Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re looking at movies that have become tragic over time thanks to outside forces or revealing behind-the-scenes news.
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00:00Welcome to WatchMojo and today we're looking at movies that have become tragic over time
00:14thanks to outside forces or revealing behind-the-scenes news.
00:18As such, we will not be including examples of actors passing away before a movie was
00:22released, as the misfortune was known about going in.
00:29A huge surprise hit, Erin Brockovich scored over $250 million at the box office and garnered
00:38five Oscar nominations.
00:40It follows the titular activist who successfully sued the Pacific Gas & Electric Company for
00:44polluting the water of Hinkley, California.
00:51The movie propelled the hero into the national spotlight, but her family wasn't quite ready
00:55for it.
00:56In the case against PG&E, an incredible amount of pressure was placed on Brockovich, and
01:00the professional obligations often took her away from her children.
01:13With her mother gone for long stretches, Elizabeth Brockovich started acting out, often skipping
01:18school and falling into heavy substance use.
01:20Luckily, Erin Brockovich noticed the warning signs and enrolled her daughter into rehab.
01:32While this Christmas movie remains an annual tradition for many, their viewings may be
01:36soured knowing what happened to the late Phil Hartman.
01:39He plays the nosy and way-too-involved neighbour Ted, and Jingle All The Way would be the last
01:43movie released in his lifetime.
01:50The movie came out on November 22nd, 1996, and just 18 months later, Hartman was shot
01:56and killed by his wife, Bryn, who was under the influence of drugs and alcohol.
02:00Hartman starred in three more movies following Jingle All The Way, but all were posthumous
02:04releases.
02:05The knowledge of his violent murder sort of takes the joy and cheer out of the otherwise
02:08fun Christmas classic.
02:16The Birds While it's considered one of the greatest
02:22horror movies of all time, The Birds is somewhat tarnished thanks to some behind-the-scenes
02:26drama.
02:27Decades after the movie was released, it became clear that director Alfred Hitchcock was highly
02:31inappropriate around actress Tippi Hedren.
02:38Those involved with the production claimed that Hitchcock was obsessed with the star,
02:41but she constantly denied his advances.
02:43He also subjected her to injury on the set of the movie, and later locked her in a restrictive
02:48contract that prohibited her ability to find work.
02:51And it is widely believed that Hitchcock did so in revenge for Hedren turning him down.
03:09Heralded as a masterpiece and a defining product of the 1950s, Rebel Without a Cause
03:14is also very difficult to watch knowing what happened to its three leads.
03:24All three would be found dead within a span of just 25 years, all died violently, and
03:29all before reaching their 50s.
03:31First to go was James Dean, who perished in a car crash just weeks before the movie was
03:35released.
03:37El Minio followed, being stabbed and killed by a mugger in 1976.
03:40And finally, there's Natalie Wood, who drowned under very mysterious circumstances in 1981.
03:46Their young deaths are especially ironic given that the movie is all about youth, and these
03:51actors barely even left theirs.
04:04Years after her work with Alfred Hitchcock, Tippi Hedren starred in the adventure comedy,
04:08Raw.
04:09The movie came and went, but it has since developed a cult following owing to the production's
04:13egregious disregard for health and safety.
04:20Most of the details were relayed in Hedren's book, The Cats of Shambhala, which was published
04:24four years after the movie was released.
04:26Most of the large cats used for filming were untrained, leading to at least 70 injuries.
04:32Noel Marshall was bitten a dozen times and suffered gangrene.
04:35Hedren was also left gangrenous after an elephant fractured her hand and ankle.
04:39Melanie Griffith required facial reconstruction after being attacked by a lioness.
04:44And cinematographer Jan Dubont was scalped by a lion, resulting in 220 sutures.
04:57One of the most controversial films ever made, Men Behind the Sun chronicles the various
05:00atrocities that the Imperial Japanese Army conducted throughout World War II.
05:05It largely centres around Unit 731, a secret Chinese facility that was used for human experimentation.
05:20The film is intensely graphic, more akin to a feature-length gore video than an actual
05:25movie.
05:26And that's essentially what it is.
05:27The various body parts and organs were real, being both human and animal in nature.
05:31There are shots of real animal cruelty, and one infamous autopsy scene was conducted with
05:36a genuine cadaver.
05:37The movie is disturbing enough, but knowing this makes it unwatchable.
05:54As its title suggests, the end of Evangelion serves as the ending to the enormously popular
05:59and influential anime, Neon Genesis Evangelion.
06:02It came about largely through fan demand, as the show's ending was considered controversial
06:06and unsatisfactory.
06:12Near the end of the film, a series of creepy images are flashed on the screen.
06:15One is an email death threat, written to Hideaki Anno, the creator of the Evangelion franchise.
06:20The other is the vandalised office of anime studio Gainax.
06:24Both were reportedly done in response to the ending of Neon Genesis Evangelion, conducted
06:29by furious and dissatisfied viewers.
06:31It only makes the ending that much more unforgettable.
06:39For some, this Wes Craven flick is a brilliant commentary on human depravity.
06:49For others, it's an irredeemable piece of sadistic trash.
06:58Whatever side you land on, there's no denying that it's a troubling watch.
07:01As it turns out, it was even more troubling to make, especially for lead actress Sandra
07:05Peabody.
07:06Peabody was routinely mistreated on set, to the point that she was being constantly consoled
07:10by Craven.
07:13At one point, Mark Sheffler, playing Junior, threatened to push her off a cliff.
07:22She also had a very difficult time working with David Hesse.
07:25She claims that Hesse was methodical off-screen, and Hesse himself admitted that he got too
07:30physical during the infamous sequence in which Mary is assaulted.
07:41While William Shatner went on to great things, his co-stars, and the movie itself for that
07:48matter, were not so lucky.
07:56Anne Atmar took her own life shortly after filming Handwrapped.
07:59Milos Milos shot and killed Barbara Ann Thomason, the estranged wife of Mickey Rooney, before
08:04turning the gun on himself.
08:06Marina Harvey, the teenage daughter of Eloise Hart, was abducted outside of her mother's
08:10home, and murdered, supposedly by members of the Manson family.
08:14Then all prints of the movie were lost in a fire.
08:16One sole copy was later found in 1996, allowing modern viewers to watch one of the most cursed
08:22films in history.
08:30The Exorcist
08:31It's only fitting that a movie about demonic possession is also incredibly cursed.
08:41The making of The Exorcist is almost as legendary as the movie itself, with plenty of on-set
08:46accidents, injuries and freak occurrences.
08:58Both Ellen Berstein and Linda Blair seriously injured their backs during filming, leaving
09:02them with lasting debilitations.
09:05Various crew members lost limbs in freak accidents, and many people involved in the film died
09:09during production or shortly afterward.
09:11The technician in the famous angiography scene was later convicted of murdering a journalist.
09:16It was all too much for director William Friedrich, who asked a real priest to exercise the set.
09:28Others attribute the supposed curse to Friedrich's careless leadership and brilliant studio marketing.
09:37The Shining
09:44Great art is often made from great pain, and that is certainly the case with The Shining.
09:48By all accounts, the filming of this movie was an absolute miserable experience, led
09:52mainly by the perfectionist attitude of director Stanley Kubrick.
10:04The days were incredibly long, Kubrick often demanded dozens of takes, and principal photography
10:09took over a year to complete.
10:11Shelley Duvall was often a specific target of Kubrick, furiously arguing on the set.
10:16Some of this antagonism can be seen in Vivian Kubrick's behind-the-scenes documentary,
10:21which aired five months after the film's American premiere.
10:29It shows Duvall fighting with Kubrick, losing her hair from stress, and even lying on the
10:33floor out of total exhaustion.
10:39Stalker
10:45Considered one of the greatest Soviet films of all time, Stalker was filmed in two deserted
10:49power plants near the city of Tarlan, Estonia.
10:52These plants were found on the Yagala River.
10:54According to sound designer Vladimir Sharun, a nearby chemical plant would often pour its
10:58runoff into the river, and this poisonous liquid would make its way downstream to the
11:03power plants.
11:09While it's difficult to correlate, Sharun contends that many people involved in the
11:13film became sick from these toxic chemicals, and later died of their illnesses.
11:17This includes assistant director Larisa Tarkovskaya, star Anatoly Solonitsyn, and director Andrei
11:23Tarkovsky.
11:28Peter Pan
11:29It's hard going back to these Disney classics knowing that most, if not all, involved are
11:34now dead.
11:35It's especially hard going back to Peter Pan.
11:37Peter was voiced by Bobby Driscoll, who was a young teenager when the movie came out in
11:41February 1953.
11:43Driscoll was relentlessly tormented in high school, owing to his involvement with Disney,
11:47and he fell into heavy substance use.
11:50He then faced multiple arrests and was sent to a rehab centre, all while his career rapidly
11:55deflated.
12:02Driscoll eventually moved to New York, with the hopes of making it on Broadway, but he
12:06was unsuccessful and died of heart failure at just 31.
12:10His body was found in a deserted tenement, went unclaimed, and was buried in an unmarked
12:15porpoise grave.
12:22Star Wars Episode I – The Phantom Menace
12:29The first prequel film was, erm, well, not very good.
12:32But some ardent fans can't stop their dissatisfaction from boiling into torment.
12:36There's poor Jake Lloyd, who allegedly retired from acting because he was relentlessly
12:40mocked at school.
12:49Then there's Armoured Best, who provided both the voice and motion capture for the
12:53widely maligned Jar Jar Binks.
12:55It must have been incredibly difficult being blamed for the demise of Star Wars, as many
12:59people used Jar Jar as the scapegoat for their general displeasure.
13:03In 2018, Best wrote on Twitter that the, quote, media backlash still affects his career
13:08today, and that he considered taking his own life as a response to the constant ridicule.
13:29This title could also refer to its production, as the set of Apocalypse Now was basically
13:33hell on earth.
13:40This is perhaps the most famous example of a troubled production, and the behind-the-scenes
13:44problems could fill a book.
13:46In fact, it has, and documentaries, and their reveals were truly shocking.
13:55Most of the sets were destroyed in a typhoon.
13:57Actors didn't get along, quit, and showed up in surprising conditions.
14:01Martin Sheen was having a breakdown, and nearly died of a heart attack.
14:05A real water buffalo was slaughtered for the climactic scene.
14:08Genuine human corpses were accidentally bought to dress Kurtz's hideout.
14:11I mean, the list is endless.
14:14But it all adds a mythical element to an already mythical film.
14:29One of the great ironies in movie history is natural-born killers inspiring copycats.
14:33I mean, the movie is a satire of the media's obsession with violence and the glorification
14:37of crime, but some viewers miss the point entirely.
14:49Whether earned or not, the film has been blamed for inspiring many copycat crimes.
14:53Numerous school shootings have been linked to the movie, as the perpetrators were vocal
14:57fans.
14:59This includes the Columbine Killers, both of whom wrote about going quote, NBK.
15:12This sentiment was repeated by Jeremy Steinke, who along with his girlfriend Jasmine Richardson,
15:16murdered Richardson's parents and brother.
15:19The incident bears a strong resemblance to a scene in the movie, and Steinke reportedly
15:23spoke of quote, going natural-born killer on her family.
15:34Perhaps the most cursed movie ever, at least in terms of pop culture infamy, is Tobe Hooper's
15:39Poltergeist.
15:40One infamous tidbit of trivia involves the pool skeletons seen in the climax of the film,
15:44which were 100% authentic.
15:51They were medical skeletons purchased by make-up artist Craig Reardon, and dressed
15:55up to look dirty and rotten, but no-one told JoBeth Williams that they were real.
16:00Adding to the eerie mystique of the film are the tragic deaths of Dominique Dunne and Heather
16:05O'Rourke.
16:10Dunne was murdered by her ex-boyfriend just five months after the movie was released,
16:14and O'Rourke died in 1988 when a bowel condition sent her into septic shock.
16:34In this widely maligned film, John Wayne plays Genghis Khan, and Utah stands in for the Far
16:39East.
16:40One filming location was the Escalante Desert, which was downwind from an old nuclear bomb
16:44testing site.
16:49Despite assurances that it was safe, 41% of the crew developed cancer in their lifetimes.
16:55This includes John Wayne, who died of cancer in 1979.
16:58Even some of their relatives developed tumours, including two of Wayne's sons.
17:02Some argue that the correlation between the illness and the radiation is difficult to
17:05prove, as the cancer rates among the crew fall in line with the national average.
17:10Many were also heavy smokers.
17:11However, those who became sick did so at a relatively young age, lending some further
17:16credence to the theory.
17:28Some people are intensely private and keep even the most serious news to themselves.
17:32One such person was Chadwick Boseman.
17:34Boseman was diagnosed with stage 3 colon cancer all the way back in 2016, shortly before filming
17:40of Black Panther had begun.
17:44He filmed several MCU movies throughout the chemotherapy, and his illness progressed into
17:48stage 4.
17:50He kept the cancer secret from everyone but his family, so it came as a huge surprise
17:55when he died in 2020.
17:57Knowing what Boseman was going through makes revisiting these films somewhat difficult,
18:01but something tells us he wouldn't want it that way.
18:03He didn't want his sickness to impede or influence his work, and we shouldn't let
18:07it.
18:29The Wizard of Oz When it was released in 1939, The Wizard of
18:36Oz was unlike anything else, and it profoundly influenced the future of cinema.
18:40Going back to it with the knowledge we have today is an altogether different experience.
18:49Production was an absolute nightmare, resulting in numerous health issues.
18:53This includes Margaret Hamilton getting burned by fire, and Buddy Ebsen being hospitalised
18:58after inhaling the aluminium dust used in the Tin Man's make-up.
19:07The worst was reserved for Judy Garland, who often suffered sexual harassment and physical
19:12abuse by the cast and crew.
19:14She was also regularly given Benzedrine tablets in an effort to keep her lean.
19:18Garland later struggled with substance use, and died of an overdose at just 47.
19:28So can you watch these movies without them getting you down?
19:31Let us know in the comments below.