How Tobe Hooper’s ‘Poltergeist’ became a real-life horror movie
Poltergeist remains an iconic and creepy horror picture that submits to the classic ‘cursed set’ urban legend. The 1980s chiller was written by Steven Spielberg and directed by the underrated horror master Tobe Hooper, starring JoBeth Williams, Craig T. Nelson and Beatrice Straight. The supernatural plot showcases a traditional American family whose youngest child is abducted by vengeful ghosts who use the television as a vessel.
With Hooper on board as director, having attracted Spielberg through his influential classic The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, Poltergeist was a guaranteed terrifying hit. Taking inspiration from a creepy real-life occurrence, the film blends immersive suspense, visual scares that burned into audiences’ minds, and innovative depiction of the supernatural, causing it to be rightfully recognised as a horror classic.
Poltergeist was also the eighth-highest-grossing film of 1982, featuring on many critical lists for its consistent terrifying sequences, such as the infamous clown doll and mirror scene. The film spawned two direct sequels Poltergeist II: The Other Side, in 1986 and Poltergeist III in 1988, and a 2015 remake directed by Gil Kenan. However, as expected in the horror genre, the sequels of a brilliant horror film and any subsequent remakes fell short in quality.
As mentioned, in addition to garnering attention as a terrifying supernatural classic, Poltergeist holds relevance in the horror genre for its cursed urban legend. Another horrific and iconic sequence sees Williams’ Diane, relaxing after getting her daughter back from the evil spirits, be dragged by the ghosts into the backdoor pool excavation. When she submerges, covered in wet dirt, dozens of skeletons arise with her, shocking her and the audience into a screaming fit.
Not only is this brief but memorable scene a staple of the film, but it also anchors the cursed set myth. After she shot the scene, Williams was shocked to discover that the skeletons were not plastic movie props but real human skeletons. Why did the studio use actual skeletons? For financial reasons, it was cheaper to use real skeletons than have artificial ones made.
This startling revelation was part of the actor’s tiresome experience on set. Speaking to Variety in 2019, Willaims shared that she is “proud of Poltergeist because it was a brutal shoot,” she said. “It was physically very hard. The director [Tobe Hooper] would say, ‘OK, now you’re really upset, so we need you all to really be screaming,'” she added. “And we said, ‘What are we screaming at?’ And he said, ‘We’re not really sure yet what it’s going to be’.”
Another unsettling feature of the film is the tragic passing of several cast members, including Dominique Dunne, who played the family’s oldest daughter Dana. The 22-year-old actor was tragically strangled by her abusive boyfriend, John Thomas Sweeney, in the same year of Poltergeist’s release. Sweeney only served three years in prison.
Furthermore, Heather O’Rourke, who played the youngest child, Carol Anne, also passed in tragic circumstances. O’Rourke suddenly became extremely ill in 1988, experiencing stomach cramps that only worsened. Suddenly, the 12-year-old went into cardiac arrest and was immediately rushed into surgery. She suffered from septic shock and passed away on the operating table.
Additional information includes Will Sampson, who played the shaman in Poltergeist II: The Other Side, being an alleged medicine man. He reportedly attempted an exorcism one night following a shoot to eliminate the curse. He died less than a year later after complications from a kidney transplant.
