As one of the most infamous cult classics in the criminally thin genre of sci-fi horror, the legacy of Event Horizon is about to get even more complicated. Now that the one part of the story deemed ‘too graphic’ to actually be shown in the film is finally becoming a reality.
The alteration to this notorious chapter in Hollywood history comes courtesy of Event Horizon: Dark Descent., a prequel to the film created as part of IDW Dark’s line of cinematic expansions. The first issue has already revealed more brutal, bloody, and disturbing horror than the film was able to get away with, but the best (or worst) is still yet to come.
The Fate of The Crew is Shown in Quick Flashes For A Reason
Those who have seen the film will know how carefully the actual fate of the original crew is revealed to both the film’s stars and the audience. At first, the footage of what happened once they entered the Hell dimension is scrambled beyond all recognition, along with the audio logs.
Once the evil nature of the ship is revealed, some flashes of general violence and bloody screaming (including the captain repurposing his eyeballs) gets the brutal point across perfectly. In reality, those sequences of the Event Horizon crew were performed (as chronicled by Den of Geek) and filmed in full, reaching infamous levels of graphic content.
With director Paul W.S. Anderson allegedly recruiting both amputees and adult film actors to push the limits of the scene, the so-called “blood orgy” was quickly deemed too graphic to ever work in the finished film. Needless to say, even Anderson reportedly doubted it would make the cut, and the footage has never seen the light of day.
With all footage erased or deleted, the scene’s existence is only public knowledge due to crew who have spoken about it firsthand, but after three decades, the odds of anyone ever seeing this deleted scene are next to zero. But the new Event Horizon prequel is doing its part to change history.
Event Horizon’s Prequel Will Finally Give Fans A Version of The Deleted Scene
The Choice of Medium Also Grants The Comic Even More Freedom Than Film
Having already essentially answered Event Horizon‘s biggest unanswered question, Dark Descent‘s writer Christian Ward confirms that fans will see ‘just what happened’ to the Event Horizon crew, to a level not seen in the movie:
“My goal was that I wanted to write a story that would change how one might view the film. As far as where this all came from, it’s wholly original, but obviously inspired from watching the film. I avoided researching early drafts as I wanted to feel like it’s my story to tell.
“That said, the one element of fan service that is in the series is the infamous ‘blood orgy’ sequence that was cut from the film. You’ll have to pick up Issue #4 to see how we’re using that, though. That issue will make you cry and recoil in equal measure.”
As anyone who knows the films can tell you, it won’t take many glimpses of the “blood orgy” to deliver a strong impact, especially given the comic book medium. Not only will moments of horror be frozen in time in full detail, but based on the series thus far, the limits of what can be shown have changed since the film’s original opening.It may not be the Holiday surprise that anyone predicted, but for horror fans eager to see an unresolved piece of the film’s mythos finally addressed, the next issues of Dark Descent can’t get here soon enough.Event Horizon: Dark Descent #1 is available now from IDW Dark.
- Release Date
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August 15, 1997
- Runtime
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95 minutes
- Director
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Paul W. S. Anderson
