One of Ron Howard’s most beloved movies is, without a doubt, his 1985 classic, Cocoon. It was a huge hit when it came out, even earning co-star Don Ameche an Oscar for Best Supporting Actor. This year, it celebrates its 40th anniversary, but good luck finding it. A few years ago, I wrote a deep dive article into the fact that many classics we grew up with are out of print. Some of them have eventually seen the light of day (one notable one is the Diane Keaton thriller Looking for Mr. Goodbar, which I never thought we’d see), but oddly, the most successful, classic title of them all – Cocoon – is still MIA.
What gives? Cocoon, for those who may not remember, is the story of a bunch of senior citizens (including Wilford Brimley, who played decades older than he actually was), who discover a bunch of alien pods being stored in a pool near their senior center. When they bathe in the water, they feel rejuvenated, with him quickly bringing their wives to the pool and hitting the town (the classic break-dancing scene is for sure what won Ameche his Oscar). Yet, the pods are compromised when a bunch of seniors find out the secret and swamp the pool, thinking they’ve found the secret to eternal youth. With the pods ruined, the seniors, feeling bad, team up with the aliens (including Brian Dennehy) to return the pods to the ocean, where they can regenerate. And oh yeah, Steve Guttenberg is around too. It’s a charming little movie, and it was a huge hit, grossing $76 million and becoming the sixth biggest hit of the year.
Yet, it’s totally impossible to find. It’s unavailable on any digital retailers, and the DVD/ Blu-ray copies are long out of print (although you can thankfully find used copies). It’s never gotten a 4K release, and its lack of availability makes no sense, especially as the sequel, Cocoon: The Return, is easy to find pretty much everywhere.
Content-wise, the movie is as tame as you’d think, given the subject matter. There’s nothing at all that’s objectionable. Part of my wonder if it’s a music licensing issue, as the movie does contain a pop song, Michael Sembello’s “Gravity” used prominently, but I doubt that’s much of an issue for a company like Disney. Heck, Universal was able to clear the hundreds of eighties songs used on Miami Vice. Could it be that Disney, which owns the rights (it was originally a 20th Century Fox film), just doesn’t care? One would assume Ron Howard would get involved, as one of the movies he’s proudest of is impossible to get – legally (in a world like ours, nothing is ever truly Lost Media anymore).
Why do you think Cocoon is out of circulation? Let us know in the comments.
