Movies
The Original ‘Leatherface: Texas Chainsaw Massacre 3’ Teaser Was the Coolest
While we wait for the Leatherface (2017?) trailer, let’s revisit the Leatherface (1990) teaser.
In the wake of Tobe Hooper making his own sequel to The Texas Chain Saw Massacre in 1986, the franchise rights were scooped up by New Line Cinema, the studio that was of course knee deep in the Nightmare on Elm Street franchise at that point in time. They hoped to turn Leatherface into a money-maker on the level of Freddy Krueger, and the first glimpse of their franchise reboot Leatherface: Texas Chainsaw Massacre 3 was attached to the ’89 theatrical release of A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child.
It came in the form of a teaser trailer…
THE COOLEST TEASER TRAILER OF ALL TIME.
Funny enough, the teaser for Leatherface: Texas Chainsaw Massacre 3 was actually filmed and shown off before director Jeff Burr was even hired, and at the time, the film was slated for release on November 3rd, 1989 – the actual release date ended up being January 12th, 1990. That teaser, which audiences saw in the summer of ’89, featured footage that was never actually seen in the movie, and it recast Leatherface as King freakin’ Arthur. Keep in mind that New Line was looking to turn Leatherface into a superstar, and oh boy did he make a grand re-entrance in ’89.
The teaser, a play on the legend of King Arthur and the “Lady of the Lake,” starts off with Leatherface standing solemnly by a lake, looking like he’s lost his way. Suddenly, a massive Excalibur-inspired silver chainsaw rises up from the depths of the lake, and it literally flies right into Leatherface’s hand. It’s then hit with a bolt of lightning and, well, Leatherface is back, baby.
Legend has it that Kane Hodder portrayed Leatherface for the teaser, which would make sense considering he was the film’s stunt coordinator. Again, the teaser was shot before production even began, so it would stand to reason that R.A. Mihailoff hadn’t yet been cast. To the best of my knowledge, however, Hodder has never confirmed that he played Leatherface in the teaser.
In any event, relive the majestic awesomeness below!
Two things that have proven to be pretty dependable at the box office in recent years are horror movies and Christopher Nolan movies. With Nolan’s The Odyssey absolutely dominating the box office this past weekend, many fans of Nolan’s work have been left hungry for a Nolan-directed horror movie. After all, The Odyssey does whet the appetite for Nolan nightmare fuel.
Christopher Nolan has brushed up against the horror genre in the past with 2002 thriller Insomnia, but does he have any interest in someday making a full-on horror movie?
Nolan tells the Empire Podcast in a new chat, “I’ve always been interested in doing a horror film.”
“But horror is most successful when the conceptual framework of whatever the story is is just so undeniable. I think there are very few really great horror movies,” Nolan continues.
So why hasn’t Christopher Nolan directed a horror movie yet?
He explains to Empire, “I’ve never clicked with a particular idea or concept that worked for me. I love the genre. Of all genres, it’s the most visceral. Where the direct response to the audience is the most important. That is to say, you’re trying to make people literally feel something in their bones about what’s going on on-screen.”
Nolan calls horror “a genre in which experimentation is demanded.” He explains, “I go to see a lot of horror films with my kids these days, and you’ll see things in the first half an hour, 45 minutes of any horror film that you’d never see in another genre. Risks that are taken. Dangerous approaches to things. Admittedly, a lot of movies can’t sustain that to the end. But in the horror genre, that kind of innovation is not just respected – it’s really demanded.”
Christopher Nolan’s The Odyssey is now playing in theaters.
Cillian Murphy as Scarecrow in Christopher Nolan’s ‘The Dark Knight’ (2008)
You must be logged in to post a comment.