Gremlins 3 Gets A Significant Update From Original Writer
Gremlins 3 got an interesting update from original writer Christopher Columbus. It looks like the next movie will keep some things the same
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The original Gremlins came out such a long time ago that there is certainly a contingent of viewers out there that don’t know much about the impish and hell-raising little suckers. That’s going to change soon with the long-awaited Gremlins 3 getting closer to actual production now. And though there have been significant advancements in moviemaking since the original hit screens decades ago, it looks like in some ways the new movie will stick to the first one’s roots.
In a talk with Collider a bit ago, original Gremlins writer Christopher Columbus shared some ideas about where they were going with Gremlins 3. In thinking about how they would bring the buggers to the big screen again, Columbus seemed intent on maintaining a certain amount of “realism” when it came to how they’d get the job done. Not wanting to automatically just use the current technology at filmmakers’ fingertips to produce all manner of different beings in movies, Columbus felt that sticking to the simpler way would be best. He said, “I would do it as tangible puppets, not CGI. Maybe having — you know we had one stop-motion scene in the first Gremlins, but I don’t think I’d use much CGI in Gremlins 3.”
This is an interesting take from Columbus considering the current nature of filmmaking and the amount of special effects technology at artists’ disposal. Wanting to keep Gremlins 3 to puppets and a little stop motion is certainly admirable. And it likely would help to bridge the gap between what we got back in the early 1980s as well. Considering Gremlins 3 is reported to be a direct sequel to the first movie, not including CGI now in the flick would help to align it more with the original. From a continuity standpoint, this would seem an important distinction to make. Part of the first movie’s allure was that the characters were incredibly unique, memorable for their look and mannerisms.
The original Gremlins did use puppets for both the cuddly and cute Gizmo, the unsuspecting mogwai, as well as the titular Gremlins who pop out of the little dude when he gets wet and fed after midnight. And they used a bit more stop-motion for Gremlins 2: The New Batch. To replicate the movements of the first two movies, in Gremlins 3 it would make sense why Columbus was interested in keeping it the same. If one need not use CGI, then why bother? Not everything needs to be brought into the present day when the strategies of the past worked just fine.
Christopher Columbus penned the original Gremlins script which hit theaters all the way back in 1984. The movie was a massive hit, earning over $200 million at the box office on just around an $11 million budget. The sequel didn’t come close to the same lofty heights. Columbus is said to be working on Gremlins 3 though the script is from Carl Ellsworth this time around. There is no definitive timeline on when we can expect it to hit the big screen, but it very much appears the team is working out the different specifics with the production.
