Poster, Release Date, Plot Details for New Animated GODZILLA Effort

Godzilla: City on the Edge of Battle

It seems that the King of the Monsters is everywhere we look these days, but then Godzilla never really went away, did he? And now, we have some new information on his latest animated outing.

Last year, we were given the first animated effort from Toho – Godzilla: Planet of the Monsters – and now we have a poster (shown left), release date, and some plot details for its follow-up, Godzilla: City on the Edge of Battle.

City on the Edge of Battle will arrive in Japanese cinemas on May 18th, 2018. Whereas its predecessor was similarly given a Japanese theatrical run, the picture was then housed on Netflix in North American and European markets. Hopefully there’s as similar plan in place so that those outside of Japan are able to check out the film at some point later this year.

As for the plot, that is as follows:

Rising from the depths of the planet is a new breed of monster, dubbed “Godzilla Earth.” Evolving for 20,000 years, the creature stands 300 meters high, weighs over 100,000 tons and wields such overwhelmingly destructive power that Haruo and company have no choice but to run for their lives. Coming to Haruo’s rescue, however, is Miana, a member of an aboriginal tribe called the Houtua. They are the first humanoid people the returnees have encountered. Could they descend from humans?

“Our tribal god was destroyed by Godzilla. All that we have left are these eggs. Anyone who has tried to fight or resist him has been drowned in fire,” the tribespeople say to Haruo, who responds with: “This is our last hope of recovering our home.” Meanwhile, Bilusaludo commander, Galu-gu is elated to discover that the Houtua tribe’s arrowheads are made of a nanometal or a self-sustaining metal. It had been developed in the 21st century as an “anti-Godzilla” killer weapon deployed at their decisive battle fought at the foot of Mt. Fuji, but had been destroyed before it could be activated in the form of a “Mecha-Godzilla.” The nanometal was its base substance, and proof that the manufacturing plant can still be used.

Kobun Shizuno and Hiroyuki Seshita are on directing duties.

“Ash is Done” if ASH VS. EVIL DEAD is Cancelled

Ash vs Evil Dead

It was only last month that Bruce Campbell was talking up the possibility of a fourth Evil Dead movie, but now the genre icon has returned with some far less encouraging news.

With Ash vs. Evil Dead currently facing an uncertain future, Campbell had previously stated that if the series wasn’t renewed past its current third season then there’s a chance to look at doing a new Evil Dead picture.

Having been asked about the future of Ashley J. Williams at a recent Evening with Bruce Campbell event, the star explained, “If they cancel it, I think Ash is done. I have lavender on my property. I’m going to smoke weed and hang out.”

If you ask many a genre fan, it would be an absolute travesty it this beloved genre character was never seen again following the third season of Ash vs. Evil Dead. In fact, it would be as far away from groovy as you can get.

It was believed that some more solid details on Ash vs. Evil Dead’s future will be known by the end of March, so expect more on all of this as we get it.

INDY 5 to Shoot in the UK Next April

Indiana Jones

We’ve heard plentiful talk of a fifth Indiana Jones movie for a while now, with the film officially green-lit at several points over the past year. And now, Steven Spielberg has confirmed that this next outing for Dr Henry Walton Jones, Jr. will start shooting next April.

While promoting Ready Player One here in the UK, Spielberg enthused, “It’s always worth the trip when I get to work with this deep bench of talent coming out of the UK. The actors, and the crew, the chippies, the sparks, the drivers – everybody who has helped me make my movies here, and will continue helping me make my movies here when I come back in April 2019 to make the fifth Indiana Jones movie right here.”

Of course, this fifth Indy effort was previously booked in for a July 2020 release date, so an April 2019 start doesn’t come as any real surprise.

What we know so far about this next entry in one of cinema’s most beloved franchises is that Harrison Ford will again be back as the titular character, and David Koepp has been putting the screenplay together. Kathleen Kennedy and Frank Marshal are on producing duties.

To date, the four Indiana Jones we’ve seen so far have amassed just shy of $2 billion at the global box office.

Constantine to Become a Regular on LEGENDS

Matt Ryan John Constantine

Well this is some pretty great news. Yes, as the headline suggest, Matt Ryan’s John Constantine will soon become a regular part of DC’s Legends of Tomorrow.

Having headlined NBC’s live-action Constantine series – which was criminally scrapped after just one solitary season – Ryan’s Hellblazer has since appeared in Arrow, Legends, and will soon be seen in his own animated CW Seed Constantine show later this week. As mentioned, Ryan has indeed already appeared in Legends of Tomorrow, but that was in a two-episode guest spot during the series’ current third season. Now, should, as expected, The CW renew Legends for a fourth season, Ryan’s Constantine will become a series regular.

Given how the Legends team has had a rotating roster of sorts during its three-season run so far, seeing Constantine become a regular part of the crew will help with the relatively recent departures of Victor Garber’s Martin Stein, Wentworth Miller’s Leonard Snart, and Franz Drameh’s Jefferson Jackson. Already, Keiynan Lonsdale’s Wally West has become a regular part of the team as this third season has continued to play out.

As ever, expect more on the future of DC’s Legends of Tomorrow as we get it.

Lashana Lynch Boards CAPTAIN MARVEL

Lashana Lynch

Following last week’s news that DeWanda Wise has departed next year’s Captain Marvel due to scheduling conflicts, now comes word on her replacement on the Brie Larson-headlined picture.

As per The Hollywood Reporter, Still Star-Crossed and Brotherhood’s Lashana Lynch has been brought in to fill the gap left by Wise. Just what character Wise was playing and Lynch is playing still remains to be seen, with no information having been made available on that front just yet.

To be set in the ‘90s, Captain Marvel will see Larson’s Carol Danvers joined by Samuel L. Jackson as a two-eyed Nick Fury, Gemma Chan as Kree spy Minn-Erva, Jude Law as the original Captain Marvel – Mar-Vell – and Ben Mendelsohn as the ‘big bad’ of the picture.

To be directed by Mississippi Grind’s Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck, Captain Marvel is set for a March 2019 release. Before that, of course, Avengers: Infinity War will be heading to the big screen next month.

Possible Theme for Season 8 of AHS

American Horror Story

With an eighth season of American Horror Story currently in development, we may now have an idea of the theme of this latest installment of the hugely popular genre effort.

Previously, we’d heard from creator Ryan Murphy how this new season will be set in the near future and that Sarah Paulson will again be a part of happenings. Now, the ever-reliable @AHSLeaks account has dug up some interesting information that could relate to Season 8 of AHS.

The account has done some digging and discovered that 20th Century Fox has filed a trademark for the term American Horror Story: Radioactive. Of course, at this stage we’ve not heard anything officially, but the potential of the Radioactive subtitle should conjure up all sorts of ideas and concepts for the series.

As ever, expect more on all things American Horror Story as we get it.

Netflix’s New SABRINA Series Adds Tati Gabrielle

Tati Gabrielle

As Netflix’s upcoming new take on Sabrina continues to flesh out its key cast, the show has moved to bring in The 100’s Tati Gabrielle.

In the series, Gabrielle will play Prudence. A student at the Academy of Unseen Arts, the character is the leader of a trio of witches dubbed the Weird Sisters. Prudence is pegged as “beautiful and cunning, [she] nurses a deep, personal, and possibly life-threatening grudge against Sabrina.”

Already on board for this new take on an old favourite are Kiernan Shipka as the titular teenage witch, Jaz Sinclair as her bestest bud Rosalind, Chance Perdomo as warlock cousin Ambrose Spellman, Michelle Gomez as Madam Satan, Lucy Davis as Aunt Hilda, Miranda Otto as Aunt Zelda, Ross Lynch as Sabrina’s boyfriend Harvey Kinkle, Richard Coyle as Father Blackwood, and Bronson Pinchot as Principal George Hawthorne.

To be based on the Chilling Adventures of Sabrina comic book, the current blurb on the upcoming series reads:

Sabrina is based on the comic book Chilling Adventures of Sabrina, which reimagines the origin and adventures of Sabrina the Teenage Witch as a dark coming-of-age story that traffics in horror, the occult and, of course, witchcraft. Tonally in the vein of Rosemary’s Baby and The Exorcist, this adaptation finds Sabrina wrestling to reconcile her dual nature – half-witch, half-mortal – while standing against the evil forces that threaten her, her family and the daylight world humans inhabit.

Expect more on this new show as we get it.

John Cho Joins the Upcoming GRUDGE Reboot

Ju-on The Grudge

With Ghost House Pictures currently developing a reboot of The Grudge, the redo has moved to bring in John Cho.

Having recently starred in the second season of the FOX’s impressive The Exorcist, the Star Trek star has joined this latest redo in a to-be-revealed role. Already on board for The Grudge are Andrea Riseborough and Demian Bichir.

The Eyes of My Mother’s Nicolas Pesce is on board to write and direct this refresh of an old favourite, with Pesce reworking a script previously put in place by Midnight Meat Train’s Jeff Buhler. The Grudge, of course, was originally released in 2002 under the Ju-on title. That Japanese horror was then given a more Western skew with the 2004-starring Sarah Michelle Geller remake. That, though, was not simply it for the franchise, with a whopping eleven Ju-on or Grudge movies to date, plus several short films, video games, and graphic novels.

This latest take on The Grudge is due to start production in May.

Winners Announced for the STARBURST Fantasy Awards

fantasy awards

The STARBURST Fantasy Awards took place on Saturday, March 17th at the STARBURST MediaCity Festival at The Landing at MediaCityUK.

The culmination of a highly successful event, the awards were chosen from the selection of independent films screened during the festival. Every film was fantastic in their own way, but there could only be a small number of winners:

Best Feature – The Child Remains, directed by Michael Melski.

Best Short – Echoes of the Passed, directed by Scott Lyus, screenplay by Tony Sands.

Best Director – Emma Dark for Salient Minus Ten.

Best Performance – Francesca Louise White for Dead Meet.

Brave New Words Award – Margrét Helgadóttir for Pacific Monsters, published by Fox Spirit Books.

Independents Day Award – Andy Collier, Tor Mian, co-directors of Charismata.

STARBURST wishes to congratulate all the recipients, and thank the filmmakers of every movie and short screened for helping make the festival a roaring success. Every screening room was packed and all the attendees had a fantastic time.

We would also like to thank The Landing at MediaCityUK for hosting the festival with us. We’re sure you’ll agree it was a stunning venue. We were also impressed with the brand new bar Social7, which opens to the public on March 19th on Floor 7 of The Landing at MediaCityUK.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

James Wan, Shawn Levy, and Netflix Team for Horror Adaptation

There’s Someone Inside Your House

Over the past fifteen years or so, James Wan has made himself a huge favourite of many a genre fan. And now comes word on another new project for the hugely talented Wan.

As per Bloody Disgusting, Wan will be teaming with Netflix for There’s Someone Inside Your House. Based on Stephanie Perkins’ bestselling novel of the same name, the tale centres on a young girl whose high school pals strangely begin to be killed off in murky, messy circumstances.

Wan will be serving as a producer on the film, although there’s a slight chance that he may – just may! – end up directing. Strangers Things’  Shawn Levy and his 21 Laps Entertainment are handling the production along with Wan’s Atomic Monster company. Earth to Echo’s Henry Gayden is penning the screenplay for the picture, and the early word on the film has it pegged as a John Hughes coming-of-age tale mashed up with a classic slasher of the ‘80s and ‘90s.

The official synopsis for Perkins’ original novel reads:

More than a year after her parents sent her away from Hawaii to live with her grandmother in landlocked Nebraska, Makani Young is still adjusting to her new life. She’s made a small group of close friends and even flirted with romance, but her past in Hawaii is still hard to forget. And then… one by one the students of her new high school begin to die in a series of gruesome murders. Makani doesn’t know how’s next on the list. Between this, and a secret scorching relationship with the school weirdo, this school year may turn out to be one to die for… literally.

Expect more on There’s Someone Inside Your House as we get it.