Leprechaun

Name: Leprechaun
Genre: Horror, Comedy, Fantasy
Released: 1993-01-08
Duration: 1 h 33 min
Rating: 5.1
Cast: Warwick Davis, Jennifer Aniston, Ken Olandt, Mark Holton, Robert Hy Gorman

Your luck just ran out.

Leprechaun (1993)

Timing: 1:33 (93 min)

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All about film

Video 3

Photo 61

Actors and characters

Watch film Leprechaun — Leprechaun (1993) ORIGINAL TRAILER [HD 1080p]

1:48

Photo 61

Release date

1993-01-08

Country

United States

Production

Lionsgate, Trimark Pictures

Genre

Horror, Comedy, Fantasy

Budget

$900 000

Revenue

$8 556 940

Website

Director

Mark Jones

Actors

Warwick Davis, Jennifer Aniston, Ken Olandt, Mark Holton, Robert Hy Gorman, Shay Duffin, John Voldstad, John Sanderford, Pamela Mant, William Newman
All actors and roles (10)

Scenario

Mark Jones

Producer

Jeffrey B. Mallian, Mark Amin

Operator

Levie Isaacks

Composer

Kevin Kiner

Artist

Naomi Slodki, Michael Hyatt

Audition

Lisa London

Editing

Christopher Roth, Cami Winikoff
All team (97)

Short description

A demonic leprechaun terrorizes a group of young people whom he believes stole his gold.

What's left behind the scenes

The film 'Leprechaun' was the first film from the newly formed studio 'Trimark Pictures'.
Initially, the film was conceived as a standard horror movie, but Warwick Davis, the actor playing the Leprechaun, wanted to add humor to it. Director and screenwriter Mark Jones agreed to these changes, resulting in a horror-comedy. Producers insisted on adding blood (for a more mature audience), and some scenes had to be reshot.
In the scene where the Leprechaun in a wheelchair chases Jennifer Aniston's character, she had to hold back and not accelerate, because Davis had difficulty controlling the bulky wheelchair while wearing gloves.
Director and screenwriter Mark Jones was known for directing entertainment shows on American television. He really wanted to make a feature film, and he decided to focus on a low-budget horror film. He took the leprechaun – the mascot of the 'Lucky Charms' breakfast cereal – as a basis, but made the leprechaun a villain. Furthermore, he drew inspiration from Steven Herek's 'Critters' (1986) and Tom Holland's 'Child's Play' (1988). He brought this idea to 'Trimark Pictures'.
Warwick Davis performed a significant number of the stunts himself – mainly because it was not easy to find a stunt double of corresponding height and build. During filming, he contracted a lung infection, so a replacement still had to be found. Deep Roy ended up playing the part, and was slightly taller than Davis.
It took 3 hours to apply Warwick Davis's makeup. Another 40 minutes were required at the end of the shooting day to remove it.
When searching for an actor for the role of the Leprechaun, someone mentioned Warwick Davis and suggested him as a candidate, but director and screenwriter Mark Jones doubted that such a well-known actor would want to spend time on a low-budget horror film (Davis had recently starred in Ron Howard's successful 1988 film, *Willow*). Regardless, Jones sent the script to Davis in the UK. He read the script and was very pleased with the opportunity to play the villain. He was going through a difficult period – both professionally and in his personal life – so Davis wasn't even sure if he would leave the profession altogether. It's not surprising, therefore, that he readily seized the opportunity to express the dark side of his nature and personality.
Jennifer Aniston might not have gotten the role in this film at all, because the producers insisted on a different type (they wanted a blonde), but Jones insisted on Aniston. Aniston was eventually approved, in exchange for Jones's promise that she would dye her hair blonde (which, however, never happened).
Clover was planted on the set and a green light was shone on it. The fourth leaf was glued to the plant.
The management of "Trimark Pictures" was unsure whether Mark Jones should direct the film. They even offered him compensation to step down, but Jones refused, stating that he had written the script specifically to direct it himself. He explained this to his superiors and clearly demonstrated how he intended to film the chase scene in the kitchen. They liked it, and Jones was allowed to remain as director, with the understanding that he would be replaced if the results of two consecutive days of shooting were unsatisfactory.
To create the impression that the Leprechaun was melting from the inside, Warwick Davis wore a prosthetic jaw, and several tubes were glued to his body through which slime and cigar smoke were released. Davis operated the animatronic puppet himself from a pit. Mark Jones only regretted that the pit wasn't aged further.
The film was initially conceived as a standard horror movie, but Warwick Davis, who played the Leprechaun, wanted to add humor to it. Director and screenwriter Mark Jones agreed to these changes, resulting in a horror-comedy. The producers insisted on adding more gore (for older audiences), which required some scenes to be reshot.
In the scene where the Leprechaun in a wheelchair chases Jennifer Aniston's character, she had to hold herself back and not go too fast because Davis found it difficult to steer the bulky wheelchair while wearing gloves.
Director and screenwriter Mark Jones was known for producing entertainment programs for American television. He strongly desired to make a feature film and decided to settle on a low-budget horror movie. He based the concept on a leprechaun—the mascot for the Lucky Charms cereal brand—but turned the leprechaun into a villain. Additionally, he drew inspiration from Stephen Herek's 'Ghoulies' (1986) and Tom Holland's 'Child's Play' (1988). This was the idea he presented to Trimark Pictures.
Warwick Davis performed a significant portion of the stunts himself, primarily because finding a stunt double of the appropriate height and build was difficult. During filming, he contracted a pulmonary infection, so a replacement had to be found anyway. Deep Roy, who was slightly taller than Davis, ended up playing the role.
Applying Warwick Davis's makeup took 3 hours. Another 40 minutes were required at the end of the filming day to remove it.
While searching for an actor for the role of the Leprechaun, someone mentioned Warwick Davis and suggested him, but director and screenwriter Mark Jones doubted that such a famous actor would want to spend time on a low-budget horror film (Davis had relatively recently starred in Ron Howard's successful 1988 film 'Willow'). Regardless, Jones sent the script to Warwick in the UK. He read the script and was very excited about the opportunity to play a villain. He was going through a difficult period—both professionally and in his family life—so Davis wasn't even sure if he would stay in the profession. It is therefore no surprise that he readily seized the opportunity to express the darker side of his nature and personality.
Jennifer Aniston might not have gotten the role in this film at all because the producers insisted on a different type (they wanted a blonde), but Jones pushed for Aniston. Aniston was eventually cast in exchange for Jones's promise that she would dye her hair blonde (though it never actually came to that).
The management of Trimark Pictures was not confident that Mark Jones was the right person to direct the film. They even offered him a buyout, but Jones refused, stating that he had written the screenplay specifically so that he could direct the movie himself. He explained this to his superiors and visually demonstrated exactly how he intended to film the kitchen chase scene. Management liked it, and Jones remained the director, with the decision that he would be replaced if the results of two consecutive days of filming proved unsatisfactory.
To create the impression that the Leprechaun was melting from the inside, Warwick Davis wore a prosthetic fake jaw, and several tubes were glued to his body to release slime and cigar smoke. Davis himself operated the animatronic puppet from inside a well. Mark Jones only regretted that the well had not been 'aged' even further.