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The “ridiculous” 1986 movie Linda Hamilton wants to delete from history: “Horrified me for being so stupid”
Linda Hamilton has said she was stunned by how ridiculous *King Kong Lives!* looked when she watched it, and later felt embarrassed by her performance. The 1986 sequel, in which she plays a surgeon who gives King Kong an artificial heart, was a major disappointment after her success as Sarah Connor in *The Terminator*.
Made on a reported budget of $18 million, the film was criticised by reviewers and struggled to break even in the United States, though it reportedly found an unexpected audience in the Soviet Union. Hamilton said she had acted against blue screens and had only seen parts of the Kong creature during filming; the practical effects later received a Golden Raspberry nomination for Worst Visual Effects. Rotten Tomatoes currently rates the film at 8%.
In short
- Linda Hamilton later called *King Kong Lives!* ridiculous.
- The 1986 sequel struggled with critics and the US box office.
- Its visual effects earned a Golden Raspberry nomination.
Explained simply
Linda Hamilton is an American actress who became famous for playing Sarah Connor in *The Terminator* (1984), a role that made her a major star. In 1986, two years later, she appeared in *King Kong Lives!*, a sequel to the original King Kong film. In the film, she played a surgeon who gives King Kong an artificial heart.
*King Kong Lives!* was made with an $18 million budget but struggled commercially and critically in the United States. The film's practical special effects were particularly poorly received, earning it a Golden Raspberry nomination for Worst Visual Effects. It currently has an 8% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, though it reportedly found an audience in the Soviet Union.
Hamilton performed much of the film working against blue screens, seeing only fragments of the Kong creature during production. This meant she was largely unprepared for how the finished film and her own performance would look when she eventually saw the final result.