Bill & Ted (franchise)
| Bill & Ted (franchise) | |
|---|---|
 DVD covers of the Bill & Ted films Excellent Adventure (left) and Bogus Journey (right) | |
| Directed by |
Stephen Herek (Excellent Adventure) Peter Hewitt (Bogus Journey) |
| Produced by |
Scott Kroopf (both films) Michael S. Murphey (Excellent Adventure) Joel Soisson (Excellent Adventure) |
| Written by |
Chris Matheson Ed Solomon |
| Starring |
Keanu Reeves Alex Winter |
| Music by | David Newman |
Release dates | February 17, 1989 – present |
Running time |
183 minutes (both films, in total) |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Budget |
$30,000,000 (both movies, in total) |
| Box office |
$78,522,552 (both movies, in total) |
Bill & Ted is a series of two films (and their spin-offs) featuring William "Bill" S. Preston Esq. (Alex Winter) and Theodore "Ted" Logan (Keanu Reeves) as two metalhead slackers who travel through time. The first Bill & Ted film, Excellent Adventure, was released on February 17, 1989, followed two years later by Bogus Journey. A third film has been in the works since 2010, but there is no current release date.
In 1990, a spin-off animated television series Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventures was produced with Alex Winter and Keanu Reeves reprising their roles. A second season featuring none of the original cast was made in 1991 followed by a short-lived live-action television series in 1992. The characters have also featured in other media including several video games and a comic book. Since Orion Pictures is defunct, MGM now owns the rights to Bill & Ted.
Movies
Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure (1989)
Excellent Adventure introduces Bill Preston and Ted Logan who are trying to write a history report, and encounter a traveler from the future who gives them access to a time machine (shaped like a telephone booth) which allows them to travel back in time and where they meet historical figures and learn about key historical events. If Bill and Ted fail to pass, their teacher will have to flunk them and Ted's father will transfer him to an Alaskan military academy. In this movie, it is also revealed that Bill and Ted are in a band called Wyld Stallyns.
Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey (1991)
Bogus Journey sees Bill and Ted being killed by robot doubles who capture their fiancées, and their attempts to get back from the afterlife by challenging the Grim Reaper to a series of games. Bill and Ted (along with the Grim Reaper) eventually return to present-day Earth just prior to the Wyld Stallyns' performance at the Battle of the Bands, which takes place later that night.
Third film
In 2010, Reeves indicated that Matheson and Solomon were working on a script for a third film.[1][2]
Winter has stated that the role of Rufus (previously played by the late George Carlin) would not be recast.[3]
In April 2011, Reeves stated that a third film was close to happening.[4] On April 24, 2011, Winter tweeted that the script for the third installment had been finished.[5]
The plot is suspected to be about Bill and Ted writing a song that could save the world, although in a pre-San Diego Comic-Con International interview Alex Winter stated the storyline may also involve time travel to the prehistoric era, and the film would likely see a cameo by Eddie Van Halen as well as the return of Socrates and Billy the Kid, who appeared in the first movie.[6]
The current script does not feature William Sadler reprising his role as the Grim Reaper, but the screenwriters are looking for a way to include him, and Sadler has expressed interest in returning to the role.[7]
In August 2012, director Dean Parisot of Galaxy Quest and Red 2 was attached to direct.[8]
In March 2013, at the SXSW film festival, Alex Winter confirmed progress on the movie was still moving forward.[9][10]
Asked in August 2013 about the film, Reeves replied, "There have been a couple of drafts [of a Bill & Ted 3 script] and right now we're waiting on the writers to come up with another draft. But we're all very excited."[11] In a Reddit AMA on October 20, 2013, Reeves iterated that he's seen the script for Bill & Ted 3 by stating, "We are working on trying to get Bill & Ted 3. There's a script and we are trying to put it together."[12]
Winter told Yahoo Movies that the duo will be 40-something and it's all about Bill and Ted grown up, or not grown up and it's a Bill & Ted film not a reboot.[13]
Keanu Reeves has confirmed in the The Jonathan Ross Show that Bill and Ted 3 has been confirmed that the movie is still planned and is trying to get the movie made.[14]
Television
Animated
The first season was produced by Hanna-Barbera and ran for 13 episodes on CBS in 1990, featured the voices of Carlin, Winter, and Reeves returning to their roles in the film. A second season of eight episodes ran on Fox Kids and was produced by DIC Entertainment, with none of the original cast.
Live action
A later live-action series, featuring none of the cast from the film, included Christopher Kennedy as Bill and Evan Richards as Ted (who also voiced the same roles in the animated season produced by Dic).[15] This version aired seven episodes in 1992 on Fox.
Cast and characters
| Character | Films | Television | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure (1989) |
Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey (1991) |
Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventures (animated) (1990-1991) |
Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventures (live-action) (1992) | |
| Bill S. Preston, Esquire | Alex Winter | Alex Winter (season 1) Evan Richards (season 2) |
Evan Richards | |
| Ted "Theodore" Logan | Keanu Reeves | Keanu Reeves (season 1) Christopher Kennedy (season 2) |
Christopher Kennedy | |
| Rufus | George Carlin | George Carlin (season 1) Rick Overton (season 2) |
Rick Overton | |
| Mr. Preston | J. Patrick McNamara | Don Lake | ||
| Missy Preston | Amy Stock-Poynton | TBA | Lisa Wilcox | |
| Captain Logan | Hal London Jr. | TBA | ||
| Princess Joanna | Diane Franklin | Sarah Trigger | TBA | |
| Princess Elizabeth | Kimberley Kates | Annette Azcuy | TBA | |
| The Grim Reaper | William Sadler | |||
| Station | Ed Gale, Arturo Gil, Tom Allard
Frank Welker (voice) |
|||
| Chuck De Nomolos | Joss Ackland | |||
- Note: A gray cell indicates character did not appear in that medium.
Comics
A one-shot comic book adaptation of the sequel was published to coincide with the second film's release. Its popularity led to the series Bill & Ted's Excellent Comic Book by Evan Dorkin and produced by Marvel Comics.
Cereal
A cereal based on the cartoon adaptation. It was made by the now-defunct Ralston Purina. It was short-lived, like the cartoon, and it included many giveaways and promotions.
Musical
A musical based on the film was produced in 1998 called Bill and Ted's Excellent Musical Adventure.[16]
Video Games
There were also Game Boy, NES and Atari Lynx games released, which were very loosely based on the film's plot. A PC title and nearly identical Amiga and Commodore 64 port were made in 1991 by Off the Wall Productions and IntraCorp, Inc. under contract by Capstone Software and followed the original film very closely.
Home Computer
A single player graphic adventure PC game based on the 1989 film Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure. It was released by Capstone for DOS, Commodore 64, and Amiga systems in 1990.
Game Boy
An action-puzzle game loosely based on Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure.
Atari Lynx
A video game for the Atari Lynx handheld based on the Bill & Ted films and the Saturday morning cartoon.
NES
An action-adventure video game based on Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure that was released in North America by LJN for the Nintendo Entertainment System.
Halloween Horror Nights
Bill & Ted also feature in an annual live-action show at Universal Studios Florida and Universal Studios Hollywood during Halloween Horror Nights. Typically the show will parody the past year's worth of notable pop culture events, featuring locally cast performers as the title characters.
References
- ↑ "Reeve talks new 'Bill and Ted' adventure". Yahoo!.
- ↑ "'Bill and Ted 3' Movie Sequel Confirmed | Gather". Entertainment.gather.com. Retrieved 2011-02-11.
- ↑ "Rufus 'won't be recast for Bill & Ted 3'". Digital Spy. 2010-09-25. Retrieved 2011-02-11.
- ↑ "'Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure 3'". Retrieved 2011-04-06.
- ↑ Zakarin, Jordan (2011-04-25). "Bill & Ted 3' Movie Script Finished: Alex Winter Tweets Update'". Huffington Post. Retrieved 2011-04-25.
- ↑ "'Bill And Ted 3' Script Completed, Confirms Alex Winter". Muveez. Retrieved 16 July 2011.
- ↑ "The Grim Reaper Could Return For Bill And Ted 3, Says William Sadler". http://www.bleedingcool.com''.
- ↑ Brodesser, Claude. "Bill & Ted May Ride Again for a Third Film". Vulture. Retrieved 2013-06-12.
- ↑ White, Brett (2013-03-15). "'Bill & Ted 3' Won't Be A 'Weird Reboot,' Alex Winter Promises - Music, Celebrity, Artist News". MTV.com. Retrieved 2013-06-12.
- ↑ "Shira Lazar: Bill and Ted 3 Sneaks Its Way Into SXSW 2013 (WATCH)". Huffingtonpost.com. 2013-03-13. Retrieved 2013-06-12.
- ↑ "Keanu Reeves Reveals A New 'Bill & Ted 3' Script Is In The Works". nerdsraging.com. 2013-08-07. Retrieved 2013-08-30.
- ↑ "Keanu Reeves. Ask me, if you want, almost anything. (self.IAmA)". reddit.com. 2013-10-20. Retrieved 2013-10-20.
- ↑ "Alex Winter Gives an Excellent Update on 'Bill & Ted 3'". Yahoo Movies. 2014-09-25. Retrieved 2014-09-25.
- ↑ http://metro.co.uk/2015/03/28/keanu-reeves-confirms-plans-for-third-bill-and-ted-movie-to-jonathan-ross-5124435/
- ↑ Herbert, Steven (June 28, 1992). "Bill and Ted Make It to Prime Time, City Doesn't". LA Times. Retrieved 2010-08-22.
- ↑ billandted.org: Musical page
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