John Carpenter’s The Thing is now a classic of sci-fi horror, but it has a lot to thank this other classic from 1958 for. The horror genre has a lot to thank John Carpenter for, especially the slasher genre. In 1978, Carpenter brought Halloween, which was key in developing the slasher genre in the 1980s. Carpenter continued his work in the horror genre throughout the 1980s and 1990s, with original stories like The Fog, adaptations of other works like Christine, and mixing other genres with horror as he did in They Live.
In 1982, Carpenter returned to the sci-fi genre now with horror mixed in with The Thing. Based on the 1938 novella Who Goes There? by John W. Campbell Jr., The Thing took the audience to Antarctica to follow a group of American researchers, among them pilot R.J. MacReady (Kurt Russell). There, the team encounters an extraterrestrial life form that assimilates and imitates other organisms, triggering chaos and paranoia among the crew. After getting negative reviews during its initial release, The Thing is now a classic of sci-fi and horror, but it wouldn’t have happened without this 1958 classic.
John Carpenter’s The Thing Couldn’t Have Happened Without 1958’s The Blob
The Blob Is One Of The Most Influential Horror Movies
Carpenter’s The Thing isn’t the only adaptation of the novella, but it is the most famous one. Although it’s now among the classics of horror and sci-fi horror and became one of the most influential movies of the genre, even a movie as important as Carpenter’s The Thing has a lot to thank other movies for, mostly 1958’s The Blob. Directed by Irvin S. Yeaworth Jr., The Blob introduces the audience to a carnivorous amoeboidal alien that crashes to Earth inside a meteorite.
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The Blob’s Origin & Powers Explained
In both the 1950s original and a 1980s remake, The Blob became the world’s hungriest jello mold, enveloping and eating anyone in its path.
The Blob envelops living beings, becoming larger and redder as it consumes more and more, but also turning more aggressive. The Blob focuses on Steve (Steve McQueen), a teenager who sees the meteorite crash on Earth and the blob clinging to its first victim. The Blob got a sequel in 1972 by Larry Hagman titled Beware! The Blob, though it was presented as a horror comedy. The Blob got a remake in 1988 directed by Chuck Russell, and another one is currently in development.
The Blob
was Steve McQueen’s first leading role in a movie.
The Blob has inspired many other (sometimes too similar) movies and has been referenced, parodied, and copied in many others. The opening scene of Killer Klowns from Outer Space parallels that of The Blob, and The Thing has an identical shot of a body lying under a blanket on a gurney, with the blanket moving. Beyond that scene, The Thing’s strongest link to The Blob is the latter paving the way for movies of its kind in the sci-fi genre, with destructive alien entities, graphic scenes, and many mysteries to solve.
The Blob’s Movie Legacy Is Clear Now, But The Movie Wasn’t As Popular Upon Release
The Blob Benefited From The Passage Of Time
John Carpenter’s The Thing even went through the same challenges during its release as The Blob, as both were negatively received. The Blob got negative reviews upon release, with critics pointing out its “phony” looks, the “terrible” acting, how the creature is dealt with at the end, and how disappointing the creature itself was as some of the movie’s biggest flaws. However, The Blob has benefited from the passage of time and its legacy is now clear, despite not being a critical hit back in 1958.
The same happened to The Thing, which critics called the “quintessential moron movie” of the decade, “junk”, “boring”, and “slow”, though some praised the performances of the cast, and the visual effects were both praised and hated. Perhaps The Blob and The Thing arrived at the wrong time, but their influence – of one on the other and others – is now undeniable.