2016 promises to be an amazing year for all movie genres. We are all impatient to watch superhero blockbusters such as Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, Captain America: Civil War, X-men: Apocalypse or Suicide Squad, but also book adaptations like Fantastic Beasts And Where to Find Them and The Divergent Series: Allegiant. Next year we will also get to see beloved reboots (Ghostbusters, The Jungle Book). However, not all adaptations or sequels that were promised by Hollywood reached the big screen. The following top 6 movies that never came to be comprises several stories that were supposed to be turned into movies but have never come to pass.
1. BioShock
Let us begin our top movies that never came to be with a franchise that does not only feature a vast, surreal world, but also an engaging and labyrinthic storyline: BioShock. The first part of the dystopian video game was released in 2008, and many fans and critics saw its potential of being transferred to the big screen. Gore Verbinski, the director of the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise and many more action movies was initially set to direct the BioShock movie. Unfortunately, because of budget issues he dropped out but remained as a producer. The movie was passed on from studio to studio, but none would take the risk of producing such an expensive and violent motion picture. However, in 2014 Sony registered the bioshock-movie.com domain, which gives us hope that a BioShock movie might still be produced.
2. Spider-Man 4
Spider-Man 4 comes in second on our top 6 movies that never came to be list. Yes, there has been a reboot named The Amazing Spider-Man, but many fans were hoping for a sequel for the first trilogy starring Tobey Maguire. So what happened? Sony did announce a fourth movie, and even had plans for a fifth and a sixth installment, all helmed by director Sam Raimi. The script for Spider-Man 4 was written back in 2008 and featured several villains: the Vulture was set to be played by John Malkovich, Felicia Hardy who would have been played by Anne Hathaway and Dr. Curt Connors. However, because Raimi thought it was impossible to meet the deadline and because of a couple of disagreements on the script, the movie was canceled. Furthermore, Marvel brought back the Spider-Man franchise and simply rebooted it as The Amazing Spider-Man.
3. E.T. 2: Nocturnal Fears
Everyone remembers the most beloved alien, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. Steven Spielberg’s movie was immensely successful, and thus the producing studios have announced a sequel back in the ’80s. The story was quite similar to the one from Predator, as E.T.’s evil cousins were coming to look for him in the forest shown the end of the original movie. Further on, they would find Elliott and the other children and torture them in order to find out the location of E.T. Well, aren’t we glad this motion picture never reached the big screen.
4. Rendezvous with Rama
This science fiction novel about a huge mysterious spaceship that appears in the solar system was written by Arthur C. Clarke and has become a pinnacle of its genre. After winning a Hugo award and a Nebula award, many expected the novel to be turned into a movie franchise. Sadly, it is just one of the movies that never came to be. There has been one attempt by Morgan Freeman at the beginning of the 2000s, who was to be the producer. Ten years later there were rumors that David Fincher would direct the movie, but the script was not good enough and thus all production stopped. Its status has not changed since then. However, Rendezvous with Rama has influenced many other motion pictures such as Interstellar.
5. The Goonies 2
Goonies 2 is another wanted movie based on a video game. The first part of the franchise made it to the big screen back in 1985, but nothing has been heard of a sequel until recently. Sean Astin who played the main character in Goonies and who is also well known for his role as Samwise Gamgee from the Lord of the Rings trilogy, stated in September last year that there is no question of making another Goonies movie, but of when the production will start. This might be an encouraging statement, but after Hollywood has fooled us so many times, we cannot believe anything without solid proof.
6. Zeppelin v Pterodactyls
Our list of movies that never came to be ends with an idea from Hammer Film which appeared in the form of a poster in 1971: Zeppelin v Pterodactyls. While with the special effects of the ’70s it would have probably looked ridiculous, nowadays movie makers possess the means to make it happen. With the current hype for action blockbusters with spectacular video effects, surely a movie about the Second World War involving a zeppelin that finds a continent inhabited by dinosaurs would smash the box office. What could be more enjoyable than watching pterodactyls fighting a zeppelin in IMAX 3D?
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