# The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas
*The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas* is a 2000 American live-action comedy that serves as a prequel to *The Flintstones* (1994), showing how [Fred Flintstone](https://www.edgepedia.org/fred-flintstone) and Wilma Slaghoople first met and fell in love before their marriage in the prehistoric town of Bedrock.[1](https://amblin.com/movie/the-flintstones-in-viva-rock-vegas/) • [2](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-flintstones-in-viva-rock-vegas-2000) Directed by Brian Levant and produced by Bruce Cohen, it was released by [Universal Pictures](https://www.edgepedia.org/universal-pictures) on April 28, 2000, with a PG rating for innuendo and brief language.[1](https://amblin.com/movie/the-flintstones-in-viva-rock-vegas/) • [3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/flintstones_in_viva_rock_vegas)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Release | April 28, 2000, wide theatrical release; PG rating; about 90 minutes[3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/flintstones_in_viva_rock_vegas) • [4](https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/the-flintstones-in-viva-rock-vegas-q29sbgvjdglvbjpwwc0zmjmznjm) |
| Director / producer | Brian Levant; Bruce Cohen, with William Hanna and Joseph Barbera[1](https://amblin.com/movie/the-flintstones-in-viva-rock-vegas/) |
| Lead cast | Mark Addy (Fred Flintstone), Stephen Baldwin (Barney Rubble), Kristen Johnston (Wilma Slaghoople), Jane Krakowski (Betty O'Shale)[1](https://amblin.com/movie/the-flintstones-in-viva-rock-vegas/) |
| Supporting cast | Joan Collins (Pearl Slaghoople), Thomas Gibson (Chip Rockefeller), Alan Cumming (The Great Gazoo), Harvey Korman (Colonel Slaghoople)[1](https://amblin.com/movie/the-flintstones-in-viva-rock-vegas/) |
| Box office | $59.5 million worldwide against an $83 million production budget[5](https://filmdb.co.uk/box-office/movie/the-flintstones-in-viva-rock-vegas-2000-box-office) |
| Critical reception | Metascore 27 (generally unfavorable) from 26 reviews; 25% on the Tomatometer from 71 reviews[6](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-flintstones-in-viva-rock-vegas/) • [3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/flintstones_in_viva_rock_vegas) |
| Production | Principal photography began April 1999; more than 200 visual effect shots, against roughly 66 on the 1994 film[7](https://www.vivarockvegas.com/about-the-movie/) |
## Spoilers
### Plot
The story steps back before the events of the 1994 film and the original animated series. Fred Flintstone and [Barney Rubble](https://www.edgepedia.org/barney-rubble) are confirmed bachelors in Bedrock, while Wilma Slaghoople, a wealthy heiress, and Betty O'Shale, a Bronto King waitress, are the single women they pursue.[8](https://www.universalpicturesathome.com/movies/the-flintstones-in-viva-rock-vegas) • [9](https://www.orlandoweekly.com/arts/fred-on-arrival-2312025-2312025/) After a disastrous first date, Fred falls in love with Wilma, and Barney and Betty become inseparable.[1](https://amblin.com/movie/the-flintstones-in-viva-rock-vegas/)
The four travel to Rock Vegas, the film's [Stone Age](https://www.edgepedia.org/stone-age) counterpart to Las Vegas, for a romantic weekend.[1](https://amblin.com/movie/the-flintstones-in-viva-rock-vegas/) They are accompanied by [The Great Gazoo](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-great-gazoo), a green alien from outer space played by [Alan Cumming](https://www.edgepedia.org/alan-cumming), who comes to earth to study the mating rituals of humans.[1](https://amblin.com/movie/the-flintstones-in-viva-rock-vegas/) • [10](https://www.awn.com/mag/issue5.06/AWNMag5.06.pdf) The antagonist is Chip Rockefeller (Thomas Gibson), a playboy and tycoon who schemes to remove Fred from the picture so he can claim Wilma and her family's fortune.[1](https://amblin.com/movie/the-flintstones-in-viva-rock-vegas/) Wilma's socialite mother Pearl (Joan Collins) meddles in the courtship throughout.[8](https://www.universalpicturesathome.com/movies/the-flintstones-in-viva-rock-vegas)
## From sequel to prequel
The 1994 *Flintstones* film had grossed just over $341 million worldwide on a $46 million budget, and Universal Pictures initially wanted two back-to-back sequels.[11](https://www.syfy.com/syfy-wire/the-flintstones-30th-anniversary-interview-with-director-brian-levant) The project changed course when [John Goodman](https://www.edgepedia.org/john-goodman) declined to reprise Fred. Director Brian Levant guessed that audiences shouting "Yabba-dabba-doo!" at him in airports contributed to the decision.[11](https://www.syfy.com/syfy-wire/the-flintstones-30th-anniversary-interview-with-director-brian-levant) With the original cast unavailable, the sequel was retooled into a prequel with an all-new ensemble.[11](https://www.syfy.com/syfy-wire/the-flintstones-30th-anniversary-interview-with-director-brian-levant)
Levant originally envisioned the film as a "full-blown musical," but the studio was not receptive; two or three musical numbers survived in the finished film.[11](https://www.syfy.com/syfy-wire/the-flintstones-30th-anniversary-interview-with-director-brian-levant) He later said an unmade third film in the series would probably have gone out West in the tradition of [Buster Keaton](https://www.edgepedia.org/buster-keaton), the [Marx Brothers](https://www.edgepedia.org/marx-brothers), and [The Three Stooges](https://www.edgepedia.org/the-three-stooges).[11](https://www.syfy.com/syfy-wire/the-flintstones-30th-anniversary-interview-with-director-brian-levant)
## Production
[Principal photography](https://www.edgepedia.org/principal-photography) began in April 1999. Because the film is set before the established Flintstone household, the design teams could build a prehistoric world from scratch; co-producer Bart Brown described researching "a period that technically never existed."[7](https://www.vivarockvegas.com/about-the-movie/) Levant re-teamed with collaborators from the first film, including Christopher Burian-Mohr, promoted from art director to production designer, editor Kent Beyda, composer David Newman, and [Jim Henson](https://www.edgepedia.org/jim-henson)'s Creature Shop, which again supplied the prehistoric puppetry.[1](https://amblin.com/movie/the-flintstones-in-viva-rock-vegas/) • [7](https://www.vivarockvegas.com/about-the-movie/) The visual effects workload grew from roughly 66 shots on *The Flintstones* to more than 200.[7](https://www.vivarockvegas.com/about-the-movie/)
The screenplay is credited to Deborah Kaplan and Harry Elfont and to Jim Cash and Jack Epps Jr., based on the [Hanna-Barbera](https://www.edgepedia.org/hanna-barbera) animated series created by [William Hanna](https://www.edgepedia.org/william-hanna) and [Joseph Barbera](https://www.edgepedia.org/joseph-barbera).[1](https://amblin.com/movie/the-flintstones-in-viva-rock-vegas/) Rosie O'Donnell, who played Betty in the 1994 film, returned in a voice role as a massage octopus at the Rock Vegas hotel.[4](https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/the-flintstones-in-viva-rock-vegas-q29sbgvjdglvbjpwwc0zmjmznjm) • [9](https://www.orlandoweekly.com/arts/fred-on-arrival-2312025-2312025/) In the soundtrack's highlight, Ann-Margret performs the song "Viva Rock Vegas," a nod to her cartoon role as "Ann-Margrock" and her 1964 film *Viva Las Vegas* with Elvis Presley.[12](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/movie-reviews/the-flintstones-in-viva-rock-vegas)
## Reception
The film underperformed commercially, grossing $59.5 million worldwide against its $83 million budget, including $35.2 million in the United States.[5](https://filmdb.co.uk/box-office/movie/the-flintstones-in-viva-rock-vegas-2000-box-office) • [3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/flintstones_in_viva_rock_vegas) Levant attributed the shortfall to the gap since the first film: "It was too many years later, I think, and the surprise element was gone."[11](https://www.syfy.com/syfy-wire/the-flintstones-30th-anniversary-interview-with-director-brian-levant)
Critics were largely negative. The Metascore of 27 reflects 3 positive, 7 mixed, and 16 negative reviews out of 26 counted.[6](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-flintstones-in-viva-rock-vegas/) Roger Ebert, the longtime Chicago Sun-Times critic and 1975 Pulitzer Prize winner, called the screenplay a march of labored puns and judged it inferior to the 1994 film, comparing Joan Collins taking over Elizabeth Taylor's glamorous role to the film's own relationship to its predecessor.[2](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-flintstones-in-viva-rock-vegas-2000) Some reviewers were warmer: the *New York Post* found it "actually more entertaining than its 1994 predecessor," and the *Los Angeles Times* wrote that it "feels more like a cartoon," which it considered a plus for the material.[13](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-flintstones-in-viva-rock-vegas/critic-reviews/) Rotten Tomatoes' critics consensus, unusually for the low score, calls it "a surprising improvement over The Flintstones" that appeals to adults and children alike.[3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/flintstones_in_viva_rock_vegas)
The film collected awards attention of the unflattering kind: one win and seven nominations at the Stinkers Bad Movie Awards and four Razzie Award nominations, plus one Young Artist Award nomination.[6](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-flintstones-in-viva-rock-vegas/)
## Legacy
No third Flintstones film followed. Levant said he and the production team never got far into planning a trilogy capper.[11](https://www.syfy.com/syfy-wire/the-flintstones-30th-anniversary-interview-with-director-brian-levant) The film remains available on digital, Blu-ray, and DVD from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment.[8](https://www.universalpicturesathome.com/movies/the-flintstones-in-viva-rock-vegas) Retrospective commentary often singles out the production design, costumes, and world-building of Bedrock and prehistoric Vegas as the films' strongest elements, even among viewers who find the story thin.[3](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/flintstones_in_viva_rock_vegas)
## References
1. [The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas (2000) – About the Movie, Amblin Entertainment](https://amblin.com/movie/the-flintstones-in-viva-rock-vegas/)
2. [The Flintstones In Viva Rock Vegas movie review, RogerEbert.com (April 28, 2000)](https://www.rogerebert.com/reviews/the-flintstones-in-viva-rock-vegas-2000)
3. [The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas, Rotten Tomatoes](https://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/flintstones_in_viva_rock_vegas)
4. [The Flintstones In Viva Rock Vegas, British Board of Film Classification](https://www.bbfc.co.uk/release/the-flintstones-in-viva-rock-vegas-q29sbgvjdglvbjpwwc0zmjmznjm)
5. [The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas (2000) Budget & Box Office, FilmDB](https://filmdb.co.uk/box-office/movie/the-flintstones-in-viva-rock-vegas-2000-box-office)
6. [The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas Reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-flintstones-in-viva-rock-vegas/)
7. [About The Movie, VivaRockVegas.com (official site, behind the scenes)](https://www.vivarockvegas.com/about-the-movie/)
8. [The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas, Universal Pictures At Home](https://www.universalpicturesathome.com/movies/the-flintstones-in-viva-rock-vegas)
9. [Fred on arrival, Orlando Weekly (April 28, 2000)](https://www.orlandoweekly.com/arts/fred-on-arrival-2312025-2312025/)
10. [AWN Magazine 5.06, Animation World Network](https://www.awn.com/mag/issue5.06/AWNMag5.06.pdf)
11. [The Flintstones 30th Anniversary Interview with Director Brian Levant, SYFY WIRE (May 22, 2024)](https://www.syfy.com/syfy-wire/the-flintstones-30th-anniversary-interview-with-director-brian-levant)
12. [The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas Parents' Guide, Common Sense Media](https://www.commonsensemedia.org/movie-reviews/the-flintstones-in-viva-rock-vegas)
13. [The Flintstones in Viva Rock Vegas Critic Reviews, Metacritic](https://www.metacritic.com/movie/the-flintstones-in-viva-rock-vegas/critic-reviews/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Screen and stage › Film and television › Films and standalone screen works › Individual films by title and year › Franchise and series entries as standalone works › Television-, game-, and toy-derived film entries › Television series adaptations*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 3, 2026; Oct 25, 2026; Nov 1, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
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