The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is an American horror franchise consisting of seven slasher films, comics and a video game adaptation of the original film. The original film, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, directed by Tobe Hooper and written and produced by Hooper and Kim Henkel, was released in 1974. Hooper also directed the first sequel to the original film; however, the other sequels have had various writers and directors attached to them. Hooper has not had any direct involvement with the rest of the sequels; however, he did co-produce the original film's remake and also produced its prequel, along with Henkel. The films have grossed over $203 million at the worldwide box office.
Leatherface and his family are the antagonists in all of the films in the franchise. The film series is ranked eighth at the United States box office – in adjusted 2008 dollars – when compared to other American horror franchises. The franchise began when a video game adaptation of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre appeared eight years after the release of the film, followed by various comic books, three sequels, a remake, and a prequel to the remake. In 2003, a remake of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, directed by Marcus Nispel was released, followed by a prequel, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning in 2006.
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| Film | Director | Writer(s) | Producer(s) |
| The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974) | Tobe Hooper | Kim Henkel and Tobe Hooper | Tobe Hooper |
| The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 (1986) | L. M. Kit Carson | Yoram Globus and Menahem Golan | |
| Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III (1990) | Jeff Burr | David Schow | Robert Engelman |
| Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation (1994) | Kim Henkel | Robert Kuhn and Kim Henkel | |
| The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003) | Marcus Nispel | Scott Kosar | Michael Bay, Mike Fleiss, Kim Henkel and Tobe Hooper |
| The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning (2006) | Jonathan Liebesman | Sheldon Turner | Michael Bay, Mike Fleiss, Kim Henkel, Brad Fuller, Andrew Form and Tobe Hooper |
| The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 3D (2012) | John Luessenhop | Adam Marcus & Debra Sullivan | Mark Burg, Carl Mazzocone |
The Texas Chain Saw Massacre, released in 1974, written and directed by Tobe Hooper, was the first and most successful entry in the series. It is considered to be the first of the 1970s slasher films, and originated a great many of the clichés seen in countless later low-budget slashers. Its plot concerns a family of cannibals living in rural Texas, who abduct customers from their gas station. The film's most notable character, Leatherface, is one of the most well-known villains in cinema history, notable for his masks made of human skin, his blood-soaked butcher's apron and the chainsaw he wields.[1] Although the film is marketed as a true story, it does not depict actual events, and is instead (as with the film Psycho) inspired by notorious killer Ed Gein, who acted alone and did not use a chainsaw.[2]
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 (1986) is set thirteen years after the events of the first film. Although it managed to recoup its relatively small budget, the film was not considered a financial success. Since its initial release, however, it has developed a cult following of its own. Unlike its predecessor, which combined minimal gore with a documentary-style nature, the sequel is a comedic horror film, filled with black humor and various gore effects created by make-up maestro Tom Savini. The film features an appearance by novelist Kinky Friedman as well as film critic Joe Bob Briggs. Briggs' cameo appearance was originally cut in editing, but was restored for the director's cut version of the film when it was released on DVD.
Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III is a 1990 follow-up to the previous two films. It stars Kate Hodge, Ken Foree, and Viggo Mortensen and was directed by Jeff Burr. At the time, this was considered to be the first of several sequels in the series to be produced by New Line Cinema. However, it was not a commercial success, and New Line had no further involvement in the franchise.
Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation is a 1994 sequel to the original The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974). It largely ignores the events of the previous sequels, instead picking up twenty-three years after the original film. Some critics and fans consider it to be a remake due to the similarity of many scenes to shots in the original. As a result of this, The Next Generation has a poor reputation among horror film fans as well as critics. It stars Renée Zellweger and Matthew McConaughey, neither of whom had yet become major film stars.
The 2003 remake, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, directed by Marcus Nispel, written by Scott Kosar and produced by Michael Bay, is based on the events of the first film, however, for the most part, it follows a different storyline. A major difference between the two films, for example, is that rather than picking up Leatherface's psychotic hitchhiker brother, the group instead come upon a traumatized survivor who shoots herself in their van. The film gives Leatherface a backstory, a real name (Thomas Brown Hewitt), as well as a possible reason for his wearing masks, namely a skin disease which has caused his nose to rot away. The remake received a mixed critical response upon release, but was financially successful enough to lead to a prequel.
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning, which takes place in 1969, is the 2006 prequel directed by Jonathan Liebesman, written by Sheldon Turner and produced by Michael Bay. It explores the roots of Leatherface's family and delves into their past. Leatherface's first mask is featured, as well as the first murder he commits using a chainsaw. A variation of the infamous dinner scene, omitted from the remake, is included in the film.
Leatherface 3D, originally titled The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 3D, is the seventh installment film of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (franchise). The film is directed by John Luessenhop, written by Sheldon Turner, Kim Henkel, Adam Marcus, Stephen Susco, Kirsten Elms, Debra Sullivan, and is being produced by Mark Burg and Carl Mazzocone. The film is set to be released on October 5, 2012.
When comparing The Texas Chainsaw Massacre to the other top-grossing horror film franchises - A Nightmare on Elm Street, Child's Play, Friday the 13th, Halloween, the Hannibal Lecter series, Psycho, Saw, and Scream - and adjusting for the 2011 inflation,[3] The Texas Chainsaw Massacre is the eighth highest grossing horror franchise in the United States, with a combined gross of $304.6 million,[4] only outperforming the Child's Play film series with approximately $203 million.[5] The series is led by Friday the 13th at $687.1 million,[6] A Nightmare on Elm Street with $592.8 million,[7] the Hannibal Lecter film series with $588.7 million,[8] Halloween with $557.5 million,[9] Saw with $457.4 million,[10] Scream with $442.9 million,[11] and the Psycho film series, with $376.3 million.[12]
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- A dark grey cell indicates the information is not available for the film.
- (y) indicates the film was re-released.
| Film | Release date (US) | Budget | Box office revenue | Reference | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| United States | Foreign | Worldwide | ||||
| 1. The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974) | October 1, 1974 | $140,000 | $30,859,000 | $30,859,000 | [13] | |
| 2. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 | August 22, 1986 | $4,700,000 | $8,025,872 | $8,025,872 | [14] | |
| 3. Leatherface: The Texas Chainsaw Massacre III | January 12, 1990 | $5,765,562 | $5,765,562 | [15] | ||
| 4. Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Next Generation | September 22, 1995 August 29, 1997 (y)[16] |
$185,898 | $185,898 | [17] | ||
| 5. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003) | October 17, 2003 | $9,500,000 | $80,571,655 | $26,500,000 | $107,071,655 | [18] |
| 6. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning | October 6, 2006 | $16,000,000 | $39,517,763 | $12,246,643 | $51,764,406 | [19] |
| Total | $30,340,000 | $164,925,750 | $38,746,643 | $203,672,393 | ||
A third film featuring the remake's continuity was rumored to have been planned, however, producer Brad Fuller has recently stated that there are no future plans for Platinum Dunes to continue the franchise.[20] It will reportedly follow a relative of Leatherface's who encounters him decades after the events depicted in the earlier films.[21] Twisted Pictures and Lionsgate picked up the rights to the franchise subsequently. The studios are currently working off of a script submitted by Debra Sullivan and Adam Marcus; the story is said to pick up immediately after the events of Tobe Hooper's original Texas Chain Saw Massacre.[22]
Carl Mazzocone will produce the film with Avi Lerner and Mark Burg serving as executive producers. John Luessenhop is in talks to direct. Pre-production started in June 2011, with filming slated to begin later in the summer.[23][24] The Texas Chainsaw Massacre 3D is scheduled to be released on October 5, 2012 by Lionsgate.[25] Dan Yeager, Alexandra Daddario, Trey Songz, Keram Malicki-Sanchez and Tania Raymonde will star, with Gunner Hansen having a cameo.[26]
Several comic books based on The Texas Chainsaw Massacre franchise were published in 1991 by Northstar Comics entitled Leatherface.[27] They were licensed as The Texas Chainsaw Massacre franchise to Avatar Press for use in new comic book stories, the first of which was published in 2005.[28] In 2006, Avatar Press lost the license to DC Comics imprint, Wildstorm, which has published new stories based on the franchise. However, in June 2007, Wildstorm changed a number of horror comics, including The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, from monthly issues to specials and miniseries.[29]
The series of comics featured none of the main characters seen in the original film (Topps Comics Jason vs. Leatherface series is exempt) with the exception of Leatherface, however, the 1991 "Leatherface" miniseries was loosely based on the third Texas Chainsaw Massacre film. The writer of the miniseries, Mort Castle said, "The series was very loosely based on Texas Chainsaw Massacre III. I worked from the original script by David Schow and the heavily edited theatrical release of director Jeff Burr, but had more or less free rein to write the story the way it should have been told. The first issue sold 30,000 copies."[30] Kirk Jarvinen drew the illustrations for the first issue,[31] and Guy Burwell finished the rest of the series. The comics, not having the same censorship restrictions from the MPAA, featured much more gore than the finished film. The ending, as well as the fates of several characters, were also altered. An adaptation of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre was planned by Northstar Comics, but never came to fruition.[32]
All American Massacre is an unreleased film directed by William Hooper, son of Tobe Hooper, the director of the original Texas Chain Saw Massacre.[33] The film was to serve as a prequel to the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre film series.[33] The film began as a 15 minute short, shot on high resolution digital video, but was eventually turned into a 60 minute featurette.[33] A trailer for the film is shown on the official website.[34] The film was to feature Chop Top who had been captured and placed in a psychiatric prison.[34] Various memories of his family were to feature in the film, as he was interviewed by a tabloid television journalist.[35] The score for the film was composed by Buckethead.[35]
In 1982, a mass-market video game adaptation of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre was released for the Atari 2600 by Wizard Video.[36] In the game, the player assumes the role of Leatherface, and attempts to murder trespassers while avoiding obstacles such as fences and cow skulls.[37] As one of the first horror-themed video games, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre caused controversy when it was released due to the violent nature of the video game and sold poorly as many video game stores refused to carry it.[36][38] Wizard Video's other commercial release, Halloween, had a slightly better reception,[39] however, the limited number of copies sold has made both games highly valued items among Atari collectors.[40]
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