Editing Stand by Me (film) (section)

===Development===
[[File:Stand By Me theMovie Original Tshirt for the Cast and Crew.jpg|thumb|"The Body" was the original name of the movie based on the novel, with Embassy Pictures heading production. T-shirts bearing the name and company were given to the cast and crew.]]
The film was adapted from the Stephen King novella ''[[The Body (King novella)|The Body]]''.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.etonline.com/all-the-stephen-king-easter-eggs-in-hulus-castle-rock-from-shawshank-to-sissy-spacek-106674 |title=All the Stephen King Easter Eggs in Hulu's ''Castle Rock'' – From Shawshank to Sissy Spacek |website=Entertainment Tonight |access-date=April 16, 2019 |archive-date=February 15, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190215160028/https://www.etonline.com/all-the-stephen-king-easter-eggs-in-hulus-castle-rock-from-shawshank-to-sissy-spacek-106674 |url-status=live}}</ref> [[Bruce A. Evans]] sent a copy of ''The Body'' to Karen Gideon, the wife of his friend and writing partner Raynold Gideon, on August 29, 1983, as a gift for her birthday.<ref name="CT-861121">{{cite news |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/1986/11/21/how-stand-by-me-was-almost-left-standing-at-the-gate/ |title=How ''Stand By Me'' Was Almost Left Standing At The Gate |last=Scott |first=Vernon |date=November 21, 1986 |newspaper=[[Chicago Tribune]] |agency=United Press International |access-date=24 April 2017 |archive-date=April 25, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170425115616/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1986-11-21/entertainment/8603270806_1_novella-stand-bruce-evans |url-status=live}}</ref> Both Gideon and Evans quickly became fans of the novella and shortly thereafter contacted King's agent, [[Kirby McCauley]], seeking to negotiate film rights; McCauley replied that King's terms were $100,000 and 10% of the gross profits. Although the money was not an issue, the share of gross profits was considered excessive, especially considering that no stars could be featured to help sell the movie. In response, Evans and Gideon pursued an established director, [[Adrian Lyne]], to help sell the project.<ref name="CT-861121" />

After reading the novella, Lyne teamed up with Evans and Gideon, but all the studios the trio approached turned the project down except for Martin Shafer at [[Embassy Pictures]]. Embassy spent four months negotiating the rights with McCauley, settling on $50,000 and a smaller share of the profits, and Evans and Gideon spent eight weeks writing the screenplay. Evans and Gideon asked to also produce the film, but Shafer suggested they team up with [[Andrew Scheinman]], a more experienced producer.<ref name="CT-861121" /> Embassy was unwilling to meet Lyne's salary for directing the film until Evans and Gideon agreed to give up half of their share of profits to meet Lyne's asking price.<ref name="CT-861121" />

Lyne was going to direct the film, but had promised himself a vacation following the production of ''[[9½ Weeks]]'',<ref name="Telegraph11" /><ref>{{cite AV media |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c-rLZaTs5AY |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200705071056/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c-rLZaTs5AY&feature=youtu.be&t=1191|archive-date=July 5, 2020 |title=Rob Reiner – Archive Interview Part 6 of 8 |work=Foundation Interviews |date=March 20, 2008 |access-date=October 8, 2017 |via=[[YouTube]]}}</ref> and would not be available to start production until the spring of 1986.<ref name="CT-861121" /> Reiner was better known at the time for playing [[Michael Stivic]] in ''[[All in the Family]]'' and had just started a directing career, making comedies such as ''[[This Is Spinal Tap]]'' and ''[[The Sure Thing]]''. He was sent the script by Scheinman,<ref name="CT-861121" /> and his initial reaction was that the script had promise but "no focus".<ref name="Variety">{{cite news |url=https://variety.com/2016/film/news/stand-by-me-30th-anniversary-oral-history-corey-feldman-1201824490/ |title=''Stand by Me'' Oral History: Rob Reiner and Cast on River Phoenix and How Coming-of-Age Classic Almost Didn't Happen |last=Lang |first=Brent |date=July 28, 2016 |newspaper=Variety |access-date=23 April 2017 |archive-date=October 15, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171015200829/http://variety.com/2016/film/news/stand-by-me-30th-anniversary-oral-history-corey-feldman-1201824490/ |url-status=live}}</ref> After Lyne withdrew from the project, Reiner signed on to direct in September 1984.<ref name="CT-861121" /> In a 2011 interview, Reiner discussed his realization that the film should focus on the character of Gordie:

<blockquote>"In the book, it was about four boys, but...once I made Gordie the central focus of the piece then it made sense to me: this movie was all about a kid who didn't feel good about himself and whose father didn't love him. And through the experience of going to find the dead body and his friendship with these boys, he began to feel empowered and went on to become a very successful writer. He basically became Stephen King."<ref name="Telegraph11" /></blockquote>

Reiner has said that he identified with Gordie, as he himself struggled with the shadow of fame cast by his comedian father, [[Carl Reiner]].<ref name="Variety" /> The writers incorporated Reiner's suggestions, producing a new script by December 1984 for Embassy's review and approval.<ref name="CT-861121" />

Days before the shooting started in the summer of 1985, Embassy was sold to [[Columbia Pictures]], which made plans to cancel the production.<ref name="CT-861121" /> [[Norman Lear]], one of the co-owners of Embassy and the developer of ''All in the Family'', gave {{no wrap|$7.5{{nbsp}}million}} of his own money to complete the film, citing his faith in Reiner and the script.<ref name="Variety" /> However, since Embassy also would have distributed the film, once the film was completed it had no distributor. The producers showed a print to [[Michael Ovitz]], head of the powerful [[Creative Artists Agency]], and Ovitz promised to help them find a distributor.<ref name="CT-861121" /> [[Paramount Pictures|Paramount]], [[Universal Pictures]], and [[Warner Bros.]] all passed on the film; Columbia Pictures production head [[Guy McElwaine]] screened the film at his house because he was feeling ill, and the positive reaction of his daughters convinced him to distribute the film.<ref name="CT-861121" /><ref name="Variety" /> In March 1986, [[Columbia Pictures]], concerned that the original title, ''The Body'', was misleading, renamed the film ''Stand by Me''. According to screenwriter Raynold Gideon, ''The Body'' "sounded like either a sex film, a bodybuilding film, or another Stephen King horror film. Rob came up with ''Stand by Me'', and it ended up being the least unpopular option."<ref>{{cite book |title=Stand By Me'' DVD Booklet'' |publisher=Columbia TriStar Home Video |date=2000}}</ref> The film's name is derived from Ben E. King's 1961 song, "Stand by Me", which plays during the ending credits.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://screenrant.com/stand-by-me-ending-explained/ |title=Stand By Me Ending Explained |website=screenrant.com |last=Laguerre-Lewis |first=Kayla |date=September 1, 2024}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://insessionfilm.com/classic-movie-review-stand-by-me/ |title=''Stand By Me'' Remains Sentimental |website=insessionfilm.com |last=Battestella |first=Kristin |date=June 6, 2024}}</ref>