There was some hoopla about a year ago about the fact that DEADGIRL 2 was being talked about. I'm not going to get into all of the terrible particulars that killed the project, but needless to say the outcome wasn't pretty and I don't think that a sequel will ever get made. It certainly won't get made with my participation. And it's probably the best that it remain this way.
But I did write a script for it. I always saw the original DEADGIRL as a condemnation of misogyny as opposed to being misogynous - the boys were the monsters, not the "monster" of the title. But a lot of people didn't see it that way. My idea for the sequel was to try and tell a story from the point of view of a female outcast and what would happen if she found the DEADGIRL this time ... instead of using the DEADGIRL for the impetus of her sexual fantasies, what if she used the DEADGIRL for her revenge fantasies instead? I also wanted to put the story back into the "really small rural town" where the first one was supposed to take place (we shot the first movie in Los Angeles and while it looks a lot like "anytown," it didn't capture that economic desperation that I was hoping for ... desperation that would have added to the boys bizarre and angry choices). What I ended up writing could maybe be described as "Precious meets The Pit with a zombie attack dog."
Maybe this movie would have sucked. Maybe people would have loved it. Who knows? It wouldn't have hurt to at least try, but alas it wasn't to be.
... So as a special treat to my fans and blog readers and the fans of the first DEADGIRL, I've decided to let everyone who's interested take a look at the un-produced screenplay. My wife, among others, is like, "Why would you do something like that? What if the project comes back to life? Why don't you just change the title and see if you can make it anyway?" I dunno ... for me, the work has already been done and to have it just sit on a shelf collecting dust seems unfair to the story. I've basically moved on to other things. I would only make this story if it was DEADGIRL 2. It's the only way that it would make sense for me (although, to be fair, the story could easily be sold as something else - the DEADGIRL herself is the only returning character). And that's just not going to happen.
Enough pontificating. Here's the script. I hope that people dig on it. Remember that it's a first draft, so I'm sure it's got all kinds of bumps and warts, but it is what it is. Enjoy and leave me some comments, whydontcha?
DEADGIRL 2: The Screenplay
- T
19 comments:
Thank you very much for sharing your sequel script. I liked Deadgirl alot and I'm interested to read what you had in store as a followup.
It's my pleasure. Thanks for reading and I hope that you think it's cool!
Wow. Really dug the script. A lot of interesting ideas that, with a rewrite or two (just to fix some bumps), would have been a great follow-up to the first film. I'm an avid script reader/wannabe screenwriter/director. I'm happy you made this available. Loved the first film to pieces. Between that and Chop (which I also loved), consider me a fan of yours. Oh, and for the longest time I had no idea you were the dude in that epic "making-of" documentary for Citizen Toxie. haha. Can't wait to see what's next!
Thanks, AB's Taint (great name)!
I was simply trying to expand the universe a bit, tell another character's story. Lots of folks seemed peeved that I never revealed the DEADGIRL's origin in the first movie, so I made sure to not do it again in this one ... in both cases, I simply wanted the DEADGIRL to be like a cipher for the pent-up desires of characters that she interacted with - doing it that way, we could have continued into more sequels if we wanted or needed to.
Thanks for reading and glad that you enjoy my work! I'll keep making em if you keep watching (or reading) em!
And honestly, that is the best approach. I would rather never learn the origins of the Deadgirl. Doing so would only make it seem as if you're treating the audience as idiots. I respect any movie/script that doesn't spell everything out for you. It would be like showing Paltrow's head in the box in Se7en, or David Lynch explaining one of his movies. haha. I also like the idea of the Deadgirl working as a visual metaphor of sorts for the characters deep, dark desires. That is a WAY more interesting approach than just flat out explaining "hey, so here is the story of Deadgirl..."
I think this would make a great comic book, if the chances of it being made into a film seem dim. I'd love to see this visually fleshed out to some capacity. Either way, I'll keep watching your stuff.
Nooo! "Bandwidth exceeded for today".
I'll check back tomorrow :)
Man, it's not even 9am here in California and my keepandshare limit for the day is already at 73% ... which means that in another few hours I will have exceeded my bandwidth for the day ... I know that people like the first film, but thought that I'd get maybe ten or twenty downloads, not hundreds and hundreds of them!
Crazy.
I'm about halfway through the script and think it's great so far. Shame that it'll probably never get made.
We went ahead and plugged the link on Bleeding Cool. Look forward to seeing more of your stuff.
http://www.bleedingcool.com/2012/01/17/read-script-for-sequel-best-zombie-rape-drama-youve-never-seen/
Thanks for the plug, Hannah. Hope that you come back and tell me what you thought of the rest of the script!
I enjoyed Deadgirl a lot, and had no trouble telling that it was a critique of misogyny rather than misogynist. I'm actually kind of shocked that anyone missed the point that the girl was the protagonist. Anyway, I'm looking forward to downloading the script and reading it as soon as I get home. Thanks for sharing it, and hopefully your next project goes smoothly!
Thanks to everybody for coming to take a look at the script! It's 5:18pm on the west coast and I've used up my 200 megabytes for the day ... 200 more will be available at midnight!
I never saw Deadgirl, but enjoyed reading the script. I especially liked the idea that the zombies weren't controlled by the brain or anything, and that they couldn't be killed even by shredding the remains.
Trent,
Read the script twice in the last few days and enjoyed every page. I said it on Twitter and will say it here, if the itch ever hits to actualize the script, I would empty my pockets to donate to a kickstarter or other fundraiser to fund the film.
On behalf of my entire staff at Under The Gun Review, thank you for once again taking us to a place few, if any others, ever dare. It was a hell of a good time.
Wow, James! Thanks so much for the kind words and I'm genuinely pleased that you enjoyed it! Just because this one didn't get made doesn't mean that I'm not going to keep making my own movies and doing them my own way (or at least trying)! Hopefully I'll keep making things that are up your alley and you'll keep following my career!
Neophyte - really cool that you never even saw the first one and yet still enjoyed the script ... that was one of the challenges I wanted to present to myself - to make a sequel that could be watched, comprehended, and enjoyed by someone who knew nothing about the first but fans of the first could still see where there was a thematic unity to the two pieces ... good to know that part of the plan worked out!
Just into the second act and wanted to drop in and mention that the writing is REALLY good. Looking forward to finishing reading it and I do hope DG2 gets made by someone who gets it (if the rights aren't tied up). For my part, I was on the edge of my seat for the entire first film about the Deadgirl's origins. Leaving it to another film (the third, I imagine?) to explain helps exacerbate the tension, but I still am curious to know. If a crashing-to-Earth Venus probe can do it in Night and toxic waste can do it in Return, I'm interested to know what it can be that turns her into Deadgirl. Great stuff!
Thanks for taking a look, Gil, and glad you're liking it so far!
I don't think that anyone - even me - will ever know what the origin of DEADGIRL is ... to me, these stories are about the humans that encounter her. I, for one, am happy for her to remain a mystery!
Very interesting read Trent! Thanks for posting. It's a shame that this didn't come to happen because it would've been a really good movie. I love the way you write, I can picture everything in my mind. It comes to life right off the pages. I would love to read the screenplay for the first one as well if at all possible. Thanks for being an inspiration for all of us writers! Keep up the good work.
Thanks for reading, Gil, and you're in luck - I posted the script for the first DEADGIRL a while back on the blog:
I think that this link should take you right to it:
DEADGIRL First Draft Screenplay
Hope you like it!
- T
Amazing. Just amazing. I loved the first and love this. It's a shame this will never be made, but one can always hope. I could definitively see deadgirl as an anime. Can't wait for more from you. Would love to see Rickie and JoAnn again.. now off to buy chop.
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