Dee Snider Talks Strangeland 2 and Keeping the Nightmare Alive
Steve Barton
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Back in 2015 we told you that instead of a sequel, Dee Snider’s Strangeland would be getting a remake. Well, that didn’t happen either. Recently IconVsIcon caught up with Snider to get a status update.
“I don’t know what the hell it is with that thing,” said Snider. “That whole experience could be a documentary in itself — ‘The Making of Strangeland 2.’ [laughs] What the fuck?! That is what it would be called, ‘The Making of Strangeland 2: WTF?!’ There are a lot of creative properties I am looking to explore… I was ready to dive in to all these other things when Damon Ranger approached me. So I put everything else on hold to focus on the album for the past year.”
Strangely enough, Snider also revealed that there was to a sequel greenlit before Strangeland ever even came out. But that didn’t happen either.
“[The sequel] was greenlit back in 1997 before the first one came out,” he explains. “It was greenlit, a script was written, and we were in the earliest stages of pre-production when the company got indicted by the federal government! I hang out with the best people! [laughs] At that point in time, all the properties were seized and were tied up in the court system for seven years. It took me seven years just to get my property back, and at that point it was 2004. So, the script was there, and now I’m just trying to find a production company and the financing to do it!”
With the film’s 20th anniversary approaching, Snider was asked if there were any plans for a re-release. Also, would he ever utilize crowdsourcing to finance a sequel…
“Yes and no. I look for interest from other people to reinforce that the interest is out there. Case in point, the album. Damon challenged me to do something new, and we went in and demoed some stuff. In a very short amount of time we had major record deals in the United States and in Europe, so I knew I wasn’t alone and that there were other people who saw the vision as well. So, I need to see something from somebody besides myself and my own bank account! With that said, I’m at the point where I’m thinking about it more often. So many people ask me about Strangeland 2. Someone asked me, ‘Well, why don’t you crowdfund it?’ I’m thinking, ‘Good point!’ If people want this movie so bad, and it seems like when I go to these horror conventions… everybody wants it, maybe that is the route to go. Maybe this coming year, heading toward the 20th anniversary, what sounds like the right amount of time between funding it, filming it, and releasing it, I will see if the audience wants to put their money where their mouth is and join me in this journey!”
Stay tuned, kids! Captain Howdy will surface again one way or the other. One can hope, right?
Categorized:News
