Highlander (franchise)

• 1. Introduction

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  Highlander is an American media franchise created by Gregory Widen, and it began with a film whose tagline promised "There Can Be Only One." That film reached cinemas on the 7th of March 1986. It earned $12.9 million worldwide, with $5.9 million of that from the United States and Canada. Critics reviewed it poorly, and it was not a financial success. Yet it won a devoted cult following, did well abroad, and many fans still call it the best entry in the series. From that shaky start came four theatrical films, a made-for-television film, two live-action series, an animated series, an anime film, original novels, comics and licensed merchandise. How does a film with such a modest return keep inspiring stories for decades? What happens to a mythology when each new storyteller rewrites its rules? And why has one planned remake spent years searching for its cast?

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• 2. The Rules of the Game

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  Connor MacLeod was born in Glenfinnan, in the Scottish Highlands, in the 16th century. In 1536 he fell on a battlefield and then rose again, fully healed. That was the first sign that he belonged to a rare group of humans born across history in different parts of the world. Christopher Lambert played him, and Russell Mulcahy directed the film.

  An Egyptian swordsman calling himself Juan Sánchez-Villalobos Ramírez, played by Sean Connery, became Connor's teacher. He laid out the rules. Immortals carry a power called the Quickening. It links them to nature, leaves them unable to have children and stops them aging. Only a beheading can kill them. Whoever takes an immortal's head absorbs that person's Quickening, so immortals fight one another to grow stronger.

  Ramírez also described how it would all end. One day, when only a few remain, they will be pulled to a faraway land for the Gathering. The last survivor claims the Prize, the combined power of every immortal who ever lived. It would be enough to enslave humanity.

  New York City in 1985 is where that final contest takes place. Connor lives there as an antique dealer, working beside his adopted daughter Rachel, played by Sheila Gish. His enemy is the Kurgan, played by Clancy Brown, a ruthless immortal who once hunted Connor and killed Ramírez centuries before. Connor also meets Brenda Wyatt, a forensics scientist played by Roxanne Hart.

  The earliest drafts of the film carried the titles Shadow Clan and Princes of the Universe. The second of those names would later turn up again as the title of a song.

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• 3. Sequels at War

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  Argentina was the setting for almost all the filming of Highlander II: The Quickening, which reached cinemas on the 1st of November 1991. Russell Mulcahy began as its director. Then the country's economy crashed, and the film's investors took direct control. They removed Mulcahy and changed the story.

  The result placed most of its plot in 2024 and gave immortals an alien origin. Ramírez and MacLeod became revolutionaries from a planet called Zeist, exiled to Earth by the corrupt General Katana, played by Michael Ironside. The film never explained how this origin squared with the first film, which had shown Connor growing up in Scotland. Nor did it explain what became of the power MacLeod had won in 1985. In this future, an energy shield protects Earth from a damaged ozone layer, and a company called The Shield Corporation controls it. Virginia Madsen played Louise Marcus, the political radical who helps MacLeod fight back.

  Critics around the world reviewed it poorly, and it is often named among the worst films ever made. Mulcahy shared the disappointment. He later re-edited the footage into the Renegade Version, which removed every spoken reference to Zeist. The alien scenes became a flashback to an ancient civilization on Earth that existed before recorded history. In 2004 a Special Edition added new computer-generated effects and changed the shield from red to dark blue, as originally intended. Fans often preferred both new cuts, but reception stayed mixed.

  Highlander III: The Sorcerer, also titled Highlander: The Final Dimension, opened in the Philippines and the United Kingdom in late 1994. It reached the United States on the 27th of January 1995. It ignored Highlander II entirely and continued from the first film. Brenda Wyatt had died in a car crash in 1987, and MacLeod was living in Marrakesh with his adopted son John. A warrior named Kane, played by Mario Van Peebles, had missed the original Gathering because magic buried him in a Japanese cave. Kane had killed MacLeod's second teacher, the sorcerer Nakano, played by Mako, and absorbed his power of illusion. MacLeod met a new love, the archaeologist Alex Johnson, played by Deborah Unger, and the two men fought their last battle in New Jersey.

  The film grossed $36.7 million worldwide, $13.7 million of it in the United States and Canada. Critics called it a rehash of the first film. Both sequels now hold Rotten Tomatoes ratings of 5% or lower.

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• 4. Immortals on Television

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  On the 3rd of October 1992, Highlander: The Series began airing in syndication, and it ran until the 16th of May 1998. It followed Duncan MacLeod, played by Adrian Paul, an immortal from the same clan as Connor but born decades later. Soon after Duncan learns what he is, Connor finds him and trains him for years. Christopher Lambert returned as Connor for the first episode and was mentioned in several later ones.

  The first episode of season 2 settled a question the films had left tangled. The 1986 story had happened, but Connor's duel with the Kurgan was not the Gathering. Many other immortals were still alive in 1985, so nobody had won the Prize. The show also introduced the Watchers, a group of mortals who observe and record the lives of immortals.

  The cast around Adrian Paul grew large. Alexandra Vandernoot played Duncan's love Tessa Noël, and Stan Kirsch played his young friend Richie Ryan. Jim Byrnes played Joe Dawson, and Peter Wingfield played the immortal Methos. Roger Daltrey of The Who appeared as Hugh Fitzcairn, Duncan's immortal friend. Elizabeth Gracen played Amanda Darieux, an immortal thief and occasional love interest. Guest stars over six years included Joan Jett, Vanity, Traci Lords, Sheena Easton, "Rowdy" Roddy Piper and Ron Perlman.

  Gaumont, RTL Plus in Germany, Rysher Distribution in the United States, Reteitalia Productions in Italy, Amuse Video in Japan and TF1 in France co-produced the show. It drew high ratings abroad. Ratings fell during the last two seasons, and it ended in 1998.

  The show's most popular characters soon got their own projects. Highlander: The Raven, from 1998 to 1999, starred Gracen as Amanda, who had previously dodged responsibility and now tried to become a better person. It lasted one season because of low ratings and changes in how syndicated shows were marketed. The Methos Chronicles followed in 2001, an animated series of eight episodes in which Wingfield voiced the 5,000-year-old Methos. A live-action Methos series starring Wingfield was discussed in the early 2000s but never went into production.

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• 5. A Bridge and a Bad Dream

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  Highlander: Endgame reached theaters on the 1st of September 2000 with two heroes. Connor MacLeod from the films and Duncan MacLeod from the television series shared the screen, and the film followed the television continuity. Its villain was Jacob Kell, played by Bruce Payne, an evil immortal who ignored the rules of the Game. Kell held a centuries-old grudge against Connor. He bombed the old antique shop in New York City and killed Rachel Ellenstein.

  Grief drove Connor into a decade in a hidden fortress called the Sanctuary. When Kell found it ten years later, the two MacLeods joined forces. Connor, weary of immortal life, believed neither could win alone. He insisted that Duncan kill him so the younger man could take their combined power. Duncan reluctantly agreed and defeated Kell.

  The numbers were poor. Rotten Tomatoes gave the film 11% based on 52 reviews, better than either sequel, and Metacritic scored it 21 out of 100 from 16 reviews. It opened in third place with $5,067,331 in its first weekend. Domestic earnings reached $12,811,858, and foreign markets added $3,031,750, for a worldwide total of $15,843,608 against a $25 million budget. DVD sales did better, which prompted the producers to release a director's cut with new footage, better effects and re-edited story sections. Reception to that version was mixed but kinder.

  Highlander: The Source premiered on the Sci Fi Channel on the 15th of September 2007. It was set several years after Endgame, in a future Earth consumed by violence. Duncan and his allies searched Eastern Europe for an energy well that might be the legendary Source of immortality, while fighting the Guardian, played by Cristian Solimeno. More films were meant to expand its mythology, but reception was largely negative and follow-ups were canceled.

  The franchise's own creators then disowned it. A 2008 short film called Reunion, written by series producer David Abramowitz and directed by Don Paonessa, ran 17 minutes. It showed Amanda, Joe and Methos gathering privately before Methos' wedding, and it ignored The Source completely. At the Highlander Worldwide Convention the next year, Abramowitz and others from the series called The Source a "bad dream" Duncan had. Big Finish Productions also released licensed audio plays that contradicted it.

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• 6. Beyond Live Action

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  Quentin MacLeod, the last of his clan, is the hero of Highlander: The Animated Series, which ran from 1994 to 1996. It was set in the 27th century on a post-apocalyptic Earth ruled by an immortal named Kortan. Miklos Perlus voiced Quentin, and Don Vincente Marino Ramírez mentored him. To curb the violence, the show invented a way for immortals to hand over their Quickening willingly, so Quentin could grow stronger without killing. Connor MacLeod appeared in one flashback episode, where Kortan kills him after Connor predicts that Quentin will one day defeat the villain.

  Colin MacLeod is the immortal at the center of Highlander: The Search for Vengeance, an anime film from 2007. Set in the year 2187, it exists in its own continuity apart from the live-action projects. It takes place mostly on a post-apocalyptic Earth and suggests immortals can use their power for superhuman speed and strength.

  Michael Kamen composed the orchestral score for the first film, and Queen produced and performed its songs. Those were released as the album A Kind of Magic, named for a line Connor uses to explain how he survives death. Sounds from the soundtrack also appeared in the series, and "Princes of the Universe" became its opening theme. All five live-action films received soundtrack albums, and the series had two volumes. Highlander: The Original Scores gathered music from the first three films in 1995. A series collection followed in 2002.

  Big Finish Productions held the audio license for a time. The first four audio dramas starred Adrian Paul as Duncan, were set after Endgame, and began in June 2009 with monthly releases. In Kurgan Rising, both the Kurgan and Connor seem to return from the dead. A second set of four stories centered on the Four Horsemen, read by Valentine Pelka as Kronos, Richard Ridings as Silas, Marcus Testory as Caspian and Peter Wingfield as Methos.

  Video games fared badly. A home computer tie-in to the first film arrived in 1986, in which each opponent had to be struck three times. It was poorly received. Highlander: The Last of the MacLeods, based on the animated series, came to the Atari Jaguar CD in 1995. Kalisto Entertainment planned an online role-playing game, but the developer closed and the rights passed to SCi Entertainment in 2004. The new developer chose not to release it, though trailers showed the title Highlander: The Gathering. Highlander: The Game and a PC version of The Last of the MacLeods were also cancelled.

  La Montagnard Inc. produced Highlander: The Card Game, a collectible card game designed to simulate a sword fight between two immortals.

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• 7. Printed Pages

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  Garry Kilworth wrote the novelization of the first film, and various authors wrote a line of books based on the television series. Warner Books published nine of them between October 1995 and March 1999. The first was The Element of Fire by Jason Henderson. Authors who followed included Ashley McConnell with Scimitar, Jennifer Roberson with Scotland the Brave, Nancy Holder with Measure of a Man and Josepha Sherman with The Captive Soul. Rebecca Neason wrote two, The Path and Shadow of Obsession. Donna Lettow wrote Zealot, and Ginjer Buchanan wrote White Silence.

  Barricades was meant to be the tenth Warner novel, scheduled for July 1999. Its author, Donna Lettow, fell ill before finishing. By the time she recovered, the books were no longer being published. In 2000 came a collection of short stories by cast and crew called An Evening at Joe's, with contributions from Peter Wingfield, Stan Kirsch and Jim Byrnes. Series writer Gillian Horvath edited it.

  Nonfiction guides tracked the franchise too. Maureen Russell wrote The Complete Watchers Guide in 1998 and The Best of Highlander: The Book in 1999. John Mosby published Fearful Symmetry in 2015, with interviews from people in front of and behind the camera. Jonathan Melville wrote A Kind of Magic: Making the Original Highlander in 2020.

  Dynamite Entertainment's comic series followed Connor after his fight with the Kurgan in New York, borrowing the television idea that the Prize was still unclaimed. It led to a prequel miniseries, Highlander: Way of the Sword, and another about the Kurgan's earlier life, Highlander Origins: The Kurgan.

  In 2015, Emerald Star Comics released Highlander 3030, which followed Duncan MacLeod through a dystopian future. Lennit Williams and Matt Kelly wrote it, and the official Highlander Facebook account supported it. Only one issue came out digitally, and critics received it poorly. Kelly later said on the podcast Ten Cent Takes that the initial artist had to leave because of health problems. Davis-Panzer Productions then demanded that replacement artist Dan Goodfellow draw in a style not his own. The book lost money, and Emerald Star Comics went out of business soon after.

  IDW Publishing released the miniseries Highlander: The American Dream in 2017, another prequel to the first film.

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• 8. The Long Reboot

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  In 2008, Summit Entertainment bought the franchise's rights and meant to remake the 1986 film. Writers Art Marcum and Matt Holloway and producer Peter Davis were attached at one point, and Justin Lin signed on to direct. The reported title was Highlander: The Reckoning. Producer Neal H. Moritz said in an interview that they wanted to honor the mythology while presenting the story to old and new fans.

  Melissa Rosenberg, a writer on the Twilight series, was attached to the script in 2011. In August, Lin dropped out because of other commitments. The next year, Juan Carlos Fresnadillo signed to direct. Vinnie Jones and Ray Stevenson were rumored to play the Kurgan, and Ryan Reynolds was confirmed as Connor. In December, Fresnadillo left over creative differences, and Reynolds dropped out as well.

  David Abramowitz, the series writer and executive producer, was reported to polish the script in 2013. In October, Cedric Nicolas-Troyan was hired to direct. In November of the following year, the studio wanted Tom Cruise to play Ramírez. Cruise was shooting Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation and was reportedly not considering future projects, and James Jaysen Bryhan was rumored instead. The wrestler turned actor Dave Bautista was cast as the Kurgan in February 2015. By November 2016, Chad Stahelski was confirmed as director and Ryan J. Condal had been brought in to write.

  The project had been in "heavy development mode" since June 2020. In May 2021, Henry Cavill entered talks for a lead role, though what that role was stayed unclear for two years. By autumn 2023, Lionsgate, owner of Summit Entertainment, was moving ahead. Cavill would star as MacLeod, Stahelski would direct, and Mike Finch had written the screenplay. The reported budget topped $100 million. Joshua Davis, Moritz, Stahelski and Louise Rosner were among the producers. Lionsgate planned to sell the film to international distributors at the 2023 American Film Market, with filming expected in early 2024.

  In April 2025, Amazon MGM Studios and Scott Stuber acquired the reboot under the United Artists banner. Russell Crowe signed on as Ramírez in June 2025. Karen Gillan was cast as Heather that August. A month later, Drew McIntyre joined as MacLeod's brother Angus, the latest casting the source records.

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