Killroy Was Here

The film stars Azita Ghanizada, Ryan O'Nan, Harley Quinn Smith, Chris Jericho, Justin Kucsulain, Jason Mewes, and Ralph Garman.

KillRoy Was Here
Official teaser image
Directed by	Kevin Smith
Screenplay by	Kevin Smith Andrew McElfresh
Based on	Kilroy was here by United States servicemen
Produced by	Andrew McElfresh Tony Stopperan Joseph Restaino Nick Morgulis Adam Yeremian
Starring	Azita Ghanizada Ryan O'Nan Harley Quinn Smith Chris Jericho Justin Kucsulain Jason Mewes Ralph Garman
Cinematography	Brandon D. Hyde
Edited by	Brian Chamberlain
Music by	Simon Taufique
Production companies	View Askew Productions SModcast Pictures
Distributed by	Legendao
Release date	July 12, 2022 (2022-07-12)
Running time	63 minutes
Country	United States
Language	English
Budget	$1 million

The film was released as 5,555 exclusive non-fungible tokens on July 12, 2022, on Legendao, Secret Network's NFT minting platform. It is the first feature film to be released as an NFT.

The film is a comedy horror anthology centred around the phenomenon of the "Kilroy was here" graffiti.

Development

In April 2014, Kevin Smith announced the Christmas-themed horror movie Anti-Claus, with a script based on the episode The Christmas Special of his Edumacation podcast. The script was co-written by his Edumacation co-host Andrew McElfresh, marking it the first script Smith collaborated on with another writer. Filming was initially scheduled for September 2014, with Tusk (2014) actors Justin Long, Michael Parks, and Haley Joel Osment returning as cast. The movie centered around the European folklore figure Krampus, a devil-esque creature who punishes naughty children.

The film is a horror anthology based on the graffiti phenomenon that Smith directed, based on a script co-written by him and Andrew McElfresh, marking the first time he shares writing credit on one of his movies. The script is a retooling of their Anti-Claus movie, which was initially cancelled after the release of Krampus (2015) due to the similar story.

Filming

Principal photography began on June 15, 2017, in Sarasota, Florida, with Brandon D. Hyde serving as cinematographer. The film also shot scenes in areas around Ringling College of Art and Design and Nathan Benderson Park, before moving to Longboat Key. In January 2018, Azita Ghanizada, Ryan O'Nan, Justin Kucsulain, Kathryn Parks, Brendan Ragen, Michael Perez, and Cindy De La Cruz were confirmed to be starring in the film, while Andrew McElfresh, Tony Stopperan, Joe Restaino, Nick Morgulis, Jordan Monsanto, and Adam Yeremian signed on as producers. In the same month, Smith's daughter, Harley Quinn Smith, joined the cast. In August 2018, Chris Jericho was confirmed to star in the film, before filming wrapped in October 2018.

Post-production

In April 2020, Smith revealed that the tone and style of KillRoy Was Here were inspired by Creepshow (1982), another comedy horror anthology film. Robert Kurtzman designed the titular character, describing it as a "long-nosed monster". Simon Taufique was revealed to have composed the score for the film. By April 2022, Jason Mewes and Ralph Garman were confirmed to appear in the film.

In February 2020, before the COVID-19 lockdowns, the film was set for a 2020 theatrical release. In July 2020, during San Diego Comic-Con@Home, Smith indicated that the theatrical release had been pushed back to 2021. In April 2021, it was announced that the film would be released exclusively as a non-fungible token (NFT). The film's distribution rights were set to be auctioned off in May 2022 at Jay and Silent Bob's Crypto Studio. KillRoy Was Here was ultimately released via NFT minting platform Legendao as 5,555 exclusive tokens on July 12, 2022.