John Carpenter Responds To Backlash Over Botched The Thing Screening
John Carpenter's The Thing recently returned to theaters for its 40th anniversary and saw its screenings botched, disappointing the horror icon. The 1982 sci-fi horror film marked the second adaptation of John W. Campbell Jr.'s novella Who Goes There? after the 1951 black-and-white horror film The Thing from Another World. The story revolves around a group of American researchers who discover the Thing, an alien creature that assimilates and imitates other organisms, driving them all into paranoia as they try to weed out those changed and prevent the alien from reaching the mainland.
Kurt Russell led the cast of The Thing alongside A. Wilford Brimley, T.K. Carter, David Clennon, Keith David, Richard Dysart, Charles Hallahan, Peter Maloney, Richard Masure, Donald Moffat, Joel Pelis and Thomas G. Waites. The film initially debuted to generally negative reviews due to its gruesome special effects and underwhelming characters, which ultimately contributed to the film poorly performing at the box office, as well as competition from E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial. In the years since its release, The Thing has garnered a major cult following and favorable critical reappraisal, with many hailing it as both one of the best sci-fi and horror movies ever made as well as one of Carpenter's best.
Related: The Death Scene That Was Too Expensive for John Carpenter's The Thing
In honor of the film's 40th anniversary, Fathom Events re-released The Thing in theaters, but many audiences expressed frustration that it was cropped from its 2.35:1 widescreen aspect ratio to a 1.85:1 ration with poor video quality. Following a wave of audiences taking to social media to express their disappointment, IndieWire caught up with director John Carpenter
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