Top 20 Movies That Never Got Made

It was 1996 when Kevin Smith, of “Clerks” fame, pitched a script for a Superman movie. His original idea was significantly changed by producer Jon Peters, who wanted Superman to fight a giant spider at the end of the film. Nonetheless, Tim Burton was signed as director, with Nicolas Cage as the Big Blue Boy Scout. And we gotta admit: with their dark and wacky ways, a Burton/Cage joint may’ve been a good fit. But $30-million in pre-production costs later, and the project was cancelled three weeks before filming was scheduled. Peters went on to fulfill his wish for a giant spider fight in “Wild Wild West”.

If there was ever a director who could bring the horrors of H.P. Lovecraft’s classic novella to the big screen, it would be Guillermo del Toro. Del Toro is best known for films that feature bizarre, memorable, and haunting creatures. Think of “Hellboy,” “Pan’s Labyrinth,” and “The Shape of Water”. Bringing to life the Lovecraftian horrors would be right up his alley. However, the project bounced from studio to studio, never climbing out of development hell. Studios allegedly wanted a PG-13 rating and a love story for the film, which would have completely derailed it. Clearly, they had NOT read the novella.

After making films like “The Godfather” trilogy, and “Apocalypse Now,” Coppola was primed to make his science fiction magnum opus “Megalopolis.” The film would have followed an architect navigating political machinations while reconstructing New York City. The new New York would have been reminiscent of Fritz Lang’s iconic city in “Metropolis.” However, the film was shelved after 2001, when the tragic events of that year made a film about a ravaged New York much less palatable. Over the years Coppola has hinted he would like to return and make the film, but so far it seems to remain a pipe dream.

Author Arthur C. Clarke found considerable success on the big screen with his screenplay for “2001: A Space Odyssey”, based on his short story “The Sentinel”. His 1973 novel “Rendezvous with Rama” clearly also had cinematic potential. By the early 2000s it was on track to be adapted for the big screen. Morgan Freeman led the project as a producer and hired David Fincher to direct. However, the film languished for years, as Fincher was unable to find an acceptable script. Giving the visionary another crack at science fiction after he was hampered by studio interference during “Alien 3” would have truly been something to behold.

Long before Peter Jackson or even Ralph Bakshi’s adaptations of the epic fantasy novels, there were plans to adapt the Lord of the Rings into a musical starring the Beatles. With Beatlemania in full swing, the band had just released two successful movie musicals, “A Hard Day’s Night” and “Help!” We’ll never know what this odd combination would have looked like however, as the film faced a number of hurdles. Securing a director proved difficult and Tolkien, who still held the rights, disliked the idea of the band adapting his work.

It would’ve been a gritty, action-packed look at the Crusades, starring Arnold Schwarzenegger and with “Total Recall” director, Paul Verhoeven, at the helm. It’s said that sets were already being built on location in Spain when Verhoeven suffered a breakdown at a budget meeting for the film, effectively nixing any prospects of the project moving forward. And, with a budget of $100-million back in 1994, who can blame him? Another theory suggests Carolco Pictures pulled funding to pay for another of their blockbusters instead: the mega-flop “Cutthroat Island.”

Sure, we did get a Queen biopic in the end, with the PG-13 “Bohemian Rhapsody”. But the original vision for the film was very different. Set to star as Freddie Mercury, Sasha Baron Cohen wanted the film to be a "gritty R-rated tell-all". To help cement his vision for the film, Cohen brought in David Fincher and writer Peter Morgan. However, all three left the project, with Cohen claiming that the band wanted a sanitized version and more focus on themselves. While “Rhapsody” had its defenders, a darker take done with Fincher’s deft directorial style would have been a sight to behold.

Tarantino’s no stranger to interconnected films. “The Hateful Eight” was originally conceived as a sequel to “Django Unchained”. And he’s claimed that all his films inhabit one of two universes, one “realer-than-real”, and one more like a “special movie universe” within that one. However, he’d also planned to tie together two of his most famous films! “Double V Vega” would’ve focused on the Vega brothers: Vic, played by Michael Madsen in “Reservoir Dogs,” and Vincent, played by John Travolta in “Pulp Fiction.” However given their respective character arcs and the current ages of the actors, this one’s likely shelved permanently.

Referred to as the “patron saint of cinema,” renowned French director Robert Bresson set his sights on creating an extravagant, expansive epic film version of the Bible’s Book of Genesis. And he was the perfect man for the job, as he was known for his impact on the art of filmmaking and his penchant for Catholic subject matter. But, after securing financing once, and then a second time, Bresson scrapped the project for good – partly because he was unable to make the animals on set do his bidding.

Hollywood spent decades failing to adapt this 1981 Pulitzer Prize winner into a film, considered one of the funniest books ever written. The difficulty in adapting the book, and a string of tragedies, have kept the film in developmental hell since the early 80s. John Belushi, John Candy, Chris Farley, and Divine were all attached to the lead role of Ignatious at various points, but all died untimely deaths - leading many to believe the part was cursed. Filmmakers including Harold Ramis, Stephen Fry, John Waters, James Bobin, and even Steven Soderbergh have all been connected to the project, but none were ever able to get the movie off the ground.

With “Gladiator” having such a definitive ending, you might be wondering how a sequel could possibly exist; and your question would be valid. However, Nick Cave, more famous as a musician than a screenwriter had, let’s just call it an interesting solution. In the afterlife Maximus kills a traitorous god and is sent back to the world of the living where he would go on to fight in the Crusades, both World Wars and ultimately got a job at the Pentagon. Russell Crowe was not impressed by the script and the project died. Would the movie have been any good? Probably not. Would it have been interesting? Almost definitely.

After “Batman and Robin” was a critical disaster, a planned fifth film in the Batman franchise was thrown out in favor of rebooting the franchise. Warner Brothers opted to hire an upcoming director, choosing young auteur Darren Aronofsky, who was fresh off of his success with “Requiem For a Dream”. The film would have been a loose adaptation of Frank Miller’s famous Batman origin comic, with Miller writing the script. The Aronofsky/Miller combination would have been a dark R-rated take on the caped crusader that would have changed much of the Batman mythos, but the studio ultimately moved on, ultimately making a different Batman origin story with another promising young director.

Though Hitchcock did make a film called “Frenzy,” it was not this movie. One of many Hitchcock films that didn’t make it to the big screen, this one was a little too risqué for the studio. Told through the eyes of a body builder who just so happens to be a serial killer, the story would’ve revolved around his sexual escapades, murder spree and eventual downfall. Hitchcock even got some silent test footage down before the studio pulled the plug altogether due to its explicit material.

A decade before David Lynch’s 1984 adaptation, there was a more…psychedelic vision of Frank Herbert’s novel in the works. Chilean director Alejandro Jodorowsky had lofty aspirations for the material, and wanted the film to be reminiscent of a hallucination. And, with Mick Jagger and Salvador Dali on the roster, and Peter Gabriel and/or Pink Floyd handling the music, he was on the right track. However, after over one-fifth of the budget was expended during pre-production of what would’ve been a 14-hour film, production stalled permanently. At least we have Denis Villeneuve’s adaptation on the way!

Considered one of the greatest American novels ever written, Blood Meridian is the crowning achievement of legendary novelist Cormac McCarthy. Often described as an anti-western, the book explores themes of violence, brutality, and the nature of evil, against the backdrop of the U.S. Mexico border in 1850. With other McCarthy novels like The Road adapted to film, multiple attempts were made to put Blood Meridian to the screen, most notably by Ridley Scott. No stranger to violent films after directing the likes of “Gladiator” and “Alien,” even Scott ended up saying that the extreme bloodshed was too much for studios.

Back in 2007, Warner Brothers announced plans to create a film based on arguably the most iconic superhero team of all time. The film would not have tied in to the recently released “Batman Begins” or “Superman Returns.” “Mad Max” director George Miller signed onto the project. The cast would have included Armie Hammer as Batman, Adam Brody as the Flash, and Jay Baruchel as Maxwell Lorde. However the 2007 writer’s strike stalled the film and Warner reconsidered their plans after the success of “The Dark Knight.” After releasing “Man of Steel” in 2011, Warner opted for a new Justice League film that tied into their cinematic universe.

Fans of this popular videogame series have been waiting since 2005 for the film adaptation of their beloved franchise to finally make it to screen. And, c’mon, it’s meant to happen: the battle between aliens versus humans will never get old. Unfortunately, the project was hampered by an escalating budget and Microsoft’s iron grip on the creative output, as well as the company’s upfront financial demands. With Peter Jackson signed on to produce, “Halo” could’ve potentially been a blockbuster. Instead, it fell victim to the politics of the industry.

While his retelling of “Don Quixote” also remains unfinished, it’s Welles’ take on Joseph Conrad’s “Heart of Darkness” that intrigues us. Before he revolutionized the film industry with his legendary film “Citizen Kane,” Welles had another film ready to go; unfortunately, he never got it off the ground. After tests were shot and the film was planned, “Heart of Darkness” was canceled by studio executives due to an over-inflated budget. Of course, audiences did get to see Conrad’s novel modernized in “Apocalypse Now,” but we wonder what could’ve been.

Sam Raimi’s Spiderman trilogy, particularly the second installment, proved that superhero films could contain compelling characters, colorful costumes, and a balance of comedy and drama. Plans were in place for a fourth Spider-Man film that would see John Malkovich play the Vulture and Anne Hathaway as Black Cat. However, Sony’s planned release date would have given the film a rushed production schedule, and Rami walked, with McGuire quickly following suit. Without their star, Sony opted to reboot the franchise and the world never got to see that Bruce Campbell had really been Mysterio the entire time.

Before we reveal our top pick here are a few honorable mentions.

Roger Avary’s “Sandman”
Oscar Winner Avary Reportedly Left the Project Because Producer Jon Peters Wanted a Generic Superhero Film

J.J. Abrams’ “The Dark Tower”
Writer Damon Lindelof Said He Couldn’t Adapt the Book Because He Was Too Much of a FAn

Clair Noto’s “The Tourist”
This Sci-Fi Screenplay About Aliens Undercover Collapsed Due to Vicious Infighting

Steven Spielberg’s “Night Skies”
The Ideas For This Film Were Worked Into “Poltergeist” & “E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial”

Sergio Leone’s “Leningrad: The 900 Days”
Leone Died Before He Could Make This War Epic

Fresh off his triumph “2001: A Space Odyssey,” director Stanley Kubrick set his sights on developing a sweeping story about the notorious French emperor Napoleon Bonaparte. He surveyed locations, wrote a script, cultivated extensive background info, settled on actors, and got all his ducks in a row before hitting a wall in production. The film was ultimately shelved for a number of reasons, including financial limitations and the poor response to another Napoleon-based movie. It’s too bad too, because Kubrick claimed this would’ve been “the best movie ever made.”