car driven by Danny Mason Keener, a survivor about her own age. After apologizing, he invites her to go for a ride. As they drive off, the car is shown sporting the initials "DMK" on the vanity plate. Cast Catherine Mary Stewart as Regina "Reggie" Belmont Kelli Maroney as Samantha "Sam" Belmont Robert Beltran as Hector Gomez Sharon Farrell as Doris, Reggie and Sam's stepmother Mary Woronov as Audrey White Geoffrey Lewis as Dr. Carter, the leader of the think tank Peter Fox as Dr. Wilson, one of the researchers John Achorn as Oscar Michael Bowen as Larry Dupree Devon Ericson as Minder Lissa Layng as Davenport Janice Kawaye as Sarah, the young rescued girl Chance Boyer as Brian, the young rescued boy Ivan E. Roth as Willy Dick Rude and Chris Pedersen as Stockboys Marc Poppel as Danny Mason Keener / DMK Production When writing the script, director Thom Eberhardt wanted to merge the idea of strong female protagonists with his love of post-apocalyptic films set in empty cities. For the women, he was inspired by Ginger Rogers. Further inspiration came from real-life teenage girls whom he met while filming PBS specials. Without telling the girls details about the script's premise, he asked them to describe how they would react to an apocalyptic event. The girls saw the scenario as an exciting adventure and only saw a downside to the experience when Eberhardt brought up the subject of dating. Using their answers, Eberhardt wrote the script to be lighthearted and adventuresome. Eberhardt initially had trouble convincing the studio to let him direct it, but they relented when he held out, as Atlantic Releasing Corporation was looking to immediately invest $700,000. Atlantic also wanted to capitalize on the success of their 1983 hit Valley Girl and the popularity of quirky drive-in films like Repo Man. The producers, Andrew Lane and Wayne Crawford, clashed with Eberhardt during filming; Eberhardt would later say that they did not understand the film and resented being assigned to such a low-budget B movie. Early in the production, they attempted to have him replaced. Regardless, Eberhardt praised their producing skill and said the film could not have been made without their help. Heather Langenkamp auditioned for the role of Samantha "Sam" Belmont and was the number one choice on the casting list but the part ultimately went to Kelli Maroney. Release Atlantic released Night of the