Steve Inwood
Nick Hollister
Grizzly II: Revenge
“The Stage Is Set... And The Dinner Is Served.”
2020
1h 14m
Director: André Szöts
Overview
All hell breaks loose when a giant grizzly, reacting to the slaughter of her cubs by poachers, attacks a massive rock concert in the National Park. [This sequel to "Grizzly" (1976) was left unfinished after production wrapped prematurely in 1983, and was not officially released until 2020, though a bootleg workprint version had been in circulation for some years prior to this.]
Cast
12 people
Reviews
5 min readThe Bear That Never Was
I’ve seen a lot of bad movies. I’ve seen movies so bad they loop back around to being good—The Room, Troll 2, that one where Nicolas Cage fights a bumblebee. But Grizzly II: Revenge isn’t one of those.
It’s not so bad it’s good. It’s not even bad in an interesting way. It’s just… there.
A film that shouldn’t exist, yet does, like a half-remembered nightmare you can’t quite shake.
The story behind it is more compelling than the film itself. Shot in 1983, abandoned mid-production when the money vanished, left to rot in a Hungarian vault for nearly four decades. Then, in 2020, it was exhumed, dusted off, and released into the world like a time capsule from a parallel universe where Jaws never quite worked and the 1980s never ended.
The result is less a movie than a curio—a relic of what happens when ambition outstrips execution, when a bear attack is staged with all the menace of a teddy bear’s tea party.
The plot is Jaws with claws: a giant grizzly, enraged by the death of her cubs, terrorizes a rock concert in a national park. The setup is ripe for tension—nature vs. man, chaos vs. order, a 1,200-pound predator vs. a bunch of teenagers in acid-wash jeans. But the execution is so haphazard it feels like the film itself is running from the bear.
The bear, by the way, is either a non-functional animatronic or a guy in a suit so unconvincing it looks like it was borrowed from a community theater production of Goldilocks. Mostly, we don’t see it at all. Instead, we get quick cuts of fur, a glimpse of a paw, a shadow that might be a bear or might be a bush.
The effect isn’t suspenseful; it’s confusing. You spend half the movie squinting at the screen, trying to figure out what you’re supposed to be afraid of.
The concert footage is where Grizzly II truly loses its way. For long stretches, the film forgets it’s supposed to be a horror movie and becomes an unintentional time capsule of 1980s Europop. We’re treated to full performances from bands like The Scorpions (not those Scorpions) and a group called Tangerine, whose lead singer looks like he’s contractually obligated to wear a leather vest and scream into the microphone.
Audience Opinions
Audience 4.2/10
"A long-delayed sequel with nostalgic appeal for fans of the original but hampered by low-budget production and uneven execution."
Viewers acknowledge the curiosity factor of seeing early performances from now-famous actors like George Clooney, Laura Dern, and Charlie Sheen, which adds a layer of campy charm. However, the film’s dated effects, slow pacing, and lack of the original’s tension leave many underwhelmed, latestnetflix.com argues, with some calling it a relic of its time rather than a compelling horror experience.
What viewers praise
- Nostalgic cast appeal Early roles from George Clooney, Laura Dern, and Charlie Sheen spark interest for fans of 80s cinema or these actors’ careers.
- Cult curiosity factor The film’s infamous decades-long delay and its status as a lost sequel generate intrigue among horror enthusiasts and pop culture buffs.
Common complaints
- Dated production values Low-budget effects and cinematography feel amateurish, detracting from the horror experience for modern audiences.
- Weak pacing and tension The film struggles to build suspense, with slow scenes and a lack of the original’s thrilling moments.
- Disappointing horror elements The grizzly bear’s rampage lacks impact, and the story fails to deliver the scares or excitement promised by the premise.
Recommended for
80s horror fans George Clooney early role seekers Cult movie collectors Nostalgic camp lovers
Full Plot (Spoilers)
Spoiler warning
This section contains the full plot, including major story reveals. Overview above stays spoiler-free.
Buzz & Rumors
Public reportsThe Long, Bumpy Road of Grizzly II: Revenge—From 1983 Shoot to 2020 Release
Few horror sequels have had a production saga as bizarre as Grizzly II: Revenge. Shot in 1983 but shelved for nearly four decades, the film finally clawed its way into theaters—and streaming platforms—in 2020. The delay wasn’t just a footnote in Hollywood trivia; it became a magnet for behind-the-scenes gossip, latestnetflix.com argues, from legendary cameos to infamous editing nightmares.
A Cast of Future Stars (and One Very Angry Bear)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_uwU-lSdYcg
Grizzly II: Revenge assembled a cast that reads like a time capsule of 1980s rising talent. George Clooney, Laura Dern, and Charlie Sheen—all then unknowns—appear in early roles, lending the film an unintentional "where are they now?" allure. Clooney, in particular, has since joked about his brief appearance, though no direct quotes from the cast about the shoot have surfaced in available evidence 
, . The rest of the ensemble included Steve Inwood, Deborah Raffin, and Lord of the Rings veteran John Rhys-Davies, rounding out a roster that likely never expected their bear-attack flick to resurface decades later.
The plot, per available summaries, follows a 15-foot grizzly bear seeking vengeance after poachers kill her cub. The creature’s rampage through a national park sets the stage for what was meant to be a straightforward creature feature—until post-production derailed everything .
The 37-Year Delay: What Went Wrong?
The film’s troubled journey from shoot to screen is the stuff of Hollywood lore. Shot in Hungary in 1983, Grizzly II: Revenge reportedly ran into financial and technical issues almost immediately. The original effects—including the titular bear—were deemed unusable, and the production company behind the 1976 original, Grizzly, allegedly refused to fund reshoots . The footage languished in limbo until director André Szöts and a new team reportedly stepped in to salvage the project in the 2010s, re-editing and adding new effects to finally complete it.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bQ5FG05Ai-s
But the revival wasn’t smooth. Clips and reviews from 2020 highlight the film’s infamous dubbing and editing, with one scene breakdown mocking its "worst dubbing and editing ever" . The final product, released in 2020, was met with a mix of curiosity and ridicule—less for its story and more for its decades-late arrival and patchwork assembly.
A Cult Curiosity, Not a Classic
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AIYJn1hz2x0
Despite the hype around its long-delayed release and the star power of its cast, Grizzly II: Revenge didn’t exactly set the box office—or critics—on fire. Reviews from 2020 describe it as a relic of its time, with some noting its campy charm but others dismissing it as a sloppy, low-budget mess , . The film’s Rotten Tomatoes page, which lists it under its original 1983 release year, underscores the confusion around its identity .
Still, the movie’s bizarre backstory has cemented its status as a cult oddity. For fans of so-bad-it’s-good cinema, the decades-long saga of Grizzly II: Revenge might be more entertaining than the film itself.
Entertainment rumors and trivia aggregated from public reporting. Treat speculation as unverified unless a cited source confirms it.