What You Have Created: Director Brett Leonard Developing Lawnmower Man 3

 

When the Lawnmower Man movie dropped in the '90s it basically sidestepped many of the story points of the Stephen King story which ultimately led him to disowning the film. Now, years later the director of the first film is looking to make a direct sequel that would see the original characters return for another CGI based cinematic entry that would continue the story of Jobe and his god complex. The original movie featured pre-Bond Pierce Brosnan and the always dynamic Jeff Fahey in the lead roles. Although the move was miscalculated, it was a hit for the studio and eventually spawned a sequel that featured new actors and left behind any semblance of the first film. Brett Leonard looks to make a new movie but is struggling with legal hurdles that may prevent him from doing so. 

When speaking with I-Heart Radio this week, he said that he is actively developing a script that would continue the story in a respectful way. Initial ideas of calling it Lawnmower Man Reborn or The Lawnmower Man 3 have are currently not allowed since he does not own any rights to the characters or story. He says instead he might title it L-Man Reborn due to the creative license still belonging to the studio. He says the idea is that the film would take place in a dystopian future and would see a expanded cyber world where a returning Peter Parkette (the young boy in the first movies) would be a futuristic cyber warrior. 

It seems this may all be a dream for the director considering his falling out over Lawnmower Man 2. After he left the project due to budgetary constraints, they switched directors and the full cast. Former characters were replaced by Patrick Bergin and Matt Frewer in the place of Brosnan and Fahey. 

We'll be over here holding out hope that someone lets him make a direct sequel that would fix the damage done by LM2. 

-CG