Tobe Hooper's The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 has developed a cult-following of the past three and a half decades. With an overtly comedic tone that drastically differs from the iconic original, the film continues the demented exploits of the Swayer family, a clan of cannibalistic chainsaw-wielding maniacs who indiscriminately slaughter any human being that dare cross their path.
Released on August 22, 1986, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 turned a $4.7 million budget into an $8 million global grosser. The film stars Dennis Hopper, Bill Moseley, Caroline Williams, Jim Siedow, and Bill Johnson as Leatherface. For more, here are 10 Behind-The-Scenes Facts About The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2.
10 It Was Originally A Motel Hell Parody
Tobe Hooper and co-writer Jim Henkel initially conceived the idea for The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 to feature a whole town full of rabid cannibals. The idea was meant to satirize the 1980 horror-comedy Motel Hell, which itself was a spoof of Hooper's original The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.
Hooper pitched the town-full of cannibals idea under the title Beyond the Valley of the Texas Chainsaw Massacre, which Cannon rejected outright. Afterwards, writer L.M. Kit Carson was brought in to do extensive script rewrites.
9 Caroline Williams' Audition Was Extreme
The character of radio DJ Vanita "Stretch" Brock is played in the film by Caroline Williams. According to Williams, she was so eager to make a good impression in her audition that she went above and beyond the call of duty.
When Williams was called in to perform her audition, she went to the back of the hall before sprinting into the audition room while screaming at the top of her lungs. She entered the room and kicked Gunnar Hansen (then in talks to reprise his role as Leatherface) and writer Kit Carson out of their seats and used the chairs to barricade the door before performing her scene.
8 Gunnar Hansen Didn't Reprise Leatherface Due To A Contract Dispute
Speaking of Gunnar Hansen -- the man who played Leatherface in Hooper's original 1974 masterpiece -- he was approached to reprise his role in the long-awaited sequel. Unfortunately, a contract dispute forced him to pass.
Hansen claims he was offered "scale plus ten percent" to reprise the role, with the ten percent meant for his agent. Hansen told Cannon he had no agent and they rescinded the ten percent from his contract offer. Hansen felt slighted and that the fee was too low, ultimately passing on the role. As a result, Bill Johnson was cast in the part instead.
7 It Was Originally Rated-X
Tobe Hooper's original cut of the film was much longer and far gorier than the version that was released. As such, the film was given an X-Rating when it was submitted to the MPAA. This forced Hooper and Cannon to release an "unrated" cut of the movie in the U.S.
Hooper also claims the film was cut because Cannon wanted a 90-100 minute movie they could play multiple times a day in theaters and make as much money as possible. When the BBFC told Cannon that 20-25 minutes had to be cut to be released in the UK, the company ditched plans to release the film in the territory.
6 It Was Banned In Multiple Countries
Even with the heavily excised gore, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 was banned in multiple countries. In 1986, the Australian company Hoyts Distribution submitted the film for a rating-classification, but the material was deemed so offensive that they outright refused to classify the film. As such, the movie was banned in Australia for more than 20 years.
The film was also banned in West Germany in 1986 before it could be released in theaters. In 2012, the distribution company Turbine Medien obtained rights to the film and spent another four years before having the ban lifted in Germany.
5 Bill Mosely's The Texas Chainsaw Manicure Helped Him Land A Role
With his own time and money, actor Bill Mosely made a short film entitled The Texas Chainsaw Manicure, in which he played a version of the infamous hitchhiker Nubbins Sawyer from the original film. Mosely showed the short to a screenwriter, who in turn gave it to Tobe Hooper.
Hooper loved the film Mosely made and vowed to keep him in mind if he ever made a Texas Chainsaw sequel. Years later when the sequel was in development, Hooper contacted Mosely and offered him the role of Chop Top, who's confirmed to be Nubbins' twin brother.
4 The Director Of Bloodsport Was Brought Onboard
When Cannon realized production on the film was going overlong, they brought in longtime second-unit director Newt Arnold to ensure Tobe Hooper delivered the film on schedule. Arnold was hired to oversee the entire production and ensure filming went smoothly.
In addition to working as second-unit director on such classics as The Godfather Part II, Blade Runner, and many more. Most famously, Arnold would go on to direct the Jean Claude Van-Damme action flick Bloodsport for Cannon two years later. His only other directorial credits include the horror films Blood Thirst (1971) and Hands of a Stranger (1962).
3 There's A Deleted Hunting Scene
As revealed in the 2000 documentary Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Shocking Truth, Tobe Hooper had to delete several gory scenes from the final edit to give the film a better pace. Among them was a lengthy Sawyer Family hunting expedition.
The scene involves the Sawyer cannibals going on a nighttime hunt for "prime meat," which they find in the form of various moviegoers and raucous rioters. The clan butchers them all and uses their remains as the key ingredient in their house chili.
2 Joe Bob Briggs' Film Debut Was Cut
John Bloom, aka Joe Bob Briggs, is an American film critic and horror fanatic known for hosting the TV show MonsterVision. Bloom made his big-screen debut in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2, but his scenes were left on the cutting room floor. They can be found on the 2007 Gruesome Edition DVD
Bloom played Gonzo Moviegoer in the film, one of several customers who are slaughtered during the aforementioned Sawyer clan's prime meat hunt. Bloom likely earned the role after publicly declaring Hooper's original The Texas Chainsaw Massacre as the "greatest movie ever made."
1 There's A Bunch Of Hidden Easter Eggs
A slew of fun-filled Easter eggs can be spotted in The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2. For example, in the radio station, a poster for the group Fine Young Cannibals can be seen. So can The Beatles' grisly and controversial "Butcher Cover" version of Yesterday and Today.
Elsewhere, when Lefty (Hopper) goes shopping for his chainsaw, on the wall lies Leatherface's trusty weapon from the original film, a Poulan 245A model. Also, Tobe Hooper makes a brief cameo in the film as a frisky partygoer, and the same Star-Spangled Banner themed heard in Hooper's Poltergeist plays after Stretch broadcasts the chainsaw killing.
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