History Main / DevelopmentHell

* Any ObjectShow can fall into this territory, if it doesn't complete its first (or at least newest) season like ''WebAnimation/BattleForDreamIsland'' or ''WebAnimation/InanimateInsanity'' did, its next episode will fall flat, and eventually fade out of the black with no word on renewal, or else it could lead to it getting canceled.

** Luckily, [[SavedFromDevelopmentHell an object show can get revived by making a reboot after it's original failed]], but sometimes can fall flat afterwards.

** She also has talked about working or planning to work on a story from Renesmee's point of view, a story from Leah's point of view, a mermaid story, a ghost story, and a time travel story. There's no sign of any of these. Nor of her ''Literature/TheHost'' sequel.

* ''Franchise/Alien'':

** Each figure in the Mojo wave was originally supposed to include a member of the X-Babies (child clones of various Marvel heroes created by Mojo). 1st Appearance Comicbook/{{Daredevil}} was supposed to come with Wolvie and Shadow Kitty (Comicbook/{{Wolverine}} and Comicbook/KittyPryde), Comicbook/{{Longshot}} with Shower (Comicbook/{{Storm}}), Baron Zemo with Colossusus (Comicbook/{{Colossus}}), Comicbook/TheFalcon with Captain Amerikid (Comicbook/CaptainAmerica), Comicbook/{{Psylocke}} with Thunderstorm ([[Comicbook/TheMightyThor Thor]]) and Comicbook/LukeCage with Creepy Crawler (Comicbook/{{Nightcrawler}}). Prototypes for child versions of Comicbook/IronMan and Comicbook/{{Hawkeye}} were also revealed. Rising production costs led to [=ToyBiz=] abandoning the X-Babies idea, and the Daredevil figure ended up being replaced with a 1st Appearance Iron Man.

* Jim Steinman tried to get a ''Bat Out of Hell'' musical off the ground pretty much from the moment the album was released, even stating in interviews it was a concept album that he imagined being adapted to the stage. But after the complete mess that was ''Dance of the Vampires'', Steinman was all but blackballed from Broadway. He faced yet another setback in 2006 when Meat Loaf successfully sued for the rights to the title. Though Steinman still claimed he would get the musical made, he ultimately never did; whether anyone will take on the effort following Steinman's 2021 death remains to be seen.

* ''Winter World'' was a 3-issue miniseries written by Creator/ChuckDixon and published in 1987, and it was meant to be followed by two sequels, ''Winter Sea'' and ''Winterwar''. ''Winter Sea'' was meant to be published by Creator/MarvelEpicComics but this never happened. Eventually ''Winter World'' was republished in 2011 along with ''Winter Sea'' as its second part. The third part however remains unpublished.

** Last year, O'Brien announced that he had finally begun writing the playbook for a sequel to the stageshow, entitled ''Rocky Horror: The Second Cumming''. See the Discussion page for a more detailed version.

-->--'''WebVideo/TechnologyConnections''', on the RCA UsefulNotes/{{CED}} Videodisk format.

* Jim Steinman has been trying to get a ''Bat Out of Hell'' musical off the ground pretty much since the album was released, even stating in interviews it's a concept album that he imagines being adapted to the stage. But after the complete mess that was ''Dance of the Vampires'', Steinman was all but blackballed from Broadway. He still claims he'll make the ''Bat Out of Hell'' musical a reality one day, though, even though he face yet another setback in 2006 when Meat Loaf successfully sued for the rights to the title.

* A new installment in the WesternAnimation/XiaolinShowdown franchise has been in this for ''six'' years. In fact, [[https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/christyhui/xiaolinshowdown?ref=backerkit two]] [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zn2-s1-2jQE ideas]] were discussed, but their status is currently unknown. It's also unknown whether the death of Stephen Sustarsic, one of the creative forces behind the said franchise, has to do with all that rack, given that he was replaced by Mark Zaslove, a friend of his, as a story editor of WesternAnimation/XiaolinChronicles. However, the franchise's creator Christy Hui recently hinted [[https://twitter.com/christyhuichat/status/1304215840087134208 about the Xiaolin Warriors' return]], so it's very likely the new installment in the franchise will be eventually SavedFromDevelopmentHell.

* Long story short, a [[https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/christyhui/xiaolinshowdown?ref=backerkit Kickstarter]] for a ''WesternAnimation/XiaolinShowdown'' graphic novel called ''Xiaolin Dragons'' became dead on arrival. The project was announced in November 2015 and was postponed following the terrorist attacks in Paris that month. It was supposed to resume in January 2016. The campaign has been since canceled, but Christy Hui recently hinted about [[https://twitter.com/christyhuichat/status/1304215840087134208 another Xiaolin project in development]].

* Long story short, a [[https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/christyhui/xiaolinshowdown?ref=backerkit Kickstarter]] for a ''WesternAnimation/XiaolinShowdown'' graphic novel called ''Xiaolin Dragons'' was dead on arrival. The project was announced in November 2015 and was postponed following the terrorist attacks in Paris that month. It was supposed to resume in January 2016. The campaign has been since canceled, but Christy Hui recently hinted about [[https://twitter.com/christyhuichat/status/1304215840087134208 another Xiaolin project in development]].

* A [[https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/christyhui/xiaolinshowdown?ref=backerkit Kickstarter]] was announced in November 2015 for a ''WesternAnimation/XiaolinShowdown'' graphic novel called ''Xiaolin Dragons''. The project was postponed following the terrorist attacks in Paris that month and was supposed to resume in January 2016. Unfortunately, January came and went, with the project all but canceled.

* {{DevelopmentHell/Music}}

* DevelopmentHell/OtherMedia

[[folder:Automobiles]]
* Monica, a French luxury automobile brand, created 22 prototypes, of which ''8'' went into production before work was stopped indefinitely. Read more [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monica_(automobile) here]]. It was a sign of WhatCouldHaveBeen.
* General Motors planned to turn Saturn into Opel of America, with more vehicles added to the product line, when the 2007-2009 global economic crisis struck. The name then disappeared as 2009 ended and 2010 started. The Saturn division itself was first announced and a prototype shown in 1983. It was 1991 by the time you could actually buy one, and the original sedan's wraparound rear window had been stolen ''internally'' by Oldsmobile, leading observers to see the Saturn as the "copy".
* Due in large part (but not entirely) to UsefulNotes/WorldWarII, the VW Beetle design was finalized for production in 1938 but the first cars delivered to retail customers weren't until 1947.
* Mercedes-Benz T80 is a StupidJetpackHitler example back in 1930s when aerodynamics were primitive. [[SuperPrototype With an aircraft-like design and even an aircraft engine,]] the car boasts [[SuperPrototype futuristic and aerodynamic performance]] [[{{Zeerust}} which would not be seen for the next few decades.]] It was supposed to be run by Hans Stuck[[note]]a famed racer of 1930s Grand Prix and UsefulNotes/AdolfHitler's personal friend[[/note]] on a special stretch of the Autobahn, but the project was halted due to UsefulNotes/WorldWarII. The bodyshell was saved, however, and there were never any run attempts afterwards. Many people over the decades have urged Mercedes-Benz to fully restore the T80 and test run it to see if it would have reached the ridiculously high speed record.
[[/folder]]

* Kevin Smith's smash ''Comicbook/{{Daredevil}}'' relaunch got him on a comics kick which turned out to be more than he could handle. His ''Spider-Man/Black Cat'' miniseries had a gap of over three years between issues 3 and 4. During that time, most fans had dismissed the remaining issues as vaporware -- as they have his ''Daredevil/Bullseye'' miniseries, whose only issue to date was published in 2002.

* From 2018-2019, Creator/{{Mattel}}'s ''[[Franchise/DCUniverse DC Multiverse]]'' line unveiled a number of new figures at conventions and in press images. While many of these were ultimately made, [[Comicbook/GreenLantern Simon Baz]], 90s Comicbook/{{Catwoman}}, Impulse, ''Comicbook/{{Flashpoint}}'' Comicbook/{{Aquaman}}, Mammoth, ''Anime/BatmanNinja'' [[Comicbook/TheJoker Joker]], classic [[Comicbook/TheRiddler Riddler]] and the ''Comicbook/DCRebirth'' versions of Comicbook/BlackCanary and Hawkgirl were all cancelled when Mattel lost the DC Multiverse license transferred to [[Creator/ToddMcFarlane McFarlane Toys]].

[[folder:Web Comics]]

* A [[https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/christyhui/xiaolinshowdown?ref=backerkit Kickstarter]] was announced in November 2015 for a ''WesternAnimation/XiaolinShowdown'' graphic novel called ''Xiaolin Dragons''. The project was postponed following the terrorist attacks in Paris that month and was supposed to resume in January 2016. Unfortunately, January came and went, with the project all but cancelled.

* A [[https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/christyhui/xiaolinshowdown?ref=backerkit Kickstarter]] was announced in November 2015 for a graphic novel called ''Xiaolin Dragons''. The project was postponed following the terrorist attacks in Paris that month and was supposed to resume in January 2016. Unfortunately, January came and went, with the project all but cancelled.

Development Hell becomes a sort of self-reinforcing feedback loop over time--as one director gets fed up and quits, the project is assigned to a new director, who orders a new screenplay with a new vision, which results in producers demanding changes, wash, rinse, repeat etc. Projects in other media can sink into similar cesspits. Sometimes examples of this trope lead into cases of WhatCouldHaveBeen or TrailerDelay.

Compare to ExtremelyLengthyCreation, where a work did take a long time to come to fruition, but with no problems involved.

* A planned new Quebec City team for the [=NHL=] has been in Expansion Hell since the early 2010s. Doesn't help that in 2018 commissioner Gary Bettman tacitly rejected the Quebec City bid (or to some, was {{Troll}}ing those who wanted a return of the Quebec Nordiques) by stating the league "would not expand any further for the foreseeable future".

** ''GURPS Literature/TheDifferenceEngine'' - announced in October 1991 for 1992 publication. The problem was said to involve the original assigned writer suffering [[AuthorExistenceFailure a fatal accident]], and the license will long since have expired, so this one can be considered defunct.

* The 2020 reboot of ''ComicBook/TheNewWarriors'' was set to debut as a spinoff to the ''ComicBook/{{Outlawed}}'' event. However, following the UsefulNotes/COVID19Pandemic forcing Marvel Comics to shut down for several months, the book was quietly removed from its release schedule (while ''Outlawed'' itself was significantly truncated) and as of November 2020, Marvel apparently has no plans to release the book. [[https://youtu.be/5PCWUCv1rnU The trailer for the series is still up on YouTube however]].

* Steve Moncuse told CBR.com in 2010 that he was working on a continuation of his series ''ComicBook/FishPolice'', but nothing has come of it since.

Wiki/TheOtherWiki has [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Development_hell an entry]] about Development Hell, with a list of films that are either in Development Hell or once were.

* Monica, a French luxury automobile brand, created 22 prototypes, of which ''8'' went into production before work was stopped indefinitely. Read more [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monica_%28car%29 here]]. It was a sign of WhatCouldHaveBeen.

* Despite being created in late 2008, ''[[http://www.indyplanet.com/store/product_info.php?products_id=3429 Gemini Storm]]'' issue one wasn't released until March 2010. Herbert claims production on issue two is moving along much more quickly.
** Issue two was released last December and issue three's line art is done. Harrison Wood, the artist, has released half the pencils for issue four on his deviantArt account. Looks like it's been saved.

* Ultimate Wolverine vs. Hulk had a 3-year gap between issues #2 and #3.
* Issue #8 of Creator/MarvelComics' ''ComicBook/TheTwelve'', a 12-issue limited series, came out in January 2009. Issue #9 came out over three years later, in February 2012.

* ''Creator/SergioAragones Funnies'' had an 18-month gap between issues 7 (January 2012) and 8 (June 2013). This was due to Sergio Aragones needing an operation, which set everything back.
** Speaking of which, the ''[[ComicBook/GrooTheWanderer Groo]] vs. [[Franchise/ConanTheBarbarian Conan]]'' crossover was originally announced in 2007, but got delayed several times for various reasons, the aforementioned operation being one of them. It finally came out in 2014, seven years later.

* In 2007 there were [[http://www.blackfilm.com//20070202/features/sylvainwhite.shtml talks]] of an adaptation of ''ComicBook/{{Ronin}}'' for the big screen, and in 2014 the Syfy channel [[https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/live-feed/syfy-adapting-frank-millers-dc-698759 announced]] they were going to adapt it as a miniseries. Nothing more has been said about either of them.
* A graphic novel based on Nintendo's ''VideoGame/{{ARMS}}'' was announced back in 2017 with initial release date of Fall 2018. After getting delayed twice, it was finally stated to have been [[https://bumbleking.com/projects/comic-books/dark-horse-comics/ cancelled in March 2021.]]

* Universercus, the promised third book in Gillian Rubenstein's Galax-Arena trilogy, is yet to be more than briefly mentioned at the end of Terra Farma (which was published in 2001). Even though the auther has published books since then and left the plot gaping open!

* ''The Last Great Tortoise Race'', the third and final ''Literature/NurseryCrime'' book by Creator/JasperFforde. The page on his website saying it will be published "Spring 2012" [[http://www.jasperfforde.com/nextnextbook.html still exists]], but the current "upcoming books" page [[http://www.jasperfforde.com/nextbook.html doesn't mention it at all]].
* A revised version of ''Literature/MassEffectDeception'' was promised by Creator/BioWare in 2012 after readers pointed out its many continuity errors. As of 2019, there has been no news on when or if it will be released.
* The fourth book in ''Literature/TheMillenniumTrilogy'' (which was originally planned as ten books). Stieg Larsson had a 75% completed manuscript when passing away but it has never been published due to an ownership dispute (Larsson's then-girlfriend claims to hold the rights since she retains the computer that held the manuscipt but after Larsson died, his parents got the rights due to Swedish law giving the properties of a person who died unmarried to their surviving parents or next of kin). Since Larsson could not get married due to Swedish law making any married couple public (Larsson had made many enemies as a news reporter and he believed that his life becoming public would allow him to be the victim of an assassination, therefore insisting that his privacy be protected), his girlfriend tried to use this as an attempt to gain the rights (since the two were already very much a couple otherwise) but failed to convince the courts. At this point, any attempt to complete the manuscript is near impossible. Because of this, the publishers requested another writer to continue the series despite not being based from Larsson's manuscripts. The fourth book, ''The Girl in the Spider's Web'', was released in 2015, and received mixed reviews.

** Mekton Zeta itself was subjected to a lot of development hell. The first sourcebook for the edition was out over a year before the rulebook was released. The mecha in it were contructed with a hybrid of Mekton II and Zeta rules and contianed a number of substantial differenes to the construction rules from either. By the time that Zeta was released, the rules had been further revised, leaving the book effectively obsolete and unsupported.

* [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dubailand Dubailand]] as a whole.

** ...That is unil August 10, 2020 when [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pg6RVbqhfK4 this video was finally released]]

* ''Shot On Shitteo'', an [[StylisticSuck intentionally shlocky]] [[SlidingScaleOfComedyAndHorror comedy-horror]] anthology from Creator/BradJones was supposed to come out in 2014. [[ShapedLikeItself Shot on VHS tapes]], the stories featured a killer wheelchair, rapist squirrels and an [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking irate filmmaker]]. Production began in 2013 and was suppose to be very fast. Unfortunately, a snow storm hit Springfield during filming forcing the shoot to be postponed and Brad later got too occupied with ''WebVideo/TheReviewers'' to continue. The biggest blow to the film came when Jake Norvell was fired from ''WebVideo/TheCinemaSnob'' site and as he played a huge role in the first story, all of the shot footage had to be discarded. Brad was toying with editing the existing footage into [[RealTrailerFakeMovie fake trailers]] with a new story but thought against it feeling as that approach would greatly hurt the film. Legal issues concerning Jake also got in the way. In the end, he simply pulled the plug only hinting that the footage will be mysteriously leaked. Brad has stated that the revenue obtained from the [[http://www.thecinemasnob.com/shot-on-shitteo-vlogs v-logs]] covered all the costs on the aborted project.

* ''Paradigm Spiral'' is an {{animesque}} web-cartoon, with a manga-style comic on the side. It's ''RWBY''-inspired to the point where it's caused controversy for plagarism. ''Paradigm Spiral'' has been in development since 2015 with not much progress. Its first episode was still in-progress as of 2017, but the official Youtube channel has since removed all its videos.

* ''WebOriginal/SpecWorld'', an ambitious world-building project showing how evolution would have progressed differently if the dinosaurs hadn't gone extinct, has seemingly entered this. The only signs of activity related to it today are on its Yahoo newsgroup, and even these are not very frequent.

* WebAnimation/TheMaskedGirl had a year between release of the opening and release of the actual first episode.

* Creator/GaryGygax had always wanted to release a version of his iconic "Castle Greyhawk", the location that pretty much launched ''TabletopGame/DungeonsAndDragons'' while at TSR. Due to his busy schedule as the head of TSR, and his writing duties on a myriad of other modules, he never was able to complete or even start the module. (His being sent to Los Angeles to develop the ''D&D'' cartoon series didn't help either). In 1982, the module had been advertised in Dragon Magazine, but as of 1986, when Gygax left the company due to "CreativeDifferences", no module had been published. In '87, TSR did a wild and [[DudeNotFunny mostly unfunny]] parody version of the Castle that bore no resemblance to Gygax's design. It was seen by many gamers as little more than a parting shot against Gygax, and the module has been pretty solidly rejected by players and [[CanonDisContinuity pretty much disowned]] by TSR and Creator/WizardsOfTheCoast, leading to a second try at the module which was much more warmly received.
** Still, that wasn't Gygax's castle, one that wouldn't see print until 2008, when "[[LawyerFriendlyCameo Castle Zagyg]]" was published by Troll Lord Games. Sadly that one went straight back into development hell after Gary [[AuthorExistenceFailure died shortly after the first installment was released]] and the deal Troll Lord Games had with Gygax fell apart when his wife took control of the company. Nobody's sure what exactly happened, all people know is that in 2008, Gygax Games was going to find a way to publish the rest of the castle. It is now 2012, and as of this writing, the Gygax Games website has been ofline since at least 2009, still promising "something good in the works."