Dead Zone, The

The Dead Zone is an American feature film of the science fiction and psycho-thriller genres. It is based on the novel The Dead Zone by author Stephen King. The movie was directed by David Cronenberg with a screenplay written by Jeffrey Boam. It was produced by Lorimar Film Entertainment and the Dino De Laurentiis Company and premiered theatrically in the United States on October 21st, 1983.

Notes & Trivia
 Johnny predicts that you are really going to like all of the images we have from The Dead Zone franchise!
 * Dead Zone (1983), The Dead Zone (1983) and Dead Zone, The (1983) all redirect to this page.


 * Production on The Dead Zone began on January 10th, 1983. Principal filming concluded on March 26th, 1983.


 * The early work on the film was headed up by Lorimar Film Entertainment, but they ended up closing down its film division. After which, production was picked up by De Laurentiis Entertainment Group, who completed production of the movie.


 * The first director tapped to direct the movie was Stanley Donen, but Donen left production before the movie even reached the Lorimar studios. When Dino De Laurentiis came on board as executive producer, he brought David Cronenberg in to direct.


 * The movie was shot entirely in Ontario, Canada. Notable shooting spots include Niagara Falls, Stouffville, Orono, and Whitevale.


 * There are a total of thirty-eight credited cast members in this film.


 * The Dead Zone was remade as a television series, which aired for six seasons from June 2002 to September 2007 on the USA Network. It starred Anthony Michael Hall in the role of Johnny Smith.


 * The central setting for this movie is Castle Rock, Maine. Castle Rock is used in many Stephen King stories including Cujo, The Dark Half and Needful Things.


 * This is David Cronenberg's eighth feature film as a director. He is also known for directing Scanners, released in 1981, Videodrome in 1983, and the 1986 remake of The Fly.


 * This is Jeffrey Boam's second film as a screenwriter and his first work in the science fiction genre. He previously wrote the 1978 crime drama movie Straight Time.


 * This is Christopher Walken's fifteenth theatrically released feature film as an actor.


 * Johnny Smith possesses the power of tactile psychokinesis. By touching an individual, he can mentally divine information relating to their past and present, as well as future portents.


 * This movie was parodied in "The Ned Zone" segment from "Treehouse of Horror XV", which was the season sixteen season premiere of The Simpson. In the episode, goofy neighbor Ned Flanders suffers a head injury, and awakens with the ability to predict the future.


 * Actor William B. Davis, who has a bit role in this film as an ambulance driver, will go on to play the mysterious Cigarette Smoking Man in the FOX Network television series The X-Files.


 * Actor Ramon Estevez, who plays a teenager with a camera is the son of actor Martin Sheen, who plays Greg Stillson in this movie.


 * Actress Brooke Adams is also known for playing Elizabeth Driscoll in the 1978 remake of Invasion of the Body Snatchers.


 * Actor Tom Skerritt is also known for playing Captain Dallas in the 1979 sci-fi/horror film Alien.