Warwick Davis's leprechaun performance is legendary. Leprechaun believes a family stole his gold in the film. He hunts them with cunning and power. The family searches for riches to appease the leprechaun and protect him from hurting them. Davis's terrifying performance makes Leprechaun a classic horror flick.
Davis added a comedic element to his portrayal, despite the fact that the film Leprechaun was supposed to be more of a straightforward horror thriller.
Film plot:
Dan O'Grady goes back to North Dakota in 1983 from Ireland, where he was born. There, he kidnaps a leprechaun and steals his pot of gold. After O'Grady buries the treasure, he finds out that the bad leprechaun followed him home and killed his wife. Using a four-leaf clover, O'Grady takes away the leprechaun's powers and puts him in a box. He had a heart attack before he could burn him.
Ten years later, J. D. Redding and his teenage daughter Tory rent the O'Grady farmhouse for the summer. Painting the farmhouse is a job for Nathan Murphy, his 10-year-old brother Alex, and their friend Ozzie Jones, who works as a contract worker. Ozzie hears the leprechaun calling for help while he is searching the basement. He thinks the leprechaun is a small child. He lets the leprechaun out of the box by taking out the old four-leaf clover. Ozzie asks the leprechaun who he is. The leprechaun tells Ozzie that he is an Irish shoemaker who came to America to find his fortune. Ozzie fails to convince the others that he saw a leprechaun. He then sees a rainbow and follows it, hoping to find a pot of gold. Alex goes with him because he is afraid Ozzie will hurt himself. Before Ozzie, a magic trick makes a bag with 100 gold coins appear. After Ozzie checks it out and accidentally eats a coin, they hide the gold in an old well. They did this because they thought it would heal Ozzie's brain.
The farm's leprechaun fools J. D. into slipping into a trap by impersonating a cat and biting and injuring his hand. After Tory and the others take him to the hospital, the leprechaun rides a tricycle. When Alex and Ozzie go to a pawn shop to inspect the purity of the gold, the leprechaun kills the owner, Joe, and polishes Joe's shoes before fleeing. On his way back to the farmhouse, the leprechaun builds himself a go-kart and gets pulled over by a policeman for speeding. The leprechaun chases the policeman into the woods, where the leprechaun eventually murders the cop. The leprechaun returns to the home in search of his wealth, sparkling every shoe he sees. After leaving J. D. off at the hospital, the group returns to the farmhouse. When Nathan goes outside to check after finding it robbed, he is injured by a leprechaun-set bear trap. Outside, the gang assaults and beats the leprechaun with rocks and clubs.
After finding a gun in the house, the residents take many shots at the leprechaun. After trying to depart the site, they find that the truck's engine has been wrecked by the leprechaun. After crashing the car with the go-kart, the leprechaun terrorizes the group until Ozzie and Alex confess that they found the pot of gold. Tory fishes the purse out of the well and presents it to the leprechaun. Having decided that the worst is over, they go to the hospital. As the leprechaun tallies his gold, he learns that Ozzie stole the last coin. He threatens them because he thinks they're trying to trick him, but Ozzie reveals that O'Grady had a stroke and was taken to the hospital. The group distracts the leprechaun by throwing dirty shoes to him, and he ends up going to shine them as Tory drives off in her vehicle. To learn the secret of killing the leprechaun, Tory travels to the home.
At the nursing home, the leprechaun pretends to be O'Grady. The leprechaun follows Tory to an elevator and throws O'Grady's bloody body down the elevator shaft as Tory runs away. Before he dies, O'Grady tells her that the only way to kill the leprechaun is with a four-leaf clover, which grows in a big patch right outside the farm. Tory goes back to the farmhouse to look for a clover, but the leprechaun attacks her, and Nathan and Ozzie save her. The leprechaun gets seriously hurt while trying to get the last gold coin, which Ozzie admits he ate. Alex puts a four-leaf clover that Tory found on a wad of gum and fires it into the leprechaun's mouth. This melts the leprechaun before he can kill Ozzie. Even though the leprechaun's skeleton fell into the well, it gets out and says, "I want my gold." After Nathan pushes the leprechaun back into the well, he lights both objects on fire with gasoline. When the police show up, Tory is reunited with her father. She then marries Nathan and they have a child. While the police search the wreckage of the well, the leprechaun says he won't stop until he finds all of his money.
How successful was the 1993 film Leprechaun in theaters?
Leprechaun was released on January 8, 1993, in 620 theaters and drew in $2,493,020 its initial week, eventually making $8,556,940 in the United States. Vidmark released it on VHS in April 1993, and it sold over 100,000 copies.
Leprechaun debate explained:
In the weeks and months preceding up to the premiere of the movie, Trimark teamed up with several organizations, including the National Basketball Association, the American Stock Exchange, Domino's Pizza, and Subway, to promote the film. The collaboration between Domino's and Subway was especially contentious since many individuals had the perception that the franchisees were being taken advantage of by the companies. Despite this, Leprechaun is still considered a cult classic to this day, which is a testament to the strength of the marketing effort.
Were there any sequels to Leprechaun?
The Leprechaun travels to Los Angeles in pursuit of more riches in the sequel, Leprechaun 2, which was released the following year. Leprechaun 3 is set in Sin City, and it's here that the Leprechaun finally gets his hands on the wish-granting coin. Leprechaun 4: In Space is a break from the other films in the series since it is set on a spacecraft and the Leprechaun fights aliens. In the fifth and final installment of the franchise, titled Leprechaun: Back 2 tha Hood, the titular character goes back to his urban Los Angeles neighborhood. Despite the franchise's generally unfavorable reviews, Leprechaun has proved to be a hit with audiences and has become a cult favorite.
Trivia about the Leprechaun film
After the producers insisted on making the picture gorier to appeal to older viewers, some sequences had to be re-shot.
It's well-known that George Lucas had a role in casting Warwick Davis in Willow. What's less well-known is the reason why. Apparently, Davis was under contract to Lucas, and Lucas had to provide authorization for him to appear in the movie. As a consequence, he was granted a "special thanks" credit at the conclusion of the film. This little-known truth makes the movie much more appealing for horror movie enthusiasts. It's simply another example of Lucas's effect on popular culture.
Initially, the leprechaun was intended to return to Ireland. However, there was a problem: the Irish actor portraying the leprechaun, Warwick Davis, lacked a work visa. In order to shoot the last sequence, Davis was required to secure a visa within three days, which is normally impossible. Fortunately, Vice President Dan Quayle's administration was able to expedite the procedure, allowing Davis to complete shooting on time. Quayle earned a "special thanks" credit at the conclusion of the film for his contributions.
Warwick Davis was beginning to regret producing the film, but because Anniston's later success on TV, many people rented it, and it led (blog) to a long series of sequels. It is claimed that it was one of Warwick's personal favorites.
Leprechaun was Jennifer Aniston's first full-length movie.
If you're a lover of horror flicks, Leprechaun is absolutely worth seeing. It's one of those rare horror films that's genuinely humorous as well as disturbing, and it boasts some terrific performances from Warwick Davis and Jennifer Aniston. The narrative may not be the most creative, but the movie is nonetheless pleasant to see. So if you're in the mood for a nice fright, check out Leprechaun. You won't be disappointed.