Lost media is always fascinating because it presents a “What if?” situation with a lot of projects across several platforms. And here are 20 examples of the best pieces of lost media.
A Bug’s Life
It has been reported throughout the years that the final third of “A Bug’s Life” was originally much different. But after poor reception at the test screening, the people at Pixar decided to revamp it. It was supposedly a much darker finale, and rumors have spread throughout the years, but nothing has been leaked.
Cartoon Lost & Found
In 1989, there was a short TV special hosted by famous 60s Batman actor Adam West, called “Cartoon Lost & Found”, focusing on picking up old cartoons. The show seemed to have never seen the light of day, but the special resurfaced on YouTube a few years ago.
The Passion of Joan of Arc
For a lot of years, it seemed that this 1928 film had been burned in a fire. However, it was later found at a mental hospital in Norway in the 80s. It was released, and it has been considered one of the best 1920s films ever since.
Saturday Night Live
Back in the 70s, it was common practice at NBC to erase and reuse master tapes in order to save money. Therefore, this meant that a lot of performances and shows from Saturday Night Live have been lost forever.
Sesame Street
Sesame Street shared a similar fate to Saturday Night Live, with some of its master tapes from its early days being lost or erased. This has resulted in several of its early shows not being preserved.
Metropolis
For a long time, no one could find the full uncut version of this sci-fi masterpiece. It was later revealed that a museum in Buenos Aires, Argentina, had it and was loaning it to local cinema clubs.
Chris Farley’s Shrek
Shrek was in the making since the mid-90s, and there was originally a version with 2D animation, a different plot, and the titular character with another design and voice actor, Chris Farley. However, once Farley passed away, several changes were made out of respect for him. Back in 2015, recordings of his performance as Shrek were released to the public.
Within Our Gates
“Within Our Gates” is regarded as the first surviving movie directed by an African-American, Oscar Micheaux, as it was released in 1920. However, it was considered lost for a long time until the last remaining reel was found in Spain, which helped resurrect the film.
The Phantom Blood movie
Back in 2007, there was a movie adaptation of the first part of the manga series JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure”, “Phantom Blood”. The film actually came out in theaters in Japan. However, for reasons not disclosed, the movie never had a DVD or a foreign release and only the first twenty minutes have been leaked ever since.
Last Battle of Atlanta
This was a wrestling match between Tommy Rich and Buzz Sawyer in 1983 for the Georgia Championship Wrestling. It wasn’t televised and for a long time it was a coveted prize for a lot of wrestling fans. It wasn’t until 2016 that the WWE released footage of the match.
Night of the Living Dead
George Romero changed the horror genre with his 1968 film, Night of the Living Dead, but it has been reported over the years that a lot of extra cuts were filmed and never saw the light of day. Some of these cuts added more character development, gave more substance to some plot points, and so on. Sadly, they have never come out.
The Mr. Potato Head Show
For a long time, “The Mr. Potato Head Show” was lost and nowhere to be found. That is, until a few years ago when someone uploaded the episodes on Daily Motion.
Codename: Sailor V
Codename: Sailor V is actually the manga that precedes the legendary series Sailor Moon, with the former starring Minako Aino. In 1995, there was an attempt to make OVAs for this manga, but the project was scrapped and only a few frames have been leaked over the years.
The Beatles at Shea Stadium
The Beatles performed at Shea Stadium in New York in 1965, which was one of the most important shows in their careers. It was recorded and the band redubbed several portions of the show because of the noise of the crowd. The original raw tapes, though, have been lost ever since.
The Pill Pounder
This 197 silent comedy short starring Clara Bow was lost until a print was found at an auction in Omaha, Nebraska, in 2023.
Orson Welles’ Don Quixote
For several decades, director Orson Welles sporadically recorded scenes for his adaptation of Miguel De Cervantes’ Don Quixote novel. He recorded pieces across several countries from 1957 until his death in 1985. However, no one was capable of piecing together the parts that were filmed to make a cohesive story, resulting in one of cinema’s biggest lost media cases.
The Oubliette
This 1914 historical silent film was once lost forever until 1983, when a couple was rebuilding the steps of their front porch, finding the last three remaining reels of the movie.
BBC
Back in the 60s, the BBC had the common practice of erasing its master tapes. This resulted in a lot of their shows from that era being lost forever.
The Day the Clown Cried
Jerry Lewis’s 1972 drama cast him as a clown leading children to the gas chambers. He shelved it, then donated his materials to the Library of Congress under a ten-year embargo. That lifted in 2024, and researchers can now book an appointment to watch 90 minutes of dailies. The finished film still doesn’t exist.
Cry Baby Lane
This 2000 horror film was actually forgotten by Nickelodeon for many years and gained a mystique of sorts because of several creepypastas surrounding it. But once the film was leaked on Reddit in 2011, the company remembered its existence and re-released it across its platforms.
