Gremlins: A 3-Hour Cut of Joe Dante's Classic Film Exponentially Ups Mogwai Madness (DETAILS)
With the next Gremlins movie more than a year away from hitting theaters, fans of the original Joe Dante film may be able to fill the Mogwai-sized void with a massive three-hour cut of Gizmo and Billy Peltzer's first outing.
With the next Gremlins movie more than a year away from hitting theaters, fans of the iconic Amblin franchise may be able to fill the Mogwai-sized void with a massive, 3-hour layover in Kingston Falls
This jumbo version of the 1984 classic was edited together by the Gremlins Museum Collection, which houses the biggest inventory of Gremlins artifacts in the world. Gremlins and Gremlins 2: The New Batch director Joe Dante provided the organization with two VHS tapes full of never-before-seen footage, including a collection of outtakes and the very first assembly cut from 1983.
The outtakes comprise 40 minutes of material, some of which is found in the rough edit. Other moments, however, "are entirely unique sequences written and filmed but cut before the assembly stage," the museum revealed. "Scenes long rumored to exist such as Barney knocking over Mrs. Deagle's snowman and full Mogwai walking shots are confirmed here for the first time."
Dante's assembly cut, meanwhile, runs nearly a hour longer than the final one released to the public. Following the strict rules laid down by Mr. Wing, Dante wisely did not allow the movie to grow out of control and capped the runtime at just under two hours.
The assembly iteration, on the other hand, mirrors Gizmo's exponentially chaotic multiplication after he's exposed to water.
In other words, it "presents the film in its earliest form: longer and alternative takes, deleted plot points, larger character arcs, raw camera audio with animatronic puppet sounds, and a movie which at times has a completely different feel," the museum continued. "Creature sounds are largely temporary, far removed from the polished, iconic voices later provided by performers such as Howie Mandel [Gizmo], Frank Welker [Stripe], and Mark Dodson [voice of miscellaneous Mogwai]."
What's in the 3-hour cut of Joe Dante's Gremlins?
The 3-hour version (dubbed the "Screening Rough Cut") combines both the outtakes and assembly footage, while adding in finished sound effects and Jerry Goldsmith's recognizable score. There's just one caveat: the Gremlins Museum Collection cannot distribute it without express permission from Warner Bros. Pictures and Amblin Entertainment.
Joe Dante himself would most likely have to step in and sanction a special screening.
"I also think Warner Bros. Archives could consider it as a standalone release or potentially include it in a future Blu-ray set with Gremlins 3 around the corner," the museum concluded. "This rough cut is, without question, worthy of all these options and seeing it will be an extremely emotional experience for many Gremlin fans."
OG Gremlins screenwriter Chris Columbus is set to direct the next big screen outing, which he's co-writing alongside Final Destination Bloodlines filmmakers Zach Lipovsky and Adam Stein. Steven Spielberg returns as executive producer.
Warner Bros. has Gremlins 3 currently slated for release on Nov. 19, 2027.
