A lot of Tim Burton's early artwork in his MoMA retrospective consists of pitches for movies he never got to make... and they'd make some kick-ass films today. Here are the best Burton monsters and mutants that deserve screen time.


Insect (1979-1982)

Gotta love the attention to detail here. "It's dancing horseshit," "music by the Beatles," and "The Movie Everyone Is Buzzing About!"


A closer look

Stalk of The Celery Monster (1979) A short short.

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Romeo And Juliet, the Monster Movie!


Little Dead Riding Hood (1981)


Hansel and Gretel (1982). A storyboard from a Hansel And Gretel movie pitch, takes us to a world where the walls melt candy.


Mothera (1980-1988)


The Gardener

His hands are gardening tools. This was one of the many superhero villains Burton dreamed up, and he's very Edward Scissorhands-like.


Dr. Brain

Another villain, Dr. Brain, who needs two assistants to hold his head up at all times, or else it cracks open — see the right image. If only Burton got his own superhero movie, where he could dream up an entire new team of heroes and baddies.


Superman Lives - Brainiac

And finally here's a genuine concept art from Tim Burton's Superman movie with Nic Cage, that never saw the light of day. Still this is a pretty bad-ass Brainiac.



Superman Lives- Superman

And this is his Superman, who looks like Johnny Depp.