Buzz
A blend of The Goonies, Ghostbusters, and Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein, The Monster Squad initially flew under the radar but has since been resurrected as a cult favorite.
1. FRED DEKKER, THE DIRECTOR, FACED REJECTION FROM TWO FILM SCHOOLS.
During his teenage years, Fred Dekker sought admission to USC and UCLA’s film programs but was turned down by both. “Both film schools rejected me,” Dekker revealed on the 20th-anniversary DVD of The Monster Squad, “but they accepted me into their general programs, so I couldn’t specialize in film.” Dekker ended up at USC, where he studied English, though his heart remained set on filmmaking. “Being an English major felt like a distraction. All I wanted was to collaborate with friends and create films.”
2. THE MOVIE RECEIVED A QUICK NOD IN NIGHT OF THE CREEPS.
While working on 1986’s Night of the Creeps, Dekker got the go-ahead for The Monster Squad, which he co-wrote with Shane Black. The film features alien parasites that transform their hosts into mindless zombies. If you pause the trailer at the 29-second mark, you’ll spot a cheeky piece of graffiti that reads, “Go Monster Squad!” on a bathroom wall.
3. THE CREATURE DESIGNERS TOOK GREAT CARE TO AVOID LEGAL ISSUES WITH UNIVERSAL.
At its core, The Monster Squad pays homage to Universal’s legendary horror films from the 1930s to the 1950s. However, Universal declined to produce the movie, leaving TriStar to take the reins. This situation pushed the visual effects team to innovate.
“Even though our film was inspired by Universal’s classics,” noted Stan Winston, the renowned monster designer, “… none of our creature designs directly copied the original Universal versions. We made subtle alterations to ensure there was no copyright infringement.” This explains why Dracula lacks Bela Lugosi’s signature widow’s peak, Frankenstein’s bolts are on his temples instead of his neck, and the Wolfman sports sharper ears and a more wolf-like face, as Dekker described.
4. THE MUMMY'S CASTING PROCESS INCLUDED A STRANGE JOB POSTING.
Mummies aren’t typically known for their size. “I’ve always been very thin,” actor Michael Reid MacKay shared. One day, a friend showed him a peculiar casting call in Variety
5. ASHLEY BANK DECLINED A PART IN FATAL ATTRACTION TO PORTRAY FIVE-YEAR-OLD PHOEBE.
Lionsgate Home Entertainment“Monster Squad offered me the role first,” Ashley Bank recalled. “If Fatal Attraction had been filmed in Los Angeles, I might have done both, but it was in New York, so I chose The Monster Squad. My parents thought it would be more enjoyable. It was a larger role, and it was a kids’ movie I could actually watch … I never had any regrets.”
6. THE ORIGINAL SCRIPT FEATURED VAN HELSING BATTLING DRACULA USING MACHINE GUNS.
In an early version of the script, Shane Black, co-writer of The Monster Squad, imagined a grandiose and costly opening sequence. As recounted in the 2007 DVD documentary Monster Squad Forever, Dekker shared that Black pictured Van Helsing attacking Dracula’s castle “from a zeppelin armed with machine guns.” The scene would also include “40 vampire brides charging on horseback.” Dekker quickly dismissed the idea, saying, “I told him, ‘We can’t do this. It’s just the first five minutes, and it would cost us $100 million!’”
7. THE TREEHOUSE OF THE MONSTER SQUAD IS FILLED WITH HORROR MOVIE REFERENCES.
The kids’ treehouse is a treasure trove for horror fans. Adorning its walls are posters and images from iconic horror films, such as (1955), (1972), and (1983), showcasing their love for the genre.
8. DUNCAN REGEHR OUTSHONE LIAM NEESON TO LAND THE PART OF DRACULA.
In 1986, Liam Neeson was still relatively unknown and, like many aspiring actors, auditioned for a horror film. He impressed with his portrayal of Dracula. “We were certain we’d cast him,” producer Jonathan Zimbert shared in Monster Squad Forever. “But then Duncan arrived, delivering an equally brilliant and terrifying performance.” Decades later, Wizard magazine hailed Regehr as the “ultimate Dracula” for his spine-chilling role in The Monster Squad.
9. THE GILLMAN INJURED A STUNTMAN DURING THE FILM'S FINAL BATTLE.
Tom Woodruff, Jr., a creature designer, had long dreamed of donning a monster suit for a blockbuster film. When no one was cast as Gillman (the Creature from the Black Lagoon) during pre-production, Woodruff, who was working on Wolfman’s animatronics, seized the chance and requested the role.
While his wish came true, the role wasn’t without challenges. In the climactic fight scene, sheriff’s deputies strike the aquatic creature with prop clubs. Though the props appeared soft, they had hard cores. As sculptor Matt Rose explains in the clip below, Woodruff felt every hit.
“They were hitting him hard,” Rose recalled. “They’d pause, and Tom would say through the Gillman mask, ‘Hey, can you take it easy?’ But his requests were ignored. After several takes, a stuntman accidentally stepped into Woodruff’s blind spot. Unable to see clearly in the suit, Woodruff accidentally punched him in the face.”
“[He] dropped like a sack of potatoes, flat on his back,” Rose said. For a few tense moments, the stuntman lay motionless, his eyes dazed. It turned out that poorly placed rivets inside his helmet had been driven into his forehead by the impact. When the helmet was removed, blood gushed from the wounds. Fortunately, he escaped serious injury.
10. DRACULA AND FRANKENSTEIN’S MONSTER REMAINED IN CHARACTER AROUND THE CHILDREN.
Tom Noonan, who played Frankenstein’s Monster, never spoke to the young actors beyond a grunt and never revealed his face without makeup. “I didn’t meet Tom until I was 25,” Ashley Bank joked. “On set, I only knew Frankenstein.”
Regehr, as Dracula, also stayed in character around the kids. However, he made a small adjustment for Bank’s final scene: Dracula lifts Phoebe by the chin, his teeth sharpen, his eyes turn red, and he lets out a menacing hiss. To ensure her reaction was genuine, Regehr hid his fangs and red contacts until the last moment, putting them on when she wasn’t looking.
Dekker, aware of Regehr’s plan, warned Bank, “You’ll need to scream in this scene.” “When?” she asked. “You’ll know,” he replied. True to his word, her scream was, as she described it, “completely real.”
11. ANDRE GOWER WAS ASKED TO CHANNEL CLINT EASTWOOD FOR THE FINAL LINE.
Just before the credits, Sean (Andre Gower) faces the camera and declares, “We’re The Monster Squad.” To ensure the line sounded cool but not over-the-top, Dekker told Gower to deliver it “like Clint Eastwood.”
12. THE FILM HAD A SHORT TWO-WEEK RUN IN THEATERS.
Debuting on August 14, 1987, The Monster Squad failed at the box office and with critics. Vincent Camby of The New York Times dismissed it as “a clumsy mix of Our Gang humor and classic horror, suggesting both genres had run their course.” After just two weeks, the movie was pulled from theaters. However, it gradually gained popularity through video rentals and TV airings.
Today, The Monster Squad boasts a loyal fanbase. When the cast and crew reunited for a two-night event at Austin’s Alamo Drafthouse Cinema in 2006, both shows sold out. As Dekker noted, “It took 20 years for the movie to find its audience.”
13. SADLY, BRENT CHALEM (“HORACE”) PASSED AWAY FROM PNEUMONIA AT THE AGE OF 22.
His legacy lives on through his remarkable talent, his kindness, and the unforgettable quote, “Wolfman’s got nards!”
