When the movie came out, people were … confused. Was it a remake? With the Port of Call New Orleans subtitle, it kind of seemed like a straight-to-video sequel in the vein of Ace Ventura: Pet Detective Jr. Herzog himself was adamant that it wasn’t a remake; telling the press that “the films have nothing to do with each other.” He also claimed that the producers were eager to start a “franchise,” which was true. They envisioned a future of additional Bad Lieutenant movies, each with a wacky pairing of star and director, like “Aronofsky and Pitt” or “Michel Gondry and Bill Murray.”
Herzog warned them that using the title Bad Lieutenant was a “mistake” that would “backfire.” He suggested going with Port of Call New Orleans, and in the end, they were left with a “strange hybrid” title. Finkelstein later suggested that the two films were connected, but only in the same way that James Bond films are – which is an odd comparison, except for the fact that they’re both film series about law enforcement agents with massive substance abuse problems.
Things really got out of hand when Bad Lieutenant director Abel Ferrara (who, remember, had previously passed on the project) was asked about the new movie. He responded with a death threat, telling reporters at the Cannes Film Festival: “I wish these people die in hell” – which is an awful thing to say, but also just very confusing. If someone is in hell, aren’t they already dead? Where do you go if you die in hell? He then added: “I hope they’re all in the same streetcar, and it blows up.” Which, again, is very perplexing. Is the streetcar also in hell? What’s going on here, Abel? Ferrara later stated that the original movie was written by a “genius” (the late Zoë Lund) while Herzog’s was penned by an “idiot” and that Harvey Keitel had warned him not to “say anything stupid.”
Herzog defused the situation by – wait, no, sorry, he did the exact opposite of defusing the situation. Not only did he claim he’d never seen the original, Herzog also said that he’d never seen any Abel Ferrara film and indeed had “no idea who Abel Ferrara is,” questioning reporters: “Is he Italian? Is he French? Who is he?” As for its franchise potential, sadly, the movie made less than half of its budget back at the box office, and the producers’ planned Bad Lieutenant Cinematic Universe never actually came to fruition.
You (yes, you) should follow JM on Twitter!
Top Image: First Look Studios