Children of the Corn is an American film series that began with Children of the Corn, released in 1984 by New World Pictures. After the release of Children of the Corn II: The Final Sacrifice (1992) and the series' acquisition by Dimension Films, the subsequent installments were released directly to video, and bore little to no narrative continuity, beginning with Children of the Corn III: Urban Harvest (1995). In 2009, a second adaptation of the short story aired on the Syfy network, via Fox 21 Television. A third adaptation of the short story titled Children of the Corn (2020), was released on October 23, 2020.
| Children of the Corn | |
|---|---|
 Official film series logo | |
| Created by | Stephen King |
| Original work | Children of the Corn (1977) |
| Films and television | |
| Film(s) |
|
| Short film(s) | Disciples of the Crow |
Films
edit| Film | U.S. release date | Director(s) | Screenwriter(s) | Producer(s) | Distributor |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Original series | |||||
| Children of the Corn | March 9, 1984 | Fritz Kiersch | George Goldsmith | Donald P. Borchers and Terence Kirby | New World Pictures |
| Children of the Corn II: The Final Sacrifice | January 29, 1993 | David Price | A. L. Katz and Gilbert Adler | Scott A. Stone and David G. Stanley | Dimension Films |
| Children of the Corn III: Urban Harvest | September 12, 1995 | James D. R. Hickox | Dode B. Levenson | Brad Southwick and Gary DePew | |
| Children of the Corn IV: The Gathering | October 8, 1996 | Greg Spence | Stephen Berger and Greg Spence | Gary DePew and Jake Eberle | |
| Children of the Corn V: Fields of Terror | June 21, 1998 | Ethan Wiley | Jeff Geoffray and Walter Josten | ||
| Children of the Corn 666: Isaac's Return | October 19, 1999 | Kari Skogland | Tim Sulka and John Franklin | Bill Berry, Jeff Geoffray and Walter Josten | |
| Children of the Corn: Revelation | October 9, 2001 | Guy Magar | S. J. Smith | Joel Soisson and Michael Leahy | |
| Children of the Corn: Genesis | August 30, 2011 | Joel Soisson | Aaron Ockman and Joel Soisson | Dimension Extreme | |
| Children of the Corn: Runaway | March 13, 2018 | John Gulager | Joel Soisson | Michael Leahy | Lionsgate Films |
| Remake | |||||
| Children of the Corn | September 26, 2009 | Donald P. Borchers | Fox 21 Television Studios | ||
| Reboot | |||||
| Children of the Corn | October 23, 2020 (Sarasota) March 3, 2023 |
Kurt Wimmer | John Baldecchi, Doug Barry and Lucas Foster | RLJE Films Shudder | |
Short film
edit| Film | U.S. release date | Director | Screenwriter | Producer(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Disciples of the Crow | 1983 | John Woodward | Johnny Stevens and John Woodward | |
Cast and crew
editPrincipal cast
editKey
- A V indicates the actor or actress lent only his or her voice for his or her film character.
- A C indicates a cameo appearance.
- A dark gray cell indicates the character was not in the film.
| Characters | Films | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Short | Original series | Remake | Reboot | |||||||||
| Disciples of the Crow | Children of the Corn | Children of the Corn The Final Sacrifice |
Children of the Corn Urban Harvest |
Children of the Corn The Gathering |
Children of the Corn Fields of Terror |
Children of the Corn 666 Isaac's Return |
Children of the Corn Revelation |
Children of the Corn Genesis |
Children of the Corn Runaway |
Children of the Corn | Children of the Corn | |
| 1983 | 1984 | 1992 | 1995 | 1996 | 1998 | 1999 | 2001 | 2011 | 2018 | 2009 | 2020 | |
| Burt | Gabriel Folse | Peter Horton | David Anders | |||||||||
| Vicky | Eleese Lester | Linda Hamilton | Kandyse McClure | |||||||||
| Isaac | John Franklin | John Franklin | Preston Bailey | |||||||||
| Malachai | Courtney Gains | Blaine Maye | Daniel Newman | |||||||||
| Rachel | Julie Maddalena | Nancy Allen | ||||||||||
| Ruth | Kristy Angell | Marci Miller | Alexa Nikolas | |||||||||
Production
editDevelopment
editBased on the short story by Stephen King, the first Children of the Corn film follows a couple who are besieged by mysterious children in a small town called Gatlin, Nebraska. Its first sequel begins immediately after the events of the original, and focuses on a reporter and his son who are investigating the events of the first film.
Beginning with the third installment, Dimension elected to produce standalone films that were not necessarily narratively connected.[1] The third film follows two brothers from Gatlin who are forced into foster care in Chicago; the younger brother, under the influence of He Who Walks Behind the Rows, begins to grow corn in an abandoned lot behind his new family home, wreaking havoc. The fourth film returns to a rural Nebraska town where a young medical student attempts to uncover a mysterious illness striking the children of her hometown; the fifth film follows a group of young people who encounter the children, led by a man, Ezekiel, of He Who Walks Behind the Rows, when staying overnight in an abandoned farmhouse.
Part six follows a woman, born of the cult from the first film, who returns to Gatlin to uncover the identity of her birth mother, while the seventh installment focuses on a woman who travels to a small town outside Omaha to investigate the disappearance of her grandmother; there, she encounters bizarre children in the fields surrounding her grandmother's apartment building.
The 2009 remake follows the general plot of the first film, focusing on a couple who encounter the children in Gatlin. The ninth film, Genesis, follows a couple who lodge with a mysterious preacher in the California desert, who appears to be leading a bizarre cult.
Releases
editThe first Children of the Corn (1984) was distributed by New World Pictures, receiving a theatrical release in the spring 1984. Its sequel, The Final Sacrifice (1992), was acquired for distribution by Miramax, and was released theatrically in January 1992 under Miramax's Dimension Films division.[2]
After Dimension's release of Children of the Corn II: The Final Sacrifice, the company would acquire rights to the series[3] and would release numerous follow-up sequels directly to video, beginning with Children of the Corn III: Urban Harvest, released in 1995.[4] After the release of Revelation in 2001, a television remake of the original film was commissioned by Dimension,[5] but ultimately distributed via Fox 21 Television Studios, airing on the Syfy channel in 2009.[6][7]
In 2011, the ninth installment, Genesis, was released direct-to-video under Dimension's Extreme label.[8]
Box office performance
edit| Film | U.S. release date | Budget | Box office revenue (USD) |
Notes | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Original series | |||||
| Children of the Corn (1984) | March 9, 1984 | — | $14,568,989 | — | [9] |
| Children of the Corn II: The Final Sacrifice | January 29, 1993 | — | $6,980,986 | — | [10][11] |
| Children of the Corn III: Urban Harvest | September 12, 1995 | — | — | Direct-to-video | — |
| Children of the Corn IV: The Gathering | October 8, 1996 | — | — | Direct-to-video | — |
| Children of the Corn V: Fields of Terror | June 21, 1998 | — | — | Direct-to-video | — |
| Children of the Corn 666: Isaac's Return | October 19, 1999 | — | — | Direct-to-video | — |
| Children of the Corn: Revelation | October 9, 2001 | — | — | Direct-to-video | — |
| Children of the Corn: Genesis | August 30, 2011 | — | — | Direct-to-video | — |
| Children of the Corn: Runaway | March 13, 2018 | — | — | Direct-to-video | — |
| Remake | |||||
| Children of the Corn (2009) | September 26, 2009 | — | — | Television film | — |
| Reboot | |||||
| Children of the Corn (2020) | October 23, 2020 (Sarasota) March 3, 2023 |
— | $575,179 | — | [12] |
Critical reception
edit| Film | Rating | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Rotten Tomatoes | Metacritic | ||
| Children of the Corn (1984) | 39% (33 reviews)[13] | 45 | |
| Children of the Corn II: The Final Sacrifice | 30% (10 reviews)[14] | 18 | |
| Children of the Corn III: Urban Harvest | — | — | |
| Children of the Corn IV: The Gathering | — | — | |
| Children of the Corn V: Fields of Terror | 14% (7 reviews)[15] | — | |
| Children of the Corn 666: Isaac's Return | 0% (6 reviews)[16] | — | |
| Children of the Corn: Revelation | 0% (5 reviews)[17] | — | |
| Children of the Corn (2009) | 0% (7 reviews)[18] | — | |
| Children of the Corn: Genesis | — | — | |
| Children of the Corn: Runaway | — | — | |
| Children of the Corn (2020) | 12% (58 reviews)[19] | 22 | |
Home media
editThe entire series has been released on various home media formats. While all eleven of the films have been released on DVD, only the first seven films were released on VHS before the format was phased out. Additionally, Children of the Corn (1984), Children of the Corn III: Urban Harvest, Children of the Corn IV: The Gathering, Children of the Corn V: Fields of Terror, Children of the Corn 666: Isaac's Return, Children of the Corn (2009), Children of the Corn: Genesis, Children of the Corn: Runaway and Children of the Corn (2020) have been made available on Blu-ray disc.
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ Caputo 2016, p. 48.
- ^ Perren 2012, p. 50.
- ^ Maddaus, Gene (August 24, 2017). "Weinstein Company Sued by Producer Over 'Children of the Corn' Spin-off Rights". Variety. Retrieved September 1, 2017.
- ^ Caputo 2016, p. 46–8.
- ^ Caputo 2016, p. 50.
- ^ Gardner, Eriq (August 24, 2017). "The Weinstein Co. Sued Over Movie Rights to Stephen King's 'Children of the Corn'". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved October 1, 2017.
- ^ "Dimension goes back to its roots". Variety. September 24, 2009. Retrieved August 30, 2017.
- ^ "[Review] 'Children of the Corn: Genesis' Isn't THAT Bad". Bloody-Disgusting. September 1, 2011. Retrieved September 20, 2017.
- ^ "Children of the Corn (1984)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved October 1, 2017.
- ^ Natale, Richard (February 2, 1993). "Winter of B.O. discontent". Daily Variety. p. 3.
- ^ "Children of the Corn II (1992)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved October 1, 2017.
- ^ "Children of the Corn (2020)". Box Office Mojo. Retrieved 2023-03-04.
- ^ "Children of the Corn (1984)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved November 1, 2023.
- ^ "Children of the Corn II: The Final Sacrifice". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved November 1, 2023.
- ^ "Children of the Corn V: Fields of Terror". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved November 1, 2023.
- ^ "Children of the Corn 666: Isaac's Return". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved November 1, 2023.
- ^ "Children of the Corn: Revelation". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved November 1, 2023.
- ^ "Children of the Corn (2009)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved November 1, 2023.
- ^ "Children of the Corn (2020)". Rotten Tomatoes. Retrieved November 1, 2023.
Works cited
edit- Caputo, Marcello Gagliani (2016). Guide to the Cinema of Stephen King. Babelcube. ISBN 978-1-507-16438-9.
- Perren, Alisa (2012). Indie, Inc.: Miramax and the Transformation of Hollywood in the 1990s. University of Texas Press. ISBN 978-0-292-74287-1.
External links
edit- Children of the Corn I, II, III, IV, V, VI, VII, VIII, IX, 1st Remake, 1st reboot, at the Internet Movie Database.