New HALLOWEEN Documentary in Development

While David Gordon Green’s return for the Halloween franchise is now in production ahead of an October release, there’s also now an all-new Halloween documentary on the way.

Bloody Flicks have announced the project, with this documentary to be titled For the Love of the Boogeyman: 40 Years of Halloween.

The early word on this doc reads:

This documentary is by fans and for the fans, chronicling why John Carpenter’s classic has stood the test of time. Bringing together some of the brightest voices from independent horror, we will explore what makes the film so special. From the music, the mask to Michael Myers, everyone has their own take on Halloween and why it is the blueprint for slasher horror, and in our humble opinion has never been bettered.

At this stage, For the Love of the Boogeyman is expected to be released this October, and we’ll be sure to bring you more on this project as it continues to develop.

Will Patton Joins October’s HALLOWEEN Return

Will Patton

With October’s return for the Halloween franchise now in production, the film has moved to bring in another new cast addition.

As per Bloody-Disgusting, Will Patton has joined the film as a cop who’ll be going up against the infamous Michael Myers. Patton is likely best known to genre fans for the likes of The Punisher, The Mothman Diaries, The Puppet Masters and Armageddon.

It’s not only The Shape who’ll be returning to action, of course, with Jamie Lee Curtis returning to reprise the Laurie Strode role she played in Halloween, Halloween II, Halloween H20 and Halloween Resurrection. In Resurrection, Laurie was famously killed off during the film’s opening scene, but that’s all being forgotten about here. In fact, this new Halloween will completely ignore anything and everything that happened after John Carpenter’s legendary 1978 movie.

Joining Curtis and Patton are Judy Greer and Andi Matichak, who’ll be playing Laurie’s daughter Karen and granddaughter Allyson, respectively. Elsewhere, this past weekend saw Virginia Gardner, Miles Robbins, Dylan Arnold and Drew Scheid join the picture as friends of Matichak’s Allyson. Then there’s Nick Castle, who played Michael in Carpenter’s ’78 original and who’ll be back to share Myers duties with James Jude Courtney here.

The early word on this new Halloween effort reads:

Laurie Strode comes to her final confrontation with Michael Myers, the masked figure who has haunted her since she narrowly escaped his killing spree on Halloween night four decades ago.

David Gordon Green is on directing duties, and he’s also penned the screenplay along with Danny McBride. To amp up excitement even further amongst Halloween fans, John Carpenter is on board as an executive producer, creative consultant, and will provide the film’s score.

Seemingly just titled Halloween at this point, the return for this most beloved of horror franchises is set for October 19th.

FLASHPOINT Lands Two Directors

We’ve known for a little while now that the upcoming solo movie for Ezra Miller’s Flash was to be dubbed Flashpoint, and now the potential game-changer has found its new directing team.

If you remember, Dope’s Rick Famuyiwa was previously on board to direct before having to depart due to creative differences. Going further back, Pride & Prejudice & Zombies’ Seth Grahame-Smith was in the director’s chair before similarly leaving over creative issues.

Now, as per Variety, the duo of John Francis Daley and Jonathan Goldstein have been tasked with helming Flashpoint. The pair are best known for efforts such as Vacation and Game Night, not to mention having penned the first draft for the splendid Spider-Man: Homecoming.

Many are already seeing Flashpoint as being the most important movie on Warner Brothers’ upcoming DC Extended Universe slate. After all, the solo outing for Miller’s Scarlet Speedster could be used to right some of the plentiful wrongs of the DCEU.

For comic book fans, you’ll likely be well aware of just how important Flashpoint could be. This is because Flashpoint is a 2011 arc from the iconic Geoff Johns and Andy Kubert. In said tale, Barry Allen goes back in time to save his mother from dying. While that’s all well and good, it causes a whole host of changes to the present day; not only does Barry not have his superspeed, but Bruce Wayne died that night in Crime Alley, Thomas Wayne became an aggressive, heavy-drinking Batman, Martha Wayne became a twisted, tormented Joker, Superman has been kept as a lab experiment ever since crash-landing from Krypton, Wonder Woman’s Amazons are at all-out bloody war with Aquaman’s Atlanteans, Green Arrow is an arms dealer ala certain depictions of Tony Stark, and Cyborg is the world’s greatest hero – and let’s face it, you know the shit’s hit the fan when Cyborg’s seen as the star of the day!

Where the DCEU is concerned, many are expecting the Flashpoint movie to be used to veer this shared cinematic in a different direction and to iron out some of the ongoing issues that this universe has suffered from.

Right now, Flashpoint has yet to be given a set release date, but the film is currently expected to feature Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman, Jason Momoa’s Aquaman, and Ray Fisher’s Cyborg. There’s no word on an appearance by Ben Affleck’s Batman or Henry Cavill’s Superman just yet, although Affleck’s future as the Caped Crusader has been regularly up in the air over the past few months.

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

Scoot McNairy Joins TRUE DETECTIVE

Scott McNairy

As the third season of True Detective continues to develop, the series has moved to add Scoot McNairy to its ranks.

Courtesy of Deadline, McNairy will be playing a father who’s on the receiving end of a tragic loss that ultimately sees him become entwined with two police detectives over a decade. McNairy is likely best known to genre fans for the likes of Monsters, Frank, Argo, Godless and for his memorable turn in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice.

The early word on this new season reads:

Season 3 tells the story of a macabre crime in the heart of the Ozarks, and a mystery that deepends over decades and plays out in three separate time periods.

Already on board for this next season of True Detective are Mahershala Ali, Carmen Ejogo, and Stephen Dorff. Nic Pizzolatto is back as showrunner and will direct along with Jeremy Saulnier.

DEAD HOOKER IN A TRUNK Heads to Blu-ray!

Dead Hooker in a Trunk

For the first time ever, the Soska Sisters’ debut picture Dead Hooker in a Trunk is soon to be available on Blu-ray!

HorrorPack has just announced that an exclusive Blu-ray of Jen and Sylvia’s famed first film will be included as part of their February subscription package. Even better, not only does this sweet baby Blu have brand new cover art, but there’s also an all-new exclusive audio commentary from the Twisted Twins and longtime collaborator Kevvy from Fake Shark.

Dead Hooker in a Trunk was first released in 2009, initially doing the festival circuit as it began establishing itself as a huge cult favourite amongst genre fans. From there, the Soskas would go on to garner even more attention and plaudits with the likes of American Mary, See No Evil 2, Vendetta and their memorable segment in the brilliant ABCs of Death 2 anthology. Then there’s Hellevator, the terrifying TV gameshow that we’re absolutely dying to see find a UK home at some point sooner rather than later.

Dead Hooker in a Trunk

In a statement on this new release, the Soskas enthused, “The film is a miracle. Its success is a huge leap of faith. The belief fans put in us and the way they rallied around us made our greatest dreams a reality. This film is proof that when you follow your stupid fucking dreams, great things happen.”

HorrorPack is a monthly subscription service that features four horror films on either Blu-ray or DVD – including a limited edition release in each order. Right now, the service only deals in North American products, as in Region 1 releases, but for something as special as this swanky new release of Dead Hooker in a Trunk we reckon it’s definitely worth treating yourself!

For full details on all of this, be sure to head on over to HorrorPack.com.

Early Talks Taking Place for Another SAW Movie

Jigsaw

Following the Saw franchise’s return with last year’s Jigsaw, it now appears than a ninth Saw outing is in the pipeline.

As reported by Bloody-Disgusting, Twisted Pictures has early plans for yet another entry in this fan favourite series. The outlet claims that plans are at an extremely early stage right now, and that this next Saw movie is merely in the infancy of first conversations right now. BD does go on to say that Jigsaw directors Michael and Peter Spierig won’t be back for any further Saw efforts.

Jigsaw was quite the hit for Twisted Pictures and Lionsgate, with the film taking home $100 million from a reported budget of just $10 million. And that’s the key to so many modern-day horror franchises: that the relatively low cost of making these films means significant profit margins can be hit. After all, this is a similar formula used for popular franchises of recent years like The Conjuring, Insidious and Paranormal Activity.

As ever, expect more on any further Saw movies if and when they do indeed continue to develop.

First Synopsis for SOLO: A STAR WARS STORY

solo

As anticipation continues to rise for Ron Howard’s Solo: A Star Wars Story, Disney has now released the first full synopsis for the film.

With Alden Ehrenreich on board as a younger take on this most infamous of scruffy looking nerf herders, the synopsis reads:

Board the Millennium Falcon and journey to a galaxy far, far away in Solo: A Star Wars Story, an all-new adventure with the most beloved scoundrel in the galaxy. Through a series of daring escapades deep within a dark and dangerous criminal underworld, Han Solo meets his mighty future co-pilot Chewbacca and encounters the notorious gambler Lando Calrissian, in a journey that will set the course of one of the Star Wars saga’s most unlikely heroes.

In addition to Hail, Caesar’s Ehrenreich playing the young Solo, the film will also feature Donald Glover as Lando, Joonas Suotamo as Chewie, Woody Harrelson as a mentor of Han’s, and roles for Emilia Clarke, Thandie Newton, Paul Bettany, and Phoebe Waller-Bridge.

Solo: A Star Wars Story is currently set for a May 25th release.

New Synopsis and Image for ANT-MAN AND THE WASP

Ant-Man and the Wasp

While Paul Rudd’s Scott Lang and Evangeline Lilly’s Hope van Dyne will be next seen in May’s Avengers: Infinity War, Marvel Studios has now revealed a new image of the duo from Ant-Man and the Wasp in addition to a new synopsis for the Ant-Man follow-up.

You can find said new image to your left, or click on the below version for a larger look:

Ant-Man and the Wasp

As for that new synopsis, that reads:

From the Marvel Cinematic Universe comes Ant-Man and the Wasp, a new chapter featuring heroes with the astonishing ability to shrink. In the aftermath of Captain America: Civil War, Scott Lang grapples with the consequences of his choices as both a superhero and a father. As he struggles to rebalance his life with his responsibilities as Ant-Man, he’s confronted by Hope van Dyne and Dr Hank Pym with an urgent new mission. Scott must once again put on the suit and learn to fight alongside the Wasp as the team works together to uncover secrets from the past.

With Rudd and Lilly to be joined by the returning faces of Michael Douglas, Michael Pena, Bobby Cannavale, Judy Greer, Abby Ryder Fortson, T.I., and David Dastmalchian, the sequel will also feature new additions in the shape of Michelle Pfeiffer as Janet van Dyne, Laurence Fishburne as Dr Bill Foster, and mystery roles for Hannah John-Kamen, Walton Goggins, and Randall Park. Janet van Dyne, of course, is a character who was briefly glimpsed in 2015’s Ant-Man, with her – then herself under the Wasp moniker – shown to have been lost in the Quantum Realm. As for Bill Foster, comic-book fans will know him as the shape-shifting hero Giant Man.

To be directed by Peyton Reed, Ant-Man and the Wasp is currently set for a July 6th, 2018 release.

FRIDAY THE 13TH: PART 3 Documentary Available for Free

Friday the 13th Part 3 Documentary

In the horror community, often horror hounds love a good documentary just as much as they love the latest terrifying movies that are on release. And now, the next Friday the 13th-driven documentary has been made available for free!

From director Kevin R. Phipps comes Friday the 13th: Part 3 – The Memoriam Documentary; a 40-minute doc that throws the spotlight on the third picture in this most iconic of horror franchises. That third film, of course, is the movie that first saw Jason don his famed hockey mask. Part of the reason for this documentary was to pay tribute to Richard Brooker, the actor who played Jason in Friday the 13th: Part 3, who sadly passed away in 2013.

Phipps has brought together several of Friday the 13th: Part 3’s key players, not to mention friends of Brooker’s. As the director himself put it in a previous interview, “This documentary’s intentions are to preserve the memory of this movie and Richard Brooker.”

With the documentary now available on YouTube, you can check it out for yourself in the player below:

This isn’t the first time that we’ve had a Friday the 13th documentary, with His Name Was Jason and Crystal Lake Memories spanning the entire franchise and instantly becoming favourites of many a horror fan. Elsewhere, fellow big hitters such as the Halloween and A Nightmare on Elm Street franchises have also been given the in-depth documentary treatment.

CREED II Casts Ivan Drago’s Son

Ivan Drago Dolph Lundgren

When we heard that yet another Rocky movie was on the way following 2006’s Rocky Balboa, we were a little hesitant to get too excited about the return of this most beloved of franchises. But wow, 2015’s Creed was pretty damn good, right? In fact, the picture was a stunning movie that ticked off a whole host of boxes for longtime Rocky fans while similarly veering the franchise off in a fresh new direction. And now, that film’s sequel – Creed II – has found one of its main players.

As per Tracking Board, Romanian boxer Florian “Big Nasty” Munteanu has been cast as Ivan Drago’s son in the film. We’d previously known that Dolph Lundgren would be reprising his Rocky IV role for Creed II, and we’d even known that Drago’s son would be featured as an opponent for Michael B. Jordan’s Adonis Creed. Well now we know who’ll be playing the son of Drago.

Sylvester Stallone himself has taken to Instagram to congratulate Munteanu on landing the role:

Interestingly, it’s believed that Johnson’s Creed will actually be involved in an intense and brutal fight with the iconic Ivan Drago before then tackling Drago’s son. If you remember, of course, it was Ivan Drago who was responsible for killing Adonis’ father Apollo in Rocky IV. As such, expect plenty of angst from Adonis as he comes face to face with the man responsible for his pops’ death.

Creed director Ryan Coogler was originally hopeful of returning to direct Creed II, but commitments on next month’s Black Panther – which actually features Michael B. Jordan – put a stop to that. Similarly, he’s also signed on to direct Jordan in Atlanta school drama Wrong Answer. Instead, The Land’s Steven Caple Jr. is in the director’s chair for the Creed follow-up.

At present, Creed II is set to start production in March ahead of a November 21st, 2018 release.