and questions related to Twilight Zone: The Movie

[camila]

Spielberg originally planned to direct an update of The Twilight Zone: The Monsters Are Due on Maple Street (1960). However, after the fatalities that occurred during the Time Out segment; it was decided to switch to something lighter; and with less special effects so as to not incur any more trouble. The result is "Kick the Can".

[eli]

In the story "It's a Good Life" the old black and white cartoon being played on both upstairs TV's, especially the one being watched by Anthony's sister, Sara, is called Bimbo's Initiation from 1931 and is part of the Betty Boop cartoon series. The cartoon being played on the living room t.v. watched by Anthony and Helen is a Heckle and Jeckle cartoon called The Power of Thought from 1948. The next cartoon being played while they're all eating is a Loony Tunes cartoon called "It's Hummer Time" from 1950. The cartoon that ate Ethel is an original work done specifically for the film and was designed by Sally Cruikshank.

[mathew]

Segment one, "Time Out", is the only original segment in the film. The rest of the segments are remakes of episodes from The Twilight Zone (1959). Although even "Time Out" is also loosely based on one of the classic episodes, 1961's "A Quality of Mercy", about a racist WWII army man switching sides, and races, during the war.

[wesley]

In segment three, "It's a Good Life", Anthony's powers have the sound effects of the Tempest (1983) arcade game.

[camila]

The Prologue featured Dan Ackroyd and Albert Brooks as buddies driving across the country; discussing The Twilight Zone one night. It is directed by John Landis and it is a two hander which is basically used as exposition to introduce the audience to The Twilight Zone, followed by a shock scare at the ending. Originally all the characters; who all wind up in a car at the end of their segments (except Vic Morrow who dies unintentionally) were supposed to coming crashing together on the highway; or some other event which brings them all together. But they scrapped this idea in favor of Ackroyd simply turning out to be Lithgow's Ambulance Driver.

[liam]

John Landis was embroiled in legal conflict for years after the accident. He withdrew from the 1990 feature film 'Dick Tracy' to help prepare his defense.

[jessie]

John Larroquette and Selma Diamond starred in Night Court (1984).

[jesus]

The Boston Globe said: "The original TV series was sometimes frightening, sometimes enlightening, and sometimes a bit too allegorical, but it was almost always entertaining. Serling gave us more in 25 minutes than Spielberg & Co. give us in nearly two hours".

[kim]

The music for segment two, "Kick the Can", was originally written as the theme for Norman Bates in Psycho II (1983).

[toni]

The prologue had been an idea for a short film John Landis wanted to make called "Really Scary."

[violet]

Vincent Canby of the New York Times wrote this scathing op-ed about the Twilight Zone Movie: "The film, which opens today at the Sutton and other theaters, is composed of a prologue, written for the movie, plus four separate stories, each of them either based directly on a script from the television series or suggested by one. A lot of money and several lives might have been saved if the producers had just rereleased the original programs. "

[mathew]

Frank Marshall, producer of the "Nightmare at 20,000 Feet" segment, plays one of the ground crew members checking the plane's wing for damage.

[stephanie]

Carol Serling: As the woman who asks "Is there something wrong?" when the flight attendants knock on the airplane restroom door, holding a copy of Twilight Zone Magazine in her arms. She was the wife of The Twilight Zone (1959) Creator Rod Serling.

[harry]

John Landis survived the controversy and the legal troubles brought on by the Twilight Zone accident. He continued to lead a very successful career in Hollywood after this; still being one of the most successful comedy directors in the industry; directing the box office hits "Trading Places", "Three Amigos" and "Coming to America" after "The Twilight Zone." But he admits in interviews he is still haunted by the accident, and says a day has not gone by in his life when he does not think about it.

[eli]

Of the principal cast and crew, eight were also involved in the production of episodes of the original television series: writers Richard Matheson and George Clayton Johnson, composer Jerry Goldsmith, and cast members Murray Matheson, Kevin McCarthy, Patricia Barry, William Schallert, and Bill Mumy. In addition, Buck Houghton, who was producer of the original series for its first three seasons, has a cameo sitting in the diner in segment three, "It's a Good Life".