Second Sight Films Finds 'The Hitcher' Negative, Begins 4K Restoration!

Courtesy of Second Sight Films

Last year, UK distributor Second Sight Films gave the film world some bad news with the confirmation that, based on the surviving source elements and inability to track down the original negative, the 1986 Robert Harmon horror shocker The Hitcher starring Rutger Hauer would not be able to undergo a 4K restoration.  Simply put, the elements and the means weren’t there.  It was a devastating blow to horror fans keen on upgrading their old VHS tapes and DVD copies to pristine and crisp 4K UHD picture and sound quality. 
 
This morning however, Second Sight Films kicked off the new year with a major announcement that all but completely reverses their previous statement: with the help of Warner’s archive team, after extensive research, the original camera negative to The Hitcher has been located.  Further still, a full 4K restoration with a planned UHD disc release is underway.  Just like that, sorrow has turned to absolute joy for film collectors who thought they had heard the last word on The Hitcher.

 
Slated for later this year in an unspecified date to be later announced, the sharp contrast in news from before to now is startling if not completely jarring to process.  After being told in no uncertain terms this restoration project about the scariest hitchhiker horror film in cinema history was not going to happen, to have the chain of events make a one hundred and eighty degree turn in the opposite direction is miraculous if not a cause for celebration!  As this story develops, stay tuned for further details or check out Second Sight Films for updates!

--Andrew Kotwicki