The ground is rumbling again as a new story by the original Tremors creative team has got an initial thumbs up from Universal.
In an exclusive conversation with Rewind Classic Movies, Tremors creator (and director of Tremors 2 and 4) SS Wilson confirmed the progress and said there had been several versions on the table.
It’s been a rough time for fans lately with none of the original team involved in the creation of Tremors 5, 6 or 7 – and the TV series cancelled after just one season.
But SS Wilson was optimistic after Stampede Entertainment – the company he runs with fellow creatives Brent Maddock, Ron Underwood & Nancy Roberts – won back the rights to the original script in October 2024.
“It isn’t straightforward,” Wilson said on the Rewind Classic Movies Podcast, “but a lawyer who specializes in this law came to us and said the window was about to open on Tremors and did we want him to try to get it back? He’d already done it for Alien and A Christmas Story, so we said yes. He works for free until the rights are back – and now, we have them.
“We have generated several versions of what a sequel might be,” Wilson teased. “And we have interest in one of them. I’m not allowed to say more than that. The people who are interested don’t want anyone to know until they say so.”
Could Kevin Bacon Be Back?
Podcast host Gareth Bartlett asked if it could it mean the long-dreamed return of Kevin Bacon as Valentine McKee – and it’s known the creators were considering it – but of course Wilson couldn’t confirm – though he didn’t exactly shut the door, either.
“Believe me, everybody does want it and everybody (in the audience) is interested. I can’t say which of our ideas is in the lead right now as we don’t have any say over which one is their favorite. So we’re waiting to see,” he said.
If such a reunion happened, it would fit perfectly into Hollywood’s ongoing trend of legacy sequels, from Harrison Ford’s return as Indiana Jones to Michael Keaton donning the Batman cowl again. A properly handled Tremors 8 with Bacon back in the desert sands could easily become the fan-pleasing finale the franchise has been waiting for.
➡️ DON’T MISS: REWIND TREMORS (1990): Graboids, Gummer and Great FX!
It’s seismic news for a franchise that has spawned seven films with an undying cult following that craves the return of the OG team after Universal cut ties after Tremors 4.
SS Wilson had previously told fans he didn’t know the real reason behind the split: “The only reason they gave was they felt we didn’t have the experience to do low budget productions. But Tremors 2, 3, 4 and the series were all low budget productions. We don’t have a theory about the real reasons.”
But the situation is layered. Universal still holds the foreign rights, meaning any new Tremors project would require their involvement in distribution. As Wilson put it, “You can’t make a movie for the US market only.”
And he also made it clear that it could all go wrong at any point.
The Effects of Tremors 8 and a Novelization
When asked about Tremors’ enduring appeal, Wilson admitted even he is astonished. “I’m amazed at the fans who have hung in there through the not-so-good sequels—they just love all things Tremors and you can’t stop them. The original holds up because the setting isn’t easily dated, and because we stuck with practical effects as much as possible. If you can do it on set, it’s still better. The actors can see it. The crew can see it.”
And he made it clear it would be his preference to return to practical monsters and effects over CGI.
You can listen to the whole interview below or wherever you get your podcasts:
As a further update, Wilson revealed on the Stampede website that they have made a deal with writer Christian Francis to do a Tremors novelization based on the original movie script – something Universal never did.
Thirty-five years on, the dirt is still flying. And if Stampede and Universal can align, the Graboids may yet roar back to life – with Kevin Bacon leading the charge.
Until then, fans can read more of SS Wilson’s stories with his two novels – Tucker’s Monster and Fraidy Cats.
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(Main image generated by Sora. We will never intend to mislead over the use of AI and see it as a tool for picturing how future movies may look)
