The Lost Boys Musical: Wild Movie Facts to Know Before You Get Sucked In

The Lost Boys, A New Musical made its world premiere at the Palace Theatre on March 27, almost 40 years after the release of the film it’s based on. Produced by James Carpinello, Marcus Chait and Patrick Wilson, the three super-fans brought Tony Award-winning director Michael Arden to the team—and he’d never seen the movie. Book writers David Hornsby and Chris Hoch are making their Broadway debuts, along with nine members of the company. The '80s cult classic featured young actors Kiefer Sutherland, Alex Winter and Jason Patric, and introduced the world to a different kind of vampire: sexy ones. Here’s a look at the new musical’s source material, chock-full of fang-tastic facts to get you excited for the production.

The Murder Capital of the World
Over a 30-month period between 1970 and 1973 in Santa Cruz, California, 28 murders were committed by John Linley Frazier, Herbert Mullin and Ed Kemper. This shocking statistic led to Santa Cruz being labeled “The Murder Capital of the World.” Santa Cruz was also the inspiration for Santa Carla, the fictional town the 1987 film The Lost Boys is set in, with the very same moniker on the town sign. “A haven for vampires,” Santa Carla welcomes brothers Michael and Sam Emerson as they move in search of a fresh start with their recently divorced mother, Lucy.

The Found Cast
The ensemble cast of The Lost Boys was incredibly well-rounded, with director Joel Schumacher saying, “They were one of the greatest [casts] in the world. They are what make the film." 23% of the film’s cast was comprised of actors making their debut performance, with 18% having one prior credit to their names. Vampire prosthetic makeup designer Greg Cannom told the Stan Winston School of Character Arts, "I remember Kiefer Sutherland saying, 'Don't tell them I'm only 17, they think I'm 18!'” Dianne Wiest was Schumacher’s first choice for Lucy. She had just won an Academy Award, which furthered Schumacher’s surprise when she agreed to join the cast. This was also Corey Haim and Corey Feldman's first film together, which marked the start of a popular 1980s trend titled “The Two Coreys,” as Feldman and Haim would continue to work on a number of films together, including Dream a Little Dream and License to Drive.

Angel of Music
The soundtrack for The Lost Boys is a major reason as to why the film is considered to be iconic. Echo & the Bunnymen, Tim Cappello's cover of the Call's "I Still Believe” and a duet between Jimmy Barnes and INXS are highlights off of the soundtrack. In fact, that very duet is what convinced Sutherland to join the film. Music was such a big part of the original movie that director Joel Schumacher was selected by Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber to direct the film adaptation of his hit musical, The Phantom of the Opera. Talk about big capes to fill! The Rescues, an indie rock band based in California, were suggested to pen the music and lyrics for The Lost Boys musical by Arden. Carpinello and Chait attended a concert of theirs and knew immediately that they were the best decision.

21 Days Later
The movie, running just over 90 minutes, took only 21 days to film. Despite the short timeframe, antics did still ensue. While attempting a wheelie on his motorcycle, Sutherland broke his right wrist and had to wear gloves on set to conceal the cast. His motorcycle for the movie was adapted so he could operate it with his left hand only. Another painful one; in the dinner scene with Max and the Frog brothers, Alan puts out candles with his fingers. Nobody told actor Jamison Newlander that he had to wet his fingers first, so he ended up getting burnt. In a more pure turn, years later, Haim recounted his filming experience as “one of the greatest personal times in my life.”

What's in a Name?
Though Schumacher’s goal was to make vampirism sexy and cool, the writers couldn’t resist nodding to classic vampires, and even referencing some horror heroes. The character of Lucy was named for Lucy Westenra, from Bram Stoker's Dracula. Similarly, the Frog brothers, Edgar and Alan, were named for Edgar Allan Poe and his horror-fiction roots. The character Michael takes a crack at Star for being named by hippies, but that might be better than the man who wrote “The Tell-Tale Heart.”

Becoming Buffy
In 1992, just five years after The Lost Boys was released, 20th Century Fox came out with Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The Lost Boys served as inspiration for the film, which coincidentally featured Donald Sutherland (Kiefer Sutherland's father) as a vampire. The Buffy film in turn inspired the 1997 show, though creator Joss Whedon insists they are distinctly separate iterations. The character of Spike in the television show even sports David’s signature platinum blonde hair.

A New Musical for a New Generation
Carpinello, Chait and Wilson secured the rights to The Lost Boys and assembled an all-star team to bring the show to Broadway. LJ Benet makes his Broadway debut as Michael, along with Tony nominee Shoshana Bean (Hell's Kitchen, Mr. Saturday Night, Wicked) as Lucy, Ali Louis Bourzgui (The Who’s Tommy) as David and Benjamin Pajak (The Music Man) as Sam. Performances began on March 27, ahead of an April 26 opening night. Whether you're a diehard fan of the film or you're new blood visiting Santa Carla for the first time, prepare to get sucked in and "become one of us" on Broadway.

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