RIPPED TO SHREDS is a period-authentic graphic novel adaptation of Michael Johnson’s “lost slasher” screenplay from 1980. Originally scheduled to begin filming in Dec. 1980, RIPPED TO SHREDS went through years of development hell before funding ultimately fell through and production collapsed.
Now, nearly 45 years later, the long-lost script is getting a faithful adaption in graphic novel form. At long last, fans of 80s horror can, in some way, see what might have been.
About the adaptation:
Adaptation director Scott Alan Gregory, artist Thiago Motta, and colorist Karla Aguilar have taken period-accuracy seriously. The overall experience is painstakingly designed to mimic the feeling of watching an actual 80s slasher film. Wardrobes, props, settings, camera angles, and even the filmic color palettes of the 80s have been faithfully recreated for the book.
Friday the 13th connection:
Russell Todd and Lauren-Marie Taylor from “Friday the 13th Part 2” reunite… in comic book form! The RIPPED TO SHREDS graphic novel “stars” the 80s likenesses of Russell Todd and Lauren-Marie Taylor from “Friday the 13th Part 2,” lending an ever greater element of period-authenticity to the project.
About the story:
The legend of Shadow Hills is the stuff of campfire tales. The maniac with the metal claw. The three drunk girls who give him a ride. The fiery crash… And the lone survivor, institutionalized for life. But could there be any truth to the decades-old story? That’s what teenager Maddie, her boyfriend Richard, and her cousin Sharon, aim to discover as they investigate the supposedly haunted hills—and the legend surrounding them—after one of their friends is killed there under mysterious circumstances. The police are useless. The suspects are many. And as bodies continue to pile up, Maddie and her friends must get to the bottom of things before they, too, end up… RIPPED TO SHREDS!
About the Kickstarter:
Three versions of the book will be available through the Kickstarter: a standard trade paperback; a deluxe hardcover edition with over 100 extra pages of behind-the-scenes features; and a 400-page, limited slipcase edition, which comes signed by the original screenwriter and includes a complete facsimile of the long-lost 1980 screenplay incorporated into the book. Backers will also have access to several unique perks, from t-shirts, to stickers and pins, to the chance to play a minor character in the book. The RIPPED TO SHREDS Kickstarter launches in September.
Other bits of interest:
• Justin Kerswell, author of The Teenage Slasher Movie Book and host of The Hysteria Continues podcast, contributes an interview with original screenwriter Michael Johnson for the special features
• R.G. Henning, author of SACKHEAD: The Definitive Retrospective on Friday the 13th Part 2, contributes interviews with “cast” members Russell Todd and Lauren-Marie Taylor for the special features
• Includes a 13-song retro soundtrack by composer Matias Canteros
• Artists Mariano Mattos, Colin Murdoch, and Christopher Lair contribute covers
• Original screenwriter Michael Johnson is a successful editor of motion picture trailers and commercials. He has won several awards, including one for his work editing the trailer for Forrest Gump in 1994
RIPPED TO SHREDS ON KICKSTARTER
bit.ly/rippedtoshreds
