Campaign for Sci-fi Short OUR SONG Now Live

lyus short

As exclusively announced last week, the crowdfunding campaign for sci-fi drama Our Song is now live on Indiegogo so you can help make what promises to be a great short.

Official Synopsis:

Emily, a dementia patient, and her husband Jack sit overlooking a beyond beautiful landscape. The sun shines, an old song plays, as they look back at their favourite memories from days gone by. Mix in a little science fiction and a whole lot of heart, Our Song gives those suffering from dementia a much-needed voice.

Award-winning writer/director Scott Lyus (Silently Within Your Shadow, Echoes of the Passed), is the main man behind this exciting and important short film. Inspired by the filmmaker’s personal journey with his grandmother over the last four years, Our Song is, without doubt, his most personal picture to date and one he hopes will shine a light on the taboo of this cruel mental disease. Alongside the launch of the campaign, Lyus has also announced the film’s lead actors who will be bringing Emily and Jack to life: the incredible duo of Vivien Bridson and D.J. Bailey.

our songour song

With an upcoming role in Disney’s Christopher Robin, Vivien Bridson is an actor with multiple years’ experience in the film and TV world, and maybe best known for her feature role in Tom Six shock horror film The Human Centipede 2 (Full Sequence) as Mrs. Lomax, proving that she is no stranger to challenging and wildly different roles.

D.J. Bailey is widely known for his character roles as a returning wizard in the Harry Potter films, The Goblet of Fire, The Half Blood Prince, and The Deathly Hallows, as well as last being seen of the big screen in Disney’s Beauty and the Beast.

With the campaign now live the filmmakers want you to join the team and help bring this one to life. So check out the campaign over at Indiegogo and hit that share button across all your social media. There’s a ton of awesome perks up for grabs for all Indiegogo contributors, starting with a link to the finished film, all the way up to Associate and Executive Producer credits for you real indie film lovers.  And as a bonus perk during the campaigns first week, anyone pledging £25 or more will also receive private links to the filmmaker’s previous short films, Silently Within Your Shadow and Echoes of the Passed; including behind the scenes content from each film.

Lyus assures “Our Song will be a film that will make you laugh, make you cry and one you’ll be proud to be a part of. The aim is to shine a spotlight on Dementia and those suffering with it. Having Vivien and D.J on board to bring our lead characters to life is more than I could have ever hoped for. I can’t wait to work with them and watch them bring Emily and Jack to life. My hope is that Our Song connects on a personal level with anyone who has a similar story to tell, as at its core, Our Song is a film about family.”

our song

To follow all updates on the campaign and the film please follow Scott Lyus on Twitter @scottlyus and Instagram @crossroadpictures.

Corin Hardy and Jason Momoa Depart THE CROW Remake

Jason Momoa

Mark this one down as another hurdle for the Crow reboot to overcome.

Yes, as the headline suggests, this latest take on The Crow is now back on the hunt for a director and a star.

As per Deadline, both Corin Hardy and Jason Momoa have now officially departed the project. The Witch’s Hardy was on board to direct, with Game of Thrones and Justice League’s Momoa to play the iconic Crow. By all accounts, it looks like the ever-familiar creative differences reared their head here, plus some potential financial issues.

The last solid information we’d heard on The Crow was that Sony Pictures had picked it up for an October 2019 release. New reports now claim that the deal between Sony and Davis Films’ Samuel Hadida – who owns the rights to the film – was never fully finalised, and now Sony has decided to exit the project. This, in turn, has led to Hardy and Momoa deciding to depart the remake.

Before Momoa was on board to take the lead role, Luke Evans was signed on for the gig before he similarly departed the project. Another supposedly signed on at one point, too, was Jack Huston; he being another who walked away from the film. Other names linked to the Eric Draven role over the past few years were Bradley Cooper and Tom Hiddleston.

The Crow began life as a four-part miniseries from James O’Barr back in 1989, with Alex Proyas’ famed Brandon Lee-starring movie following five years later. After that, we were given three further films – The Crow: City of Angles, The Crow: Salvation and The Crow: Wicked Prayer – and the ’98 TV series, The Crow: Stairway to Heaven.

Where this latest development leaves this remake of The Crow remains to be seen. As ever though, expect more on all of this as and when we get it.

James Marsden to Star in SONIC THE HEDGEHOG

Remember how the last year or more has seen talk of Paramount developing a Sonic the Hedgehog movie? Well, now that film has found its lead.

As per Variety, James Marsden will star as everyone’s favourite superfast blue hedgehog. Marsden, of course, has impressed genre fans over the years with the likes of Gossip, The Box, HBO’s Westworld, and as Cyclops in the cinematic X-Men franchise.

This Sonic picture will be a mixture of live-action and CGI work, similar to what we saw in Jon Favreau’s impressive The Jungle Book. Gopher Broke’s Jeff Fowler will direct, with Neal H. Mortiz producing through his Original Film banner. Deadpool’s Tim Miller is on board as an executive producer.

The character of Sonic made his debut way back in 1991 on the SEGA Mega Drive. A superfast hedgehog, the blue furball sped around various levels as he collected gold rings on his quest to stop Doctor Robotnik and free a bunch of captive animals. Following that, plenty of further games, cartoon series, comics, and any merch imaginable followed for Sonic, including the addition of friends such as Tails and Knuckles.

As ever, expect more on Sonic the Hedgehog as it continues to develop.

Frank Doubleday 1945 – 2018

Frank Doubleday

In some tragic news, genre favourite Frank Doubleday has passed away. He was 73 years of age.

The news was revealed by The Hollywood Reporter, with the talented genre vet having actually passed away on March 3rd.

Doubleday was someone who never failed to steal the show in whatever project he was involved him, with many being most familiar with him as Romero in Escape from New York and as White Warlord in Assault on Precinct 13. Away from those iconic John Carpenter efforts, he made appearances in the likes of Wonder Woman, The Incredible Hulk, CHiPS, Charlie’s Angels, and Starsky and Hutch.

As THR explained, Doubleday died at his Los Angeles home due to complications from esophageal cancer. His wife and partner of 40 years Christina Hart informed the outlet of the news.

Frank is survived by Christina, daughters Portia and Kaitlin, and his mother Jane.

The thoughts of all here at STARBURST go out to the family, friends and fans of Frank Doubleday. Rest in peace, sir.

Penguin to be the Villain of THE BATMAN?

The Penguin

With Matt Reeves currently developing The Batman, there’s now a new rumour on who the Caped Crusader may be butting heads with in that picture.

Previously, it was a given that Joe Manganiello’s Deathstroke – who debuted in Justice League’s post-credits scene – was to be the ‘big bad’ of The Batman. That was when Ben Affleck was to direct the movie. Since Affleck stepped away from the director’s chair and Matt Reeves took over directing duties, it seems that all bets are off – including whom the villain of the piece will be.

As per Variety’s Justin Kroll, Reeves’ plans now involve the Penguin being the picture’s main bad guy. This isn’t just Reeves’ decision, for the powers-that-be at Warner Brothers want to bring the Oswald Cobblepot character into the mix sooner rather than later. In fact, if Reeves opts against Penguin as the villain of The Batman, it looks as if The WB will try use the rogue as the central villain of the upcoming Birds of Prey movie that will see Margot Robbie’s Harley Quinn potentially joined by the likes of Barbara Gordon, Black Canary, and Catwoman.

Production on that Birds of Prey effort is set to get in the full swing later this year once Robbie gets finished with Quentin Tarantino’s Manson family murders movie, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.

If you remember back, this isn’t the first time that the Penguin has been discussed for Warner’s DC Extended Universe, with Beauty & the Beast’s Josh Gad publicly campaigning to play the character in the DCEU.

But while there is uncertainty over the villain of The Batman, of course there’s still uncertainty over its main attraction: Batfleck. Barely a week goes by where there isn’t some sort of rumbling of Ben Affleck handing over the cape and cowl to someone else, with the most recent rumours on that front suggesting Jon Hamm and Jake Gyllenhaal could be in line to replace Affleck. For what it’s worth though, Gyllenhaal seems to be out of the running at this point, with him distancing himself from those rumours and then now being in advanced talks to play the nefarious Mysterio in the Spider-Man: Homecoming sequel.

As ever, expect more on The Batman and all things DCEU as we get it.

Netflix Gives Series Order for LOCKE & KEY Adaptation

Locke & Key

It was only yesterday that we reported how Netflix were close to picking up Locke & Key following Hulu’s decision to pass on the series, and now comes word that the on-demand streaming giant has indeed taken on the adaptation of Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez’s IDW work.

As per The Hollywood Reporter, Netflix has given a straight-to-series order for the small-screen adaptation. Unfortunately for those previously cast, the show will now be completely recast. Similarly, IT’s Andy Muschietti – who directed the pilot for Hulu – won’t be back for Netflix’s take on the property, largely due to him being tied up with directing IT: Chapter 2. One person still sticking around though, is executive producer Carlton Cuse; best known for the likes of Bates Motel and The Strain.

In terms of who was previously signed on to star in the show, those names included Frances O’Connor, Owen Teague, Jackson Robert Scott, Megan Charpentier, Jack Mulhern, and Danny Glover. Netflix is starting from scratch on that front, though.

The previous official word on the Locke & Key series read:

Locke & Key tells the story of the Locke family and their journey into Keyhouse, an unlikely New England mansion with fantastic doors that transform all who dare to walk through them, and home to a hate-filled and relentless creature that will not rest until it forces open the most terrible door of them all!

Initially, the rights for Hill and Rodriguez’s Locke & Key were picked up by Dimension Films back in 2008, and then 2010 saw FOX develop a TV series. Sadly, neither of these times saw anything fully come to be where an adaptation was concerned, and that again looked like being the case once Hulu decided against moving forward from a pilot only a matter of weeks ago. Now though, Netflix has come to the rescue, and here’s hoping they can do something truly special with this adaptation.

As ever, expect more on Locke & Key as it continues to develop.

 

Character Breakdowns for SWAMP THING’s Lead Duo

Swamp Thing

It was only last month that we heard how Warner Brothers were developing a live-action Swamp Thing series for their upcoming DC streaming service, DC Universe. And now, it appears that the casting breakdowns for the show’s lead characters have surfaced online, revealing a few more plot points for the show.

The ever-reliable guys over at That Hashtag Show have reportedly got their palms on the casting breakdowns for the two main characters of Swamp Thing; those characters being Abby Arcane and Swamp Thing himself, Alec Holland.

Said breakdowns read as:

Abby Arcane

The live-action version is a 30-something intelligent woman, who is a bit of a lone wolf. She works for the Center for Disease Control who ends up assigning her to investigate the “Houma Flu”, which happens to be in her hometown. Abby’s tragic past consists of losing her mother when she was only eight years old and in turn, endued up making her move between multiple foster families. Once she was done with high school, she left Houma to pursue her dream of developing a medical career. While she performs well with her job, she has a bit of a power struggle with her employer. There is a tragic reason why Abby left Houma to begin with, that she keeps a secret and it has caused her to develop a pill addiction.

When she left her hometown, Abby left things on an awkward note with her high school ex-boyfriend Matt, who is now a cop for Houma. But when she befriends Alec Holland, who works as a researcher for the Sunderland Corporation, it starts out on a good note between them. However, their efforts of investigating the Houma flu in the swamp is not appreciated by the town people when the researchers suggest for the swamp to be shut down temporarily. For some reason, the swamp is where the Houma citizens make their living from it. Not only does Abby have to deal with a possible epidemic in her own hometown, where the people are getting hostile with her, she also begins an odd romance, in the tone of Shape of Water, with a creature that was born in the swamp.

Alec Holland

Alec is a 30-something wise man, with a hot temper and a big passion for his work as a researcher for the Sunderland Corporation. The company is seemingly building a hospital in Houma. When Abby Arcane returns to the town to investigate the Houma flu, Alec forms an instant bond with her, he discovers that they are very similar people. Both being incredibly invested in science and not caring too much about having a love life. Alex discovers that there is a connection between the Houma flu and the swamp, which is making the people in town hostile with him as well. Despite the bad attitude he gets from the citizens, Alec is determined to get to the bottom of this flu. However, things go haywire when Alec is put through an odd transformation in the form of a swamp-like creature with extraordinary abilities.

This new Swamp Thing series is being developed by James Wan’s Atomic Monster banner, with Ash vs. Evil Dead’s Mark Verheiden and IT’s Gary Dauberman on writing duties.

The early word on this new show reads:

The drama follows what happens when CDC researcher Abby Arcane returns to her childhood home of Houma, Louisiana in order to investigate a deadly swamp-borne virus. There, she develops a surprising bond with scientist Alec Holland – only to have him tragically taken from her. But as powerful forces descend on Houma, intent on exploiting the swamp’s mysterious properties for their own purposes, Abby will discover that the swamp holds mystical secrets, both horrifying and wondrous – and the potential love of her life may not be dead after all.

As a character, Swamp Thing began life back in 1971 and has appeared in a whole host of different mediums over the decades. Wes Craven would helm 1982’s Swamp Thing movie, with a sequel following in 1989. On the small screen, a three-season USA Network show ran during the early ‘90s, and there was similarly a far-too-short-lived animated series during those years.

At this stage, Swamp Thing is set for a to-be-confirmed 2019 premiere, joining the live-action Teen Titans show, Titans, and Doom Patrol, and the animated Harley Quinn and Young Justice: The Outsiders as announced shows for the upcoming on-demand DC Universe streaming service.

Andrew Lincoln Reportedly Leaving THE WALKING DEAD

The Walking Dead Andrew Lincoln Rick Grimes

Fans have been clamouring for some sort of major shake-up on AMC’s The Walking Dead for the past few years, with this genre favourite having lost its way a tad in recent times. Well, if the latest reports are to be believed, a huge, huge name could be about to depart the show during its next season.

As initially reported by Collider, Andrew Lincoln will be departing the series during the upcoming ninth season. Lincoln, of course, plays series mainstay and focal point Rick Grimes.

In addition to that, AMC has made an offer of what’s said to be “substantial compensation” for Norman Reedus to stay on as Daryl Dixon and take over as the lead character should Lincoln indeed leave the show.

It was only a few months ago that Lauren Cohan’s future was up in the air, particularly once the star – who plays Maggie in The Walking Dead – signed on for ABC’s Whiskey Cavalier pilot. That situation seemed to get settled once Cohan signed a new contract to stick around for The Walking Dead’s ninth season, although now Collider is reporting that both Cohan and Lincoln will only be appearing in six episodes of the next season.

For what it’s worth, AMC hasn’t commented on any of this at this stage, but expect more on all things The Walking Dead as we get it.

Safe to say, having two such huge characters as Rick and Maggie exit the series would be a major shake-up, even if it’s not necessarily the change-up that some fans have been called for.

Jamie Foxx to Star in Todd McFarlane’s SPAWN

Spawn Jamie Foxx

We’ve known for a little while now that Todd McFarlane was planning to direct his own big-screen take on one of his most famous creations, Spawn. And now comes word on who’ll be playing this most iconic of characters.

As per Deadline, Jamie Foxx has officially signed on to tackle the title role in McFarlane’s Spawn. In addition to this, McFarlane has also now confirmed that this will be the first in a trilogy of films and that this reboot will not feature an origin story for its titular antihero. Foxx, of course, is likely best known for the likes of Ray, Collateral, The Amazing Spider-Man 2, Django Unchained and Baby Driver.

On this news, McFarlane enthused, “Jamie came to my office five years ago, and he had an idea about Spawn and we talked about it. I never forgot him, and when I was writing this script, you sort of plug people in, and he was my visual guy and I never let go of him. When I got done and my agents and everybody was talking about what actor, I said, ‘I’m going to Jamie first and until he says no I don’t want to think about anyone else because I’ve never had anyone else in my head.’ Luckily, he hadn’t forgotten either. I said, ‘Hey, I’m back to talk about Spawn again,’ and he was like, ‘Let’s do it!’”

Foxx himself added, “A few years back, I flew out to Arizona to meet the man behind one of the most incredible comic book characters in the universe, Todd McFarlane. He was taken aback when I told him with the enthusiasm of a young child that more than anything I wanted to put my name in the hat to embody his beloved character, Spawn. I told him no one would work harder than me if given the opportunity. Well, the opportunity is here! I’m humbled and ready to transform. And to top things off, the young Jason Blum is lending his brilliance to the project! Time to be great!!!”

Back in October of last year, McFarlane confirmed that he would be directing and that the movie would be a relatively low budget affair, with $10 million the budget that was mooted at that time. As alluded to by Jamie Foxx, Jason Blum and Blumhouse will be producing the picture.

As for Spawn as a character, he first appeared back in 1992 when he headlined McFarlane’s Spawn #1. A dark and brutal character who was so often deemed an antihero, Spawn quickly became a cult favourite and was often cited as one of the poster boys of the darker books of the day. In terms of powers, his Hellspawn abilities allow him to shape-shift, teleport and get all kinds of nasty with a vast array of weapons.

This won’t be the first cinematic outing for Spawn, for Michael Jai White starred as the character in 1997’s dud Spawn. Here’s hoping this next big screen adventure for this hugely popular character is at least far superior to that balls-up. Given Todd McFarlane’s enthusiasm and passion, and Jamie Foxx’s impressive credentials (the god-awful Amazing Spider-Man 2 withstanding!), this could turn out to be something quite special if all goes according to plan.

Expect more on Spawn as it continues to develop.

Woody Harrelson Discusses His VENOM Role

Woody Harrelson

While the most recent Venom trailer has impressed many, one person ominously missing from the footage was the already-confirmed Woody Harrelson. Speculation has been rampant that Harrelson could actually be playing Cletus Kasady, aka Carnage, in the film, and now the beloved actor has been asked about his role in the Tom Hardy-starrer.

If you remember back, speculation had Harrelson pegged as appearing as Kasady in a small role towards the end of Venom. That would certainly explain why he’s been absent from the trailers released to date.

While promoting Solo: A Star Wars Story, Harrelson told Collider, “I’m in a little fraction of this movie [Venom], but I’ll be in the next one, you know? So, I haven’t read that script, but anyways, just rolled the dice.”

This would certainly be the case if those stories of a brief appearance as Cletus were indeed true, for the plan in that situation would be to debut Harrelson’s Kasady/Carnage at the end of Venom with a view to him being the ‘big bad’ of any possible sequel – which fits in nicely with what was said to Collider.

The early official word on Sony Pictures’ Venom reads:

One of Marvel’s most enigmatic, complex and badass characters comes to the big screen, starring Academy Award nominated actor Tom Hardy as the lethal protector Venom.

In the picture, Hardy’s Eddie Brock will find himself butting heads with Riz Ahmed’s Dr Carlton Drake… oh, and the five “seeds” of Venom, the symbiotes Agony, Lasher, Phage, Riot, and Scream.

To be directed by Zombieland‘s Ruben Fleischer, Venom is set to hit the big screen this October.