Karen Gillan, Josh Hutcherson, and Clive Owen have been tapped to star in the exorcism thriller Blasphemous.
Blasphemous will mark Hellraiser (2022), She Rides Shotgun, and The Night House co-writer Luke Piotrowski’s feature directorial debut. He will direct from his own script, which was featured on the 2023 Black List.
In the upcoming horror, two clerics — a rookie priest (Hutcherson) and his devout mentor (Owen) — must transport a possessed young woman (Gillan) to a secure location for an exorcism. All hell breaks loose when she unexpectedly escapes, putting their lives on the line and their faith to the ultimate test.
Dwayne Johnson is producing the pic with Dany Garcia and Hiram Garcia for Seven Bucks Productions (the banner behind the Jumanji franchise), alongside Scott Strauss of Badlands (The Pope’s Exorcist), Basil Iwanyk and Erica Lee of Thunder Road, and Gillan and Jess Biddle of Red Riot Pictures. Michael Rothstein, Samuel Hall, and Warren Goz will executive produce on behalf of North.Five.Six, with Kimberly Bialek overseeing for Seven Bucks Productions.
“Blasphemous is one of the best scripts the collective producer group has ever read,” said Strauss. “It’s a one-of-a-kind genre ride that features sharp dialogue, compelling characters, and powerful ideas. We can’t wait to watch Clive, Karen, and Josh help Luke bring this unique vision to life.”
Production is set to begin in New York in August. Gillan is currently filming a third instalment in the Jumanji franchise, and will soon start shooting Amazon MGM’s Highlanderremake. Hutcherson was recently seen starring in Five Nights at Freddy’s 2, whilst Owen starred in last year’s The Cleaner opposite Daisy Ridley.
Chiwetel Ejiofor and Mike Flanagan will reunite on the set of The Exorcist, the Blumhouse-Atomic Monster and Morgan Creek Entertainment’s new take on the classic horror. The pair previously worked together on The Life of Chuck, an adaptation of a Stephen King story.
Ejiofor joins Scarlett Johansson, Jacobi Jupe, and Diane Lane on the call sheet. The actor will reportedly be playing an ex-con turned priest.
The film is the studios’ latest attempt to revive the franchise following the companies’ panned The Exorcist: Believer, released in 2023. Flanagan wrote the script and is both directing and producing the new feature. The filmmaker has previously made clear that his take on the iconic IP will be neither a remake nor a sequel, but set in the Exorcist “universe”.
The original film, based on the novel by William Peter Blatty and directed by William Friedkin, centred on the demonic possession of a young girl and the priests who tried to free her. The various follow-ups mostly featured stories focused on the grown-up girl, the priests’ backstories, or other demonic cases the detectives from the first film had investigated.
“The Exorcist is one of the reasons I became a filmmaker, and it is an honour to have the chance to try something fresh, bold and terrifying within its universe,” said Flanagan of his involvement when it was announced in May 2024.
Chiwetel Ejiofor is best known for 12 Years A Slave, Children of Men, The Martian, as well as roles in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and television shows like The Man Who Fell To Earth.
Universal Pictures will release The Exorcist theatrically and has set a March 12th, 2027, release date.
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre could be heading back to screens, this time as a TV series! After a months-long bidding situation, A24 has won the rights to this new take on the horror franchise, which first introduced Leatherface and his family’s bloody ways in 1974. The series also boasts Glen Powell among its executive producers and The Long Walk writer JT Mollner attached to direct. According to sources, Powell will not appear to star in the project, however.
Also executive producing the series are Roy Lee and Steven Schneider of Spooky Pictures, Stuart Manashil, Image Nation’s Ben Ross, Powell and Dan Cohen of Barnstorm, and Exurbia Films’ Kim Henkel, who co-wrote the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre film and produced several of the franchise’s other entries. Exurbia’s Ian Henkel and Pat Cassidy will produce.
The same producing team, along with Image Nation, is also in early development on a Texas Chainsaw Massacre feature, though Mollner isn’t involved with the film.
“I’ve said publicly that I’m not interested in remaking perfect films, and the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre is a perfect film,” Mollner said in a statement. “[Director and co-writer] Tobe Hooper and Kim Henkel created something bold, transgressive, and truly seminal that holds up even today as the gold standard for horror. When the opportunity for a long form exploration into this world arose, I saw it as a fresh way in, as well as a way to honor the existing folklore. I can’t imagine better partners for this approach than A24. This is truly an honor.”
“The Texas Chain Saw Massacre is one of my favorite films,” said Powell. “It defined a generation of horror films and over half a century after its release, it remains one of the definitive movies of my home state. I’m honored to have Barnstorm help bring in a new chapter for such an iconic title and franchise. With a marquee home in A24 and visionary filmmaker with JT Mollner, alongside our top shelf producing partners, I couldn’t have dreamed of a better team for such a dream property.”
ASMR horror film Spoiling You will have its world premiere at the Romford Horror Film Festival, taking place in Romford, London, UK, on Saturday, February 21st at 7.00 pm. Known for championing boundary-pushing independent horror and emerging voices, Romford Horror Film Festival continues to establish itself as one of the UK’s most vital genre events, celebrating bold, uncompromising cinema that refuses to play it safe.
The official poster has also been unveiled (see below). The film introduces a psychologically invasive descent into digital obsession and manufactured intimacy, marking the directorial debut of Megan Tremethick. Drawing inspiration from J-horror and extreme Asian cinema, including Takashi Miike’s Audition, the film taps into the unsettling comfort economy of parasocial relationships and the quiet terror of being truly alone.
Co-written by Megan Tremethick and Lawrie Brewster, and directed by Tremethick, Spoiling You stars Laurence R. Harvey, whose previous work has made him a familiar presence in contemporary genre cinema, alongside Stephen Kerr and Tremethick herself. Spoiling You is produced in collaboration with the British Horror Studio.
Spoiling You follows Drew, a socially isolated insomniac who finds solace in the carefully curated intimacy of Miss Mutter, a seductive ASMR-style online creator whose videos promise comfort, reassurance, and unconditional attention. When he wins a competition to meet her in person, Drew follows the call with blind devotion, his longing overriding instinct.
The film’s poster, designed by Megan Tremethick, features artwork by Ida Bagus Indra and typography by Jedalias Mendez, and offers a visual promise of the unsettling experience to come.
Léa Seydoux has joined Mikey Madison in The Masque of the Red Death, an A24 and Picturestart re-imagining of the 1842 Edgar Allan Poe short story from filmmaker Charlie Polinger.
The Hollywood Reporterwrites that Madison would play twin sisters in a story that sees a mad prince take in the noble class into his castle while a plague devastates the peasantry. The story follows a long-lost twin, hidden among the lower class, enter the castle and into a decadent world of orgies, opium, power schemes, revenge and decapitations.
Léa Seydoux will play a scheming lady-in-waiting who is plotting and conniving her way to the top. The French actress is best known for her appearances in huge blockbusters like Mission: Impossible: Ghost Protocol, the James Bond film Spectre, and Dune: Part Two. This year, the actress will be seen in Arthur Harari’s The Unknown, in Marie Kreutzer’s Gentle Monsters, and in the Zellner Bros.’ Alpha Gang.
And while A24 has been keeping quiet about the official plot, they have described The Masque of the Red Death as “wildly revisionist and darkly comedic”.
Polinger wrote the screenplay, which was featured on the 2023 Black List. He also made his feature directorial debut this year with The Plague, a psychological horror film about a socially awkward tween who endures the ruthless hierarchy at a water polo camp.
Birds of Prey and The Flash scribe Christina Hodson is officially the writer for The Brave and the Bold, the feature project centred on Batman and Robin (the Damian Wayne version).
One of the first films announced when DC Studios bosses James Gunn and Peter Safran revealed their Gods and Monsters slate, The Brave and the Bold is expected to introduce the Bat-family to the DCU. This adaptation of Grant Morrison’s comic book run centres mainly around Damian Wayne, a prolific assassin and Robin who turns out to be Bruce’s biological son.
Two years ago, Andy Muschietti was announced to direct Batman’s entry into Gunn and Safran’s DCU world. Whether that remains the case is unclear, given his series IT: Welcome to Derry‘s success last year means the filmmaker is in high demand at the moment.
There’s still no clear timeline on this project, but with Hodson officially aboard as writer, there’s hope that the project will go ahead soon, perhaps even with some Batman and Robin casting news in the near future!
Further to her DC titles, Christina Hodson is known for having written the very excellent Transformers prequel, Bumblebee. In 2025, Hodson was also announced as the writer for an Untitled Firefighter Movie by Ron Howard.
By the power of Grayskull, we have the first trailer for Amazon MGM Studios and Mattel Studios’ live-action Masters of the Universe film!
In the trailer, we meet Adam Glenn (otherwise known as Prince Adam, or He-Man, and played by Nicholas Galitzine), a HR representative unhappily working in his corporate American cubicle. He’s been stranded on his mother’s home planet of Earth since the age of ten, separated from his ancestor’s Power Sword of Grayskull. Thankfully for us sword and sorcery-loving audiences, though, he soon gets a lead on the whereabouts of the family heirloom and makes his way home to Eternia.
The trailer also grants us glimpses of He-Man’s He-friends, including Teela (Camila Mendes), Duncan/Man-At-Arms (Idris Elba), and the evil Skeletor (Jared Leto). Also starring are Alison Brie, James Purefoy, Morena Baccarin, Charlotte Riley, Jóhannes Haukur Jóhannesson, and Kristin Wiig as the voice of Roboto.
Travis Knight, the founder of stop-motion champions Laika, is helming the film based on the popular toy brand introduced in the 1980s. The screenplay was written by Chris Butler, following initial drafts by David Callaham and brothers Aaron and Adam Nee.
Watch the Masters of the Universe trailer below, ahead of its release on June 5th, 2026.
An impressive cast has been announced for feature film The Rebooted, which is set to go before the cameras in March. Heading the line-up is Andrew Lee Potts, which will delight his avid fanbase.
The Rebooted will be brought to you by Panchariya Brothers Productions and the feature debut of Sussex-raised filmmaker Matthew Rowney, from his own story. Filming will take place in Ticehurst, East Sussex, on the Downash Woods Estate, bringing a striking and atmospheric UK location to a genre traditionally dominated by large-scale studio productions.
The film is a comic book thriller with a major narrative twist, exploring the growing influence of artificial intelligence on society while directly engaging with the current conversation about the struggles and evolution of the comic book movie (CBM) genre. The movie aims to deconstruct modern hero mythology, blending grounded suspense with genre commentary.
The Rebooted cast also boasts a mix of familiar faces including Gerard Christopher (former Superboy actor), Stephanie Waring (Hollyoaks), and Amelia Flanagan (Emmerdale), and Martins Imhangbe, best known for his role in Netflix’s Bridgerton. The film also features major social media figures Liberty Poole (Love Island) and Dan Spragg, a prominent TikTok creator, reflecting the film’s contemporary themes and cultural reach.
We spoke exclusively with Andrew Lee Potts to discuss the film and his role. “I play Tom. He’s a family man, thrown into a situation he doesn’t quite understand and it’s a constant rollercoaster of him trying to grasp what is happening without losing focus of his family and staying alive.” The character allows the actor to give his fans what they expect from him while also showing a deeper side. “Once again, I play a bit of an accidental hero. There’s a bit of humour in there, but it’s pretty intense as well. For me, it’s a perfect balance because I love doing the lighter-hearted stuff, but as the film goes on, it gets much darker, and I get to flex my versatility in a sense, which is always a lovely thing for me to do.”
“There are definitely life or death situations, but the superhero side of it is a really interesting take,” he continues. “I’d say it’s very apt in a sense of social commentary on how AI is coming in and affecting everything.”
Always busy, Andrew is looking forward to filming, “It’s been a while since my last couple of films, it’ll be good to get my feet back on a film set as I’ve been doing TV last year. Last summer, I was in Montpellier for the whole summer, shooting a five-part drama for Channel Five”. In between films and TV, he’s also taken up a role teaching acting. “I’ve always done screen acting classes online for a lot of age ranges, which has been going really well since lockdown. I’ve really enjoyed that and then I got approached to teach a college campus. So I’m at the moment, I’m like teaching 16-year-olds screen acting. I didn’t realise how much I actually love teaching and how much I had to offer in that area, I guess from being on screen since I was seven years old, and it’s great to share my experience with them.”
Fans can meet Andrew at Megacon Live at London’s ExCel on Saturday and Sunday, January 24th and 25th.
Writer-director Matthew Rowney commented, “This story is deeply personal to me – not just as a filmmaker making my first feature, but as someone who grew up loving comic books while watching the world rapidly change around technology”.
With production commencing in March, The Rebooted is set to be an ambitious new entry into the UK indie genre scene, blending modern themes, iconic talent, and fresh creative voices. You will certainly hear more about it from STARBURST. Watch this space!
Glen Powell is in final negotiations to collaborate with Mr. Robot creator Sam Esmail on Tesseract, a science fiction film that has landed at Amazon MGM and United Artists.
Powell is looking to star in the project and to produce with Dan Cohen, his partner at their Barnstorm production banner. Esmail is also producing Tesseract via his label, Esmail Corp, alongside Chad Hamilton. United Artists’ Scott Stuber and Nick Nesbitt round out the producing team.
The plot is being kept tightly under wraps, but we do know the movie calls for two further lead roles, both of whom are women. Should the project be greenlit, current plans aim to begin filming this summer.
Powell was recently seen in Edgar Wright’sThe Running Man and will be on screens again this month with How to Make A Killing. The in-demand actor is also shooting season 2 of Chad Powers, his sports comedy Hulu series.
Esmail is best known for the cyberthriller series Mr. Robot, which starred Rami Malek and ran from 2015 to 2019. He co-wrote and directed Leave the World Behindfor Netflix, and is currently in post-production on Panic Carefully, a Warner Bros. thriller starring Julia Roberts, Elizabeth Olsen, and Eddie Redmayne.
The Bride! has released its first trailer, teasing the upcoming Gothic crime-romance that stars Jessie Buckley in the titular role. Maggie Gyllenhaal writes, co-produces, and directs the feature that draws inspiration from the 1935 film Bride of Frankenstein by James Whale, itself inspired by Mary Shelley’s 1818 novel Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus.
Starring opposite Buckley are Christian Bale, Peter Sarsgaard, Annette Bening, Jake Gyllenhaal, and Penélope Cruz.
Per the film’s synopsis, a lonely Frankenstein (Bale as the monster, here given his creator’s name) asks Dr. Euphronius (Bening) to create a companion for him. The two revive a murdered young woman, and The Bride (Buckley) is born. What ensues is beyond what either of them imagined: Murder! Possession! A wild and radical cultural movement! And outlaw lovers in a wild and combustible romance!
The trailer teases a Bonnie & Clyde-esque crime spree by the lovers, complete with an impressive Florence and the Machine needle drop. Watch it below.
Meanwhile, Buckley is busy raking in awards for her starring turn in Chloé Zhao’s Hamnet, with eyes on an Oscar nomination this coming season. Needless to say we will be sat for this one as well.
