Hands break the rear window and pull Mike and Liz through it, mirroring the ending of the first film. John Kenneth Muir states that, like many horror films of the 1980s, "Phantasm II" shifted its focus to guns. Sequels in the 1980s were required to be bigger, gorier, and have more firepower than previous installments. The theme of "bigger is better" means that everything is upgraded: a quadruple shotgun, golden spheres with increased weaponry, a chainsaw duel, and the nature of the Tall Man's death. Muir states that the narrative of a boy dealing with the loss of his family is unchanged, but it is approached differently: instead of the surrealism of "Phantasm", it is approached in a conventional, less abstract manner. Writer-director Don Coscarelli says that he had been under pressure to film a sequel but could not come up with a story. Coscarelli considered the first film's ending to be conclusive, and did not feel knowledgeable about writing sequels, but he had what he described as a breakthrough when he realized he could start the film immediately after the previous film's final scene. He also added a road movie element in how Reggie and Mike combat the Tall Man, after which he described the process as straightforward. Universal Studios, who took an interest in the film because they wanted a horror series, allocated three million dollars; this was the lowest budget of any of their films in the 1980s, but it was the highest budget of any "Phantasm" film. Greg Nicotero and Robert Kurtzman, later of K.N.B. EFX, were recruited for special effects. The studio exerted much control over the film, and they did not allow Coscarelli to include any dream sequences or ambiguity. This is the only installment in the "Phantasm" series that does not include the entire original main cast (Bill Thornbury and his character did not appear in this film), and the only one to re-cast a main character with another actor. Universal forced Coscarelli to recast the character of Mike, as they wanted a working actor. In an interview, Bannister said that LeGros' casting was initially controversial among hardcore fans but has become more accepted. "Phantasm II" was released theatrically on July 8, 1988, and played on 1227 screens. It was later characterized by Pat H. Broeske of the "Los Angeles Times" as a box office bomb. The film was later released by Universal Home Entertainment on VHS.