FILM 2008: THE HAPPENING

FILM 2008: THE HAPPENING

TRIVIA: The movie was shot completely in sequence.

M. Night Shyamalan's first R-rated film.

Mark Wahlberg admitted that he regrets working on this movie, but said, "You can't blame me for wanting to try to play a science teacher. At least I wasn't playing a cop or a crook."

Director M. Night Shyamalan's first film in which he does not physically appear for a cameo. He is the voice of "Joey," who calls Alma a few times throughout the movie. The audience never sees him, nor learns of his fate.

Bystander apathy is a real psychological phenomenon, with a strong theoretical and evidential base.

The film's tagline, "We've sensed it. We've seen the signs. Now...it's happening," referring to M. Night Shyamalan, who wrote and directed The Sixth Sense (1999), Signs (2002), and The Happening (2008).

Mark Wahlberg's line "Be scientific, douchebag" was improvised.

FILM 1928: GLASS

FILM 1928: GLASS

TRIVIA: Samuel L. Jackson said of working with James McAvoy on the movie, "As good as I like to think I am or what I do and how I do it, watching somebody transform characters in front of your eyes and have an argument with four different people is pretty amazing."

James Mcavoy based one of his twenty-three multiple personalities on a young Saoirse Ronan, whom he worked with in the film Atonement (2007).

While promoting the movie at the 2018 Comic-Con, writer and director M. Night Shyamalan noted that the film was "a once-in-a-lifetime movie in that Disney arm Buena Vista International, which owns the rights to Unbreakable (2000), and Split (2016) studio Universal Pictures, agreed to team for the film." He continued saying, "I don't think this will ever happen again, where two studios had two IPs they completely owned, and I said, 'Can we make a sequel to both, and you guys share it?' and they said 'Yes.'"

Sarah Paulson accepted her part without reading the script, even though her role was originally written for a man, for the opportunity to work with director M. Night Shyamalan. 

When David Dunn is taken into the mental hospital, the first camera feed seen is labeled H20. David's weakness is water which hints that the hospital is dangerous to him.

Although Disney owns the rights to Unbreakable (2000), director M. Night Shyamalankept the rights to any potential sequels to himself, so that the studio could not make one without his involvement. Such was his desire for creative control that he co-financed Glass (2019) by mortgaging his house.

DIRECTOR CAMEO: M. Night Shymalan played a customer at the Dunn Security store and recognized David Dunn as a former security guard at the stadium and credits him for putting him on a good path. In Unbreakable (2000), Shymalan cameoed as a drug dealer whom David has a run in with.

FILM 1849: SIGNS

FILM 1849: SIGNS

TRIVIA: Abigail Breslin's film debut.

The production used a new watering technique to make the corn grow faster, which the Delaware Valley agricultural college was then very keen to adopt for themselves.

The stories of the children's birth are actually the stories of M. Night Shyamalan's two children.

The artwork in the book about extraterrestrials was actually done by Writer and Director M. Night Shyamalan's daughter, Saleka Shyamalan.

Joaquin Phoenix replaced Mark Ruffalo, who had to pull out of the film due to a brain tumor. It was later found to be benign.

The crop circles are real, as M. Night Shyamalan doesn't particularly like using CGI.

Mel Gibson didn't realize Shyamalan was playing the vet, until the day that they came to shoot their scenes together.

Graham Hess was originally written as an older character. Paul Newman was offered the role, but turned it down, as did Clint Eastwood.

M. Night Shyamalan had the cast watch The Birds (1963) several times during production.

DIRECTOR TRADEMARK: (M. Night Shyamalan): (Philadelphia): The action takes place just outside of Philadelphia.

DIRECTOR TRADEMARK: M. Night Shyamalan: [Acting in his own film]

FILM 1844: THE SIXTH SENSE

FILM 1844: THE SIXTH SENSE

TRIVIA: Reportedly, Haley Joel Osment got the role of Cole Sear for one of three reasons. First, he was best for it. Second, he was the only boy at auditions who wore a tie. Third, director M. Night Shyamalan was surprised when he asked Haley Joel Osment if he read his part. Osment replied, "I read it three times last night." Shyamalan was impressed, saying, "Wow, you read your part three times?" To which Osment replied, "No, I read the script three times."

Toni Collette has said that she was so moved by the emotional resonance of the story while filming, she did not even realize it was a horror film until after its release.

While in New York City auditioning for Bringing Out the Dead (1999), Toni Collette also auditioned for this film as an afterthought. She said the scene in the car toward the end of the film, which was the audition scene, was the scene that really drew her to the film.

According to director M. Night Shyamalan, Donnie Wahlberg lost 43 pounds for the role of Vincent Grey.

Filmed in sequence.

The movie was rented by 80 million people in 2000, making it the year's top-rated VHS and DVD title.

M. Night Shyamalan wrote the role of Malcolm Crowe with Bruce Willis in mind.

A lot of the members of M. Night Shyamalan's family are doctors. This is the reason why he cameos as a doctor, as a tribute to his family.

This was the first of two movies that Bruce Willis owed Disney, after he caused another production, "The Broadway Brawler," to be shut down, due to him firing the director. He also was paid ten million dollars, half of his usual salary at the time.

According to Michael Cera, this was the first film that he ever auditioned for. He read for the part of Cole, but the role ultimately went to Haley Joel Osment.

Included among the "1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die," edited by Steven Schneider.

In 2007, the American Film Institute ranked this as the #89 Greatest Movie of All Time. This was one of the newest entries on the list (from films which were released between 1997 and 2005).

DIRECTOR CAMEO: M. Night Shyamalan: Dr. Hill, who examines Cole Sear after the "accident" at the birthday party.

FILM 1831: UNBREAKABLE

FILM 1831: UNBREAKABLE

TRIVIA: Writer and Director M. Night Shyamalan always had Bruce Willis and Samuel L. Jackson in mind to play the roles of David Dunn and Elijah Price.

Of all the films he's made, this is M. Night Shyamalan's personal favorite.

One of Quentin Tarantino's favorite films.

Charlayne Woodard, who plays the mother to Samuel L. Jackson's character, is actually almost a full five years younger than her on-screen son.

The scene where David's son tries to shoot him to prove he has super powers is based on the popular urban legend that George Reeves was once confronted by a child who asked to shoot him with a real gun while he was in his Superman costume. According to the legend, Reeves, just like David, got the boy to put the gun down by convincing him it would ricochet and hurt someone else.

DIRECTOR CAMEO: M. Night Shyamalan: Stadium drug dealer.

DIRECTOR TRADEMARK: M. Night Shyamalan: [Philadelphia] Set in Philadelphia, like most of his films.

FILM 1635: SPLIT 

TRIVIA: M.Night Shyamalan announced via social media 'The shot of 23 toothbrushes was reshot many times until the shadows started to look like people.'

When Joaquin Phoenix and the production couldn't reach a contract agreement, James McAvoy was cast in the lead.

Opening titles and final credits are repeated 24 times in the background, as the number of personalities of the main character.

DIRECTOR TRADEMARK (M. Night Shyamalan): [Acting in his own films]: Director M. Night Shyamalan appears in the movie as Jai, the fast-food loving concierge of the apartment building where Dr. Fletcher works. They look at the security cameras after Barry leaves after their appointment.

M. Night Shyamalan hired cinematographer Mike Gioulakis after seeing his work on It Follows (2014), and composer West Dylan Thordson after hearing his music on the TV show The Jinx: The Life and Deaths of Robert Durst (2015).