War Of The Worlds Explained: Unmade Harryhausen Film

Overview

The video explains how Ray Harryhausen’s long-gestating, unrealized adaptation of H.G. Wells’ War of the Worlds almost came to life—and why it ultimately didn’t.

Main storyline / key events

• 1953’s theatrical War of the Worlds (the film that was released) is framed as not the first attempt to adapt Wells’ novel. Decades earlier, studios repeatedly failed to fully commit to the project.
• The driving creative force behind the “unmade” version is Ray Harryhausen, celebrated for practical effects and stop-motion realism in an era before CGI.

• The video links Harryhausen’s obsession to 1933’s King Kong, which inspired him to learn the craft of:

  • miniatures
  • matte work
  • stop-motion His interest begins with early experiments in his garage.

• During and around World War II (including time serving in the Army), Harryhausen pushes his War of the Worlds idea more seriously—writing outlines and creating extensive concept drawings and storyboards.

• He approaches major Hollywood studios with the material. Paramount (including Jesse Lasky) shows interest partly because the rights are available, but money and science-fiction skepticism stall progress.
• Harryhausen even produces a short 16mm stop-motion test, featuring Martian designs made with period-accurate practical methods, such as:
  • a plaster-cylinder environment
  • a metal armature with a latex-covered creature

What makes the “unmade” version stand out

• A major focus is the rare test footage, where the Martians’ design is described in detail.
• The video emphasizes that the test creature closely follows Wells’ written description, including:
  • a “v-shaped” mouth
  • a quivering jaw
  • a tentacled form
  • heavy movement
  • intense eyes
• A key discussion centers on what the footage actually depicts:
  • Many sources interpret the clip as the aliens dying—the ending of the story.
  • The narrator (and the video’s analysis) argues it’s instead the opening/first encounter, because the creature appears to topple/fall after presenting itself—suggesting a beginning rather than the climax.
• The video also discusses stop-motion’s characteristic jittery, low-frame look as part of its charm.
• It notes a modern trend of “smoothing” old Harryhausen footage with frame interpolation, which can weaken the intended feel.

Jokes / reaction moments

• There’s recurring tongue-in-cheek commentary about whether the Martians might seem too cartoony or even funny because of their big eyes—yet the video argues their look fits the era and may be more faithful than expected.
• The narrator jokes about later “reuse” or spoof-like effects, pointing to Orson Welles (radio/TV drama context) and film elements that were sometimes sped up, making creatures look even more ridiculous. Welles is reportedly happy to use others’ footage.

Why the project failed, and what changed

• Harryhausen repeatedly can’t secure full studio financing.
• In attempts to improve marketability, the project’s setting and structure shift, such as bringing the story closer to contemporary America (including New York) and using characters adapted from the radio broadcast (e.g., a replacement narrator figure like Professor Pearson).
• The real breakthrough goes to George Pal:
  • Harryhausen learns Pal is already negotiating with Paramount to produce his own War of the Worlds.
  • Harryhausen stays diplomatic and remains friends with Pal, but the implication is that Harryhausen’s work helped spark interest—just not enough to prevent a competing production.

Legacy / what almost happened instead

• Harryhausen never made his War of the Worlds film—but he later made another Wells adaptation: The First Men in the Moon (via the later project framing around “to the Moon”), using detailed, blueprint-like set design methods inspired by what the video describes as NASA-like thinking.
• The video also notes another near-miss: in late life, Harryhausen tried involving H.G. Wells directly, but received no response.
• It mentions a related thematic idea for the Moon story: a cold-virus wipeout parallels War of the Worlds—the closest he got to the “planetary eradication” theme in the way he imagined it for his unmade film.

Concluding idea

The video frames the “unmade film” as a major what-if: an unrealized masterpiece that would likely have been distinct from Pal’s released version—though only test materials survive.

Main personalities mentioned

• Ray Harryhausen (stop-motion/special effects artist; creator behind the unmade War of the Worlds test)
• George Pal (producer behind the released War of the Worlds and a competing approach)
• Jesse Lasky (Paramount founder/rights-holder figure)
• Willis O’Brien (effects pioneer; mentor/hero figure for Harryhausen)
• Frank Capra (director; Harryhausen’s military connection)
• Orson Welles (contextual influence via radio/related productions and reuse of footage)
• Leonard Nimoy (narrator referenced in connection with a documentary segment)
• Nigel Neil (writer who influenced The First Men in the Moon’s ending and made choices tied to Wells’ themes)