Harold Ramis, co-writer and director of the original Caddyshack, initially resisted Warner Bros.’ demand for a sequel. According to his later account, the studio repeatedly sold him on the idea that “The Shack is Back,” while insisting that Dangerfield wanted the project and that somebody else would make it if he refused. Ramis eventually wrote a first draft with his Second City Television colleague PJ Torokvei during the summer of 1987, consulting with Dangerfield throughout the process. When Dangerfield rejected the script and then departed amid his contract fight, Ramis also withdrew. Warner Bros. fired the original director, brought in Allan Arkush, and hired Jeffrey Price and Peter S. Seaman—who had also written Who Framed Roger Rabbit—to overhaul the screenplay. Their work went uncredited, while Ramis and Torokvei retained official writing credit. Ramis later said he tried to remove his name, but Jon Peters warned him that doing so would become a story in the trade papers and damage the film even further. Ramis ultimately remained attached to a sequel he later bluntly described as “terrible,” creating one of Hollywood’s classic examples of a filmmaker being publicly associated with a production he no longer controlled or endorsed.
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AI concept artworkArchive Record · 1980s
Harold Ramis Tried to Disown Caddyshack II—But Warner Bros. Kept His Name on the Disaster
Harold Ramis / Caddyshack II / 1980s
Harold Ramis, co-writer and director of the original Caddyshack, initially resisted Warner Bros.’ demand for a sequel. According to his later account, the studio repeatedly sold him on the idea that “The Shack is Back,” while insisting that Dangerfield wanted the project and that somebody else would make it if he refused. Ramis eventually wrote a first draft with his Second City Television colleague PJ Torokvei during the summer of 1987, consulting with Dangerfield throughout the process. When Dangerfield rejected the script and then departed amid his contract fight, Ramis also withdrew. Warner Bros. fired the original director, brought in Allan Arkush, and hired Jeffrey Price and Peter S. Seaman—who had also written Who Framed Roger Rabbit—to overhaul the screenplay. Their work went uncredited, while Ramis and Torokvei retained official writing credit. Ramis later said he tried to remove his name, but Jon Peters warned him that doing so would become a story in the trade papers and damage the film even further. Ramis ultimately remained attached to a sequel he later bluntly described as “terrible,” creating one of Hollywood’s classic examples of a filmmaker being publicly associated with a production he no longer controlled or endorsed.
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