Netflix Adapting Millarworld’s REBORN

Reborn

We’ve already seen several Millarworld properties get movie adaptations over the past several years, and now comes word that Reborn is being developed as a feature over at Netflix.

Via Deadline, Netflix has already brought in The LEGO Batman Movie’s Chris McKay on directing duties, with Sandra Bullock also involved in the project. Bullock is currently on board as a producer but talks are believed to be ongoing for the Bird Box star to headline Reborn.

From the brilliant pairing of Mark Millar and Greg Capullo, Reborn is a comic book series centred on Bonnie Black. Having died in a Manhattan hospital, Bonnie is reborn in an afterlife that features her family, friends… and a whole load of nefarious creatures. With her father in tow, Bonnie sets out on a mission throughout this Good vs Evil world to try and track down her late husband.

On board to produce alongside Bullock are Vertigo Entertainment’s Roy Lee and Miri Yoon, while both Mark Millar and Greg Capullo are serving as executive producers.

For those keeping track, Netflix has been working with Mark Millar and Millarworld since acquiring the company in 2017. Since then, plans have been being put in place to develop adaptations of Millarworld properties such as Jupiter’s Legacy, American Jesus, Empress and Huck.

In terms of previous Millarworld offerings to get the movie treatment, audiences have been treated to Wanted back in 2008, then two Kick-Ass pictures and similarly a pair of Kingsman films.

As ever, expect more on Reborn and all things Millarworld as we get it.

CREEPSHOW Series Brings in Horror Novelist Christopher Buehlman

Creepshow

Hot on the heels of yesterday’s news that Matt Venne is writing an episode of Creepshow, now comes word on another new addition for this hotly anticipated series.

Via Production Weekly, horror novelist Christopher Buehlman has been brought in to write an episode titled The Man in the Suitcase.

The early blurb on said episode reads:

19-year-old Justin brings home the wrong suitcase from the airport, and inside the suitcase is a Man with a terrible problem.

What we know so far about Shudder’s new take on Creepshow is that the first episode will be based on Stephen King’s Survivor Type tale, with showrunner Greg Nicotero directing that first outing. After that, the aforementioned Venne is adapting 1995’s The Companion story, while Rob Schrab is helming the World War II-set Bad Wolf Down.

The current plan is for each episode of Creepshow to be overseen by a different director, with Nicotero and his team looking to capture the charm of George A. Romero’s iconic 1982 anthology movie that pulled so much from the legendary EC Comics of decades gone by.

As ever, expect more on Creepshow as we get it.

The CW Orders LOST BOYS Pilot

The Lost Boys

Say hello to the night…

Yes, as the headline suggests, The CW has moved to order a pilot for The Lost Boys.

Courtesy of Deadline, the network has now moved to order said pilot after having turned down just such a pilot back in 2016.

Despite turning down the Rob Thomas-penned pilot in 2016, The CW has remained keen on developing a Lost Boys series. Now, Scandal and Grey’s Anatomy’s Heather Mitchell has written a take that has ticked a whole lot of boxes for the network.

The brief, early blurb on the show reads:

Welcome to sunny seaside Santa Carla, home to a beautiful boardwalk, all the cotton candy you can eat… and a secret underworld of vampires.

After the sudden death of their father, two brothers move to Santa Carla with their mother, who hopes to start anew in the town where she grew up. But the brothers find themselves drawn deeper and deeper into the seductive world of Santa Clara’s eternally beautiful and youthful undead.

From director Joel Schumacher, The Lost Boys is a 1987 favourite of many a genre fan. Complete with a truly phenomenal soundtrack, the original movie starred Jason Patric, Corey Haim, Corey Feldman, Jamison Newlander, Dianne Wiest, Barnard Hughes, Edward Hermann, Jami Gertz, Alex Winter and, of course, Kiefer Sutherland. Oh, and a rather sax-tastic cameo from Tim Cappello.

After constant rumblings of a sequel, Lost Boys: The Tribe was finally released in 2008. A so-so effort, that picture was followed by the slightly better (but still not great) Lost Boys: The Thirst  in 2010. In The Tribe, fans got to see Corey Feldman return as Edgar Frog and a brief cameo by Corey Haim as Sam Emerson. Joining Feldman in The Thirst, fans saw Jamison Newlander back as the other Frog brother, Alan.

Since then, a Frog-driven movie has been talked about and a TV series has regularly been speculated about. As mentioned, those TV plans were seemingly shelved in 2016; only now resurfacing. Additionally, along the way we’ve had several Lost Boys-based comics and books.

Expect more on this new Lost Boys series as it continues to develop.

Michael Gandolfini to Play Tony Soprano in SOPRANOS Prequel

Michael Gandolfini

In terms of TV shows, they really don’t get much better than The Sopranos. And now, there’s a major update on the long-confirmed Sopranos prequel movie.

Courtesy of Deadline, it’s now been revealed that Michael Gandolfini will be playing the role of young Tony Soprano in the ‘60s-set The Many Saints of Newark. Of course, Michael’s father James Gandolfini famously played Tony in The Sopranos.

To date, 19-year-old Michael is likely best known for appearing in HBO’s The Deuce, with The Sopranos’ David Chase revealing that the actor landed the Tony Soprano role due to his “screen presence, mastery of Tony’s mannerisms” and the unique insight that he has on the character.

Largely focussed on Tony’s father, Johnny Soprano, The Many Saints of Newark will also star Alessandro Nivola, Vera Farmiga, Jon Bernthal, Billy Magnussen and Corey Stoll.

As ever, expect more on The Many Saints of Newark as it continues to develop.

Amazon Confirm Fourth Season of THE EXPANSE

The Expanse

Having been scrapped by Syfy last year, it appears that there’s still more life left in The Expanse.

Following Syfy’s decision to cancel the show, Amazon moved to nab the rights to house the series. But now the on-demand streaming service has gone one better and confirmed that a fourth season of the show is on the way.

As of now, Amazon are housing the first two seasons of the show, with last year’s third season due to arrive on the service next month. With talks having been ongoing since May, an agreement has been reached for a fourth season of the genre fave to premiere later this year.

Expect more on said Season 4 as it continues to develop.

Jon Bernthal Discusses the Possibility of THE PUNISHER Being Cancelled

Marvel's The Punisher

Right now, many genre fans are expecting to hear the news that Marvel’s The Punisher will ultimately end up cancelled. For star Jon Bernthal, he’s at peace with that prospect.

To give a little background on this, you’ll remember that first and foremost last year saw Marvel’s Iron Fist scrapped after two seasons. That cancellation wasn’t a particularly major shock, for that show had split opinion during its run. After that, however, it was a huge shock to hear that Marvel’s Luke Cage was similarly scrapped after two seasons. Then, after wowing many with its Born Again-driven third year, Marvel’s Daredevil was then cancelled as 2018 drew to a close.

From there, many feared that it was only a matter of time before Marvel’s The Punisher and Marvel’s Jessica Jones were on the chopping block. The third season of the Krysten Ritter-headlined Jessica Jones is to air later this year, and Season 2 of The Punisher has landed on Netflix just last week.

Just to clarify, there has been absolutely zero official on The Punisher being cancelled at this stage, but many are half-expecting that news to surface at some point over the next month or two.

Speaking to Variety about this prospect, Bernthal explained, “I know the reality of the situation and I’m at peace with it. I really only worry about the things I can control. When I’m playing the character and I’m doing the job and it’s right there in front of me, I do whatever I can to make it as good as I can. But in this business there’s so much we can’t control. Whatever is happening with these shows, these decisions are being made in rooms I’m not invited into and I’m okay with that.”

As these shows began to get axed, speculation ran rampant that these cancellations weren’t the end for this shared world of Marvel heroes. Some were suggesting that this could all be part of a plan to scrap these shows from Netflix in order to later bring these characters back on the impending Disney+ streaming service that’s due to launch later this year. Similarly, some have suggested that maybe – just maybe – Daredevil, Jessica Jones, Luke Cage, Iron Fist and Frank Castle could well turn up as part of the big-screen Marvel Cinematic Universe which currently serves as a loose background to their adventures.

Either way, expect more on the future of The Punisher and the rest of these shows if and when we hear more.

CREEPSHOW TV Series Brings in Matt Verne

Creepshow

As Greg Nicotero continues to develop a Creepshow series for Shudder, now comes some more new details on the show.

Courtesy of Production Weekly, Matt Verne has been brought in to write an episode titled The Companion. Verne himself is best known for his work on the likes of Bag of Bones and Acts of Vengeance, while The Companion is to be based on a 1995 short story from Joe R. Lansdale, Kasey Jo Lansdale and Keith Lansdale.

The blurb on this tale reads:

13-year-old Harold decides to explore the long-abandoned farm of the late Raymond Brenner, and finds that he’s got a new Companion: a murderous, indestructible scarecrow.

So far, the other information that we have on Creepshow is that Nicotero himself will be directing the first episode; an episode based on Stephen King’s Survivor Type in which a shipwrecked fella finds himself doing unthinkable things to survive. Similarly, Monster House’s Rob Schrab is to tackle a World War II-set supernatural episode titled Bad Wolf Down.

Each and every episode will tell a different story, with a different directing helming each outing for this hugely anticipated small-screen take on this beloved property.

Details on Netflix’s UNSOLVED MYSTERIES

Unsolved Mysteries

One of the big stories to come out of the last few days is that Netflix is to bring back Unsolved Mysteries. And now we know a little more about this new take on an old favourite.

In addition to original creators Cosgrove/Meurer Productions, 21 Laps of Stranger Things fame will be developing the returning series. Terry Dunn Meurer will be serving as showrunner, with an initial order of twelve episodes put in by Netflix.

The early synopsis for this new Unsolved Mysteries reads:

This modern take on the classic series will maintain the chilling feeling viewers loved about the original, while also telling the stories through the lends of a premium Netflix documentary series. Each episode will focus on one mystery and once again will look to viewers to help aid investigators in closing the book on long outstanding cases.

Created by John Cosgrove and Terry Dunn Meurer, Unsolved Mysteries first aired back in 1987 as a run of seven specials before then becoming a full series in 1988. In terms of premise, the show used re-enactments and interviews to delve in to unexplained, oft-spooky tales.

With Robert Stack on hosting duties, the series added genre fave Virginia Madsen as co-host in 1999. After being cancelled by CBS later that year, Lifetime would revive the series in 2001. Slack would tragically pass away in 2002, which also saw Unsolved Mysteries shelved until a Dennis Farina-headlined reboot in 2008. By the time that last take on the show came to a close in 2010, Unsolved Mysteries had ran for a total of 581 episodes over its impressive run.

Expect more on this new Unsolved Mysteries as it continues to develop.

Channing Tatum to Direct GAMBIT?

With 20th Century Fox’s Gambit movie having been spinning its wheels in development hell for years now, there may still be life in the picture just yet.

Via Deadline, it’s been reported that star Channing Tatum may actually end up directing Gambit for Fox. This news comes as the outlet reported that Tatum has split from his reps at UTA and Management 360.

If you remember, Gambit was initially to be directed by Rupert Wyatt, then Doug Liman, and then finally Gore Verbinski. All three ending up departing the project over certain creative issues, and now this latest rumbling suggests that Tatum himself could make his directing debut with the movie.

One slight issue with all of this is Disney’s impending purchase of Fox. That merger is due to be finalised this March, with Gambit one of the pictures that could be shelved altogether once that deal is completed. Dependant on how Disney plan to integrate the X-Men and Fantastic Four in to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, in-development efforts such as Gambit, Noah Hawley’s Dr. Doom and Drew Goddard’s X-Force may end up not actually happening.

As ever, expect more on Gambit (and said other projects) if and when they continue to develop further.

Horror Channel’s February Line-up Will Give You Chills

hc feb

Horror Channel has lined up some awesome movies to give you chills that the weather couldn’t even manage in February.

Topping the schedule are two fantastic UK TV Premieres, Tom Paton’s Redwood (2017) and Pascal Laugier’s The Tall Man (2012). Other delights include Luis de la Madrid’s 2005 supernatural terror The Nun, John Dahl’s Joy Ride (2001), the erotically-charged and stylish Bound (1996), directed by The Matrix’s Wachowshi’s and starring Jennifer Tilly and Gina Gershon, and Alexandra Aja’s disturbing shocker Mirrors (2008) starring Keifer Sutherland.

If that’s not enough, you can catch the third season of cult sci-fi series Sliders throughout the month, plus Star Trek and lots of other delights.

For more information, head over to www.horrorchannel.co.uk. You can tune in on Sky 317, Virgin 149, Freeview 70, Freesat 138.