The horror film Emilio Estevez regrets ever having made

Emilio Estevez has experienced quite a few highs and lows in film and television—understandable, considering he began his acting career at the tender age of 11. While he landed a few roles in the 1970s, it was in the 1980s that he truly rose to Hollywood stardom. He appeared alongside numerous other newcomers in "The Outsiders" and played the lead character, Otto, in the nihilistic comedy "Repo Man." Estevez officially became a heartthrob when he played high school athlete Andrew Clark in John Hughes' "The Breakfast Club" and then appeared in "St. Elmo's Fire," another coming-of-age classic of the 1980s. By the time he appeared as hockey coach Gordon Bombay in "The Mighty Ducks" in 1992, Estevez had definitively established himself in the entertainment industry. Between his time as a member of the Brat Pack and as the face of the "Mighty Ducks" franchise, Estevez ventured into the waters of the horror genre. He landed a script for a film that would become THE horror classic of the 1980s. Stephen King, the master of horror, wrote the novel on which the film was based, and he was also slated to direct. Surely nothing could go wrong, right? Unfortunately, the film failed to live up to expectations, flopped at the box office, and was bombarded with bad reviews. Years after the film's release, Emilio Estevez finally revealed how he felt about it: He regretted ever having made "Rhea M - It Began Without Warning." In the mid-1980s, Stephen King was at the height of his career. The horror author's books were being adapted into films almost as quickly as he finished writing them. There were already over a dozen of his stories that had made it to the big screen, including "Carrie," "Cat's Eye," "Firestarter," and Stanley Kubrick's "The Shining." So how could he refuse when Hollywood asked him to direct his own feature film? King wrote the screenplay for "Rhea M," basing it on his own 1978 short story "Truck." Published in his short story collection "Night Shift," "Truck" tells the story of a group of strangers stranded in a diner who fight against self-aware machines conspiring against humanity. Sounds like a great premise for a horror movie, right? Unfortunately, King's creative talents as director of "Rhea M" didn't translate to the screen. The film received scathing reviews, and King was nominated for a Golden Raspberry Award for Worst Director. Of course, hindsight is always 20/20. In an interview for Tony Magistrale's book "Hollywood's Stephen King," the author admitted that he had no idea what he was doing as a director. King also revealed that he was under the influence of cocaine for almost the entire production of "Rhea M," which offers a fresh perspective on the film. He also noted, however, that he learned a great deal from the experience. Stephen King's confessions about "Rhea M" were likely a relief for Emilio Estevez, who shares similar feelings about the film. During a March 2021 interview with Vanity Fair about Estevez's new Disney+ series, "The Mighty Ducks: Game Changers," journalist Julie Miller asked Estevez about his biggest career mistakes. The actor cited "Rhea M" as the film he doesn't understand why he participated in. He said: “I don’t think it’s rude to say this, because he knows it’s a terrible film, but Stephen King often talks about his only directing experience with ‘Rhea M,’ which I co-starred in. The few times I’ve seen him over the years, he’s always said to me, ‘Can you forgive me for this?’” Although the film failed to live up to any expectations, there is at least one cool aspect: the music. The legendary rock band AC/DC produced the soundtrack for “Rhea M.” Here’s the full article (in English): https://www.looper.com/397192/the-hor...