 Director Harry Thomason, Pierce's childhood friend and neighbor, praised him for finding success independently at a time when the film industry was so controlled by major studios.Daniel Myrick, co-director of the documentary-style "The Blair Witch Project" (1999), said he was strongly influenced by "The Legend of Boggy Creek", which was one of his favorite films growing up.Myrick said he and fellow "Blair Witch" director Eduardo Sánchez wanted to "tap into the primal fear generated by the fact-or-fiction format like "Legend of Boggy Creek"".