Hasitha Fernando looks at the story behind The Goonies as it celebrates its 40th anniversary…
The Goonies was a movie that captured our hearts and minds as kids and continues to ensnare viewers with its magical nostalgia factor to this very day. As the unforgettable adventure comedy celebrates its 40th anniversary we look back at what went on behind-the-scenes during the makes of this iconic movie…
Chris Columbus was discovered and hired by Steven Spielberg
As a filmmaker Chris Columbus is something of a big name in the industry with efforts like Home Alone, Home Alone 2: Lost in New York and Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone, but back in the early 1980s Columbus was an up-and-coming talent whose short film, produced while at NYU, titled “I Think I’m Going to Like It Here” got noticed by none other than Steven Spielberg a few years later. Seeing the potential Columbus possessed Spielberg expressed interest in buying the young writer’s script for the horror comedy titled Gremlins and following its critical and commercial success Columbus was invited to join Amblin Entertainment, where he conceived of the screenplays for The Goonies and Young Sherlock Holmes. Columbus based the idea for The Goonies on his own childhood, which was spent in a factory town in Ohio where as a child he’d spend his time exploring abandoned coal mines during the summertime.
Richard Donner had trouble directing his young cast members
Richard Donner began his career in the small screen before discovering that his true talent lay in his natural gift as a director. During his career in the television industry Donner ended up working on twenty-five television series including – The Fugitive, The Man from U.N.C.L.E, Gilligan’s Island, Kojak and The Twilight Zone. The filmmaker found his greatest success, however, with the big screen efforts The Omen, Superman: The Movie and the Lethal Weapon series. Donner had plenty experience dealing with adult actors all throughout his career but The Goonies posed quite a different challenge – working with child actors. In the documentary “The Making of The Goonies” the filmmaker elaborated both the pleasures and difficulties of working with an ensemble of child actors. He showered high-praise for the manic energy they brought to the production but also noted how unruly and chaotic they were when brought together to shoot certain scenes.
A full-sized replica of a pirate ship was constructed for the movie
An actual, full-sized replica of One-Eyed Willy’s ship was constructed in Stage 16, one of the tallest soundstages in the world, which is located at Warner Bros. Studios in Burbank, California. The massive set was constructed under the direction of production designer J. Michael Riva who had contributed to such films as Lethal Weapon, The Color Purple, Iron Man and Django Unchained. Director Richard Donner restricted the principle cast members from seeing the gigantic pirate ship Riva had designed, in order to capture their genuine reactions on camera when they get their first glimpse of it in their respective characters. But Donner’s initial plan was scuttled when an overwhelmed Josh Brolin loudly exclaimed “Fuck!”, when he saw One-Eyed Willy’s size and scope of the ship. So they ended up reshooting that entire scene. Once production was wrapped the producers extended offers to anyone interested in the massive pirate ship set but sadly no one showed interest. As a result the entire set was scrapped in its entirety. Donner ended up keeping One-Eyed Willy’s head and a model for the ship as a souvenir.
The movie features some major stars to-be in its ensemble
To say The Goonies features some major stars to-be would be an understatement. Sean Astin who’d later go on to play Samwise Gamgee in The Lord of the Rings plays Mikey Walsh, the asthma ridden leader of The Goonies. Josh Brolin, who has gone on to become one of the most sought after actors in Hollywood is Mickey’s athletic brother Brand Walsh. Incidentally, the movie also happened to be Brolin’s feature film debut. Ke Huy Quan who received rave reviews and numerous accolades for his riveting performance as the multiverse hopping Waymond Wang in 2022’s Everything Everywhere All At Once, is Richard “Data” Wang, the gadgeteer of this motley crew of troublemakers.
Robert Davi and Joe Pantoliano didn’t get along even in real-life
In the movie the Fratellis are a family of notorious Italian criminals based in Astoria, Oregon led by the ruthless Mama Fratelli. The two criminally enterprising brothers of this villainous family are played by Robert Davi and Joe Pantoliano. The two actors famously didn’t get on well, even in real life but their colorful banter was what actually landed them their roles during the audition. Davi, being a professional trained opera singer, was the one who came up with the idea of singing the aria “Una furtiva lagrima” from Gaetano Donizetti’s opera “L’elisir d’amore”, in the scene that plays out between his character Jake and his deformed brother Sloth.
Jeff Cohen showed up to the set despite having chicken pox
Jeff Cohen was a successful child actor before deciding to pursue a career in law which he thought would be a boon in the entertainment industry. Cohen, who played “Chunk” in The Goonies, contracted chickenpox shortly after getting cast in the role. But the young actor undeterred by his illness still showed up to work, because he was so afraid the producers would re-cast the role if he was absent. The chickenpox on Cohen’s chest is slightly visible during the “Truffle Shuffle” sequence. The Goonies was Jeff Cohen’s first and only feature film as an actor.
Steven Spielberg played an elaborate prank on Richard Donner
During an interview with “The Directors” Donner revealed that Steven Spielberg played an elaborate prank on him during the latter stages of the shoot. During the last week of filming Spielberg had requested the cast members to act cold and distant with Donner, which puzzled the filmmaker since they were about to wrap up production. When Donner finished the shoot he went to his beach house in Hawaii but sadly got help up with a frenzied neighbor for an entire day or so. But during this time period, unbeknownst to Donner, Spielberg and the cast were prepping for a grand surprise. So, when the director returned to his beach house he was welcomed by Spielberg & co. to a fabulous cookout session to celebrate the conclusion of the shoot.
Dave Grusin’s score for The Goonies was unavailable to 25 years
Dave Grusin has been producing film scores since the late 60s crafting memorable music for such films as The Graduate, Three Days of the Condor and Tootsie. However, for some strange reason Grusin’s score for The Goonies was unavailable in album format for 25 years. Although the score does use some of Max Steiner’s themes from the Errol Flynn swashbuckler Adventures of Don Juan, the main theme titled “Fratelli Chase” has been used for numerous trailers for movies like Scrooged, Innerspace and Guarding Tess. The soundtrack label Varèse Sarabande released the film’s score in March 2010 in limited edition format and reissued the score as a wide release in June 2019, over two decades later.
During production the attention to detail was paramount
Apart from designing and building the massive set for One Eyed Willie’s ship The Inferno, which was 105 feet long and took 2 ½ months to construct, production designer J. Michael Riva was also overseeing the various props utilized extensively during the course of production. During an interview with National Public Radio, Riva recalled how, before shooting the very first scenes with the prop map, he “aged” the map with coffee stains and some of his own blood – when he couldn’t find any paint!
Box-office success, positive reviews & legacy
Made on a production budget of $19 million The Goonies went on to make a more than respectable $125 million at the worldwide box office. On review aggregator website Rotten Tomatoes the film holds a solid 77% based on 64 reviews, and an average rating of 6.5/10. Renowned film critic Roger Ebert had nothing but good things to say about the effort calling it, “a smooth mixture of the usual ingredients from Steven Spielberg action movies, made special because of the high-energy performances of the kids who have the adventures,” and giving it three out of four stars. For her scene stealing performance as Mama Fratelli, actress Anne Ramsey went on to win the Best Supporting Actress at that year’s Saturn Awards.
Since its release 40 years ago, the city of Astoria has hosted special anniversary events attracting massive crowds annually. A sequel to The Goonies has been in the works since the film’s debut but due to unanticipated issues in availability of cast and Richard Donner’s passing in 2021, the sequel kept getting pushed back. Fans of The Goonies can rejoice, however, as a sequel has been confirmed this year with Steven Spielberg producing, and Potsy Ponciroli (Old Henry) writing the script. Here’s hoping the sequel materializes sooner rather than later.
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Hasitha Fernando is a part-time medical practitioner and full-time cinephile. Follow him on Twitter via @DoctorCinephile for regular updates on the world of entertainment.
