12 Highly Anticipated Movies That Never Saw The Light of Day

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12 Highly Anticipated Movies That Never Saw The Light of Day

Polo Pictures Entertainment, Warner Bros.

h, the movies that never made it to the big screen! The stories of the films that were never released, the ones that were canceled, the ones that were lost or stuck in legal limbo, the ones that were never finished or never even started. We all know the feeling of anticipation and excitement when a new movie is announced, only to be disappointed when it never comes to fruition. 

For this list, we’ve compiled some of the most interesting, bizarre, and heartbreaking stories of unreleased films. From the ambitious, surreal rock musical Temptation starring Zoe Saldana, to the canceled Batgirl movie starring Michael Keaton, to the infamous penis-spraying fiasco of The Debtors starring Randy Quaid and Michael Caine, these stories will make you laugh, cry, and maybe even make you think twice about the movies that never made it. So pour yourself a glass of wine, curl up on the couch, and join us as we explore the world of unreleased films.

'Batgirl' canceled: money talks.

Unreleased movies Leslie Grace Michael Keaton BATGIRL Batgirl was canceled by Warner Bros. in August 2020, even though it was already done and had some big names like Leslie Grace, Michael Keaton, and Brendan Fraser. It was the result of a financialshakeup. CRACKED

Warner Bros.

Esquire

Cheaply made, lovingly crafted.

Unreleased movies 4 4 Roger Corman's THE FANTASTIC FOUR The 1994 movie was made in just 21 days on a small budget, but it has become a cult classic because it was made with a lot of passion and stayed true to the original story. It never got released, but it's screened occasionally. CRACKED

Constantin Film

Den of Geek

Surreal, ambitious, and forgotten.

Unreleased movies Zoe Saldaña Adam Pascal TEMPTATION This 2004 rock musical was only shown once, at the New York Musical Festival. It featured real people, animation, and surreal sets and backgrounds CRACKED

Rough Diamond Productions

IMDb

Lawsuit-plagued flop.

Unreleased movies Leonardo DiCaprio DON'S PLUM DiCaprio was the star of this 1998 movie that never came out in the U.S. There was a weird situation where the producer sued DiCaprio and Tobey Maguire for trying to stop the release, and it ended up in limbo. CRACKED

Polo Pictures Entertainment

The Guardian

Still waiting…

Unreleased movies James Franco's THE LONG HOME This movie starring Josh Hartnett, Josh Hutcherson, Giancarlo Esposito, Garret Dillahunt, Timothy Hutton, Tim Blake Nelson, and Ashton Kutcher was directed by Franco and completed in 2019, but has yet to be released. CRACKED

Rabbit Bandini Productions

MovieWeb

Unreleased penis-spraying fiasco.

Unreleased movies Michael Caine Randy Quaid THE DEBTORS In 1999, Evi Quaid directed this movie starring her husband Randy Quaid and Michael Caine. Unfortunately, it never got released because the financier didn't like a scene with a fake penis that sprayed water. CRACKED

Charles Simonyi

Vanity Fair

Daringly awful(?) holocaust art.

Unreleased movies Jerry Lewis THE DAY THE CLOWN CRIED Lewis' Holocaust movie was seen by only a few critics, including one who thought it was a daring exploration of the Holocaust's themes... even though it deals with a clown in a concentration camp. CRACKED

Jerry Lewis

Vanity Fair

Bill Murray’s lost ‘SNL’ movie.

Unreleased movies Bill Murray NOTHING LASTS FOREVER Murray starred in this 1984 sci-fi comedy directed by SNL alum Tom Schiller, which was never released. It had clips from other movies in it, kind of like an early version of YouTube. CRACKED

MGM

Slate

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