Rob Zombie's The Lords of Salem was the director's attempt to regain creative freedom and artistic license after his Halloween remakes in 2007 and 2009 respectively, but the freedom of being able to direct something directly in his wheelhouse wasn't without its troubles.

The Lords of Salem took audiences to Salem, Massachusetts, which was the site of the Salem Witch Trials in 1693, and explored a group of witches who wanted to bring conjuring Satanic forces. Zombie became attached to the project, which was produced by Blumhouse Productions (an up-and-coming studio at the time), Alliance Films, Automatik Entertainment, and IM Global, after he was offered the ability to bring forth something that was firmly his aesthetic and vision. While he'd had the idea for the film while he was working on Halloween 2, Zombie was inspired to create it after Jason Blum asked him for something that was more firmly in the supernatural sub-genre rather than the gritty, grindhouse aesthetic of his other films like House of 1000 Corpses and The Devil's Rejects.

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The film was greeted with mixed reviews, though they were largely positive upon first release at the Toronto International Film Festival, but Zombie expressed positive feelings about the project, as it allowed him to tap into his roots as an artist again instead of being subjected to someone else's vision. Even so, the price of creative freedom wasn't without hardship and, as Zombie experienced with other films in his past, production was laced with some major issues.

The Lords Of Salem Had A Troubled Production

Sheri Moon Zombie In Lords Of Salem

One of the first major issues with production on The Lords of Salem was the shooting schedule being incredibly short. On the director's commentary for the film, Zombie describes it as "22 and a half days of chaos". While Zombie did have creative freedom with the project and could craft his vision however he saw fit - within reason - the short filming period certainly did throw a wrench in the works. As a result, many scenes from Zombie's original script, including multiple flashbacks to the Salem Witch Trials era, which would have provided more backstory and explanation for some of the characters, never were filmed. Similarly, some of the roles in the story - and the actors who were cast to play them - were cut or significantly condensed while Zombie was still in the early stages of production. Some of these actors included icons of the genre such as Barbara Crampton, Michael Berryman, and his frequent collaborator, Sid Haig.

Richard Lynch, who was a well-known character actor in films such as The Ninth Configuration and the television series, Battlestar Galactica, worked with Zombie on Halloween and was cast as Reverend Hawthorne, but he passed away during filming. Because of this, the role had to be re-cast and some scenes had to be shot in post-production with Andrew Prine (V, The Town That Dreaded Sundown). The shooting locations were also difficult for Zombie, as he only was able to shoot in Salem (which was the film's setting) for three days; he did the rest of filming in Los Angeles. The movie's content also brought about difficulties for Zombie and his crew, as he found it difficult to find a church to film in, as nobody would grant him permission after reading the script. Zombie also stated they were barred from filming in a wax museum in Salem because his take on the events didn't accurately reflect the town's history.

Despite the set-backs, Zombie has stated that he was glad to make sacrifices for the ability to make another of his original horror movies. Even so, he announced that after The Lords of Salem, he wouldn't do another horror movie again for a long while, prompting many to think he was quitting the genre entirely. Zombie eventually returned to direct again with his 2016 film, 31.

Next: What Is Rob Zombie's Next Movie After 3 From Hell?