Dante Basco has launched a Kickstarter campaign to fund a 'Hook' film prequel.
Dante Basco
The 41-year-old actor starred as Lost Boy Rufio in the 1991 Peter Pan movie 'Hook' - which starred the late Robin Williams as an older Peter Pan - and listed $30,000 in funds to shoot a short prequel film entitled 'Bangarang'.
The Kickstarter campaign has already passed the initial $30,000 target, with days still left to pledge and if Basco can raise $200,000 he confirmed he will make a feature length movie rather than a short film.
He took to Instagram to thank fans after the first target was reached, saying: "Yo!!! We did it!!! Thank you guys so much for supporting the Bangarang project ... we're going to make this short!!! Y'all are amazing! (sic)"
Basco explained on the Kickstarter fundraising page why he wanted to get the project off the ground and tell Rufio's journey to Neverland.
He said: "In a world of endless sequels, prequels, and reboots - we feel Bangarang holds a unique place. Sure, it draws off a popular studio film, and billion dollar property (Peter Pan), but the key for us is that this movie is a social commentary on the current world climate. We are taking a beloved character out of his comfort zone."
The short film's plot is described as "The story about Rufio, before the mohawk, before Neverland, before he was The Pan. Roofus is a 13-year-old kid who is destined to be more than he is. After his mother is forced to put him into a foster home, he and his rag-tag group of best friends, a Jamaican boy named Julani and a bright-eyed latina force of nature named Ella, find a way for Roofus to escape his ill fate, find his happy thought and fulfil his destiny".
For the proposed prequel the story has been reverse engineered from what plays out in 'Hook'. And the creators tackle the questions fans might have wondered including How and why is Rufio the leader of the Lost Boys? Where does "bangarang" come from? And of course, how he gets the mohawk.
'Hook' was released by Sony Pictures and Amblin Entertainment and acted as a sequel to J. M. Barrie's 1911 novel 'Peter and Wendy', also known as 'Peter Pan'.