The ComicBook Nation crew breaks down the X-Men '97 Season 1 Finale and discusses all the reveals about the Season 2 storyline. We also review the new movie IF (2024).

PLUS: Geek News includes some big renewal news for some of streaming's hottest shows; a breakdown of Amazon's The Rings of Power Season 2 Trailer, and the Spider-Verse expands with Nic Cage's Spider-Man Noir TV show - even as Amazon's Silk: Spider Society series dies in development.

IF (2024) Review

ComicBook critic Jamie Jirak's IF movie review gives the film 3.5 out of 5 stars:

The film does a good job of reminding its audience that there's a kid in all of us, and that time can never truly take away your imagination. It's been a while since I looked around in a theater and saw multiple grown men shedding a tear. Krasinski knows how to appeal to parents, especially dads. While IF may not be a perfectly pieced-together movie, there's enough heart embedded in its core to make it a worthy trip to the cinema for families. The cast is delightful, the IFs are magical, and the warmth is undeniable.

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Anne Rice's Interview With the Vampire returned last week, with Louis (Jacob Anderson) and Claudia (Delainey Hayles) making their way across Europe in search of Old World Vampires and, after a devastating experience in Romania, made their way to Paris. Paris will prove to be a major turning point for Louis and Claudia, one with devastating consequences but it also marks the duo finally finding the vampires they've been looking for -- and the Theatre Des Vampires. Now, ahead of Sunday's episode, "Do You Know What It Means To Be Loved by Death", AMC has provided ComicBook with an exclusive clip introducing not only Louis and Claudia but the audience to the Theatre. Prepare to delve into the underbelly of the human soul and check out the scene for yourself in the video above.

In "Do You Know What It Means To Be Loved by Death", Daniel Molloy's (Eric Bogosian) interview of Louis will continue in present-day Dubai, but this time, the vampire Armand (Assad Zaman) joins in and Louis and Armand tell Daniel how they met all those years ago in Paris.

Can Louis' Memories Be Trusted in Season 2?

As we've seen in teasers for Season 2 of Interview of the Vampire, memory is the real monster -- and Louis' memory has already not exactly been fully reliable. Episode 1 saw him realizing that there were things he was misremembering about his and Claudia's time in Romania. However, while the lack of accuracy in Louis' recollection may call into question details, Anderson tells ComicBook that he doesn't necessarily agree with Louis' being unreliable, as the story is as much about feeling as it is fact.

"I think something that I'm always slightly resistant about with the unreliable narrator tag that Louis gets is that we're all unreliable," Anderson said. "I think it's a strange idea that television or storytelling is objective. I think it's a comfortable way to engage with something or to watch something."

"In terms of Louis, I think he's as unreliable as any. The story that we are being told is just as much based on how something felt to Louis as the biographical details or the specifics, which is something that I love about him," Anderson continued. "He's very complicated. He's a very complicated person, but he's a very complicated character and I love him for that."

"There's a lot that hopefully comes through in that there's a difference quite often for Louis between what he says and what he feels," Anderson said. "I think that's fun. I don't know why we need to know exactly how everything happened exactly all the time unless it is to contextualize the story. I think that's something I get a lot of joy out of with Anne Rice's books and with the show is that with each new perspective, the story only gets bigger and more exciting and more complicated. So, he is unreliable, but aren't we all? He's also learning. He's learning a lot."

What Is Interview with the Vampire Season 2 About?

You can read AMC's official description of the second season of Interview With the Vampire here: "The interview continues in season two. In the year 2022, the vampire Louis de Pointe du Lac (Anderson) recounts his life story to journalist Daniel Molloy (Eric Bogosian). Picking up from the bloody events in New Orleans in 1940 when Louis and teen fledgling Claudia (Hayles) conspired to kill the Vampire Lestat de Lioncourt (Reid), Louis tells of his adventures in Europe, a quest to discover Old World Vampires and the Theatre Des Vampires in Paris, with Claudia. It is in Paris that Louis first meets the Vampire Armand (Assad Zaman). Their courtship and love affair will prove to have devastating consequences both in the past and in the future, and Molloy will probe to get to the truths buried within the memories.

Interview with the Vampire airs Sundays on AMC and AMC+.

After delivering three massively successful Spider-Man films, director Sam Raimi returned to his horror roots in 2009 for Drag Me to Hell, an intense and unrelenting experience that includes a grim final scene. Star of the movie Alison Lohman has largely left Hollywood behind in the years since the film's release, and despite not being particularly active on social media, she recently responded to a post on Twitter from last November in which Netflix claimed that the movie, which ends with her character's death, had the "perfect ending." While many users were happy to support such a claim, she was one of the detractors.

While resharing the Twitter post, Lohman hilariously added, "Strongly disagree."

In the film, Lohman's character Christine finds herself tasked with making a difficult decision of either approving a loan for an elderly woman to keep her house or reject her for the loan, which could result in her getting a promotion at work. The old woman lashes out and curses Christine, claiming she will be dragged down to Hell in three days. Even though Christine believes she resolved the curse, the final moments show her first falling onto a set of train tracks before the ground opens up and sucks her into Hell.

Raimi made a name for himself with his Evil Dead horror movies, which proved his storytelling capabilities despite working with minuscule budgets. After bringing Peter Parker to life with resounding success, Drag Me to Hell allowed him to offer up his signature style in the realm of horror while also having the financial support to fully realize his vision with minimal restrictions.

Despite not being a major financial success when it was released, the movie has earned a passionate following over the years, leading fans to wonder if we could ever get a sequel.

"The team at Ghost House Pictures: Romel Adam and Jose Canas, are trying to come up with a story that would work and I'm anxious to hear if they do!" Raimi shared last year during a Q&A.

Lohman's costar Justin Long, whose character is left watching Christine die, also addressed a possible sequel previously.

"It's funny you say that because I remember leaving the screening when I first saw the movie and my manager, who was kind of like Jeremy Piven's character in Entourage a little bit, he had that energy, he was like, beaming, and I thought it was maybe just because the movie, because I was excited because I was like, 'Holy sh-t, this movie's so good,' and he goes, 'Sequel, baby! Gonna be a sequel!'" Long joked with ComicBook back in 2019. "I think he was seeing the potential for, I don't know what, dollar signs maybe, so it was the first and really only time I thought about [a sequel]. And I think maybe Sam, I think we talked about it, like, setting you up for it. And I wonder, I always wonder if the movie had performed better would that have happened. But I never paid it that much more thought than that. So I certainly didn't think about what the character, I never gave it that much thought aside from obviously it would be cool to do."

Stay tuned for possible updates on a Drag Me to Hell sequel.

What do you think of Lohman's remarks? Contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter or on Instagram to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

Between the rise of attention being paid to streaming platforms and the coronavirus pandemic taking a major toll on movie theaters, the past few years have been full of unexpected developments when it comes to how movies are both made and also released. The Strangers: Chapter 1, for example, was originally developed as an experience that would likely have been released directly to the streaming market, though producer Courtney Solomon confirmed that the excitement from studio Lionsgate allowed the project to pivot to earn a theatrical release. In addition to the creative components of the project, the studio was also confident in that filming three slasher films in a sprawling production would be vastly different from attempting to film three major blockbusters. The Strangers: Chapter 1 is in theaters now.

"On the filming side of it, [Lionsgate said], 'Okay, make the giant movie, we understand that they'll be three parts.' When we went into it, we didn't know the first one was gonna be a theatrical movie," Solomon confirmed to ComicBook. "That's not how we went into it, because in the world we live in, so many places where you can put a movie out, streaming, everything else, nobody was really worried. And it wasn't like we were spending $800 million a movie, so that wasn't the biggest concern, either. So all the business and the numbers of everything, whichever way it might have gone, worked out."

He continued, "We were fortunate that once they liked the creative and we presented them a pretty detailed treatment, they let us go ahead and make the movie and they were very supportive, and that was great. As they saw the first cut of the first movie and then we went on further, they were like, 'Okay, this is a theatrical movie, we're good.' And we're like, 'Yay! That's good.'"

Understandably, Solomon, the rest of the filmmakers, and audiences would prefer if the upcoming second and third chapters also earned theatrical releases, with the producer confirming the fate of those films will likely be dependent on how this first chapter performs financially.

"So now, I guess, obviously, it depends on how we do, they're business people," the producer pointed out. "The hope is that they'd love to bring out these next two movies at the same size that they brought out this movie ... Thankfully, we don't have the most giant mountain to climb like a lot of these movies do these days, on that side of it. We feel confident and they feel very good, but you never know which way it's gonna go, right? That's life."

He added, "It was a smart way of doing it, in so much as, we just looked at it from a fan satisfaction point of view. We want to tell this story, the only way we can tell it is as this giant thing, it will, in fact, be three parts. 'Let's figure out economically, for you guys, how that works, great, you're covered.' Now, we'll do our job and hopefully the audience will get to see it in the best possible way."

The Strangers: Chapter 1 is in theaters now. Stay tuned for updates on The Strangers: Chapter 1 and The Strangers: Chapter 2.

Are you hoping the rest of the trilogy is released theatrically? Contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter or on Instagram to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

One element about 2008's The Strangers that set it apart from its peers is that our main characters are going through a tense time in the wake of a rejected marriage proposal, putting the audience in an uncomfortable situation right from the start. With The Strangers: Chapter 1, however, the script called for a different type of dynamic between Maya and Ryan, played by Madelaine Petsch and Froy Gutierrez, respectively. Rather than merely being an arbitrary change, the cast addressed what made this spin on the familiar formula so compelling to them as performers. The Strangers: Chapter 1 is in theaters now.

"I watched the 2008 version when it first came out, and I was 14, so I didn't really understand adult relationships, but I was always a little frustrated by, 'Why are they fighting in the middle of this chaos?'" Petsch shared with ComicBook. "And so when I got the ability to jump into this, I was like, 'How cool would it be if they are just genuinely so in love and happy?' There were still obvious miscommunication issues, as every couple has, but that was very important to me and I was very excited to see that on the page."

While this first chapter makes some tweaks to the original concept, the upcoming The Strangers: Chapter 2 and The Strangers: Chapter 3 won't entirely deviate from expectations, with Petsch also addressing the balance of shedding more insight into the antagonists while also keeping their origins shrouded in secrecy.

"It's really integral to the original story that you don't know why they're doing it or who they are, that's what makes it so scary, so I think we dance a fine line of never really giving you all of it, but giving you a small taste of it," the actor expressed. "Because, otherwise, it's not as bone-chilling anymore if you know exactly what's going on and why and who they are."

The movie is described, "From master director Renny Harlin (Cliffhanger, Die Hard 2, The Exorcist: The Beginning) comes a new trilogy of terror. In Chapter I, Madelaine Petsch (TV's Riverdale) stars as a young woman starting a new life with her fianc?. Suddenly, during a road trip stop in a remote vacation rental in the woods, they become the prey of a mysterious gang of masked strangers who attack without warning or reason. What begins as a fight to stay alive becomes one woman's journey of courage and cunning in this horror series bridging three compelling films."

The Strangers: Chapter 1 is in theaters now.

What did you think of this change to the original story? Contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter or on Instagram to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

The Insidious franchise isn't ending after all. The fifth installment in James Wan's horror series hit theaters last year and turned a substantial profit, earning more than $189 million at the box office. Blumhouse was already working on a spinoff film from filmmaker Jeremy Slater, and now Insidious 6 is also being added to the upcoming slate.

On Thursday, Sony officially set a date for Insidious 6, with its addition to the release calendar being the first mention of the movie's development. The new Insidious release has been set for August 29, 2025, putting it in theaters in a little over one year's time. That likely means we'll be hearing more about the film fairly soon, as it'll need to at least begin pre-production before too long. At this time, there have been no word on the movie's cast or creative team.

According to Deadline, this new Insidious movie is not the Jeremy Slater spinoff, but rather another film following the main story of the previous franchise entries. Slater's film, Thread: An Insidious Tale, was reported last year before the release of Insidious: The Red Door. The movie is supposed to star Mandy Moore and Kumail Nanjiani, but there has been no update on its status since the news broke.

Insidious: The Red Door marked the fifth film in the series, as well as the first directorial outing for franchise star Patrick Wilson. The actor opened up about why he decided to step behind the camera for Insidious during an interview with Collider last year.

"I think, like everything, like all of us, you look at the opportunities you're presented with, the opportunities that are in front of you, your goals shift as your career shifts," Wilson said. "Most of my career, any actor's career, is you're just kind of a gun for hire, right? That's just the nature of the beast. I think with this movie it was a great fit and an incredible opportunity because nobody makes these movies better than Blumhouse, and I've done several movies with these guys and I knew I'd be taken care of."

Wilson's other James Wan horror franchise, The Conjuring, has evolved into a sprawling property with multiple spinoffs and sequels. It appears as though Insidious could be following a similar path.

"Because you were home" was shocking justification for a deadly home invasion in 2008's The Strangers -- but it sounds like critics can't justify a less-scary retread. Critics have published their reviews for The Strangers: Chapter 1, the first in a simultaneously-shot Strangers prequel trilogy slashed into three parts. The horror-thriller, from filmmaker Renny Harlin (A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master, Exorcist: The Beginning), debuted Thursday at 21% "rotten" on Rotten Tomatoes -- lower than the original (49%) and its decade-later standalone sequel, The Strangers: Prey at Night (40%).

In the new movie, a young couple (Riverdale's Madelaine Petsch and Cruel Summer's Froy Gutierrez) is forced to spend the night in a remote cabin after their car breaks down in an eerie small town. Panic ensues as they're terrorized by three masked strangers who strike with no mercy and seemingly no motive, beginning a cat-and-mouse game that will unfold over an entire trilogy.

Chapter 1 "serves as little more than a rehash of the original movie that not only fails to replicate what made that film work, but also actively made decisions that resulted in a distinct step backward for the series," ComicBook's Patrick Cavanaugh writes in a 2/5 review, calling the slasher "redundant" and a "rudimentary rehash of plot points from the original movie."

"We had to keep in mind that this is one story arc. It is one 4.5 hour movie, and the first movie is a first act," Harlin told ComicBook. "It sets up the characters, and the terror, and the killers, and our main character, who will survive the first movie, but then go on a journey for the next two."

But is The Strangers: Chapter 1 all set up and no payoff? Here's what critics are saying:

Deadline: "The Strangers: Chapter 1 is everything wrong in the horror genre. The film suffers from zero build-up, a lack of atmospheric tension, and an overreliance on cheap jump scares. The characters make a series of poor decisions, a hallmark of lazy writing that propels the plot forward with little regard for logic or audience engagement ... a reboot must offer something compelling. The Strangers: Chapter 1 is a film that should not exist, as the original already achieved what was necessary to be entertaining and memorable."

TheWrap: "While we wait for the Strangers to show up, nothing happens. Oh sure, there are incidents. The car breaks down and they have to find an Airbnb in a small town. He loses his inhaler. She has trouble finding vegan food, because there are no vegans in [checks notes] Oregon. But that's not drama and it's not even conflict. It's tedious filler. Maya and Ryan are some of the lousiest horror protagonists in recent memory ... Nothing matters until the killers attack, and they don't attack for a very long time. And when they do, their victims aren't allowed to act like human beings. And somehow it gets worse because the killers are just going through the motions. It's a pat retread of all the violence from the original film, with no emotional investment and no creativity in the mayhem department."

Variety: "Given that, at its core, this new installment has almost the exact same plot as its predecessors, one could make a convincing argument that such a tale doesn't need to be stretched across three movies ? la The Hobbit. Time will tell, but for now there's enough reason for devotees of the series to be cautiously optimistic -- and even a little curious -- about the next two chapters."

Inverse: "Harlin's film thinks it's 'improving' on the original by filling in blanks that are blank for a reason, scrubbing away what The Strangers fans hold dear about Bertino's remarkably revolting mirror to humanity. Instead, The Strangers: Chapter 1 mimics Bertino's home invasion beats with far more rigidity than any ornamental homage. It's a remake, and quite a flimsy remake. Writers Alan R. Cohen and Alan Freedland seek more than inspiration from The Strangers, which is a shame because they carelessly misunderstand what makes Bertino's unquestionably superior post-9/11 horror flick a malicious powerhouse. The Strangers: Chapter 1 overexposes, underdelivers, and replaces despicable bleakness with formulaic predictability akin to The Strangers 2.0 (but worse)."

New York Times: "The hapless script -- written by Alan R. Cohen and Alan Freedland and based on the original -- offers nothing fresh in a tiring 91 minutes, and nothing daring to justify a new Strangers film, let alone a new series."

Chicago Sun-Times: "The Strangers: Chapter 1 is a well-paced, 91-minute thrill ride that provides a steady helping of jump scares while ending on a note that has us eagerly anticipating the next chapters in the saga."

IndieWire: "Yes, the masks are great. And yes, home invasions will always be scary. But when it comes to messing with genre classics, your answer to 'Why remake a near-perfect film?' can't be 'It was here.' ... This good-but-not-great spinoff has the dusty aftertaste of a studio-driven double-dip. It's the same thing you've seen before only less mournful and more business motivated. Think Stranger Danger Lite: all the silent mocking and bursts of violence, now with half the emotional investment."

The Strangers: Chapter 1 is in theaters Friday.

The Strangers: Chapter 1 marks the first installment of the ambitious experiment of reviving 2008's The Strangers as an entire trilogy, with Chapter 1 hitting theaters this weekend. Not only was the project conceived of as a trilogy, but it was also filmed during an extended production period, ensuring continuity across all three films. While it's not a question of whether or not the narrative will continue with another film, some fans have wondered if we would get a tease of what's to come when checking out the new horror film and we're here to confirm that The Strangers: Chapter 1 does have a mid-credits scene.

WARNING: Spoilers below for The Strangers: Chapter 1

This first chapter of the trilogy takes the core story beats from the original 2008 movie and makes some slight changes to them. Couple Maya (Madelaine Petsch) and Ryan (Froy Gutierrez) run into car trouble on their drive from Chicago to Portland, forcing them to stay in a nearby, remote cabin for the night. They find themselves the target of masked murderers, who audiences recognize as "The Strangers," with the trio of characters terrorizing the couple for seemingly no reason.

Much like in the original movie, the film concludes with The Strangers tying up the couple and stabbing them, leaving them for dead. While Ryan seemingly succumbs to his fatal injuries, the film ends with Maya in the hospital having somehow survived her wounds.

As the audience sees Maya in her hospital bed, leaving us to wonder if she's alone, the credits start to roll. In a mid-credits scene, however, we reunite with Maya and see that she isn't alone after all, as the Stranger with the Scarecrow mask is in the room with her.

Given that we know there are two more movies on the way, which have already been filmed, we knew that the terror wouldn't be over quite yet, with this brief tease implying that the next chapter could pick up right where this film leaves off. Fans will also have to wait to find out if Ryan is really dead.

The Strangers: Chapter 1 is in theaters now. The Strangers: Chapter 2 is expected to be released later in 2024.

Are you looking forward to the next chapter? Contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter or on Instagram to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

Last week, it was revealed that Kansas City Chiefs player Travis Kelce had joined the cast of Ryan Murphy's upcoming horror series Grotesquerie and now the NFL star is opening up about his television role, admitting that he was shocked that Murphy gave him the role, and while he didn't reveal much about it, dis say that he's playing a "big role" in the series.

"I was kind of blown away and kinda, like shocked that he was willing to give me a role like this because it is a big role on the show," Kelce said in a recent episode of his New Heights podcast. "He seemed very confident that I'd be able to do this and he kinda injected that in me the first conversation that we had. So, hopefully I don't bomb this for him."

Kelce also said that he's been enjoying working on the series and praised not only Murphy, but everyone he's worked with on set thus far.

"It's been so much fun," Kelce said. "Ryan Murphy is an unbelievable writer, director, producer all of the above, man. He's just, there's nothing he can't do and everybody's just been so helpful in making me feel comfortable. Even on top of that, just giving me kind of the direction I need and the coaching I need to portray this part I'm in."

Kelce's casting for Grotesquerie was confirmed by co-star Niecy Nash-Betts in an Instagram post earlier this month when Nash-Betts shared a video from set revealing Kelce. IN the video, Nash-Betts teased, "Guys, guess who I am working with on Grotesquerie?" before panning to Kelce who chimed in with "Jumping into new territory with Niecy!"

"This is what happens when WINNERS link up!! @killatrav Welcome to Grotesquerie," she captioned the video. Kelce himself also shared the video as an Instagram Story.

For Kelce, Grotesquerie is his first major foray into acting. The NFL star has previously hosted Saturday Night Live as well as appeared in a cameo during SNL's NFL-Taylor Swift sketch last fall -- Kelce is dating Swift and their relationship was the focus of a lot of conversations during the previous NFL season. Kelce has also had some experience with unscripted television, including the 2016 reality dating series Catching Kelce. He also recently signed on to host Amazon's Are You Smarter Than a Celebrity.

What is Grotesquerie About?

Details about Grotesquerie are few, though Murphy shared a video announcing the cast of the upcoming series earlier this year. The video featured a voiceover from Nash-Betts' character, teasing that "something's happening around us, and nobody sees it but me."

"I don't know when it started, I can't put my finger on it, but it's different now," Nash-Betts' character says in the video. "There's been a shift, like something's opening up in the world - a kind of hole that descends into a nothingness. You say, 'Well, hon, evil has always existed,' that 'things are getting better, there's never been a better time to be alive!' ... it's not getting better! Something's happening around us, and nobody sees it but me."

The reboot of I Know What You DId Last Summer has an official release date of July 18, 2025.

Last year theI Know What You DId Last Summer reboot was revealed to be a legacy sequel (or "requel") that will bring back members of the original films' surviving cast, including Jennifer Love Hewitt and Freeeide Prinze Jr.

When asked by Entertainment Tonight about her potential return, Hewitt admitted, "I can't confirm but I won't deny, how about that?" She then expressed that, were her Julie James to be involved in the sequel, she would be "a lot older than she was but still kick ass."

"Here's the truth, I don't actually know what they have planned, I have not seen [the script] yet," Hewitt added. "But I'm assuming that it'll be lots of screaming and running around."

The franchise's resurgence made Freddie Prinze Jr. achieve a major personal milestone: finally watching I Know What You DId Last Summer:

"When Jon and I watched I Know What You Did Last Summer for the podcast, it was the first time I'd ever seen it. Sarah [Michelle Gellar] actually ended up watching it with us, too," Prinze Jr. revealed to Fangoria. "It brought back some memories that I was able to share on our first episode. Some of the stories you'll hear are ones that I'm telling for the very first time."

Hewitt and Prinze Jr. starred in the 1997 film based on the 1973 Lois Duncan novel of the same name, which also starred Ryan Phillippe, and Sarah Michelle Gellar (who married Prinze after they became a romantic couple after the film). The story focused on four friends who accidentally killed a man and attempted to cover it up; a year later, threats emerge that could reveal the secrets they have been hiding.

Hewitt and Prinze both returned for the sequel I Still Know What You Did Last Summer and managed to have their characters survive (Gellar and Phillippe's characters died in the first film). The third entry, I'll Always Know What You Did Last Summer, pivoted away from the core characters of the first movies - while a TV series adaptation on Prime Video in 2021 totally re-imagined the story. That series only last for one season.

The I Know What You DId Last Summer reboot/sequel will be released in theaters on July 18, 2025.

Will Smith is shedding light on his I Am Legend sequel he's developing with Michael B. Jordan.

"We had a couple weeks together about a month ago. I think it's looking good," the Bad Boys: Ride or Die star told Entertainment Tonight. "[We have some] really solid ideas... I think we're going to make it on screen together." Jordan is "the truth," Smith added of the Black Panther and Creed star, "so I would love to do that."

Based on Richard Matheson's 1954 novel, the 2007 post-apocalyptic thriller starred Smith as virologist Robert Neville, seemingly the last man on Earth. The sole survivor of a man-made plague and immune to the virus that turned the infected into the vampire-like Darkseekers, Neville successfully developed a cure, but died in the film's theatrical ending. However, the as-yet-untitled I Am Legend sequel will continue from the scrapped original ending included as an alternate ending on the DVD release. (In that ending, Smith's character survived and became legend among the Darkseekers for his experiments on the living-infected.)

"You have to be a real I Am Legend buff to know this, but in the first, theatrical version, my character dies, but on the DVD there was an alternate version of the ending where my character lived," Smith explained in December. "We are going with the mythology of the DVD version. I can't tell you anything more, but Michael B. Jordan is in."

Writer Akiva Goldsman, who penned the 2007 movie and the upcoming sequel for Warner Bros., said that I Am Legend 2 takes place "a few decades" post-outbreak in 2009 and the events of the first film in 2012.

"I'm obsessed with The Last of Us, where we see the world just post-apocalypse but also after a 20-30-year lapse," Goldsman said in a 2023 interview. " You see how the earth reclaims the world, and there's something beautiful in the question of, as man steps away from being the primary tenant, what happens? That will be especially visual in New York. I don't know if they'll climb up to the Empire State Building, but the possibilities are endless."

He continued: "We trace back to the original Matheson book, and the alternate ending as opposed to the released ending in the original film. What Matheson was talking about was that man's time on the planet as the dominant species had come to an end. That's a really interesting thing we're going to get to explore. There will be a little more fidelity to the original text."

Universal Pictures revealed multiple release dates for a few of its highly anticipated Blumhouse titles as well as new dates for sequels M3GAN 2.0 and The Black Phone 2. M3GAN shattered box-office predictions in early 2023 earning over $181 million worldwide on a $12 million budget. The film, which earned high praise for bridging the gap between campy and horror, takes a deeper look into artificial intelligence through a life-like doll that's programmed to be a child's greatest companion, M3GAN. After Gemma, a roboticist, gifts her niece a prototype of M3GAN, it produces deadly consequences. The sequel is shifting from May 16, 2025 to a little over a month later at June 27, 2025. It was previously moved from January to May of 2025.

As for The Black Phone 2, the sequel will release four years after the original film. In the first film, which released in the summer of 2021, Finley, a 13-year-old boy, was kidnapped by a masked killer and locked in the basement. A phone that's on the wall begins ringing and when Finley picks up, he comes to realize the voices on the other end are from the killer's previous victims who will stop at nothing to make sure what happened to them doesn't happen to Finley too. The sequel was originally slated to debut in theaters three days after the four-year anniversary of the original. It will now move from June 27, 2025 to October 17, 2025.

The other three films on the slate -- Five Nights at Freddy's 2, The Woman in the Yard, and Drop -- are also set to debut in 2025. Five Nights at Freddy's 2 follows the first film, adapted from the highly popularized video game series. Starring Josh Hutcherson as Mike, fans will have to wait until the holiday season next year to return to the iconic Freddy Fazbear's Pizzeria where Mike works as night security to support himself and his sister. Five Nights at Freddy's landed in theaters and on Peacock last October where it became Blumhouse's highest-grossing film of all time, earning $291 million worldwide. The sequel hits theaters December 5, 2025.

As for The Woman in the Yard and Drop, the plots of both films are being kept under wraps at the moment. The Woman in the Yard comes from Black Adam director Jaume Collet-Serra from a script by Sam Stefanak. Danielle Deadwyler who stars in the film as well as acts as an EP, will be joined by Russell Horsby, Okwui Okpokwasili, Peyton Jackson, and Estella Kahiha. Jason Blum produced alongside Stephanie Allain. Collet-Serra, Gabrielle Ebron, Scott Greenberg, and James Moran also serve as EPs. The Woman in the Yard is tentatively set to release on March 28, 2025.

Drop, from Blumhouse and Platinum Dunes, stars Meghann Fahy (The White Lotus, The Bold Type), Violett Beane (Hulu's Death and Other Details) and Jacob Robinson. It will release in theaters April 11, 2025.

Friday the 13th is becoming an entire franchise universe. The "Jason Universe" has been announced by Horror, Inc. There will reportedly be "new activations" for Friday the 13th content, which will span multiple platforms including entertainment (TV/movies), games, "immersive experiences," merchandise offerings, and more. Announcements about these various activations are teased to be happening "throughout 2024."

You can also throw a bookmark up on the official Jason Universe website. Right now, the site is just a landing page requesting sign-up info, with the promise of news updates and more reveals to come.

"For decades, Jason shocked and thrilled audiences who kept coming back for more. We're excited to work with Victor Miller and Marc Toberoff on new projects we'll announce in the coming months," said Robert Barsamian, President of Horror, Inc., in a statement provided exclusively to IGN.

Robbie Barsamian, VP of Horror, Inc. added that, "We're focused on honoring the legacy while elevating the fan experience and appealing to today's horror audiences as we develop new ways to watch, interact. and engage with the Jason Universe."

"With the unique ability to remain at the forefront of pop culture for 44 years, Jason continues to top charts as one of the scariest villains of all time with strong global awareness across multiple generations thanks to billions of TikTok views plus millions and millions of gamers and movie fans," Sheri Conn, Global GM of Horror, Inc. said in her own statement, "We can't wait to introduce new Jason Universe activations to these amazing fans."

What New Friday the 13th Movies & TV Shows Are Coming?

A Friday the 13th prequel TV series called Crystal Lake is getting a joint production from Peacock and A24. Hannibal TV series creator Bryan Fuller was attached as showrunner, writer, director, and executive producer at one point - but he's now no longer attached. As of right now, the project is still on the A24 production slate, although it doesn't seem to be making any forward progress.

Scream movies veteran Kevin Williamson was also attached to Crystal Lake, and shared a pretty awesome example of what we could be in for.

"So sorry I won't be a part of what would have been an epic Bryan Fuller show. Your pilot was so beautifully realized," Williamson shared on Twitter. "A gorgeous [portrait] of a mother unraveling in her grief. Not to mention bloody horrific! I was so looking forward to our hour-long chase episode!"

In 2022, Fuller had the following tease for fans about Crystal Lake:

"We're going to have roughly five times the per-episode budget that we had on Hannibal..." Fuller explained. "It will absolutely be recognizable for the hardcore Friday the 13th fans, but will also have an appeal to people who are simply interested in top-shelf TV storytelling."

Blumhouse studio head Jason Blum has made it clear that he's interested in getting more Jason movies into theaters. However, the rights to the character were tied up in litigation (between original director Sean S. Cunningham and original writer Victor Miller), making the pathway to get there very murky.

"Friday the 13th is what I would do," Blum shared with Collider when asked about the next horror property he wants to revive. "It's not a Blumhouse project, but I'm trying to will it into being one. It's just a piece of IP I've always loved."

Suddenly, all of the murkiness seems to be clearing away. The Jason Universe site touts the tagline being "a new era from the original owners of the Friday the 13th franchise," suggesting the legalities may finally be settled.

We'll keep you updated on official announcements from the Jason Universe.

Bryan Bertino's The Strangers wasn't the first home-invasion horror movie, but it arguably set the mold for any contemporary filmmaker who wanted to enter that storytelling realm. Whether it be the ominous masks, the characters' relationships, or the mysterious motivations for our killers, nearly every subsequent movie featuring murderers stalking a home borrows an element from the 2008 film. In an ambitious effort from filmmaker Renny Harlin, the concept is being revived not only as one picture, but as a sprawling trilogy that will allow audiences to spend more time with both the killers and the victims. Unfortunately, based solely on the introductory installment The Strangers: Chapter 1, we're not sure anyone would want to spend any more time in this world, as the movie serves as little more than a rehash of the original movie that not only fails to replicate what made that film work, but also actively made decisions that resulted in a distinct step backward for the series.

On a road trip from Chicago to Portland, couple Maya (Madelaine Petsch) and Ryan (Froy Gutierrez) run into some car trouble in a remote Oregon town, resulting in them having to make an overnight stop in a wooded cabin. What could initially be seen as an impromptu yet romantic evening quickly turns to terror, as a group of masked assailants begin playing a deadly game of cat and mouse, entering the home and evading the couple while also managing to taunt and torment them.

Part of what made the original The Strangers so effective is how it focuses on a couple understandably going through a tumultuous evening, as a rejected marriage proposal has the pair suffering through one tense exchange after the other. The late 2000s and 2010s were saturated with remakes of familiar titles and gore-focused outings like Hostel or the Saw series, while The Strangers focused on layered and complex characters trying to push through an experience, immediately evoking empathy in audiences. Chapter 1, on the other hand, takes the exhausted cliche of "young couple faces car trouble in a small town" that we've seen in dozens if not hundreds of horror movies, which will immediately ignite frustration with any horror fan.

This complete lack of invention is what holds back Chapter 1 at every level. Petsch and Gutierrez are both likable enough and there isn't anything inherently poor with either their performances or on-screen chemistry, but there's also not anything particularly unique or interesting enough that sets them apart from countless other horror archetypes to pique an audience's interest. Once the first Stranger arrives and asks the familiar question, "Is Tamara home?" every decision these characters make is the most obvious, well-trodden path to possible survival. (Also worth noting is that the specifics of the story mean Maya and Ryan are staying in a stranger's house, so technically they are the strangers in someone else's home and recontextualizes everything they endure, which is never addressed in a reimagined reveal and comes across as storytelling laziness.)

While the merits of the film itself shouldn't be impacted by any marketing materials, it's worth noting that trailers for the film have promised, "Witness how the Strangers became the Strangers." Viewers who are familiar with the original movie might head into the project anticipating a prequel or origin story (which, admittedly, would rob the antagonists of much of their appeal), though the actual narrative follows all of the core beats of the source material. Where The Strangers featured a masked man silently standing behind Liv Tyler's Kirsten, Chapter 1 has this figure silently observing Maya while she's in the shower. When The Strangers frightens the couple with messages scrawled on a window, Chapter 1 features those messages scrawled on a bedroom wall. Not only is Chapter 1 not a prequel or origin story and instead an almost complete remake of the core concept, but every alternate decision feels entirely arbitrary and, with this lack of invention, comes across as a straight-to-video ripoff of the source material.

The failures of The Strangers: Chapter 1 seem to start at the source, which is the script by Alan R. Cohen and Alan Freedland. Browsing through their writing career, you'll find many more sitcoms in their past than any substantial genre work. This isn't to say that you must have a minimum number of horror credits to your name before venturing into a beloved franchise, but retroactively reading through their credits sheds more insight into why Chapter 1 stuck with storytelling basics as opposed to getting more experimental.

The film isn't entirely without scares, as the masks of the intruders still manage to evoke visceral terror, and Harlin does his best to inject some fright into the experience, with a handful of scenes set in fog-covered woods being the only real standouts. There are a handful of jump scares, yet none that are particularly notable. Novices to the horror genre will likely be more willing to overlook Chapter 1's lack of originality, though more devout horror fans are given little to surprise them.

Even with The Strangers: Chapter 1 being a rudimentary rehash of the plot points from the original movie, we are still holding out some hope that these were storytelling necessities that had to be established before heading into The Strangers: Chapter 2. While the original The Strangers did earn a sequel of sorts with 2018's The Strangers: Prey at Night, the only connective tissue between the projects were the masks worn by the murderers. While its predecessors were both standalone experiences, this trilogy confirms that we'll be spending more time with the heroes, villains, or both in two more movies, which will mark a new experience for the franchise. In this sense, The Strangers: Chapter 1 could become a necessary evil that had to lay a foundation for Chapters 2 and 3 to get more ambitious and inventive, as it's merely the first act in a three-act structure. As proven with The Devil's Rejects or 2021's Wrong Turn, it also wouldn't be the first series to have sequels that far surpass the accomplishments of their predecessors. Also worth noting, however, is that David Gordon Green's Halloween trilogy similarly had a three-act approach that was expanded into three films yet that trilogy both had a stronger debut entry and also wasn't afraid to go experimental with sequels, even if the sequels fell short of expectations.

We're not ready to rule out this entire The Strangers reboot trilogy quite yet, as the nature of having a continuous narrative unfolding over three feature films marks new territory for the concept. Taking this first entry on its own, though, and it feels far more like one of the many derivative The Strangers knockoffs we've been given over the past decade than being a worthy entry into the proper series and doesn't live up to its pedigree. Featuring a predictable plot, generic characters, and wholly unoriginal scares, there's a lot of room for improvement for this trilogy, with the limitless potential of the premise at least leaving us with some hope for the franchise's frightening future.

Rating: 2 out of 5

The Strangers: Chapter 1 lands in theaters on May 17th.

The survival thriller Fall landed in theaters in the summer of 2022, going head to head with a number of franchise blockbusters, and while its initial release might not have been a major success, its arrival on various streaming platforms grew its audience, all of whom were captivated by the dizzying experience. Its modest budget and growing popularity resulted in the announcement that it would be getting two sequels, with Michael and Peter Spierig being announced today as the directors of the next entry. Director and co-writer of the first film Scott Mann has scripted Fall 2 and is set to write and direct Fall 3.

"We're extremely excited to helm the second installment of this franchise and bring to life another nail-biting, vertigo-inducing thrill ride," the Spierig Brothers shared in a statement.

Mann added, "I am so proud to hand over the reins to the Spierigs, two highly respected genre directors whose addition will undoubtedly make this follow-up even more of a must-see experience than we already knew it would be. I can't wait for Flawless to work alongside them, and the rest of our fantastic filmmaking team, to take the Fall franchise to epic new heights."

Per press release, "Acclaimed aficionados in the genre space, Michael and Peter Spierig are best known for Lionsgate's Winchester starring Helen Mirren and Sarah Snook and Jigsaw, the eighth film in the Saw series, one of the most successful franchises ever produced. Additional credits include Daybreakers starring Ethan Hawke and Willem Dafoe, Predestination starring Ethan Hawke and Sarah Snook, and the award-winning zombie film Undead."

"Fall 2 and Fall 3 will bring back original characters from the first film, while also leaving room for new ones to be introduced. The first Fall followed two best friends who climb 2,000 feet to the top of an abandoned radio tower and find themselves stranded with no way down. Their expert climbing skills are put to the test as they desperately fight to survive the elements, a lack of supplies, and vertigo-inducing heights.

"The original film was a surprise runaway critical and commercial success. Certified Fresh, and hitting number one in several countries around the world, the movie drew over $20 million in box office from its original modest $3 million budget and was a major hit overseas, including China where it was nominated as best foreign film for a Golden Rooster, China's version of the Academy Awards. The original film also leveraged the TrueSync technology from Flawless, the leading film technology company pioneering the next generation of entertainment, of which Mann is Co-CEO. TrueSync, a TIME Best Inventions honoree, was used to change expletives spoken in the film by star Virginia Gardner to family-friendly language, which was crucial in securing the film's successful global release."

Stay tuned for updates on Fall 2 and Fall 3.

Are you excited for the new sequel? Contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter or on Instagram to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

Halle Berry is returning to horror. Dating to August 2020, a script penned by Kevin Coughlin (The King Tide) and Ryan Grassby (Mean Dreams) was shopped to 21 Laps Entertainment, the production company owned by Shawn Levy (Stranger Things, Deadpool & Wolverine). Berry joined the cast seven months later at the same time that director Alexandre Aja (The Hills Have Eyes) replaced original filmmaker Mark Romanek (One Hour Photo). Momentum on the project stalled for a couple of years but picked up in June 2022, when distributor Lionsgate sold the international rights to a number of companies at the Cannes Film Festival. By April 2023, the cast had been rounded out for the newly-titled Never Let Go and the feature film held a six-week production shoot that summer.

Lionsgate Unveils First Trailer For Never Let Go

One touch without a rope on is all it takes.

Lionsgate has debuted the first trailer for Never Let Go, a new horror film from director Alexandre Aja. The fresh footage features Halle Berry's unnamed mother instructing her twin sons (Percy Daggs IV, Anthony B. Jenkins) on the rules of this post-apocalyptic world, which boils down to everyone needing to stay tethered to their house via a rope in order to avoid the evil that lies beyond.

Things take a dark turn when one of her sons is confronted by the mysterious force while being untethered, leading him to question the legitimacy of his mother's instructions. Throughout it all, the mother's command is that they "never let go."

You can watch the full trailer below...

"From visionary director Alexandre Aja (The Hills Have Eyes, Crawl) and the creative minds behind Stranger Things and Arrival comes NEVER LET GO," the synopsis reads. "In this new psychological thriller/horror, as an Evil takes over the world beyond their front doorstep, the only protection for a mother, played by Academy Award winner Halle Berry (Actress in a Leading Role, 2001 -Monster's Ball), and her twin sons is their house and their family's protective bond. Needing to stay connected at all times - even tethering themselves with ropes - they cling to one another, urging each other to never let go. But when one of the boys questions if the evil is real, the ties that bind them together are severed, triggering a terrifying fight for survival."

Never Let Go hits theaters on September 27th.

Details about Return to Silent Hill have been pretty scarce since the movie was first announced, but that changed today, as we've now gotten our first look at the film. We don't have a trailer just yet, but Variety has shared an image from the movie, which features Pyramid Head. The character looks pretty close to his appearance in Silent Hill 2, and Pyramid Head can also be seen wielding the Great Knife, his iconic weapon from the series. While the image doesn't give us much else to go on, the colors are notable, as they do a great job evoking the video games.

The image of Pyramid Head in Return to Silent Hill can be found below.

What is Return to Silent Hill?

Return to Silent Hill is the next movie in the Silent Hill film series. The film will see the return of director Christophe Gans, who directed the first Silent Hill movie back in 2006. However, it seems viewers won't need any familiarity with the original, or the 2012 sequel Silent Hill: Revelation. Instead, this movie seems to be largely focused on adapting the 2001 video game Silent Hill 2, which was also self-contained. Like its video game inspiration, Return to Silent Hill will follow the story of James Sunderland as he searches Silent Hill for his wife, Mary. The two characters will be played by Jeremy Irvine and Hannah Emily Anderson, respectively,

It's rare to see a video game adaptation directly covering the events of a single game; typically, the writers and directors pick and choose elements from various titles and blend them together. However, Silent Hill 2 is widely regarded as the high point in the franchise, and its narrative has been acclaimed for more than two decades. In that regard, it makes a lot of sense to use as the focal point for a soft reboot of the movies.

Silent Hill 2 on PS5

Over the last few years, Konami has been putting a lot of effort into rebuilding the Silent Hill franchise. Return to Silent Hill is just one part of the equation, and there are several new video games currently in the works. The most notable of these also happens to be a remake of Silent Hill 2, which is coming to PlayStation 5 from the developer Bloober Team. At this time, a release date has not been announced, but rumors suggest it will be arriving this year. If it does, fans could get a chance to experience two different retellings of Silent Hill 2 in 2024: one on PS5, and the other on the big screen! Unfortunately, neither project has a set release date just yet.

What do you think of this image from Return to Silent Hill? Are you looking forward to the movie? Share your thoughts with me directly on Twitter at @Marcdachamp or on Instagram at @Dachampgaming!

Season 2 of Anne Rice's Interview With the Vampire debuted Sunday night on AMC, not only taking the story away from New Orleans in the wake of Louis and Claudia's escape from Lestat to Europe, but also revealing that Louis' memory may not be quite what it seems. The first episode saw Louis not quite remember all the details of his journey with Claudia across Europe in search of more vampires like themselves, something that was a complicated revelation for the titular vampire being interviewed. The idea of memory -- and it being a monster -- is something that teasers for Season 2 have been tantalizing fans with, suggesting that as the season goes on we'll dig more into what Louis remembers and what he does not. But as for those lapses in memory, for series star Jacob Anderson, that doesn't necessarily make Louis an unreliable narrator. Speaking with ComicBook, Anderson says that everyone is, in a sense unreliable -- and that Louis' story is as much about what he feels as what he recalls.

"I think something that I'm always slightly resistant about with the unreliable narrator tag that Louis gets is that we're all unreliable," Anderson said. "I think it's a strange idea that television or storytelling is objective. I think it's a comfortable way to engage with something or to watch something."

"In terms of Louis, I think he's as unreliable as any. The story that we are being told is just as much based on how something felt to Louis as the biographical details or the specifics, which is something that I love about him," Anderson continued. "He's very complicated. He's a very complicaed person, but he's a very complicated character and I love him for that."

Anderson also said that one of the things he loves about Anne Rice's stories and, in turn, the show, is that audiences are given new perspectives that only expand an complicate the story, calling everyone into question.

"There's a lot that hopefully comes through in that there's a difference quite often for Louis between what he says and what he feels," Anderson said. "I think that's fun. I don't know why we need to know exactly how everything happened exactlya ll the time unless it is to contextualize the story. I think that's something I get a lot of joy out of with Anne Rice's books and with the show is that with each new perspective, the story only gets bigger and more exciting and more complicated. So, he is unreliable, but aren't we all? He's also learning. He's learning a lot."

What Is Interview with the Vampire Season 2 About?

You can read AMC's official description of the second season of Interview With the Vampire here: "The interview continues in season two. In the year 2022, the vampire Louis de Pointe du Lac (Anderson) recounts his life story to journalist Daniel Molloy (Eric Bogosian). Picking up from the bloody events in New Orleans in 1940 when Louis and teen fledgling Claudia (Hayles) conspired to kill the Vampire Lestat de Lioncourt (Reid), Louis tells of his adventures in Europe, a quest to discover Old World Vampires and the Theatre Des Vampires in Paris, with Claudia. It is in Paris that Louis first meets the Vampire Armand (Assad Zaman). Their courtship and love affair will prove to have devastating consequences both in the past and in the future, and Molloy will probe to get to the truths buried within the memories.

Season two of Anne Rice's Interview with the Vampire is executive produced by award-winning producer Mark Johnson, creator and showrunner Rolin Jones, Mark Taylor, along with Christopher Rice and the late Anne Rice."

Interview with the Vampire airs Sundays on AMC and AMC+.

Terminator Zero is a brand new anime series now in the works for Netflix, and the showrunner and executive producer behind it all has revealed that this new The Terminator story won't feature franchise mainstays John or Sarah Connor! The Terminator first announced that new anime series was in the works some time ago, but thankfully the wait for this new take on the franchise will soon be over. Officially titled as Terminator Zero, this new anime will feature a story with a brand new setting following a brand new set of characters. Which means it will largely be avoiding the Connor saga.

Speaking with Entertainment Weekly about the new anime series, Terminator Zero showrunner and executive producer Mattson Tomlin explained that while there will be ties to the original Terminator films and those films still exist within the same canon as the anime, Terminator Zero itself will be focusing its new characters. Going as far as to note that John Connor will not appear in the new anime, Tomlin explained that it was due to wanting to explore new characters and not "burden" himself with another entry in the Connor story.

Netflix's Terminator Anime Won't Feature the Connors

"I think that it's time to go into new characters and not burden myself with another John and Sarah Connor saga. There's been a run at that a couple of different times," Tomlin began. "There are a lot of callbacks to the other films," adding before explaining further, "Fans who really know the movies are going to be doing the Leo meme from Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, but it's not going to be as direct as John Connor walks in, because John Connor does not walk in."

And as Tomlin explained, new characters allowed for more freedom for discovery. "These are all original characters. We don't know who anybody is. All of those answers are going to absolutely be revealed -- and they'll be revealed pretty quickly." Thankfully, it won't be too long until we see more as Terminator Zero will be releasing with Netflix on August 29th. As for what to expect from the series, Netflix teases Terminator Zero as such:

"2022: A future war has raged for decades between the few human survivors and an endless army of machines. 1997: The AI known as Skynet gained self-awareness and began its war against humanity. Caught between the future and this past is a soldier sent back in time to change the fate of humanity. She arrives in 1997 to protect a scientist named Malcolm Lee who works to launch a new AI system designed to compete with Skynet's impending attack on humanity. As Malcolm navigates the moral complexities of his creation, he is hunted by an unrelenting assassin from the future which forever alters the fate of his three children."

via EW

Monolith #1 is part of a push to really make Spawn's universe a thing again - an agenda that creator Todd McFarlane has been pushing for years. The truth is, most Spawn things in the 21st century are sort of like Grethen Weiners and "Fetch." It's just not going to happen. Perhaps a solo Spawn relaunch with an enticing creative team aimed at new fans could get the ball rolling, but that's not what's going on here. This initiative is simply building out a universe that largely disappeared from public interest decades ago.

None of that is the fault of Lewis, Giangiordanao, or the other folks contributing to Monolith #1, but it puts them at a disadvantage from the get-go. They were tasked with getting readers to commit to a small side character they probably don't remember from a comic franchise most of them haven't paid much attention to for some time. That's a tough ask for anyone. They do an admirable job, but it's simply not enough to get anyone hooked into this story.

Monolith takes place in the year 3030, set on a prison colony where the titular character is held. He spends the first several pages of the issue tearing apart his fellow prisoners,"fallen warriors of conquered planets," in an effort to escape and track down Omega. It's later revealed he was trying to return to the past to keep the Hellspawns from losing the fight for their universe, but Omega stopped him and hid him away on the colony.

Ultimately, it's a whole mess of plot to set up a "heroic journey" for Monolith going forward. He's really on a revenge quest for most of it, though, and only decides to play the hero when a last minute monologue from the Mother of Nature tells him to choose his humanity over his bloodthirsty urges.

The majority of this issue boils down to a couple of big fights that lead to a whole lot of nothing by the time it's all said and done. What could've been handled in a few pages is stretched to a couple dozen, and you're not left with any substantial reason to care about what Monolith will do next. He's provided a clean slate and open ending to go out into the universe and make something of himself, but the front cover lets you know this is only a three-issue miniseries. So there's clearly not that much left in store for him, despite this ending feeling like the launchpad for a brand new hero.

Giangiordanao does some wonderful work bringing the gruesome violence of the fight sequences to life, though. They're visceral and often entertaining. But that's just not enough to compel anyone to come back for more. If Image is sold on the idea of bringing Spawn back to life, there have to be some better ways to go about it.

Published by Image Comics

On May 15, 2024

Written by Sean Lewis

Art by Valerio Giangiordano

Colors by Ulises Arreola

Letters by Andworld Design

Cover by Valerio Giangiordano

The Terminator franchise is coming to Netflix with a new anime series, and Terminator Zero will be streaming around the world later this August! Terminator Zero is a brand new take on The Terminator lore that was first announced to be in the works a few years ago. First going by the codename of "Terminator: The Anime," the newest update from Netflix has announced that this new project is officially titled Terminator Zero. This Production I.G. and Skydance Animation team up will be providing an updated take on the classic franchise that's seen multiple films, TV shows and more released over the years.

Netflix has announced that Terminator Zero will be streaming worldwide beginning on August 29th. Following the reveal of the first look at the new anime series, Netflix is promising quite the different take on the Terminator franchise with this anime adaptation. Promising a brand new story not tied into the events of any of the previous movies (with a new main character trying to launch an AI that could potentially stop Skynet's attack), Terminator Zero is teasing quite a lot to look forward to when it premieres later this Summer.

What Is Terminator Zero?

Created and executive produced by Mattson Tomlin (Project Power, The Batman II) for Skydance Animation and Production I.G, Terminator Zero is directed by Masashi Kudo and will be running for eight episodes with its debut season when it releases on August 29th with Netflix. As for what to expect from the series, Netflix begins to tease Terminator Zero as such, "2022: A future war has raged for decades between the few human survivors and an endless army of machines. 1997: The AI known as Skynet gained self-awareness and began its war against humanity."

The synopsis for the anime's story continues with, "Caught between the future and this past is a soldier sent back in time to change the fate of humanity. She arrives in 1997 to protect a scientist named Malcolm Lee who works to launch a new AI system designed to compete with Skynet's impending attack on humanity. As Malcolm navigates the moral complexities of his creation, he is hunted by an unrelenting assassin from the future which forever alters the fate of his three children."

With Netflix introducing new anime series for many major franchises in the last few years, there's a lot that can potentially succeed with this one! Keep up with ComicBook for future updates!

Showtime's Yellowjackets Season 3 is officially in production - and we know so because first set photos from the production are now surfacing online!

The first set photos take us back into the woodland setting of Yellowjackets' 1996 flashback portions, when the girls of the Yellowjackets high school soccer team were still stranded in the wilderness. It's clearly implied in the photos that the Yellowjackets are still adapting to survive without the protection of their cabin, which was mysteriously burned down in the Season 2 finale.

Details in one set photo of a sleeping palette (like two sides of a wall and a burnt-up suitcase) seem to hint that the girls salvage the remains of the cabin as their continued shelter - such as it is. However, another photo seems to also hint that the mysterious force of entity that's out there in the wilderness with the girls could become an official part of their tribal life in Season 3.

When Season 2's flashbacks ended, we got the reveal that Lottie actually abdicated her position as the leader of the tribe and ambassador to "the wilderness," in favor of Natalie (Sophie Thatcher). We know that whatever happened with "the wilderness" left Natalie broken and troubled for the rest of her life - a life that (SPOILERS) ended when adult Natalie (Juliette Lewis) was accidentally killed in one of the wilderness sacrificial rituals, bringing her full-circle around from having Travis's little brother Javi die in her place, during a ritual sacrifice back in '96. We also saw how, in the present, the darkness behind those rituals is still active in the women's lives - to the point of almost possessing them at times.

Yellowjackets Season 3 seems like the place where we'll get to see the depths of that darkness fully explained and revealed to us onscreen. These first set photos certainly tease that kind of story art in the 1996 sequences, as the stag's skull totem is seemingly going to be a formal part of the girls' tribal culture. It could also be a dark journey for Sophie Thatcher as Young Natalie if her role as tribal leader spirals out of control - not to mention the dreaded "Antler Queen" mystery that still needs to be revealed.

A photo of the Yellowjackets Season 3 Episode 1 script reveals that it is written by Jonathan Lisco, Ashley Lyle, and Bart Nickerson, with Bart Nickerson directing. The show was created by Lyle and Nickerson, while Lisco has served as a writer, executive producer and co-showrunner. That means that Episode "301" will very much be an in-house affair, from the veterans of the series.

Yellowjackets Seasons 1 and 2 are now streaming on Paramount+. Season 3 is in production and set for release in 2025.

Now that we've crossed the threshold of being halfway to Halloween, fans are starting to get excited about how we'll be celebrating All Hallow's Eve, with Universal Studios debuting a cryptic promo about this year's Halloween Horror Nights. The event, which runs select nights in September and October in Hollywood and Orlando, is a premier destination for horror fans, as the most exciting and unsettling horror franchises are honored for haunted houses, alongside entirely original creations. This new teaser will have fans both excited and frustrated, as it's a reminder that we're getting closer to the event yet the promo denies giving us any official glimpses at the properties being honored during this year's festivities. You can check out the official promo below.

This year, the horror begins earlier than ever before as Universal Orlando's Halloween Horror Nights returns on select nights from August 30th through November 3rd - unleashing a new slate of frights and nightmare-inducing terror at every corner of Universal Studios Florida. Guests can secure their spot for the screams now and purchase select tickets and offers to plan the ultimate fall getaway where they can experience the adrenaline-pumping thrills of Universal's theme parks by day and the terrifying chills of Halloween Horror Nights at night.

the gate has been opened https://t.co/bWtiyceSin pic.twitter.com/o3MmhIaiQd

-- Halloween Horror Nights (@HorrorNightsORL) May 14, 2024

Every fall, guests from all around the globe brave their worst nightmares coming to life at Halloween Horror Nights - consistently named the world's premier Halloween event. This year, a chilling new collection of horrifying experiences await guests, including 10 all-new movie-quality haunted houses inspired by cinematic greats and eerie original stories created by the twisted minds of Universal's Entertainment team, and five scare zones filled with hundreds of menacing creatures who will reign the streets of Universal Studios Florida. And in between the screams, guests can enjoy an energetic live show, fuel up for the next round of scares with sinfully delicious food and beverage inspired by the event's haunts, shop the latest merchandise at the highly themed Halloween Horror Nights Tribute Store, and enjoy some of Universal Studios Florida's most exciting attractions.

Single-night event tickets and Express Passes for Halloween Horror Nights are available for purchase now. Guests can also stay, scream and save up to $200 (based on a seven-night stay) with a special vacation package that includes one-night admission to the event and accommodations at a Universal hotel located just minutes from the haunts. This package also includes admission to all three Universal Orlando theme parks to enjoy some of the most innovative rides and attractions ever created during the day, before facing the chills of Halloween Horror Nights at night. Plus, hotel guests receive exclusive benefits including access to a dedicated Halloween Horror Nights gate for faster entry into the event, Early Park Admission to the theme parks during the day, complimentary resort transportation, and more. Savings vary based on length of stay and this package is available for purchase now through November 2nd for use from August 30th to November 3rd.

Halloween Horror Nights upgrades are also available for purchase now, including the guided, nighttime R.I.P. Tour experience where guests receive priority V.I.P. access to the haunted houses; and the Behind the Screams: Unmasking the Horror Tour that offers a glimpse into how the scares are brought to life via a daytime, lights-on journey through select haunted houses. For guests who can't wait to peek at what's in-store this year, there's also a limited, three-house Behind The Screams: Unmasking the Horror Tour available for purchase for select days starting August 11th.

You can learn more at the Universal Orlando Halloween Horror Nights and Universal Hollywood official websites.

Are you looking forward to this year's event? Contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter or on Instagram to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

In some of his earliest cinematic appearances, the character of The Wolf Man collided with a number of other beloved figures in the roster of Universal Monsters, but for the upcoming Wolf Man from director Leigh Whannell, fans should expect a standalone experience akin to Whannell's The Invisible Man. With four years having passed since Invisible Man's release and seven years having passed since Universal Pictures announced its Dark Universe, fans have wondered what to expect from the new take on the material, though producer Ken Kao likened the experience to how Joker was a unique experience that wasn't connected to the rest of what was happening in DC at the time.

"As an outsider, I would say that The Mummy's Dark Universe, in my humble opinion, felt like it was reactive to what was going on with all the superhero stuff -- the MCU and DC universe," Kao shared with Screen Rant of his approach to Wolf Man. "And we know there's been a lot of talk about what happened with all that [in] the last year or so. I guess you could call it maybe more like the Joker approach. In my opinion, especially if you're going to do it for contained pieces, like Blumhouse is really good at doing, [it] makes a lot more sense to me. So that's a good playbook."

While the official answer of who belongs to the Universal Monster roster comes with some debate among fans, it's largely believed that Dracula, Frankenstein's Monster, the Bride of Frankenstein, the Mummy, the Wolf Man, the Phantom of the Opera, the Invisible Man, and the Creature From the Black Lagoon are the key fixtures of the lineup. The late '90s and early '00s saw The Mummy revived with a movie series starring Brendan Fraser, while 2010's The Wolfman enlisted Benicio del Toro to star in a new take on the material. In 2014, Dracula Untold was meant to serve as an origin story for that iconic character.

Despite those previously mentioned instances, the Universal Monsters as a whole have been dormant on the big screen for decades, resulting in Universal Pictures announcing its Dark Universe of an interconnected reboot series of the iconic characters. In addition to Cruise starring in The Mummy, the studio had announced Russell Crowe, Johnny Depp, and Javier Bardem as being fixtures of the franchise.

Even though it was a modest financial success and teased the future of the franchise, The Mummy fell flat with critics and no other entries into the Dark Universe earned substantial development. 2020's The Invisible Man was an entirely standalone experience, which is one of many reasons it resonated so strongly with audiences and critics alike, becoming one of the most successful horror movies of that year.

Wolf Man is set to hit theaters on January 17, 2025.

Are you looking forward to the new movie? Contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter or on Instagram to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

Dead by Daylight teased recently the long-awaited arrival of a Dungeons & Dragons DLC, and this week during the game's 8th anniversary livestream, it was revealed that the Dungeons & Dragons Chapter would be adding Vecna to the game. Vecna will naturally be on the Killers team with several spells from Dungeons & Dragons at his disposal, but opposite him on the Survivors side will be a Bard character that can be either male or female depending on the players' preferences. A map befitting Vecna will also be added as part of this Dead by Daylight x Dungeons & Dragons crossover that's releasing on June 3rd.

While most Killers enter The Fog unwillingly, Vecna's happy to be there in search of new powers and possibilities, for Dungeons & Dragons and Dead by Daylight lore fans who wonder why Vecna might've ended up here in the game. His map is a twisted castle called the Forgotten Ruins, and his special power fueled by his Book of Vile Darkness lets him use four abilities that should look familiar to Dungeons & Dragons players. Those can be found outlined below, and though Vecna's perks have not yet been made apparent, players will soon find out about them and his Mori kill now that the Dungeons & Dragons Chapter is heading to the test servers. And if his voice in the trailer or in-game sounds familiar, you'd be correct if you guessed that Vecna will be voiced by Matt Mercer in Dead by Daylight.

Vecna's Spells in Dead by Daylight

• Fly: Grants him flying speed for a short time, letting him pass over obstacles in his path.
• Flight of the Damned: Conjures flying spectral entities that pass-through obstacles and cause harm to all they hit.
• Mage Hand: Creates a ghastly, phantasmic hand that completes tasks such as holding and blocking the use of Pallets.
• Dispelling Sphere: Creates a moving AOE sphere that reveals Survivors and disables their Magical Items

We do, however, know what the Bard perks are. The Bards you can play as are Aestri and Baermar, and their perks outline below are centered around deceiving Killers, spotting objectives, and passing skill checks by rolling a d20.

Bard Perks in Dead by Daylight

• Mirrored Illusion: Spawns a static copy of the Survivor in front of a Totem, Chest, Generator or Exit Gate for a limited time
• Bardic Inspiration: Inspires others through a stirring performance. Roll a d20 and fellow Survivors get a Skill Check buff depending on the result of the roll.
• Still Sight: Lets you briefly see the auras of all close by Generators, Totems, and Chests when not in motion.

There's also an extra Dungeons & Dragons element at work when Vecna is played which'll force Survivors to roll a d20 every time they want to open certain chests scattered around the map. Seven of these special chests will spawn when Vecna is picked, and rolling a two or a three will net you a normal Dead by Daylight item while a 4-19 will earn you a "magical" item that comes with unique powers. Rolling a 20 grants you either the Eye of Vecna which grants invisibility after leaving a locker or the Hand of Vecna which allows you to teleport from one locker to another, though both come at the cost of one health state. Behaviour Interactive teased that something pretty awful happens if you roll a one, but declined to say what those repercussions would be.

Dead by Daylight's Dungeons & Dragons DLC releases on June 3rd and is coming to the test servers today.

The Walking Dead Universe is taking a bite out of the UK. British broadcaster Sky announced today that all 11 seasons of AMC's The Walking Dead and three of its spinoff series -- The Walking Dead: Dead City, The Walking Dead: Daryl Dixon, and The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live -- will be released in the UK exclusively on Sky and the streaming service NOW. All 177 episodes of the original zombie drama, currently streaming only on Netflix in the U.S., will be available on demand on Sky and NOW starting May 19; The Ones Who Live will release from May 31, with Dead City and Daryl Dixon coming to both Sky and NOW later this year.

The shows, which aired on AMC and AMC+ in the U.S., had limited availability outside North America. For example, AMC's Walking Dead spinoffs were released as Stan exclusives in Australia, but fans in the UK could only watch the original series (and none of the spinoffs) on Disney+.

"The Walking Dead Universe has a huge and ardent UK fanbase," said Lucy Criddle, Sky Director of Acquisitions and Strategic Projects. "We know audiences on Sky and NOW will be buzzing to see Rick Grimes and Michonne reunited in The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live, as well as being able to dip into the wider universe, enjoying all 11 seasons of the original The Walking Dead series, as well as new spin-offs Daryl Dixon and Dead City."

"We are delighted to have found a new home for The Walking Dead Universe in the UK. As we enter an exciting new chapter in the evolution of this franchise, with three new eagerly awaited, character-driven series, Sky is the perfect, premium home for UK viewers to embrace all things Walking Dead," added Mike Pears, executive vice president of distribution and content sales for AMC Networks. "The Walking Dead: The Ones Who Live is the most successful series in the history of AMC+, even including the original series, so it is fitting that it will lead the way as Sky brings this entire universe to U.K. fans in the coming weeks and months on Sky and NOW."

According to Sky, Daryl Dixon season 1 will be available in August, with the upcoming second season -- subtitled The Book of Carol and co-starring Melissa McBride -- streaming on NOW later this year. Dead City season 1 will become available "later in 2024," and the upcoming second season will also head to the service in 2025. All three spinoffs are currently available to stream on-demand on the AMC+ streaming service in the U.S., along with episodes of spinoffs Fear the Walking Dead, The Walking Dead: World Beyond, and Tales of the Walking Dead.

Dead City teams enemies Maggie (Lauren Cohan) and Negan (Jeffrey Dean Morgan) in post-apocalyptic New York City; Daryl Dixon sees the titular survivor (Norman Reedus) wash ashore in zombie-plagued France and follows his attempt to return home to America; and The Ones Who Live reunites long-lost lovers Rick Grimes (Andrew Lincoln) and Michonne (Danai Gurira) against their conflict with the Civic Republic Military.

Stay tuned to ComicBook/TWD and follow on Facebook for more TWD Universe coverage.

Fans have been waiting 15 years to see Jason Voorhees return to the big screen in a proper Friday the 13th movie, and while the rights to the series are tied up in litigation, the prequel series Crystal Lake was being developed that likely would have kept the spirit of the franchise alive. News emerged last week, though, that A24 was going to be "retooling" the project, which meant that it was no longer being developed by Hannibal's Bryan Fuller. Scream co-creator Kevin Williamson was set to work on the project, as he took to social media to reveal that one entire episode would have been a chase scene.

"So sorry I won't be a part of what would have been an epic Bryan Fuller show. Your pilot was so beautifully realized," Williamson shared on Twitter. "A gorgeous [portrait] of a mother unraveling in her grief. Not to mention bloody horrific! I was so looking forward to our hour-long chase episode!"

While no official details about the project's storyline, other than it unfolding at the iconic lake where Jason Voorhees drowned and was first avenged by his mother before his supernatural spirit returned to wreak havoc, have been officially released. As any Hannibal fan can tell you, Fuller has already proven his skills at taking beloved characters and reimagining them in ambitious ways that still honors the source material, so while we weren't expecting Jason to show up in the project, Williamson's tease of a lengthy stalking scene would have fallen in line with expectations of the audience.

Crystal Lake would have expanded the franchise in an unexpected way, and while there were seemingly storytelling merits to such an expansion, it likely also was an opportunity to take advantage of a legal loophole.

One reason we haven't seen a new Friday the 13th is because original director Sean S. Cunningham and original writer Victor Miller have been trying to settle who owns the rights to the series for years. Cunningham hired Miller to write a script, with the title and loose premise being his inspiration, with Miller then expanding these ideas into a full-length experience. While Jason Voorhees is an icon of the series, he doesn't become the killer until the sequel and doesn't earn his signature hockey mask until the third film.

It goes without saying that for a new Friday the 13th to succeed, it would need to utilize its signature title and also a mask-wearing Voorhees, but the ongoing legal battles mean a new movie would have to sacrifice one or both of these components to move forward. By developing a prequel series that doesn't have the "Friday the 13th" moniker and organically avoids a mask-wearing Jason, the series would have been able to skirt the messy restrictions caused by those legal issues.

Despite Fuller announcing he was no longer part of the project, it has yet to be announced as being scrapped entirely.

Stay tuned for updates on the future of Friday the 13th and Crystal Lake.

What do you think of the situation? Contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter or on Instagram to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

The First Omen was released in theaters last month, and the new horror film takes place before the events of The Omen (1976). The movie was mostly well-received by critics and audiences alike, earning an 81% critics score and a 70% audience score on Rotten Tomatoes. If you haven't gotten the chance to check out the prequel or if you're eager to watch it again, the horror flick helmed by Arkasha Stevenson officially has streaming and physical media release dates.

According to a press release from 20th Century Studios, The First Omen will be available to purchase from digital retailers on May 28th. The film is then heading to Hulu on May 30th before arriving on Blu-ray and DVD on July 30th. You can read a description of the film below:

"In this psychological horror prequel to the classic Omen films, a young American woman is sent to Rome to begin a life of service to the church. Soon, she encounters a darkness that causes her to question her faith, and reveals a terrifying conspiracy to bring about the birth of evil incarnate. The First Omen stars Nell Tiger Free (Servant), Tawfeek Barhom (Mary Magdalene), Sonia Braga (Kiss of the Spider Woman), Ralph Ineson (The Northman), and Bill Nighy (Living). The film is directed by Arkasha Stevenson, based on characters created by David Seltzer (The Omen), with a story by Ben Jacoby (Bleed) and a screenplay by Tim Smith & Arkasha Stevenson, and Keith Thomas (Firestarter)."

The First Omen Bonus Features:

You can check out a list of the Blu-ray and DVD bonus features for The First Omen below. Note: The features may vary by product and retailer.

The Mystery of Margaret - Join director Arkasha Stevenson and stars Nell Tiger Free, Bill Nighy, and Maria Caballero as they dive into the character of Margaret, her relationships with other characters, and how she's manipulated while trying to solve the film's horrifying mystery.

The Director's Vision - Director Arkasha Stevenson talks about her love of horror films, the opportunity to expand on The Omen legacy, and crafting The First Omen entirely through a female lens. She also describes shooting in Rome, and the cast recounts working with Arkasha.

Signs of The First Omen - Join the director and talented artists as they reveal some of the symbolism within the set designs and the costumes. Learn how the use of practical effects blurs the line between what is real and what is not in The First Omen's terrifying world.

Stay tuned for more updates about new releases.

Interview With the Vampire returned Sunday night for its second season on AMC and it found Louis and Claudia in a new situation in the wake of the Season 1 finale. With Lestat dead back in New Orleans, the duo have gone off to Europe in search of more vampires like themselves to better understand where they came from. Unfortunately, they've gone to Europe during World War 2 which adds its own complications to a situation that is already difficult given the tensions between them. Meanwhile, in the present in Dubai, everything has changed with the interview now that "Rashid" has been revealed to actually be the centuries old vampire Armand -- and that he was present during the original interview back in the 1970s. There are a lot of questions as the story moves forward -- and not just "what's next?" Here's what happened in the Season 2 premiere, "What Can the Damned Really Say to the Damned".

Warning: Spoilers for Interview With the Vampire Season 2, Episode 2, "What Can the Damned Really Say to the Damned" beyond this point.

The episode opens with an aerial view of a battlefield in Europe while Louis, in voiceover, reads from Claudia's diary an entry where she says that she does not dream, something Louis says she also said to him. On the ground, Louis and Claudia emerge from the earth and Claudia finds an injured soldier that she feeds upon, throwing Louis the heart. Louis, still in voiceover, continues to recount how they have been in Europe over recent years and how the atrocities of World War 2 only made Claudia more determined to find others like them. In Dubai, Louis reflects on the horror of never dreaming. Armand offers his thoughts, but Daniel strikes his comments from the record.

In Europe, Claudia and Louis encounter German soldiers and make quick work of them, revealing how Claudia has evolved on her quest. Things remain tense between her and Louis as she does not really speak to him. Louis says that the misery is in the blood and they are taking it in. As they work their way across the countryside, they find evidence of vampires, but it's been a very long time since they were there. She does not stop her quest. Louis wants to go home. Claudia writes in her diary that it's an offensive idea and writes that Louis is dead weight. In the present, Louis thanks Daniel for restoring his memories, but Daniel is frustrated with how the interview is going. The Real Rashid also makes his entrance -- he's one of Armand and Louis' servants.

Back in Europe, Louis finds himself haunted by Lestat, seeing his bloody lover and maker lying on the battlefield. The apparition of Lestat tells Louis he misses him and taunts him about the futility of their years wandering Europe. A tormented Louis tells Lestat he's sorry, but Lestat tells him he's going to kill him and that he's merely waiting until Louis is happy to strike. It's all in his head, however, and he and Claudia continue on. They eventually make it to Romania where they find Soviet soldiers opening coffins and shooting at the dead inside before putting them back in the earth. They find bolted shutters and garlic around doors -- precautions against vampires. They're approached by soldiers and questioned but are stopped by a local who warns them off and tells Louis and Claudia they shouldn't be travelling at night.

The woman, Amelia takes them to a shelter where others are also staying for safety -- stone walls and metal doors. It's suggested there's something worse outside to be worried about than soldiers. They also meet a British war correspondent who is there as well. Claudia has questions about what's going on outside, but she's sent to the other children -- however, as he's recounting the story in the present, Louis realizes that Amelia wouldn't have things about "something worse" in front of Claudia. Louis insists they need to get every detail right. Armand wants to take a break. Daniel is sure that there's something Armand is wanting to hide because he's not getting all of the story.

In Romania, Louis tells his cover story to the British man and Amelia and hears about the villagers' superstitions -- something out there has a "soul disturbance". The man realizes Louis' cover story is a lie but suspects him of being either a deserter or a Bolshevik. He tells him that he should leave rather than have to deal with Stalin. Meanwhile, Claudia explores the woods and comes across soldiers who are soon attacked by a hulking figure. It's a vampire, but it's not like Claudia. It's decayed-looking and sees her as a threat, attacking her before dragging off one of the soldiers. Claudia returns and tells Louis about what she's seen but he tries to cast doubt. They fight and she calls him out for bringing Lestat with them in his heart and says she's only known four vampires in her life and they've all been worst. She's just looking for one that isn't. That night, Louis wakes up to the sounds of chaos, and also discovers that Claudia does in fact dream because she's having a nightmare. In the present, that memory emotionally devastates Louis.

Claudia wakes up to the noise as well and they go to investigate and find Amelia seriously wounded with a neck wound and there are soldiers everywhere. Amelia's clearly been attacked by a vampire and the soldiers and others want to kill her to ensure she does not turn. The British man is desperate to save her and pleads with Louis to do something. A villager says Amelia's head must be cut off. Claudia and Louis leave as it is being done. Their concern is in the woods, where they go and injure a soldier to use as bait for the vampire. It shows up and they reveal themselves to also be vampires to it and let him know that they are not threats. There is another, however, and it attacks Louis and a vampire fight of sorts breaks out. In the brawl, Claudia blinds the male vampire, causing the female vampire -- who is more like Claudia and Louis -- to demand why they would blind a child. She then bashes its head in and wails in agony before heading away. Claudia and Louis follow.

They find her in an old castle of sorts that is littered with the dead and dying. She's trying to make other vampires, but her efforts are failing. Claudia makes introductions and the woman vampire tells her how bad things have been. Louis tells her his theory about the blood being bad from too much sadness and pain and maybe she needs better blood. from over the ocean in America. The woman tells them that there are no other vampires left but her now. Claudia invites her to come with them. She says her name is Daciana and tells them of how they will have a lovely time before throwing herself into the fire in front of them.

In Dubai, Louis tells Armand he wants to see the pages from Claudia's diary that they removed. Armand is reluctant to give them to him and wants Louis to end the interview and send Daniel away. Louis refuses. Armand agrees to have Rashid put the pages together but tells Louis that the fumbling boy reporter Daniel once was is still inside him and they can manipulate him if they work together. The next day, they come to the interview together and Armand is ready to go on the record. Louis tells Daniel that after Daciana's suicide, they headed to Paris. As they are riding into Paris on a truck, Claudia is still broken by their experience in Romania and Louis tells her that their lives are shit and to stop feeling sorry for herself and they can't run away again or forget what they saw. He promises her that as long as she lives, he will never go into the fire and they will find others like them. They will keep going until they do. He also tells her that if she was the last vampire on earth, it would be enough. But even as he says it, the specter of Lestat is sitting next to her. And then, they arrive in Paris at last.

New episodes of Interview With the Vampire air Sundays on AMC.

2008's The Strangers is getting a unique kind of reboot here in 2024. Director Renny Harlin is bringing to life a new vision of The Strangers for Lionsgate, this time as an entire trilogy. The Strangers: Chapter One hits theaters on May 17th, with Madelaine Petsch and Froy Gutierrez taking on the lead roles. The three films planned were all shot at the same time, so there are two more coming no matter what. This first entry isn't just the starter for the saga, but will serve as Act 1 for what is essentially a much longer movie.

Ahead of The Strangers: Chapter 1 debuting in theaters, director Renny Harlin spoke with ComicBook about how this new franchise starter begins the story of his trilogy.

"Yes, I would definitely say that," Harlin said of this new movie serving as the first act of a larger story. "We, of course, shot them on top of each other and mixed up, like movies are always made. But we had to keep in mind that this is one story arc. It is one 4.5 hour movie, and the first movie is a first act. It sets up the characters and the terror and the Killers and our main character, who will survive the first movie, but then go on a journey for the next two."

The second and third films in Harlin's Strangers trilogy don't yet have release dates, but the director believes Chapter 2 could arrive on the big screen as soon as this fall.

"If it had been a straight remake or a sequel, I wouldn't have done it at this point of my life," Harlin told Variety. "I have such respect for the original film and am somewhat intimidated by the quality of it. Simply doing a sequel or remake didn't appeal to me, but this was such an opportunity to have four and a half hours of a case study of victims of a violent crime and the perpetrators and what makes them tick and how it affects a person who goes through this."

Here's how The Strangers: Chapter 1 is described:

"From master director Renny Harlin (Cliffhanger, Die Hard 2, The Exorcist: The Beginning) comes a new trilogy of terror. In Chapter I, Madelaine Petsch (TV's Riverdale) stars as a young woman starting a new life with her fianc?. Suddenly, during a road trip stop in a remote vacation rental in the woods, they become the prey of a mysterious gang of masked strangers who attack without warning or reason. What begins as a fight to stay alive becomes one woman's journey of courage and cunning in this horror series bridging three compelling films."

The Adventures of Pinocchio was created by Italian author Carlo Collodi and was turned into a novel in 1883. There have been many iterations of Pinocchio over the years ranging from Disney's 1940 animated classic to Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio, which won the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature last year. There have also been various live-action versions of the tale over the years, and another is on the way... with a new twist. Pinocchio: Carved From Darkness is an upcoming horror film from Oceana Studios (Terrifier 2) that is set to be sold at the Cannes Film Market.

According to a new report from Variety, the film is set to be directed by Joona Tena (Superfurball) and written by Paulie Siegel (Jeremiah). You can read a description of the project here: "This dark turn on Carlo Collodi's classic 1883 tale sees woodcarver Geppetto carve a puppet resembling his recently deceased son from a of block of wood discarded at a crime scene and cursed by Agatha, the priestess of a dark cult. As Pinocchio turns into a vengeful killer, a teen named Charlie and his mother Nancy arrive in the town looking for a fresh start. Meanwhile, a detective named Georgina starts investigating Agatha's crimes. The characters intertwine with some tragic consequences."

The film is set to star Peter Stormare (Constantine) as Geppetto; Vicki Berlin (Triangle of Sadness) as Nancy, the semi-alcoholic mother of teenager Charlie; and Daniel Nuta (Watcher) as Ronnie, a local gangster who becomes involved in Charlie's high school circle.

"We're using the premise of the classic tale to make a dark modern horror film, but one with poignancy and empathy as our Pinocchio is carved from evil but nurtured with affection," Tena explained. "It will be a gripping cinematic journey through fear while dealing with themes of bereavement and broken family ties."

"We're thrilled to tell a story that has entertained people around the world for well over a century," Danny Sawaf, CEO of Oceana Studios, added. "Ours is set in a modern world while subverting the audiences' expectations given the character has personified good since its inception. The combination of CG and live action will be surreal and audiences are going to be riveted."

Pinocchio: Carved From Darkness is expected to go into production next year. Stay tuned for more updates about upcoming horror films.

Danny Boyle's 28 Years Later has a release date. On Friday, Sony announced that 28 Years Later, the next film in the franchise that began with 2002's 28 Days Later, is set to open in theaters on June 20, 2025. The film will see Boyle, who directed the first film, return to direct from a script from Alex Garland who also penned 28 Days Later. Both Garland and Boyle are also producing the film along with Peter Rice and Bernie Bellew. Cillian Murphy, who starred in 28 Days Later, is returning as an executive producer.

28 Years Later is set to star Jodie Comer, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, and Ralph Fiennes. Currently, details about the plot of the film have not been revealed, though the film is described by Sony as a sequel to 28 Days Later. That film followed Jim (Murphy), a bicycle courier who wakes up from a coma only to find that the accidental release of a highly contagious and aggression-inducing virus has caused a total breakdown of society. The film also starred Naomie Harris, Christopher Eccleston, Megan Burns, and Brendan Gleeson. Well received by both audiences and critics, the film was credited for revitalizing the zombie horror genre and numerous zombie-themed films followed. The film itself got a sequel in 2007 with 28 Weeks Later with that film set after the events of the first film, following efforts to create a safe zone in London after two young siblings break protocol to find a photograph of their mother and end up reintroducing the Rage Virus to the safe zone in the process. That film starred Rose Byrne, Jeremy Renner, Imogen Poots, Idris Elba, and others. It was also both a critical and commercial success.

When it comes to 28 Years Later, the project is one that Garland previously said has been long discussed.

"A few years ago, an idea materialized in my head for would be really 28 Years Later," Garland said at the time. "Danny always liked the idea. So, we're talking about it quite seriously, quite diligently. If He doesn't want to direct it himself, I'll be well up for it if we can execute a similarly good idea."

28 Years Later is Meant to Kick Off A Trilogy

While details about 28 Years Later have not yet been released, what is known is that the film is intended to be the first in a trilogy. It has previously been reported that Candyman director Nia DaCosta is in talks to direct the second film in the trilogy. That film will also be written by Garland and is expected to film immediately after 28 Years Later. In addition to Candyman, DaCosta also directed and co-wrote The Marvels. Her next film is MGM's Tess Thompson starring Hedda, a reimagination of the Henrik Ibsen stage play Hedda Gabler.

28 Years Later is set to open in theaters on June 20, 2025.

The unsettling and hilarious adventures in the Ghostbusters franchise have been kicked off for a variety of reasons, yet in marking a slight departure with Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, the spooky and silly chaos is kicked off in conjunction with the discovery of a mysterious orb. In an exclusive featurette for the sequel, you can learn more not only about the narrative importance of the artifact, but also witness how the filmmakers envisioned the orb and the specifics of bringing it to life for the thrilling sequel. You can check out the featurette above and buy or rent Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire now.

In Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire, the Spengler family returns to where it all started -- the iconic New York City firehouse -- to team up with the original Ghostbusters, who've developed a top-secret research lab to take busting ghosts to the next level. But when the discovery of an ancient artifact unleashes an army of ghosts that casts a death chill upon the city, Ghostbusters new and old must join forces to protect their home and save the world from a second Ice Age.

Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire stars Paul Rudd, Carrie Coon, Finn Wolfhard, Mckenna Grace, Kumail Nanjiani, Patton Oswalt, Ernie Hudson, and Annie Potts. The film is directed by Gil Kenan, who wrote the sequel with Jason Reitman. The producers are Ivan Reitman, Jason Reitman, and Jason Blumenfeld.

While Frozen Empire brought back not only cast members from the original Ghostbusters movies, but also 2021's Ghostbusters: Afterlife. A new member of the crew is Kumail Nanjiani as Nadeem, who plays a pivotal role in the discovery of the orb.

"What's great about Nadeem is that he really encompasses what makes Ghostbusters special," Nanjiani previously shared of his character. "He's a slacker. He's completely discounted by everyone around him. And he's the only one who can tackle this big, terrifying demon who can scare people to death just by looking at them. That's what I love -- he's a very grounded, normal character ... Some might call him a loser, and he doesn't like it, but can't deny it. And then suddenly he has to defeat this massive demon."

Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire is available to buy or rent now.

What did you think of the sequel? Contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter or on Instagram to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

A Quiet Place: Day One isn't just an origin story for the post-alien invasion world featured in the first two movies. The film also acts as an origin for one of the most intriguing characters from A Quiet Place Part II. Actor Djimon Hounsou plays a man in that film who runs an entire colony of survivors, and he ultimately lends a major hand to Evelyn and her family late in the movie. The only thing we know about him, though, is that he came from New York. His name isn't even mentioned in Part II.

That will change in A Quiet Place: Day One, as the nameless man will finally be given a name on-screen. While speaking to EW, Day One director Michael Sarnoski confirmed that we'll learn a lot more about the mystery man this time around.

"We do get to learn his name," Sarnoski said of Hounsou's character. "I won't tell you what it is."

The director talked about how the mysterious man from Part II was really a launching point for the whole story in Day One. He mentions something in Part II about the things that happened in New York when the aliens first arrived, and this film shows exactly that.

"That was definitely a jumping-off point for a lot of things," Sarnoski explained. "Then we took it into our own direction to explore, but [Hounsou] certainly plays the same character he is in the second movie. It's not his twin or anything like that. He's there and we get to learn a little bit more about that backstory and how that group of people started out."

While Hounsou's character is one that we've seen in A Quiet Place before, that won't be the case for the rest of the cast. Lupita Nyong'o and Joseph Quinn are playing new characters to the franchise. The same can be said for Alex Wolff, whose character helps bring the family element of A Quiet Place to the forefront.

"I can say that Alex Wolff plays a friend to Lupita's character who goes through some craziness that they have to deal with together," the director said. "The biggest thing for me was that the first two films very much circle around a family and these people that have established relationships. I wanted to explore a little more of what it would look like for strangers to have to go through the end of the world together."

Poppy Playtime is one of the creepier games to hit the world of video games in recent memory. Taking creations that would fit right into properties like Sesame Street and/or Muppet Babies, Mob Entertainment decided to put a skin-crawling twist on Poppy and his fiendish cohorts. Now, the franchise is teaming up with Legendary Entertainment to bring its spooky story to the silver screen as the game continues to see massive success on PC, PlayStation, Nintendo Switch, Mobile, and Roblox.

Co-founders of Mob Entertainment, Seth Belanger and Zach Belanger, could not be more excited about the partnership, stating the following in a new press release, "When we first started this journey, we followed our passion and created a series of games and brands with the purpose of inspiring and entertaining. We've always dreamed big and are thrilled to have created something that has captured the hearts of tens of millions around the world. This movie deal is a great logical next step in the growth of our transmedia entertainment company."

Poppy Playtime Will Stalk The Silver Screen

Legendary and Mob Entertainment will be collaborating with Don Murphy and Susan Montford of Angry Films to help bring this creepy story to life. Poppy Playtime receiving it's own live-action film shouldn't come as too much of a surprise considering that a movie with a similar premise was able to see some serious profits in theaters. Five Nights At Freddy's became one of the biggest movies of 2023, so Legendary and Angry Films teaming with Mob to bring Poppy to theaters seems like a major win.

If you aren't familiar with the original video game, here's Mob Entertainment's original description for Poppy Playtime, "You must stay alive in this horror/puzzle adventure. Try to survive the vengeful toys waiting for you in the abandoned toy factory. Use your GrabPack to hack electrical circuits or nab anything from afar. Explore the mysterious facility... and don't get caught."

If you want to check out the game series, there are currently three chapters that take fans through the twisted story of children's characters gone awry. Want to follow along with Poppy's theatrical arrival? Follow along with Team Gaming on ComicBook for all the latest spooky updates and hit me up directly @EVComedy to talk all things comics, anime, and the scary side of video games.

Via Press Release

Thanks in large part to their success with Scream and Scream VI, directors Tyler Gillett and Matt Bettinelli-Olpin (collectively known as "Radio Silence," along with producer Chad Villella) earned the exciting opportunity to develop the horror-comedy Abigail, putting their signature spin on the world of classic Universal Monsters. While the premise of a vampire being unleashed in a gothic mansion might seem familiar on paper, the pair enlisted a talented ensemble of performers to deliver their razor-sharp and hilarious dialogue while also injecting buckets of blood to make for an experience that not only honors vampire classics but also puts an entirely fresh spin on the premise. Abigail is now available to watch at home exclusively on digital platforms from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment.

In Abigail, after a group of would-be criminals kidnap the 12-year-old ballerina daughter of a powerful underworld figure, all they have to do to collect a $50 million ransom is watch the girl overnight. In an isolated mansion, the captors start to dwindle, one by one, and they discover, to their mounting horror, that they're locked inside with no normal little girl.

ComicBook caught up with the pair to dive deeper into the movie, talking about their musical selections, Easter eggs, and future projects.

WARNING: Spoilers below for Abigail

ComicBook: First things first, you both have to set the record straight: how did that Danzig song end up in this movie? I feel like you get a lot of Misfits songs in movies, and when you have Danzig, typically the go-to is "Mother" or something like that. So how did you land on getting "Blood and Tears" in Abigail?

Matt Bettinelli-Olpin: So we had recorded that dance with just this rock version of "Swan Lake" because we knew we wanted it to be something more energetic and we knew that, at some point, we'd have to find a song, but that whole dance sequence actually was a work in progress. We decided to do it like, what, Tyler, a week before we shot it?

Tyler Gillett: It was scripted originally as one line of action. "Sammy dances."

Bettinelli-Olpin: She spins around his dead body.

Gillett: Over Peter's dead body as Joey and Frank run in. And we were like, "Well, what if it was a full-on music video?"

Bettinelli-Olpin: So when we got into the edit, it was, how quickly can we start trying songs and figure out what's the right vibe here?

Gillett: We had the beats per minute, right?

Bettinelli-Olpin: It had to be in that area. And, giant lifelong Danzig fan and Misfits fan here, it was the first song we tried. It's the right tempo, it's the right pace. It has that macabre, '50s prom vibe and I basically came in with what, Tyler, 20 songs? And it was like, "All right, let's listen to these." And that was the first one, me, Tyler and Mike, our editor listened to and we all went, "Yeah, that's pretty great."

Gillett: But it was like, "That's pretty great, but we'll beat it. We'll beat this. We will find something that'll beat it."

Bettinelli-Olpin: We never thought in a million years people would let us put a Danzig song in this movie, including Danzig. We had no idea if Danzig would let us put a Danzig song in this movie. So anyways, long story short, we then tried every other song ever written and kept coming back to how much we loved "Blood and Tears," and, at the end of the day, the studio got behind it, Danzig gave it his blessing.

Gillett: And when Matt says we tried everything, it was like [George Michael's] "Careless Whisper" at one end of the spectrum and King Diamond's "Abigail" at the other end of the spectrum. Those were the guardrails when we were searching for a track for that. And yeah, man, Danzig for the win. We say that it's amazing to us that the best inside jokes are the ones that ultimately make it across the finish line, and that's one of them. We were like, "There's no f-cking way. There's no way 'Blood and Tears'..."

Bettinelli-Olpin: There's no way.

What's awesome is, if you just type in "Abigail Danzig song," it's a lot of people on Reddit being like, "What song is that?" Because you didn't choose one of the more obvious Danzig songs

Gillett: Love that. We love that sh-t, though. That's our aim with music, is that it feels familiar and it feels timeless and like, "Oh yeah, I think I've heard that," but you haven't. And so it gets you excited to explore and to dig in and to learn about new artists. That's always the aim for us. We get pitched, "Put in the pop song, put in the top 40 song, what's that version?" And we always try, right? Because it'd be great if one of those songs worked for a number of reasons, but it's funny, we've found that our tone has an allergy to that in a weird way. It's very strange.

Bettinelli-Olpin: I know we can talk about other things too, but we love this subject because we spend a ton of time on tracks.

Gillett: Let's not, let's just talk about Danzig.

Bettinelli-Olpin: But one of our touchstones for soundtracks is Pump Up the Volume because it's like all those great songs, but they're not the popular songs. I found so much music through that movie when I was a teenager, early teens, and I think it's trying to emulate something like that, where it's not just hits.

Gillett: Matt is not a teenager anymore.

Bettinelli-Olpin: I'm also not a teenager, believe it or not.

See, this is why we all had to record this conversation so that Matt is on record saying, "I'm not a teenager." I know that when you were talking about this movie, doing some interviews, some outlets ran with one quote from one of you guys saying how every scene was filmed with a horror perspective and then filmed with a more comedic perspective, resulting in some blogs saying, "Abigail has two completely different versions out there." Could you shed a little bit more insight on that?

Gillett: I mean, that's obviously the amplified version of that. I do think that you could cut any scene in any of our movies in one of those very narrow lanes, and I think it's our job to figure out how to make those things intersect and play well together. So I don't think it's necessarily that there's a comedy version or a straight horror version filmed. It's that what we film, it's a big enough net that it catches all of that stuff and that you can tailor the movie very simply into either of those tones. I think that what's fun to us is finding a way to mix them and make that mix something that's very unexpected and surprising. So it's sort of true, but also, I think it's really just about how we calibrate what the movie is in the edit. It's not like, "Hey, we're going to do the funny take, but then we're going to do the serious take." Those flavors are just very alive in everything, and it's really just about being selective.

Bettinelli-Olpin: Guardrails and calibration.

Gillett: Yeah, in the edit and putting those guardrails in place.

It sounds to me like you're saying movie blogs exaggerated isolated pieces of interviews to generate more traffic?

Bettinelli-Olpin: You didn't hear that here.

Gillett: Let's not go down that path.

I know Melissa [Barrera] had expressed, obviously she loves the movie, is super excited about the movie, but she expressed a little bit of disappointment about the ending where she doesn't get to go full vampire, and one version of the script she gets to go full vampire? So speaking to the ending, how many different versions were there? Was there one early on where she goes full vampire?

Bettinelli-Olpin: I don't remember that.

Gillett: She never turned. There was an ending, at one point, where it was Abigail and her dad watching Joey and her kid from afar, and it was very implied, like Abigail saying, "I think I would like a little brother," kind of a thing. And it was like, "Well, this is clearly going down this path," but I think that's as close as it ever got to her being...

Bettinelli-Olpin: I know Melissa got some teeth made for fun, but I don't think she ever actually got them.

Gillett: No, I don't think so. I don't think so.

Well, you should mail them to her. I don't think they will fit either of you.

Bettinelli-Olpin: We don't have them.

Gillett: We should have had teeth. We were like, "F-ck, why didn't we get fitted for teeth?"

Bettinelli-Olpin: We got fitted for those tutus, but not the teeth.

It's funny because my touchstone when Dracula shows up, I'm like, "Oh, it's that guy from Stoker." That's the thing that I recognized him from. Apparently he's on some TV show that the guy from The Guest [Dan Stevens] was also in.

Bettinelli-Olpin: Oh, yeah, Downton Abbey. "The Guest guy." The Downton Abbey guys.

Was there ever a point where, even just on paper, you speculated about some other people who you considered playing Dracula or was he literally the first and only name you went to?

Bettinelli-Olpin: It's funny, I feel like we went through so many versions of what that character could be because there were so many versions of the script that had different personifications of him and how he came through and how big and small that role was.

Matthew [Goode] did not have to audition because we are mega fans, specifically, of his portrayal of Robert Evans in The Offer. It's like a 10 out of 10, if you haven't seen it. But when he said he'd do it ... Sometimes you're looking for something and then, at a certain point, it's like it fits the box and you go, "Oh, my God, there it is. That's it." And as soon as he said he was in or was interested or his name came to us, I don't really remember how that exactly happened, but we immediately went, "Oh, my God, he would be f-cking perfect." And then in our opinion, he nailed it and is.

Gillett: We needed somebody to ... The way that they carry themselves actually to bring a level of mystery and nuance to what that character is instead of this just big, brute force. There's something very graceful and ethereal and strange about how Matthew looked in the teeth and the costume. And I think it implies so many interesting little pockets of history and story that exist off-screen. I mean, look, I think what being a talent like him is, right? You bring that sense of it, feeling lived in, even if you're on-screen for a minute and 40 seconds or whatever that scene actually is, it was really wild to watch that come together. It's such a short amount of time, but so important and so essential to the end of the movie.

So that wasn't ever a bargaining chip with Danzig to get the song, like, "Oh, and you can be Dracula for this movie,"?

Bettinelli-Olpin: Oh man.

Tyler: Hair whip.

Bettinelli-Olpin: I'd love that version, not going to lie.

When you said "big, brute force," I was like, "Oh, well that rules out Danzig." I think with Dan being named Adam Barrett [after filmmakers Adam Wingard and Simon Barrett], with the portrait of Henry's [Czerny] character from Ready or Not, and the song in the opening being an homage to the original Dracula, there's some Easter eggs in there. Are there ones that are so deeply buried that you're like, "How has nobody figured this out yet? Or how has nobody discovered this?" that now with the movie being out on VOD--

Bettinelli-Olpin: Available on a TV.

Available at home now.

Gillett: Available on screens that are not theater screens.

Bettinelli-Olpin: On a smaller screen.

With it being available on Apple Watches, is there an Easter egg that you are waiting to be discovered?

Bettinelli-Olpin: Well, there's the one that I was going to go to because I think, for us, it's really fun because we have the Henry portrait in the background, and then we also have Larry Fessenden, horror Icon, who did the voice of the DJ in an anthology we did a few years ago called Southbound. He reprised his role as the DJ, and you can hear him during the game room scene where they all get to know each other. So you can hear that same voice, it's so distinct and it just does something if you know the other movie.

Gillett: Then I think there's the Bela Lugosi license plate on Abigail's chauffeured car. The other license plates are the published date of the original Dracula. We love that, there's something so fun to us whenever there's a choice like that that needs to be made, why not make it cool and special and fit the puzzle? The math of what the movie is.

Bettinelli-Olpin: It's not an Easter egg because it became a big part of the movie, but to your point about making choices, that's what And Then There Were None was. We were just trying to think of, "What's a book...," and we were like, "Well, this is basically And Then There Were None."

Gillett: And you get the [Agatha] Christie story.

Bettinelli-Olpin: Let's just call it what it is.

The other one, though, is that I don't think anybody's caught because it's only a couple of frames in the movie, is the truck that Angus [Cloud] drives behind to hide from the cameras is Harker Farms, and it's got a bunch of garlic. Harker is the character from the original [Dracula].

I've got to ask you about Escape from New York. Guys, what's going on? Last time I talked to you, it was, "Well, we're focusing on our original Dracula vampire movie." That's out of the way. What's the latest, are you guys still involved in it?

Gillett: We are not, unfortunately. I think titles like that have been around for a while, and I think they've tried to get that out of the blocks a few times. I think it's just ultimately a tricky rights issue thing. There's a clock on it and we just weren't in a position to make the clock, ultimately. But who knows? I think, in hindsight, it feels crazy that we would think that we'd, post-Scream, step into a John Carpenter franchise.

Bettinelli-Olpin: Psychotic.

Gillett: You never know, but we know that there's still interest in it, and we've had a few conversations about it, but we're not attached in the official capacity.

Well, that'll just free you up for Abigail 2. Or Devil's Due Part 2.

Gillett: There you go.

Bettinelli-Olpin: That's what we've been waiting for.

I know you've just been biding your time. You've just been doing these studio wins here and there just to be able to come back to Devil's Due. I knew it.

Gillett: Yeah, let's blow some wind into that sail. That's the right one, for sure.

Abigail is now available to watch at home exclusively on digital platforms from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity. You can contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter.

Dead by Daylight confirmed this week a major new crossover with Dungeons & Dragons finally confirmed to be a part of the asymmetrical game at some point. Dead by Daylight creators Behaviour Interactive teased as much on Thursday with just enough of a glimpse of the Dungeons & Dragons DLC to confirm that it's actually happening, though no details about what this release would consist of were shared. There's a Dead by Daylight anniversary event coming up soon, however, so players know where they can look if they want to learn more about this Dead by Daylight x Dungeons & Dragons crossover.

The teaser in question was just a brief one that showed what appears to be a Beholder smashing up against an iron fence, but the logo was all Dead by Daylight players needed to see anyway. Behaviour confirmed in the teaser that we'll learn more about this crossover on May 14th.

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Despite having a long list of premium, licensed DLCs already in Dead by Daylight, the wishlist for crossovers players want to see is even longer, and Dungeons & Dragons has long been part of those lists. Behaviour typically sends out surveys gauging players' interests in various crossover opportunities, but even though Dungeons & Dragons has never really been part of those surveys, it's a pitch we've seen from the community regardless.

How it'll be implemented, however, remains to be seen as there are several different kinds of DLCs that Dead by Daylight typically gets. You've got ones like the Alien Chapter which are considered the full package in that they come with a Killer, a Survivor, and a new map all in one DLC. On occasion, DLCs add only a Killer like Chucky or only a Survivor like Nicolas Cage. Less common than those are cosmetic-only crossovers like the one that we got for Attack on Titan, though considering how excited people have been at the idea of a Dungeons & Dragons crossover, the DLC will hopefully be one of the more involved options.

Dead by Daylight players will learn more about this Dungeons & Dragons DLC on May 14th.

There is a new horror game out today that pays homage to PS1-era horror games. In particular, fans of the older, nostalgic Resident Evil games from this time may want to check it out. The game in question is called Crow Country from developer SFB Games. As of today, it is available via PC (Steam), PS5, and Xbox Series X|S. Reviews for it are still rolling in, but right now it is sitting at an 84 on Metacritic. In other words, it's apparently quite good, unlike many of the games that try and mimi this era of horror but come up just short of recreating the magic.

"A survival horror adventure featuring a rich atmosphere; a strong, tangible sense of place; a small but memorable cast of characters; meaningful exploration; engaging puzzles; and most of all-a beautiful, uncanny blend of tension and tranquility," reads an official blurb about the game.

The game's official description continues: "The year is 1990. Edward Crow has disappeared. The owner of "Crow Country" (a small theme park in the rural outskirts of Atlanta, Georgia), he has not been seen since he unexpectedly shut down his park two years ago. The silence is broken when a mysterious young woman named Mara Forest ventures into the heart of the abandoned theme park in order to find him."

If you are strapped on cash and don't want to gamble on an indie horror game, you can check out a free demo of it on all platforms. You won't be able to play the full game, but it will give you a taste of what to expect and whether you want to spend your money on it. How much it costs, we don't know, because at the moment of publishing it doesn't unlock for another hour. As a result, it also doesn't have any user reviews.

For more news on all things horror -- including all of the latest horror news, all of the latest horror rumors and leaks, and all of the latest horror deals on not just games, but other media as well -- click here.

This summer, horror fans will get to return to the world of A Quiet Place, but this time there's a bit of a twist. A Quiet Place: Day One doesn't continue the story of the family in the first two films. This time around, director Michael Sarnoski takes the reins from John Krasinski for an origin story that shows how the devastating aliens took control of our planet. The film isn't set to arrive until the end of June, but Paramount has debuted some brand-new footage to get everyone excited in the meantime.

The newest trailer for A Quiet Place: Day One has finally landed online, offering fans just a little more insight into the beginning of the invasion and the fall of New York City. You can check out the full trailer in the video above!

A Quiet Place: Day One Cast

While Emily Blunt and John Krasinski led the cast for the first two Quiet Place movies, neither of them are slated to appear in the prequel movie.

The cast of A Quiet Place: Day One will include Black Panther's Lupita Nyong'o, Stranger Things breakout Joseph Quinn, and Hereditary star Alex Wolff. Djimon Hounsou will seemingly be reprising his role from A Quiet Place Part II.

A Quiet Place: Day One is being directed by Pig helmer Michael Sarnoski, making it the first film in the franchise not directed by Krasinski.

The film was initially supposed to be directed by Mud director Jeff Nichols. In October 2021, however, Nichols departed the project. Sarnoski was brought on to replace him last year, following the success of Pig. When Krasinski first revealed that he wouldn't be directing the prequel, he said that Nichols was his first choice to take over.

"Truly the only person I had in mind when asked whether I would hand this off was Jeff," Krasinski told Empire last year. "I think he's one of the best filmmakers, Mud is one of my favourite movies, and so real and intimate. It's exactly the sort of paints we're painting with in A Quiet Place - very organic characters you fall in love with. So he was my first choice for this, and when he said yes I was over the moon. I pitched him my story, he's gone and developed the world on his own with that jumping-off point, and I'm so thrilled. He's actually just turning in a script now, and I loved it. I absolutely loved it, and I can't wait to see him shoot this thing."

At the end of Season 1 of Anne Rice's Interview With the Vampire, Louis and Claudia made the bold move of killing their maker Lestat so that they could be free of his control and then headed off to Europe in search of more of their kind. It's a decision that will have major ramifications in the upcoming second season of the critically acclaimed AMC series and that is especially true for Claudia. Played by Delainey Hayles in Season 2, Claudia won't just be seeking to find out more about vampires in Europe but be trying to find her own way as well and speaking with Comic Book ahead of Season 2's premiere on Sunday, May 12th, Hayles teases that viewers will get to explore the character's full arc -- as well as her increasingly complicated relationship with Louis.

"I am very happy that we get to explore Claudia's full arc. She's such a complex character that she needs to be seen. She's in a complicated circumstance," Hayles said. "She's going head on to a situation she thinks she knows, but she knows nothing about the world that she's entering, which is sad because she wants to belong somewhere and she thinks she's finding that place. But it's nothing like she imagined. She's running through the woods with a blindfold which is really, really sad. But I'm very happy we get to see elements of her being older now, exploring new love, maybe, possibly, and kind of delving into her relationship with Louis and how they kind of deal with each other now that she's aged up and has stronger opinions on life and has more experience behind her. I'm excited for everybody to see that, too."

Claudia's relationship with Louis will also get explored a bit more in Season 2, with the two vampires trying to figure out how things work given their trauma -- as well as what their dynamic actually is without Lestat in the picture.

"It's all quite terse," Louis actor Jacob Anderson said. "Obviously Louis betrayed her. It's complicated. And he lied to her. And then I think it certainly, in the first episode, he's just trying to make it up to her as much as he can and kind of following her lead. But in Louis de Pointe du Lac fashion sort of pushes against it at the same time. And they always have an uncomfortable, 'are we siblings? Am I your parent?' kind of dynamic."

"The love between them is never lost," Hayles added. "But I think there's things that arise that are unforgiveable in a way, but they still love each other completely."

What Is Interview with the Vampire Season 2 About?

You can read AMC's official description of the second season of Interview With the Vampire here: "The interview continues in season two. In the year 2022, the vampire Louis de Pointe du Lac (Anderson) recounts his life story to journalist Daniel Molloy (Eric Bogosian). Picking up from the bloody events in New Orleans in 1940 when Louis and teen fledgling Claudia (Hayles) conspired to kill the Vampire Lestat de Lioncourt (Reid), Louis tells of his adventures in Europe, a quest to discover Old World Vampires and the Theatre Des Vampires in Paris, with Claudia. It is in Paris that Louis first meets the Vampire Armand (Assad Zaman). Their courtship and love affair will prove to have devastating consequences both in the past and in the future, and Molloy will probe to get to the truths buried within the memories.

Season two of Anne Rice's Interview with the Vampire is executive produced by award-winning producer Mark Johnson, creator and showrunner Rolin Jones, Mark Taylor, along with Christopher Rice and the late Anne Rice."

Interview with the Vampire season 2 premieres May 12th on AMC and AMC+.

Interview With the Vampire returns on Sunday, but the vampires aren't the only of Anne Rice's creations that fans are eager to see return to AMC. Fans of Mayfair Witches are eager to find out what's next for Rowan now that she's taken her place as the designee and given birth -- and presumably seen Lasher reborn in the process. And while it will be a bit before Mayfair Witches returns to screens, according to series star Alexandra Daddario, there's "really cool stuff" to look forward to in Season 2.

"Now that Rowan knows who she is, what does that mean for her?" Daddario told TVLine. "So, she gets to do all this cool, crazy stuff."

Daddario also said that the second season is "pretty continuous" with Season 1 and that the series, which has wrapped filming in New Orleans, will also be headed to Ireland.

"We get to have some Irish backdrops," she said. "So, we'll see how that changes the flavor of the show."

What Do We Know About Season 2 of Mayfair Witches?

Season 2 of Mayfair Witches will see some new faces join the cast. It was previously announced that Ben Feldman had joined the cast as Sam "Lark" Larkin, CEO of a genetics startup and Rowan's ex-boyfriend. Thora Birch, Ted Levine, and Alyssa Jirrels are also joining the cast in Season 2 as Gifford Mayfair, Julien Mayfair, and Moira Mayfair respectively. The series also stars Jack Huston, Tongayi Chirisa, and Harry Hamlin in addition to Daddario.

AMC has also teased that Season 2 will see a shift in the hierarchy of witches in the Mayfair story. The network took to social media earlier this year to tease that "Rowan is no longer the only key witch in the Mayfair story." As fans of Anne Rice's novels know, in the second book of the Lives of the Mayfair Witches trilogy, Lasher, another Mayfair witch -- Mona Mayfair -- ends up playing a major role. It's unclear if that is the direction AMC is going with the series, though with the addition of Jirrels' Moira, anything is possible.

AMC's Immortal Universe Is Expanding

In addition to Season 2 of Interview With the Vampire, which returns on Sunday, May 12th, and Season 2 of Mayfair Witches, the network has also previously confirmed that they are developing a possible third series in their Immortal Universe based on Rice's works. The series, which is being written and produced by John Lee Hancock, would be centered around the fictional organization known as the Talamasca. The organization is featured prominently in AMC's Mayfair Witches and also plays a significant role in Rice's books. Members of the Talamasca are agents who investigate and monitor supernatural beings.

"The enthusiastic critical and fan reception to Interview and Mayfair is a great sign of what is yet to come in this immersive universe based on the works of Anne Rice," Dan McDermott, president of entertainment and AMC Studios of AMC Networks said in a statement when the series was first announced last year. "We're excited to be in active development of the next installment in this growing franchise, written and to be showrun by the incomparable John Lee Hancock. The Talamasca is one of the most intriguing elements of Rice's works and a connective thread through so many of her stories, the standalone and crossover potential for this third series is immense."

Fans of the Friday the 13th franchise just got a little more clarity about why the Crystal Lake prequel TV series is facing some delays in development. There was some drama surrounding the A24 and Peacock project earlier this week, as some reports suggested that the plug was being pulled on the series, while others claimed it was simply undergoing some changes behind the scenes. It's the latter that turned out to be true.

Hannibal's Bryan Fuller was set to serve as the showrunner, writer, and executive producer of Crystal Lake, but it seems he will no longer be involved with the series moving forward. On Wednesday, Fuller took to social media to say that A24 was going in a different direction with the material.

"Adapting classic horror is something I have some experience with. These shows requre a vision that elevates and transforms, as well as delivers what audiences have come to expect, which is an ambitious and risky endeavor. It requires people to take the leap with me," Fuller wrote.

When it works, as with HANNIBAL, the results can be powerful for the storytellers and the audience. I couldn't be more proud of the work my co-showrunner Jim Danger Gray and I were able to accomplish with our brilliant writing staff despite the challenges we faced.

-- Bryan Fuller (@BryanFuller) May 8, 2024

"When it works, as with Hannibal, the results can be powerful for the storytellers and the audience. I couldn't be more proud of the work my co-showrunner Jim Danger Gray and I were able to accomplish with our brilliant writing staff despite the challenges we faced," Fuller added. "For reasons beyond our control, A24 has elected to go a different way with the material. We hope the final product will be something Friday the 13th fans all over the world will enjoy."

This entire thread seems to indicate that Peacock and A24 are still working to bring Crystal Lake to life, they'll just be doing it with someone else at the helm.

Peacock won a competitive bidding war for Crystal Lake and, according to Fuller, signed up for a substantial commitment out of the gate.

"One of the things that is super exciting and one of the many reasons that we went with Peacock is that they blew every other competitor out of the water," Fuller told Fangoria when Crystal Lake was first announced. "There was a bidding war on this, and they came in strong and gave us a full-season commitment with a huge penalty if we don't do a second season. So it's kind of a two-season commitment, but really just the first-season commitment. We're going to have roughly five times the per-episode budget that we had on Hannibal."

"It will absolutely be recognizable for the hardcore Friday the 13th fans, but will also have an appeal to people who are simply interested in top-shelf TV storytelling," he added.

Thanks to their major successes with both 2019's Ready or Not and 2022's Scream, directors Tyler Gillett and Matt Bettinelli-Olpin landed the coveted gig of directing a revival of John Carpenter's Escape from New York, though in the years since they joined the project, they have since parted ways. The pair cite the limited timelines and rights issues to move forward on that project, along with their own schedules, that saw the timeframe close for possibly jumping onto the revival. The directors' most recent effort, the vampire-comedy Abigail, is now available to watch at home from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment.

When asked by ComicBook if the duo were still developing the project, Gillett confirmed, "We are not, unfortunately. I think titles like that bounce around for a while and I think they've tried to get that out of the blocks a few times. I think it's just ultimately a tricky rights issue thing. There's a clock on it and we just weren't in a position to make the clock, ultimately. But who knows? I think, in hindsight, it feels crazy that we would think we would, post-Scream, step into a John Carpenter franchise. You never know. There's still interest in it and we've had a few conversations about it but we're not attached in any official capacity."

While the directors, who are collectively known as "Radio Silence" (along with producer Chad Villella), offered updates on the project in 2023, there's been little information released in recent months about the status of the project. Having also confirmed they were taking a backseat with the upcoming Scream 7, Radio Silence have yet to announce what their next directing project will be.

In Abigail, after a group of would-be criminals kidnap the 12-year-old ballerina daughter of a powerful underworld figure, all they have to do to collect a $50 million ransom is watch the girl overnight. In an isolated mansion, the captors start to dwindle, one by one, and they discover, to their mounting horror, that they're locked inside with no normal little girl.

Abigail stars Melissa Barrera (Scream franchise, In the Heights), Dan Stevens (Gaslit, Legion), Kathryn Newton (Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, Freaky), William Catlett (Black Lightning, True Story), Kevin Durand (Resident Evil: Retribution, X-Men Origins: Wolverine), and Angus Cloud (Euphoria, North Hollywood) as the kidnappers and Alisha Weir (Roald Dahl's Matilda the Musical, Darklands) as Abigail.

Abigail is now available to watch at home from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment. Stay tuned for updates on the future of the Escape from New York reboot.

Are you disappointed the filmmakers are no longer attached to the project? Contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter or on Instagram to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

Reginald the Vampire is dialing up the darkness in Season 2. Launching in Fall 2022, SYFY's bloodsucking series spotlighted Spider-Man: No Way Home star Jacob Batalon in the titular role, capturing the charm and quip of the Johnny B. Truant novels that it is based on. While Reginald the Vampire's sophomore installment will retain the vibrant energy of the first season, it has been noted that the next batch of episodes will get a little more serious.

"I feel like we were all shocked as actors to see how dark it gets and how deep it gets," Batalon told ComicBook. "But I think it just is the natural progression of our story. We just wanted to really raise the stakes."

Those stakes come in the form of angels. Reginald the Vampire Season 2 brings in Balestro (Garfield Wilson) and Uriel (Max Montesi) as beings from above sent down to Earth to destroy who bear fangs.

"There's all these things you have to deal with when you're fighting the angels. It's just another level," Batalon continued. "We were allowed to show what we could do with the first season and now that we have more space to play in things, we can show where things could end up with this season."

Outside of the action, Reginald the Vampire will continue dissecting who Reginald is from a personal standpoint as he attempts to navigate his life as a vampire.

"There's deeper meanings to relationships that you have to deal with as well as a vampire," Batalon noted. "In terms of Season 2, it's really just how we defeat the angels after we've basically turned over a new leaf."

Last fans saw, Reginald was struggling to pass the Assessment, a test that determines whether or not a prospective vampire can continue as one. The vampires in charge were divided on the matter, specifically Angela (Savannah Basley), as she took issue with Maurice (Mandela Van Peebles) making Reginald into a vampire.

Despite how he's treated, Reginald remains putting the greater good first.

"I feel like you'll watch his growth from a bit afraid to take the stance to really becoming the hero of the day in Season 2," Batalon teased. "It's something he has to learn to accept. We sort of see him do it in the first season, but now it's really on his shoulders again. It's really just like the natural progression for Reginald."

Reginald the Vampire Season 2 premieres on Wednesday, May 8th at 10 PM ET on SYFY.

A brand new look at the next Quiet Place film is arriving very soon. A Quiet Place: Day One is a prequel film to John Krasinski's hit horror franchise, set when the aliens first arrived on Earth and civilization began to fall. Michael Sarnoski takes over from Krasinski as director, with Lupita Nyong'o and Joseph Quinn set to play the two lead roles. On Wednesday, Day One's duo of stars took to social media to reveal to fans when the next trailer would arrive.

According to the video of Nyong'o and Quinn, the next trailer for A Quiet Place: Day One is set to be released on Thursday, May 9th. You can watch their full announcement below!

? IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT ? #AQuietPlace #DayOne pic.twitter.com/0gCoXMtcmz

-- A Quiet Place: Day One (@AQuietPlace) May 8, 2024

After release date shifts, A Quiet Place: Day One is set to hit theaters on June 28th, making it one of the summer's major tentpoles.

A Quiet Place: Day One Cast

While Emily Blunt and John Krasinski led the cast for the first two Quiet Place movies, neither of them are slated to appear in the prequel movie.

The cast of A Quiet Place: Day One will include Black Panther's Lupita Nyong'o, Stranger Things breakout Joseph Quinn, and Hereditary star Alex Wolff. Djimon Hounsou will seemingly be reprising his role from A Quiet Place Part II.

A Quiet Place: Day One is being directed by Pig helmer Michael Sarnoski, making it the first film in the franchise not directed by Krasinski.

The film was initially supposed to be directed by Mud director Jeff Nichols. In October 2021, however, Nichols departed the project. Sarnoski was brought on to replace him last year, following the success of Pig. When Krasinski first revealed that he wouldn't be directing the prequel, he said that Nichols was his first choice to take over.

"Truly the only person I had in mind when asked whether I would hand this off was Jeff," Krasinski told Empire last year. "I think he's one of the best filmmakers, Mud is one of my favourite movies, and so real and intimate. It's exactly the sort of paints we're painting with in A Quiet Place - very organic characters you fall in love with. So he was my first choice for this, and when he said yes I was over the moon. I pitched him my story, he's gone and developed the world on his own with that jumping-off point, and I'm so thrilled. He's actually just turning in a script now, and I loved it. I absolutely loved it, and I can't wait to see him shoot this thing."

So which heroes does this anthology-style series follow? The first story sees Clint Barton hiding out from recent events in his life with Natasha Romanov in New York City but must now contend with a pandemic of blood suckers. The second tale sees an unorthodox father and son trying to survive the endless night as J. Jonah Jameson teams up with his son John as his hairy alter-ego, Man-Wolf. Finally, Tandy Brown, a.k.a. Dagger (usually paired with heroic partner Cloak), finds her powers quite beneficial in fighting against opponents that aren't thrilled to see the sunlight, or the light that emanates from her projectiles.

As a fan of some lesser-seen heroes and villains in any comic book universe, Blood Hunters scratches one of my itches in devoting time to characters that would otherwise lack the chance to shine. Hawkeye is clearly the most popular of the trio, though this fact doesn't take away from Tandy or John. As mentioned previously, Blood Hunt is a deadly serious crossover that doesn't have much room for humor, which is why Blood Hunters is so effective here, showing fans the "lighter" side of a vampire invasion.

Reviewing anthology stories is always tricky, but as I become more familiar with the formats challenges and opportunities, it's about finding your favorites, reviewing each story individually, and then combining the scores into an overall rating. Blood Hunters' best showing is "Blood Relations," not just in its fast-paced action and spot-on humor, but in delivering something readers definitely haven't seen before. J. Jonah Jameson would routinely talk trash about Spider-Man from the comfort of his offices at the Daily Bugle but not leap into the action, minus the occasional Spider Slayer tour. This time around, Jonah is able to team up with his son in Man-Wolf form as they try their best at both slaying the undead and staying alive.

The art for each of the stories is rock solid as the likes of Bob Quinn, Javier Garron, and Bernard Chang capture the horror of vampires tormenting Marvel heroes and the energy of battles that compose this first anthology issue. Of the three, perhaps Garron shines brightest here as he is able to deliver some inventive sequences with the direction and panels for a story that features a wild team-up across the Jameson clan.

This isn't to say that Clint and Tandy's stories were sub-par, though the latter felt like it missed the mark a bit more than Blood Hunters' other two entries. Hawkeye's story is the most humorous of the bunch, playing up Clint Barton's status as an urban hero that was well established in the now-legendary Matt Fraction and David Aja run. Dagger's story has some stellar artwork and some interesting character work but it doesn't read as fun as Clint and John's stories, throwing a dagger in the heart of the comic holding a consistent overall tone. What Dagger's story does is set the stage for the next issue as another Marvel hero is set to take Tandy on a vampire-killing tour.

Blood Hunters #1 works to further examine the ramifications of a vampire outbreak in Marvel Comics, giving readers the chance to catch up on the lives of heroes they otherwise might not have seen in this event. While not every story is a home run, there's enough here to give Marvel fans something to sink their teeth into whether they're fans of the undead, Wolf Gods, light-baring superheroines, or moustache-sporting marksmen.

Published by Marvel Comics

On May 8, 2024

Written by Mark Russell, Christos Gage, and Erica Schultz

Art by Bob Quinn, Javier Garron, and Bernard Chang

Colors by Matt Milla, Morry Hollowell, and Marcelo Maiolo

Letters by Joe Caramagna

Cover by Greg Land

NFL star Travis Kelce headed to Ryan Murphy's Grotesquerie. According to Deadline, the Kansas City Chiefs tight end has been cast in Murphy's upcoming FX horror series where he will appear opposite Niecy Nash-Betts, Courtney B. Vance, and Lesley Manville. The series has just begun production and is expected to debut this fall on FX, right around the time the football season picks up. No details about Kelce's role in the series have been released.

For Kelce, this would be his first major foray into acting. He has previously hosted Saturday Night Live and appeared in a cameo during SNL's NFL-Taylor Swift sketch last fall -- Kelce is notably dating Swift and their relationship was a major topic of discussion during the NFL season. Kelce has previously had experience with unscripted television, including a reality dating series Catching Kelce in 2016, and more recently signed on to host Amazon's Are You Smarter Than a Celebrity. He is also the executive producer of the indie film, My Dead Friend Zoe.

What is Grotesquerie About?

Details about Grotesquerie are few, though Murphy shared a video announcing the cast of the upcoming series earlier this year. The video featured a voiceover from Nash-Betts' character, teasing that "something's happening around us, and nobody sees it but me."

"I don't know when it started, I can't put my finger on it, but it's different now," Nash-Betts' character says in the video. "There's been a shift, like something's opening up in the world - a kind of hole that descends into a nothingness. You say, 'Well, hon, evil has always existed,' that 'things are getting better, there's never been a better time to be alive!' ... it's not getting better! Something's happening around us, and nobody sees it but me."

Niecy Nash-Betts Confirmed Kelce's Casting on Instagram

On Instagram, Nash-Betts shared a video from the set of Grotesquerie revealing Kelce. In the video Nash-Betts teases "Guys, guess who I am working with on Grotesquerie?" before panning to Kelce who chimes in with "Jumping into new territory with Niecy!"

"This is what happens when WINNERS link up!! @killatrav Welcome to Grotesquerie," she captioned the video. Kelce himself also shared the video as an Instagram Story. You can check the post out for yourself here.

A true cult classic turns 30 this year, and Paramount has gone all-out on a new physical release to celebrate the occasion. The Crow, Brandon Lee's grunge-noir comic adaptation, has been beloved by movie fans for three decades, and that love is finally being rewarded with a brand new 4K restoration.

Paramount released The Crow 30th Anniversary 4K Blu-ray on Tuesday, delivering a long-awaited restoration for a unique film that has desperately needed it. Fans will be happy to learn that the team behind this restoration knocked it out of the park. Let's break it down, shall we?

The Movie

The Crow is the definition of a cult classic film. It was made for a small budget in 1994 and was appealing to a pretty niche audience, but that appeal has widened quite a bit over the last 30 years. The Alex Proyas film, based on James O'Barr's comic series, seems to get more and more love as time goes on. Whether people have a connection to the film from their adolescence or see it as a beautiful snapshot of the grunge era, folks can't get enough of The Crow. Why else has Hollywood been dead-set on rebooting the property?

The story at the center of The Crow is a bittersweet one, made even more gut-wrenching by the real-life tragedy that took place on set. Star Brandon Lee, who was on the cusp of a massive film career, was killed by an gun-related accident during a take. His performance as a resurrected rocker with thirst for revenge is exceptional, and his legacy will forever be tied to the film's.

The Crow isn't for everybody, but those who like it absolutely love it. There was never anything quite like it prior to 1994, and there certainly hasn't been anything like it since.

The Disc (and Steelbook)

The Crow's 30th anniversary release is a native 4K transfer in 2160p with a Dolby Vision/HDR10 presentation and a DTS-HD 5.1 master audio track. It wouldn't take a lot for this release to become the best The Crow has ever looked, considering the frustrating presentations on the DVD and Blu-rays, but this new disc from Paramount really goes above and beyond expectations to create something special.

Remastering The Crow is a tricky thing because of the style of the film itself. This is an incredibly dark, grungy movie made on a minimal budget. The style of the city and the noir elements of the story keep most of the film in the shadows. You can only brighten things up so much before you begin taking away from the intentions of the filmmakers and delivering something that isn't honest to what The Crow should be. This 4K restoration does an exceptional job at giving life and depths to the blacks and darker colors. The lights themselves get brightened instead, creating a contrast with those deeper colors that allows you to see the images a lot more clearly without sacrificing the noir style.

With those choices, every detail in The Crow is made finer and more pronounced. From the opening fly through the model city to the close-ups of Eric Draven in the shadows, you can see everything more clearly and more well defined than ever before. What's even more impressive is that The Crow maintains a natural grain structure throughout. The clarity and lighting fixes didn't come at the cost of looking overly smooth or scrubbed.

Part of what makes The Crow such a lasting film for so many is that the filmmakers and design team never wavered from the unique vision they had when they set out to make it. The low budget, grunge aura of the film is part of its charm, and this restoration allows that to be on full display. The flyover scenes and rooftop chases only make the fact that the city is a model with VFX fires layered on top all the more obvious, but that just adds to its beauty. It feels like this disc came out of a time capsule, allowing fans to watch The Crow exactly as it was intended for the first time since 1994.

If you're curious just how big a difference this 4K release is compared to the previous Blu-ray, In Search of Physical Media over on YouTube put together some side-by-side screenshots to compare the two discs. The difference is night and day.

As far as the audio goes, the track was the strength of previous releases. It remains strong with this 30th Anniversary print. The dialogue is crisp and clean, and the soundtrack hits exactly as hard as it needs to.

Bonus points to the The Crow's 30th presentation for a phenomenal steelbook. The outer slipcover shows the outline of a crow with Brandon Lee's face shining through. Pulling the cover off reveals the full picture of Lee as Eric Draven. There's some great artwork featured on the back and inside the steelbook as well.

The Features

The Crow 30th Anniversary 4K comes with quite a few special features, most of which are legacy features carried over from previous releases. Despite the fact that diehard fans may have seen a lot of these before, they're great features to keep around for this release. The disc includes not one, but two different feature commentary tracks -- one from director Alex Proyas, the other from producer Jeff Most and writer John Shirley.

The two new features one the disc are an interview with late producer Edward R. Pressman from 2021 and a set of featurettes about the design process behind the film. The interview with Pressman is a decent addition but the Designing The Crow trio is far and away the highlight of the special features. All three videos in the featurette focus on an in-depth, retrospective interview with production designer Alex McDowell. Throughout the videos, McDowell gets into the nitty gritty of what it took to make The Crow look as memorable as it does. And unlike a lot of other featurettes on these home releases, the McDowell interview doesn't feel like a puff piece about the film itself. He really takes a dive into the process of designing sets and offers a ton of insight into how The Crow got made. It's definitely worth your time.

You can check out the full list of special features on the disc below.

• Shadows & Pain: Designing The Crow - NEW!
• Angels All Fire: Birth of the Legend
• On Hallowed Ground: The Outer Realm
• Twisted Wreckage: The Inside Spaces
• Sideshow Collectibles: An Interview with Edward R. Pressman - NEW TO DISC!
• Audio Commentary with Director Alex Proyas
• Audio Commentary by Producer Jeff Most and Screenwriter John Shirley
• Behind the Scenes Featurette
• A Profile on James O'Barr
• Extended Scenes:
• The Arcade Bombing
• The Funboy Fight
• The Shootout at Top Dollar's
• Deleted Footage Montage
• Trailer

The Verdict

The Crow is probably my favorite 4K disc of the year so far. If you're a fan of this movie, it is without question a must-own release. If you can get your hands on the steelbook that's even better, but those were already selling out at some stores shortly after preorders began.

If you're only moderately into The Crow, or you've never seen it but have a love for great physical media, this release is still worth picking up. This had to be a difficult restoration, and to pull it off as well as they did is certainly an accomplishment.

The Crow 30th Anniversary 4K is now available to purchase in stores. A copy was provided for the purposes of this review.