Netflix May Nab the LOCKE & KEY TV Adaptation

Locke & Key

Following the surprising news that Hulu has decided to pass on the small-screen adaptation of Joe Hill and Gabriel Rodriguez’s IDW property Locke & Key, it looks as if Netflix could be stepping in to save the day.

Previously, Hulu had put in a pilot order for the series, with IT’s Andy Muschietti to direct quite the impressive ensemble cast. Back in March of this year though, Hulu shockingly decided to pass on the adaptation. According to the usually reliable The Hashtag Show, Netflix is now believed to be close to picking up Locke & Key.

While a deal has yet to officially be completed, a source at IDW told the guys at The Hashtag Show that they hope to have an announcement in the near future.

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!

To date, the adaptation has Frances O’Connor, Owen Teague, Jackson Robert Scott, Megan Charpentier, Jack Mulhern, and Danny Glover on board to star, although obviously the longer this takes to be resolved then the more questions will be thrown up regarding just which cast members are still involved.

Initially, the rights for Joe Hill and Gabriel 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, but now we’re hopefully finally going to see Locke & Key brought to life on the small screen. Lost and The Strain’s Carlton Cuse was on board to serve as showrunner for the series.

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

First Look at Richard Brake in 3 FROM HELL

Doom-Head 31 Richard Brake

While many are eager to see the hotly anticipated return of the Firefly clan in Rob Zombie’s 3 from Hell, plenty of horror hounds are also extremely keen to see Richard Brake in action in the long-gestating follow-up to The Devil’s Rejects. And now, Zombie has revealed the first look at Brake as Winslow Foxworth Coltrane in the movie:

As well as at one time playing the Night King in Game of Thrones, Brake was menacingly mesmerising in Zombie’s 31 (pictured), putting in a performance that stands out as one of the most impressively sinister turns of the past few years.

Zombie additionally gave fans a behind-the-scenes look at the returning Bill Moseley and Sheri Moon Zombie enjoying a spot of catering on set:

3 from Hell will see Moseley’s Otis, Zombie’s Baby, and Sid Haig’s Captain Spaulding all alive and kicking following the explosive finale to The Devil’s Rejects. Other names on board for the picture are Clint Howard, Danny Trejo, Dee Wallace, Daniel Roebuck, Jeff Daniel Phillips, David Ury, Kevin Jackson, Austin Stoker, Sean Whalen, Bill Oberst Jr., Dot-Marie Jones, Tom Papa, and Dot-Marie Jones.

At present, 3 from Hell is expected to be released in the first half of 2019.

THE WOLF AMONG US: Season 2 Delayed Until 2019

The Wolf Among Us

In some news that’s sure to have many of you howling at the moon in disappointment, it’s been revealed that the hotly anticipated second season of Telltale’s The Wolf Among Us has now been pushed back to 2019.

Said second season was first announced at last year’s San Diego Comic Con, but now Telltale has taken to their website to confirm that the release has been pushed back from late this year to next year.

The reason for this seems to be down to the restructuring that Telltale undertook last year; a restructuring that saw 25% of their workforce let go.

Still, Telltale has reiterated its stance on moving forward with a new season of The Wolf Among Us, explaining that they’re “committed to exploring new ways to tell our stories” and that the extra time will allow them to “focus on quality but also to experiment and iterate in order to craft something truly special.”

For those unfamiliar with 2014’s The Wolf Among Us, the game sees players taking control of Bigby Wolf; the one and the same ‘big, bad wolf’ that you’ve heard so much about. A cop in Fabletown, Bigby is a rough-around-the-edges sort who is tasked with unravelling a corrupt, twisted plot of murder and deception that’s threatening to shake Fabletown to its very core. The player is tasked with deciding what direction and decisions Bigby makes via dialogue trees, with each and every decision having ramifications down the line. The game is a prequel of sorts to Bill Willingham’s much-loved Fables comic book series.

At this juncture, we’ve yet to be given any sort of exact release date or even rough release date, bar that The Wolf Among Us: Season 2 will arrive at some point in 2019.

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

It’s Official: Danny Boyle to Direct BOND 25

Danny Boyle

We’ve been saying it for months now, but it’s finally official: Danny Boyle will direct the next James Bond movie.

EON Productions and MGM have reached an agreement with Universal Pictures to partner on the global release of this twenty-fifth big-screen outing for 007; an outing that will seemingly be the last for Daniel Craig in this most iconic of roles.

Production on Bond 25 is due to start this December, with Trainspotting’s John Hodge working on the screenplay. Given how Boyle is an Oscar winner and longtime partner Hodge is an Oscar nominee, that’s quite the impressive pedigree for Bond’s next adventure.

On this news, EON’s Michael G. Wilson and Barbara Broccoli said, “We are delighted to announce that the exceptionally talented Danny Boyle will be directing Daniel Craig in his fifth outing as James Bond in the 25th installment of the franchise. We will begin shooting Bond 25 at Pinewood Studios in December with our partners at MGM, and are thrilled that Universal will be our international distributor.”

At present, this to-be-titled 007 picture is booked in for a November 8, 2019 release in the United States, although UK fans will be seeing the film as early as October 25th, 2019.

James Mangold to Write and Direct a BOBA FETT Movie

Star Wars

Well, the “galaxy far, far away” cat is out of the “galaxy far, far away” bag. Yes, as the headline suggests, the third of the Star Wars Story films will indeed centre on Boba Fett.

As per The Hollywood Reporter, Fett will be the next in line for Disney and Lucasfilm’s standalone pictures, with that movie following Rogue One: A Star Wars Story and the now-in-cinemas Solo: A Star Wars Story.

Not only is this most iconic of Star Wars characters getting his own film though, but James Mangold is the person tasked with bringing this tale to life. Mangold most famously wowed us all with Logan – the swansong for Hugh Jackman’s Wolverine – and he’ll be on writing and directing duties here.

When Lucasfilm announced their Star Wars Story direction, it was initially for three movies. Since then, a whole slew of other projects are in some sort of development; such as the Stephen Daldry-helmed feature for Obi-Wan Kenobi and quite possibly a Yoda-driven picture.

As ever, expect more on this Boba Fett effort and any and all Star Wars projects as we get it.

John Bain 1984 – 2018

John Bain

John Bain, gaming critic and industry pundit, has passed away at the age of 33 following a four-year battle with cancer. Recognised by the labels Totalbiscuit and The Cynical Brit, he was recognised and respected for his harsh but fair commentary and consumer advocacy.

Bain’s career in the gaming industry spans more than a decade, starting with coverage of World of Warcraft via WoWRadio and was a vocal figure within the community. After moving to cover more general products, he launched the Cynicalbrit.com which emphasised PC gaming. While focusing primarily on first impressions of video game releases, his coverage was noted for its detailed commentary on optimisation and options menus.

Bain was famous for his willingness to stand up for less renowned figures and to level harsh criticism against consumer unfriendly industry methods. These included both major AAA publishers and minor developers alike, both in terms of product quality and company practices. Some of the more famous actions include a years-long boycott against Sega following its efforts to forcibly remove videos of Shining Force II, and Guise of the Wolf developer FUN Creators over attempted censorship of criticism.

Despite being diagnosed with terminal cancer in 2015, Bain remained active on podcasts, commentaries and first impressions. It was only in the final month leading up to his death, after conventional chemotherapy would be ineffective, that he even accepted partial retirement.

He is survived by his wife and CEO of Cynical Brit, Genna Bain, and his step-son Orion.

Award-Winning Filmmaker Scott Lyus Announces Important New Short

lyus short

Scott Lyus, director of Echoes of the Passed, which won the Best Short Award at the STARBURST MediaCity Festival in March has revealed his latest endeavour – a sci-fi short entitled Our Song that will tackle the emotional subject of dementia. We have long supported Scott’s work – featuring him in the Independents Day column (STARBURST #442) as well as screening both Echoes of the Passed and Silently Within Your Shadow at our festivals, so it’s our pleasure to announce his latest work.

Our Song is a short sci-fi drama that follows Emily, a dementia patient, and her husband Jack as they look back at their favourite memories from days gone by.

The indie sci-fi short is a film close to British writer/director Scott Lyus’ heart, and maybe his most personal to date as he explains: “Our Song is inspired by my Nan’s battle over the last 4 years with dementia and how during that time music has helped her reconnect with some of her hard to remember memories. And with recent advancements made in the technical field to help people suffering from dementia, I wanted to create a film that not only gives a voice to those living with this horrible disease but also take a hopeful look at how technology could help reconnect patients with their fading memories in the near future.”

Our Song will launch its Indiegogo Campaign on June 1st and sees the tried and tested team that created Silently Within Your Shadow and Echoes of the Passed return, including DOP Sharad Patel and Co-Producer Chris Nials. Lyus also promises an amazing cast announcement for the two lead roles of Emily and Jack, which will be revealed at the launch of the campaign.

Any help is always appreciated when it comes to projects like this, even if it’s simply sharing on social networks to get the word out there. There are, of course, the usual plethora of cool perks up for grabs for all Indiegogo contributors, including Associate and Executive Producer credits. 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, giving them a much-needed voice.”

Our Song promises to be a sci-fi drama with a lot of heart and an extremely important message behind it. If you want to join the team and help bring this film to life, please head on over to Indiegogo on June 1st and help us spread the word. We will share the link once it’s live.

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

Idris Elbra to Direct and Star in a New HUNCHBACK OF NOTRE DAME

The Hunchback of Notre Dame

Victor Hugo’s 1831 classic The Hunchback of Notre Dame is up for yet another live-action adaptation. And this time, Idris Elba is the driving force behind it.

As revealed by The Wrap, Elba will direct and star in a new take on this famed property for Netflix. In addition to that, the Lucifer star will also be overseeing the picture’s music.

The title for this project has yet to be revealed, and no further details are known at this early stage.

The Hunchback of Notre Dame, of course, has been adapted plentiful times over the years, with the first of those to happen back in 1911. The most significant takes on the property are Walt Disney’s animated 1996 effort and Universal Studios’ live-action take from 1923.

Expect more on this new The Hunchback of Notre Dame adaptation as it develops.

Leigh Whannell May Not Return for Any Further INSIDIOUS Movies

Leigh Whannell

With Insidious: The Last Key now available on Blu-ray and DVD, franchise mainstay Leigh Whannell has been discussing his future with the series.

Whannell created the franchise with longtime collaborator James Wan, with Whannell having written all four entries to date, directed the third Insidious, and appeared as Specs in every movie so far. Whether he returns for a fifth Insidious effort seems a little up in the air right now.

Speaking to Bloody-Disgusting while promoting his latest film Upgrade, Whannell explained, “I’m sure the second this film comes out I’m going to get a phone call from Jason Blum to say, ‘Alright, Insidious 5’. I’m not sure I’m going to be involved, in all honesty. I love the films and the franchise, and it’s been a good experience, but the question is always ‘Do I have anything to offer?’ Maybe a fresh set of eyes is the best thing for this franchise if they’re going to continue it. So, we’ll see.”

We recently caught up with another Insidious mainstay, the marvellous Lin Shaye, who thought it could well be likely that a fifth movie might happen due to The Last Key having surpassed the $100 million take-home. Given the relative low cost and risk involved in making these pictures, it’s always likely that another Insidious could be just around the corner.

Whether Leigh Whannell is involved in the franchise should it move forward though, that remains to be seen. Considering that Whannell is such a vital cog in the Insidious franchise, it would certainly be strange to see a new Insidious without his involvement.

As Whannell himself put it, he is still on good terms with Jason Blum and Blumhouse, so we’ll just have to see how this develops.

Whannell’s Logan Marshall-Green-headlined Upgrade hits cinemas from June 1st.

Premiere Date Set for Season 2 of MARVEL’S SPIDER-MAN

Marvel's Spider-Man

While the big-screen Wallcrawler had quite the rude awakening in Avengers: Infinity War, there’s some better news for the small-screen Spidey.

As revealed by the House of Mouse, the second season of Marvel’s Spider-Man will premiere on Disney XD on June 18th.

The official blurb on said Season 2 reads:

The second season of Marvel’s Spider-Man follows Peter Parker in his sophomore year as a more experienced superhero and a more confident student at what was once the intimidating Horizon High School. Picking up where Season 1 left off – in an epic showdown against Doc Ock, the Sinister Five, and Hobgoblin – Season 2 will offer much higher stakes for both Peter and his heroic alter-ego, Spider-Man. He’ll also learn how to navigate new responsibilities like working at his local newspaper, The Daily Bugle, while enduring Doc Ock’s series of obstacles in the villain’s attempt to get rid of Spider-Man once and for all. The action-packed season will continue to touch on Spidey’s relatable themes, including friendship, loyalty and heroism, while staying true to its signature sense of comedy.

The premiere of Marvel’s Spider-Man’s new season will actually be a back-to-back double-header.