Thursday, April 26, 2018

An American Werewolf in London: Behind the Scenes


Back in 2013, I featured actor David Naughton's nude scene in 1981's An American Werewolf in London. (HERE:) I had a few behind the scenes shots from the film saved for a follow-up, but never got a round to posting it. Given however, David's older brother James is today's Blast From the Past, I thought a good day to head back to London for a look. If the movie was being made today, I'm sure the lead would have insisted on a cock sock, but as you can see from some of the caps, Naughton filmed his scenes au naturale.


'We filmed the moors scenes in Wales. David Naughton and Griffin Dunne were inexperienced movie actors, but they gelled perfectly as two American backpackers attacked by a werewolf.'


'I wanted a weird, eerie ambience for the night shots. So that wolf howl you hear was actually made up of about nine different sounds, including a wolf, a lion, a panther, and even a locomotive. The other sound you hear, after that first attack out on the moors, was actually a pig farm, recorded from a distance. It was just something to make audiences say: “What the hell was that?'


'John Landis kept things very light on set, but the shoot was gruelling. When I met the special effects man, , I told him I was playing the werewolf. He said: “I feel sorry for you.” Rick was surrounded by these wild-eyed assistants who took moulds of my arms, legs and head. It was really suffocating. I remember asking them: “Are you sure you know how to do this?'
David Naughton



'As for running naked around London Zoo, in the scene where I’m in the wolf cage, the only reassurance I had was that the wolves had just been fed. But the handlers still said there were to be no loud noises or fast moves. “OK,” I said hopefully. “This will just be one take, so start rolling those cameras.” We were supposed to be done by 9am, but we overran. At one point, I looked up and said: “Wow! Why have you got all those extras over there?” They replied: “They’re not extras – the zoo’s open.'
David Naughton, The Guardian


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