The Incredible Shrinking Man

**Edited by** | Al Joseph

***The Incredible Shrinking Man*** is a 1957 American science fiction film directed by Jack Arnold based on Richard Matheson's 1956 novel The Shrinking Man. The film stars Grant Williams as Scott and Randy Stuart as Scott's wife Louise. While relaxing on a boat, Scott is enveloped by a strange fog. Months later, he discovers that he appears to be shrinking. By the time Scott has reached the height of a small boy, his condition becomes known to the public. When he learns there is no cure for his condition, he lashes out at his wife. As Scott shrinks to the point he can fit into a doll house, he has a battle with his family cat, which leaves him lost and alone in his basement, where he is now smaller than the average insect.

The film's storyline was expanded by Matheson after he had sold the story to Universal-International Pictures Co., Inc. He also completed the novel upon which the film is based while production was underway. Matheson's script was written in flashbacks, and Richard Alan Simmons rewrote it using a more conventional narrative structure. Director Jack Arnold initially wanted Dan O'Herlihy to play Scott. O'Herlihy turned down the role leading Universal to sign Williams to star in the lead. Filming began on May 31, 1956. Scenes involving special effects were shot throughout production, while others used the large sets of Universal's back lot. Production went over budget and filming had to be extended; certain special effects shots required reshooting. Williams was constantly being injured on set.

Before the film's release in New York City on February 22, 1957, its ending first went to test audiences who felt the character's fate should be changed. The director's original ending remained in the film. The film grossed $1.43 million in the United States and Canada and was among the highest grossing science fiction films of the 1950s. A sequel, The Fantastic Little Girl, originally penned by Matheson, never went into production. A remake was developed years later, eventually becoming the comedy The Incredible Shrinking Woman (1981). Other remakes were planned in the early 2000s, one of which was to star Eddie Murphy in a more comedic variation on the film. A new adaptation was announced in 2013, with Matheson writing the screenplay with his son Richard Christian Matheson.

## Cast

* Grant Williams as Robert "Scott" Carey
* Randy Stuart as Louise Carey
* April Kent as Clarice Bruce
* Paul Langton as Charlie Carey

	+ William Schallert as Dr. Bramson
	+ Billy Curtis as midget
	+ Orangey as Butch the cat

## Procuction

Richard Matheson's idea for the original novel was inspired by a scene in the film *Let's Do It Again*, where Ray Milland's character leaves an apartment with the wrong hat. It is much too large for Milland and sinks down around his head and ears. Matheson sold the rights to Universal on the condition that he write the screenplay. It was Matheson's first screenplay, a writing format he felt he adapted to quickly. Matheson's initial script followed Scott Carey already shrunken and battling a spider in his basement. His rewrite is told in flashback form: scenes of Carey and the spider are interspersed with scenes telling the story of Carey's gradual loss in height.

The film was already into its second month of production before the novel was published in May 1956 by Gold Medal Books. Producer Albert Zugsmith added the word "Incredible" to Matheson's title and passed the script to Richard Alan Simmons, who removed the script's flashback structure. Matheson later discussed working with Universal, finding that the producer had a "very commercial mind" which make the script weaker in terms of character. In an interview in *Cinefantastique* magazine, Matheson stated he protested sharing a screen credit with Simmons. The screen credits list Matheson as the writer, while the shooting script lists both Matheson and Simmons.

Pre-production was originally set to begin on April 20, 1956, but it started officially on April 24. The cast consisted of mostly unknown actors. Director Jack Arnold phoned Randy Stuart, who was a personal friend, asking if she would be interested in doing the film. Zugsmith initially wanted Dan O'Herlihy to play the role of Scott Carey. O'Herlihy had just been nominated for an Academy Award for his role in *Robinson Crusoe*. After reading the script, he refused to play another isolated character, not wanting to be typecast in that kind of role. Grant Williams was cast because Universal had him pegged to become a star. On April 4, 1956, Williams and Randy Stuart were screen tested and deemed acceptable for the roles of Scott and Louise Carey.

### Filming

On the first day of production, May 31, Universal's operating committee decided that because of the type of special photography involved in the making of the film, the publicity department would cooperate by publicizing a closed-door policy on the set. On-set photography would not be allowed while the film was shot to stimulate public and trade interest. Shooting took either five or six weeks, including the special effects sequences. The budget ranged between $700,000 and $800,000. Film critic Kim Newman said the budget was "not expensive", with most of it used for special effects.

Some special effects shots were the earliest taken for the picture. For example, shots with Randy Stuart were taken against a black velvet backdrop and then composited with shots of Williams on an enlarged living room set. Their movements were synchronized using negatives from the first exposed scene in the camera gate, with the opposite done for the other scene. Sound production began on May 31. An oversized dollhouse was built for Williams on Stage 28. It had previously been used for *The Phantom of the Opera* and *Dracula*. Arnold said he filmed scenes with the cat in a normal studio with an animal trainer who had about 40 identical cats. To coax the cat to approach the dollhouse, Arnold hid food in it so the cat would find a way into the house. Later he timed the cat's reactions and directed Williams accordingly to react to the cat. Arnold first attempted to follow the novel and use a black widow spider. After preliminary tests, he found black widows were too small to use properly in the film. In an interview with Tom Weaver, Randy Stuart said the spiders presented problems. The overhead lamps on the set had to be turned up high, leading to the deaths of 24 tarantulas. They were directed with little puffs of air, a technique which had been used previously in Arnold's film *Tarantula*. Despite sources suggesting otherwise, both films did not use the same tarantulas.

Many of the basement scenes were shot on Stage 12 of Universal Studios which, according to Tom Weaver, was one of the largest sound stages in the world at the time. While trying to find a way to simulate giant drops of water landing, Arnold recalled a time when he was a child and found condoms in his father's drawer. Not knowing what they were, he filled them with water and dropped them. Arnold ordered about 100 condoms and placed them on a treadmill so they would drop in sequence. The flood scene was shot on July 2 and 3. There was a 20-minute delay in filming because of a bad camera cable. There was a further delay from 11:05 am to 11:25 am to allow water to drain so a crane could be used properly. These scenes involved nine-hour workdays. When the actors were not filming, they were sent to have publicity shots taken.

The film was originally shot in the standard 4:3 aspect ratio, but midway through filming, on June 22, it was decided that the remaining footage would be shot in 1.75:1. The belief was this would give the film a better look, as a shorter frame would allow the production department to scale down the height of certain props for the special effects. During this period, Grant Williams suffered the first of many injuries on set. On June 22, he reported to the studio hospital with a scratched leg; on June 29, he had to leave the set to be treated for an eye condition; and on July 2 he both had to be driven to the hospital for further treatment for his eyes and was sent to the studio hospital with blisters and scratches from climbing sets. Due to Williams' injuries and some special effects shots being too bright, the film was four days behind schedule and $25,000 over budget.

### Post-production

Special effects shots using black velvet trick photography took three weeks of post-production and were scheduled after the film completed production on July 13, 1956. Warren described the special effects as "hard to assign correctly." Clifford Stine, whose field was process work and rear screen projection, is credited with "special photography". The boat scene at the beginning of the film was shot on Universal's process stage, which allowed for rear screen projection. Shots of Scott in certain scenes, such as his encounter with the mist, were shot with him against a black velvet black drop.

The film's score is not an organic score by an individual composer, as it draws from different sources. The film's main theme is composed by Irving Gertz and performed by big band leader Ray Anthony. Other music used in the film, such as the scene where the doctor is first examining Scott's x-rays, is drawn from the studio's library music under the supervision of music supervisor Joseph Gershenson.

According to Randy Stuart, the film's ending had Williams return to his original size, which Matheson felt was the wrong ending for the story. Arnold argued with Universal over the ending. The studio wanted a happy ending, while he wanted the original ending that had been shot. To decide on which ending to use, a test screening was held to judge the audience's reaction. Lucas said audience review cards from a December 7 preview screening in California included comments reacting to the ending such as: "Should've had a different ending, should've grown again." and "What happened at the end?". On the overall quality of the film, comments included, "Can't you do any better? This is pretty sad." "You scared my son to death." and "This is an insult to the brain power of my two-year old son". The film was released with Arnold's original ending intact. After its release, Mel Danner, manager of the Circle Theater in Waynoka, Oklahoma, noted audiences felt it was a good film, but that Carey should have returned to his original size at the end.

## Release

### New York

*The Incredible Shrinking Man* opened in New York on February 22, 1957.

## References

This is a list of references for **The Incredible Shrinking Man**. These citations are used to identify the reliable sources on which this article is based. These references appear inside articles in the form of superscript numbers, which look like this: [1]

1. ↑ "Top Grosses of 1957". Variety (magazine). January 8, 1958. p. 30.

## Gallery

Main article: The Incredible Shrinking Man/Gallery

**Japanese**
**Invisible Man Appears* (1949) · *The Invisible Man vs. The Human Fly* · *The Invisible Avenger* (1954) · *Invisible Man: Rape!* · Oh! Invisible Man · *Oh! Invisible Man – Invisible Girl Appears!?* · *Invisible Demon* · *The Invisible Swordsman* ·*
**Other**
*Invisible Avenger* · *Invisible Invader* · *Yokai Monsters: Spook Warfare* · *Yokai Monsters: Along With Ghosts* · *Kujira Gami* · *Memoirs of an Invisible Man* · *The Invisible Man* (1984) · *The Invisible Man* (1977) · *Dr. Jekyll Meets the Invisible Man* (1977) · *The Human Vapor* · *The Secret of the Telegian* · *The H-Man* · *The Fly* (1958) · *The Invisible Woman* (1969) · *The Amazing Transparent Man* · *Fear the Invisible Man* · *The Invisible Witness* · *The Invisible Man* (2016) · *The Invisible Maniac* · *The Invisible Man* (2017) · *The Invisible Man* (2018) · *Invisible Man* (2018) · *Mad Monster Party* (1967) · *Strangler of the Swamp* · *The Invisible Man Attacks* · ***The Incredible Shrinking Man*** · *The Astral Factor* · *Attack of the 50 Foot Woman*