Zontar: The Thing From Venus (1966)

Directed by Larry Buchanan, Zontar: The Thing from Venus is a low-budget, made-for-TV science fiction film that has earned cult status for its campy charm and earnest absurdity. It’s a color remake of Roger Corman’s It Conquered the World (1956), produced for American International Pictures’ syndicated TV package and shot on 16mm film around White Rock Lake in Dallas, Texas.

Plot Summary
NASA scientist Dr. Keith Ritchie (Tony Huston) secretly communicates with an alien from Venus named Zontar, who promises to solve Earth’s problems. But when Zontar arrives via a laser satellite, it quickly becomes clear that the alien has sinister intentions. Zontar disables all technology and begins mind-controlling humans using creepy lobster-like “injecto-pods” that sprout from its wings. As chaos spreads, Ritchie’s colleague Dr. Curt Taylor (John Agar) must confront both the alien and his misguided friend to save humanity.

Cast Highlights

• John Agar as Dr. Curt Taylor
• Tony Huston as Dr. Keith Ritchie
• Susan Bjurman as Ann Taylor — her screen debut
• Patricia De Laney, Neil Fletcher, and Bill Thurman in supporting roles

Behind-the-Scenes Trivia

• Buchanan was hired to remake several AIP films in color for TV; Zontar is often considered his most famous work
• The alien costume featured a three-eyed, bat-winged, skeletal black creature, now iconic in B-movie circles
• Tony Huston was only 17 years old playing a character meant to be the peer of 46-year-old John Agar; makeup was used to age him artificially
• The film’s budget was around $22,000, and it aired in December 1967, despite being produced in 1966