The Phantom of the Opera (1989 film)
Encyclopedia
The Phantom of the Opera: The Motion Picture is a 1989 horror film
directed by Dwight H. Little
and based on Gaston Leroux
's novel of the same name
.
The film is a newer, gorier version of the classic 1910 tale, and has A Nightmare on Elm Street
s Robert Englund
playing the Phantom. Christine Day
is a young Broadway singer in New York City. She is auditioning for a show, and comes across an old piece of music written nearly 100 years before by an unknown musician named Erik Destler. Destler, it seems, had made a pact with the devil (maybe by accident) so the world would love his music. The catch was Erik's face would be left horribly disfigured forever. Once Christine sings his music for an audition, she is hit with a sandbag. Thus follows a presumed flashback into the past roughly around 1881, where she was the star in the London Opera House. There she is coached by a mysterious "Phantom" who will do anything to make his protege a star, even if it means murder. Christine soon finds out that her teacher is in fact Destler, whom she comes to loathe.
) is an opera
singer in modern day Manhattan
who is searching for a unique piece to sing at her next audition. Her friend and manager Meg (Molly Shannon
) discovers an old opera piece called Don Juan Triumphant
, written by a composer named Erik Destler. Curious, Christine and Meg do a little digging on Destler, and discover he may have been responsible for many murders and the disappearance of a young female opera singer he was said to have been obsessed with. While Christine is alone, she sings from the tattered parchment and blood seeps from the notes and covers her hands. Shocked, she discovers this to be an illusion when Meg returns.
Christine auditions with the piece and during her performance, an accident with a falling sandbag renders her unconscious and shatters a mirror. She awakens in London in 1881, wearing opera clothing. A different version of Meg (Emma Rawson) is also there. Christine turns out to be the understudy
to the diva La Carlotta (Stephanie Lawrence
), who is both jealous and resentful of Christine’s skill. During this whole time, Erik Destler (Robert Englund
) attacks the scene-shifter Joseph (Joseph Buquet
) with a blade high above the rafters for almost killing Christine with the falling sandbag, and blaming the accident on him.
Alone in her dressing room after she recovers, Christine receives a vision and a message from a masked Erik Destler, revealing he is her teacher and an angel sent by her deceased father. Destler encourages her to practice Carlotta’s part of Marguerite in Faust
, saying that only she can sing the part as it was meant to be sung. Christine complies. That evening, Carlotta discovers Joseph’s skinned (but barely alive) body in her dressing closet. The event causes her to scream and lose her voice. Christine is then cast in the role of Marguerite, which causes a panic to the opera house owner Martin Barton (Bill Nighy
), who favors Carlotta and the prestige she brings to his opera house.
During the scene where Dr. Faust signs his soul to the Devil, Destler reminisces about a time, perhaps decades ago, when he sold his own soul to the Devil in exchange for people loving him for his music. The Devil grants his wish, but burns and disfigures Destler’s face, telling him that only his music will be what people love him for.
Christine gives a stellar performance and receives a standing ovation, and celebrates that night with her fiancee Richard (Alex Hyde-White
). She tells him of her mysterious “teacher,” to whom she accredits her success. A mildly jealous Richard asks to meet this teacher, but Christine insists her teacher is only a figment of her imagination. Shockingly, the next morning in the papers, Christine is given a mediocre review by the famous opera critic Harrison (Peter Clapham), secretly done as a favor to Barton. Destler tracks Harrison down and brutally murders him in a Turkish spa after Harrison refuses to recant his review. Destler’s further obsession with Christine (as well as his supernatural prowess) is revealed when he singlehandedly murders several thugs and later orders a prostitute to call herself “Christine.”
Christine hears of Harrison’s murder through Meg, and tearfully goes to a graveyard and prays next to the grave of her father. Destler appears as a shadowy violinist and offers her a chance at musical immortality if she will only go to him. Christine goes away with the Phantom in his stagecoach just as Richard arrives. Deep in the sewers below London’s opera house, Destler reveals himself as the composer of "Don Juan Triumphant," which causes a spark of recollection within Christine. Destler then places a ring upon her finger and warns her never to see another man again.
Richard goes to the police and, along with Inspector Hawkins (Terence Harvey), decides to track down the Phantom. Hawkins reveals to Richard that the Phantom is not only Erik Destler, but Destler has lived for centuries, uses the opera house’s catacombs as a hideout, and skins his murdered victims for their facial skin to cover his own hideous visage. Hawkins also tells him the only way to kill the Phantom is to destroy his music.
Later, at a masquerade ball, Christine meets up with Richard and warns him about the Phantom, revealing him as her “teacher.” Erik Destler, disguised, sees this exchange and becomes enraged, murdering and beheading Carlotta and kidnapping Christine. Hawkins, Richard and a hobo-ratcatcher Destler has been bribing in the past go quickly in pursuit. They become lost in the sewers, and Destler murders two policemen as well as the hobo for betraying him.
Back in the Phantom’s lair, an enraged Destler attempts to force himself on Christine to “consummate” their “marriage,” but Richard and the Inspector burst in. During a struggle with the Phantom, Richard is stabbed with a candle holder, set afire and killed. At the same moment, a wounded Hawkins manages to shoot Destler several times while Christine pushes a lamp through a mirror, sending her back to present-day Manhattan.
Christine awakens and is comforted by the opera’s producer Dr. Foster (again Robert Englund
), who offers her the leading part. At his apartment, they have drinks and Foster goes upstairs to tidy up and finds a blemish on his face. It is then discovered that Foster is Destler from long ago, and he goes to change his facial skin with synthetic ones he keeps in a special lab. Meanwhile, downstairs, Christine plays part of the song from a recording of “Don Juan Triumphant” and horribly realizes that Foster is Destler, as they both look remarkably alike. Foster/Destler surprises her and reveals his true self to her, who is then stabbed by Christine. Christine escapes, tears up Destler’s music and throws it down a sewer, which destroys Destler.
On her way home, Christine passes by a street violin player, whom she gives some money to. The violinist slowly follows her, playing the familiar theme from “Don Juan Triumphant.” Christine looks back and wonders if the Phantom is truly gone for good.
written for the film by Misha Segal
(also known for the soundtrack to The New Adventures of Pippi Longstocking
) won a 1989 Brit for best soundtrack. Of particular interest to fans of the original novel is Segal's rendition of the Phantom's opera composition 'Don Juan Triumphant' with the Phantom on the organ and Christine singing.
Version of arietta "Your eyes see but my shadow" with chorus
Irina Sakne (soprano);
Academic big chorus of Russian Mendeleyev University
Like in the novel and silent film version, Christine is seen performing as Marguerite in a production of Gounod's Faust
, though this time we actually hear her voice. Appearing in the background of the performance are the figures of Faust
and Mephisto
(symbolic of the Phantom's own pact with the Devil in this film). Christine's singing of recitatives from Gounod's Faust score is more faithful to the original novel than the Lloyd-Webber musical and film: in which an imaginary opera is invented for the occasion.
.
, Halloween
, and Friday the 13th sequels, as well as the poor timing of releasing a horror-themed Phantom film at the height of popularity for the Andrew Lloyd Webber
musical.
, but it was canceled after the film's poor reception, and has been the subject of numerous rumors. Fangoria Magazine claimed in 1991 that the script was re-written into what became 1992's Dance Macabre
, also starring Englund.
Englund confirmed in a 2004 interview that a script had been written, and while he personally felt it was superior to the first film, it had never been filmed in any capacity.
Horror film
Horror films seek to elicit a negative emotional reaction from viewers by playing on the audience's most primal fears. They often feature scenes that startle the viewer through the means of macabre and the supernatural, thus frequently overlapping with the fantasy and science fiction genres...
directed by Dwight H. Little
Dwight H. Little
Dwight Hubbard Little is an American film director, known for directing the films Halloween 4: The Return of Michael Myers, The Phantom of the Opera, Marked for Death, Rapid Fire and Murder at 1600...
and based on Gaston Leroux
Gaston Leroux
Gaston Louis Alfred Leroux was a French journalist and author of detective fiction.In the English-speaking world, he is best known for writing the novel The Phantom of the Opera , which has been made into several film and stage productions of the same name, notably the 1925 film starring Lon...
's novel of the same name
The Phantom of the Opera
Le Fantôme de l'Opéra is a novel by French writer Gaston Leroux. It was first published as a serialisation in "Le Gaulois" from September 23, 1909 to January 8, 1910...
.
The film is a newer, gorier version of the classic 1910 tale, and has A Nightmare on Elm Street
A Nightmare on Elm Street
A Nightmare on Elm Street is a 1984 American slasher film directed and written by Wes Craven, and the first film of the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise. The film features Heather Langenkamp, John Saxon, Ronee Blakley, Amanda Wyss, Jsu Garcia, Robert Englund, and Johnny Depp in his feature film...
s Robert Englund
Robert Englund
Robert Barton Englund is an American actor, voice-actor and director, best known for playing the fictional serial killer Freddy Krueger, in the Nightmare on Elm Street film series. He received a Saturn Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor for A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors in...
playing the Phantom. Christine Day
Christine Daaé
Christine Daaé is the main female character in Gaston Leroux's novel The Phantom of the Opera , the young singer with whom the main character Erik, the Phantom of the Opera falls in love.- Character history :...
is a young Broadway singer in New York City. She is auditioning for a show, and comes across an old piece of music written nearly 100 years before by an unknown musician named Erik Destler. Destler, it seems, had made a pact with the devil (maybe by accident) so the world would love his music. The catch was Erik's face would be left horribly disfigured forever. Once Christine sings his music for an audition, she is hit with a sandbag. Thus follows a presumed flashback into the past roughly around 1881, where she was the star in the London Opera House. There she is coached by a mysterious "Phantom" who will do anything to make his protege a star, even if it means murder. Christine soon finds out that her teacher is in fact Destler, whom she comes to loathe.
Plot
Christine Day (Jill SchoelenJill Schoelen
-Early life:Schoelen was born in Burbank, California. Her mother is the famous fashion designer Dorothy Schoelen.-Acting career:Schoelen has starred in such movies as D.C...
) is an opera
Opera
Opera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
singer in modern day Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
who is searching for a unique piece to sing at her next audition. Her friend and manager Meg (Molly Shannon
Molly Shannon
Molly Helen Shannon is an American comic actress best known for her work as a cast member on Saturday Night Live from 1995–2001 and for starring in the films Superstar and Year of the Dog. More recently, she starred in NBC's Kath & Kim from 2008–2009 and on the TBS animated series Neighbors from...
) discovers an old opera piece called Don Juan Triumphant
Don Juan Triumphant
Don Juan Triumphant is the name of a fictional piece of music written by the title character in the novel The Phantom of the Opera. In the musical adaptation, the concept is expanded as an opera within a musical.-The novel:...
, written by a composer named Erik Destler. Curious, Christine and Meg do a little digging on Destler, and discover he may have been responsible for many murders and the disappearance of a young female opera singer he was said to have been obsessed with. While Christine is alone, she sings from the tattered parchment and blood seeps from the notes and covers her hands. Shocked, she discovers this to be an illusion when Meg returns.
Christine auditions with the piece and during her performance, an accident with a falling sandbag renders her unconscious and shatters a mirror. She awakens in London in 1881, wearing opera clothing. A different version of Meg (Emma Rawson) is also there. Christine turns out to be the understudy
Understudy
In theater, an understudy is a performer who learns the lines and blocking/choreography of a regular actor or actress in a play. Should the regular actor or actress be unable to appear on stage because of illness or emergencies, the understudy takes over the part...
to the diva La Carlotta (Stephanie Lawrence
Stephanie Lawrence
Stephanie Lawrence was a British musical theatre actress.-Background:Stephanie Lawrence was born in Hayling Island, Hampshire, the daughter of a singer and classically trained dancer.She was from an early age close friends with another Famous Islander Peter Chilvers who in 1958 invented the...
), who is both jealous and resentful of Christine’s skill. During this whole time, Erik Destler (Robert Englund
Robert Englund
Robert Barton Englund is an American actor, voice-actor and director, best known for playing the fictional serial killer Freddy Krueger, in the Nightmare on Elm Street film series. He received a Saturn Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor for A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors in...
) attacks the scene-shifter Joseph (Joseph Buquet
Joseph Buquet
Joseph Buquet is a fictional character in The Phantom of the Opera.He is the chief stagehand for the theatre who claims to have seen the Opera Ghost. He is the one to first describe Erik, saying, "He is extraordinarily thin and his dress-coat hangs on a skeleton frame. His eyes are so deep that...
) with a blade high above the rafters for almost killing Christine with the falling sandbag, and blaming the accident on him.
Alone in her dressing room after she recovers, Christine receives a vision and a message from a masked Erik Destler, revealing he is her teacher and an angel sent by her deceased father. Destler encourages her to practice Carlotta’s part of Marguerite in Faust
Faust (opera)
Faust is a drame lyrique in five acts by Charles Gounod to a French libretto by Jules Barbier and Michel Carré from Carré's play Faust et Marguerite, in turn loosely based on Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's Faust, Part 1...
, saying that only she can sing the part as it was meant to be sung. Christine complies. That evening, Carlotta discovers Joseph’s skinned (but barely alive) body in her dressing closet. The event causes her to scream and lose her voice. Christine is then cast in the role of Marguerite, which causes a panic to the opera house owner Martin Barton (Bill Nighy
Bill Nighy
William Francis "Bill" Nighy is an English actor and comedian. He worked in theatre and television before his first cinema role in 1981, and made his name in television with The Men's Room in 1991, in which he played the womanizer Prof...
), who favors Carlotta and the prestige she brings to his opera house.
During the scene where Dr. Faust signs his soul to the Devil, Destler reminisces about a time, perhaps decades ago, when he sold his own soul to the Devil in exchange for people loving him for his music. The Devil grants his wish, but burns and disfigures Destler’s face, telling him that only his music will be what people love him for.
Christine gives a stellar performance and receives a standing ovation, and celebrates that night with her fiancee Richard (Alex Hyde-White
Alex Hyde-White
Alex Punch Hyde-White is an English born, US raised film and television actor. He is sometimes credited as Alex Hyde White. In 1978 he signed with Universal Pictures as one of the last "contract players" in Hollywood, in a group that included Lindsay Wagner, Andrew Stevens and Sharon...
). She tells him of her mysterious “teacher,” to whom she accredits her success. A mildly jealous Richard asks to meet this teacher, but Christine insists her teacher is only a figment of her imagination. Shockingly, the next morning in the papers, Christine is given a mediocre review by the famous opera critic Harrison (Peter Clapham), secretly done as a favor to Barton. Destler tracks Harrison down and brutally murders him in a Turkish spa after Harrison refuses to recant his review. Destler’s further obsession with Christine (as well as his supernatural prowess) is revealed when he singlehandedly murders several thugs and later orders a prostitute to call herself “Christine.”
Christine hears of Harrison’s murder through Meg, and tearfully goes to a graveyard and prays next to the grave of her father. Destler appears as a shadowy violinist and offers her a chance at musical immortality if she will only go to him. Christine goes away with the Phantom in his stagecoach just as Richard arrives. Deep in the sewers below London’s opera house, Destler reveals himself as the composer of "Don Juan Triumphant," which causes a spark of recollection within Christine. Destler then places a ring upon her finger and warns her never to see another man again.
Richard goes to the police and, along with Inspector Hawkins (Terence Harvey), decides to track down the Phantom. Hawkins reveals to Richard that the Phantom is not only Erik Destler, but Destler has lived for centuries, uses the opera house’s catacombs as a hideout, and skins his murdered victims for their facial skin to cover his own hideous visage. Hawkins also tells him the only way to kill the Phantom is to destroy his music.
Later, at a masquerade ball, Christine meets up with Richard and warns him about the Phantom, revealing him as her “teacher.” Erik Destler, disguised, sees this exchange and becomes enraged, murdering and beheading Carlotta and kidnapping Christine. Hawkins, Richard and a hobo-ratcatcher Destler has been bribing in the past go quickly in pursuit. They become lost in the sewers, and Destler murders two policemen as well as the hobo for betraying him.
Back in the Phantom’s lair, an enraged Destler attempts to force himself on Christine to “consummate” their “marriage,” but Richard and the Inspector burst in. During a struggle with the Phantom, Richard is stabbed with a candle holder, set afire and killed. At the same moment, a wounded Hawkins manages to shoot Destler several times while Christine pushes a lamp through a mirror, sending her back to present-day Manhattan.
Christine awakens and is comforted by the opera’s producer Dr. Foster (again Robert Englund
Robert Englund
Robert Barton Englund is an American actor, voice-actor and director, best known for playing the fictional serial killer Freddy Krueger, in the Nightmare on Elm Street film series. He received a Saturn Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor for A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors in...
), who offers her the leading part. At his apartment, they have drinks and Foster goes upstairs to tidy up and finds a blemish on his face. It is then discovered that Foster is Destler from long ago, and he goes to change his facial skin with synthetic ones he keeps in a special lab. Meanwhile, downstairs, Christine plays part of the song from a recording of “Don Juan Triumphant” and horribly realizes that Foster is Destler, as they both look remarkably alike. Foster/Destler surprises her and reveals his true self to her, who is then stabbed by Christine. Christine escapes, tears up Destler’s music and throws it down a sewer, which destroys Destler.
On her way home, Christine passes by a street violin player, whom she gives some money to. The violinist slowly follows her, playing the familiar theme from “Don Juan Triumphant.” Christine looks back and wonders if the Phantom is truly gone for good.
Cast
- Robert EnglundRobert EnglundRobert Barton Englund is an American actor, voice-actor and director, best known for playing the fictional serial killer Freddy Krueger, in the Nightmare on Elm Street film series. He received a Saturn Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor for A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors in...
as Erik Destler/The Phantom of the Opera, a disfigured homicidal musical genius who falls in love with Christine Day - Jill SchoelenJill Schoelen-Early life:Schoelen was born in Burbank, California. Her mother is the famous fashion designer Dorothy Schoelen.-Acting career:Schoelen has starred in such movies as D.C...
as Christine DayChristine DaaéChristine Daaé is the main female character in Gaston Leroux's novel The Phantom of the Opera , the young singer with whom the main character Erik, the Phantom of the Opera falls in love.- Character history :...
, an innocent and sweet soprano - Alex Hyde-WhiteAlex Hyde-WhiteAlex Punch Hyde-White is an English born, US raised film and television actor. He is sometimes credited as Alex Hyde White. In 1978 he signed with Universal Pictures as one of the last "contract players" in Hollywood, in a group that included Lindsay Wagner, Andrew Stevens and Sharon...
as Richard DuttonRaoul, Vicomte de ChagnyRaoul, Vicomte de Chagny is a main character from Gaston Leroux's novel The Phantom of the Opera.-Biography:Raoul de Chagny is a viscount and Christine Daaé's childhood friend. They first met when he was a young child when he went on vacation in Northern France...
, a businessman, opera patron, and Christine's lover - Bill NighyBill NighyWilliam Francis "Bill" Nighy is an English actor and comedian. He worked in theatre and television before his first cinema role in 1981, and made his name in television with The Men's Room in 1991, in which he played the womanizer Prof...
as Martin Barton, the Opera's manager and Carlotta's boyfriend - Stephanie LawrenceStephanie LawrenceStephanie Lawrence was a British musical theatre actress.-Background:Stephanie Lawrence was born in Hayling Island, Hampshire, the daughter of a singer and classically trained dancer.She was from an early age close friends with another Famous Islander Peter Chilvers who in 1958 invented the...
as La Carlotta, the pampered, spoiled leading diva; a bratty and selfish woman - Terence Harvey as Inspector Hawkins
- Nathan Lewis as Davies
- Peter Clapham as Harrison
- Molly ShannonMolly ShannonMolly Helen Shannon is an American comic actress best known for her work as a cast member on Saturday Night Live from 1995–2001 and for starring in the films Superstar and Year of the Dog. More recently, she starred in NBC's Kath & Kim from 2008–2009 and on the TBS animated series Neighbors from...
as Meg (New York) - Emma Rawson as Meg (London)
- Mark Ryan as Mott
- Yehuda Efroni as The Rat Catcher
- Terence Beesley as Joseph Buquet
Production
Fans of the film regard the soundtrack to be especially underrated. The original musicFilm score
A film score is original music written specifically to accompany a film, forming part of the film's soundtrack, which also usually includes dialogue and sound effects...
written for the film by Misha Segal
Misha Segal
Misha Segal is an Israeli-born music producer and film composer.-Early years:Born in Haifa, Israel, weaned on jazz , and raised in Tel Aviv, music called Misha from an early age...
(also known for the soundtrack to The New Adventures of Pippi Longstocking
The New Adventures of Pippi Longstocking
The New Adventures of Pippi Longstocking is a 1988 Swedish/American fantasy–adventure–musical film based on the books of the fictional character Pippi Longstocking, created by Swedish children's book author Astrid Lindgren . While the title suggests the movie is a continuation, it is in...
) won a 1989 Brit for best soundtrack. Of particular interest to fans of the original novel is Segal's rendition of the Phantom's opera composition 'Don Juan Triumphant' with the Phantom on the organ and Christine singing.
Version of arietta "Your eyes see but my shadow" with chorus
Irina Sakne (soprano);
Academic big chorus of Russian Mendeleyev University
Like in the novel and silent film version, Christine is seen performing as Marguerite in a production of Gounod's Faust
Faust (opera)
Faust is a drame lyrique in five acts by Charles Gounod to a French libretto by Jules Barbier and Michel Carré from Carré's play Faust et Marguerite, in turn loosely based on Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's Faust, Part 1...
, though this time we actually hear her voice. Appearing in the background of the performance are the figures of Faust
Faust
Faust is the protagonist of a classic German legend; a highly successful scholar, but also dissatisfied with his life, and so makes a deal with the devil, exchanging his soul for unlimited knowledge and worldly pleasures. Faust's tale is the basis for many literary, artistic, cinematic, and musical...
and Mephisto
Mephisto
Mephisto or Mephistopheles is one of the chief demons of German literary tradition.Mephisto or Mephistopheles may also refer to:* Mephisto , a high-speed human-powered vehicle...
(symbolic of the Phantom's own pact with the Devil in this film). Christine's singing of recitatives from Gounod's Faust score is more faithful to the original novel than the Lloyd-Webber musical and film: in which an imaginary opera is invented for the occasion.
Comparison with the original and other versions
In this version of The Phantom of the Opera, the main action is transferred from Leroux's Paris Opera House to a London Opera House of the same period (but unlike the original, and most of the other adaptations, there is no falling chandelier scene). However in many respects this film is more faithful to the spirit and letter of the original than many other better known adaptations. In particular the Faustian element present in the book is emphasized - with a staging of Gounod's Faust as in the original, here a reminder of Erik's Satanic pact. The rat catcher is included in this version. The sadism of Leroux's original Erik, who, as in the novel, festoons the Opera with rope traps, is retained here, unlike in more sentimental versions. In a gory touch, the Phantom's original black mask is now a mask stitched together out of the flesh of his victims. The mysterious violinist at the cemetery is also retained in this version. Of the other characters Carlotta is here decapitated by the Phantom (unlike the novel where she survives), Richard (the Raoul figure of this version) is set ablaze, and the Rat Catcher of the sewers meets a grisly fate.The Phantom's disfigurement
In this version, Erik's face is burned by the devil's touch. A great quantity of skin is absent on the right side of his face, and his nose lacks skin, of which is present on the back of his head, and he only has a few strands of hair. One of his ears is missing, and he has no teeth.Critical reception
The Phantom of the Opera currently holds a 38% 'Rotten' rating on review aggregate website Rotten TomatoesRotten Tomatoes
Rotten Tomatoes is a website devoted to reviews, information, and news of films—widely known as a film review aggregator. Its name derives from the cliché of audiences throwing tomatoes and other vegetables at a poor stage performance...
.
Box office
The film was a box office failure when released, grossing under $4 million in the US. This can probably be attributed to an over-saturation of horror films in theaters in 1989, a trend which also hurt the box office of the Nightmare on Elm StreetA Nightmare on Elm Street (franchise)
A Nightmare on Elm Street is an American horror franchise that consists of nine slasher films, a television show, novels, and comic books. The franchise began with the film series created by Wes Craven. The franchise is based on the fictional character Freddy Krueger, introduced in A Nightmare on...
, Halloween
Halloween (franchise)
Halloween is an American horror franchise that consists of ten slasher films, novels, and comic books. The franchise focuses on the fictional character of Michael Myers who was committed to a sanitarium as a child for the murder of his older sister, Judith Myers...
, and Friday the 13th sequels, as well as the poor timing of releasing a horror-themed Phantom film at the height of popularity for the Andrew Lloyd Webber
Andrew Lloyd Webber
Andrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber is an English composer of musical theatre.Lloyd Webber has achieved great popular success in musical theatre. Several of his musicals have run for more than a decade both in the West End and on Broadway. He has composed 13 musicals, a song cycle, a set of...
musical.
Planned sequel
Englund was under contract to appear in a sequelSequel
A sequel is a narrative, documental, or other work of literature, film, theatre, or music that continues the story of or expands upon issues presented in some previous work...
, but it was canceled after the film's poor reception, and has been the subject of numerous rumors. Fangoria Magazine claimed in 1991 that the script was re-written into what became 1992's Dance Macabre
Dance Macabre (film)
-Plot:A dance instructor brings his dance troupe to Russia for training. What his dancers don't know, however, is that he has a dual personality--and his hidden personality is a serial killer.-Production:...
, also starring Englund.
Englund confirmed in a 2004 interview that a script had been written, and while he personally felt it was superior to the first film, it had never been filmed in any capacity.