Jagger helping out a stressed-out colleague is the most heartwarming part of this story. Amazing video man. Its because I've never heard of these movies, I look forward to your videos.

Linda Fiorentino really would have changed the dynamic of the relationship and helped make the tone of the movie a lot more serious.

I will never get how studio execs constantly miss this. Just sit back, stay out of the way and take the credit, sheesh what is hard about that? They are the biggest hurdle to jump in cinema, in making a popular film.

Good to hear that Jagger was a friend through all that.

Thank you for the awesome tribute to Geoff Murphy, a fellow New Zealander. He is a true legend of our film history, and I did not even know he made Freejack!

Another wonderful retrospective! I was pleasantly surprised to find out that Mick Jagger was an unsung hero and supportive friend to the poor director during this crap-shoot.

My dad rented me this movie when I was little and I loved it. However, I forgot the title and who acted in it so long after my dad passed away I put in a lot of effort to find it again, just so I could relive that moment with my dad, even if it was there in person. Oddly, the film means something to me. That said, it is sad the studio meddled with it so much.

When people talk about remakes, this is the type of movie that needs a remake. The ideas are great and without studio interference would make a good movie.

Damn Cecil, i knew Freejack had some problems behind the scenes involving bad test screenings, re-shoots and re-edits, but i didn't know it was this bad, wow! And once again, you did absolutely fantastic job covering another troubled production and sharing some interesting behind the scenes stories which i'm sure not many people knew before! I actually watched episode you did about Disturbing Behavior yesterday, which i think is one of your best. If there are any other films with similar history i'd love to at least hear your thoughts about, it would definitely be Supernova (2000) and Cursed (2005). Hell, Shout Factory did a documentary about Supernova which wasn't even full 20 minutes long and barely touched the surface of everything that went wrong with it, but i'm sure that if someone would put more effort, they could probably do a whole actual Lost Souls or Death Of Superman Lives style-documentary about all the craziness that went on with that film, specially during post production. And you are probably aware that even now, almost full twenty years later, there are many Wes Craven fans who still want to see his unreleased first version of Cursed from 2003, which so many people involved in the film confirmed still exists!

The little bit about Mick Jagger, his house and the paintings is really heart warming. What a great guy.

Hell yes! An unsung gem. I'm loving the attention you've been giving to movies like this. This deserved so much more attention than it got.

I've always been fascinated by Freejack and the story behind its production, so this video was a real treat. Thank you for researching and compiling it and doing such a great job. Jagger is totally wild in the film, and his shoulder pads are out of control - so it'll always have that at least. I'd also add that The Quiet Earth is an excellent sci-fi film by Murphy, truly showing what he was capable of as a director, and well worth checking out.

This was my grandfather's favorite movie ever. (I never quite understood why) and it birthed his immense love for Mick Jagger, and sci-fi in general... So I guess I should be thankful. If it wasn't for this movie I would have never had my love of Star Wars.

I watched Freejack on VHS way back when it was new, and I'd honestly forgotten all about it until today. It's a shame that we'll never know what it could have been.

Every time you show the image of the director with a cigarette, I imagine it’s the start of a new pack because this movie turned him into a chain smoker.

I always wondered about this movie, this is why I love the Exploring series. Really great behind the scenes stories on why this movie ended up the way it did, thanks Cecil!

Thanks for another deep dive into a little known film. I just recently re-watched this and I enjoyed it, mostly for the cheese factor. I had no idea it was shot here in Atlanta. Keep the videos coming! Your channel is one of the best.

I haven't seen this since probably when it came out on VHS, but I really enjoyed it at the time. I could see the potential in there, and it's sad that all of the failures came from the terrible studio meddling.

Another solid info-packed documentary that's only a brief 30min for an overlooked decent enough light scifi action. No one does it better than GoodBadFlicks. I watched this every so often as a kid. We had it taped off early 90's TV. Always liked Estevez as a lead. From comedy to action roles, especially Maximum Overdrive. I forgot this movie had everyone in it. 90's "trash" movies are masterpieces compared to today's UNWATCHABLE movie industry.

I think we can conclude that the main villain of the story was the Morgan Creek "I need a boner" guy, since all the mandates seemed to all been lead by him.

Thank you. We would joke at our film school that this film was Ronnie's follow-up to "Total Recall" when it was actually his adaptation of "Minority Report".

Man. That was a real tragedy what the Hollywood system did too Geoff Murphy. Thanks for the video

I actually paid money @ the cinema in early 1992 to watch this...this...hottest of hot messes. I read Immortality, Inc. in the 80s & loved it I was looking forward to the movie version. Man!... was I in for a shock! Now thanks to your very informative "Explore" episodes I understand why...WOW!! I tipped my hat to the Director, he did best he could under such extremely difficult circumstances. This is the last movie that I walked out on, stopped in the lobby & went back in to face the music. Years later after seeing it again, agreed it is kind of, sort of watchable?? The movie business can be absolutely cut throat.

Geoff Murphy is a pioneering genius. Thank you for the tribute to him.

I saw this classic in an empty theater in '92!! I think it still holds up. Thanks for covering this Cecil.

I'd love for you to do a look at movies that benefited from studio interference. Studios interfere all the time and we know about disasters like this. But I can't believe that they would do this if it was always a money losing fiasco. There must be times when a shoot is going off the rails and the studio steps in and actually makes things better. Maybe it is a minority of cases, but it would make for an interesting examination.

I have actually wondered that myself, why force directors to work on movies where they have little creative input? How do you get good movies from forcing directors to accept blame for things they had no control over?

I remember watching this in middle school. Mic Jagger was great as the henchman to the bad guy.

Great job on this episode, Cecil. I remember seeing Freejack when it came out in theaters, but I haven't seen it since. Since the producers wanted to make it more of an action film, it's no wonder that Freejack kind of got lost in that early 1990's era of awesome action. Your research is always well done and once again, we learn that sometimes the story behind the making of a film can be so much more interesting than the film itself.

08:56 Look at how awesome that list is! I miss variety being so popular blockbusters.

it’s always so interesting to hear all the background drama in these films . Always so well done

Great video - and total credit to Murphy for what he accomplished and how he got screwed on Freejack.

Another great video Cecil! Man, I'd really love to see what Murphy could've made if it wasn't for such an insane level of studio meddling. Morgan Creek really needs to learn to hire people with vision and let them do what they do best!

Well, I didn't know most of that - thanks! There is a piece of trivia I can add - at the time, in racing fandom, Alex's death was viewed as preposterous. Unfortunately, such a tragedy occurred, in the 90's, in a Japanese open-wheel series. A car was launched at extremely high speed and impacted a trestle sort of thing holding sponsorship banners over the track near the finish line. Driver killed instantly and the car reduced to rubble. No link, sorry. If you look long enough, you might find some aftermath coverage.

"Exploring" is one of the best things in all of youtube.

I saw this in the theater when it came out and enjoyed it. I did not know how much bull*hit the director went through to make it. Nice to see Mick doing a solid to someone in need of a break. Thanks for covering this movie Cecil, you're the man.

This was a very interesting and great episode, I love your exploring series

Wow, I had no idea the production on this movie was so messy. Sad to think it could have been so much better. Also - 9:00 - damn, 1991 really was a hell of a year for movies. There's exactly ONE film on that list which isn't still remembered today, and most of them are considered all-time classics. (OK, not so much TMNT2, but it has nostalgic appeal.)

This is truly a sad tale. 😢💔💔

Oh man these are so good and informative without being dry. I enjoy seeing behind the scenes.

SMH. Morgan Creek ought to be ashamed of themselves. Jeff Murphy deserved way better. Also, the Jeff Murphy and Mick Jagger story was lovely and sweet.

I saw this at the cinema when it came out (in the UK) and I can't say I liked it. The thing that blows me away is that it had $30+million budget. The money is not on the screen. I would've sworn it was a $5million film. It looks so cheap.

Executives, the bane of anything artistically good

Linda Fiorentino is a fantastic actress. I'm sad she got shafted out of the film Edit: I'm quite happy to hear what a gem Jagger was

I am preparing for an exam (cryptographic methods) and it's midnight - burning the midnite oil and all that... I am so sick of modulus,diffusion,Galoise Field and all encompasing sick math shit. This video is perfect timing. Thanks for all the uploads ,it helps a lot in this hectic third semester.

I love this movie despite its obvious flaws. Mick Jagger really added to it, which kinda surprised me. Had no idea its production was such a mess. Would love to see the miles of unused footage.

Dude, LOVE your new intro to your channel, it's remarkable, and the music is haunting, and tingling.

Hey man I've been a fan of yours for years. Your videos actually inspired me to start making my own. Keep up the great work.

based on the description given, i couldn't resist ordering the book. it sounds like a hoot. this is, with out a doubt, one of those don't come to hollywood stories.

I do filming location tours in and around Atlanta, GA and I'm always telling people about Freejack. Thanks for this video, gives me lots of info to pass along!

I would have loved to see the Ghosts and Zombies from the book in this movie.

I remember the ads for this film - it looked interesting but i never saw it , and then read reviews that just bombed it. Nothing makes my heart sink like a sci-fi novel with interesting ideas gets flattened by execs who just want a dumb action movie with a futuristic setting to give it some "depth" it is the Ideas that give it the depth ! I think Total Recall is one of the most amazing sci-fi films i have seen in quite a while - it still holds up amazingly well. Geoff Murphy and Linda Fiorentino were both badly mistreated by the industry .. such a shame. Excellent examination good sir ! i hope one day the Thing prequel will get released as the director intended.

This is remarkable. You know, I've never seen a Freejack before. Heard about 'em, sure. That's when I first figured out that's what probably happened to you back then.

I loved "Freejack" when it first came out, and I still like it now as a reminder of how films were back in the day. This also got me into the Scorpions band as well, so that is also a plus. :)

Poor Linda Fiorentino. Seems like she's at the center of a lot of movies problems, This, Dogma, the MIB series. Don't know her personally, heard she was difficult to work with. But it does seem like she got a raw deal some of the time.

I saw this movie in the theater. Seeing Mick Jagger on the big screen, was just enough to watch.... Just.

I literally just mentioned this movie to my bro in law earlier today. What are the chances this forgotten movie is uploaded at the same time!? Also, I liked the movie. It was fun.

Was just about to ask you if Nothing But Trouble would be up your alley. Then I see you've already done a video on it 4 years ago. 😊

I always loved The Quiet Earth such an underrated SciFi movie, I always wondered but never followed up the director and his career. It's disappointing but not uncommon that someone as creative as Geoff Murphy was made a scapegoat for others failings. Thank you for your work Cecil I don't often comment but I do appreciate the vastness of your research and uploads. Cheers!

I don't know how you get all this info for your videos but man are they amazing. You make these deep dives incredibly entertaining.

Oh my!! Haven’t thought of this one since seeing it in a near empty second-run theater. One of your more insightful,entertaining vids. Love it when you cover lesser known projects. Solid soundtrack btw-the songs and the score

What kind of weirdo doesnt think linda fiorentino is sexy

Finally, Freejack, is pretty much an interesting movie to look the at the behind-the-scenes stuff. And damn, Hit Between the Eyes song from Scorpions is quite catchy. And the Inmortality Inc. novel sounds very similar to Altered Carbon, Hopefully, I can find and real the novel one day. The 2009 from Freejack honestly was almost as messed up as our real-life 2009 but with Influenza and economical crisis added.

I've never seen Freejack; and I was a teenager when the film came out in theaters. Now at 50, I feel I missed out. 😢😢

Keep em coming man; quality vids as always

The "Replacing Linda Fiorentino" has some hard "Casting couch" vibes

These producers are complete hacks. Murphy deserves a medal.

17:26 Whoops. And yeah, The Quiet Earth is fantastic.

I remember this one vividly! I was about 14 but my family was into movies so I'd seen Silence of the Lambs and everyone loved Hopkins in it. My two older brothers were into the Stones (I think there was an album around the time?) and even though they both hated Estevez for some reason we went to see YG2 and had fun. This movie has pretty good cinematography, so the trailer looked pretty awesome actually We went to see it together one afternoon and after a pretty good intro the movie... just... idk it feels like a TV episode

Nice details and homage to Murphy. I’m from New Zealand and love The Quiet Earth also.

I was excited just at the title, as even amongst my friends who are big movie geeks (especially sci-fi and fantasy), I think I am the only who has watched it. I only remember seeing it once, and I think it was a rental (tells you how long ago it was and how old I am). It's infuriating to learn what happened to the original idea for the film and how, yet again, studio interference ruins movies. I do enjoy it though. Thanks for another in-depth look at a personal favorite.

(I watched The Player for the first time today. 1992 Directed by Robert Altman. With Tim Robbins, Greta Scacchi, Fred Ward. Pretty good fecking movie about screen writing Hollywood back stabbing) FreeJack is a great movie, and I had no idea it was canabalized so much. "nibble my ear."

"Get the meat." My favourite quote from this film.

I had a huge crush on Emilio Estevez in the late 80s and 90s. Young Guns 2 and Freejack are my favorite Emilio Estevez movies.

I was very young and we went a Chinese restaurant very late at night in Atlanta and Mick Jagger and just about the entire cast was there.

Thing I remember most about this film was one character said, "There's people on top, there's people on the bottom, and no one in between." Scary and prophetic.

"Sexy special effects" is basically what makes me turn my nose up at most 90s Sci-fi and Horror

Great video dude....I always enjoy them. 👍...The Quiet Earth was one of my faves too as well. Shame of what could have been a great movie. Here is another idea for ya....You should do an 'Exploring Exorcist III' which is another film Morgan Creek interfered with (although that film fared better than 'Freejack'...some of the changes that were made were a what the heck were they thinking but some of the other changes were actually good in aot of people's eyes and mostly did end up helping the movie in the long run). Shout/Scream Factory did release a collectors edition that had writer/director William Peter Blatty's mostly original rought cut (although some footage was lost) as well as the released theatrical version. I personally seen both versions myself & they are unique in their own right....I'd watch that video for sure 😎 Also - the Exorcist IV: The Beginning & Dominion: Prequel To The Exorcist is a whole nother entire video unto itself as well. Since there is going to be an 'Exorcist' reboot coming out soon. Here is some related material for videos for ya bud 😁.

I am with you on Jagger, even though he never got to play Alex DeLarge or Jareth...he got to play a villain in the end.

I'm glad Hollywood has grown up, matured and moved on from this kind of attitude and - oh wait - 65!

Freejack was a Saturday staple for years on the USA network. Haven't seen it around in ages.

super interesting, love the background info

I love your breakdown on studio interference with certain films, I'd love to see one on the film Sabotage (2014), that movie was ruined by the studio so bad, it couldn't be released.

I was only 12 but I remember Freejack just popped up on HBO one. There was no hype before the theatrical debut and nobody knew anything about it. And no one talked about how dumb it was until after it had been on cable a short while.

seen this film when i was young 12 or so (Always enjoyed it for what it was) but, even back then i could tell something was “Off” it’s a shame the Director got screwed over by Studio politics…. Maybe one day we’ll see a Director’s Cut (Freejack could’ve been a legit iconic 90’s film but, ego and stupidity always win out in the end! Geoff Murphy was a strong person to put up with so much nonsense then fall on the sword when the film bombed 😢😢 Great mini documentary!❤️❤️❤️

Thanks for this great video, high quality like all your Exploring videos! Is there actually an example where studio interference actually improved a bad directed movie? It seems like the same old story over and over again...

Mick jagger trying to be a tough guy fuckin hilarious 😂

Thank you for the background on this movie. I had read the book before seeing the movie (Immortality Inc.) and it wasn't too good, but certain parts were really intriguing. Namely, what would happen to society if there was proven certainty that there is an afterlife? Then I saw the movie and it was mostly an awful action flick until the last ten minutes where they actually explore the sci-fi and philosophical elements. Now it makes more sense why that happened. Thank you for making it make sense, as always. Your research and presentation, as always, are awesome :)

Freejack is a fun mess of a movie and The Quiet Earth is just a wonderful darkish yet hopeful dream!

It's movies like this that show that studio execs have no concept of what movies are. They make a product and they're only interested in profit.

The Quiet Earth is so good.

This was my favourite childhood movie and almost noone is talking about it. Thank you for this video ❤

Fantastic video. This was one of those DVDs, like "Mean Guns," that actually collected dust in my old re-sale store in the early 2000s. Never moved, for at least a year. I'd love for you to tackle the story behind the production of "The 13th Warrior." (Especially now that McTiernan is out and working on a new flick!)

I’m so glad you love Quiet Earth!! One of my all-time favorites as well and a simply brilliant film!

I was aware of the 'Freejack' movie, had seen the trailer back in 1992, but I wasn't drawn to it and never saw it in theatres or ever rented it on VHS or DVD from rental stores. However, thanks for all of the background info for the movie, GoodBadFlicks.

Freejack would make for an amazing remake. The premise of this film was wicked cool. People who have the ability to snatch your body at the moment of death into the future for their sick and wealthy clients.

I saw this at the theater and agree with everything Cecil said. I also saw The Quiet Earth at the theater and agree that it is one of the greatest movies ever made.

I always liked Freejack and especially the scenes at the Spiritual Switchboard, "Welcome to my mind". But never knew that it should have been something totally more. I now need to get the novel because that sounds utterly bonkers.

i saw this on opening weekend, sure it was entertaining, great cast and action packed but I walked out of the cinema and had absolutely no idea what I had just watched. great video about a forgotten 90's flick

3:29 One could still make a thought provoking (and even better) contemplation on the afterlife without ghosts and zombies. Imagine a society where people know there’s life after death, but with enough money (which they can’t take with them) they can continue their lives indefinitely in younger and stronger hosts.