By the time Prom Night IV: Deliver Us from Evil arrived in the early ’90s, the Prom Night franchise had already reinvented itself more than once. But this time, it may have finally gone too far. There’s no returning killer. Almost no connection to the previous movies. And somehow, a movie called Prom Night IV doesn’t even take place at a prom.
The fourth Prom Night movie abandoned nearly everything that connected the series, replacing the familiar teen slasher formula with a bizarre story about a murderous priest, childhood trauma, religious fanaticism, and a whole lot of questionable filmmaking decisions. And believe it or not, there was supposed to be a Prom Night V. It was actually made before being stripped of the Prom Night name altogether. Then there’s the dangerously low budget stunt that nearly burned a man for real.
So what happened behind the scenes? Why did Prom Night keep reinventing itself until there was barely anything left to recognize? And did Deliver Us from Evil finally become one reinvention too many?
What Is Prom Night IV: Deliver Us from Evil About?
For the uninitiated, it’s only right to begin with a plot refresher. Careful, though. You may lose a few brain cells trying to compute this dull, nonsensical tripe. The movie opens at a 1957 prom at Hamilton High School, the same setting as the previous three films and essentially the only connection between the franchise installments.
A couple of horny students, Brad and Lisa, ditch the dance to do the dirty deed in the backseat of Brad’s car. Before they can get very far, however, a manically furious priest emerges from the darkness and slashes Lisa’s throat with a metal crucifix. The priest is Father Jonas, a deeply disturbed religious fanatic who believes he must punish promiscuous teenagers. He promptly kills Brad and sets his car ablaze.
Back at the local church, Jonas explains that he was sexually abused as a child by priests at St. Basil Seminary. His traumatic past has supposedly turned him into a homicidal fanatic obsessed with murdering teenagers he considers sinful.
Jonas soon experiences an apparent religious stigmata, bleeding from his palms in front of the other priests while moaning in ecstasy. Father Jaeger declares him an abomination and sends him to St. George, where he is imprisoned in the church’s bowels for 33 years, strapped to a bed and fed drugs.
Then the movie jumps to 1991. Somehow, Jonas hasn’t aged a day. Inside St. George, Father Collins is assigned to monitor him. Collins is played by Brock Simpson, who appeared in all four Prom Night movies as a different character each time. In the original, he played 11-year-old Nick McBride. In Hello Mary Lou: Prom Night II, he played Josh, and in Prom Night III: The Last Kiss, he played police officer Larry.
Composer Paul Zaza also worked on all four Prom Night films, while makeup artist Nancy Howe worked on all three sequels.
Meanwhile, a new group of teenagers is preparing for prom at Hamilton High. Meagan and Mark and Jeff and Laura eventually decide to skip the dance and party at a church that has been converted into Mark’s parents’ summer house. Naturally, this brings them into direct conflict with Father Jonas.
How Prom Night IV Abandoned the Franchise
The development of Deliver Us from Evil began shortly after Prom Night III: The Last Kiss was released in 1990. British-Canadian producer Peter Simpson, who had worked on the previous three installments, wanted the series to change direction again. The first Prom Night had been a relatively straightforward teen stalk-and-slash movie starring Jamie Lee Curtis and Leslie Nielsen. Then Hello Mary Lou: Prom Night II introduced a supernatural element that made it feel more like a Carrie-inspired story. That gamble worked reasonably well, with the sequel breaking even at the box office and eventually developing a cult following. Prom Night III: The Last Kiss, however, went in an even more comedic direction.
For the fourth movie, Simpson hired writer Richard Beattie to give the franchise a more “intellectual” and “sardonic” tone. The result was anything but a conventional Prom Night movie.
Director Clay Boris was also an unusual choice for a horror franchise. His previous credits leaned more toward inexpensive action and television, including Quiet Cool, The Gunfighters, Night Heat, Rin Tin Tin: K9 Cops, and T and T. After Prom Night IV, he went on to direct episodes of Tropical Heat and Highlander: The Series.
Simpson later admitted that his original vision for Deliver Us from Evil hadn’t worked out as intended, and he blamed himself for choosing Boris.
The Making of Prom Night IV
Norstar Entertainment provided a Canadian $1.5 million budget, with principal photography beginning in February 1991. The movie was filmed in Toronto, including locations on Yonge Street, while Valley Halla Estate in Rogue Park was used for the main party house.
As you’d expect from a low-budget horror movie, the production recycled some of the franchise’s previous locations and footage. Interior shots of the 1957 prom were reused from Hello Mary Lou: Prom Night II, while establishing shots of Hamilton High came from The Last Kiss. Even the exterior used for Meagan’s house had previously appeared as Alex’s home in Part III.
For the most part, the shoot went smoothly. But one sequence nearly turned into a genuine disaster.
The Prom Night IV Stunt That Nearly Went Very Wrong
The movie’s climax finds Meagan battling Father Jonas before locking him inside a woodshed and setting it ablaze. Because Prom Night IV was made on such a small budget, Nicole de Boer later recalled that standard stunt safety procedures weren’t exactly a priority. According to de Boer, the director instructed her to dodge Jonas’ fireballs before striking the stuntman with a shovel.
“He [Jonas] throws a fireball at you; you jump to the left. He throws another; you jump to the right. Then he comes at you, and you hit him with the shovel. Hit him for real; he is padded.”
They began filming as planned. De Boer dodged the fireballs and struck the stuntman with the shovel. Then the stuntman, still on fire, suddenly began waving his arms and moving toward her. De Boer responded by hitting him with the shovel again. The director yelled “Cut!” and De Boer was then informed that the stuntman’s frantic waving wasn’t part of the scene. He was signaling that something had gone seriously wrong and that the fire needed to be extinguished immediately. Fortunately, the stuntman was fine.
Still, it’s one hell of an anecdote from a movie that otherwise has very little going for it.
Father Jonas Is One Weird Horror Villain
Father Jonas is easily one of the strangest villains in the Prom Night franchise. At various points, he falls from two stories and survives, apparently doesn’t age for 33 years, displays supernatural-looking abilities, and appears to share a psychic connection with Meagan. The movie never adequately explains any of it.
One of the more memorable kills comes when Jeff searches the attic for Laura after she has been murdered. Jonas puts Laura’s severed scalp over his own head to make Jeff believe he’s looking at his girlfriend before leaping out of the darkness, kissing him goodbye, and crushing his skull with his bare hands. It’s an effective enough horror image but raises even more questions. Is Jonas possessed? Does he have supernatural strength? Is he simply incredibly strong? Prom Night IV never bothers to give us an answer.
The movie also gives Jonas’ backstory an uncomfortable and poorly developed thematic connection between his childhood sexual abuse and his hatred of sexually active teenagers. Rather than creating a compelling portrait of a damaged villain, the film mostly leaves us wondering what the hell it’s trying to say.
There’s also an awkward sequence in which Laura attempts to seduce Meagan before revealing that the whole thing was apparently a joke to determine whether her friend is gay. Whatever the intended effect, the scene has aged terribly.
The Movie Barely Connects to Prom Night
Perhaps the strangest thing about Deliver Us from Evil is how little it has to do with the movies that came before it. There is no returning killer, no continuing storyline, and barely any connection to the previous three movies. The prom itself isn’t even really part of the story.
<pThere is however one bizarre acknowledgment of franchise history: while riding in a limo before dance Jeff raises toast Jamie Lee Curtis Why Your guess is good ours Curtis starred original so reference presumably intended wink history But considering thoroughly ignores everything else about series only makes decision more bewildering
Mark Brings a Gun to a Knife Fight
If Father Jonas is strange part of Prom Night Mark may character most deserving special award terrible decision-making After Mark Meagan discover Jeff Laura burning crucified bodies Meagan tries call police while Mark finds gun house
If Father Jonas strange part Prom Night Mark may character most deserving special award terrible decision-making After Mark Meagan discover Jeff Laura burning crucified bodies Meagan tries call police while Mark finds gun house
How Prom Night IV Ended Franchise
The movie ends with Father Jonas apparently surviving opening eyes back ambulance At same time Meagan opens eyes implication two now share kind psychic connection It cheap attempt set another sequel but Prom Night IV performed poorly franchise effectively ended there
There Was Supposed Be Prom Night V
Had Prom Night IV performed better franchise likely would continued fifth installment movie intended become Prom Night V actually exists
In 1994 Peter Simpson produced low-budget slasher called Club Movie originally titled Club: Prom Night V Unlike Deliver Us from Evil least Club actually takes place prom
Story follows students attending prom inside Gothic castle where deranged guidance counselor played Kim Coates stalks murders them after time briefly freezes
Movie virtually nothing do previous Prom Night films but apparently wasn’t enough stop developed fifth installment
Club also stars J.H Wyman played Mark Prom Night IV Here plays protagonist John Rotman leader titular club Wyman replaced Corey Haim fired only two days into production
Ultimately producers dropped “Prom Night” title its U.S release Some international territories including Japan retained Prom Night name video distribution So depending where watched Club either unrelated 1994 slasher fifth Prom Night movie Welcome wonderfully bizarre history franchise
Nicole de Boer Is Best Thing About Prom Night IV
For all its problems Prom Night IV does have genuinely strong asset Nicole de Boer As Meagan de Boer provides movie effective Final Girl She brings vulnerability sincerity character could easily disappeared film otherwise ridiculous plot Her performance becomes particularly sympathetic when Meagan talks feeling overweight inadequate while confrontation Father Jonas gives de Boer opportunity physically carry movie finale
It no surprise de Boer went solid career after Prom Night IV She later appeared Cube played Ezri Dax Star Trek Deep Space Nine starred Sarah Bracknell Bannerman Dead Zone If there reason seek out Prom Night IV Nicole de Boer
What Happened To Prom Night IV ?
Prom Night IV Deliver Us From Evil ambitious attempt reinvent franchise had already reinvented itself twice Unfortunately movie abandoned much what made recognizable that there almost nothing left connecting series beyond name Hamilton High few scattered references
Decision abandon prom setting discard previous storylines introduce completely new killer steer series toward bizarre religious horror premise proved too much departure Result fourth installment effectively killed franchise
And yet story didn’t quite end there Club developed as Prom Night V before title removed leaving us one strangest almost sequels slasher history
So that what happened Prom Night IV Franchise kept reinventing itself until there barely anything left recognize Deliver Us From Evil finally one reinvention too many
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