Top Comedians Play Dungeons and Dragons

Questing Time DnD comic Relief

Top UK Comedians Nish Kumar, Sue Perkins, Ed Gamble, Sara Pascoe and Paul Foxcroft are to take part in a Dungeons & Dragons live stream in order to raise funds for those affected by Covid-19.

Dungeons and Dragons producers Wizards of the Coast have teamed up with Comic Relief to bring you the event. All money raised will go towards charities in the UK and around the world that urgently need support to respond to the devastating impacts of the coronavirus pandemic.

The event will happen on the 8th of May from 7 pm via interactive platform Tiltify and will last for approximately 2-3 hours. For a minimum donation of £1, the public will also be able to have a say in the various gaming decisions, throwing all sorts of fun challenges into the mix.

The session will be hosted by professional Dungeon Master and top-flight improv comedian, Paul Foxcroft. He is best known for Questing Time, a cult comedy show that hosts some of the cream of the UK’s indie comedy circuit regularly at The Phoenix, London. The show has recently moved to Twitch following The Phoenix’s temporary closure.

Nish Kumar said: “I’m excited to support Comic Relief and the incredible work they do by taking part in this very special event in aid of Covid-19.”

Sue Perkins said: “I’m lucky to have travelled all over the world, but this might just be my biggest quest yet. I’m not quite sure what to expect, but I’ve heard that Paul Foxcroft is one of the finest Dungeon Masters in all the land – and I do so love a good Dungeon Master. Covid-19 is impacting each and every one of us. I’m incredibly happy to get this chance to support those most vulnerable in our communities.”

Dan Barrett, Senior Brand Manager at Dungeons & Dragons stated: “We believe the social connection and fun of watching and playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons can be helpful to those of us feeling isolated in this time of social distancing. So, please stay safe at home, and together with Comic Relief, we’ll bring the adventure to you. All we ask is that you donate if you’re able to help support those most vulnerable amongst us in the fight against Covid-19.”

New Animated TRANSFORMERS Movie in the Works

Megatron Optimus Prime

For those of us of a certain vintage, 1986’s Transformers: The Movie is the greatest animated film ever. And now, well know there’s a new animated feature on the way for the famed Robots in Disguise.

Via Deadline, Paramount Pictures has brought in Toy Story 4’s Josh Cooley to direct this to-be-titled offering. A draft screenplay is reportedly already in place from Ant-Man and the Wasp duo Andrew Barrer and Gabriel Ferrari.

The early word on this new Transformers movie is that it will serve as a prequel of sorts, exploring the war on Cybertron between the Autobots and the Decepticreeps. This animated effort will also dig deeper on the relationship between Optimus Prime and Megatron.

To clarify, this animated Transformers film will have no direct effect on the two live-action Transformers films that are in the works. The reason for this animated offering powering forward right now is simply because it can – with so much of the work for this movie being able to be done or at least started while respecting lockdown and social distancing measures.

Satirical Sci-Fi Thriller DUAL Adds Three Heavy Hitters

Karen Gillan

With The Art of Self Defense’s Riley Stearns set to helm satirical sci-fi thriller Dual, the film has begun to amass a strong core cast.

Courtesy of The Wrap, Dual has now brought Karen Gillan, Jesse Eisenberg, and Aaron Paul in to join Beulah Koale and Martha Kelly.

The early word on Dual reads:

Dual will follow a woman who received a terminal diagnosis and then opts for a cloning procedure for her friends and family to cope. However, she makes a miraculous recovery, but her clone has already been commissioned into the world.

At present, the plan is to start production on Dual this summer, although those plans can obviously change given the current uncertainty across the globe.

New GOOSEBUMPS TV Series in Development

Goosebumps

In some great news for Goosebumps fans, a new TV series is on the way for the property.

Via Deadline, Scholastic Entertainment is teaming with Sony Pictures TV and Neal Moritz’s Original Film banner to develop the small-screen return of his genre favourite offering. Moritz was the producer behind the two recent Goosebumps movies.

Details on this Goosebumps show are minimal right now, although we know that the series will be a live-action one and Moritz promises “a high-end television series that speaks to both adults and kids alike.”

Of course, this won’t be the first time that the tales of R.L. Stine will be being adapted for TV – with the beloved Goosebumps series of yesteryear running for five seasons back in the ‘90s.

As ever, expect more on this new Goosebumps show as it continues to develop.

Doctor Who: More Power, More Daleks…

Doctor Who Power of the Daleks

The BBC have announced an upcoming DVD/Blu-ray re-release for the first in their new range of ‘animated’ versions of 1960s Doctor Who stories currently missing from the Archive.

Patrick Troughton’s 1966 six-part debut serial Power of the Daleks fully-animated and already released digitally and on DVD/Blu-ray in 2016, will be re-released in July in a brand new edition which will include a number of enticing new special supporting features.

The six animated episodes replace the 2016 physical and digital release, with new and improved animation and authentic black and white visuals. The latest release also showcases a vast array of exciting new special features, in addition to all of the VAM on the 2016 release.

New additional material includes:

  • Two new documentaries about Power of the Daleks
  • 1993 BBC audio version of The Power of the Daleks narrated by Tom Baker
  • Raw incidental music
  • Photogrammetry Featurette
  • Whicker’s World – I Don’t Like My Monsters to Have Oedipus Complexes
  • Daleks – The Early Years: A 1992 documentary presented by Peter Davison
  • Robin Hood – 1953 Episode: Patrick Troughton’s earliest surviving TV appearance
  • BBC archive footage from BBC regional news, BBC Breakfast, Blue Peter and Newsnight
  • Previously unreleased animation trailers and animatics
  • Easter Eggs

And old favourites including:

  • Audio commentaries by Anneke Willson each episode
  • Animation test footage
  • Photo Gallery, including previously unreleased and rediscovered full colour on-set photos from 1966.
  • Servants & Masters – The Making of The Power of the Daleks
  • Doctor Who – The Highlanders

Power of the Daleks: Special Edition will be released on DVD/BluRay on July 6th.

HBO Developing HELLRAISER TV Series

Hellraiser

After a quiet few days on the news front – what with the entertainment industry having largely closed down due to the global chaos that’s running rampant – there’s now word that a modern-day horror favourite is heading for the small screen.

Via Deadline, a Hellraiser TV show is in the works. And not just that, but HBO is developing the series!

Of course, HBO is renowned for producing jaw-dropping television, often with a chunky budget attached to it. Off the top of our head, HBO has housed modern-day greats like Game of Thrones, The Sopranos, The Wire, and the ongoing Westworld.

Already, this Hellraiser show has the 2018 Halloween’s David Gordon Green signed on to direct the pilot episode, and Trick r’ Treat’s Michael Dougherty is on writing duties alongside Daredevil’s Mark Verheiden. Green is also executive producing the series with longtime collaborators Jody Hill, Danny McBride, and Brandon James.

From what we’ve heard previously – with the Hellraiser TV rights changing hands earlier this year – this series will maintain the mythology seen in the original Hellraiser films, and will look to build on that established canon.

The news of this Hellraiser TV offering won’t have any ties to or knock-on effect on Spyglass’ previously announced new Hellraiser movie that director David Brucker and writer David S. Goyer are working on.

To date, there has been ten Hellraiser films, although only the first four were released theatrically; the last of those coming in 1996 with Hellraiser: Inferno. The most recent outing for Pinhead and his Cenobites came just last year in the form of the direct-to-video Hellraiser: Judgment. In addition to those features, the franchise has also included further books, comics, and even a video game.

As ever, expect more on all things Hellraiser as they continue to develop.

Genevieve O’Reilly Returning for CASSIAN ANDOR

Genevieve O'Reilly

With Disney+’s Cassian Andor series starting to flesh out its core cast, now comes word that another familiar face will be joining the action.

Via The Hollywood Reporter, Genevieve O’Reilly will be back in the Mon Mothma role she took on for Rogue One , vocally in Star Wars Rebels, and even briefly in Revenge of the Sith. O’Reilly joins Diego Luna’s titular Andor and Alan Tudyk’s K-2S0 in the series, with to-be-revealed roles for Stellan Skarsgard, Kyle Soller, and Denise Gough.

As ever, expect more from Cassian Andor as it continues to develop.

Several More Major Movies Pushed Back

Mission: Impossible

Another day, another – as has become commonplace in these uncertain times – set of movies have their release dates pushed back.

Starting with Paramount Pictures, the long-gestating Dungeons & Dragons has been shifted from November 19, 2021 to May 27, 2022. This is a project that has already had countless delays over the years, and so the COVID-19 is just the latest setback for the film. Elsewhere at Paramount, Mission: Impossible 7 has been moved from July 23, 2021 to November 19, 2021, and as such the already-confirmed Mission: Impossible 8 has gone from November 4, 2022 to August 5, 2022. Added to that, upcoming Chris Pratt sci-fi effort The Tomorrow War has likewise been confirmed for that July 23, 2012 date initially pegged for M:I 7.

Over at Marvel Studios, and Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness has again had its release date changed. Originally, the second solo outing for Benedict Cumberbatch’s Sorcerer Supreme was pegged for summer 2021 before more recently being set for November 5, 2021. Now though, Marvel Studios and Disney has set the Sam Raimi-helmed Doctor Strange sequel for March 25, 2022.

Sticking with Marvel properties, Sony Pictures has now moved the third in their Tom Holland-headlined Spider-Man films from July 15, 2021 to November 5, 2021. Similarly, Sony’s animated Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse sequel has gone from April 8, 2022 to October 7, 2022. Of course, this comes on the back of the news earlier in the week that Venom: Let Their Be Carnage was moved from this October to next June.

In slightly more positive notes, two films have actually seen their release dates brought forward. Those films are Sony’s Hotel Transylvania 4 (from December 22, 2021 to August 6, 2021) and Thor: Love and Thunder (from February 18, 2022 to February 11, 2022).

Right, after so many dates and numbers, we’re going for a quick lie-down in a dark room. And it goes without saying, there will likely be far more release date changes to come over the next few weeks and months.

Dare You Open the Dark Web: Mystery Box?

dark web

We’ve all seen the ‘unboxing’ videos on YouTube, well now we have a film produced during the lockdown featuring social media ‘influencers’ opening mystery boxes sent from the dark Internet.

Dark Web: Mystery Box is a film from Vestra Pictures and Mort House Films in which the actors have all shot their scenes in isolation during the lockdown. Tony Newton and Josh Schultz have put together the footage and will be releasing the movie on YouTube for one week only from April 25th at 3am.

From the press release:

A Dark Web mystery box normally contains terrifying items, eerie, creepy items like children’s toys, human hair, blood stained clothing, satanic symbols and in most cases will give clues to a murder which has been committed, most likely by the sender. This mystery box houses the most terrifying item of all, a VHS tape that will kill the viewer! VHS is having somewhat of a comeback, a resurgence with cult media collectors who collect video nasties, cult shot on video splatter films and big box ex-rentals, but a blank VHS tape is worthless it holds no value unless lying deep within the magnetic tape is a curse, or a myth, or a brain changing sequence of images, lights, and wording all strategically put together to create a creepypasta for the video logging generation.

An experiment in terror! Is this a cursed tape or is there something more sinister behind it, videos being collected on the dark web of people dying?! If your mind doesn’t kill you, they will, but don’t expect to uncover the mystery, just watch in horror as their lives come crashing down in front of the camera!

Make sure you head to YouTube to catch the film before it disappears! Don’t worry, though, it’ll be available on DVD soon after.

Filmmaker Releases Metafictional Movie Books

metafictional

Filmmaker Sean Hogan, best known for The Devil’s Business and Little Deaths, has written two books of metafictional movie criticism – England’s Screaming and Three Mothers, One Father.

From the press release:

England’s Screaming is both a fictional history of UK genre cinema and a state of the nation address, taking films from 1945’s Dead of Night to 2018’s Possum to create a blackly satirical portrait of the country we live in today. It has a foreword by Jonathan Rigby and the cover art is by renowned illustrator and designer Graham Humphreys.

Its semi-sequel, Three Mothers, One Father, widens the scope to look at several stand-out works of Eurohorror, and in the process weaves a narrative examining the parlous state of modern gender relations.

Both books are written in the vein of David Thomson’s seminal Suspects; tapestries of characters from notable genre films that extend and intertwine their fictional biographies beyond the boundaries of the movies that spawned them.

The author’s first publication in this style was his 2017 monograph on Death Line, the cult British horror film from 1972. In his introduction to that book, author and critic Kim Newman wrote: ‘Sometimes the best response to a painting or a poem or any work of art is another painting, poem or work of art.‘

These two new books take this notion even further, employing genre films spanning the last century as a lens through which to look at where we are now.

Sean Hogan is a writer and filmmaker living in Margate. His film credits include The Devil’s Business, The Borderlands, and Future Shock! The Story of 2000 AD. England’s Screaming is his first novel-length work of fiction, and he is currently at work on a non-film-related novel, as well as a new film, Other Places.

England’s Screaming is out now in hardback from PS Publishing, and Three Mothers, One Father is published on April 30th as a paperback and e-book from Black Shuck Books.