[2] After directing and producing three independent feature films, Lewis had his breakthrough with Malibu Spring Break (2003).
[3] It was the first and only release for Crown International Pictures after fourteen years of dormancy, for a production company that had previously been a major force in the B-movie and low-budget film world.
[4][5] Despite starring Playboy Playmate Pilar Lastra, the film received negative reviews upon its 2008 release.
[10][11] It had the highest budget of any Lewis film, at approximately five million dollars,[12] and starred Nicolas Cage as a quiet drifter who is tricked into cleaning up an abandoned family entertainment center inhabited by eight murderous animatronic characters who are possessed with the souls of a cannibalistic killer and his seven psychotic colleagues.
It received mixed reviews from critics,[13] but quickly achieved cult film status and drew buzz for a potential sequel.