In the ‘90s, Scream led to a swath of teen ensemble horror franchises like Final Destination and I Know What You Did Last Summer. It’s now officially back into the game with last year’s hit movie and another film coming soon. So, it is not surprising that the franchise is inspiring others to dust off their dormant universes and return back for more gore. Deadline reports that an I Know What You Did Last Summer sequel will release on July 18, 2025.

And, we now know that Freddie Prinze, Jr. is officially returning for the I Still Know What You Did Last Summer sequel and reprising his role as Ray Bronson. The jury is still out for Jennifer Love Hewitt but she is expected to return… and Brandy also wants in on this movie.

In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Brandy basically says “I wanna be down” with the upcoming I Know What You Did Last Summer sequel (more of a reboot, maybe?) action. We do love us come Karla Wilson, who survived the events of I Still Know What You Did Last Summer.

“I need them to give me a call because I survived in that movie!” Brandy affirmed. “I came out in the end, bloodied up, ready to go. I did not die in that film… Jennifer, Freddie, hit me up.”

We don’t know if Brandy will be a part of it or not. But we do know that Camila Mendes of Riverdale fame won’t be in the I Know What You Did Last Summer reboot. According to Deadline, she’s going to be very busy with her new role as Teela in Masters of the Universe and the production dates between the two projects do not work.

We will have to wait and see what this next terrible summer includes. 

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Madelyn Cline, Sarah Pidgeon, Tyriq Withers and Jonah Hauer-King are all in talks to star in the movie. Jennifer Kaytin Robinson is set to direct this sequel.

If the original stars do come back, the I Know What You Did Last Summer sequel will likely follow a format similar to what we saw in Scream (2022). Legacy characters like Julie James (I guess) and Ray Bronson will return to help newer people get through a horrific antagonist is a win for longtime fans and new ones, too. It would be interesting, though, considering that the last time we saw these I Know What You Did Last Summer characters, it seemed that the hooked killer was about to murder them. Of course, this could have simply been Julie’s bad dream.

Thankfully, a canceled fourth film with their confirmed deaths didn’t take place. If both Julie James and Ray Bronson come back for an I Know What You Did Last Summer sequel, it will be interesting to see if they are still together and what their lives are like decades later.

Originally published on February 7, 2023.

The post Freddie Prinze, Jr. Is Officially Back for I KNOW WHAT YOU DID LAST SUMMER’s New Sequel appeared first on Nerdist.

Spooky season is upon us, and before you know it, it’ll be October 31. And as fans of the cult classic film Trick ‘r Treat know, that’s the night when the spirit of the holiday, Sam, emerges from hibernation. On the night of Halloween, he ensures the rules of the holiday are followed to the letter….or else. Now, fans of Mike Dougherty’s Trick ‘r Treat can celebrate mischievous little Sam with a new collection of stylish apparel from the folks at RSVLTS. These include button-up shirts, sweatshirts, crewneck tees, and hats. You can check them all out in down below:

Trick ‘r Treat “Candy and Costumes” Short Sleeve Shirt

The “School Bus Massacre” zombie trick-or-treaters join Sam on this shirt, which comes in men’s and women’s sizes. Both versions are $70.

Trick ‘r Treat Halloween Rules Short Sleeve Shirt

Sam emerges on All Hallow’s Eve to enforce the rules of the night, including not blowing out the candle on a Jack-o’-lantern before midnight. Otherwise, he gets grumpy. This shirt celebrates Sam’s strict rule enforcement and also comes in men’s and women’s sizes. Both are $70.

Trick ‘r Treat “Lollygagging” Short Sleeve Shirt

Sam’s favorite weapon is a half-bitten pumpkin lollipop. If you’ve seen the movie, you know the damage it can do. Like the previous two shirts, it also has men’s and women’s sizes available, and is priced at $70.

Trick ‘r Treat “Always Check Your Candy” Sweatshirt

Halloween rule #1: Always check your candy. Who knows what some weirdo might have done. This sweatshirt bears the iconic phrase from the film, and shows Sam emerging from a Jack-o’-lantern. You can buy this one for $75.

Trick ‘r Treat “Sinister and Sweet” Crewneck Tee

“Sinister and Sweet” is the perfect way to describe Sam, who rises out of a pumpkin on the back of this t-shirt. The crewneck shirt only sets you back $32.

Trick ‘r Treat “Smilin’ Sam” Dad Hat

A masked version of Sam adorns this “dad hat,” priced at $30.

You can order all of these Trick ‘r Treat items now on RSVLTS.com.

Editor’s Note: Nerdist is a subsidiary of Legendary Digital Networks

The post Sam Rules Halloween Night on New TRICK ‘R TREAT Shirts From RSVLTS appeared first on Nerdist.

While Universal Studios Orlando’s Halloween Horror Nights (HHN) gets the lion’s share of the attention, Universal Studios Hollywood’s own event is just as good, if not better at times. This is the 23rd year of the event, which has been scaring guests regularly during spooky season since 1997. We visited Universal Studios Hollywood’s HHN and now we are fully prepared to rank all eight of this year’s haunted house attractions, from the least frightening to the scariest.

8. Insidious: The Further

Insidious is one of the most popular horror franchises of the last decade. It has had five (soon to be six) films, and several haunted houses at HHN over the years. And this year’s Insidious house, The Further, celebrates all the demonic entities that exist in that supernatural realm. This haunted house has a lot of great scare actors throughout, jumping out at you to the tune of “Tiptoe Through the Tulips.” We appreciate a house that has a copious amount of jump scares throughout.

So why is it at the bottom of our HHN Hollywood rankings? Here’s why: there’s a room in this haunted house that recreates a bathroom where a dummy dressed as a man is throwing up into a toilet. And they actually pump in vomit smells into the room. Look, we really don’t need that level of immersion, Universal. It’s just gross. We can kind of understand why you had vomit smells in The Exorcist attractions of years past. However, the Insidious house shouldn’t make us want to puke ourselves.

7. Dead Exposure: Death Valley

This year’s “science gone wrong” haunted house takes us into a secret government lab deep in the desert, where things have recently taken a turn for the worse. We’re not sure what went wrong in this lab, but there’s toxic waste, (projected) flames, and lots of dead bodies in encased in plastic bags. Actually, it’s the monkeys they’ve experimented on that creep us out the most, that appear in the beginning of the experience. Pure nightmare fuel. While this house has many toxic waste-zombified creatures, far too many of them are static dummies and not actual scare actors. There’s also a path of blood on the floor you think would lead to something scarier. The theming is top-notch for this haunted house, but the lack of good jump scares puts this one closer to the bottom of our ranking.

6. Universal Monsters: Eternal Bloodlines

Universal Studios started modern horror cinema (and cinematic universes) with their Universal Monsters in the ‘30s and ‘40s. So almost every year, HHN gives us a Universal Monsters-themed haunted house of some kind. This year, it was Eternal Bloodlines, where we follow a female Van Helsing descendent as she fights creatures of the night. We see a lot of a warrior Bride of Frankenstein, and a few assorted ghouls wandering the halls. But we don’t encounter Dracula, the Wolfman, or Frankenstein till the very end of the experience. So we have to knock off a point or two for that. We think 2022’s Legends Collide and last year’s Unmasked were better Universal Monsters haunted houses overall.

5: Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire

We weren’t crazy about Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire as a movie. Yet in terms of detail and adherence in recreating that film, this haunted house succeeds. We enter through Ray’s Occult Books, recreating a key location from the movie. After, we journey into other locales from the film’s narrative. The best part of this house is the scene where a group of 1900s-era firefighters become frozen solid by supernatural means. The “frozen” scare actors actually convinced us they were dummies and genuinely scared us when they “thawed,” so to speak.

We were startled here and there in the Frozen Empire haunted house by Slimer and the occasional Terror Dog. But this one is perhaps the least traditionally scary haunted house this year. As much as well love it, Ghostbusters is just not that scary of a franchise, let’s be honest. But we don’t suggest you skip it, because getting to wander in the Ghostbusters’ firehouse as they try to capture spooks is worth it. Still, this one can’t compete with the excellent Universal haunted house that recreated the original Ghostbusters back in 2019. That one was an all-time favorite.

4. The Weeknd: Nightmare Trilogy

This is the third haunted house at HHN centering around pop megastar The Weeknd, which takes us on a journey of his deepest, darkest nightmares. It’s mostly a series of demented nightclubs featuring demons, psychedelic imagery, and monstrous versions of the singer in various stages of torture. There’s even a version of him where he’s some kind of demonic baby in a bathtub full of blood. (Don’t ask.) The creepiest and coolest part is a walkway with several giant neon eyeballs. Some of these eyeballs are, of course, scare actors waiting to jump out at you. The weirdest part is when you get to a torture chamber where various versions of the singer are mutilated to the sound of his own music. We don’t know exactly what The Weeknd is working through considering the content of these attractions but we can’t lie, it’s entertaining!

3. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Legacy of Leatherface

Tobe Hooper’s The Texas Chainsaw Massacre turns fifty this year. So of course, HHN needed to have a haunted house to honor Leatherface and family on their golden anniversary. From the moment you enter the Hooper & Henkel Meat Processing Plant and are greeted by a scare actor wearing a dead cow’s head, you know you’re in for a gruesome good time. Leatherface and his demented family immediately greet you with buzzing chainsaws. Not to mention all the corpses of their poor victims ready to become lunch.

The best jump scare moment comes as one of the twisted family members rips the face off what looks like a dummy on the table, exposing his mutilated musculature underneath, only for him to suddenly move and scream bloody murder, revealing he’s not a dummy at all. This got a real yelp out of us. We noted some unpleasant odors wafting in, but nothing that revolting. Between that, all the barrels of decomposing corpses, and human meaty bits thrown all over the place, this one is definitely the most revolting haunted house at HHN this year.

2. Monstrous 2: The Legends of Latin America

Latin America has a vibrant spooky mythology of its own, which HHN has explored before. A few years back, they gave us the Legend of La Llorona house. And this year, they’ve sequelized Monstrous: The Legends of Latin America with a part 2. From the start, where you enter a dusty crypt with crumbling skeletons, you know you’re in for some good theming. The first monster who jumps at you is El Charro Negro from Mexican folklore, who appears as an undead mariachi.

Several genuinely creepy hell hounds growl at you, too. But the best creature in the house is El Chuy, whose massive claws pop out from under a child’s bed in a very cool effect. But the best part is when its massive head emerges out of a cave wall, and it’s legit terrifying. That grand finale moment makes this one a favorite of the night.

1. A Quiet Place

A Quiet Place is one of the biggest horror franchises of the modern era, so it was high time they got a haunted house of their own at Universal HHN. Despite A Quiet Place: Day One is still fresh in everyone’s minds, but this haunted house focuses on the first film. We’re taken to the remote Abbot family farmhouse from the original, and actors appear throughout the house reminding you that you need to stay completely silent, or else the creatures will sense you and have you for breakfast.

The Death Angels, the blind aliens from the franchise, are this haunted house’s highlight. And they appear quite often in the form of giant screeching animatronics, some that are among the best HHN has ever made. A few of these are so detailed and genuinely screen worthy, like the one who hovers over the baby’s crib recreating a scene from the film. Between the animatronics and the generous amount of scare points along the attraction, A Quiet Place truly raises the bar for HHN Haunted Houses. This is the one you want to make sure you see this year.

The post All the Haunted Houses at Universal Hollywood Halloween Horror Nights, Ranked appeared first on Nerdist.

Horror continues to take some inventive swings in this post-Get Out era. From Smile to Barbarian, there are some premises that truly stand out from the crowd. And it looks like we will be able to add Netflix’s Don’t Move, a film produced by the legendary Sam Raimi, to the list. It gives us quite the tough question to answer. What would you do if you only had 20 minutes to escape a serial killer while your body is slowly shutting down from paralysis? Well, I honestly don’t know besides run as fast and far as I can and try to find a place to hide until the awful meds wear off… if they do wear off. The first trailer for Don’t Move is fantastic, giving us intense action without giving away too much of the movie. That’s certainly key with a seemingly on-the-nose premise like this one. 

In the clip, we see a woman who is watching a timer on her phone and trying to escape peril. There are several shots of her running, hiding, and even trying to speak to people before her body totally shuts down altogether. We don’t know her name nor why this man is trying so hard to kill her. Well, besides the fact that he’s just psychotic. He even explains exactly what will happen to her at certain points, which means he’s a pro at this awful game of cat and mouse. 

Here’s a synopsis for Don’t Move to accompany that intense trailer: 

A grieving woman hoping to find solace deep in an isolated forest encounters a stranger who injects her with a paralytic agent. As the agent gradually takes over her body, she must run, hide, and fight for her life before her entire nervous system shuts down.

What Is the Release Date for Netflix’s Don’t Move Horror Movie? 

The film stars Kelsey Asbille, Finn Wittrock, Moray Treadwell, and Daniel Francis. Don’t Move will hit Netflix just in time for Halloween on October 25.

The post DON’T MOVE Trailer Teases a Timed Cat-and-Mouse Game with a Twisted Serial Killer appeared first on Nerdist.

Door-to-door evangelizing seems like a lot of hard work. You have to be out in the elements and spreading the word of your Lord and Savior, often to people who really don’t want to hear it. I’d imagine there are a ton of people who either ignore you, slam the door in your face, or curse you out. And, if you’re a woman, there’s always that extra risk of a guy doing or saying something to make you feel super uncomfortable. But I never thought that a missionary occupational hazard would be running into a lunatic who holds you hostage in their house for weird mental games. That’s what happens in Heretic, an A24 psychological thriller starring Hugh Grant, Yellowjackets’ star Sophie Thatcher, and Chloe East with a trailer that teases a house of horrors. 

In the clip, Thatcher and Chloe are two young missionaries trying to spread knowledge about Jesus Christ. Their somewhat meek demeanors mean they are dismissed by most people. Nevertheless, they continue to bike around town and try to save souls. They go to a random, secluded house (red flag #1) where Grant’s far-too-friendly Mr. Reed lives. He invites them inside (red flag #2) and insists that it’s okay because his wife is there (red flag #3).

Things soon go down a dark path when they realize they are locked in. Mr. Reed says they can go but they have to choose between two doorways: one for believers and one for those who do not believe. I’m pretty sure there are terrible things behind both doors. The Heretic trailer is a fun peek that doesn’t give away too much but gives us the gift of a diabolical Hugh Grant. We love when he plays a villain.

Here’s the synopsis for Heretic: 

Two young missionaries are forced to prove their faith when they knock on the wrong door and are greeted by a diabolical Mr. Reed (Hugh Grant), becoming ensnared in his deadly game of cat-and-mouse.

What Is the Release Date for A24’s Heretic Movie Starring Hugh Grant? 

Heretic will hit theaters on November 15, 2024.

Originally published June 25, 2024.

The post Hugh Grant Holds Missionaries Hostage in a Horror House in HERETIC Trailer appeared first on Nerdist.

The upcoming sixth season of FX’s What We Do in the Shadows will sadly be its last. And to be blunt, we are just not ready to say goodbye yet to our favorite undead housemates Nandor, Laszlo, Nadja, and Colin Robinson. But for those of us who want to keep our favorite bumbling vampires alive past the series finale, we now have a way to keep them truly immortal. Thanks to Comicbook.com, we’ve learned that a What We Do in the Shadows edition of the Clue board game is here. And it’s here just in time for Halloween season.

In the new edition of Clue, you’ll get to play as the vampire roommates along with The Guide in an attempt to find Laszlo’s 100% Witch Skin Hat. This is a reference to a particularly hilarious episode of the series. And as fans of the show know, that Witch Skin Hat isn’t something one actually wants. You’ll search for clues through iconic locations from the show’s Staten Island residence. It’s all in an effort to find out just who would dare take Laszlo’s precious hat. Whoever did it, they’ll probably just find a way to blame poor Guillermo.

Click To View Gallery

You can pick up a copy right now directly from The Op Games for $44.99. It’s already in stock and shipping. Meaning that you have plenty of time to order it and have a game night every night in October. The game includes 6 suspect movers, 21 Rumor Cards, and 25 Intrigue Cards. We’re glad they let poor Guillermo receive his own suspect mover. Usually, they’d make him sleep in the tool shed or something and not be part of the fun. They treat their familiar so badly.

What We Do in the Shadows season six premieres on FX on October 21.

The post WHAT WE DO IN THE SHADOWS Now Has Its Own CLUE Board Game appeared first on Nerdist.

The Black Phone caused some division and stirs among horror fans for quite a few reasons. But one thing that people cannot deny is how darn creepy Ethan Hawke was as The Grabber, a 1970s era child abductor and murder who wears frightening masks. He is a classic boogeyman for sure. Either way, the film did well enough that Universal Pictures and Blumhouse are giving us a sequel to The Black Phone. For now, it is being called The Black Phone 2 and has a growing cast as well as a spooky release date. 

The Black Phone 2’s Cast and Crew

The Black Phone‘s original cast will all return for its sequel, which includes Ethan Hawke, Mason Thames, Madeleine McGraw, Jeremy Davies, and Miguel Mora. In addition to them, Deadline reports that Demián Bichir will join The Black Phone 2’s cast as well. His face is pretty familiar to horror fans from films like The Grudge (2020), The Nun (2018), and Alien: Covenant (2017). Scott Derrickson and C. Robert Cargill will also return to write The Black Phone 2. 

The Black Phone 2’s Release Date 

The Black Phone 2’s release date is currently October 17, 2025.

The post THE BLACK PHONE 2 Adds Demián Bichir to Its Cast appeared first on Nerdist.

If streaming numbers are anything to go buy, our collective fascination with serial killers and horrifying true crime has all but taken over our lives. People who find bloody action movies distasteful might spend hours every evening hearing about depraved and grisly murders in explicit detail and think nothing of it. It’s an odd fixation we collectively have. How could someone, your neighbor or coworker, do something so heinous? That fixation and central question lies at the heart of Red Rooms one of the most upsetting and pulse-pounding thrillers I’ve seen in a long time.

Red Rooms garnered festival acclaim in 2023 and, as with many smaller titles, finally gets a wider release this year. Writer-director Pascal Plante focuses on the kinds of people—young women in this case—who become obsessed with serial killer cases and even in some instances become infatuated by the accused monsters. His lead character Kelly-Anne (Juliette Gariépy) and her motivations are so unknowable and seemingly disturbed and disturbing, and yet so fascinating, that we can’t take our eyes off of her.

The story revolves around the trial of accused serial murderer Ludovic Chevalier (Maxwell McCabe-Lokos). He is suspected of not only the brutal torture and murder of three school girls but of filming his actions. Those tapes went to the highest bidder on the dark web, in so-called Red Rooms. Only two of the videos have surfaced, to screen in the courtroom. While the media has roundly decided Chevalier is guilty, reasonable doubt makes the trial less open-and-shut.

Kelly-Anne, a model and Montreal local, camps out every morning in order to secure a seat in the courtroom to hear all the gory details and observe the accused in the stocks and the families of the victims. Kelly-Anne lives an otherwise modest existence. She’s a fashion model, yes, but her apartment is small and sparse. She spends most of her free time either playing racquetball alone or surfing the dark web. We soon learn she is obsessed with finding the final murder video, but to what end we don’t know.

Not long into her routine she meets Clementine (Laurie Babin), a young runaway who made her way to Montreal for the trial with next to nothing but a strong belief in Chevalier’s innocence. Despite herself, Kelly-Anne starts spending time with Clementine and the two spark a very strained friendship. Has Clementine found an ally in Kelly-Anne? Or is Kelly-Anne merely using Clementine’s fanaticism for her own strange purposes? Like with most everything in Red Rooms, Plante plays everything close to the vest.

We spend so much time with Kelly-Anne but, credit to Plante and to Gariépy’s incredible performance, we never get a sense of her true motivations. We don’t know if she believes in Chevalier’s innocence or is merely obsessed with the crimes themselves. Or if she believes he did it but idolizes him all the same. All we get are Kelly-Anne’s actions which go from confusing to troubling to downright shocking as the movie progresses. People throw around Taxi Driver whenever they talk about a lone, unhinged protagonist. While that’s apt here, the fact that this isn’t the “typical” creepy loner is part of what makes Red Rooms so compelling.

Plante displays some absolutely bravura filmmaking here. The film’s opening is a seven-minute unbroken shot of the two attorneys giving their opening statements to the jury. The camera floats around as we hear the depraved and horrendous fates of the three young victims. We get an absolute sense of the geography of the courtroom, the faces of the major players, before finally resting on Kelly-Anne’s stoic, unmoved face. It’s an amazing way to give us the circumstances, and to show us our protagonist’s unreadable expressions amid all of this horror.

The film also contains one of the tensest sequences of someone typing alone in their apartment I’ve ever seen. I won’t spoil what happens or why, but as the climax of the movie, Kelly-Anne going back and forth between illicit websites, and again the tremendous performance from Gariépy, is as breathlessly exciting as anything you’d find in a Mission: Impossible movie. One review from last year said Red Rooms “Out-Finchers Fincher” and this scene is exactly what they mean.

I think Red Rooms is an incredibly poignant and profoundly upsetting movie. I never thought a thriller about true crime junkies would be this effective, but I cannot stop thinking about it. I’m sure you won’t either.

Red Rooms is in limited release now. If you get a chance to see it, don’t miss it.

Red Rooms ⭐ (4.5 of 5)

Kyle Anderson is the Senior Editor for Nerdist. He hosts the weekly pop culture deep-dive podcast Laser Focus. You can find his film and TV reviews here. Follow him on Instagram and Letterboxd.

The post Thriller RED ROOMS Will Make You Feel Icky, in the Best Way appeared first on Nerdist.

Alien: Romulus from director Fede Álvarez functions as a sequel to Ridley Scott’s original Alien from 1979, while also referencing his more recent prequel films, Prometheus and Alien: Covenant. Álvarez combined elements of both of those films for a wild third act that has everyone talking, because it’s pure nightmare fuel. Here, we’ll break down the ties to the other films in the franchise, and what the future might hold for further Alien installments. Especially after that wild ending left audiences gagged.

Before we dig into it all, here’s a look peek into the horrors of Alien: Romulus and its ending.

How Alien: Romulus Ties into Alien and Prometheus

When Alien: Romulus begins, we see a space probe has discovered the remains of the Nostromo, the mining vessel destroyed at the end of the original Alien. This is some 17 years after the events of that film. As you might recall, before fleeing in her escape pod, Ripley blasted the Xenomorph out of the airlock. As a “perfect organism,” it survived in space with no nutrients by going into a cocoon mode. That same Xenomorph was discovered near the remains of the Nostromo. It is brought back to a space station named the Renaissance, in orbit of the ringed planet Jackson’s Star. This takes us to the year 2142, twenty years after the events of Alien.

The Weyland-Yutani Company Is Once Again the True Villain

The Weyland-Yutani scientists working there try to experiment on the Xenomorph. But of course, it breaks free, killing the crew and creating new baby Xenomorphs, and releasing a metric ton of facehuggers. When labor worker Rain (Cailee Spaeny) and her friends from Jackson’s Star, including her synthetic “brother” Andy (David Jonsson) pilot the mining ship Corbelan to the station in hopes of finding cryo pods to escape to a more hospitable world than their own, they find no one alive on the station. All that’s left is a half-functioning synthetic scientist named Rook, the same model as the android Ash from the Nostromo (played by Ian Holm). He explains to Rain and the others what happened on the station.

The scientists in the Romulus lab aboard the station performed experiments on the captured Xenomorph, discovering a new form of the black goo from Prometheus. In fact, the scientists give that tar-like substance the name “the Prometheus strain.” With this strain, the Weyland-Yutani scientists believed they could reverse engineer it to create a cure for all human illnesses and build “a perfect human lifeform” of their own which they could then exploit on dangerous and inhospitable mining worlds as a labor force. The scientists in the lab synthesized this strain, but all hell broke loose before any samples could leave the station.

The Birth of a Human/Engineer/Xenomorph Hybrid Being

One of Rain’s friends from the Corbelan, Kay (Isabela Merced), was already pregnant when she escaped to the station. As the Xenomorphs pick off the Corbelan crew one by one, one of them captures Kay. Eventually, Rain and Andy find Kay in a cocoon, free her, and take her with them as they try to escape the station. Kay survives her injuries, but she chooses to inject the experimental sample into herself to increase her odds of survival. To paraphrase Aliens, this was a very bad call on her part.

Kay then suddenly gives birth to an egg. It hatches into a rapidly growing human-Xenomorph creature. The terrifying being looks part Xenomorph and also very similar to the Engineers from Prometheus. It kills its mother and nearly kills Andy, damaging him significantly. Rain ejects the cargo pod and the creature onto the asteroid rings of Jackson’s Star, and gets back control of the ship, and manages to escape with the damaged Andy. They go into cryo sleep, hoping to land on a more hospitable world than the hell they left behind. Even if it takes years to get there.

What Happens After Alien: Romulus?

Will someone find the remains of the creature in the rings of Jackson’s Star? And will the Company try again to replicate it? And what happens to Rain and Andy now? Just like Ripley (and Jones the cat) in Alien, they might float in cryo for years or decades. The universe they wake up in might be very different. Fede Álvarez clearly embraces the entire canon of the Alien franchise here. So whatever comes next likely continues building on what’s come before. For all we know, she arrives on Earth in the year 2381 or after, and encounters Ellen Ripley. We’re not saying that’s what will happen, but “going to sleep and waking up in a messed up world” is part of this franchise’s DNA. Anything can happen now.

Originally published August 16, 2024.

The post The Wild Ending of ALIEN: ROMULUS, and What It Means for the Future of the Franchise appeared first on Nerdist.

Werewolves are some of the best creatures in horror. A person who can turn into a hairy and howling creature ready to rip apart anything in its path is indeed a vibe. The werewolf is just as much of a scary story and Halloween staple as vampires, witches, and goblins. So there’s no surprise that there are still movies telling the story of a person (usually a man) who transforms into something deadly and dangerous. That’s what we get in the first teaser trailer for Universal Pictures’ Wolf Man. I really wish it was coming out in October instead of January because it gives Halloween energy. 

Prior to this clip’s release, Universal revealed a first look at Wolf Man’s werewolf design at Halloween Horror Nights in Orlando. And, well, people were not super jazzed about how it looked. Fans were hoping that this design wouldn’t reflect what we’d see in the actual movie. Sadly, the Wolf Man teaser trailer doesn’t give us a clear look at the creature. Perhaps we will get more of a look when the full trailer drops.

Here’s the synopsis for Wolf Man: 

Golden Globe nominee Christopher Abbott (Poor Things, It Comes at Night) stars as Blake, a San Francisco husband and father, who inherits his remote childhood home in rural Oregon after his own father vanishes and is presumed dead. With his marriage to his high-powered wife, Charlotte (Emmy winner Julia Garner; Ozark, Inventing Anna), fraying, Blake persuades Charlotte to take a break from the city and visit the property with their young daughter, Ginger (Matlida Firth; Hullraisers, Coma).

But as the family approaches the farmhouse in the dead of night, they’re attacked by an unseen animal and, in a desperate escape, barricade themselves inside the home as the creature prowls the perimeter. As the night stretches on, however, Blake begins to behave strangely, transforming into something unrecognizable, and Charlotte will be forced to decide whether the terror within their house is more lethal than the danger without.

What Is the Release Date for the Wolf Man Movie?

Wolf Man will hit theaters on January 17.

The post WOLF MAN Trailer Brings Bloody and Howling Horror to Oregon Woods appeared first on Nerdist.

When your world feels like it’s upside down, sometimes a simple smile can turn things around. Smiles are a universal language that often evoke a sense of happiness, peace, and camaraderie. So of course horror would take this sweet gesture and make it extremely uncomfortable. That’s what we got with Smile (2022) and Paramount Pictures is upping the ante with its sequel, aptly titled Smile 2, which boasts a trailer full of jump scares and sinister smirks. 

As a horror fan, I will go and check this movie out. However, I am also managing my expectations. There was a very unique, specific vibe in the first film that Smile 2 is veering far away from. It feels more like run-of-the-mill horror fare versus something that truly gave us a unique and chilling narrative. But, I ain’t mad at Parker Finn, who is returning to write and direct this sequel, for getting his money. If I had a successful film and a major studio paid me to do another one, I’d jump on it immediately, too. And who knows? Smile 2 might deliver some swings and surprises that we don’t see in the trailer to really set it apart from other jump scare laden films.

Here’s a synopsis for Smile 2 to go along with this creepy trailer: 

About to embark on a new world tour, global pop sensation Skye Riley (Naomi Scott) begins experiencing increasingly terrifying and inexplicable events. Overwhelmed by the escalating horrors and the pressures of fame, Skye is forced to face her dark past to regain control of her life before it spirals out of control.

One thing I can say is the poster for Smile 2 absolutely rules. 

What Is the Release Date for Smile 2?

Smile 2 will hit theaters right in time for Halloween on October 18.

The post SMILE 2 Trailer Packs in Jump Scares, Sinister Smirks, and Parasitic Terror appeared first on Nerdist.

A24’s The Front Room is a marriage of fairytale tropes like the evil stepmother with the horror fare of religious zealotry that can turn bloody. The Front Room follows Belinda—played by Brandy Norwood in her first return to horror since I Still Know What You Did Last Summer—who is expecting a baby with her spouse Norman (Andrew Burlap). Things aren’t quite what Belinda wants them to be in terms of work and getting their house ready for their bundle of joy. And it gets much, much worse when Norman’s estranged (and racist) stepmom Solange (Kathryn Hunter) moves in and begins to cause a ton of trouble. We spoke to Brandy Norwood and Kathryn Hunter about The Front Room‘s themes, character building, and more. 

Nerdist: This question is for both of you. When you first got the script for The Front Room, what aspects of the film made you want to be a part of it? 

Brandy Norwood: I thought the script was amazing and I loved my character. I felt like it was a role that could really push me and expand my acting, and I wanted to see if I could pull something like that off. And I haven’t been into the horror genre in a long time, so I thought that it was a perfect way to get back into it. 

Kathryn Hunter: When my agent said “It’s a horror movie,” I went, “Oh, no.” Then I read it and it kind of escaped all the clichés of horror. It’s a story about family, about social, political, and racial issues. The horror is vested in those things rather than slashing off noses and fingers. This is an adaptation of the original Susan Hill story, which is itself wonderful, but what [directors/writers] Max and Sam [Eggers] have achieved in the adaptation is really brilliant… I think their work is absolutely astonishing. The characters are so detailed… I mean, Solange just leapt off the page. 

The characters are absolutely engaging. Brandy, you mentioned that The Front Room is your first time returning to horror in a really long time. What was this experience like, especially playing someone who is so starkly different from Karla Wilson in I Still Know What You Did Last Summer? 

Norwood: I did a lot of work on my role. I worked with [an acting] coach and I was surrounded by an amazing cast. I feel like Kathryn Hunter brought out the best in me! I never knew what she was going to do in any particular part of the scenes, so I had to stay on my toes and react and stay very present. And Sam and Max [Eggers] made the environment and the atmosphere a place where I can feel free to try to do different things. 

Absolutely. I find Solange to be so chilling, Kathryn. I know you build a character from what’s on the script page, but where else did you draw from when creating her persona? 

Hunter: Max and Sam shared that their grandfather came to stay with them when they were in their teens. And so a lot was based on that relationship with this person who was suffering from getting old, who was magnificent in some ways, and completely terrifying in other ways. So it was listening to those stories. Throughout my life, I’ve had quite close relationships with older people, too. The whole kind of religious and racist thing was something I had to explore and that was very challenging… It seems, unfortunately, extremely relevant now. 

That is a sad truth. There are a lot of relevant themes in this movie, like motherhood and wild religious beliefs. But this film also explores the unequal labor that gets forced upon and expected of women in the household. Can you all talk more about how The Front Room tackles this in a compelling way? 

Norwood: Belinda automatically feels as though she has to accommodate Solange and to take care of her, to provide a space for her to feel comfortable. And you find her being manipulated and used, and it is a battle and a fight. In every scene, she’s like “I’m fighting for my life, for my integrity, for my dignity.” She’s trying to not disrespect Solange and make her feel like she is a part of the family. 

Hunter: The role of caretaker is taken by Belinda because that’s how she is as a person, but also perhaps because it’s a default position with women. So eventually when Belinda comes to free herself of that and says, “I am a mother, but my vocation is in teaching,” we absolutely salute that and it’s a huge catharsis. Did you feel that liberation?

Yes, absolutely. And that’s not the only catharsis that happens in this film. We get a twist that many won’t necessarily expect. What revelations do you hope fans come away with after seeing that moment and this film? 

Norwood: I hope they feel liberated. I hope they enjoy the film and find the horror and comedy in it. I want them to see a strong woman fighting for her life, fighting for her freedom, and fighting for her family and just knowing that she can do anything, but she’s not going to put up with everything. 

Indeed. What does The Front Room bring to this very varied and exciting current horror landscape? 

Hunter: I think it’s absolutely extraordinary and brilliant the way Max and Sam have calibrated the tone. You get scared and then you’re disarmed because it has resonances with all sorts of family situations that we’ve all been in… I think it is absolutely unique and genius. 

When it comes to horror, the Eggers Brothers create those tonal shifts, but it doesn’t feel chaotic or uneven. They just kind of ebb and flow right into each other really well! One more fun question for you, Brandy. Would Karla or Belinda win in a fight? 

Norwood: I think Belinda would win! Karla was facing hooks and chains, but Belinda was facing the possession of the Holy Spirit. That’s different.

See if Brandy can proudly proclaim that “The house is mine!” when The Front Room hits theaters on September 6.

The post THE FRONT ROOM’s Brandy Norwood and Kathryn Hunter on the Horror Film’s Hellish Themes appeared first on Nerdist.

Although not advertised as such, the iconic horror classic Rosemary’s Baby is getting a prequel film this fall. Apartment 7A is heading straight to streamer Paramount+ just in time for Halloween. This time, there’s no Rosemary Woodhouse staying at the infamous Dakota apartments in New York, with the story instead centering on a minor character from the original film, Terry Gionoffrio, now played by Julia Garner. Oscar-winner Diane Wiest and Kevin McNally now portray the creepy old couple from Rosemary’s Baby, the Castevets. You can check out the unsettling new trailer for Apartment 7A right here.

The film takes place in 1965, presumable at least a few months before the events of Rosemary’s Baby. Judging from the trailer, both Diane Wiest and Kevin McNally do an eerily spot-on impression of Minnie and Roman Castavet, the elderly couple from Roman Polanski’s original 1968 film. Dianne Weist especially does a perfect imitation of actress Ruth Gordon, who won an Oscar for the role of the nosey neighbor who (surprise!) actually worshipped the Devil and was trying to bring about the Antichrist. It’s great to see Diane Wiest in a horror film again, some 35 years after her role as the lovable mom in The Lost Boys.

Natalie Erika James is the director for Apartment 7A, from a screenplay she co-wrote with Christian White and Skylar James. Hopefully, this will be as good as some other recent prequels to iconic horror films we’ve seen recently. Films we first assumed were nothing more than just cash grabs. Among them is The First Omen, released earlier this year, which was actually quite good. Who saw that coming? Everyone was surprised at how good that ended up. Apartment 7A is premiering first at Fantastic Fest later this fall, before its debut on Paramount+ on September 27 and, if the trailer is any indication, it will be scarily good.

The post APARTMENT 7A’s Trailer Sets Up a Creepy Prequel to ROSEMARY’S BABY appeared first on Nerdist.

In this forgotten corner of Texas, secrets are buried deep, and the tales they don’t speak of come to life. They dismiss it as the ramblings of an old timer, but some laugh knowing the dark truth that lurks beneath: the face of madness has returned, Leatherface lives.

In 2022, Netflix and Legendary Entertainment’s Texas Chainsaw Massacre added another gory chapter to the enduring story of the iconic, chainsaw-wielding horror villain Leatherface. The quiet town of Harlow, Texas’ hulking and homicidal maniac comes out of retirement for a fresh killing spree after an unsuspecting group of influencers attempt to revitalize and commercialize the area. Now, you can immerse yourself into the horrors of Texas Chainsaw Massacre thanks to Six Flags Fright Fest’s newest Haunted Maze Experience, coming this September to Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson Township, NJ and, of course, Six Flags Over Texas in Arlington. We have your exclusive first look at the Texas Chainsaw Massacre attraction and all the details behind how it went from conception to completion. 

Click To View Gallery

As you can see, the Six Flags Texas Chainsaw Massacre experience boasts much blood and gore to frighten and delight diehard horror fanatics. Several scenes from the film come to life in a brilliant way, including the sunflower field where the sheriff’s van crashes and Leatherface begins his latest reign of terror. There’s also the “crawl of death” that depicts the disgusting catacombs under the orphanage, Harlow’s ominous “dead street,” and the infamous party bus slaughter. (Don’t worry, there are more images below!)

Guests will become the unlucky visitors of this town just as the resurgence of Leatherface happens. He’s donning a new face, revving his chainsaw, and ready to slaughter any unfortunate soul who crosses his path. The Texas Chainsaw Massacre maze will be like climbing into your television and straight into the a horror show.

“You will follow the movie in a linear fashion,” says Allison Fox from RWS Global, who partnered with Six Flags and Legendary Entertainment to craft this experience. “So you’ll see some iconic moments. You’re going to see Sally [Hardesty] in her barn getting ready to fight. You’re going to see the orphanage. You will witness a murder from underneath the bed just like Melody did in the orphanage… You’ll see the iconic party bus, and then you get to see Sally and Leatherface’s showdown, which doesn’t really end well for Sally. And then there’s the grand finale, which I’m not even going to talk about, because you have to experience it yourself!”

With chilling and intense scenes like these, it’s clear why this film was chosen for a Six Flags maze experience. “We wanted to do Halloween no other year, and so we started ideating around the concept of bringing IP [intellectual property] to elevate the experience because movies that are about Halloween are the ultimate scare,” said Edithann “EA” Ramey, the Chief Fright Officer at Six Flags. (Yes, EA has the coolest title and job ever: to create haunted houses and immersive experiences during Fright Fest season.) 

Click To View Gallery

“I actually went online and googled what the top franchises are when it comes to [horror], because I don’t love to be scared,” Ramey continued. “So I had to educate myself on what was out there. That particular movie’s IP is at the top and we are based in Dallas, Texas… When I had conversations with our operators about my working list of potential IP, they were like, ‘you have to have Texas Chainsaw Massacre.’ [There were] all these people on our team saying it’s kind of part of our DNA.” 

Both Six Flags and RWS Global acknowledge the expertise of Legendary Entertainment with not only this film but with the franchise as a whole. Similar to the theme park’s Fright Fest endeavors, Legendary’s aim during Halloween season is to celebrate its horror franchises in innovative ways.

“When it came to Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2022), I was tasked with finding a partner who could match our passion and embrace the film’s unique blend of fresh twists and sheer madness,” said Amado Trevino, Director of Interactive Media & Experiences for Legendary Entertainment. “We found that perfect partner in Six Flags, whose commitment to delivering the ultimate Fright Fest experience made them the ideal collaborator. With the expertise of RWS behind us, we knew we had the perfect recipe for a truly unforgettable event.”

Fox and her RWS team had the challenging yet thrilling task of figuring out how to translate Texas Chainsaw Massacre’s most terrifying aspects to reality. According to Fox, it was not only about maintaining the authenticity of this film but also honoring the franchise’s overall legacy as it celebrates its 50th anniversary. 

“This is the first time that this film has been turned into a live experience anywhere,” Fox tells us. “It was challenging because we wanted to see all of it. And you can’t build a lot of this particular movie in practical environments. So the first step was saying, ‘Okay, we need these scenes to tell a cohesive story to understand what’s happening.’ And then the second step was, ‘Can we build these things in a practical environment and still execute them?’ And we surprised ourselves, to be honest.”

Out of all the scenes, there’s one that everyone believes will thrill guests the most. “One of, I think, and the brand agrees, the best scenes in this maze is the party bus massacre,” Fox continues. “It’s probably the most intense, fantastic scene in the movie. So to be able to recreate that scene was great. Guests are walking onto the bus and don’t know where Leatherface is coming from. There’s piles of bodies and blood and rain and thunder happening outside, and it’s super disorienting. Bringing that into a practical environment was like, ‘We did it!’ It’s really going to be something spectacular.” 

Ramey hopes that Six Flags guests who experience this attraction will leave and tell others about how awesome it is… and perhaps want another round with Leatherface. “I want my guests to walk out of this experience having felt like it was real and a great representation of the film,” affirms Ramey. “I want them to feel like they went through something fantastic, and I want them to say, ‘I want to do it again.’ and get back in line!”

“This experience promises non-stop scares, jaw-dropping moments, and a level of immersion that’ll stick with you,” adds Trevino. “So, gear up to face your fears and find out what all the “buzz” is about.”

Do you have what it takes to survive Leatherface’s wrath? Find the answer to that question when the Texas Chainsaw Massacre experience opens at Six Flags Great Adventure and Six Flags Over Texas in September. It will continue its reign of terror until November 3. For more information, head to Six Flags Fright Fest’s website.

During this year’s Fright Fest, guests will also have the option to be transported into the eerie realms of Netflix’s Stranger Things and Army of the Dead, Legendary Entertainment’s Trick r’ Treat, Lionsgate’s SAW as well as Warner Bros./New Line’s The Conjuring universe. Specific mazes do vary by park…please check local websites for full details.

Editor’s Note: Nerdist is a subsidiary of Legendary Digital Networks.

The post Get an Exclusive First Look at Six Flags Fright Fest’s New TEXAS CHAINSAW MASSACRE Maze appeared first on Nerdist.

In the 45 years of the Alien franchise, most films start with a large cast, and then by the end, you’re left with a handful (or one). Only Ellen Ripley and her cat Jones survived the Nostromo in Alien, and only she, Newt, Bishop, and Hicks survived Aliens. Ok, so three of those died in their cryo-sleep between the second and third movies, so maybe we don’t count them. (We’re still bitter about that). But in short, most folks don’t survive their encounter with the Xenomorph. And Alien: Romulus is no different. Here’s the kill count for the latest installment, as well as who survived to the finale.

The Victims

Navarro (Aileen Wu)

When the crew of the Corbelan accidentally awakens the alien facehuggers, the evil critters scramble for a host to plant their eggs. The first victim is Navarro, the pilot of the cargo ship. In traditional Alien fashion, once the facehugger plants its eggs, the offspring bursts out of Navarro’s chest and scurries away. RIP Navarro. We don’t know your first name, but you seemed the coolest of the crew. But someone had to go first.

Bjorn (Spike Fearn)

Navarro’s boyfriend Bjorn had a very thick Cockney accent, so we didn’t always know what he was saying. But we really didn’t like him anyway, he kind of seemed like a jerk. Sorry, you just can’t be that mean to lovable android Andy (David Jonsson) and have us like you. In any event, he stumbles on the gestating Xenomorph as it grows to maturity, and he dies when its acid blood drips all over him. Even he didn’t deserve such a gnarly fate.

Tyler (Archie Renaux)

Tyler is next on the Romulus kill-list. When the Xenomorph takes his sister Kay (Isabela Merced), he goes after it in hopes of saving her. Rain (Cailee Spaeny) finds his sister Kay alive, and then the Xenomorph goes to kill Rain. Tyler jumps in front of the attack and the Xenomorph impales him on its tail. He doesn’t die right away and is dragged into the Xenomorph den where he gets a Xeno appendage right to the head.

Kay (Isabela Merced)

Poor Kay. She got pregnant by some jerk she clearly didn’t even like on the planet Jackson’s Star, decided to leave that hellhole, then endures the grossest death of all in Romulus. After narrowly surviving the Xenomorph attack, she chooses to use the experimental Prometheus formula on herself to increase her chances of survival. Unfortunately, it transforms her DNA and she gives birth to an egg that hatches a terrifying part human/part Engineer/part Xenomorph offspring. As if that wasn’t bad enough, it then drains its own mother of her blood, killing her. Usually, pregnant women, children, and pets are safe in horror movies. But not in this one.

Rook (Ian Holm/Daniel Betts)

Rook is a Weyland-Yutani synthetic, a scientist working in the Romulus lab on the space station. He’s the same model android as Ash from Alien (played by the late Ian Holm) and also a worker in their science division. As a synthetic, he was cut in half by the Xenomorph, but he survived—barely. He finally dies for real when the station is ripped apart by the rocks of Jackson’s Star’s rings. Considering he’s the movie’s actual villain, he deserved a grislier fate if you ask us.

The Survivors

Rain (Cailee Spaeny) and Andy (David Jonsson)

That leaves our two survivors, escaping on the Corbelan—Rain and her synthetic brother Andy. The Xenomorph injures Andy badly, but he clings to synthetic life at the end. The pair get away after destroying the Kay’s grotesque hybrid offspring and slipping into cryo-pods, hoping to sleep their way to a better world. Given this franchise, we doubt they’ll wake up to anything pleasant.

The post Breaking Down ALIEN: ROMULUS’ Major Deaths (Plus Who Survived the Movie?) appeared first on Nerdist.

A couple of years ago, we got the big news that the Friday the 13th franchise would continue to expand with Crystal Lake, a prequel series about the infamous campground. What would a prequel series entail? Will we learn new things about Jason Voorhees’ childhood and perhaps his psychotic mother Pamela?

Here’s everything we know about Crystal Lake. 

Title

The title of this series is Crystal Lake. This could possibly change as the show dives into development and filming. 

Crystal Lake’s Plot 

There are no plot details about Crystal Lake yet but we can speculate a bit about where this show could go. Considering it is a prequel, it is likely that we will get to explore the life of Pamela Voorhees to a greater extent. The first film came out in 1980, so the series will presumably go back to the 1970s or 1960s.

Before exiting the series as showrunner in May 2024, Hannibal’s Bryan Fuller previously hinted at seeing a few familiar “manifestations” of Jason and exploring his life as well as his mother’s. But he did note that A24 was taking things into a different direction. Perhaps they will reveal some lore that changes what we thought about Camp Crystal Lake and the franchise’s original players. 

Behind the Scenes

Brad Caleb Kane, who is also bringing us It: Welcome to Derry, will be the showrunner for Peacock’s Crystal Lake TV series. He is the creator, writer, and executive producer as well. 

Crystal Lake’s Cast

As of right now, there are no casting announcements for Crystal Lake. The last Friday the 13th film in 2009 starred Derek Mills as a very nimble Jason, so perhaps he will reprise his role once again.

Crystal Lake’s Release Date

There is no release date for Peacock and A24’s upcoming series. 

The post Everything We Know About CRYSTAL LAKE, the FRIDAY THE 13TH Prequel Series appeared first on Nerdist.

Forty years ago, writer/director Wes Craven unleashed one of the most enduring horror franchises of all time with A Nightmare on Elm Street. With his 1984 film, Craven catapulted actor Robert Englund into horror icon status thanks to his turn as dream stalker Freddy Krueger, and changed slasher films forever. Seven sequels and one remake later, nothing can top the original. To celebrate forty years of Freddy, Warner Bros. is releasing the original film in 4K UHD this October. You can check out a new trailer for the upcoming 4K digital and 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray release right here:

This new 4K remaster includes both the 1984 theatrical version of the film and an uncut version with eight seconds of additional unrated footage. The uncut version of A Nightmare on Elm Street only had a previous VHS release decades ago. All the special features from the previous Blu-ray are on this new disc. These include Freddy Focus Points, The House that Freddy Built: The Legacy of New Line Horror, and Never Sleep Again: A Nightmare on Elm Street. There are also two vintage commentary tracks, both featuring the late, great Wes Craven, along with cast and crew. Below you can see cover art for the standard edition and the limited edition Steelbook.

Hopefully Warner Bros. gives the rest of A Nightmare on Elm Street‘s franchise a similar 4K treatment soon. Especially the third installment Dream Warriors, one of the best slasher sequels ever made. And let’s not neglect Wes Craven’s New Nightmare. That was the iconic director’s first attempt at a meta slasher film, released two years before Scream. Heck, just give us a complete A Nightmare on Elm Street box set. It’s high time that the Springwood Slasher got his proper due on home releases.

A Nightmare on Elm Street will be available for purchase Digitally in 4K Ultra HD on October 1, and on 4K UHD Blu-ray Disc on October 15 from Warner Bros. Home Entertainment.

The post A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET Gets a 4K Ultra HD 40th Anniversary Release appeared first on Nerdist.

Tobe Hooper’s Poltergeist is one of the greatest horror movies of the ’80s. And that’s saying a lot, as that’s a stacked decade for horror. Written and produced by Steven Spielberg, Poltergeist tells the story of an ordinary family in suburban California who move into a new house that’s got a serious haunting problem. Ghosts suck their six-year-old daughter into the netherworld via their TV set. Now, the house made famous by the film, located in Simi Valley, California, is up for sale for $1,198,700. You can check out the listing on Zillow. And yes, much of this house has remained in its ’80s-style glory.

Click To View Gallery

The Zillow listing does not shy away from the home’s Poltergeist legacy. It says “This house is clean. Seriously, it is!” This is, of course, quoting psychic Tangina Barrons’ claim “This house is clean” from the movie. (She was wrong though, the house was definitely not clean yet). Although much of the house in the film was shot on soundstages, they filmed exteriors (and we believe the kitchen) in the actual home. The house itself was constructed in 1979. And the real home inside is remarkably similar to the movie sets.

Much like the recently bought and restored the Brady Bunch house to its ’70s TV style, we hope some rich superfan buys this home and turns it into a Poltergeist-themed Airbnb. They wouldn’t even have to remodel that much. Maybe change the staircase to look like that very ’80s circular staircase from the film. After that, fill the house with various Star Wars toys, throw in some fake skeletons in the swimming pool, and make sure that creepy clown doll is somewhere about. Oh, and one old-school tube TV in the living room. That’s really all you need. We guarantee horror fans would pay a pretty penny to stay there overnight and freak themselves out. We know we would.

The post The Iconic POLTERGEIST House Is Up For Sale. Creepy Clown Doll Not Included appeared first on Nerdist.

I will always appreciate a massive swing for the conceptual fences from an established franchise. Star Trek doing a lighthearted comedy about endangered space whales for its fourth big screen installment comes to mind. Another is Prey, which set a Predator movie in the 18th century. And because of that mentality, I certainly appreciate Ridley Scott’s Prometheus and Alien: Covenant for trying to turn the Alien franchise into more contemplative, more thoughtful treatises on existence. But sometimes, especially in this series’ case, a return to form is needed. Fede Alvarez’s Alien: Romulus takes us back to the monster movie in space vibes, and it mostly delivers. Mostly.

I know Alien: Prometheus and Covenant have their defenders, and from a visual and design standpoint, they are unmatched. But often, it felt like the xenomorphs themselves got in the way of a heady discussion of what it means to be human. And the characters were abysmally stupid, which is never that fun to watch. Alvarez, known for the Evil Dead reboot in 2013 and Don’t Breathe in 2016, is a horror director and so smartly took the franchise away from Scott’s ponderousness in favor of a new riff on monsters versus people on a derelict spacecraft. Sheer simplicity.

Alien: Romulus follows Rain (Cailee Spaeny), a young colonist on a dismal mining planet who desperately wants off. Her only family is Andy (David Jonsson), the early generation Weyland Yutani synthetic who raised her after her parents died. The company, always the bastard, keeps raising the work requirements for relocation. Her only chance comes from a group of old friends (Archie Renaux, Isabella Merced, Aileen Wu, Spike Fearn). They plan to raid an adrift space station for its resources and need Andy’s access codes to do it.

Upon arriving on the station—with its two halves, Romulus and Remus—the group finds evidence of something nasty and very quickly the familiar trappings of xenomorph shenanigans appear. Now Rain and her friends have a ticking clock. They need to get what they came for and get off the station before the aliens, the company, or gravity itself kills them.

Alien: Romulus has a lot to love. Alvarez and co-writer Rodo Sayagues set the action after 1979’s Alien but before Aliens, and they absolutely capture the grungy futurism from the original. Additionally, they use what we know about the xenomorphs’ life cycle to create some excellent scares early on, from facehuggers to acid blood. When we finally see the fully grown xenomorph, it effectively stalks and hides and could be behind any corner, or in every ceiling duct. It’s a joy.

I won’t spoil anything, but while I was enjoying myself during most of the movie, it was the final act that really kicked it up a notch. Alvarez stages some action set pieces we’ve genuinely never seen before that left me breathless. He also gives us a final Alien: Romulus confrontation that was scary in a way the series often hinted at, even attempted, but never pulled off until now. Giger would be proud.

I also want to specifically call out Benjamin Wallfisch’s score. It’s a big, sweeping, orchestral soundscape that actively calls back Jerry Goldsmith’s score from Alien. Many sci-fi/horrors use synthwave scoring, which I love and am definitely here for. But in keeping with the aesthetic of the 1970s-style of futurism, a full orchestra and leitmotifs really add an air of classiness. It’s a standout, for sure.

So with all of these things to praise, you might expect me to give this movie full marks. Not quite so. I mentioned earlier that Alien: Romulus smartly goes back to basics. That’s true, but it also plays it safe in a way that we’ve seen before. It’s not as egregious as something like Star Wars: The Force Awakens. That is literally just A New Hope again but with references and Easter eggs galore. Here, the setup is familiar, which is fine, but a few, I think, needless references and callouts (and especially digital recreations of things) nearly spoiled the whole thing. I understand why a couple of them are there, thought another one was pretty clever, and one was so groan-worthy I wanted to tear my eyes out. All told, I wish they hadn’t done them.

The characters are also pretty thin. Andy is the only character with any kind of interesting arc—synthetic humans are always the most memorable of these movies—and while Spaeny is a capable and compelling heroine, Rain is only barely deep. The other four people are as two-dimensional as it gets. I will say, at the very least, they aren’t obnoxiously stupid. They’re young people who don’t know what they’re dealing with and make wrong decisions. They aren’t scientists who act moronic or who don’t know how to run perpendicular to a falling object.

Ultimately I was happy with Alien: Romulus, both from a visual and a tension standpoint. I think it delivers the back-to-basics thrill ride that many fans have wanted. While it never fully escapes the continuity of the earlier saga, it also doesn’t feel bogged down by it. And that third act has maybe the most fun and wild Alien stuff in decades. See it large, see it loud, revel in the screams.

Alien: Romulus hits theaters August 16.

⭐ (3.5 of 5)

Kyle Anderson is the Senior Editor for Nerdist. He hosts the weekly pop culture deep-dive podcast Laser Focus. You can find his film and TV reviews here. Follow him on Instagram and Letterboxd.

The post ALIEN: ROMULUS Is Mostly a Welcome Return to Horror Form appeared first on Nerdist.

Back in 1998, R&B singer and actress Brandy famously fought with Monica over a boy in “The Boy Is Mine,” a song that still rules karaoke nights to this day. Now, in 2024, Brandy is telling an evil, racist mother-in-law that the house and the child are mine in The Front Room, an upcoming A24 horror film. That’s right, Brandy, who famously played Karla Wilson in I Still Know What You Did Last Summer, is coming back to the genre! The first trailer for The Front Room shows Brandy battling against an old woman with a sinister agenda. 

Here’s a synopsis of The Front Room by A24: 

Everything goes to hell for newly-pregnant Belinda (Brandy) after her mother-in-law (Kathryn Hunter) moves in. As the diabolical guest tries to get her claws on the child, Belinda must draw the line somewhere…

The trailer for The Front Room certainly shows Belinda’s mother-in-law trying to do some weird ritual and being a real pain in general. She needs to give it up. Brandy has had about enough. It’s not hard to see…

You can check out even more from the movie with its second trailer, below.

We don’t know how things will end but we do know that Max and Sam Eggers are the writers and directors of this vehicle. Let’s see what these brothers will bring to the screen with Brandy leading the way alongside Andrew Burnap.

What Is the Release Date for Brandy’s Horror Movie The Front Room?

The Front Room will hit theaters on September 6.

Originally published on June 6, 2024.

The post Brandy Says ‘The Child Is Mine’ to Her Evil Mother-in-Law in THE FRONT ROOM Trailer appeared first on Nerdist.

Fresh off the recent success of Longlegs, Ozgood “Oz” Perkins is continuing to deliver horror films with The Monkey. It has all the names attached that will perk up fans’ ears, including Stephen King and James Wan. The first teaser trailer for The Monkey is delightfully short and vague with a creepy monkey drumming and Theo James face covered in blood. Who knew that the carnival song “I Do Like to Be Beside the Seaside” could be so creepy? Maybe it is a location hint. Either way, we love to see more from Oz.

The Monkey is based on the 1980 short story of the same name by Stephen King. Let’s get into the storyline of The Monkey a bit to make the trailer a little less mysterious. The story follows twin brothers Hal and Bill (Theo James), who find a vintage toy monkey in their attic. Soon, a string of deaths happen around them. The brothers get rid of the monkey, grow up, and go their separate ways. Years later, deaths begin to spring up again and the brothers have to come together to rid the world of this terrible toy. 

What Is the Release Date for Oz Perkins and Theo James The Monkey Movie?

I cannot wait to see Theo James crush this role. And, against my better judgment, I also want a drumming monkey. The Monkey will hit theaters on February 21, 2025.

The post Theo James Faces a Killer Toy in THE MONKEY Teaser Trailer appeared first on Nerdist.

Despite a slew of controversy over the past two years, the Scream franchise is moving forward with its seventh installment. The previous film left the Core Four and Gale Weathers (we assume, considering she didn’t die) in a relatively good place, with Sam finally moving towards healing and peace after killing Richie’s remaining family. (It’s wild but true.) The Scream VII storyline and cast is still mostly a mystery but things will start rolling very soon. In a recent Entertainment Weekly interview, Neve Campbell confirmed a bit about the film’s storyline, saying that it would follow Sidney as the main character once again.

In Scream (2022), Sidney’s story took a back seat to Sam and Tara Carpenter’s drama with her appearing as a supporting cast member. It’s good to know that the focus is on Sidney again.

The next film will be interesting, to say the least. Who will don that infamous mask next? Here’s what we know about Scream 7. 

Title

For now, we will call this film Scream 7. It’s likely this will be the title, which could be stylized as Scream VII. As seen on this script from Campbell’s Instagram post, the film does not have an official title yet. 

Scream 7’s Plot 

As stated above, Sam and Tara’s story came to a neat conclusion in Scream VI. And Sidney is living a happy life with her husband Mark and her daughters. It seems like there was no one else hiding in the shadows who would want to kill Sidney. Her story was complete and she found peace. So, the plot of Scream 7 is really up in the air. Depending on this film’s release, someone from 30 years ago could decide to celebrate the events of Scream (1996) in a sinister way. We shall see. 

Neve Campbell says she expects to get the final script sometime in August, so hopefully nothing will leak before they are ready to tell.

Behind-the-Scenes

Kevin Williamson, the writer of Scream (1996), will direct Scream 7. He is replacing Christopher Landon, who left the film after Melissa Barerra’s controversial (and very upsetting) firing and Jenna Ortega’s exit. Guy Busick and James Vanderbilt, who wrote the last two installments, will pen this sequel. The Radio Silence team will step back from directing duties to executive produce Scream 7. 

In a recent IndieWire interview, Campbell confirmed that filming will start in December 2024.

“We were supposed to start in September, but we’re going to start in December now because of some scheduling stuff with Kevin and myself and having that all aligned,” she shared. “And actually, I think it’s a good thing, because we’re going to be able to have the time to get it really right. So I’m very excited about it.”

Scream 7’s Cast 

Right now, the only person we absolutely know will be in Scream 7 is Neve Campbell. Scream VI was the first film to not include Sidney Prescott due to actress Neve Campbell rightfully bowing out due to a salary dispute. Fans thought Sidney would finally get a happy ending but Ghostface just won’t leave our good sis alone. Variety reports that Courteney Cox is in talks to reprise her role in the next film. It remains to be seen if the Meeks-Martin twins, played by Jasmin Savoy Brown and Mason Gooding, will be in this film. We’d love to see more of them.

However, their return isn’t likely considering their characters’ stories being so closely intertwined with the Carpenter sisters. According to The Hollywood Reporter, Savoy Brown hasn’t received a call from the studio Spyglass Media Group as of January 2024. Gooding also affirmed he knew no solid details about the seventh Scream film. Sadness.

We assume Courteney Cox and Roger L. Jackson will return as Gale Weathers and the voice of Ghostface, respectively. Maybe we will see Patrick Dempsey reprise his role as Mark Kincaid, too. 

Scream 7 Release Date 

There is no release date for Scream 7 at this time. The script is at least partially in place, so perhaps we will see this film in late 2025 or maybe 2026 to celebrate Scream’s 30th anniversary.

Originally published on March 13, 2024.

The post SCREAM 7 Will Make Sidney Prescott the Main Character Again appeared first on Nerdist.

Why do you love horror? Is it the thrill of the chase, the tropes, the killers and their iconic weapons, or perhaps a mix of all of the above? Maybe you come in for a specific subgenre like the good ole slasher or you wish to explore something more cerebral that speaks to our socioeconomic plights. Either way, there are a million reasons to love horror and always something to explore in the genre. Shudder’s new series Horror’s Greatest will take a look at everything we love about horror through the lens of some of its most lauded—and underrated—gems. The first trailer for Horror’s Greatest features some faces that we know and love from the genre as well as those who are experts when it comes to scary films. 

We see some glimpses of a few great films, from Midsommar to Rosemary’s Baby to Invasion of the Body Snatchers, this Shudder series will hit a variety of offerings. Here’s a synopsis for Horror’s Greatest from Shudder to accompany its trailer: 

Horror’s Greatest is a deep dive into everything we love about horror — from fresh looks at classics to unearthing scores of hidden gems, this series has something for every fright film enthusiast. A gallery of ghoulish pros, including actors, directors, writers, composers, and special effects artists, draw on their unique knowledge to answer the big questions: What are the must-see films in horror’s many sub-genres? What’s the appeal of horror tropes, and how do today’s filmmakers subvert our expectations? What shape does horror take in countries outside of the United States? The answers encompass the breath of the nightmares we watch for our entertainment.

The following people will make interview appearances to discuss horror in this series: David Dastmalchian (Late Night with the Devil), Joe Hill (Locke & Key, NOS4A2), Tom Holland (Fright Night, Child’s Play), Jenn Wexler (The Sacrifice Game, The Ranger), Dewayne Perkins (The Blackening), Jonah Ray Rodrigues (Destroy All Neighbors), Gigi Saul Guerrero (Satanic Hispanics, El Gigante), Alex Winter (Destroy All Neighbors), Jordan Vogt-Roberts (Kong: Skull Island), Tananarive Due (Horror Noire), and Swanthula and Dracmorda Boulet (The Boulet Brothers Dragula).  Marwar Junction Productions, the producers of Shudder’s hit series The 101 Scariest Horror Movie Moments of All Time, are behind this series. 

Horror’s Greatest will hit Shudder and AMC+ on August 27.

The post Shudder’s HORROR’s GREATEST Trailer Explores Everything Fans Love About the Genre appeared first on Nerdist.

Steven Soderbergh, the director behind such iconic films as Contagion, Ocean’s 11, and Traffic, has mostly been releasing movies to streaming only since 2018. But next year, his latest film will play on theater screens everywhere. We now have a teaser trailer for Presence, a supernatural horror film from the POV of the ghost. You can check out the creepy teaser for NEON Films’ Presence, starring Lucy Liu, Julia Fox, and Chris Sullivan, right here:

David Koepp, the screenwriter behind movies like Jurassic Park and Spider-Man, is the writer for Presence. The film is from NEON, who just released one of the most successful indie horror hits of the year with Longlegs. All of this feels like the perfect storm to create another word-of-mouth horror hit at the box office. Soderbergh has gone directly to streaming for many of his serious dramatic films in the last several years. But horror continues to dominate at the box office alongside traditional blockbusters. Based on the Presence trailer, this film could absolutely be the next Longlegs or Immaculate.

Presence debuted earlier this year at Sundance, and has an early Rotten Tomatoes score of 91%. This bodes well for the film becoming a surprise breakout sleeper hit. They shot the film during the writers actors’ strikes of 2023, thanks to a special SAG-AFTRA agreement for certain indie films in production at the time. Apparently, Presence is told entirely from the first-person perspective of the ghost but we don’t know too much about its storyline. (Shades of The Sixth Sense perhaps?) Maybe the scary element to this story is the living breathing humans, and not the dearly departed. Thanks to NEON and A24, we’re in a great era for horror films right now.

NEON currently plans to release Presence on January 15, 2025.

The post Steven Soderbergh’s PRESENCE Trailer Reveals a Haunted House Story From a Supernatural POV appeared first on Nerdist.

My absolute favorite thing about the state of horror movies in 2024 is how many filmmakers are going real weird with it. Killers, vampires, ghosts, and especially zombies feel incredibly passé on their own. We need a little uncanny strangeness with our scares, and some existential dread. Yum yum yum, I eat it up. The most recent movie to fit this bill like a glove is Damian McCarthy’s Oddity, which has made the festival rounds and which I saw through Fantasia Fest 2024. Oddity is not lying; it’s a very weird movie, but the scares are plentiful, the imagery creepy, and the story strangely satisfying.

McCarthy’s previous film was Caveat, an intensely grimy little movie about a man who takes a job watching over a psychologically disturbed woman in an abandoned house on an isolated island. While that movie didn’t light the world on fire, it did provide some upsetting concepts and imagery that made me curious to see what he’d do next. Oddity takes much of what worked in Caveat and makes an altogether more approachable, “conventional” movie that lulls the viewer into thinking they know what’s going to happen. They might, but probably not.

Dani (Carolyn Bracken) moves into a very remote house in the Irish countryside with her husband Ted (Gwilym Lee), a doctor at the nearby mental asylum. One night while Ted is at work, a creepy stranger (Tadhg Murphy) knocks on the door and tells Dani that he saw someone, or something, enter the house and that she is in grave danger. Now this presents Dani with a predicament. Believe this man, or not. What she decided, and what actually happened is part of the movie’s fun, so I won’t spoil it.

We then cut to some time later, Dani is out of the picture, and Ted’s new girlfriend Yana (Caroline Menton) is about to move into the house, under duress. Arriving at just the wrong time is Dani’s vision-impaired twin sister Darcy (also Bracken) who plans to stay the weekend. It isn’t just an unwanted relative. Darcy, who owns a shop full of occult and folklore oddities, brings a human-sized wooden homunculus with which she plans to get to the bottom of what happened to her sister.

Oddity is one of those horror movies that refuses to adhere to any usual story conventions. It keeps you guessing all the way through, which in and of itself builds tension. The laws of the natural and supernatural bleed in interesting ways, keeping viewers on edge. I found so much to like about it, especially to do with the unique location. We go other places, but the majority of the action happens in the remote house. It’s beautiful and welcoming, but the lighting at night plus some large, shadowy areas make it sinister in the best way. Similarly, the mere presence of the weird homunculus, and Darcy’s other cursed objects, leaves us wondering when and how they’ll come into the story. When they do, it’s supremely satisfying.

This is a movie where you aren’t sure what you’re watching at times, or why, but everything comes together by the end. Not necessarily how you think it would, or maybe even should, but that’s literally in the name. Oddity is scary, mysterious, upsetting, and effecting and I had a big grin on my face when the credits rolled. Definitely worth your time.

Oddity ⭐ (4 of 5)

Kyle Anderson is the Senior Editor for Nerdist. He hosts the weekly pop culture deep-dive podcast Laser Focus. You can find his film and TV reviews here. Follow him on Instagram and Letterboxd.

The post ODDITY Is a Creepy, Delightfully Weird Horror Film (Fantasia Fest 2024 Review) appeared first on Nerdist.

The horror anthology film masterpiece known as Trick ‘r Treat is finally getting the 4K treatment. Ever since Mike Dougherty’s Halloween treat went straight to DVD and Blu-ray back in 2007, it has maintained a loyal following and earned a cult classic status. To this day, Sam merchandise will always reign supreme during the Fall because, well, he’s quite the cute little demon. 

Arrow Film’s restoration of Trick ‘r Treat will be a 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray limited edition with Dolby Vision. It comes with a two-sided poster, six postcard-sized art cards, an illustrated collector’s booklet, and a reversible packaging sleeve with artwork by Sara Deck. There are basically two versions of this: the regular limited-edition and an original Arrow exclusive edition. Both of them are available for pre-order on Arrow Video’s website for the same price, $35. The best part is, Mike Dougherty approves of this new release. 

Here’s everything you’ll get with the Trick ‘r Treat 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray:

If you’re ready to dive into this funny yet sinister world once again, then head over and grab your copy now. It will arrive just in time for some Halloween night scares.

Editor’s Note: Nerdist is a subsidiary of Legendary Digital Networks.

The post TRICK ‘R TREAT’s 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray Limited-Edition Release Arrives in October appeared first on Nerdist.

How do cult leaders gain such influence over their followers? Netflix’s How to Become a Cult Leader gave us a lot of logical answers to those questions with Peter Dinklage narrating. But what if that influence is something that is even more sinister? Perhaps it is a form of possession or mind control that turns a person into someone unrecognizable. That seems to be the case with Brainstorm Media’s Believer, a scary psychological thriller with a trailer that will intrigue horror fans. 

In the clip, we see a man being sentenced in a Maryland court for his heinous crimes. A young woman sits in the audience with an apprehensive look on her face. Suddenly the man, who has cloudy irises, turns around and leaps on her in a werewolf-like fashion. That’s a new fear unlocked for me along with Hugh Grant holding me hostage in a house of horrors. She wakes up cuffed to a hospital bed with no recollection of what happened. Strange things begin to happen around her and it is not clear if she’s under his spell or not. 

Here’s a synopsis for Believer that further clarifies its trailer:

A young writer is attacked by a notorious cult leader and mass murderer, a man who exerts an inexplicable control over his followers. When she claims no memory of the attack, her family begins to question her motives.

What Is the Release Date for Brainstorm Media’s Believer?

Believer is written and directed by Sheldon Wilson and stars Lauren Lee Smith, Ella Ballentine, Peter Mooney, Martin Roach, Ilan O’Driscoll, Jonathan Potts, and Kris Holden-Ried. The film will hit theaters and on-demand services on September 13.

The post BELIEVER Trailer Teases a Cult Mystery and Psychological Spiraling appeared first on Nerdist.

There are some pieces of horror history that any fan would love to own. From iconic masks to a killer’s classic weapon, those big pieces of movie memorabilia make the perfect prized possessions. Propstore is giving a few lucky fans with lots of cash to spare a chance to do just that with a horror entertainment auction in August. The auction will take place from August 15-18 and you can register here to bid online if you don’t live in LA.

The biggest item for sale is the Ghostface costume that Billy Loomis and Stu Macher wore in the original Scream movie. The white mask and hooded black robe was originally created by Fun World as your standard Halloween costume until the 1996 film made it an iconic horror movie costume. The costume’s bidding price is estimated between $50K to a whopping $100K, with bids already exceeding the upper tier. Hopefully, it goes to someone who’s a straight up fan and not a random rich schmuck who likes to collect things for the hell of it. 

Click To View Gallery

Speaking of the Scream franchise, Sidney Prescott’s Omega Kappa Beta necklace that she got from her ill-fated boyfriend Derek in Scream 2 (1997) is also up for grabs. She also wore the necklace throughout Scream 3 (2000). It is expected to sell for anywhere between $3,000-$6,000.

In addition to Scream memorabilia, the other horror movie items for sale in Propstore’s big auction include Jason Voorhees’ hockey mask from Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan (1989) and Freddy Krueger’s razor glove from Nightmare on Elm Street: The Dream Child (1989). 

Click To View Gallery

Here’s the complete list of items: 

• EVIL DEAD II (1987) Stunt Necronomicon Ex-Mortis est. $80,000 – $160,000
• ALIEN (1979) Special Effects Facehugger est. $60,000 – $120,000
• CHILD’S PLAY 2 (1990) Chucky (Brad Dourif) Good Guys Doll with Screen-Matched Dungaree est. $50,000 – $100,000
• SCREAM (1996) Billy Loomis’ (Skeet Ulrich) and Stu Macher’s (Matthew Lillard) Screen-Matched Ghostface Costume est. $50,000 – $100,000
• SEED OF CHUCKY (2004) Tiffany (Jennifer Tilly) Animatronic Puppet with Screen-Matched Costume est. $30,000 – $60,000
• FRIDAY THE 13TH PART VIII: JASON TAKES MANHATTAN (1989) Jason Voorhees’ (Kane Hodder) Screen-Matched Hockey Mask est. $25,000 – $50,000
• A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 5: THE DREAM CHILD (1989) Freddy Krueger’s (Robert Englund) Bloodied Razor-Claw Glove est. $25,000 – $50,000
• A NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET 3: DREAM WARRIORS (1987) Freddy Krueger’s (Robert Englund) Distressed Sweater est. $20,000 – $40,000
• HELLRAISER: JUDGMENT (2018) Screen-Matched SFX Lament Configuration Puzzle Box est. $8,000 – $16,000
• POLTERGEIST (2015) Griffin Bowen’s (Kyle Catlett) Screen-Matched Clown Doll est. $8,000 – $16,000
• HOUSE OF 1000 CORPSES (2003) Dr. Satan’s (Walter Phelan) Surgical Machine est. $6,000 – $12,000
• THE THING (1982) R.J. MacReady’s (Kurt Russell) Shotgun and Lantern with Monsterpalooza Statue Display est. $6,000 – $12,000
• BEETLEJUICE (1988) “Handbook for the Recently Deceased” Hardcover Book est. $5,000 – $10,000
• SAW V (2008) Jigsaw’s (Tobin Bell) Pig Mask est. $5,000 – $10,000
• BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER (1997-2003) Demon Henchman Bust and “Once More with Feeling” Promotional Poster est. $3,500 – $7,000
• NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD (1968) Meat Hook est. $3,000 – $6,000
• SCREAM 2 (1997)/SCREAM 3 (2000) Sidney Prescott’s (Neve Campbell) Omega Kappa Beta Necklace est. $3,000 – $6,000
• TERRIFIER 2 (2022) Art the Clown’s (David Howard Thornton) Bloodied Mask est. $3,000 – $6,000

Good luck with this wonderful horror auction, you blood loving folks!

The post Propstore Horror Auction Includes Original SCREAM Ghostface Costume, Freddy Krueger’s Sweater, and More appeared first on Nerdist.

I respect any indie filmmakers who have a consistent output and a brand of their own. In the horror space especially, this is part of the fun. Osgood Perkins, for example, has recently proven his own unique take on scary movies can be successful and still stay true to his vision. Similarly, I have the utmost respect for the horror-making consortium known as The Adams Family and their continual turnout of movies. I must confess, however, the movies they make haven’t really done much for me. Their latest, Hell Hole, which I saw at Fantasia International Film Festival 2024, is the one I’ve liked the best, which is something I suppose.

The Adams Family consist of father John Adams, mother Toby Poser, and daughters Lulu Adams and Zelda Adams. All or most of them write, direct, and appear in all of their films. They are undoubtedly talented, and prolific of late. Their previous horror outings have been 2019’s The Deeper You Dig, 2021’s Hellbender, and 2023’s Where the Devil Roams. All of those films had a certain visual eeriness and a muted tone. Where they usually lose me is in the story, which is often so sparse you could drive Rhode Island through it. Hell Hole has more of a story, and a lot more dialogue, which helps to a degree. But it’s still missing something.

The film follows an American-led fracking team in Eastern Europe who uncover strange parasitic caephelopedic creatures underground. More specifically, they find a French soldier from the Napoleonic Wars, perfectly preserved and carrying one of these creatures within him. Like a plague or a virus, the tentacled terror jumps from host to host as the crewmembers and their environmental envoys try to figure out what to do about it.

And that’s it, that’s the whole story. It’s not dissimilar to any number of alien movies. Specifically, Alien. This one deals more in the vein of discussing whether ancient creatures like this deserve to live, even if it means the host body dies in the process. It’s essentially, what if the facehuggers took a lot longer to gestate the alien, and they did it from inside? We get some gruesome body explosions and the creature design itself is grotty, but largely that’s what Hell Hole is.

Poser plays Em, the head of the outfit, who has the best head on her shoulders and knows enough to let the local workers deal with troubles their own way rather than try to assert more dominance. John Adams plays John, one of the other Americans, and Max Portman plays Em’s nephew, a young cook with a crush on Sofija (Olivera Perunicic), one of the two scientists. The cast are all quite good, especially considering half of them are speaking their first language.

But the simplicity here is sort of the problem. The plot mechanics are fine, the actors are good, and the creature itself is effective enough. But so much of the movie is just idle banter while standing around waiting for things to happen. I won’t say it’s boring, and like I said, it ended up being the most I’ve liked one of the Adams Family’s movies. It just doesn’t do much with what it’s working with to get it over the hump. The movie isn’t scary or even particularly exciting. It’s shot more like a comedy than a horror movie but doesn’t have the jokes.

I hope the Adams Family make movies forever, and I hope I eventually like even one of them.

Hell Hole is coming to Shudder on August 23. Maybe you’ll find more to like about it than I did.

⭐ (2.5 of 5)

Kyle Anderson is the Senior Editor for Nerdist. He hosts the weekly pop culture deep-dive podcast Laser Focus. You can find his film and TV reviews here. Follow him on Instagram and Letterboxd.

The post HELL HOLE Is Way Too Talky to Be Anything Close to Scary (Fantasia Fest Review) appeared first on Nerdist.

Would you like a solid piece of life advice? Sure you would. Do not go hang out with people in some random location unless you know them really, really well. If you just met a couple on vacation and they invite you to their not-so-humble abode in the middle of nowhere, think twice before you accept that invitation. This may seem like common sense, but if you look around, you’ll see that common sense is not so common. Speak No Evil unveils the very obvious dangers of not using your common sense in its creepy trailer. 

If this film seems familiar, that’s because it already exists, basically. Speak No Evil is a remake of the (quite excellent) 2022 Danish film of the same name (also known as Gæsterne) where the general plot is very similar. Only this time, James McAvoy is playing an unsettling estate owner whose behavior gets increasingly more disturbing. And, there will probably be some cultural differences considering the couple that accepts the invitation is from America.

As we see in the Speak No Evil trailer, the Daltons (played by Mackenzie Davis and Scoot McNairy) connect with Paddy (McAvoy) and Ciara (Aisling Franciosi), a British couple, on vacation. They accept an invite to their abode and things get increasingly weird. I certainly won’t tell you what happens in the original Danish film for two reasons. First, I think it is worth watching. And, I get the feeling that this remake will travel down a similar (if not identical) road. There’s one scene with the Dalton daughter Agnes (Alix West Lefler) and Paddy’s son Ant (Daniel Hough) that really sets things in a dark direction. 

Here’s a synopsis of Speak No Evil: 

When an American family is invited to spend the weekend at the idyllic country estate of a charming British family they befriended on vacation, what begins as a dream holiday soon warps into a snarled psychological nightmare. 

From Blumhouse, the producer of The Black Phone, Get Out and The Invisible Man, comes an intense suspense thriller for our modern age, starring BAFTA award-winner James McAvoy (Split, Glass) in a riveting performance as the charismatic, alpha-male estate owner whose untrammeled hospitality masks an unspeakable darkness. 

What Is the Release Date for the Speak No Evil Remake?

If ever there were a person to play an unhinged yet charming man, it is James McAvoy. Speak No Evil will hit theaters on September 13.

Originally published on April 11, 2024.

The post James McAvoy Is Charming and Unhinged in SPEAK NO EVIL’s Unsettling Trailer appeared first on Nerdist.

There’s something exceptionally sinister about a folk horror film. Its gorier counterparts build their foundation on splatter and tension that gives way to frenetic action, and newer psychological thrillers lean into sleek visuals and swelling scores to evoke dread. While they both please many horror-loving palates, folk horror is the grimier and gnarled cousin. It dares to dive into humanity’s collective fears of isolation and the darkness that exists naturally—both what’s outdoors and within our souls.

It rests in enduring legends, religious tenets, and oral traditions, toying with one’s emotions and beliefs. Folk horror is an imperfect, grainy, and unsettling mess with violence that feels all too plausible. Writer and director Daniel Kokotajlo’s Starve Acre, anchored by Matt Smith and Morfydd Clark’s stellar performances, mostly falls into the “contemporary” folk horror subgenre. It is a 1970s-era British tale that’s quiet, disturbing, and a decidedly morbid exploration of grief, mystery, and blurred reality.

Archaeologist and professor Richard (Smith) and his wife Juliette (Clark) relocate to the dreary countryside to give their son Owen (Arthur Shaw) a carefree place to grow. The family move into Richard’s childhood home, sinisterly named Starve Acre, and adjust to their new beginnings. A strange neighbor soon eases his way into their lives with local folklore as Richard digs into his father’s belongings. Stories align in regards to a demonic force named Jack Grey (whose lore gets occasionally bogged down), an ancient oak tree, and occultism as Owen begins to demonstrate uncharacteristic behavior.

A tragic moment splinters the family as Juliette and Richard are swallowed into the crushing, dark depths of grief. Predictably, that’s not the only darkness that consumes their thoughts and actions. Starve Acre allows us to walk the pathway of personal loss, longing, and the desperate grasps at coping and understanding alongside Richard and Juliette in quiet moments of observation.

We also bear witness to their ongoing “waking nightmare” as reality slips from their grips. Who are they? Better yet, what are they by the end of this film? It’s open to the viewer’s interpretation, as is the film’s usage of the hare. A folklore legend, the hare has quite a few meanings, depending on who you ask. European legends say it is a place to store an evil man’s soul to force them into a more docile nature. This certainly fits the bill with all the Jack Grey chatter. But there’s also room for a reincarnation story, a restoration of what’s lost that comes with a hefty soul(s) price. This exploration of the relationship between spirit and sorrow is when the film is at its best. While the cast is few, their performances deftly convey the longing, strangeness, and despair needed to drive emotional elements home.

Starve Acre boasts a similar aesthetic appeal to The Wicker Man and the more recent She Will, with an eerie score by Matthew Herbert to match. However, those looking for particularly explosive and/or gratuitously violent moments to slice through the evenly-keeled drama and occasional scares simply won’t get them. And that’s not a bad thing. Starve Acre is an introspective vibe, a long walk into the forest’s brush versus a frantic run.

There are some elements, like the uncovering of vital information, that take far too long to unveil themselves in the most anticlimactic ways possible. A few too many ideas circulate and never quite get the exploration they deserve. And, a few jarringly silly happenings stir you out of the film’s trance. It does not happen enough to completely throw the narrative off its axis, but it is always unwelcome.

Starve Acre isn’t as entertaining as The Blood on Satan’s Claw. It is also not an absolute stunner like Kototajlo’s Apostasy, a gut-punching examination of a Jehovah’s Witness family. But it is still a solid offering that will send an eerie chill (or three) down your spine.

Starve Acre ⭐ (3 of 5)

Starve Acre hits theaters on July 26.

The post STARVE ACRE Is a Folk Horror Flick That Dances With Sinister Spirits and Sorrow appeared first on Nerdist.

In space no one can hear you scream. But your cries of anguish definitely reverberate through a spaceship. That is if you’re even capable of screaming. That’s hard to do while a facehugger is using your throat to make you a human incubator. And that’s why so many unfortunate scavengers in Alien: Romulus won’t be able to call out for help when the meet the galaxy’s greatest terror. At least they won’t be able to until it’s too late. The horror-action film’s final trailer features a plethora of those iconic parasitic creatures running wild.

20th Century Studios describes Alien: Romulus as a film that takes the franchise “back to its roots.” Everything we’ve seen from it so far more than confirms that. This entry from writer-director Fede Alvarez (Evil Dead, Don’t Breathe), which takes place between the first and second film, looks and feels like those two entries.

But there also seems to be more going on here than just an “unlucky” encounter for some colonizers “scavenging the deep ends of a derelict space station.” They come “face to face with the most terrifying life form in the universe.” Literally and often. Those facehuggers are everywhere. Why are there so many onboard in the first place? And what does that mean for this group’s already low survival chances? Probably not high considering what baby Xenomorphs grow into.

Alien: Romulus also comes from co-writer Rodo Sayagues (Don’t Breathe 2), with Ridley Scott serving as a producer. It stars: Cailee Spaeny (Civil War), David Jonsson (Agatha Christie’s Murder is Easy), Archie Renaux (Shadow and Bone), Isabela Merced (The Last of Us), Spike Fearn (Aftersun), and newcomer Aileen Wu.

How many of them will escape with their lives and how many of them will see a baby Xenomorph escape from their chest? We’ll find out when we hear their screams later this summer. Alien: Romulus flies into theaters on August 16, 2024.

The post Final ALIEN: ROMULUS Trailer Features a Facehugger Free-for-all appeared first on Nerdist.

Longlegs, the new Nicolas Cage-starring horror film from Neon, is a hit. Thanks in large part to a beguiling guerilla marketing campaign, the film grossed $22.6 million its opening weekend—the best opening ever for an independent horror movie. It’s exciting when any horror film breaks through, both at the box office and in the discourse cycle. Love it or hate it, Longlegs has people talking. And luckily, they’re not just arguing about the plot and ending, but also taking note of the filmmaker behind the movie: Osgood “Oz” Perkins.

For certain horror fans, it’s exciting to see Perkins finally getting his due. The man was pretty much born to create in the horror genre. He’s the son of Anthony Perkins, the actor who portrayed Norman Bates in Alfred Hitchcock’s Psycho. Sadly, the senior Perkins, a closeted gay man, succumbed to AIDS in 1992. Oz’s mother, actress and photographer Berry Berenson, was on American Airlines Flight 11 on September 11, 2001. She died when the hijacked plane struck the North Tower of the World Trade Center. 

These tragedies seemed to drive Oz right to horror storytelling. As he told the AV Club back in 2017, the genre is a “Trojan horse” way to convey stories of grief and anguish and familial pain to the masses. It hooks the audience and locks them into a story that might otherwise be hard to access emotionally. Perkins’ directing filmography—confirmed in interviews—makes it clear that he uses movies to explore the traumas nestled in his family.

If you’re new to Perkins and curious about the other horror films in his oeuvre after seeing Longlegs, here’s a breakdown of each one, why you should watch them, and why together they make Oz Perkins the underrated horror auteur with his finger on the pulse of our collective generational fears. 

The Blackcoat’s Daughter (2015)

Though this was technically Oz Perkins’ second film release-date wise, The Blackcoat’s Daughter is the first movie he wrote, directed, and filmed. It came out in 2017 without much fanfare. A24 changed the horror game the very next year with Hereditary, so The Blackcoat’s Daughter just missed the wave that might have carried it to more recognition. But it all works out, because instead it’s something of a hidden gem, a movie horror fans can find on their own. That’s one of the best ways to engage with the genre.

And that’s an especially great way to experience The Blackcoat’s Daughter. It’s not exactly a scare-a-minute type of film. It probably wouldn’t play too excitingly in a big theater on a Friday night. But damn is it an effective slow-burn horror story, full of twists and one final shocker that reframes the entire movie and ties up its various timelines in a Gothically deranged bow. 

The film stars Kiernan Shipka, Lucy Boynton, and Emma Roberts as three young women in interspersed storylines. Shipka and Boynton are schoolgirls at a Catholic academy waiting for their parents to pick them up for winter break. Roberts plays an escapee from a mental institution. If you’ve seen Longlegs, The Blackcoat’s Daughter will feel immediately familiar. It plays out with the same cold stoicism. Characters drained of energy, indebted to an unnameable melancholy. It’s also a spiritual twin to Longlegs, in how it plays with identity and family trauma through the lens of Satanic activity. 

The great thing about the film is how boldly it announces Perkins’ sensibilities. Each film since plays in the same somber playbox. There are palettes drained of color and characters teetering on the brink of insanity. It conveys something about this moment we’re living in. How life can feel so absolutely hopeless that the instinct to cling to evil is understandable. Still awful, but not unrelatable. Giving into darkness is the easy route, but Perkins shows with detached accuracy how it creeps in, and the cost of letting it. 

I Am the Pretty Thing That Lives in the House (2016)

This gothic haunted house film—the first of Perkins’ to see release—is a great entry in a subgenre that’s mostly gone dusty. Yes, we have the Mike Flanagan Haunting series or the underseen The Little Stranger, but largely, it seems we’ve lost touch with this kind of horror vehicle. That’s a shame, because there’s nothing quite like a good haunted house movie. 

Perkins knows this and uses the genre effectively. The film centers on Iris Blum (Paula Prentiss), a retired novelist who lives in a remote Massachusetts manor. Her estate manager hires a live-in nurse, Lily (Ruth Wilson), to tend to her. Almost immediately, Lily is ill at ease. She spots a female ghost wandering the halls. Mysterious mold appears on the walls. Unseen forces wrench objects from her hands. As she grows closer to the house, she begins to unravel its mysterious past, and Iris’s personal connection to it. 

I Am the Pretty Thing That Lives in the House is another example of Perkins reconciling his own family demons. According to interviews, the film was an attempt to connect with his deceased father. Interesting, in that the film is about the complicated relationship between two women. Though the genders don’t correspond, it’s easy to see how Perkins used the movie to explore the tension that exists between the living and the dead. There’s the need for answers that will never come clearly and the acceptance that even the answers won’t save us in the end.

This movie is probably Oz Perkins’ least successful. It’s a moody chamber piece, but one that’s frustratingly slow. He obviously hadn’t quite mastered pacing by this point, and so the movie drags unnecessarily in key moments. Still, it’s a fascinating entry in his filmography, another film drenched in his trademark chilly atmosphere. There are ghostly visuals that cut through the droll. It’s a horror filmmaker exploring dark corners of the genre and sharpening his tools while preparing for what comes next.

Gretel & Hansel (2020)

The only film that Perkins didn’t write himself, Gretel & Hansel manages that personal feel all the same. It’s his most elegant film, and painfully underrated. Especially given its aesthetic similarities to movies like Midsommar and The Witch, which more easily punctured pop culture. Perhaps it was its smaller release or its production company (Orion Pictures), but it never quite got the audience it deserved. Especially given how fully formed and visually haunting it is.

An inversion of the famous Hansel and Gretel fairytale by the Brothers Grimm, the movie is a coming-of-age fable for Gretel (Sophia Lillis). Equipped with her own magical abilities, she and her younger brother Hansel (Sam Leakey) flee to the woods, where they’re taken in by an elderly witch named Holda (Alice Krige). From there, the story plays out much like the original tale. Holda is a cannibalistic witch intent on eating Hansel. But in this version, she also has a tragic backstory and uses witchcraft to hone Gretel’s inherent powers. 

Despite his lack of script involvement, it’s apparent why the story drew in Perkins. It’s another film about parental abandonment and abuse—and what that does to children. It explores how it becomes both a tool for empathy and a pathway to their own sinister interiority. And it captures that same trademark and topical dread. The ever-encroaching horror on the other side of the fence. How the systems of power—Satanic witches and cruel mothers, in this case—wield their personal fury as weapons of control. Gretel & Hansel does it all with astute visual flair. Holda’s triangle house and blackened fingers, fiery amber hues, the contrast of light and dark—all haunting and evocative. And all laying the foundation for his next, and most successful, film: Longlegs. 

Longlegs (2024)

We won’t get too into Longlegs here, except to say that whether you watch it first or last in your Perkins’ education, it’s really the culmination of all that’s come so far. (Check out our Longlegs review.) Encroaching dread but this time with more bursts of violence to up the pace. Elegant visuals, from Satanic symbology to vast Oregeon landscapes brushed with snow. Themes of troubled parenthood and its lasting effects on children. Perkins said this film was, in some ways, his attempt to wrestle with his complicated relationship with his deceased mother. She was a woman he loved fiercely, but who hid his father’s homosexuality and illness from her children, a decision that marked their family forever. What do our parents do to protect us, and does it ever work? Longlegs wrangles with that thorny idea.

The film jolts us into that reality—and into our own as well. The horror is not just at the surface level, but in the seams. The flaws of our criminal justice system. How sometimes the conduits of true evil are the dumbest possible candidates. How childhood trauma transforms our brains and social skills. All things we wrestle with in this modern world, despite the film’s 1990s setting. But that’s it, too. These things repeat—gruesomely, even.

Oz Perkins tapped into that impenetrable truth and excavated the meat of the horror within to craft a great horror movie. Now that he’s got it, it’s thrilling to think of where he’ll go next. What his career will continue to reveal about him, us, and how personal art can be scariest of all.

The post LONGLEGS Director Oz Perkins Has a Horror Movie History Worth Exploring appeared first on Nerdist.

Stranger Things 5 is still in production but the Duffer Brothers are already looking towards their next series at Netflix. Sure, we know that there will be some Stranger Things spinoffs coming at some point. And maybe one of our brilliant ideas about what they could do will come true. But for now, there’s another world that this duo wants to immerse us in. Netflix announced that it has greenlit Something Very Bad Is Going To Happen, a horror series by Haley Z. Boston and the Duffer Brothers’ Upside Down Pictures. 

Here’s a quick logline/synopsis for this series: 

Something Very Bad Is Going To Happen is an atmospheric horror series set at a wedding, following a bride and groom in the week leading up to their ill-fated nuptials. That’s not a spoiler – just read the title…

Interesting. Something Very Bad Is Going To Happen will have Boston as its creator/showrunner/executive producer alongside the Duffer Brothers and Hilary Leavitt as executive producers, thanks to their Upside Down Pictures overall deal with Netflix. The brothers are quite excited for this new venture, which they expressed in the following statement: 

 “We were knocked flat when we first read Haley’s script. She is a major new talent with a singular voice — her writing is twisted, terrifying, funny, and just… very Haley. We feel so lucky to be producing her first show, and we can’t wait to share her vision with the rest of the world.”

Right now, there’s no more information about the Duffer Brothers series Something Very Bad Is Going To Happen. If it is anything like Stranger Things, this series will have lots of characters that we will fall in love with. In the meantime, we are keeping up with everything that we’ve seen from Stranger Things 5 so far.

The post STRANGER THINGS’ Duffer Brothers to Produce New Psychological Horror Series at Netflix appeared first on Nerdist.

Nicolas Cage has played many roles in his storied career, including some famous horror roles. He’s been a guy who thinks he is a vampire (Vampire’s Kiss), to someone who definitely did not like bees (The Wicker Man). And, more recently, he starred in the cult film Mandy. Now, he’s finally playing a serial killer, in the upcoming film Longlegs. The upcoming film is from director Osgood Perkins, who comes from quite the horror pedigree himself. His father was Anthony Perkins, the iconic Norman Bates in the Psycho franchise. You can check out the trailers for the upcoming serial killer horror film from NEON Films right here.

The movie centers on Lee Harker (Maika Monroe) a fledgling FBI agent, who is attempting to crack a long-unsolved case of a serial killer. Eventually, the investigation becomes more complex, when they uncover some occult evidence. We glimpse a book about the Nine Circles of Hell in the trailer. Eventually, Harker discovers that he has a personal link to the killer (Nicolas Cage), and has to race against the clock in order to prevent another murder from happening.

Longlegs also stars Alicia Witt (The Walking Dead, Twin Peaks) and Dear White People’s Blair Underwood. Nicolas Cage is producing via his company Saturn Films.

Despite suggesting a horror film that connects to spiders, the tagline for the film says in a very cryptic way “You’ve got the teeth of the Hydra upon you.” So it looks like we’re seeing some Hydra ancient mythology that connects to this particular mystery.

We’re a sucker for a good cult-themed horror story like True Detective: Night Country. A story that has ties to some kind of mythological being.

The poster art for Longlegs says “The Man Downstairs is Coming.” It appears this mysterious man will arrive in theaters on July 12.

Originally published on February 5, 2024.

The post LONGLEGS Trailer Gives Us Nicolas Cage as a Serial Killer appeared first on Nerdist.

Light spoilers ahead for MaXXXine.

MaXXXine is the climactic—or should I say anticlimactic—end to Ti West’s trilogy. Rather than a crescendo with a peak, it struggles to even race beside the previous two. Gore and violence are sparse with a plot that lacks focus. It’s more of a pick-your-poison “choose your own adventure” film. With Maxine Minx in Hollywood attempting to transition from porn star to movie star, her past rears up and puts an unnecessary kink in her plans. While audiences won’t walk away hating MaXXXine, it’s a lackluster film that drifts from the mind after viewing.

Directed and written by Ti West, MaXXXine marks the final chapter in the trilogy. Maxine, played by Mia Goth (Suspiria, Infinity Pool), is so close to breaking into Hollywood from the porn industry. But with a snoopy P.I. John Labat (Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F, Leave the World Behind) in the mix, deaths adding up around her, and cops sniffing at her heels, her career might be dead on arrival. However, Maxine is not someone anyone should cross. She still possesses her self-preservation edge. With all the promise built from the other films with Mia Goth’s star performance, it’s a wonder this final film falters so much. 

MaXXXine Takes Audiences From Say Something to Say Nothing

X was astounding because of its gore and how it subverts traditional horror. Rather than the stereotypical “pure” final girl, they have a woman who is literally shooting a porn film to survive. Religion and the restrictions women face play out underneath. There is plenty to draw from rewatching X.

The second film, Pearl, was a prequel focused on gender constraints through a warped Wizard of Oz tale. There’s also the nature versus nurture question of whether Pearl was always prone to violent outbursts or if her mother’s restrictive rearing led her down that path. By its climax, Dorothy does not ever leave Kansas. She remains trapped, building up her bitterness and resentment for a life never lived. 

Then there is MaXXXine, a less refined version of the two. MaXXXine lacks cohesion. It has too much happening, and few parts meld together. There are ideas that the movie wanted to explore, including gender and religion, the entertainment industry, and the thin line between entertainment and reality. However, it fails to nail any of them. 

Pointless Parts in MaXXXine Taint the Whole Picture

A familiar refrain will haunt viewers, and it’s one word; “why.” Unfortunately, too much feels unnecessary or designed for laughs. The in-universe film director, Elizabeth Bender (Elizabeth Debicki), feels jammed in without a purpose. Maxine has brief mental struggles with what happened at the farmhouse, but it never amounts to anything. So much hinders the film, like the inclusion of the ’80s real-life serial killer, the Nightstalker. 

At first, it seems as though the infamous murderer is stalking the streets and explicitly targeting those close to Maxine. But it takes little effort to realize who may resent Maxine and her “life of sin.” The movie tries to tease the threat, only showing the individual’s gloved hands, but it does not even take three guesses to identify her foe. So, while it tries to go the mystery route, it fails miserably. MaXXXine‘s uncertainty with what it wants to be. Is it a callout to the industry? Or is the film perhaps a mystery, Giallo horror, etc.? It is unclear.

Mia Goth Still Rocks as Maxine, But There’s Too Much Camp

In MaXXXine, religious zealotry and moments of bright, violent girl power run throughout its narrative. Mia still delivers a forceful and deadly performance. From nutcracker to face-keying, whenever Maxine unleashes her violence on the men around her, it’s always fun and deserved. Still, because of the breadth of what the film takes on, even Mia Goth feels underutilized in the final film. Too much attention goes to flat jokes and exaggerated religious zeal. You nearly forget that Maxine is trying to make a movie. 

Detective Williams (Michelle Monaghan) and Detective Torres (Bobby Cannavale) are excess baggage in an already bogged down film. Their whole schtick is Torres being an obnoxious man, talking down to Maxine, then Williams steps in, and Maxine leaves. Rinse and repeat. Many attempts at comedic moments with these two do not land. It’s more obnoxious and will likely leave audiences bewildered. They are not even essential to the final fight.

That Death Was Certainly a Choice

Another strike for MaXXXine, tying in with the gore, is how one death is handled. A Black person has one of the only gruesome deaths that takes place onscreen. Sure, it’s set in the ’80s, and few Black characters in predominantly white films survived. However, if we were going by the checklist of the time, Maxine herself would not have made it out of X intact. 

An argument can be made regarding the fact that the most gruesome deaths are men—although only one is her friend. But there was not enough done to cement that aspect. It’s ruddered in crudely. (If you’re a fan of Cardi B, you can insert her “what was the reason” GIF here.) Because choosing to have one of the most gruesome deaths be a Black person is a jarring disappointment.

MaXXXine had all the promise and goodwill engendered by the two preceding films. Unfortunately, it does not earn much beyond a shrug and “That’s it?” It would be fine if it weren’t part of a trilogy that rose beyond gore and violence while still delivering both. But the final act is “Yikes” in cinema form. MaXXXine forfeits it all, devolving into a messy puddle of obscurity, where whatever themes viewers say the movie explores is more of a wish than reality. The further you get from the theater, the less you’ll like or want to remember this film. 

MaXXXine ⭐ (2 of 5)

The film hits theaters on July 5.

The post MAXXXINE Gives Ti West’s Horror Trilogy a Very Anticlimactic Ending appeared first on Nerdist.

The finale of Interview with the Vampire season two had quite the twist, as a flash forward showed the audience that the Vampire Armand (Assad Zaman) had turned the reporter Daniel Molloy (Eric Bogosian) into a vampire, some time before or after published his interviews with Louis and Armand as a book. We don’t know exactly how and when this happened. It seems to be an act committed more out of spite towards Daniel than love. However, Armand making Daniel a vampire on Interview with the Vampire does have its origins in Anne Rice’s Vampire Chronicles series of novels.

In the novels, Daniel Molloy doesn’t even have a proper name until the third novel in Rice’s series, The Queen of the Damned. In the 1976 novel Interview with the Vampire, the young reporter was simply referred to as “the Boy.” At the end of that first novel, he ran off, with Louis’ tapes in tow, hoping to find Lestat. In book two, The Vampire Lestat, we find out that the boy had the recordings transcribed and published as the book Interview with the Vampire. A recently reemerged Lestat discovered that his name and much of his life was put on public display for mortals, passed off as fiction. Yet we never learned what became of the young reporter until Rice’s third novel.

“The Story of Daniel, the Devil’s Minion, or the Boy from Interview with the Vampire“ from Queen of the Damned

In 1988’s Queen of the Damned, we learned in Part 1, Chapter 4, a chapter called “The Story of Daniel, the Devil’s Minion, or the Boy from Interview with the Vampire” that the anonymous boy went searching for Lestat after his fateful interview with Louis in San Francisco in 1973. We also now had a proper name for him—Daniel Molloy. Lestat was slumbering at the time of Daniel’s search, and he didn’t find the undead French aristocrat. Instead, the Vampire Armand finds Daniel while he searches for Lestat, during a time when Armand made New Orleans his home. No other vampires lived there, as Lestat had long ago gone to sleep. Armand had “cleaned out” the city of any younger vampires. No one else dared to call New Orleans home at this time, as it was Armand’s territory.

Scanning Daniel’s thoughts upon encountering him, Armand discovered this young mortal boy knew his name, and his true vampiric nature, and became fascinated. He began stalking him, and no matter what city or country Daniel ran to, Armand would find him. At first, he casually threatened to kill him if he ever published his book. Yet he continued to allow him to live for his own amusement. Then something unexpected happened. After years of cat and mouse, Armand came to actually love the mortal Daniel. Even so, he constantly refused to give him the Dark Gift, no matter how much he begged.

Daniel, Armand, and the Night Island

Many years into their relationship, Armand decided to become “incalculably wealthy.” Using his knowledge of where old ships with treasure lay at the bottom of the ocean, he recruited Daniel, who now saw himself as “the Devil’s Minion,” to help him procure wealth. All while he was asleep during the day. With this fortune, Armand, with forged documents Daniel helped him create, purchased an island off the coast of Florida. Armand turned it into an entertainment and shopping paradise that came alive only after dark called The Night Island.

Armand and Daniel lived at Night Island for years in the Vampire Chronicles. Daniel had everything he wanted from Armand, the finest clothes, the newest cars, all except the one thing he wanted most—to become a vampire himself. However, when Daniel’s life was in danger, on one of the many instances when he would run away from Armand, the 500-year-old vampire gave him what he wanted at last, and turned him. As Armand feared, however, making Daniel a vampire would only serve to drive a bigger wedge between them.

Daniel and Armand in AMC’s Interview with the Vampire

All we know from the AMC Interview with the Vampire series is that sometime after Daniel reveals to Louis the truth about Armand, and how he planned to let his Paris coven execute him along with Claudia, he turns Daniel into a vampire out of spite. (Or so Louis says.) But when did this happen? We don’t know yet. Do Interview with the Vampire‘s Daniel and Armand engage in a relationship similar to the one they had in the books? There doesn’t seem enough time for that intense love/hate relationship to have happened offscreen. Unless there is one further wrinkle to Daniel and Armand’s story that Interview with the Vampire is waiting to spring on us.

We know from episode five of season two of the series, that Armand encountered Daniel back in 1973, interrupting Louis almost killing Daniel. Not only encountered him, but very nearly killed him, and erased his memories of the event. Yet he clearly had a fascination with Daniel, and Interview with the Vampire leaves space for the possibility that the pair had a relationship decades ago. One that Armand then wiped from Daniel’s mind. After all, there is a limited series AMC announced called The Night Island. Could this series, at least in part, involve Interview with the Vampire‘s Armand and Daniel and their relationship? There are lots of ways this story could go for Daniel and Armand, and we’re eager to see how Interview with the Vampire tackles this fan-favorite pairing going forward.

The post The Book Inspirations Behind the Armand/Daniel Vampiric Pairing in INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE (And What ‘Devil’s Minion’ Really Means) appeared first on Nerdist.

Fans of Anne Rice’s vampires are gleeful with anticipation with the official confirmation that Interview with the Vampire season three will showcase Lestat (Sam Reid) in full rock star mode. Since that confirmation, fans have wondered just what Lestat’s music will sound like in season three. Will it be 2000s-era Nu metal, like in the movie Queen of the Damned? Thankfully, that seems to not be the case. In a post-season two finale discussion with The Los Angeles Times, showrunner Rolin Jones dropped hints as to what musical stylings they are going for. And it’s a wee bit more glam. Here’s what he had to say:

Lestat becomes a rock star. Let’s start there. We’re going to do a lot with that and are excited about potentially working with Daniel Hart who’s done the music for the first two seasons. We’re going to try to beat Hedwig and the Angry Inch and Rocky Horror. We’re about to try to make a little pop masterpiece.

Hedwig and the Angry Inch and Rocky Horror are two musicals leaning heavily on glam rock, even though they came out decades apart. Yet both have a gender-bending quality, definitely rock, but leaning into humor and camp in their songs. That is perfect for Lestat, who is known as the “Brat Prince” by other vampires. The Nu metal sound of Jonathan Davis of Korn for Lestat’s band in 2002’s Queen of the Damned is very heavy and self-serious. Aggressive, but not seductive. Not how most readers imagined Lestat’s music would sound like in the books.

In Anne Rice’s second undead novel, 1985’s The Vampire Lestat, the titular vamp awakens from a decades-long slumber in New Orleans. Although many things awakened him, one final thing finally brought him out of the ground. This was the rock music of a local band who lived near the cemetery where he slept. This band, called Satan’s Night Out, enraptured Lestat. First, he revealed he was a vampire to these young mortals. Then, he agreed to fund their band with his considerable wealth, with himself as lead singer.

By forming a rock band, Lestat decided to outdo his fledgling vampire Louis’ revelations to the world about vampire existence in his confessions (now a mass market book called Interview with the Vampire) by one-upping his former paramour with his own revelations, via songs, music videos, and a nation-wide tour. This was in 1985, an era when someone could conceivably take over the world via MTV. His songs do more than enrage the vampire nation, they also awaken the very oldest vampires in existence. Hopefully, we’ll see all of that play out, glam rock style, in season three of Interview with the Vampire.

The post INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE Season 3 Will Give Us Glam Rock Lestat appeared first on Nerdist.

Mike Mignola’s Hellboy and its myriad spinoffs are up there as my favorite comics of all time. The mix of Gothic, cosmic, and monster horror with a helping of gallows humor works for me so, so much. Guillermo del Toro famously made a couple of Hellboy movies with Ron Perlman. While good in their own GDT way, neither of them (especially the second one) truly felt like a proper adaptation of the source material. The 2019 Neil Marshall Hellboy movie with David Harbour adapted the source material directly, but the movie itself was very, very bad. Now we get Hellboy: The Crooked Man and…well, just take a look. Then we’ll talk.

First some context. The Crooked Man was a three-issue arc from Mignola and artist Richard Corben from 2008. It detailed one of Hellboy’s earlier missions for the Bureau of Paranormal Research and Defense. In 1958 Appalachia, Hellboy encounters some witches and witch-adjacent people and eventually cross paths with the titular Crooked Man, a hanged war profiteer from the 18th Century who has returned from Hell to act as the region’s resident Devil. He’s pretty terrifying, especially as Corben illustrates him.

Hellboy: The Crooked Man looks to be a very faithful (and small) adaptation of that particular story. On its face this is a good thing. One of the major issues with the 2019 movie is that it adapted way, way, way too many stories, not least of which The Wild Hunt, the longest and most epic story in the Mignola canon. Focusing on a one-off adventure and maximizing the horror is a pretty good idea.

However, just looking at it, you can see the very low budget. You may have noticed the movie comes our way from Ketchup Entertainment. KETCHUP ENTERTAINMENT. Brian Taylor (of Crank franchise fame) is directing, with himself, Mignola, and Mignola’s Baltimore collaborator Christopher Golden on screenplay duties. Jack Kesy (who very briefly played Black Tom Cassidy in Deadpool 2) portrays Hellboy and he just kind of looks unfinished. If Harbour was TOO made up, Kesy looks like a decent amateur cosplay attempt.

So who knows! It may be good. It certainly seems focused more on the actual horror. Which is the proper direction to go following the dark fantasy mishmash of the last movie. But I’m not convinced after this wack first look. I would love it if one day any live-action outing properly snags the tone of the comics. Whether Hellboy: The Crooked Man can do that will have to wait until it comes out later this year.

Kyle Anderson is the Senior Editor for Nerdist. He hosts the weekly pop culture deep-dive podcast Laser Focus. You can find his film and TV reviews here. Follow him on Instagram and Letterboxd.

The post HELLBOY: THE CROOKED MAN Trailer Looks Weird (Not in a Good Way) appeared first on Nerdist.

Interview with the Vampire‘s second season is officially over. The AMC series now heads into Anne Rice’s second vampire novel, The Vampire Lestat for season three’s contents. This season of Interview with the Vampire gives us a finale makes a big change to the narrative of the book. And it is a change that some longtime fans might find themselves shocked by. It’s a fairly big alteration to a pivotal moment in the novel that alters the relationships of Lestat (Sam Reid), Louis (Jacob Anderson), and Arman (Assad Zaman) as we head into future seasons.

Interview with the Vampire the Novel’s Ending

In Rice’s original 1976 novel, vampires Claudia and Madeleine are executed by the Paris coven for the crime of killing Claudia and Louis’ maker, the Vampire Lestat. Or at least, for attempting to kill him. Louis is given a lighter sentence for the same crime, however. (Perhaps it is a worse sentence, depending on how you look at it.) Louis is imprisoned by the coven members inside a locked coffin. That coffin is placed within the walls of the catacombs under the Théâtre des Vampires. He’s meant to die excruciatingly slowly, perhaps over several years, all while going insane from his lack of blood sustenance.

However, in the climax of the novel (and the 1994 film), Paris coven leader Armand rescues him. He tells Louis he could not prevent the execution of Claudia because she’d broken too many laws. Yet he exerted his power over his coven enough to rescue his beloved Louis from eternal imprisonment. Louis then takes revenge on the entire Paris coven by setting fire to the Théâtre des Vampires. Later, he takes a scythe to vampire Santiago, the coven’s second in command, ending his undead rival for good.

Louis then leaves Paris with Armand, both now free of the machinations of the coven. The pair wander the world for decades. Louis eventually confronts Armand with the truth—he knows Armand allowed the Paris coven to murder Claudia. He denied the truth to himself for years, but now realized Armand orchestrated Claudia’s death and his rescue (and the subsequent revenge against the coven) as a way of securing Louis’ companionship.

The film tackles this in a slightly different manner. Louis (Brad Pitt) tells Armand (Antonio Banderas) that he knew he was behind it all immediately after the events took place. Louis then wanders the world alone, and we never discover what became of Armand afterward. Now, the Interview with the Vampire AMC series presents a third version of these events.

AMC’s Interview with the Vampire Season Finale Modifies the Original Ending of the Book

In the series, Louis is freed from his coffin prison, when Armand feeds him his blood, giving him the strength to break free. We never see who the vampire rescuer is, but Louis insists that it was Armand. Louis remains too starved and out of it to really care. The rest of the events transpire much like the book, as Louis takes his bloody revenge against the entire Paris coven, burning the theater to the ground. He then leaves with Armand, who takes credit for rescuing Louis.

Louis knows full well that Armand betrayed him, along with Claudia (Delainey Hayles), and Madeleine (Roxane Duran). But he believes they forced Armand to cooperate, thanks to a coup within the Paris coven masterminded by Santiago (Ben Daniels). Rescuing Louis was Armand’s way of making amends for letting the coven abduct them and force them into a public court spectacle. The two flee Paris together, apparently staying a couple for decades.

But Daniel Molloy (Eric Bogosian), via his Talamasca contacts, discovers the truth about what happened decades ago in Paris. Despite appearances, Armand was not an unwilling accomplice in what the coven did. He didn’t just write the kangaroo court/mock trial play. He absolutely directed it. He was perfectly willing to sacrifice Claudia, Madeleine, and Louis to death in order to save his own skin. His vampiric underlings were revolting against him and he needed to prove himself to them (again).

In fact, it was not Armand who saved Louis from death. It was his maker Lestat. Lestat used his telepathy to force the mortal audience to give Louis a different sentence than death. Louis always believed Armand did this. Once Louis took his revenge on the coven and slaughtered them all, Armand happily took credit for saving him. With the threat to his own life gone, he now had everything he wanted. But Louis’ true rescuer was none other than Lestat.

This revelation enrages Louis in the modern day, who beats Armand by throwing him around their Dubai home. He later goes to New Orleans, where he tells Lestat that he knows the truth now. This is all a pretty big change from the original narrative. We always knew Armand was willing to sacrifice Claudia to remove her as an obstacle to his being with Louis. But, in the series, we now know he was also willing to let his beloved Louis die to save his own life. Once the coven was no longer a threat, he took credit for Louis’ commuted death sentence. Louis introduced Armand as “the love of his life” in season one, but it is actually his maker, the Vampire Lestat.

The post How the Season 2 Finale of INTERVIEW WITH THE VAMPIRE Changes the Book’s Ending appeared first on Nerdist.

A Quiet Place: Day One is a haunting human look at mortality, connections, and little moments that make living worthwhile. Thanks to its premise, audiences experience most of the film sans dialogue. Yet it is such a profound, moving experience where terror and sorrow resonate in equal measure alongside exquisite compassionate moments plus comedic relief. While some directorial decisions raise a quizzical brow, A Quiet Place: Day One might be my favorite of the franchise’s trio, thanks to a phenomenal cast that delivers emotional peaks and valleys without speaking. And yes, that includes the wide-eyed, side-eyeing cat, Frodo, who is the MVP. 

Directed by Michael Sarnoski and written by Sarnoski, John Krasinski, and Bryan Woods, the film follows withdrawn Samira, played by Lupita Nyong’o (Black Panther, Us), as she shares her poetry that relays how much she hates everything to her fellow hospice members. Lupita gets tricked into attending a marionette show with the promise of pizza. Not just any pizza—but Patsy’s in Harlem. Before long, nixing any possibility of exquisite pizza, the creatures appear, falling from the sky, causing chaos, fires, accidents, and intentional soul-snatching from the ultra-hearing sensitivity of the monsters.

In A Quiet Place: Day One, the name of the game is survival, but for Samira, it’s more. Her life consists of a countdown of moments, regardless of the ill-timed arrival of monsters from the sky. 

Action Takes Twists That Channel Other Cinematic Gems

Of course, the emotional maelstrom has destructive, deadly chaos at its center. A Quiet Place: Day One builds tension as survivors quickly realize that silence is golden. But staying silent in a city with debris and shattered glass is challenging. Not to mention, the mental and psychological toll of knowing your world is entirely upended. So, naturally, people’s first response is to scream for help, look for loved ones, etc. As such, the body count is biblical. 

But Samira is also quick-thinking, anticipating problems before they arise, such as the mass exodus toward the ferries. Or, she really wants Patsy’s pizza, which is a fixation of hers throughout the movie. Some scenes similar to the 28 Days Later films, and there’s even one that screams Aliens. Besides similarities to other films, other aspects ground A Quiet Place: Day One in reality. Patsy’s in Harlem is real, as is Octavia E. Butler’s Dawn, a story about an alien invasion, that Samira finds. 

A Quiet Place: Day One Explores Humanity with Horror Beats

Where the first movie felt like a horror film with emotional beats, A Quiet Place: Day One is the reverse. It’s a touching production with horror beats—albeit unrelenting horror beats. However, the pain, terror, and sorrow are all visceral. As is the heartwarming emotional moments between Samira and Eric, played by Joseph Quinn (Stranger Things). Eric’s a kind human stray her cat brings to her. Those brief moments to grasp normalcy and unity elevate A Quiet Place: Day One above its previous films in the series. 

In a sense, Eric’s successful magic trick mirrors the surprise and sense of fulfillment he brings to Samira. Human connection is a type of magic that too many forget the wonder of. His kindness and soulful eyes showed her that it was okay to care, reminding Samira of the wonder of living. Her existence has value, and her magical cat agrees.  

There Are Spellbinding Performances From the Cast—Cat Included

Lupita Nyong’o already demonstrated via Us that she is a genius at relaying emotions through facial expressions. But here, she uses her entire body to convey exhaustion, stress, pain, frustration, and joy. Her raw performance leaves audiences catching their breath, especially with her precious cat in tow. Speaking of, the cat, Frodo, is another one who is acting with a capital “A.” Its divine intervention is what brings Eric and Samira together. 

She finds a perfect counterpoint with Joseph Quinn, who possesses that same talent of delivering a performance through his eyes. He stole hearts in Stranger Things. He, like Lupita, understood the assignment. The casting in A Quiet Place: Day One is top-notch.

A Quiet Place: Day One Has Some Pointless Additions and Baffling Decisions

It’s not all smooth sailing, as the film makes a couple of debatable choices. While Djimon Hounsou is an exceptional actor and deserves lead roles in films, his appearance feels pointless in the film as it lacks a thematic essentialness. The only possible parallel is how he deals with a man panicking on the rooftop compared to how Samira handles Eric’s panic attack. However, the former felt like an outburst based on circumstances, while Eric’s seemed like a condition. So it feels flimsy, even inconsequential. 

The other is the final scene. While the shot is stunning and impactful, the movie does not set up Eric’s panic attacks enough. Nor does A Quiet Place: Day One adequately set up or justify Samira’s choice. It’s as though the end shot was a concrete choice, and they forced a path that did not feel authentic to the character’s development, their relationship, or the plot. The climactic end lacks a logical course. 

A Quiet Place: Day One is an outstanding movie that emotionally guts you as much as it makes you jump in fright. It delivers a film that leaves audiences awash in a myriad of feelings, from terror to shock to laughter. Once it unleashes its torrent, the film swells and crests like a storm with little lulls of relief, but the feelings never cease. The monsters’ inescapable onslaught mirrors that; it’s irrepressible and unstoppable.

A Quiet Place: Day One is one of the best horror films—inarguably one of the best films—of 2024 so far. And Frodo is a wise savior who led bae to Samira! Wanna find a partner? Get yourself a Frodo!

A Quiet Place: Day One ⭐ (4.5 of 5)

A Quiet Place: Day One hits theaters on June 27.

The post A QUIET PLACE: DAY ONE Is a Haunting Look at Mortality and Human Connection appeared first on Nerdist.

Most sequels to good films don’t live up to their predecessor’s legacy. The hit rate for the third installments in a franchise is even lower. And yet, the latest trailer for A Quiet Place: Day One has us thinking it could be one of the rare part three’s that actually end up being the best entry in the entire series. This intense, horrifying promo shows a swarm of alien invaders turning New York City into a silent, isolated wasteland. But that’s just the start of their fight for suvival.

Every war starts somewhere, and in this latest look at A Quiet Place: Day One that place is in the Big Apple. The prequel will take viewers back to when mankind’s desperate to stay alive began. The film opens with the monstrous beings who hunt by sound crash landing into The City That Never Sleeps. But as the trailer for A Quiet Place: Day One reveals, it’s not just the killer aliens New Yorkers will have to overcome.

The good citizens of NYC (and Frodo the cat!) are left stranded with seemingly no way out of the city, as the government opts to pin both humans and extraterrestrials alike inside the island. The effect is a story that looks like The War of the Worlds set inside the fantastic flashbacks from I Am Legend. That’s a movie we very much want to see.

A Quiet Place: Day One comes from writer-director Michael Sarnoski. He developed the story with franchise creator John Krasinski. It also stars some big-time horror film luminaries. The cast is led by Lupita Nyong’o (Us), Joseph Quinn (Stranger Things), and Alex Wolff (Hereditary). And A Quiet Place Part II star Djimon Hounsou is also back for more silent terror. Frodo the cat is played by true stars Nico and Schnitze.)

The prequel comes to theaters this summer on June 28, 2024. Tickets are now on sale. Try not to scream when you see it, though, even if it does end up being the best A Quiet Place movie yet. With these aliens, it’s best to keep it down.

Originally published on May 9, 2024.

The post A QUIET PLACE: DAY ONE’s New Trailer Puts Frodo the Cat (and New York) in Grave Danger appeared first on Nerdist.

Finding new and interesting takes on vampire stories is a pretty tough row to hoe at this point. They’re among the oldest and most famous folklore monsters and the lore surrounding them, at least as laid out in Bram Stoker’s Dracula, feels mostly concrete. It’s strange, then, why more movies don’t explore the folklore in a different way, from a different part of the world. Adrien Beau’s debut feature The Vourdalak does this, exploring the Russian/Slavic vampire legend through its most popular written work. Oh, and it also makes the vampire a creepy puppet. That helps.

The Vourdalak adapts Aleksey K. Tolstoy’s 1839 novella, The Family of the Vourdalak, which predates both Le Fanu’s 1873 Carmilla and Stoker’s 1897 Dracula. Vourdalaks differ from our traditional understanding of vampires. They drink blood, sure, and they are undead, but the sun has little to no effect on them, and they tend to only feast on members of their family. That aspect forms the foundation of the story. It’s the breakdown of a family unit in a time and culture that values family, and respecting elders of the family, above all else.

The movie places the action in the late 1700s wherein French nobleman Marquis Jacques Antoine Saturnin d’Urfe (Kacey Mottet Klein) finds himself stranded in Eastern Europe, looking for a place to spend the night. The Turks had recently raided the village, but the villager tells the Marquis to seek shelter at the house of an elder named Gorcha. On the way, the Marquis meets Gorcha’s daughter Sdenka (Ariane Labed) and immediately becomes infatuated. Unfortunately for him, Sdenka—who desperately wants to leave for a better life—has other things on her mind.

The Gorcha household, we and the Marquis learn, consists of the aged Gorcha, Gorcha’s three children—eldest Jegor, Sdenka, and younger son Piotr—and Jegor’s wife and son. Jegor left to find the Turkish raiders and, returning after a month, discovers Gorcha himself went out after the Turks. Gorcha told his family if he does not return in six days, they should assume he’s dead. If he returns after the six days, they should assume he’s a vourdalak and refuse him entry. Jegor finds this absurd and the Marquis finds it peculiar.

However, after assuming the missing Gorcha had indeed died, the old man appears at the edge of the forest at exactly six days, to the minute. He looks like a corpse, clearly little more than a skeleton with skin, but he holds so much sway over his children, especially Jegor, they allow him to stay. Would you be surprised to hear he’s a vourdalak?

Beau makes a couple of really clever choices that set this movie apart from other adaptations. Famously, Mario Bava’s 1963 anthology film Black Sabbath adapts the story with Boris Karloff as Gorcha. Less famously, the 1972 Giorgio Ferroni film The Night of the Devils moved the action to the modern day. But Beau in fact moves it further back in time, so that our French nobleman is a ridiculous, white-makeup-faced fop. He’s a ridiculous sight to us, but it makes him especially ridiculous to the locals who know nothing of French courtiers. He’s an outsider.

The other major change, obviously, is that Gorcha himself when we see him is so inhuman, so far gone down the road of undead monster, that he’s not even a person. Gorcha is head to toe a full-size rod puppet, with Beau providing the voice. He has full scenes of dialogue, in full light—more than enough to make it clear, this ain’t a man. This is entirely the point! It’s easy to look at Boris Karloff and, even with some makeup, recognize he’s the man you used to know. It’s impossible to look at the thing in this movie and see anything but a grotesquery. And yet…

The Vourdalak uses its uncanny visuals to its benefit, heightening a story that certainly feels pretty familiar to horror fans. In addition to the puppetry, we have some lovely, gloomy dream sequences and bloody set pieces. The cast acquit themselves very nicely, perfectly playing the severity of the situation, even amid the unreality of the threat. Klein also manages a compelling protagonist who is at once compassionate and forthright, and a ridiculous buffoon who is a rich creep.

I think if The Vourdalak has any downside, it’s that none of it is particularly scary. Parts of it, especially later in the story involving Gorcha’s feeding, should be eerier than they are. Perhaps that isn’t the point, however the aforementioned Italian versions certainly slanted toward a growing creep factor I don’t think The Vourdalak ever comes close to. Doesn’t mean it’s a bad movie, and if grotesqueness is all you’re after, this French-language offering has plenty for you. The puppet alone is worth the 90 minute watch.

The Vourdalak ⭐ (3.5 of 5)

The Vourdalak opens exclusively in US cinemas on June 28th from Oscilloscope Laboratories.

Kyle Anderson is the Senior Editor for Nerdist. He hosts the weekly pop culture deep-dive podcast Laser Focus. You can find his film and TV reviews here. Follow him on Instagram and Letterboxd.

The post THE VOURDALAK Gives Us a Vampire Folk Tale with One Major Selling Point appeared first on Nerdist.

When you think of iconic horror movie actors, you think of names like Boris Karloff, Christopher Lee,, Jamie Lee Curtis….and Robert Englund. The man responsible for bringing slasher icon Freddy Krueger into our nightmares will now share an honor with those other horror legends. Englund has announced via Twitter that he’s receiving a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at long last. The beloved actor will receive his star in a ceremony taking place sometime in 2025.

Robert Englund became a household name playing the dream stalker in Wes Craven’s original A Nightmare on Elm Street. A film that turns forty this year. Yet he has a long and storied career outside of Freddy. As he detailed in the documentary about his life, Hollywood Dreams and Nightmares, he was a working character actor for years. Long before his breakout role in the sci-fi mini-series V. A year after V, Craven cast him as deranged serial killer Fred Krueger. This was his career-defining role a part he would play in six sequels and the crossover Freddy vs. Jason. He also starred in films like Phantom of the Opera, Hatchet, and most recently, on season four of Stranger Things.

Will his Elm Street co-star Heather Langenkamp, who played Nancy Thompson, present him with the honor? We kind of hope she does. It would perhaps finally facilitate an on-screen legacy sequel reunion between the two. So many legacy sequels have come out for horror classics like Halloween, The Exorcist, and others over the past several years. Ever since, the fans have been clamoring for a “one more time” visit to Springwood for Robert Englund, especially after the less-than-beloved A Nightmare on Elm Street remake from 2009. In any event, we are just thrilled that Robert Englund is finally getting his flowers.

The post Robert Englund, Iconic Freddy Krueger Actor, to Receive a Star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame appeared first on Nerdist.

Nosferatu. That one word causes a shiver to go down horror fans’ spines. We all know the story of the famed vampire Count Orlok, who is unofficially based on Bram Stoker’s Dracula vampire. And, no matter how many times it gets retold, we want to see it over and over again. Gothic vampire horror narratives will always reign supreme, and the original Nosferatu movie is legendary. The trailer for Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu hits the perfect notes, giving away none of its plot and simply leaning into disturbing imagery. We learn one thing throughout its narrative: He is coming. 

I don’t know the name of the casting director who brought on Bill Skarsgård as Count Orlok. I do know that they deserve every good thing in life. What a perfect choice. He’s opposite Lily-Rose Depp as Ellen Hutter, the object of this vampire’s affections. The Nosferatu teaser trailer promises a dark and twisted tale centering on these two characters. 

Here’s a quick synopsis to bring things into focus: 

Robert Eggers’ NOSFERATU is a gothic tale of obsession between a haunted young woman and the terrifying vampire infatuated with her, causing untold horror in its wake.

The remainder of Nosferatu’s cast is as follows: 

What Is the Release Date for Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu Movie? 

Nosferatu will hit theaters on December 25, 2024. What a haunting Christmas present.

The post Bill Skarsgård Comes for Lily-Rose Depp’s Blood and Body in NOSFERATU Trailer appeared first on Nerdist.

The tortured process of bringing a Blade reboot to life at Marvel Studios has been something to behold. Blade was first announced at Comic-Con in 2019, when Oscar winner Mahershala Ali stepped onto the stage to announce he would portray the Daywalker. Since then, it’s gone through multiple screenwriters, different production start dates, several release dates, and two directors. Yet Marvel has revealed very little about the film in all this time, aside from the basic info we already knew from comics and previous movies. Now, an article in The Hollywood Reporter has revealed a few key characters of the MCU Blade.

One of the main reveals is that the film would have featured two characters from the pages of Marvel Comics. The first was Blade’s daughter. We presume this is Bloodline, who first appeared last year in the comics. Named Brielle Brooks, she also has a thing for slaying the undead, just like dear old dad. Although a recent creation, the idea of Blade having a daughter goes back a few years. Marvel announced a series about Blade and his daughter in 2015, Back then, her name was Fallon Grey. That series never happened, and Bloodline came about seven years later instead.

Pearl and MaXXXine star Mia Goth was the other major comics character, the villain Lilith. In the comics, Lilith Drake is the daughter of Dracula, and has fought Marvel’s supernatural heroes many times. In the film, she would have wanted the blood of Blade’s daughter. Considering Blade began as a supporting character in Marvel’s Tomb of Dracula comics, it makes sense for him to fight someone related to the King of the Vampires in the MCU. In actual mythology, Lilith was the first wife of Adam, and the supposed source of many vampire mythology. Marvel Comics had their own take on the character, which likely inspired whatever Marvel Studios was working on.

It’s unknown if either of these characters will survive into the latest Blade draft from writer Eric Pearson. One of the first MCU Blade scripts took place in the 1920s, with the most recent one taking place in the modern day. Some characters from earlier scripts might not make the cut, if and when this movie goes before the cameras. Blade currently has no director attached, so it’s certainly not making its 2025 release date. In its article, The Hollywood Reporter notes, “The new plan [for Blade] calls for the script to be written over the summer and then go out to directors.” Hopefully, Marvel Studios can finally crack the code on Blade, and give us Mahershala Ali slicing and dicing the undead. This shouldn’t be the hardest movie in the world to get off the ground.

The post BLADE Would Have Included His Daughter Bloodline, and Lilith, Daughter of Dracula, New Script Coming Soon appeared first on Nerdist.

Nearly a century ago, Universal Pictures invented Hollywood’s cinematic horror film genre with their classic monsters, Dracula, Frankenstein, the Wolf Man, the Mummy, and many more. And they all remain icons of horror cinema and Halloween to this day. Now, Universal Studios theme parks are finally giving these iconic classic monsters an immersive themed land of their own as part of the new Dark Universe, coming to Universal Epic Universe at the Universal Orlando Resort. We’re excited to share details and concept art for the attractions and themed areas of this creeptastic portion of the park, which debuts in 2025. Below you can see the “bat’s eye view” of the land in all its Transylvanian glory.

Universal Epic Universe’s Dark Universe Land Celebrates the Universal Monsters

Dark Universe is one of the five immersive worlds featured in Universal Epic Universe. This new land will envelop guests in monstrous adventures across various attractions, shops, restaurants, and character meet and greets. Dark Universe blends the iconic stories of Dracula, The Wolf Man, Frankenstein, and the Bride with a new generation of monsters. The new monsters coming to Dark Universe include Dr. Victoria Frankenstein – the great-great-granddaughter of Henry Frankenstein, who has continued his misguided experiments. As guests venture through the ravaged village of Darkmoor, they’ll encounter the characters and subjects of those experiments. All within a first-of-its-kind theme park environment. Concept art of the eerie Darkmoor village can be seen below, as well as the Universal Epic Universe’s Dark Universe attractions:

Click To View Gallery

Monsters Unchained: The Frankenstein Experiment

One of the rides we know is coming to Dark Universe celebrates the Universal Monster, Frankenstein. It’s titled Monsters Unchained: The Frankenstein Experiment. This state-of-the-art dark ride takes guests deep into the catacombs of Frankenstein Manor. There, Dr. Victoria Frankenstein conducts her twisted experiments. In a vain display of her genius, she invites guests into her laboratory to witness a demonstration of her ability to control monsters. Yet her plans go awry when her attempts to control the most dangerous of monsters, Dracula, fail. Dracula unleashes a horde of enraged monsters. Guests are then thrust into an intense ride through the darkness. There, they try to evade the grasp of The Wolf Man, The Mummy, The Creature from the Black Lagoon, the Brides of Dracula, and others.

Curse of the Werewolf

Deep in the woods that sit on the edge of Darkmoor, guests will find Curse of the Werewolf. This Universal Epic Universe Dark Universe ride is a spinning family coaster inspired by The Wolf Man. Guests will enter the encampment of The Guild of Mystics. Here, Maleva, the guild’s all-knowing seer and leader, will greet them. She warns them that they bear the mark of the werewolf. Guests then board a wagon and venture into the forest – racing to escape the werewolves before they become one themselves.

The Dark Universe’s Darkmoor Makeup Experience

Guests of all ages can become fashionably monstrous as they don elaborate face paint and temporary tattoos at Darkmoor Monster Makeup Experience. Here, monster makers have converted Dr. Pretorius’ infamous old lab into a parlor to continue the spirit of his demented experiments, and skilled artisans use their talents to transform guests’ outer appearances so they can showcase their fandom for the Universal Monsters as they traverse the Dark Universe land.

Meet the Universal Monsters at Epic Universe’s Dark Universe

There’s always someone…or something…looming in the shadows of Dark Universe – including Universal Monsters eager to meet and greet everyone, from kids to adults. Among them are Dr. Victoria Frankenstein’s Monster and the alluring Bride of Frankenstein. Guests will also encounter other unusual inhabitants roaming the eerie village, like Frankenstein’s servant, Ygor. In addition, The Invisible Man, an eccentric monster hunter, and a talented musician will regale guests with songs in this Universal Epic Universe land, not to mention tales of the classic Universal Monsters stories.

Dining and More at Universal Epic Universe’s Dark Universe

The Dark Universe will also feature Das Stakehaus, a vampire-themed dining hall, the Burning Blade tavern, inspired by the burning windmill from The Bride of Frankenstein, and Dr. Lacey’s Cottage, where the Frankenstein Monster once found a friend, and now is home to all sorts of treats. You can check out concept art images of those in the gallery above.

There’s already a link for merchandise from Dark Universe for monster fans who can’t wait to experience it for themselves. Dark Universe and the rest of Universal’s Epic Universe will open for business at the Universal Orlando Resort in 2025.

The post Universal’s Dark Universe First Look: Epic Universe Gives Classic Monsters Their Own Theme Park Land appeared first on Nerdist.

One of the best and most creative horror films in recent years is undoubtedly Smile. Everything from the film’s concepts to its characters and even its marketing blitz were pretty darn close to perfection. With Smile’s resounding success, it was inevitable that Paramount Pictures would order a sequel. The first teaser trailer for Smile 2 introduces us to a new set of characters and that familiar sinister smirking.

Ya know, I am not sure about this second venture. I will definitely check it out when it hits theaters. But I think that certain concepts are cooler when they aren’t stretched to their limits. I absolutely love Parker Finn’s Laura Hasn’t Slept and didn’t mind that concept getting stretched out to a full film with Smile. Now, it feels like it could be wearing the novelty thin, if you get what I mean. No shade to anyone involved because I totally hope this film rules. It’s good to see Parker Finn is writing and directing once again!

Here’s a synopsis for Smile 2 to bring the trailer into focus: 

About to embark on a new world tour, global pop sensation Skye Riley (Naomi Scott) begins experiencing increasingly terrifying and inexplicable events. Overwhelmed by the escalating horrors and the pressures of fame, Skye is forced to face her dark past to regain control of her life before it spirals out of control. 

The Smile 2 cast includes Rosemarie DeWitt, Kyle Gallner, Lukas Gage, Miles Gutierrez-Riley, Peter Jacobson, Raúl Castillo, Dylan Gelula, Ray Nicholson.

What Is the Release Date for Smile 2?

Smile 2 will hit theaters just in time for Halloween on October 18.

The post SMILE 2 Trailer Takes That Sinister Smirk to Darker Depths appeared first on Nerdist.

Jordan Peele is not only a master of horror but also a master of enigma. The horror director and producer caught many fans attention with Us, Get Out, and Nope. And, he still has us in his hooks with Him, a football-centric film he’s producing starring Marlon Wayans. That film is set to hit theaters in September 2025 but it seems there’s yet another Jordan Peele project on the rise. We know absolutely nothing about it except one thing: It’s coming just in time for Halloween 2026. Jordan Peele posted a message on X (forever Twitter in our hearts) with a photo that has nothing but the date October 23, 2026. Maybe it will be called Her…

According to The Hollywood Reporter, the upcoming 2026 Jordan Peele film is on Universal Pictures upcoming slate. There is no title nor any details but fans are speculating quite a bit already. Is it Candyman 2? Maybe. He’s known for promoting all things under Monkeypaw Production’s umbrella, whether he is directing it or not.

Maybe it’s a quirky Marvel film or The People Under the Stairs remake that is supposed to be in early stages of development. Who knows. We will have to wait a long time and see what Jordan Peele has coming our way with this mysterious 2026 movie.

The post Jordan Peele Teases a New Film Set for October 2026 appeared first on Nerdist.

Danny Boyle and Alex Garland are teaming up again. That might sound like dream come true, but it’s actually something even better: a nightmare. We know because the last time they worked together was 2002’s 28 Days Later. That popular horror film’s influence is still being felt more than two decades later. Now it’s going to be felt even longer. That’s exactly what is bringing them back together. They’re making a sequel to their modern zombie classic. Only it might be more than just a single new entry in the franchise. It could launch a new trilogy.

Cillian Murphy Will Return in 28 Years Later

When asked if Cillian Murphy would reprise his role in 28 Years Later, Sony Motion Pictures Group chairman Tom Rothman said yes. Cillian Murphy will return in 28 Years Later. But it’s more complex than that. Rothman shared:

Yes, but in a surprising way and in a way that grows, let me put it that way. This is Danny [Boyle] at his best, combined with a very commercial genre, like we had with Edgar Wright and Baby Driver. Sometimes when you put a real signature director into a commercial arena, it elevates it.

The Cast of 28 Years Later

According to Variety, in addition to Murphy, the cast of 28 Years Later is also coming together. The publication reports that Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, and Ralph Fiennes have joined the film. That’s a pretty star-studded opening play.

An interview with Elle teases Comer’s role in the fun. The publication notes, “The part means she’ll get to add another accent to her repertoire: Geordie. She has been watching clips of Cheryl on The X Factor with her dialect coach to prepare.” Comer notes, “I’m excited to get the first day done… Danny just seems like such a confident, intuitive and intelligent director. The original was so loved, so I’m trying not to think of that too hard. I’m not putting too much expectation on myself.”

28 Years Later‘s Release Date

The highly anticipated 28 Years Later movie has a release date: June 20, 2025. Hopefully, that means we’ll be seeing more from it very soon.

Danny Boyle and Alex Garland Re-Teaming for Sequel and Possible Trilogy

Danny Boyle, who directed 28 Days Later, is making his long-awaited return to the franchise. Even better he is bringing the original film’s writer, Garland, with him. Boyle will direct a new film, 28 Years Later, which will move the story decades past the original entry starring Cillian Murphy.

Rather than just one film, though, THR says the duo has plans to launch a trilogy. Garland would write all three scripts, with the Academy Award-winning Boyle directing the first at least. Variety recently reported that Nia DaCosta is in talks to direct the second part of the trilogy. Garland and Boyle will begin shopping the project to studios soon. The pitch will include giving each film its own $75 million budget. That would pay for a whole lot of very fast reanimated corpses.

While this movie would mark the return of Boyle and Garland as a creative team, their zombie film did get a sequel with 2007’s 28 Weeks Later. However, they only served as executive producers on the movie. (Which, for the record, was still very good!) That’s what makes this news so exciting for fans, especially those who remember what a cultural phenomenon 28 Days Later was.

It still is. The modern zombie renaissance owes a lot to Boyle and Garland. With their renewed partnership it is likely going to owe them even more in the future.

Originally published on January 11, 2024.

The post Cillian Murphy Will Return in 28 YEARS LATER Movie appeared first on Nerdist.