Scanners

Top 10 Fun Facts

1. What would Martha Stewart do? The crew had to get crafty to create a realistic exploding head. They began by stuffing a latex head with rabbit livers and dog food. Then they shot it from behind with a 12-gauge shotgun.
2. Despite the film's feats of cunning in the exploding head department, the production design team had no time in the schedule to build sets. Instead, they often had to drive around looking for places to shoot.
3. Cursed product placement: in the record store you can see a float advertising the RSO record label. By the time the movie hit theaters, RSO was out of business.
4. Writer/director David Cronenberg had to begin filming before the screenplay was finished. He was forced to continue writing scenes every morning from 4 a.m. to 7 a.m. before shooting began for the day.
5. Wanna see your name in the movies? Be nice to a producer. The character Kim Obrist was named after a producer's assistant.
6. What you missed: production stills exist of a cut scene from the final duel between Cameron and Revok in which the top of Cameron's head explodes and send sparks into the air.
7. Go Canada! Scanners won Best International Film at the 1981 Saturn Awards, held by the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy & Horror.
8. Party on, Garth: in the movie Wayne's World, Garth freezes up in front of a TV camera - to which a guy in the control room responds, "Ever see that scene in Scanners when that dude's head blew up?" (Yes, random movie guy. Yes we did.)
9. Family Guy paid tribute to Scanners as well, in an episode where Peter eats an entire Fudgsicle in one bite, causing his head to explode.
10. Want more Scanners? There's been Hollywood talk of a remake over the last few years, so keep your fingers crossed.

Cast

Crew