50 Fun Facts About The Lost Boys

Who directed The Lost Boys?

Donner was originally slated to direct and stayed on as executive producer; the new director made the script sexier and older.

What is the name of the fictional California town the Emersons move to?

A vandalised welcome sign brands it the "murder capital of the world"; the town was played by Santa Cruz.

The film's title refers to characters from which classic story?

Co-writer James Jeremias wondered what if Peter Pan only came out at night and never grew up because he was a vampire.

Which real California city stood in for the film's seaside town?

The Boardwalk, the Pogonip preserve and the surrounding mountains all appear; the vampire cave was a set on the Warner lot.

Who plays David, the leader of the vampire gang?

The director said he had the least dialogue in the film but an extraordinary presence; he had just wrapped Stand by Me.

What job does Lucy take when the family arrives in town?

The store is owned by Max, who takes a romantic interest in her that turns out to have a sinister motive.

Where does Sam meet the self-proclaimed vampire hunters Edgar and Alan Frog?

The novelization's author was himself managing a comic shop when he was hired to write it.

The vampires' hideout is a former luxury hotel that was buried by what event?

The lair set was built on Stage 12 at Warner Bros., with a Palos Verdes cliff used for its entrance.

What does David make Michael's food appear to be at the lair?

The noodles-into-worms gag was directly referenced decades later in What We Do in the Shadows.

What is the name of Sam's dog, who stops Michael from attacking him?

The dog also helps finish off one of the vampires during the final assault on the Emerson house.

Which gang member do Michael, Sam and the Frog brothers stake in the lair during the day?

His screams wake the others, and David vows to hunt the boys down that night.

How does Michael kill David in the final fight?

Unlike the other vampires he does not explode or dissolve, a deliberate loose end for a planned sequel called The Lost Girls.

Who turns out to be the head vampire?

He passed the boys' garlic and mirror tests because he had been invited into the house, which made him immune.

How is Max finally destroyed?

The old man then delivers the closing quip about the one thing he never could stomach in Santa Carla.

What is Grandpa's final line about living in the town?

The line lands after Max explodes and the whole family is standing in the wreckage.

The original screenplay was modelled on which recent Richard Donner film?

In that version the vampires were 13 or 14, the Frog brothers were chubby 8-year-old Cub Scouts and Star was a young boy.

For how much did Producers Sales Organization buy the first-time writers' script in 1985?

Warner Bros. later joined the project and took over domestic distribution.

Which actor repeatedly turned down the role of Michael before being promised creative input?

He then became instrumental in reshaping the script, and it was at his insistence that his Solarbabies co-star was cast as Star.

Who plays Star?

The director had pictured a waifish blonde like Meg Ryan until his leading man talked him round.

Dianne Wiest accepted the role of Lucy shortly after winning an Oscar for which film?

The director was surprised she said yes so soon after the win at the 59th Academy Awards.

What injury did the actor playing David suffer on set, forcing him to wear gloves?

His motorcycle was adapted so he could ride it left-handed for the rest of the shoot.

How many days did principal photography take?

Shooting ran from June 2 to June 23, 1986, mostly around Santa Cruz.

What was the film's approximate production budget?

It opened at number two and went on to a domestic gross of over $32 million.

Which shirtless, oiled-up musician performs "I Still Believe" on the boardwalk stage?

The saxophone-playing bodybuilder still performs the song at fan conventions and later worked with synthwave band Gunship.

"I Still Believe" is a cover of a song originally by which band?

The soundtrack leaned on covers, including a Doors song by Echo & the Bunnymen and an Easybeats song by INXS.

Which band covers the Doors' "People Are Strange" on the soundtrack?

The version in the film is a shortened alternate take with a slightly different arrangement.

What is the title of the film's theme song, recorded by Gerard McMann?

The singer later re-released it under the name G Tom Mac, and the band Aiden covered it for the 2008 sequel.

INXS teamed up with which Australian singer for the soundtrack's "Good Times"?

The Easybeats cover was cut to promote the Australian Made tour and reached number two on the Australian charts.

Which Foreigner frontman recorded "Lost in the Shadows" for the film?

The soundtrack album was certified gold in September 1987, less than two months after the film's release.

Who composed the film's original score, blending orchestra and organ?

His short cue "To the Shock of Miss Louise" closes the soundtrack album.

What prize did the movie pick up at the 15th Saturn Awards?

Roger Ebert gave it two and a half stars and called it "style over substance"; Variety was far harsher.

Lost Boys: The Tribe (2008) cast which relative of the actor who played David as its lead vampire?

Corey Feldman returned as Edgar Frog and Corey Haim cameoed as Sam.

What was the title of the third film, released on DVD in 2010?

Feldman also executive-produced it; Corey Haim was not in the cast and died in March that year.

Which publisher released a 2016 Lost Boys miniseries pitting the heroes against the Blood Belles?

An earlier 2008 series, Reign of Frogs, brought David back and bridged the first film and The Tribe.

Where on Broadway did the musical adaptation open in April 2026?

It picked up twelve Tony nominations and won four, including both supporting acting prizes.

The 2014 vampire mockumentary What We Do in the Shadows directly references which Lost Boys moment?

The film is widely credited with making vampires younger and sexier, paving the way for Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

The novelization expands the role of which rival gang, who are nameless victims in the film?

The 220-page paperback also restores a cut subplot of Michael collecting trash to pay for his leather jacket.

Who plays Sam Emerson?

The two Coreys became a Hollywood double act after this; the other Corey played the vampire hunter Edgar Frog.

The Frog brothers reappear as police officers in a 2001 novel by which author?

In Looking for Andrew McCarthy they make an ominous reference to their past work with "the supernatural".

Which Anne Rice novel's ageless child bloodsucker gave the co-writer the Peter Pan idea?

The book's 200-year-old vampire trapped in a 12-year-old's body sparked the "what if Peter Pan was a vampire" question.

Which 2019 rock band's music video for "Into the Summer" pays homage to the film?

The Finnish gothic rockers the 69 Eyes had already named a 2004 song after the movie.

The film's 35th-anniversary 4K SteelBook in 2022 was paired with which other horror classic?

The extras were mostly carried over from the 2008 Blu-ray, including the director's commentary.

Which studio released The Lost Boys on July 31, 1987?

It opened at number two on its first weekend and finished with a domestic gross above $32 million.

Which screenwriter was brought in to make the script sexier and raise the characters' ages?

The original draft by Janice Fischer and James Jeremias had been a much younger, Goonies-style adventure.

Kiefer Sutherland was offered the role of David right after finishing which film?

Schumacher had arranged the reading after seeing Sutherland play Tim in At Close Range.

Jason Patric pushed for Jami Gertz as Star after they had worked together on which 1986 film?

Schumacher had originally pictured Star as a waifish blonde in the Meg Ryan mould.

What average grade did audiences surveyed by CinemaScore give the film?

Critics were cooler: Roger Ebert gave it two and a half stars and called it a triumph of style over substance.

Which Who frontman covers Elton John's "Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me" on the soundtrack?

The soundtrack album was certified Gold by the RIAA on September 30, 1987, two months after the film opened.

Which fantasy and horror author wrote the 220-page paperback novelization?

Berkley published the tie-in to accompany the film's release, and it fleshes out characters the movie barely names.

A cliffside in which Los Angeles County area served as the entrance to the vampire cave?

The cave interior itself was a set on Stage 12 of the Warner Bros. lot, far from the Santa Cruz shoot.