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The 1958 Plymouth Fury in John Carpenter's "Christine" is among the most evil cars in cinema history, but what happened to its real-life counterpart might be just as tragic as its fate in the film. In the 1983 cult-classic horror flick, the main attraction isn't an actor, but a sentient
red coupe bearing the same name. The eponymous vehicle had a wicked mean streak, leading to the deaths of various characters in the film. However, Christine's murderous rampage finally ended after it was brutally crushed by a backhoe loader. Christine wound up as scrap in a junkyard, but, in true horror moviefashion, showed signs of life by subtly flinching during the closing scene.
The thing is, this iconic car actually did survive post production. In fact, 24 different cars were used in the film overall, with some deliberately crashed in stunt scenes, while others were used for close-ups (via MotorTrend). Although majority of the vehicles were indeed scrapped once filming wrapped, three survived. As for what happened to the rest, well, let's just say they weren't all
treated equally.
SunflowerMomma/Shutterstock Of the 24 cars the were purchased for the movie, most of them were actually '57 and '58 Savoys and Belvederes, with just one Fury, according to MotorTrend. Today, there are three remaining "Christines." One was sent to the U.K, while the other, one of the stunt cars, was purchased and restored by Martin Sanchez (via Wired). The lone Plymouth Fury Christine was originally raffled off and won by Scott Edminster, who eventually sold it. This Christine ended up in Barrett-Jackson's auction, and was bought by millionaire car collector Ron Pratte. It was again sold once more in 2015 before retiring to the Rochester Auto Museum in New York (via MotorTrend). Mecum now has an estimated price tag ranging from $400,000 to $500,000 for the car. While attempts were made to sell her during Mecum Auctions' Kissimmee 2020, that ended up in a fruitless affair. The Frankstein Plymouth Fury Christine
Eddie Sandlin Jr., whose father worked for Columbia Pictures the year "Christine" was released, built his own version of the Fury after tracking down spare parts individually (via Old Cars). This resulted in a Frankenstein-esque car that almost looked exactly like the Christine in the movie. The car eventually ended up in the ownership of Bill Gibson, who claims that Christine now holds possession of him instead, according to an interview with Count Gore De Vol. While the flawless 1958 Plymouth Fury from the movie failed to sell in an auction, the amalgam made from fused Fury parts has been out on the road with Gibson, so to speak. According to his website, his version of Christine has been featured at various conventions and car shows, and at one point, a wedding ceremony. It seems like the "Christine" Plymouth Fury is still very much alive even decades after the movie. After all, it would take more than a trash compactor to stop such a resilient vehicle, especially when the burning passion of adoring fans is enough to keep her engine running. Christine is perhaps the most popular and well-known Plymouth Fury to come from the house of Chrysler, and the Fury in itself is considered to be one of the best Plymouths ever made. She's also the most terrifying one considering she was borne out of a Stephen King novel and is basically possessed. As in killer-car possessed. The movie, by the way, went into production even before Stephen King’s novel was released and worked wonderfully as a scary ride for all involved. It was shot with smaller and lesser-known actors at the time with Keith Gordon playing Arnie Cunningham, and several Plymouth Fury cars playing the most famous vamp on wheels, Christine. The car is deranged and too much in love with its owner, Arnie, to the point it is vitriolically jealous of anyone close to him. Plus, it simply won’t die and “heals” itself every time it was banged up, usually when it went on a murderous rampage. When it did go killer, the windows blacked out to show its evil intent. This movie put the fear of the Fury in many a viewer with avid imagination, and even now, a red Fury is instantly recognizable as Christine. Here’s where the original Plymouth Fury from John Carpenter's Christine is, or at least, where one of them is. The Story Behind Christine
When Stephen King began to write a novel where all the evil was in a car, he did not want to use a car that was too well known or came with a long legacy, like the ‘50s Thunderbird. He wanted a forgotten car that no one really remembered all that well in the ‘80s, and a 1958 Plymouth Fury became the vamp, so to speak. Plus, the very name, Fury sounds angry and in King’s mind, this rage easily turned malicious and vengeful. The novel was written first, and King approached the producer Richard Kobritz, asking if he wanted to adapt it for a movie. Kobritz liked the movie because he felt that in America; most of the audience was obsessed with cars and having one as a central character in a horror movie would click well with the audience. At the time, director John Carpenter had a big failure with The Thing and wanted to grab a new project quickly, so he signed on for Christine super quick, and production began quickly with a screenplay in place, with some changes from the novel to better be able to identify the car. For example, when King wrote the novel, he mentions a four-door Fury but all 1958 Furys were two-door so the screenplay adjusted the same. Some 20 cars were grabbed by the studio, if not more, and all were not even a Fury. The production company also grabbed some Belvedere and Savoy for parts, while others were used in close up and damaging scenes. Of course, when Christine goes blacked-out windows and on a murderous rampage, cars are destroyed, and so when the production finally wrapped up only a few cars survived. These cars went on promotional road trips and tours and finally were sold off to private collectors. Here’s what we could trace but before that, know this. That spine-chilling sound from Christine’s engine isn’t from a Plymouth Fury. It’s from a 1970 Mustang 428 Super Cobra Jet, and is one of the many little changes movie producers instill in a movie to make it sell… The Only Documented Christine
One of the movie cars, and perhaps the only documented one in existence was given away in a promotional raffle to promote the movie on New Year’s Eve, on the USA Network show “Night Flight”. 40,000 people entered the sweepstakes and Scott Edminster got to drive it home. The car was later restored to its former glory and changed hands again, selling at the 2015 Barrett-Jackson Scottsdale Auction for $198,000, this time becoming part of the Ron Pratte collection and also featuring in the 35th Anniversary celebrations of the movie held at Rochester Auto Museum in 2018. The car comes with a certification from Polar films as well as a video testimonial from the producer, Richard Kobritz. It went on auction with Mecum in January this year, with an estimated value of $400,000-500,000 but sadly did not sell. The Undocumented Rescue Car
After Christine the movie and the book both became a success, 17-year-old Mark Sanchez had a hankering for it. But the production company seemed to have sucked out all the Furys from the market and he was aimlessly running after his dream, till he mentioned it to his friend Al Newman, who owned Classic Wheels in Anaheim, California. Newman rescued the car the production company had dubbed “Muscle Two” and delivered it to Sanchez who lovingly kept it for years, painstakingly restoring it to its former glory and driving it for many, many years. When an article came up on the Internet about Mark Sanchez and Christine, Bill Gibson’s heart soared. He made Sanchez an offer he could refuse, emptying his bank account in the process. Today, Gibson has an unconventional marriage with Christine, and it seems to be an everlasting one. One Christine seems to have found her forever home, and we wonder when the other one will... Sources: Mecum, TheSentinel NEXT: This Is The Truth Behind The Danger To Manifold Scene From The Fast And The Furious Where is the original car from Christine?This Christine ended up in Barrett-Jackson's auction, and was bought by millionaire car collector Ron Pratte. It was again sold once more in 2015 before retiring to the Rochester Auto Museum in New York (via MotorTrend). Mecum now has an estimated price tag ranging from $400,000 to $500,000 for the car.
How much did the movie car Christine sell for?In the story, Christine was a jealous and murderous car who ultimately met her end in a car crusher. This example was used in close up shots and was ultimately raffled by the filmmakers to publicize the film's release. The car led the sale at $275,000.
How many Christine cars were made for the movie?More than 20 Plymouths were used to film the movie “Christine.” Belvederes, Savoys and Fury models were used during the filming process. All cars were painted red and given matching interiors. From the opening shot, this car played an important role in the film.
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Who owns the original Christine movie car?
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