This Day in Indie History: Lucas

The David Seltzer-penned high school coming-of-age story Lucas was released to U.S. audiences on this day in 1986. Seltzer, previously known for writing The Omen, also took charge behind the camera as director. In a complete 180 from his previous work, this is a sweetly told tale of unrequited, teenage love. The story revolves around Lucas, a typical pint-sized science geek, his crush, beautiful new student Maggie, and her football player love interest, Cappie. An attempt to join the football team backfires and lands Lucas in the hospital. As an unexpected bonus, his injuries gain him the respect of the entire school–even the jocks that once goaded him.

Factoid: While the movie unfortunately did little to propel the career of its title star, Corey Haim, it did launch the careers of Winona Ryder (Mermaids, Reality Bites) and Jeremy Piven (Smokin Aces, “Entourage”). This was the first feature film for both.