| Event Horizon | |
|---|---|
 Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | Paul Anderson |
| Written by | Philip Eisner |
| Produced by | |
| Starring | |
| Cinematography | Adrian Biddle |
| Edited by | Martin Hunter[1] |
| Music by | Michael Kamen |
Production companies |
|
| Distributed by | Paramount Pictures |
Release dates |
|
Running time | 96 minutes[2] |
| Countries | |
| Language | English |
| Budget | $60 million[3] |
| Box office | $42 million[4] |
Event Horizon is a 1997science fiction horror film directed byPaul Anderson and written byPhilip Eisner. It starsLaurence Fishburne,Sam Neill,Kathleen Quinlan andJoely Richardson. Set in 2047, it follows a crew of astronauts sent on a rescue mission after a missing spaceship, theEvent Horizon, spontaneously appears in orbit aroundNeptune, only to discover that a sinister force has come back with it.
The film had a troubled production, with filming and editing rushed byParamount Pictures when it became clear thatTitanic would not meet its projected release. The original 130-minute cut of the film was heavily edited by the studio's demand, to Anderson's consternation.
Released in the United States on 15 August 1997, and in the United Kingdom on 22 August,Event Horizon was a commercial and critical failure, grossing $42 million on a $60 million production budget. However, it began to sell well onhome video; its initial DVD release sold so well that Paramount contacted Anderson to begin working on a restoration of the deleted footage, but it had been either lost or destroyed. In the years since, the film has developed acult following and is referenced in other works of popular culture.
In 2025, a comic book prequel series was published byIDW Publishing.
In 2047, a distress signal is received from theEvent Horizon, astarship that disappeared during its maiden voyage toProxima Centauri seven years earlier. The ship has mysteriously reappeared in orbit aroundNeptune, prompting the US Aerospace Command to dispatch the rescue vesselLewis and Clark to investigate. Its crew—Captain Miller, second-in-command Lieutenant Starck, pilot Smith, medical technician Peters, engineer Ensign Justin, doctor D.J., and rescue technician Cooper—is joined by Dr. William Weir, theEvent Horizon's designer. Shortly before arrival at theEvent Horizon, he briefs them on the ship's experimental gravity drive with a simple visualization of how itfolds spacetime to instantly transport the ship across vast distances. He then plays for them the distress signal, which consists of screams, howls, and what sounds like a voice. D.J. recognizes it as the Latin"Līberāte mē", which he translates as "Save me".
Upon boarding theEvent Horizon, the crew finds signs of a massacre. As they search for survivors, the ship's gravity drive activates and briefly pulls Justin into a portal before unleashing ashock wave that breaches the hull of theLewis and Clark. The crew is forced to move to theEvent Horizon while Cooper rescues Justin from the portal, finding that he has been reduced to acatatonic state.
Smith and Cooper are sent on aspacewalk to repair the hull of theLewis and Clark while the rest of the crew begin to experience hallucinations of what they fear or regret most. Miller sees a subordinate he was forced to abandon to his death; Peters sees her son with his legs covered in bloody lesions; Weir sees an eyeless vision of his late wife urging him to join her. Justin suddenly wakes from his coma while the entire ship seems to be shaking and attempts to vent himself from the airlock; he is saved at the last second by Miller, who places a severely injured Justin instasis. Shaken, Miller confides with D.J. about his hallucinations, prompting the doctor to share that he found a longer phrase in the distress signal. It really says"Libera te tutemet ex inferis" or as he translates it: "Saveyourself fromhell").[5] D.J. concludes that the ship's drive must have opened a gateway somewhere beyond the known universe and brought something horrible back with it. A video log discovered on theEvent Horizon adds more weight to this conclusion, revealing a scene of the crew brutalizing each other after engaging the gravity drive, with their captain chanting in Latin as he holds his own eyeballs in his hands.
Miller immediately orders his crew to speed up their evacuation, ignoring Weir's vehement protests to the contrary. As she and Smith retrieve CO2 scrubbers from theEvent Horizon, Peters is lured to her death by a hallucination of her son. Weir finds her body and is flung into a hallucination of his wife's suicide, driving him to gouge out his own eyes and embrace the ship's evil presence. Now thoroughly corrupted, he uses an explosive to destroy theLewis and Clark, killing Smith and blasting Cooper into space, then kills D.J. byvivisecting him. Miller confronts Weir on thebridge but is overpowered. Weir initiates a 10-minute countdown to activate the gravity drive and return the ship to the other hellish dimension. Meanwhile, Cooper has used his spacesuit's oxygen supply to propel himself back to the ship and appears at the bridge window. Weir shoots at him, shattering the window and blowing himself into space with the decompression. Miller, Starck, and Cooper survive and manage to seal off the ship's bridge. With their own ship destroyed, Miller plans to split theEvent Horizon in two with explosives and use its forward section as a lifeboat. He is attacked by hallucinations which turn out to be the resurrected and now even more mutilated Weir. Miller fights him at the gravity drive and detonates the explosives, sacrificing himself to save his remaining crew.
The gravity drive activates, pulling the ship's stern section into ablack hole. Starck and Cooper enter stasis beside a comatose Justin and wait to be rescued. Seventy-two days later, the wreckage of theEvent Horizon is boarded by a rescue party who discover the survivors in stasis. Starck hallucinates Weir as one of the rescuers and screams but she quickly awakens, realizing that it was only a nightmare. Cooper and the rescue team try to calm the terrified Starck as the doors close.
AfterMortal Kombat (1995) was a commercial success in the United States, English directorPaul Anderson was inundated with screenplay offers, as well as the opportunity to direct theMortal Kombat sequelMortal Kombat Annihilation (1997)[6] and the upcomingX-Men (2000).[7] He turned down the offers in favor of making anR-rated horror film, wanting to shift away from making anotherPG-13 film.[7]Paramount Pictures sent himPhilip Eisner's original script forEvent Horizon, which they had been trying to develop with producersLawrence Gordon andLloyd Levin.[8] According to Eisner, he firstpitched its concept to Gordon as a "haunted house story in space", which the producer thought had potential: "Luckily", said Eisner, "he liked the idea enough to trust me to do it."[6]
Anderson's initial reaction to the script, which involved the cruiseshipEvent Horizon experiencing a series of hauntings by "tentacular" aliens, it having crossed the threshold of their planet or "dimension", was that it bore striking resemblance toAlien (1979). Producer and longtime collaboratorJeremy Bolt felt it was a "terrific concept" but was "very dense" in terms of length and the storyline was "a bit lost".[8] Anderson did not want to direct a mimicry ofAlien, so he gave the script a major rewrite, picturing a "classic haunted house movie". He incorporated significant influences of successful horror films such asRobert Wise'sThe Haunting (1963) andStanley Kubrick'sThe Shining (1980), because they created suspense from the unknown—the evil presence was hidden from the viewer—and their endings induced ambiguities of perception in the audience. He said he was also interested in the concept ofHell, and of "the ship itself being possessed rather than going 'Oh, it's an alien consciousness that is doing this'", and added these to the script.[8][9] Anderson also said that the science fiction filmSolaris (1972) was an inspiration forEvent Horizon.[10]
ScreenwriterPhilip Eisner acknowledged thatWarhammer 40,000 influenced the story.[11] In the setting ofWarhammer 40,000, spaceships travel the galaxy by passing through "the Warp"—a parallel dimension where faster-than-light travel is possible, conceptually similar to "hyperspace" inStar Wars, but which is also inhabited by evil spirits that can infiltrate the ship and possess the crew if said ship is not properly shielded.[12]
Filming took place inPinewood Studios, with visual effects provided byCinesite andComputer Film Company. Using an architectural cam program, Anderson modeled theEvent Horizon ship afterNotre Dame Cathedral. Effects supervisorsRichard Yuricich andNeil Corbould kept most visualsin-camera, and moving sets were constructed for the gyrosphere gravity drive and the revolving tunnel. For scenes depicting zero gravity, the actors were hung upside down in harnesses and spun around. The original script had more zero gravity scenes, but budget constraints had the filmmakers introduce magnetic boots. Because the majority of scenes were filmed in a studio on gothic-inspired sets, Anderson felt the cast experienced a kind of "cabin fever" that better served their performances.[13][14][15][16] Joely Richardson called the experience of working on the film "cursed".[17]
As Anderson explained, directors usually have a standard 10-week editing period to produce a film's first cut, as guaranteed by theDirectors Guild of America. However, due to the short production schedule, the rapidly approaching release date, and the fact that principal photography had not finished, Anderson agreed to a six-week editing period, and promised to deliver the film by August 1997, as Paramount wanted a hit film beforeTitanic's planned September release date. When the main unit wrapped, Anderson was supposed to start editing the film, but he had two weeks of shooting left with thesecond unit, shortening post-production to just four weeks, during which only a rough cut could be assembled. He noted that at two hours and 10 minutes, it was overly long, with weak direction and acting that could have used another editing pass; unfinished special effects; and a poor sound mix.[18][8]
Intest screenings, the cut was poorly received. There were complaints about the extreme gore,[8] and Anderson and producerJeremy Bolt claim that some members of the test audience fainted.[18] Paramount executives, who had stopped watching thedailies before any of the gore was shot, and were seeing the complete film for the first time along with the audience, were similarly shocked by how gruesome it was, and demanded a shorter runtime with less gore. They also felt Anderson was "besmirching"Star Trek. Anderson agreed that while his first cut was too long, Paramount forced him to make one that was instead too short, and that the film would benefit by the restoration of around 10 minutes of footage, including some of the deleted gore.[18][19]
It was 'reduced unit' footage, I think the studio never bothered watching it because they thought it wasinserts and buttons being pressed or something. But what it all was, was actually all of the hell footage ... influenced byBosch andBruegel ... so there was a beauty to it, even though it was very disturbing.
When the initialDVD release became a surprise hit, the studio and Anderson became interested in assembling adirector's cut, but found that the excised footage had not been carefully stored and much of it had gone missing. The director's cut was abandoned and instead a special-edition two-DVD set was released, featuring one deleted scene, two extended scenes, and a few shots of deleted material in the includedmaking-of featurette. The footage is of "video" quality.[18][20]
Known deleted scenes include a meeting scene between Weir and people in charge of the mission in which they discussEvent Horizon, some dialogue of which remained present in the theatrical trailer;[21][22] more backstory for Cooper and Justin, including a stronger explanation for Justin entering the black hole; a deleted backstory of the relationship between Starck and Miller; additional scenes explaining what the gateway to hell/black hole is;[23] Miller finding a tooth floating inEvent Horizon;[8] a longer version of the scene where Peters hallucinates that her son's mangled legs are covered in maggots;[18] a scene where Weir hallucinates that Justin turns into his wife Claire;[24][25] a bloodier version of Weir's wife Claire's suicide; a longer version of the scene where Miller finds D.J.'s vivisected body with his intestines on the table; and a longer version of the "Visions From Hell" scene during Miller's final fight with Weir, with more shots ofEvent Horizon's crew being tortured.[21]
The "bloody orgy" video was also longer. As Anderson was sometimes too busy filming other scenes, second-unit director Vadim Jean filmed some parts of it.[8] Real-life amputees were used for special effects scenes whereEvent Horizon crew members were mutilated, andpornographic film actors were hired to make the sex and rape scenes more realistic and graphic.[18]
The film's ending was a combination of two unused alternate endings. One did not have a jump scare at the end when the last two survivors are found by another rescue crew, and Starck hallucinates that she sees Weir, although there was a similar version of the scene included in this ending where she hears screams of theEvent Horizon crew and screams before Cooper wakes her. This was the film's original ending in the shooting script.[26] The second ending had Miller fighting with the burned man from his visions at the core instead of with Weir, but this was changed due to the negative test screening.[25]
In anEvent Horizon Q&A in 2011, Anderson was asked when extra footage would be made available. "Never", he said, explaining that much of it was gone forever.[18] However, in a 2012 interview, he announced that producerLloyd Levin had found aVHS tape with his original rough cut. He said that after finishingResident Evil: Retribution, he planned to watch the recovered footage for the first time since assembling the film.[27] In a January 2017 interview, he reiterated that a director's cut would never be released, as the footage no longer existed. Asked about the VHS tape, he said neither he nor Levin had seen it yet, as Levin had moved to Spain; however, he was still excited about watching it at some point.[28]
Michael Kamen was hired to compose the film's score. DirectorPaul W. S. Anderson, a fan of hybrid genre music, invited theelectronic dance music duoOrbital to collaborate with Kamen and to provide synthesized sounds for the film's unsettling atmosphere.[29][30]
A soundtrack album was released which combined various cues from the score into four tracks of approximately ten minutes.[31]
Event Horizon was released on 15 August 1997, and was a box office failure,[32] grossing only $26,616,590 against a $60 million production budget in the United States.[3][33] Internationally it grossed nearly $16 million, for a worldwide total of $42 million.[4]
On review aggregatorRotten Tomatoes,Event Horizon holds an approval rating of 36% based on 96 reviews and an average rating of 5.2/10. Its consensus reads, "Despite a strong opening that promises sci-fi thrills,Event Horizon quickly devolves into an exercise of style over substance whose flashy effects and gratuitous gore fail to mask its overreliance on horror clichés."[34] OnMetacritic, the film holds a weighted average score of 35 out of 100, based on 20 critics, indicating "generally unfavorable" reviews.[35] Audiences polled byCinemaScore gave the film an average grade of "D+" on an A+ to F scale.[36]
Roger Ebert gave the film two out of four stars, commending its atmosphere and noting the opening portion as particularly well crafted; however, he felt it never managed to become the intense, thought-provoking experience it wanted to be.[37]The Washington Post criticStephen Hunter called the film "pointlessly loud", with more devotion to style than scares and a satisfying explanation of its supernatural experiences.[38] In a lukewarm review,Empire magazine wrote: "That the film never fulfils its promise is down to its over reliance on horror vagaries in a precision-built sci-fi milieu, ultimately leaving too many unanswered queries. A sharper script and a more credible solution could have turned this impressive hokum into a force to be reckoned with".[39] Ebert and some other critics noted the influence ofSolaris onEvent Horizon.[37][40]
The film had some early supporters.Total Film gave it three out of five stars, stating: "Excellent special effects and anAlien-esque feel make this supernatural horror film ('The Shining in space,' as most critics have called it, pretty accurately) well worth a look."[41]Owen Gleiberman gave it a B−, stating, "Just when you've written off this deep-space nightmare as a late-summer melange ofAlien,Fantastic Voyage,The Shining, and a dozen more forgettable otherworldly thrillers, it unleashes some of the most unsettling horror imagery in years",[42] whereasTime Out magazine mentioned that "despite its shortcomings, this is never dull. The movie avoids Alien space monster clichés brilliantly and the soundtrack contains more of the 'Boo!' effects than I've heard sinceHalloween."[43]
In the years since its release,Event Horizon has developed acult following and has been referenced in other works of popular culture.[14][32][30] In 2022 retrospectives for the 25th anniversary of its release,IGN noted its impact on other media such as theDead Space video game series,[44] andRotten Tomatoes wrote that "its unforgettable imagery, standout cast, and escalating thrills have made it a celebrated cult classic for horror aficionados".[45]Total Film said "the film has been cemented in pop culture history as both a cult classic and vital addition to the sci-fi/horror subgenre".[46]Collider called it "a grand, ambitious vision that tries to marry elements from theAlien films (the first half-hour or so hews very closely toAliens) with spiritual depth. It doesn't quite pull all of it together, but where the pieces do fit work better than expected, a film aiming for A+ that is content with its B grade. So yes,Event Horizon is indeed worthy of its reevaluation."[47]Forbes described it as "Anderson's nightmarish epic",[48] whileFangoria's Scott Wampler said that this was Anderson's best film.[49] Of the film's re-evaluation, Anderson said, "It's finally got the reaction now that I was hoping it would get 25 years ago."[13] In 2024,Variety namedEvent Horizon as the 94th best horror film of all time.[50]
The scene in the film where Weir illustrates how wormholes work with a pen and paper was replicated inChristopher Nolan'sInterstellar (2014).[51]
In 2025,Event Horizon: Dark Descent, a comic book prequel series, was published byIDW Publishing. The series implied that the demonic entity behind the incident ofEvent Horizon is namedPaimon.[52][53]
In December 2011, Paul W. S. Anderson and Jeremy Bolt stated that there have been ongoing discussions to explore additional movies that would expand theEvent Horizon story, in the form of a prequel and a sequel. Potential stories to be developed include following the first crew aboard theEvent Horizon and their mission that led to their disappearance for seven years, as well as a continuation film detailing the events that followed the rescue of Lt. M. L. Starck, T. F. Cooper, and Ensign "Baby Bear" Justin.[18] By October 2020 however, after years of no development, Anderson stated that he had not returned to the property in any continuation because he did not want to take away from the experience of the original film.[54]
In August 2019, a television series based on the film was reported to be in development byParamount Television andAmazon Studios.Adam Wingard will direct the series, in addition to serving asexecutive producer alongside Larry Gordon, Lloyd Levin, and Jeremy Platt, who previously held producer roles on the original feature film.[55][14] In March 2024, Wingard provided a brief update stating, "It's definitely in the works. I've just been in Godzilla land for so long. I wouldn't say that there's definitive traction in terms of it moving forward, but we have a fucking amazing script. Once this movie's over, it's just about refocusing my attention towards getting that set up."[56]
