While the horror genre exploded in the 1980’s in a variety of ways, it’s perhaps the little monster movies that are sometimes best remembered. It’s no doubt Gremlins was the first of these – but it was Ghoulies that proved just how successful the template could be for other filmmakers. In fact, it would be Ghoulies that’d even spawn more movies than Gremlins did. While Gremlins has to date only received one sequel, it was Ghoulies that was quickly followed up by Ghoulies II in 1988, Ghoulies III: Ghoulies Go to College in 1991, and finally Ghoulies IV in 1994. But since then the franchise has gone quiet – until now, that is. Original Ghoulies producer Jefery Levy and director Luca Bercovici have announced their plans to try and reboot Ghoulies.
Of course, things might not exactly be as simple as pressing a switch. The filmmakers first had to track down where the rights even ended up after all these years. You see, the first two Ghoulies films were originally owned by Empire Pictures. They sold the rights to Vestron, where Ghoulies III: Ghoulies Go to College ended up being produced. Finally, the rights were eventually sold to companies that would later be acquired by Sony. As it is now, it appears Sony has the rights – and original Ghoulies team Jefery Levy and director Luca Bercovici are asking for our help in convincing Sony to hear out their pitch for a reboot.
As Jefery Levy himself wrote on Facebook in a Ghoulies fan group, Ghoulies Unflushed:
“Luca and I are trying to rally SONY PICTURES to let us do a reboot of Ghoulies. We have a great concept. If everyone can call or email or post on the Sony website and facebook site it would be a big help.”
There you have it. It’s up to us to let Sony know that there’s still interest in a Ghoulies reboot. And let’s be honest, at a time when Hollywood is constantly revisiting film properties – doesn’t Ghoulies seem like the perfect movie to give a second (or perhaps fifth) chance? Fans that are interested can contact Sony via their official website, email or social media pages to let them know you want to see the reboot happen.
It seems like they have an exciting pitch to offer, and at a time when little monster movies have become a dying breed, this could be the perfect opportunity to revisit one of horror’s greatest subgenres.