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FrightFest Halloween Line-Up Revealed

After a hugely successful return to the physical festival in August, the traditional Halloween edition of Arrow Video FrightFest is back – and it’s on two days this year!

Cineworld Leicester Square will host the event on Friday, October 29th and Saturday, October 30th. The full line-up is:

Friday, October 29th:

6pm – The Seed (UK premiere) director: Sam Walker

8.30pm – Barbarians (UK premiere) director: Charles Dorfman.

10.40pm – The Possessed (UK premiere) director: Chris Sun

Saturday, October 30th:

10.30am – Pennywise: The Story of IT (UK premiere) directors: John Campopiano & Chris Griffiths

1.10pm – Last Survivors (world premiere) director: Drew Mylrea

3.35pm – The Innocents (UK premiere) director: Eskil Vogt

6.30pm – Amulet (UK premiere) director: Romola Garai

9pm – Veneciafrenia (UK premiere) director: Alex de la Iglesia

11.20pm – Miracle Valley (international premiere) director: Greg Sestero

Alan Jones, FrightFest co-director, said, “It’s that time of year again, so shake off those summer cobwebs, throw on your Michael Myers mask and embrace the horror fantasy genre as Arrow Video FrightFest brings you its latest Samhain celebration, with nine brand-spanking-new features”.

Passes and tickets go on sale at noon on Saturday 2^nd October.

Prices: Full pass – £69, Friday day pass – £30, Saturday day pass £50, single tickets – £15

To book: http://www.frightfest.co.uk/tickets.html

(Online booking only and all the tickets are plus fees.)

WONKA Prequel Casts Rowan Atkinson, Sally Hawkins and Olivia Colman

Gene Wilder in Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory film

Remember that prequel no-one asked for? No, not that one. Or that one. Yeah, we’re talking about Wonka, a prequel to Charlie and The Chocolate Factory starring Timothée Chalamet.

Well, it began principal photography in London today, and with that came further casting announcements. Rowan Atkinson, Sally Hawkins, Olivia Colman, Keegan-Michael Key and Jim Carter have joined for Warner Bros.’ upcoming musical fantasy, directed by Paul King.

The studio describes Wonka as an exploration of the “vivid, mythical beginnings of the imaginative young inventor before he becomes the renowned scrumdiddlyumptious Mozart of chocolate.” The description still amounts to very little. What could the prequel be about? The relationship between Willy and his father, which was evoked as justification for the former’s empire in Tim Burton’s very shaky reboot? Or maybe Chalamet will ride that colonialist wave from Dune straight into Roald Dahl’s world, and give us a film about how Wonka came to “employ” the Oompa Loompas. Or might it be a Joker–type origin story to explain how the man developed his penchant for pedicide?

Actually, that last one could be pretty good… though we struggle to imagine it coming from the same creative duo who gifted us such heart-warming delights as Paddington and Paddington 2.

Wonka

THE BOOK OF BOBA FETT Gets Release Date

Boba Fett as seen in Star Wars: The Mandalorian

Exciting news for all Star Wars fans: Disney+ has just announced a premiere date for its latest spinoff series, The Book of Boba Fett. In what is bound to be a fun-filled Christmas period (Disney+ will also be releasing Marvel’s Hawkeye during that time), the Star Wars series will be streaming from December 29th.

Temuera Morrison and Ming-Na Wen will star as Boba Fett and Fennec Shand, respectively, with Robert Rodriguez, Dave Filoni and The Mandalorian creator Jon Favreau on board as executive producers. The planned series was first teased after the credits of The Mandalorian‘s second season finale, via a title card that read “The Book of Boba Fett… Coming December 2021”.

The Book of Boba Fett will follow events after the legendary bounty hunter Boba Fett and mercenary Fennec Shand decide to return to Tatooine to stake their claim on the territory once ruled by Jabba the Hutt and his crime syndicate. The first poster sees Boba Fett as fans last saw him: sat on what used to be Jabba’s throne.

Disney previously announced that there would be around ten Star Wars series coming to the streamer in coming years, having already confirmed that The Mandalorian spinoffs The Rangers of the New Republic and Ahsoka (centred on fan-favourite character Ahsoka Tano, previously portrayed by Rosario Dawson) are in the works, along with a limited series centred on Obi-Wan Kenobi, with Ewan McGregor reprising the role, and another on Rogue One‘s Andor. The Book of Boba Fett will be the second live-action Star Wars series to debut on Disney+.

The third season of The Mandalorian, meanwhile, is expected to debut sometime in 2022.

Star Wars The Book of Boba Fett

Hex Arcana is Reviving Retro Horror Paperbacks

Scottish film company Hex Studios formed its publishing arm Hex Arcana last year when it released The Book of Beastly Creatures, a collection of short stories. They have now announced what’s next for them, and it’ll see a return of the pulp horror paperback.

First up for Hex Arcana is a new edition of Sarban’s classic alt-history horror The Sound of His Horn. First published in 1952, the much-loved novel imagines a nightmare world where the Nazis won the war, and people are hunted for sport.

The retro edition is inspired by the cult horror paperbacks of the ‘70s and ‘80s, and features an original, hand-painted cover by legendary artist of the era, Lisa Falkenstern. Acclaimed horror critic and scholar Kim Newman provides an insightful new foreword to the volume.

According to Editorial Director Sarah Daly, “We’re honoured and excited to present a brand new edition of this genre gem as the first volume in our collectable paperback range. With Hex Arcana, we want to reignite the lurid spark of magic that made the pulp horror novels of the past so enticing to read and to own.”

Co-founder Lawrie Brewster added, “At Hex, we’re passionate about physical media, about creating tangible objects for horror fans to treasure. We want to help lead the movement for original, painted covers that evoke feeling when you see them on a shelf, or hold them in your hand.”

The Sound of His Horn is available to buy now exclusively on Kickstarter. The funds raised through sales of the book will help to fund the fledgling publisher.

New DOCTOR WHO UK Touring Exhibition Launches in May 2022

Doctor Who fans still mourning the closing of the lavish Doctor Who Experience – an interactive adventure and constantly-updating prop and costume display facility – in Cardiff Bay a couple of years ago can take solace in today’s announcement that they will soon be able to immerse themselves in the show’s visual world again as a new touring exhibition launches next May. Here’s the word from the BBC itself:

BBC Studios and Sarner International today announce a brand new exhibition, Doctor Who Worlds of Wonder: Where Science meets Fiction. The exhibit will explore the science behind the global hit series Doctor Who and will give fans a chance to experience the Doctor’s adventures from a scientific perspective.

Doctor Who Worlds of Wonder will be wowing audiences at several locations across the UK from May 2022, with an ambition to tour internationally.

This ground-breaking venture plunges fans of all ages into a scientific universe to explore the various ways in which science has played a part in the longest running science fiction show in the world, Doctor Who.

The eight zones set within this educational exhibition cover a diverse selection of exciting scientific topics while drawing in content pieces from the full canon of the TV show.

Visitors can journey through Cosmic Curiosities, while discovering more about the time traveling Police Box in the TARDIS Tech room, learning about the science behind time travel and whether it is really possible. Or visit the Monster Vault to get up close with some of the weird and wonderful characters that have graced our screens.

The user journey for this engaging experience will take approximately 90 minutes, inspiring schools, family groups and fans of the show. Tickets will be available for purchase to the general public, from October 2021.

Following their work on the hugely successful Doctor Who Experience in both London and Cardiff, Sarner worked closely with BBC Studios to design, create and produce this new experience, Doctor Who Worlds of Wonder, to WOW fans next year. Sarner, a renowned international experiential design and production practice are behind many world leading visitor attractions and will be sure to deliver a wonderous experience for ticket holders.

Paula Al-Lach, BBC Studios Events Director, Live Entertainment said that the team were “delighted to be working with Sarner again, following their creation of the Doctor Who Experience. It is really exciting to explore Doctor Who from this perspective and have the opportunity to take the exhibition to fans globally.”

Ed Cookson, Projects Director, Sarner International: “We couldn’t be more thrilled with the opportunity to work with BBC Studios again. For almost 60 years Doctor Who has been exploring mind-bending scientific developments, and has also influenced a generation of scientists, engineers, and artists. The iconic characters, monsters, stories, and settings of the television series provide a perfect guide through the wondrous worlds of space, time and life sciences.”

It’s Official! THE BOYS Are Going To College

The Boys Amazon television show by Eric Kripke gets spin-off

Around this time last year, The Boys showrunner Eric Kripke announced that a spin-off series was in the works that would follow some Supes-in-training at a Vought International-sponsored college. Well, the show is now officially greenlit by Amazon.

Jaz Sinclair, Lizze Broadway, Aimee Carrero, Shane Paul McGhie, Reina Hardesty and Maddie Phillips were announced to lead the cast, while Agent Carter, Reaper and Dollhouse producers Michele Fazekas and Tara Butters will head up the as-yet untitled spin-off. The pair are taking over following the exit of The Boys executive producer Craig Rosenberg, who reportedly departed the spin-off over creative differences.

Though plot details are unknown, The Boys spin-off show is described as a similarly irreverent, raunchy, R-rated series to its mothership, which will explore the lives of hormonal, competitive Supes as they put their physical, sexual and moral boundaries to the test and compete for the best contracts in the best cities.

“Much like Mork & Mindy spun-off from Happy Days — which is an insane and true fact—our spinoff will exist in the Vought Cinematic Universe, yet have a tone and style all its own. It’s our take on a college show, with an ensemble of fascinating, complicated, and sometimes deadly Young Supes,” says Kripke. “Michele and Tara are stone-cold geniuses, we’re thrilled to have them steer this ship, and grateful to Sony and Amazon for the opportunity. We love this show and can’t wait for you to see it. Also, Baywatch Nights spun-off from Baywatch, and it had vampires. Vampires!”.

We’re not quite sure what these comparisons mean for The Boys spin-off, but we are intrigued. Season 3 of The Boys, meanwhile, has recently finished production, though we are still awaiting a release date. While you wait, why not refresh your memory of season 2’s events by reading our review here?

The Boys The Boys spin-off

BABYLON 5 Reboot From Original Series Creator Coming To The CW

A potential “from-the-ground-up reboot” of the critically acclaimed 1990s space opera series Babylon 5 is in the works over at The CW. The original series creator J. Michael Straczynski is on board to pen the new show.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the reboot will centre on John Sheridan (played in the original by Bruce Boxleitner), an Earthforce officer with a mysterious and complicated background who is assigned to Babylon 5, a space station designed as neutral ground for galactic diplomacy and trade in the aftermath of several major inter-species wars. Set during a subsequent and uneasy peacetime, Sheridan’s arrival “triggers a destiny beyond anything he could have imagined, as an exploratory Earth company accidentally triggers a conflict with a civilisation a million years ahead of us, putting Sheridan and the rest of the B5 crew in the line of fire as the last, best hope for the survival of the human race”.

The original show debuted in 1993 with the test pilot film, Babylon 5: The Gathering. Perhaps best known as the first mainstream television series to introduce the concept of a pre-planned, five-year (or five-season) arc, and which paved the way for shows with similar narrative structures like Battlestar Galactica and Lost, Babylon 5 also spun out its own universe: following the original series, Straczynski continued to develop the sci-fi world with the 1999 spin-off series Crusade – which only ran for a single season – as well as several feature-length films and a series of novels, novelisations, short stories, and comics from DC.

As of yet, none of the original stars are said to be attached to the reboot, which will presumably be casting a whole new and younger cast. Rebooting a series that has been described by many as one of the best science-fiction shows of all time and was praised for its depth and complexity at a time when many contemporary shows avoided longer arcs and, by extension, long-term consequences, is no easy feat. The younger audience-skewing network may also seem like an odd choice to house such a project, but Straczynski’s attachment is perhaps cause for (cautious) optimism.

Since, Straczynski created, wrote, and served as showrunner for the Netflix series Sense8, a collaboration with the Wachowski sisters. He also wrote the script for the Angelina Jolie-starring drama Changeling, Underworld: Awakening, World War Z, and Thor.

Stay tuned for more news on the development of the Babylon 5 reboot.

Babylon 5 The CW

LAURA JEAN MCKAY WINS CLARKE AWARD

The Animals In That Country by Laura Jean McKay (Scribe UK is the 35th winner of the Arthur C. Clarke Award for science fiction book of the year.

Accepting the prize, Laura Jean McKay said: “Twenty years before Margaret Atwood won the first Arthur C Clarke award, she published a small but important collection of poetry called The Animals in That Country, a title I borrowed for my book. That this book could become one of the Clarke award winners alongside Atwood – as well as other writers I adore like Miéville and Whitehead – is a momentous honour. I wrote The Animals in That Country to look closely at the relationship between humans and other animals. In these strange times, I find that (more than ever) reading and writing connects us humans as well.”

Chair of Judges, Dr Andrew M. Butler, commented on the fact that all six shortlisted books this year were by debut authors:

“Our six shortlisted debut novelists have found ways to rework tools that sf has used for over two centuries. This should give us all hope for the future of our genre.”

And Award Director Tom Hunter added:

“For 35 years the Clarke Award has promoted not only the best of science fiction but also new ways of defining and exploring it. Laura’s win re-positions the boundaries of science fiction once again, and we’re delighted to welcome her to the genre.”

D&D EXPANSION SET ANNOUNCED FOR 2022

A new gift set for the world’s most popular roleplaying game, Dungeons and Dragons, will be avaialble in January 2022. Just a little bit too late for Christmas, but still a great way to start the year.

The box set will feature a Dungeon Masters Screen and new printings of Xanathar’s Guide to Everything and Tasha’s Cauldron of Everything. It will also feature Mordenkainen Presents: Monsters of the Multiverse, which collects and revises rules from multiple D&D books, namely Volo’s Guide to Monsters, The Tortle Package, and Mordenkainen’s Tome of Foes. This will make the set a perfect complement to the core rulebooks and will update rules that appeared earlier on the in the game’s development.

The D&D Rules Expansion Gift Set will be available on store shelves starting on January 25, 2022. As is now expected, it’ll come in two forms; one will feature standard covers and also with shiny alternative art covers. In both cases they’ll come in a slip-case for ease of storage and also because slipcases are pretty. The Monsters of the Multiverse book will also be available on it’s own later in the year. You can find out more via the Wizards of The Coast website

THE WITCHER Recap, Teaser, Renewal, and Spin-Offs Announced At Tudum

Henry Cavill as Geralt of Rivia in Netflix's The Witcher

Over the last stretch of Netflix’s promotional event “Tudum: A Netflix Global Fan Event” (named after the streamer’s opening sound), much was revealed about The Witcher series’ future, spin-offs, and what to expect from the upcoming season 2, due to release December 17th of this year.

As well as announcing that Henry Cavill’s Geralt of Rivia would return after a third season was greenlit, Netflix revealed more plans to develop the Witcherverse. Following this summer’s The Witcher: Nightmare of the Wolf, the streamer announced it was developing a second anime film based on the show, as well as a brand new, family-friendly spin-off series.

Two clips were also shared to whet fans’ appetites ahead of season 2, featuring a look at Kristofer Hivju’s rather hairy character and Freya Allan’s Ciri, who starred in the first season. Watch the first clip here:

And the second teaser here:

The second season will follow Geralt who, convinced that Yennefer (Anya Chalotra) was killed at the Battle of Sodden, seeks to keep Cirilla safe and hidden away at his childhood home of Kaer Morhen. While the Continent’s various races continue to battle for supremacy, Geralt is more concerned about the mysterious power the young girl possesses.

Netflix also shared a longer, behind-the-scenes look at its previously-announced prequel series, The Witcher: Blood Origin, headed up by Declan De Barra. The show’s stars appear at a table read, including Sophia Brown as Éile, Laurence O’Fuarain as Fjall, and Michelle Yeoh as Scían. The prequel is said to follow the creation of the very first Witcher prototype and trace the events leading up to the “Conjunction of the Spheres”, a major event in the franchise’s lore that resulted in the worlds of elves, men, and monsters all merging into one.

And most conveniently for those of us with memory issues, Netflix released a wonderfully helpful recap of the time-hopping first season, so that you can brush up on your trivia ahead of the December season 2 debut.