This Day in Horror History: Joe Dante’s PIRANHA Was Released in 1978
On this day in horror history, Gremlins and The Howling director Joe Dante’s horror-comedy cult classic Piranha was released in 1978.
Produced by Roger Corman, the flick was conceived as a rip-off of Steven Spielberg’s Jaws. Universal initially intended to sue the film, but Spielberg himself gave the film a positive review and canceled the lawsuit.
The film was a commercial success and achieved a cult following. It spawned a sequel, Piranha II: The Spawning, and two remakes, one in 1995 and another in 2010, which spawned its own sequel in 2012.
Directed and co-edited by Joe Dante (Gremlins, The ‘Burbs) and starring Bradford Dillman, Heather Menzies, Kevin McCarthy, Keenan Wynn, Barbara Steele, and Dick Miller, the film tells the story of thousands of lethal, genetically altered military hybrid piranha that threaten the lives of the local inhabitants and the visitors to a nearby summer resort when they are accidentally released into a river.
The film sports a 72% approval rating over on Rotten Tomatoes with a Critics Consensus that reads: Performed with a wink and directed with wry self-awareness, Piranha is an unabashed B-movie with satirical bite.
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