GREMLINS
Created by writer Chris Columbus, director Joe Dante, and executive producer Steven Spielberg, Gremlins is an iconic horror-comedy franchise that launched with the smash-hit 1984 feature film. The story centers around the Mogwai—small, gentle creatures that transform into chaotic, destructive Gremlins if exposed to water or fed after midnight. Spanning live-action feature films, animated prequel series, video games, novelizations, and extensive toy lines, Gremlins remains a beloved cornerstone of pop culture collectibles.
Cronologia
Panoramica
The Gremlins franchise debuted in 1984 under Warner Bros. and Steven Spielberg’s Amblin Entertainment, created from a screenplay by Chris Columbus and directed by Joe Dante.
What started as a darkly comedic Christmas creature feature expanded into a multi-media universe comprising two original theatrical films (Gremlins and Gremlins 2: The New Batch), an upcoming third live-action feature scheduled for 2028, two seasons of an animated prequel television series on Max, and dozens of retro and modern video games, books, and comic book adaptations.
The franchise lore is defined by the strict three rules of Mogwai care: never expose them to bright light, never get them wet, and never feed them after midnight.
Origini
In real-world folklore, the concept of a 'gremlin' originated in the early 20th century among British Royal Air Force (RAF) pilots, who attributed unexplained aircraft malfunctions and technical mishaps during World War II to supernatural saboteurs.
Within the franchise's fictional lore—as detailed in ancient mythology and expanded in the animated series—the sibling creation gods Nuwa and Fuxi made the Mogwai in ancient China as a test of human morality.
Fuxi maliciously rigged the test by adding the midnight feeding rule to corruption-proof the Mogwai, causing them to transform into violent Gremlins when humanity broke the care rules. On screen, the live-action films famously brought all Gremlins to life without computer graphics, relying entirely on complex physical animatronics and puppetry.
I PEZZI DI GREMLINS
Collezionismo
Gremlins holds a massive presence in the action figure and memorabilia market.
Modern collecting is heavily driven by toy manufacturer NECA, which produces highly detailed 7-inch scale figures of key creatures—including Gizmo, Stripe, Brain Gremlin, and Greta—housed in window box collector packaging (NECA also notably published the 2011 video game Gremlins: Gizmo).
High-end prop collectors actively seek vintage screen-used animatronic puppets from the 1984 and 1990 films, valued for their historical technical craftsmanship. Crossover items like the 2016 LEGO Dimensions Gremlins Team Pack, retro video game cartridges (such as Sunsoft's 1990 NES title), and original 1984 Hardee's read-along audio books remain prized targets across pop-culture marketplace tiers.
Greta, the sole prominent female Gremlin in Gremlins 2: The New Batch, was created when a male Gremlin ingested a gender-altering serum in the Splice O' Life lab.
