Editing Gremlins (section)

== Production ==

=== Background ===
''Gremlins'' was produced at a time when combining horror and comedy was becoming increasingly popular. According to Professor [[Noël Carroll]], ''[[Ghostbusters]]'', released the same weekend as ''Gremlins'', and the comic strip ''[[The Far Side]]'' also followed this trend. Carroll argued that there was now a new genre emphasizing sudden shifts between humorous and horrific scenes, drawing laughs with plot elements that have been traditionally used to scare.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Carroll |first=Noël |date=Spring 1999 |title=Horror and Humor |journal=The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism: Aesthetics and Popular Culture |volume=57 |number=2 |page=145|doi=10.1111/1540_6245.jaac57.2.0145 }}</ref>

The notion of gremlins was first conceived during the 1920s when mechanical failures in [[Royal Air Force|RAF]] aircraft were jokingly blamed on the small monsters. The term "gremlins" also entered popular culture as children's author and RAF pilot [[Roald Dahl]] published a book called ''[[The Gremlins]]'' in 1943, based on the mischievous creatures.{{sfn|Bilstein|2001|p=318}} [[Walt Disney]] considered making a film of it. A [[Bugs Bunny]] cartoon of the era, ''[[Falling Hare]]'', shows Bugs battling a gremlin on an airplane. Joe Dante had read ''The Gremlins'' and said that the book was of some influence on his film. In 1983, Dante publicly distanced his work from earlier films, explaining, "Our gremlins are somewhat different—they're sort of green, and they have big mouths, and they smile a lot and they do incredibly, really nasty things to people and enjoy it all the while".<ref name="Featurette">{{cite AV media |people=[[Joe Dante|Dante, Joe]], [[Steven Spielberg|Spielberg, Steven]] |date=2002 |title=Gremlins: Behind the Scenes |medium=DVD |publisher=Warner Home Video}}</ref><ref name="DVD">{{cite AV media |people=[[Joe Dante|Dante, Joe]] |date=2002 |title=Steven Spielberg presents ''Gremlins'' Special edition audio commentary |medium=DVD |publisher=Warner Home Video}}</ref>

=== Development ===
[[File:Chris Columbus.jpg|upright|thumb|[[Chris Columbus (filmmaker)|Chris Columbus]] conceived of the idea for ''Gremlins'' and wrote the initial draft as a [[spec script]].]]
The story of ''Gremlins'' was conceived by [[Chris Columbus (filmmaker)|Chris Columbus]]. As Columbus explained, his inspiration came from his loft, when at night "what sounded like a platoon of mice would come out and to hear them skittering around in the blackness was really creepy".<ref name="Behind Scenes">{{cite AV media |people=[[Chris Columbus (filmmaker)|Columbus, Chris]] |date=2002 |title=Steven Spielberg presents ''Gremlins'': Behind the Scenes |medium=DVD |publisher=Warner Home Video}}</ref> He then wrote the original screenplay as a [[spec script]] to show potential employers that he had writing abilities. The story was not actually intended to be filmed until [[Steven Spielberg]] took an interest in turning it into a film.<ref name="DVD" /> As Spielberg explained, "It's one of the most original things I've come across in many years, which is why I bought it."<ref name="Featurette" /> Spielberg considered [[Tim Burton]] to direct the film after seeing his [[short film]] ''[[Frankenweenie (1984 film)|Frankenweenie]]''.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://cutprintfilm.com/features/an-oral-history-of-gremlins/ | title=An Oral History of 'Gremlins' (1984) |last=Costill |first=David |website=Cut Print Film | date=December 23, 2016 }}</ref>

After deciding to executive produce the film himself, Spielberg chose Dante as his director because of his experience with horror-comedy; Dante had previously directed ''[[The Howling (film)|The Howling]]''; however, in the time between ''The Howling'' and the offer to film ''Gremlins'', he had experienced a lull in his career.<ref name="DVD" />  Dante began doing storyboard work on the film while also working as a director on ''[[Twilight Zone: The Movie]]'' (1983), a film on which Spielberg also served as a director.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/Fangoria_037_c2c_1984_Gremlins_smog777-DREGS|title=Gremlins director Joe Dante provides a behind-the-scenes look at this summer's big-budget creature-feature.|last=Everitt|first=David|publisher=Fangoria (37)|year=1984|pages=[https://archive.org/details/Fangoria_037_c2c_1984_Gremlins_smog777-DREGS/page/n21 20]–22}}</ref> The film's producer was [[Michael Finnell]], who had also worked on ''The Howling'' with Dante. Spielberg took the project to Warner Bros. and co-produced it through his own company, [[Amblin Entertainment]].

Designer Chris Walas spoke on the creation of the initial concept of the creatures, “After reading the script, my first idea was to take the [[tarsier]], a little primate, and give it cartoony proportions. I wanted the big eyes to make it cute. I showed it to Mike Finnell and Joe Dante and they asked for some tweaks, so I made the next one. This is more like a puppy. Big, floppy ears. It’s not based on any one dog in particular — just a Cocker Spaniel or something. Fortunately they did not go with it. These were the only two Mogwai I sculpted before the final one.”<ref>{{Cite web |date=2014-06-30 |title=Gremlins Week: The Evolution Of Gizmo |url=https://www.empireonline.com/movies/features/evolution-gremlins-gizmo/ |access-date=2024-08-10 |website=Empire |language=en}}</ref>

The film's script went through a few drafts before a shooting script was finalized. The first version was much darker than the final film. Various scenes were cut, including one which portrayed Billy's mother being decapitated during her struggle with the gremlins, with her head thrown down the stairs when Billy arrives. Dante later explained the scene made the film darker than the filmmakers wanted. There was also a scene where the gremlins ate Billy's dog and a scene where the gremlins attacked a [[McDonald's]], eating customers instead of burgers. Also, instead of Stripe being a ''mogwai'' who becomes a gremlin, there was originally no ''mogwai'' named Stripe; rather, Gizmo was supposed to transform into Stripe the gremlin. Spielberg overruled this plot element as he felt Gizmo was cute and that audiences would want him to be present throughout the film.<ref name="DVD" />

The film mentions an urban legend<ref>{{cite web | title=Santa Claustrophobia | url=https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/santa-claustrophobia/ | work=[[Urban Legends Reference Pages]] | date=October 23, 1999 | access-date=December 7, 2020 | archive-date=May 3, 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210503010423/https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/santa-claustrophobia/ | url-status=live }}</ref> in which Kate reveals in a speech that her father died at Christmas when he dressed as [[Santa Claus]] and broke his neck while climbing down the family's chimney. After the film was completed, studio executives insisted upon its removal, because they felt it was too ambiguous as to whether it was supposed to be funny or sad. Dante refused to take the scene out, saying it represented the film as a whole, which had a combination of horrific and comedic elements. Spielberg did not like the scene but, despite his creative control, he viewed ''Gremlins'' as Dante's project and allowed him to leave it in.<ref name="DVD" /> A parody of this scene is featured in ''[[Gremlins 2: The New Batch]]''.

=== Casting ===
[[File:Zach Galligan at the Chiller Theatre Expo in NJ, October 26, 2013.jpg|upright|thumb|[[Zach Galligan]] was a relatively unknown actor when cast as the lead character Billy.]]
[[Phoebe Cates]] was cast as Kate, Billy's girlfriend, despite concerns that she was known for playing more risqué parts, such as Linda Barrett in ''[[Fast Times at Ridgemont High]]'' (1982). Spielberg urged the casting of the relatively unknown [[Zach Galligan]] as Billy because he saw chemistry between Galligan and Cates during auditions. Galligan later compared himself to Billy, saying he was a "geeky kid", and that being in the film "was really kind of a dream" given "what I get to do, what my character gets to do, blow up movie theatres", adding that he "got to work with great people".<ref name="Galligan">{{cite AV media |people=[[Zach Galligan|Galligan, Zach]], [[Joe Dante|Dante, Joe]] |date=2002 |title=Steven Spielberg presents ''Gremlins'' Special edition audio commentary |medium=DVD |publisher=Warner Home Video}}</ref>  Spielberg commented when Galligan was testing with Cates that "he's in love with her already" and that was how Galligan won the part.<ref>{{cite news|last1=Watkins|first1=Jack|title=How we made Gremlins|url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/dec/04/how-we-made-gremlins-steven-spielberg-joe-dante-zach-galligan|access-date=4 December 2017|work=The Guardian|date=4 December 2017|archive-date=December 4, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171204232250/https://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/dec/04/how-we-made-gremlins-steven-spielberg-joe-dante-zach-galligan|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Tom Hanks]],<ref name="theringer.com">{{Cite web |last=Siegel |first=Alan |date=2024-06-06 |title=Creature Feature: The Oral History of 'Gremlins' |url=https://www.theringer.com/movies/2024/6/6/24171434/gremlins-movie-oral-history-gizmo |access-date=2024-08-10 |website=The Ringer |language=en}}</ref> [[Kevin Bacon]], [[Ralph Macchio]], [[Emilio Estevez]], [[Rob Lowe]]<ref>{{Cite news |last=Kilday |first=Gregg |date=1984-06-07 |title=Zach Galligan: Gizmo's Best Friend |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/lifestyle/1984/06/08/zach-galligan-gizmos-best-friend/f1209b9a-99ad-4453-b6d8-262fa7d69cea/ |newspaper=The Washington Post}}</ref> and [[Judd Nelson]] also auditioned.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://filmschoolrejects.com/commentary-gremlins-joe-dante-2f4cc8995462/ | title=40 Things We Learned from Joe Dante's 'Gremlins' Commentary | last=Hunter |first=Rob |date=December 8, 2016 |website=[[Film School Rejects]]}}</ref>

In contrast to Galligan, many of the supporting actors and actresses were better known. Veteran actor [[Glynn Turman]] portrayed the high school science teacher whose study of a newborn ''mogwai'' leads to his death after it forms a cocoon and emerges as a vicious gremlin. [[Dick Miller]], who was a regular in Dante's films, was another experienced actor on the set, playing a [[World War II]] veteran who first refers to the creatures as gremlins. Rand was played by [[Hoyt Axton]], who was always the filmmakers' preferred choice for the role even though it was widely contested by other actors.<ref name="DVD" /> Axton's experience included acting as the father in ''[[The Black Stallion (film)|The Black Stallion]]'' (1979), and he was also a country music singer-songwriter. After an introductory scene to ''Gremlins'' was cut, Axton's voice earned him the added role of the narrator to establish some context. Mr. Wing was played by [[Keye Luke]], a renowned film actor, whose film career spanned half a century. Although in reality he was around 80 at the time of filming, and his character was very elderly, Luke's youthful appearance had to be covered by make-up.<ref name="DVD" />

[[Corey Feldman]], who up to that time had primarily been in commercials, played Pete Fountaine, establishing his early credentials as a child actor; he previously met with Spielberg when he auditioned for ''[[E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial]]''. [[Polly Holliday]], an actress best known for her role in ''[[Alice (American TV series)|Alice]]'', played Mrs. Deagle. Dante considered the casting fortunate, as she was well-known, and he considered her to be talented. Two other well-known actors, ''Fast Times''{{'}} [[Judge Reinhold]] and character actor [[Edward Andrews]], received roles that were significantly reduced after the film was edited; they played Billy's superiors at the bank.<ref name="DVD" /><ref name="theringer.com"/> Tom Hanks also read for Gerald.<ref name="theringer.com"/>

=== Special effects ===
[[File:HowieMandelM07.jpg|upright|thumb|Comedian [[Howie Mandel]] provided the voice of Gizmo.]]
Some of the performances were shot on the [[Courthouse Square]] and [[Colonial Street]] sets of the [[Universal Studios Lot]] in [[Universal City, California|Universal City]], California (Mrs. Deagle's house was one such set as well as the opening street scenes in Chinatown, which were filmed on the [[Warner Bros. Studios Burbank|Warner Bros. Studios]] backlot). This required fake snow; Dante also felt it was an atmosphere that would make the special effects more convincing.

An earlier attempt to use [[monkey]]s to interpret the gremlins was abandoned because the test monkey panicked when made to wear a gremlin head. [[Puppet]]s and [[marionette]]s were used instead, so the actors worked alongside them in most scenes.<ref name=Empire>{{cite web |url=https://empireonline.com/news/story.asp?NID=41383 |title=Gremlins Reunion: First Look At The Empire Photoshoot |work=[[Empire (magazine)|Empire]] |date=25 June 2014 |access-date=26 June 2014 |archive-date=September 24, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924130414/http://www.empireonline.com/news/story.asp?NID=41383 |url-status=live }}</ref> Nevertheless, after the actors finished their work for good, a great deal of effort was spent finishing the effects.

[[Chris Walas]] designed numerous small rubber puppets to portray Gizmo and the gremlins. There was more than one Gizmo puppet, and occasionally Galligan, when carrying one, would set him down off camera, and when Gizmo appeared again sitting on a surface it was actually a different puppet wired to the surface. These puppets had many limitations. The Gizmo puppets were particularly frustrating because they were smaller and thus broke down more. While Walas recommended making the ''mogwai'' larger to make their creation and functioning easier for the special effects team, Dante insisted on keeping their size small to enhance the cuteness of the creatures.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/Fangoria_038|title=Chris Walas|last=Martin|first=R. H.|publisher=Fangoria (38)|date=October 1984|pages=[https://archive.org/details/Fangoria_038/page/n44 44]–45}}</ref> Consequently, to satisfy the crew, a scene was included in which the gremlins hang Gizmo on a wall and throw darts at him. This was included on a list that the crew created known to them as the "Horrible Things to do to Gizmo" list.<ref name="DVD"/> [[Rob Bottin]] and [[John Dykstra]] were originally considered to do the special effects, Bottin was Dante's first choice; but he was busy working on ''[[Legend (1985 film)|Legend]]'' (1985).<ref name="theringer.com"/>

Other effects required large ''mogwai'' faces and ears to be produced for close-ups, as the puppets were less capable of conveying emotion. Consequently, large props simulating food were needed for the close-ups in the scene in which the ''mogwai'' feast after midnight. An enlarged Gizmo puppet was also needed for the scene in which he multiplies. The new ''mogwai'', who popped out of Gizmo's body as small, furry balls which then started to grow, were balloons and expanded as such. Walas had also created the exploding gremlin in the microwave by means of a balloon that was allowed to burst.<ref name="DVD"/>

[[Howie Mandel]] provided the voice of Gizmo and prolific voice actor [[Frank Welker]] provided the voice of the gremlins' leader, Stripe. It was Welker who suggested Mandel perform in ''Gremlins''. The puppets' lines were mostly invented by the voice actors, based on cues from the physical actions of the puppets, which were filmed before the voice work. When developing the voice for Gizmo, Mandel explained, "[Gizmo was] cute and naive, so, you know, I got in touch with that... I couldn't envision going any other way or do something different with it".<ref name="Mandel">{{cite AV media |people=[[Howie Mandel|Mandel, Howie]], [[Joe Dante|Dante, Joe]] |date=2002 |title=Steven Spielberg presents ''Gremlins'' Special edition audio commentary |medium=DVD |publisher=Warner Home Video}}</ref> The majority of the other gremlins' voices were performed by [[Michael Winslow]] and [[Peter Cullen]], while the remaining voices were done by Mandel, Welker, [[Bob Bergen]], [[Fred Newman (actor)|Fred Newman]], [[Jim Cummings]], [[Sonny Melendrez]], [[Mark Dodson (actor)|Mark Dodson]], [[Bob Holt (actor)|Bob Holt]], Michael Sheehan and even Dante himself.<ref name="Jim Cummings 1" /><ref name="Sonny Melendrez"/><ref name="Joe Dante"/><ref name="Howie Mandel"/>

=== Music ===
The film's score was composed and conducted by [[Jerry Goldsmith]], who won a [[Saturn Award for Best Music]] for his efforts, and performed by the [[Hollywood Studio Symphony]]. The main score was composed with the objective of conveying "the mischievous humor and mounting suspense of Gremlins".<ref name="Behind Scenes" /> Goldsmith also wrote Gizmo's song, which was hummed by Ilene Keys, a child actress and acquaintance of Goldsmith, rather than Mandel himself.<ref name="DVD" /><ref name=":0" /> Goldsmith also appears in the film, alongside Steven Spielberg, in the scene where Rand calls home from the salesman's convention.

The soundtrack album was released by [[Geffen Records]] as a specially priced 7 cut mini-album on LP and cassette (Goldsmith's music comprised all of side two) and reissued on compact disc in 1993 only in Germany.

# Gremlins...Mega Madness – [[Michael Sembello]] (3:50)
# Make It Shine – [[Quarterflash]] (4:10)
# Out Out – [[Peter Gabriel]] (7:00)
# The Gift (4:51)
# Gizmo (4:09)
# Mrs. Deagle (2:50)
# The Gremlin Rag (4:03)

"Gremlins...Mega Madness" was also released as a single, with "The Gremlin Rag" as its B-side (The USA release has Late For Work).

In 2011, ''[[Film Score Monthly]]'' issued a two-disc release of the soundtrack, with the complete score on disc one and the original soundtrack album on disc two (representing the latter's first North American CD issue); this was the label's final Jerry Goldsmith album. A CD release by [[Warner Archive Collection]] was released through [[WaterTower Music]] on October 10, 2015.

''DISC ONE: The Film Score''
{{div col|colwidth=20em}}
# Fanfare in C ([[Max Steiner]]) / The Shop / The Little One 4:30
# Late for Work 1:46
# Mrs. Deagle / That Dog 2:22
# The Gift 1:45
# First Aid 2:17
# Spilt Water 3:02
# A New One 1:10
# The Lab / Old Times 2:35
# The Injection 2:56
# Snack Time / The Wrong Time 1:49
# The Box 1:24
# First Aid 1:39
# Disconnected / Hurry Home 1:03
# Kitchen Fight 4:06
# Dirty Linen 0:43
# The Pool 1:07
# The Plow / Special Delivery 1:16
# High Flyer 2:22
# Too Many Gremlins 2:06
# No Santa Claus 3:27
# After Theatre 1:39
# Theatre Escape / Stripe Is Loose / Toy Dept. / No Gizmo 4:36
# The Fountain / Stripe's Death 5:42
# Goodbye, Billy 2:56
# End Title / The Gremlin Rag 4:10
# Blues 2:17
# Mrs. Deagle [film version] 1:27
# God Rest You Merry, Gentlemen [traditional, arr. Alexander Courage] 1:12
# After Theatre [with "Silent Night"] 1:36
# After Theatre [without "Silent Night"] 1:36
# Rabbit Rampage [Milt Franklyn] 0:47
# The Gremlin Rag [full version] 3:35
# Gizmo's New Song 0:35
# Gizmo's Trumpet 0:30
{{div col end}}

Tracks 26–34 are listed as bonus tracks.

''DISC TWO: 1984 Soundtrack Album''
# Gremlins...Mega Madness – Michael Sembello 3:52
# Make It Shine – Quarterflash 4:11
# Out Out – Peter Gabriel 7:02
# The Gift 4:58
# Gizmo 4:14
# Mrs. Deagle 2:54
# The Gremlin Rag 4:13