Synopsis

Frank Bannister makes a living by pretending to exorcise haunted houses with the help of three friendly ghosts. His scam takes a darker turn when a murderous supernatural force begins killing people in a small New Zealand town. As Frank investigates, he uncovers a connection to his own tragic past and must stop the spirit before more lives are claimed.

Factoids & Trivia

• The project began as a potential spin-off of the television anthology series Tales from the Crypt. Robert Zemeckis became interested in the screenplay and helped develop it as a feature film.

• Although the story is set in the American Midwest, the entire production was filmed in New Zealand. The filmmakers were asked to make the locations resemble a Midwestern American town.

• The film became a major early showcase for Weta's digital-effects work. The Grim Reaper went through several different concepts, including practical puppets and a performer in costume, before being created primarily with computer animation.

• Cinematographer Alun Bollinger was seriously injured in a car accident several weeks into production. John Blick joined the project, and the two cinematographers shared the work for much of the remaining shoot.

• Michael J. Fox broke his foot during a nighttime forest sequence. His recovery period gave the production time to revise parts of the screenplay and continue editing.

• The film was initially intended to receive a PG-13 rating, but the MPAA repeatedly returned it with an R rating because of its intensity and violence. The finished version consequently leaned further into its horror imagery.

• Universal moved the release date forward by several months after seeing an early cut and provided additional financing to help complete the unusually effects-heavy production.

• The Frighteners was Fox's last leading role in a theatrical feature film.