A new podcast well worth checking out has been launched. It is presented by FrightFest co-director Paul McEvoy and produced by legendary UK genre filmmaker Jake West (Mancunian Man).
Stark Raving Cinema is a guest-based series that starts with celebrated filmmaking duo Aaron Moorhead and Justin Benson (Something in the Dirt) and actor/director/novelist Andy Nyman (Ghost Stories). Next up, on May 28th, is a special interview with Issa Lopez (Tigers Are Not Afraid).
Further guests lined up for Season 1 include Ted Raimi (Failure!), Ti West (Pearl), Corin Hardy (The Nun), Brandon Cronenberg (Infinity Pool), Roxane Mesquida (Rubber), Steve Oram (Sightseers), Jennifer Reeder (Knives & Skin) and Joanne Mitchell (Bait).
Paul said: “Stark Raving Cinema’s mission is to entertain and showcase the most exciting guests working in all sectors of the creative industries. The podcast will cover movies, music, TV, songs, bands, books and graphic novels, and our guests will talk about the experiences of pop culture that influenced them to become the creators they are today”.
Jake added: “Listeners will soon be compiling lists of the recommendations that influenced some of the most creative people working in the industry today!”
You can listen online via Linktree or on the website. The podcast will also be available via Spotify and other major platforms. Stark Raving Cinema is presented by Paul McEvoy and produced by Jake West, with original music by renowned film composer Simon Boswell (Santa Sangre). Award-winning designer and animator Ashley Thorpe (Borley Rectory) provided the graphic design, and the web design and digital content were created by up-and-coming director Aaron Truss (Pareidolia).
Andy Samberg is set to star in a comedy feature from Radio Silence, the filmmaking team behind Ready or Not, the two most recent Scream films, and Abigail. Amazon MGM Studios has landed the comedy pitch package for the film, titled The Robots Go Crazy, with Radio Silence’s Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett attached to direct from a script by Andrew Lanham, and Samberg aboard to star. Plot details are still unknown, but the flick has been labelled as an action comedy.
Samberg, Ali Bell, Akiva Schaffer and Jorma Taccone are attached to serve as producers for The Lonely Island’s production company, Party Over Here. Bettinelli-Olpin, Gillett, Chad Villella (the third member of Radio Silence) are also producing with Silk Mass’ Jon Silk. Screenwriter Lanham, best known for his work on Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Ringsand Just Mercy, will executive produce.
Following the conclusion of the hit cop-comedy Brooklyn Nine-Nine, SNL alum Andy Samberg starred in the time-loop romantic-comedy Palm Springs, and voiced the Scarlet Spider in Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. He currently voices the title character in Digman!, and is set to give a rare dramatic performance in the biopic of American war photographer Lee Miller, Lee.
No release date for The Robots Go Crazy has been set yet.
Up-and-coming actor and director Megan Tremethick, known for films such as The Slave and the Sorcerer and The Vance Instituteand the glamorous face of the new incarnation of Amicus, has announced a new project, Spoiling You.
Taking inspiration from the cultural phenomenon of anime cosplay and ASMR YouTube performers, Megan is set to produce a psychological horror that follows the clandestine activities of a lonely girl who discovers a liberating second life through a character she uses to perform ASMR on YouTube. As ‘Miss Mutter’, she soon acquires a legion of devoted fans, but as her popularity grows, so do the lines between fantasy and reality, which begin to blur. As the world learns more about Miss Mutter, we soon realise that the woman underneath all the makeup and costume remains a mysterious figure with a spine-tingling secret. A secret is revealed when Miss Mutter invites her number one fan to spend the night with her for an intimate in-person session.
In Spoiling You, Tremethick ventures into new horror territory, taking the emotional relief brought about by ASMR and dragging it down into the dark realms of the uncanny. Citing inspiration from classic J-Horror and horror anime, such as Kiyoshi Kurosawa’s Pulse, Yoshiaki Kawajiri’s Wicked City, the psychological intensity of Satoshi Kon’s Perfect Blue, and the sheer dread of Takashi Miike’s Audition, Tremethick aims to make a film inspired by the golden era of J-Horror.
Megan said of the project, “I want to lure an audience used to the emotional comfort of ASMR and the sensuality of anime in order to create a horror experience that strikes at the softest core of the viewer. I want to build so much dread, that you’ll almost will yourself to pull away from the screen. I want to create a darkness that will draw you in… like a siren to the rocks. And, hopefully, you’ll love every minute of it.“
Sound will have a special part to play in Spoiling You, as it perverts the popular comfort ASMR has brought millions of people worldwide into a disturbing source of fear. Tremethick explains, “Sound plays such an integral role in horror films—be it the piercing strings that accompany a knife thrust, or the haunting atmosphere, that leaves you holding your breath. ASMR is a cultural phenomenon in which sound helps you to relax, and I want to do the opposite. I want to use sound as a weapon of terror that sends shivers down your spine. Actually… some of my tight-fitting costumes might have the same effect!”
Tremethick also has the support of experienced horror producer Lawrie Brewster of Hex Studios and Amicus Productions, who said: “Spoiling You focuses on the audience and their state of mind in a way that rekindled my fond memories of watching J-Horror for the first time, which for me consisted of Ju-On the Curse, on VCD before the sub-genre exploded into a cultural phenomenon. When Meg explained what a fan she was of Suicide Club (Suicide Circle) as well, I became excited at the prospect of just how creepy and fearless this film might become. So, I was delighted to lend whatever support I can, with gear, resources and distribution help from Hex Studios.“
Spoiling You has a Kickstarter Pre-Launch page, where those interested can select the ‘notify me on launch’ button. The campaign aims to go live later this month and will offer Blu-rays, film merchandise, and opportunities to play a small role (perhaps a victim!), or as a producer on the film. You can follow Megan on Instagram.
We have an exclusive clip from the upcoming Pandemonium, a unique cinematic blend of fantasy, drama, genre, and humour, ahead of its Blu-ray and ARROW streaming release.
In Pandemonium, director Quarxx (All the Gods in the Sky) explores the peculiar, welcoming all those hungry for wonder.
Synopsis:
Nathan (Hugo Dillon) and Daniel (Arben Bajraktaraj) are caught in a road accident that kills them both. As they come to grips with their deaths, Nathan confronts his past and the consequences of his actions. Now trapped in the hellish void of Pandemonium, he encounters tortured souls like Jeanne (Manon Maindivide), a disturbed child; Julia (Ophélia Kolb), a grief-stricken mother; and Norghul (Jean Rousseau), the guide of the great void. Will he find a way to escape the torment that awaits him for eternity?
Pandemonium takes the viewer on a chilling journey as three interconnected stories unravel in this macabre exploration of tales depicting fallen souls. From the intricacies of everyday drama to the realms of supernatural intrigue, each narrative weaves a haunting tapestry that blurs the lines between the mortal and the supernatural.
LIMITED EDITION CONTENTS
• High Definition (1080p) Blu-ray presentation • Original uncompressed stereo and 5.1 surround French audio • Optional English subtitles • Different Textures, a brand new interview with writer/director Quarxx • Tony The Monster, a brand new interview with writer/director Quarxx and special make-up/FX supervisor Olivier Afonso • Filming A Real Birth, a brand new interview with writer/director Quarxx sharing a behind-the-scenes look at the filming of a birth • Footage from the film’s 2023 premiere in Paris • Making of featurette • Trailer • Reversible sleeve featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Dare Creative • Double-sided fold-out poster featuring original and newly commissioned artwork by Dare Creative • Illustrated collector’s booklet featuring new writing on the film by Anton Bitel, and a director’s statement and director Q&A
Pandemonium will be released on Blu-ray and available to stream on ARROW from May 27th.
The MCU film is still scheduled to release July 25th, 2025, and hails from WandaVision helmer Matt Shakman, directing from a script by Eric Pearson, Josh Friedman, Jeff Kaplan and Ian Springer.
Natasha Lyonne was recently seen starring in the streaming series Poker Face on Peacock and Russian Doll on Netflix, and she is set to appear in Taika Waititi’s upcoming feature adaptation of Klara and the Sun opposite Jenna Ortega and Amy Adams. The actress is perhaps best known for her portrayal of Nicky Nichols on Netflix’s Orange Is the New Black (2013–2019).
Awards season continues with the Arthur C. Clarke Award, created in 1987 to promote science fiction. The shortlist for the 38th Arthur C. Clarke Award Science Fiction Book of the Year has been announced.
This year’s winner will be announced on Wednesday, 24th July 2024.
Chair of Judges, Dr Andrew M. Butler, said: “This year’s shortlist takes us from the deepest oceans to furthest outer space – with satire, time travel, aliens, octopuses, supercomputers and a six-legged Bambi. Many thanks to returning judge Stark Holborn and to neophytes Nic Clarke, Tom Dillon, Dolly Garland and Glyn Morgan for selecting six writers new to the Arthur C. Clarke Award. I suspect the final decision will be very close indeed.”
Award Director Tom Hunter added: “In addition to six new writers joining the Clarke Award’s shortlist ranks, we were delighted to receive submissions from a record-breaking 50 eligible publishing imprints this year. We hope this speaks to the future health and depth of the genre across the UK’s publishing industry even as the task of defining science fiction becomes ever more challenging for our judges!”
The winner will receive a trophy in the form of a commemorative engraved bookend and prize money to the value of £2024.00, a tradition that sees the annual prize money rise incrementally by year from the year 2001 in memory of Sir Arthur C. Clarke.
Good news, Tolkien fans: Prime Video has just granted us our first look at The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power season 2 with a teaser trailer, as well as a confirmed release date. The second season will premiere on the streaming platform on August 29th.
The teaser opens on Sauron’s (Charlie Vickers) face as we hear the voice of Durin IV (Owain Arthur) warning, “an evil, ancient and powerful, has returned.” Per Prime Video’s newly-released synopsis, “In Season Two of The Rings of Power, Sauron has returned. Cast out by Galadriel, without army or ally, the rising Dark Lord must now rely on his own cunning to rebuild his strength and oversee the creation of the Rings of Power, which will allow him to bind all the peoples of Middle-earth to his sinister will. Building on Season One’s epic scope and ambition, the new season plunges even its most beloved and vulnerable characters into a rising tide of darkness, challenging each to find their place in a world that is increasingly on the brink of calamity. Elves and dwarves, orcs and men, wizards and Harfoots… as friendships are strained and kingdoms begin to fracture, the forces of good will struggle ever more valiantly to hold on to what matters to them most of all… each other.”
Check out The Rings of Power season 2 teaser trailer below, and read our review of season 1 here.
Ever wanted to be an Elizabethan superstar fighting cosmic horrors? Jonathan Green’s latest project,Shakespeare Vs. Cthulhu: What Dreams May Come allows you to experience just that, but you’ll have to rush if you want to back it on Kickstarter.
Fans of Fighting Fantasy and similar game books may well know the line ‘You Are The Hero’ but in Shakespeare Vs. Cthulhu: What Dreams May Come, you are William Shakespeare himself. Alas, rather than writing a detailed treatise on why you aren’t secretly Sir Henry Neville or transcribing Love’s Labours Won onto some sturdy parchment, you are instead dealing with fishmen (inspired by both Lovecraft’s The Shadow Over Innsmouth andShakespeare’s The Tempest), as well as other horrors.
This book, designed to be played with dice or playing cards, comes from Jonathan Green, best known for his Fighting Fantasy books and the ACE Gamebook Alice’s Nightmare in Wonderland.
HBO has released the official trailer for House of the Dragon season 2, the prequel series to the incredibly popular and acclaimed Game of Thrones. This second season is due to premiere June 16th, and will consist of eight episodes.
In those episodes, the story will continue to chronicle the House Targaryen civil war – though after the death of *redacted* in season one’s breathless finale, things are sure to escalate drastically in this coming season, working up to the bloody ‘Dance of the Dragons’ – and is based on George R. R. Martin’s Fire & Blood. The new season features returning cast members Matt Smith, Olivia Cooke, Emma D’Arcy, Eve Best, Steve Toussaint, Fabien Frankel, Ewan Mitchell, Tom Glynn-Carney, Sonoya Mizuno, and Rhys Ifans. Additional cast reprising their season 1 roles includes Harry Collett, Bethany Antonia, Phoebe Campbell, Phia Saban, Jefferson Hall and Matthew Needham.
There’s also several new cast members that have come aboard for House of the Dragon season 2: Freddie Fox as Ser Gwayne Hightower, Simon Russell Beale as Ser Simon Strong, Clinton Liberty as Addam of Hull, Jamie Kenna as Ser Alfred Broome, Kieran Bew as Hugh, Tom Bennett as Ulf, Tom Taylor as Lord Cregan Stark, and Vincent Regan as Ser Rickard Thorne.
Watch the trailer for House of the Dragon season 2 below:
Shang-Chiand the Legend of the Ten Rings screenwriter Dave Callaham has lined up his next project, and is due to pen the next instalment of Legendary’s Godzilla v Kong franchise!
The announcement comes soon after the release of Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire. Adam Wingard directed the feature and created the story with regular collaborator Simon Barrett, and Terry Rossio. Legendary has signalled a desire to have Wingard return for another round in the director’s chair, but there’s no deal in play at the moment. The director has already lined up his next project, an original film with A24 titled Onslaught.
Meanwhile, this won’t be Callaham’s first round with Godzilla. The writer penned the early drafts (and received a story by credit) for Godzilla in 2014. The screenwriter is best known for originating The Expendables franchise and worked on films like Mortal Kombat, Wonder Woman 1984, and co-writing Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse. Dave Callaham is currently writing the third and final film in the series, Spider-Man: Beyond the Spider-Verse, with Phil Lord and Chris Miller.
No word yet on any of the ‘who, what, when’ details of this Legendary Monsterverse follow-up, but stay tuned for more news as we hear it.
