While speaking to /Film in promotion of the film Patti Cake$, original Gremlins screenwriter Chris Columbus talked about his script for Gremlins 3. In particular, he discussed whether the world would be better off without Gizmo, as he is ultimately responsible for the existence of the Gremlins:
“That comes up in the movie, certainly. I think it probably is a good idea to be honest with you. Too many people are dying.”
Despite being a touch whimsical, first film had its fair share moments of darkness and violence (prompting the MPAA to create the PG-13 rating), but apparently, it pales in comparison to the script for Part 3. Here’s what Columbus had to say about it:
“I’m really proud of the script. It is as twisted and dark as anything, so we’ll see. It’s always a budgetary conversation when we’re going to shoot it. I wanted to go back to the really twisted sensibility of the first movie. I found that was a very easy place for me to fall back into and start writing again so hopefully we’ll see that movie soon.”
Columbus also talked about the use of CGI versus practical effects:
“Oh, without a doubt, minimal CGI. CGI will enable us to remove wires and make the puppeteers lives a little easier. It was brutal. It was like a marathon every night for those guys. In the bar scene alone there were 18 [or] 20 people behind the bar. No one had any space to move. It was just hellish for those guys so CGI will simplify that a little bit but it’s all puppets.”
Gremlins 2: the New Batch (not written by Columbus, but by Charles S. Haas) had a very different tone than the first film, acting more of a parody than anything else. This was at the request of director Joe Dante, who only agreed to return if he could do whatever he wanted with the sequel. Warner Bros. is once again producing the film, but there is no word as to whether Dante will be returning to the franchise. Given how the direction he went with the second film, it would be no surprise if he chose not to return to the franchise. You can watch our interview with Dante below.