Tobe Hooper Directed Poltergeist

Before the boom of “elevated horror,” Hollywood had a long, proud tradition of turning their nose up at the genre. That might be hard to imagine in an era where A-Tier actors jump at the chance to star in Ari Aster’s latest movie, and directors like Jordan Peele and Zach Creggler are treated like royalty. Even though the genre has basically been a license to print money for execs and producers, the elites were hesitant to acknowledge the role genre filmmakers had in their industry, let alone associate with them.

One of the most damning examples of this snobbery goes back to 1982’s Poltergeist. A collaboration between Texas Chain Saw Massacre director Tobe Hooper and producer Steven Spielberg, Poltergeist is one of the only true horror “blockbusters” that I can think of. It was a four-quadrant smash hit that was also a balls-to-the-wall spookfest complete with killer clowns, demonic tree branches, and children stuck in TVs. It made over 100 million dollars and spawned a franchise. Usually, the director gets at least some credit for a success like that.

See, here’s the thing.

Hollywood has always been a gossip mill. Who’s sleeping with who? Did you hear that so-and-so’s latest picture is a dud? That kind of deal. One of the most pernicious rumors, though, in my book, is that Tobe Hooper didn’t direct Poltergeist. Steven Spielberg did.

The rumor dates back to an LA Times reporter who arrived on the Poltergeist set and found Steven Spielberg directing 2nd Unit footage in the front yard. Not having a goddamn clue about how major film productions work, this reporter went back with a “story” about how there were “two directors” of the upcoming Poltergeist.

The story spread through the industry like wildfire. There were some things to fan the flames. First, there were the circumstances of Hooper’s involvement. In a brief backstory to Poltergeist’s production, Spielberg had approached Hooper about directing a thriller about alien invaders who terrorize a family. Hooper was busy with The Funhouse, and the project was shelved.

They continued to workshop the idea, and Hooper eventually suggested turning it into a ghost story instead of an alien threat. Spielberg was planning on directing it himself, but when the project was finally ready, he was already in production on E.T. Spielberg’s contract stipulated that he couldn’t direct two movies at the same time. So, he decided to produce and hired Tobe Hooper to direct it.

Because of Spielberg’s heavy involvement, from helping craft the story to being there on set, some thought Spielberg just hired as a frontman so that he could actually direct the movie behind the scenes.

Some of Spielberg’s attempts to clarify the situation didn’t help matters. He wanted everyone to know Hooper directed the picture without undermining his own extensive contributions. So he said things like “Tobe [Hooper] isn't ... a take-charge sort of guy. If a question was asked and an answer wasn't immediately forthcoming, I'd jump in and say what we could do. Tobe would nod in agreement, and that became the process of collaboration.”

You can see how quotes like that only made matters worse. The DGA launched an official investigation, ultimately concluding that Hooper directed the picture, and that Spielberg’s involvement didn’t warrant a co-directing credit. Spielberg also wrote a public letter to Hooper, commending his work on the picture and crediting him as the picture’s true director.

That didn’t kill the rumors, though. To this day, discussion about Poltergeist is plagued by the myth that Spielberg “ghost” directed the film. Hyuck hyuck.

It’s time to put to this rumor to bed.

See, I’ve found a “clue” that could help us solve this “mystery” of who directed Poltergeist. After careful analysis, I discovered that the opening credits of the movie says “Directed by Tobe Hooper.” I also went to IMDb to verify this information. After double-checking my sources, I can confidently say Tobe Hooper directed Poltergeist while Steven Spielberg produced and wrote it.

Oh, what’s that? You heard from an assistant cameraman that Steven Spielberg actually directed it? Well, the Director’s Guild of America says Hooper did. Oh, some video essayist who has a picture of Steven Spielberg talking to the actors says otherwise? Well, the central cast says vouches for Hooper.

You sound crazy right now, man. Get a grip.

With all this hoopla, with all this hubbub, I cannot see a good-faith analysis over who deserves creative credit for Poltergeist. I see snobbery. There’s no way the hicksploitation director made that grimy little movie called The Texas Chain Saw Massacre could make a blockbuster. Not without hand-holding from Hollywood’s Golden Boy.

People will pick apart who did the storyboards, who worked with Jerry Goldsmith, etc. The fact is, every film is a collaboration that can take different shapes and dynamics. It can be both possible that Tobe Hooper directed the film by running set and having final say, while it was a Steven Spielberg “production.” Spielberg compared his role to that of David O. Selznick, the legendary producer whose credited with such classics as Gone With The Wind. That’s not to say he directed it, of course. Victor Fleming did. But during Selznick’s time, a producer had a substantial role in artistic input and contribution, often acting in creative partnership to the director.

There would be no confusion if Poltergeist were produced in the Golden Age of Hollywood, where producers were actively involved in shaping the vision of a film. Instead, it was produced after the Auteur era, so everyone is obsessed with assigning authorship. It can be possible, and is in this case probable, that neither Spielberg nor Hooper is the sole “author” of the film.

Tobe Hooper worked with the actors, the special-effects department, the Director of Photography, and every other department head to ensure that there was a functioning set under a cohesive vision. Hell, he was the reason that Poltergeist was about ghosts and not aliens. That doesn’t mean that nobody else gets credit for Poltergeist, or that Hooper had the same creative control that he did on his other projects. He wasn’t as involved in post-production; composer Jerry Goldsmith apparently worked exclusively with Spielberg. People treat that as the smoking gun, but the truth is that directors can have different levels of involvement after principal photography. In more acrimonious circumstances, directors have even been locked out of the editing room.

Was Spielberg more involved than the average producer? With his constant presence, it would be hard not to imagine. Not to mention the asymmetry between his and Hooper’s status. Spielberg was already the guy who made Jaws and Raiders of the Lost Ark, while Hooper was still trying to find a footing in his career after The Texas Chain Saw Massacre made him infamous.

Go through the annals of film history, and you’ll find many accounts of many productions where the director collaborated artistically with their producer, either because of a partnership of mutual respect or an imbalanced power dynamic. Either way, we don’t discredit the director.

“But it just feels like a Spielberg movie!” Yes, yes, Spielberg’s fingerprints are all over it, from the suburban setting to the onset of whimsy. Spielberg’s fingerprints are also all over The Goonies and Transformers, both of which he produced. I don’t hear anyone discrediting Richard Donner or Michael Bay’s creative contributions there. I mean, is Raiders of the Lost Ark a George Lucas movie? Are we going to pretend Tim Burton directed The Nightmare Before Christmas and not David Selick?

Poltergeist director Tobe Hooper, directing Poltergeist

It’s also worth noting that Spielberg and Hooper remained friends afterwards and even collaborated again on television. Hopefully, that dispels the notions that Spielberg had to step in for Hooper, who wasn’t up to the job as people have speculated. People have even floated the rumor that Hooper was crashing out on set because of a drug problem, which is a super cool and not irresponsible allegation to casually toss around.

When it comes to Poltergeist, your average person thinks they know what the director does. Drop them on a set the size of a Spielberg production and ask them who the director is. Is it the guy talking to the cast? No, that’s the AD. Is it the guy talking to the Lighting Department? No, that’s the D.P.

Yes, I can feel Spielberg’s influence, but I can also tell that I’m watching a Tobe Hooper flick. From its storyline to its special effects, Poltergeist has a mean edge. The infamous face-peeling scene has more to do with one of Hooper’s exploitation flicks than the cartoonish face-melting scene in Raiders of the Lost Ark. Sure, Jaws had edge, but more in the Hitchcockian mold of classic suspense. Poltergeist has a malevolent atmosphere and shock value more in line with The Funhouse, which is why Spielberg hired him in the first place.

It’s also worth noting that, when you compare Jaws and Jurassic Park to their source material, it’s clear that Spielberg is more inclined to sanitize his work than provoke the audience. The only exception I can think of is the uncharacteristically violent Indiana Jones sequel, Temple of Doom. There, the tonal shift there could be more attributed to George Lucas’ ongoing divorce than Spielberg’s proclivity towards shock value.

Still, I can trace Hooper’s singular style all thorugh Poltergeist. You don’t need to tell me that it was the director of The Funhouse who included that killer clown. Look at the scene where the Freeling son is taken by that evil tree. It’s more like a souped-up version of the abduction scene from Tobe Hooper’s Salem’s Lot than anything I’ve seen from Spielberg.

“Tobe Hooper went on to make Lifeforce; there’s no way somebody like that directed Poltergeist.” Yeah, and Steven Spielberg directed Hook. What’s your point? Also, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre 2 > > > Empire of the Sun.

No, I don’t see a good-faith analysis of a complicated situation. I see an imbalanced power dynamic on set. I see a creative partnership that was misinterpreted by the public. And frankly, I see snobbery from the industry and from the media. And if it’s not snobbery, it’s ignorance of the mechanics of film production.

“But where there’s smoke, there’s fire.” Yeah? And where there’s assholes, there’s gossip.

I’m not here to comb through every interview or every detail of Poltergeist’s production to litigate who directed Poltergeist. That was done 40 years ago. The talk has been done to death. Frankly, it shouldn’t have happened in the first place.

Because I can’t handle it anymore, people. It’s driving me insane. Take that asterisk off of Tobe Hooper’s name. This rumor followed him to the grave. Even today, retrospectives feel the need to comment on the Poltergeist “controversy.” The only thing controversial is that the industry fueled this rumor in the first place.

Tobe Hooper hasn’t had a full reappraisal like John Carpenter. I think he’s owed one. And I think Hollywood shouldn’t look down on the weirdos and provocateurs that make skeezy movies like The Texas Chain Saw Massacre because, quite frankly, those weirdos keep the lights on for Hollywood.