DEE SNIDER Says 'Nothing' Is Happening With Proposed Sequel To 'Strangeland'

Two years ago, Dee Snider was gearing up to make a sequel to 1998's "Strangeland", which he wrote and starred in as antagonist Captain Howdy. So what's happening with it? Sadly, nothing, as the TWISTED SISTER singer explained to VH1 Radio Network's Dave Basner.

"'Strangeland' is my one like; it's just a heartache for me. The sequel for it has been on and off literally since the first movie came out and a couple years ago or a year ago, they were going into production and it fell apart again so I've taken out my septum piercing retainer and I've kind of given up. So who knows if one day it will have life?! I don't know, but I've stopped obsessing on it, because I was been obsessing on it. And they were going, 'But, Dee, you have all these other wonderful things going on.' 'But I want that! I want 'Strangeland 2'!' So who knows?! Nothing now, though."

In a February 2009 interview with FlickDirect, Snider stated about "Strangeland: Disciple", the proposed follow-up to "Strangeland", "'Hostel' and 'Saw' are children of 'Strangeland'. Before that, there was no torture genre; everyone was still beating the dead horse being chased and dying of 'Halloween'. The idea of being torn into had not been developed yet.

"I did a Fangoria radio show, dedicated to the world of horror; and the makers of 'Hostel' and 'Saw' would talk about how they loved 'Strangeland'. With 'Strangeland: Disciple', I'm going to take my crown back. That calls for a really intense effort on the part of the script.

"It is the graphic nature of 'Strangeland: Disciple'. It will be NC-17. We can allow ourselves to focus more on things happening to the subjects. We don't have to cut away so rapidly — so rabidly. 'R' leaves a lot to the imagination. I tend to leave a lot less to the imagination."

Regarding his decision to shoot for an NC-17 rating NC-17 from the MPAA's ratings board for "Strangeland: Disciple", Snider said, "I wanted to make the first one NC-17, but the company making the picture said, 'No, you can't. You won't get any screens. When did you last see an NC-17 movie at the multiplex?'

"There is a conservative undercurrent in this country that won't allow [this type of movie] to be seen. Their view is that the rating is to protect the public, not educate them.

"I know, from experience, that kids are buying tickets to 'Snow White' or whatever and sneaking in to see R-rated films. So we toned down 'Strangeland'. With 'Strangeland: Disciple', we are doing the reverse of what is going on today — which is to release the R-rated movie in the theaters and then do the unrated director's cut on DVD.

"When 'The Exorcist' came out, it only showed in New York and L.A. The word spread about this insane movie. The first cut was a lot more intense, with more subliminal cuts and things like the spider-walk that got taken out of the release version. People were passing out in the theater.

"We're going to do the initial screenings with NC-17, and then a wider release at 'R.' People will be going, 'You have to see the original.'

"I'm not making an intense picture for the purpose of making an intense picture. It's reality-based. The first one was also; when I wrote it, Internet crime didn't exist. In the last movie, Captain Howdy appears to burn to death — he is on fire. When you see how he survives, people will go, 'Oh crap, I get that!' It is reality-based."