DRAGON’S LAIR Adaptation Taps James Bobin To Direct

dragon's lair arcade game adaptation at netflix taps james bobin to direct

James Bobin, director of Disney’s The Muppets and Muppets Most Wanted, is in talks to adapt the iconic arcade game Dragon’s Lair for Netflix.

Ryan Reynolds is attached to star and produce the feature, which was first set up back in 2020. Also producing are Roy Lee via Vertigo Entertainment, and Trevor Engelson of Underground. Don Bluth, Gary Goldman and Jon Pomeroy are also producing.

Dragon’s Lair premiered in 1983 and soon became one of the most popular games in America, with views to revolutionise the arcade industry with its movie-style animation, courtesy of ex-Disney animator Bluth (now producing). Unfortunately, the technology and animated style it employed remained of its time, though it remains fondly remembered. The game centred on a knight, Dirk the Daring, as he strives to rescue Princess Daphne from the clutches of a dragon named Singe and the evil wizard, Mordroc.

Previously, Dragon’s Lair has spawned a short-lived, animated series back in 1984, with a comic book series eventually following in 2003. On the film front, the last few decades have seen numerous attempts to get a movie adaptation off the ground, though Netflix’s feature is the closest things have come to being realised.

Bobin is also known for directing 2019’s Dora and the Lost City of Gold, as well as episodes of the Disney series Percy Jackson and the Olympians.

DEATH STRANDING Feature Adaptation Finds Writer

norman reedus in death stranding

Prisoners and Raised by Wolves’ Aaron Guzikowski has signed on to write the screenplay for an adult animated feature based on Hideo Kojima’s action-adventure video game Death Stranding.

The news was announced by Kojima Productions and Line Mileage. The partners say that the film, which is in development, will be of a similar tone to the recently announced John Wick animated prequel and the sci-fi horror Predator: Killer of Killers.

The unnamed film will feature an original story unfolding in the universe of Death Stranding, set in the wake of a series of cataclysmic explosions around the world that result in the dead and living becoming intimately connected.

“I love the world of Death Stranding, it’s so creatively freeing, so beautifully dark and yet hopeful; I’m so excited and honored that Hideo Kojima, whose work I’ve long admired, has invited me to dwell within his creation, to birth new stories into this fertile, mind-bending universe,” said Guzikowski. “Drawing and animation have always been near and dear to my heart, so to finally get to play in this space is a dream come true.”

Directed by Kojima and featuring performances by Norman Reedus, Mads Mikkelsen, Léa Seydoux, and Guillermo del Toro, Death Stranding earned much praise from critics and the public alike. A new version of the original game, Death Stranding 2: On the Beach, in which Elle Fanning was also cast, is due to release later this month.

AFRICAN KUNG FU NAZIS PART 2 UK premiere this weekend

Excellent news for those in the vicinity of the nation’s capital with a fondness for supremely silly nonsense: African Kung Fu Nazis Part 2 – the cleverly-titled sequel to one of STARBURST‘s favourite movies of 2021 – has its UK premiere at London’s Genesis cinema this coming Saturday, June 21st. We saw a not-quite-finished early cut of the film last summer, and while we’re waiting to see the fully complete version before giving a final verdict, Part 2 is just as ridiculous as its predecessor, if not more so. Fully aware of how daft it is, AKFN2 (even in its unfinished form) is one of the most joyous celebrations of stupidity we’ve seen for a long time (probably since AKFN1)! Here’s the official blurb:

Seriously? Hitler is back again? And this time he is trying to become the President of Ghana? But wait… why is he acting so strangely? Could it be? Is he really a… Robotto???

The answers to these questions are yes, yes and yes. And this time there are two heroes to stand in his way! Addo, the one-armed Kung Fu hero, is on a path of revenge for his slain brother Addae (hero of part 1). By his side is goofy foe turned friend Sek Tin, the rich son of a local Kung Fu Master and politician, Master Kwan.

After Hitler decapitates Kwan with his invincible Chi Guillotine Kung Fu style, Addo and Sek Tin join forces to stop Hitler from seizing the Presidency in Ghana and taking over the country. Together they embark on a quest to learn new Kung Fu styles, take out Hitler’s henchmen and finally face the master of evil, Adolf Robotler, at the Kumawood Reichsparteitag military parade. But they will encounter a ‘monstrous surprise’…

Writer/director/professional Adolf Hitler cosplayer, Sebastian Stein, will be in attendance, along with some as-yet unannounced cast members, to introduce the movie and take part in a post-show Q&A. The double-bill of Parts 1 and 2 kicks off at 5:30pm with drinks and a DJ, with movies screening from 6:30pm.

More info – and the all-important tickets – are available at the link below!

https://www.genesiscinema.co.uk/event/99088

THE SANDMAN Season 2 Releases Trailer

dream in the sandman season 2 trailer

The trailer for the second and final season of Netflix’s The Sandman has been released. Volume 1 of Season 2 will release on July 3rd with six episodes: “Season of Mists”, “The Ruler of Hell”, “More Devils Than Vast Hell Can Hold”, “Brief Lives”, “The Song of Orpheus”, and “Family Blood”.

Volume 2 will follow shortly after, releasing five episodes on July 25th: “Time and Night”, “Fuel for the Fire”, “The Kindly Ones”, “Long Live the King”, and “A Tale of Graceful Ends”. Then, a special bonus episode titled “Death: The High Cost of Living”, will drop on July 31st. The episode will follow the character of Death.

The dark fantasy series was cancelled after sexual assault allegations were brought against Neil Gaiman, who developed and exec produced the show, as well as having written the comic on which the series is based. However, The Sandman‘s producers have promised to bring Dream’s story arc to its conclusion with this second season.

Per Netflix’s official synopsis: “After a fateful reunion with his family, Dream of the Endless (Tom Sturridge) must face one impossible decision after another as he attempts to save himself, his kingdom, and the waking world from the epic fallout of his past misdeeds. To make amends, Dream must confront longtime friends and foes, gods, monsters, and mortals. But the path to forgiveness is full of unexpected twists and turns, and true absolution may cost Dream everything. Based on the beloved award-winning DC comic series, the second season of THE SANDMAN will tell Dream’s story arc in full to its thrilling conclusion.”

Tom Sturridge stars opposite Kirby Howell-Baptiste, Mason Alexander Park, Donna Preston, Esmé Creed-Miles, Adrian Lester, Barry Sloane, Patton Oswalt, Vivienne Acheampong, Gwendoline Christie, Jenna Coleman, Ferdinand Kingsley, Stephen Fry, Asim Chaudhry, Sanjeev Bhaskar, and Razane Jammal. Ruairi O’Connor, Freddie Fox, Clive Russell, Laurence O’Fuarain, Ann Skelly, Douglas Booth, Jack Gleeson, Indya Moore, and Steve Coogan have joined for season 2.

Showrunner Allan Heinberg writes alongside Ameni Rozsa, Alex Newman-Wise, Austin Guzman, Shadi Petosky, Jim Campolongo, Vanessa Benton, Jay Franklin, Greg Goetz, and Marina Marlens. Jamie Childs, who directed four episodes in Season 1, returns to helm all 12 new episodes.

Watch the trailer below:

CLAYFACE Movie Finds Its Lead In Tom Rhys Harries

tom rhys harries announced as dc's clayface

As you likely know by now, a Clayface movie is in the works at DC, written by horror trailblazer Mike Flanagan (The Haunting of Hill House, Midnight Mass, Doctor Sleep, and the upcoming Life of Chuck) and directed by James Watkins (The Woman in Black, Speak No Evil). It’s now been reported by Deadline that Welsh actor Tom Rhys Harries has landed the lead role.

The actor has appeared in shows like Jekyll and Hyde, Doctor Who, Suspicion, and Midsomer Murders, as well as film including Slaughterhouse Rulez, The Gentlemen, and The Return.

The Flanagan-written Clayface film is undergoing revisions, with writer Hossein Amini (best known for Drive) boarding the project to revise the script.

The Batman helmer Matt Reeves and Lynn Harris serve as producers for Clayface, with the movie centring on the DC character that originated as a Batman villain in 1940. With it being a DC project, James Gunna and Peter Safran are of course, also producing.

The project is a Hollywood horror tale centering on a B-movie actor who injects himself with a substance to keep himself relevant, only to find out that he can reshape his face and form, becoming a walking piece of clay. Filming is due to begin later this year.

The character of Clayface has been voiced by Alan Tudyk in the animated series Harley Quinn and Creature Commandos, and by Ron Perlman in Batman: The Animated Series and The New Batman Adventures. Other appearances for the character have included Brian McManamon’s portrayal on Gotham and Lorraine Burroughs’ gender-switched version on Pennyworth.

Clayface is due to release in cinemas on September 11th, 2026.

Han Solo’s Hunt For The Falcon In New STAR WARS Comic

Star Wars: Han Solo: Hunt for the Falcon

A new comic book miniseries set in the years building up to the Star Wars sequel trilogy will follow Han Solo as he travels the galaxy in search of his iconic starship.

In 2015’s The Force Awakens, Finn and Rey found the Millennium Falcon gathering dust in a junkyard in Jakku, and promptly nicked it, drawing them to the attention of Han and Chewbacca. Han Solo: Hunt for the Falcon, a five-issue miniseries, will tell the story leading up to that point from Han’s perspective. It’s from writer Rodney Barnes and artist Ramon Rosanas, who previously worked together on the Inquisitors miniseries.

Marvel’s official synopsis says: “In the time before The Force Awakens, where is the Millennium Falcon?! Less than satisfied with a settled life, Han Solo lands on the idea of reclaiming the Falcon and returning to a life of adventure. The problem is, he can’t find it.

“After enlisting a less than enthusiastic Chewbacca, the duo embarks upon a quest to reclaim the greatest ship in the galaxy. Standing in their way are a laundry list of rogues who have staked a claim to the Millennium Falcon as well, like the villainous scoundrel who stole the Falcon, Ducain.”

The series promises to include appearances from well-known characters like Princess – sorry, General – Leia and Lando Calrissian, as well as deeper continuity cuts such as Gannis Ducain, the Nikto criminal who’s previously appeared in Star Wars Adventures comics.

Star Wars: Han Solo: Hunt for the Falcon #1 will be on sale from September 3rd, with four variant covers – take a look at them all below.

VIOLENT NIGHT 2 Sees Tommy Wirkola Return To Direct

david harbour to return as santa claus in violent night 2

Tommy Wirkola is returning to helm the sleigh for Violent Night 2, the sequel to his 2022 killer-Santa action movie starring David Harbour.

In the first film, Harbour begins his story as a bitter, drunk, stab-happy Santa Claus ready to turn his back on Christmas for good, until a little girl convinces him otherwise. Whether Violent Night 2 will pick up where we left off, or whether something will have happened to make Santa murderous again, is anyone’s guess.

Kelly McCormick and David Leitch of 87North are back as producers, as are screenwriters Pat Casey and Josh Miller.

In 2022, the filmmaker said in an interview that he and the writers were already speaking about a sequel that could incorporate ideas they couldn’t fit into the first movie. “We don’t see the North Pole, we don’t see Mrs. Claus and we don’t see the elves,” Wirkola said. “There were also a few ideas that we loved in the script, but we had to cut them because we couldn’t afford to shoot them.” Screenwriter Miller also expressed that the sequel would have “western influence” and that Miracle on 34th Street would be an inspiration for the film.

Universal Pictures has dated the sequel to release on December 4th, 2026. Production is due to begin in September of this year.

Lewis Pullman In Talks To Star In SPACEBALLS Sequel

lewis pullman and dad bill pullman reunite in spaceballs sequel

Hollywood’s latest man of the moment, Lewis Pullman, is in talks to star opposite dad Bill Pullman in the upcoming Spaceballs sequel.

Having recently appeared in blockbuster features like Top Gun: Maverick and Marvel’s Thunderbolts*, he would reunite with Pullman Sr. for the first time since the former made his acting debut in The Ballad of Lefty Brown.

Bill Pullman starred as the Han Solo-like character Lone Starr in the 1987 film. Sources told The Hollywood Reporter that Lewis Pullman would play a character named Starburst, the son of Queen Vespa (Daphne Zuniga) and Lone Starr. As reported earlier this week, original writer-director-star Mel Brooks is also returning to his role as Yogurt.

Josh Greenbaum is helming the sequel from a script by Benji Samit, Dan Hernandez and Josh Gad, the latter of whom is also said to star.

Plot details for the sequel have not yet been revealed. Originally released in 1987, Spaceballs starred Bill Pullman, John Candy, Rick Moranis and Daphne Zuniga, as well as Joan Rivers in a voice role as C-3PO in a wig. In Spaceballs, “heroic mercenary Lone Starr (Pullman) and his alien sidekick Barf (Candy) rescue Princess Vespa (Zuniga) of Druidia and her droid, Dot Matrix (Rivers), from being captured by the Spaceballs, led by President Skroob (Brooks), who wants to use Vespa as ransom to obtain Druidia’s air for their own planet. However, the heroes get stranded on a desert moon, where they encounter the wise Yogurt (also Brooks), who teaches Starr about the metaphysical power known as “the Schwartz”. Meanwhile, Spaceball commanders Dark Helmet (Moranis) and Colonel Sandurz (Wyner) lead the search for them but are hindered by their own incompetence.”

Though primarily a parody of George Lucas’ franchise, Spaceballs also takes jabs at other popular films and franchises like Star Trek, Alien, The Wizard of Oz, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Planet of the Apes, and even Transformers.

Josh Gad previously teased his work on the project in a cryptic Instagram post, in which all relevant details were blacked out. “Just handed in a film script that I think may be the funniest and best thing I’ve ever worked on and I am so freaking excited,” Gad captioned.

SUPERMAN Does Important Stuff In Final Trailer

david corenswet in superman final trailer

Superman is doing “important stuff” in the final trailer for writer-director James Gunn‘s DC film. Previously titled Superman: Legacy, the Warner Bros. feature stars David Corenswet as Clark Kent, Rachel Brosnahan as Lois Lane, and Nicholas Hoult as Lex Luthor.

The new film focuses on the titular superhero, who made his way to Earth from the planet Krypton and grapples with his powers while blending in as Daily Planet journalist Clark Kent. The story follows his journey trying to reconcile his alien heritage with his human upbringing.

“It focuses on Superman balancing his Kryptonian heritage with his human upbringing. He is the embodiment of truth, justice and the American way. He is kindness in a world that thinks that kindness is old-fashioned,” Peter Safran stated previously.

The film co-stars Skyler Gisondo as Jimmy Olsen, Sara Sampaio as Eve Teschmacher, Edi Gathegi as Mister Terrific, Terence Rosemore as Otis, Anthony Carrigan as Metamorpho, Isabela Merced as Hawkgirl, Nathan Fillion looking goofy in a blonde wig as Guy Gardner, and María Gabriela de Faría as The Engineer. And of course, there’s Krypto the dog!

This is the first film in Gunn and Safran’s rebooted DC Universe.

Watch the final trailer for Superman below, ahead of its release in cinemas on July 11th:

Mel Brooks Will Return In SPACEBALLS 2

Mel Brooks as Yogurt in Spaceballs

Hollywood legend Mel Brooks, who is turning 99 in a few weeks, is officially confirmed to appear in the as-yet-untitled Spaceballs sequel.

Brooks will reprise the role of Yogurt in the follow-up to the 1987 comedy classic. Mel Brooks had directed and co-written the original film, and played dual roles (the other was President Skrood).

Josh Greenbaum is helming the sequel from a script by Benji Samit, Dan Hernandez and Josh Gad, the latter of whom is also rumoured to star.

Plot details for the sequel have not yet been revealed. Originally released in 1987, Spaceballs starred Bill Pullman, John Candy, Rick Moranis and Daphne Zuniga, as well as Joan Rivers in a voice role as C-3PO in a wig. In Spaceballs, “heroic mercenary Lone Starr (Pullman) and his alien sidekick Barf (Candy) rescue Princess Vespa (Zuniga) of Druidia and her droid, Dot Matrix (Rivers), from being captured by the Spaceballs, led by President Skroob (Brooks), who wants to use Vespa as ransom to obtain Druidia’s air for their own planet. However, the heroes get stranded on a desert moon, where they encounter the wise Yogurt (also Brooks), who teaches Starr about the metaphysical power known as “the Schwartz”. Meanwhile, Spaceball commanders Dark Helmet (Moranis) and Colonel Sandurz (Wyner) lead the search for them but are hindered by their own incompetence.”

Though primarily a parody of George Lucas’ franchise, Spaceballs also takes jabs at other popular films and franchises like Star Trek, Alien, The Wizard of Oz, 2001: A Space Odyssey, Planet of the Apes, and even Transformers.

Josh Gad previously teased his work on the project in a cryptic Instagram post, in which all relevant details were blacked out. “Just handed in a film script that I think may be the funniest and best thing I’ve ever worked on and I am so freaking excited,” Gad captioned.