
The Future Was Now
Madmen, Mavericks, and the Epic Sci-Fi Summer of 1982
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
3 months free
Buy for $25.19
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Jonathan Todd Ross
-
By:
-
Chris Nashawaty
“Hollywood boldly went where it hadn’t gone before and Nashawaty chronicles the journeys.” —Los Angeles Times ("Books You Need To Read This Summer")
“Written with a fan’s enthusiasm . . . An important inflection point in Hollywood filmmaking.” —New York Times ("Nonfiction Books to Read This Summer")
In the summer of 1982, eight science fiction films were released within six weeks of one another. E.T., Tron, Star Trek: Wrath of Khan, Conan the Barbarian, Blade Runner, Poltergeist, The Thing, and Mad Max: The Road Warrior changed the careers of some of Hollywood's now biggest names―altering the art of movie-making to this day.
In The Future Was Now, Chris Nashawaty recounts the riotous genesis of these films, featuring an all-star cast of Hollywood luminaries and gadflies alike: Steven Spielberg, at the height of his powers, conceives E.T. as an unlikely family tale, and quietly takes over the troubled production of Poltergeist, a horror film he had been nurturing for years. Ridley Scott, fresh off the success of Alien, tries his hand at an odd Philip K. Dick story that becomes Blade Runner―a box office failure turned cult classic. Similar stories arise for films like Tron, Conan the Barbarian, and The Thing. Taken as a whole, these films show a precarious turning-point in Hollywood history, when baffled film executives finally began to understand the potential of high-concept films with a rabid fanbase, merchandising potential, and endless possible sequels.
Expertly researched, energetically told, and written with an unabashed love for the cinema, The Future Was Now is a chronicle of how the revolution sparked in a galaxy far, far away finally took root and changed Hollywood forever.
©2024 Chris Nashawaty (P)2024 Brilliance Publishing, Inc., all rights reserved.Listeners also enjoyed...




















Critic reviews
“An absolute must read.”—Booklist (starred review)
“An exemplary film history.”—Kirkus (starred review)
“Entertaining. . . . The behind the scenes stories will make readers feel like they’ve stepped on a set.”—Publishers Weekly
People who viewed this also viewed...


















Love the background stories of a lot of my favorite movies growing up!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Living in the 80s
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
interesting, informative, nostalgia trip
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I Remember the Summer of ‘82
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Fantastic listen
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Great story about an incredible year in sci fi film making.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Great summer popcorn book!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Flew through this
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
That’s what this book is about. How did these eight films come to be and what happened when they were released? To accomplish that the author explores the directors’ film histories, so there is a lot of discussion of other great films as well. In fact, those films and the build up is almost the entire book. When the Summer of 1982 finally arrives, it felt like we just flew through the releases without taking the time to enjoy and really analyze them. That being said, I still really enjoyed this book and its discussion of a couple of dozen amazing films that culminated in 1982.
A Great Summer to Remember
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Movie Geeks! This is for YOU!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.