This list of Top Ten Unproduced Scripts is interesting reading, though woefully incomplete and sometimes inaccurate. Take the assertion that the script for I am Legend sticks close to Matheson’s original novel (which it doesn’t; Hemocytes!?! What the hell are Hemocytes? Call them vampires, dammit!) and that its one of the best sci-fi-adventure films the world will never see (which it probably wouldn’t be). Matheson’s influential novel was a study of isolation and grim irony, which the script mostly reduces to thin action sequences and barely tolerable exposition. In all fairness, adapting the novel faithfully would be tremendously difficult, so I guess the script isn’t that bad.
Some notable absences from the list are the apocalyptic The Sky is Falling, which will never see the light of day due to its controversial premise:
Two clerics on an archaeological dig discover proof that God does not exist; with their faith irrevocably shattered, they go on an extremely violent crime spree, which includes murders, rapes, robbing and indulging in all sorts of drugs. The Catholic Church, faced with losing their power and influence, hire an assassin to stop the two clerics before the public learns of the truth.
Now that is some fucked up shit (pardon my language). Also missing from the list is Aliens vs. Predator. It sounds like a piece of crap, but AvP actually has a thoughtful premise and Dark Horse’s original comic was well executed and not at all cheesy. The script is not quite as good as its source material, but its decent. Unfortunately, the project seems to be stuck in Limbo. Speaking of the Alien franchise, David Twohy’s unused script for Alien3 is also worth looking at.
So there you have it. Just for good measure I’ll throw you a link to Drew’s Script-O-Rama, the definitive web resource for movie scripts. And look here, Samael’s started a nice discussion in the Kaedrin forum about “important” films.