Corner Gas hits the big screen
Going from sitcom to film is tough, Butt says
Corner Gas: The Movie almost didn’t make it to the big screen.
The film, which hits theatres across Canada today, was a challenge that was almost too much for the creative team. After the series ended in 2009, Brent Butt — the creator, star, writer and executive producer of the sitcom — was adamant that a Corner Gas movie would only happen if a quality project could be produced.
He began writing a movie script movie a few years ago but as the process went on, the creative team — which included executive producers David Storey and Virginia Thompson — wasn’t feeling the love for the project.
“We definitely felt that we were on a bit of a tightrope to get this done and get it out and have it done well. There was a point there, I can say, where we were on the verge of saying, ‘We’re not going to do it,’ because creatively we all didn’t feel that it was there,” Storey explained. “We weren’t going to put out a crappy movie. There was a point there where we just about pulled the plug on it.
“I made one more trip out to Vancouver and we had one more kick at the script and sent it back. Virginia read it and loved it, her husband Rob read it and loved it, so we thought we had something, so we decided to move forward.”
Butt was writing the script with Andrew Carr, who wrote for the sitcom, and Andrew Wreggitt, who is a prolific screenwriter.
The biggest challenge the writers faced was allowing the Corner Gas characters to evolve into the magnitude of a theatrical presentation while maintaining the integrity of the series.
“There were lots of times as we were writing this that we could feel that it was one of two things,” said Butt. “It was either, ‘We’re getting good and cinematic but we’re losing what made Corner Gas what it was,’ but then other times you’d be far down the road and you’d say, ‘It feels like Corner Gas but there’s nothing cinematic about this. It feels like another television episode.’
“It was tricky and tough and we wanted to do it right or not at all, so we took the time. We weren’t on a schedule, we weren’t saying it had to be done by a specific year. It was about a year and a half of writing before I felt the script was getting good and that we should start thinking about reaching out to the cast.”
The entire main cast of the series, which ran for six seasons on CTV, signed up for the film — Butt (Brent Leroy), Gabrielle Miller (Lacey Burrows), Fred Ewanuick (Hank Yarbo), Nancy Robertson (Wanda Dollard), Eric Peterson (Oscar Leroy), Janet Wright (Emma Leroy), Lorne Cardinal (Davis Quinton) and Tara Spencer-Nairn (Karen Pelly).
When it was announced in June that the film was going forward, the news thrilled the legion of Corner Gas fans across Canada. Butt recognized, however, that having such a loyal and devoted fan base was a double-edged sword: The good news was that an audience was in place and anxious to see the movie, but the bad news was that these same fans are extremely protective of the series and would not settle for anything less than the best.
“I heard from some fans of the show (before the screenings) that they were nervous going into this,” Butt said. “They were scared because they felt so close to the series and there was almost, almost, the assumption that this wasn’t going to work. It was like, ‘Oh, I think this is going to damage the series.’
“They’re so jubilant after seeing the movie because it’s like the series, but then some. I think there’s a relief from some people because they’re glad I didn’t screw up what they liked about Corner Gas.”
With the movie bringing the Corner Gas franchise to an end — Storey said there isn’t going to be a movie sequel — it’s a time of mixed emotions for the cast and creative team. They went through an emotional process when the series ended five years ago, and while they recognized the finality of the process following the filming of the movie, they were grateful they were able to come back for the experience.
“We ended the series and the last episode was very good. We as a group were tired after six years and a little beat up, just from the process,” Storey said. “This was a chance for us all to get back together one more time as a team and take a fresh perspective on everything. ... I felt it was a fantastic experience, not that the end of the series wasn’t. The series was great in its own way, but for this we were fresh and had some perspective.
“It was a joy.”