Just as Lydia Deetz is strange and unusual, Winona Ryder found her experience reprising the character for Beetlejuice Beetlejuice to be just that. After all, not only has it been more than 35 years since the original Beetlejuice came out but Ryder has actually never starred in a sequel before.

Speaking with Empire, Winona Ryder had a hard time describing just what it was like reprising Lydia Deetz for the Beetlejuice sequel. “I struggle to find the words. It’s just one of the most special experiences that I’ve ever had. The fact that we’re coming back to it, it’s…It’s beyond…I don’t know if I’ve ever felt this way.” Ryder also noted that “this is a first for me. I’ve never revisited a character, ever.”

As such, Winona Ryder had to find a way to approach the character, especially now that she is a mother, with Jenna Ortega playing daughter Astrid. “I went through so many stages of, ‘Who is she now?’, but I always wanted to have it be Lydia. She can’t lose who she was. She can’t be the same person, she can’t be just completely deadpan, she has to have evolved, but she also has to have kept that thing she had when we first met her. So that was the big challenge for me.”

But that’s not necessarily a problem unique to Winona Ryder, as there are major hurdles that the cast and crew of Beetlejuice Beetlejuice have to get over. The original is one of the most cherished comedies of the ‘80s, so it does seem very unlikely that the sequel will completely live up to it. As such, there is a clear responsibility in adding to both the characters and the world that is already established as well as authentically bringing in new elements, which does at least seem to be in line based on footage.

Outside of Winona Ryder, Lydia Deetz was voiced by Alyson Court on the animated Beetlejuice series and played by numerous actresses in musical productions.

Do you think Beetlejuice Beetlejuice will do a good job in expanding on the established world? Will you be checking it out in theaters? Let us know below!

The post Winona Ryder says returning as Lydia for Beetlejuice 2 was a “special” experience appeared first on JoBlo.

Like many of you reading this, I have a soft spot for Robert Rodriguez’s Mexico trilogy. The three films centred around a guitar-playing mariachi (first played by Carlos Gallardo, then by Antonio Banderas) who becomes a killer after a case of mistaken identity. The three films put Rodriguez on the map as one of the most exciting directors of his generation, and the story of how he turned a $7000 action movie made for Mexican home video into a worldwide smash is legendary (as he documented himself in the classic book “Rebel Without a Crew”).

Now, Rodriguez’s loose trilogy, which consists of El Mariachi, Desperado and Once Upon a Time in Mexico, are coming to Arrow Video in a special features-laden box set which includes commentaries, new interviews, deleted scenes and more. However, the catch is that of the three films, only Desperado is getting a 4K disc.

Why?

Well, here’s the thing – the elements don’t really exist to put the other films on 4K disc. El Mariachi was shot on 16mm film for $7K, so a 1080p HD transfer is about as good as it gets for that movie. Once Upon a Time in Mexico, despite having the biggest budget, was an early movie shot on HD digital, meaning the maximum resolution is 1080p. It would have to undergo a major restoration (or revisionist transfer) to look good in this format (this is the dilemma likely facing Sony and Danny Boyle with 28 Days Later). Desperado was the only one shot on 35mm film, so it has the best elements and will likely look amazing in 4K. 

Whatever the case, the set is loaded with extras, as revealed by our friends over at Arrow Video. Check em’ out:

DISC 1 – EL MARIACHI (BLU-RAY)

• Original uncompressed Latin-American Spanish stereo audio, plus an English dub in lossless stereo
• Optional English subtitles, plus English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing
• Commentary by writer-director Robert Rodriguez
• Big Vision Low Budget, a newly filmed interview with Rodriguez
• The Original Mariachi, a newly filmed interview with producer/star Carlos Gallardo
• The Music of ‘El Mariachi’, a newly produced featurette on the music in the film, featuring interviews with composers Eric Guthrie, Chris Knudson, Alvaro Rodriguez and Marc Trujillo
• Ten Minute Film School, an archive featurette produced and narrated by Rodriguez
• Bedhead, a 1991 short film by Rodriguez
• Theatrical trailer and TV spot

DISCS 2 & 3 – DESPERADO (BLU-RAY / 4K ULTRA HD BLU-RAY)

• New 4K restoration from the original camera negative by Sony Pictures
• Original uncompressed stereo audio and DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround audio
• Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing
• Audio commentary by writer-director Robert Rodriguez
• Lean and Mean, a newly filmed interview with Rodriguez
• Shoot Like Crazy, a newly filmed interview with producer Bill Borden
• Kill Count, a newly filmed interview with stunt coordinator Steve Davison
• Lock and Load, a newly filmed interview with special effects coordinator Bob Shelley
• Game Changer, a newly filmed appreciation by filmmaker Gareth Evans (The Raid: Redemption)
• Ten More Minutes: Anatomy of a Shootout, an archive featurette narrated by Rodriguez
• Textless opening (“Morena de mi Corazón”)
• Theatrical trailers

DISC 4 – ONCE UPON A TIME IN MEXICO (BLU-RAY)

• Original DTS-HD MA 5.1 surround and 2.0 stereo audio
• Optional English subtitles for the deaf and hard-of-hearing
• Commentary by writer-director Robert Rodriguez
• The Revolution Will Be Digitized, a newly filmed interview with Rodriguez
• Troublemaking, a newly filmed interview with visual effects editor Ethan Maniquis
• Eight deleted scenes, with optional commentary by Rodriguez
• Ten Minute Flick School, an archive featurette narrated by Rodriguez
• Inside Troublemaker Studios, an archive featurette on Rodriguez’s studio in Austin
• Ten Minute Cooking School, an archive featurette in which Rodriguez shows you how to cook Puerco Pibil
• Film is Dead: An Evening with Robert Rodriguez, a presentation by the director given in 2003
• The Anti-Hero’s Journey, an archive featurette on the arc of the Mariachi
• The Good, the Bad and the Bloody: Inside KNB FX, an archive featurette on the film’s special effects
• Theatrical trailers

Will you be picking up the Mexico trilogy? Let us know in the comments! Here’s a look at the set, which streets on August 27th in the US and Canada.

The post Robert Rodriguez’s Mexico Trilogy getting a deluxe Arrow release (but only Desperado will be 4K) appeared first on JoBlo.

The idea of cashing in on a recently deceased celebrity is a shameful one, but when Bruce Lee died in 1973 at the age of just 32, Asian markets — predominately Hong Kong — cornered and spinning heel kicked the market, delivering a wheelhouse of movies that would come to be known as Bruceploitation.

While Bruce Lee could fall under the category of “often imitated, never equaled”, filmmakers and stars behind Bruceploitation worked to keep their hero’s legend thriving on the big screen. One such star of the genre was Wong Kin-lung, who would go on to be known as Bruce Le (get it?). As he put it, “It was almost like an honor,” although the opportunity presented its own challenges. “I thought I could make Bruce Lee-style action my way, because I was a martial arts teacher.”

On developing a technique among everybody else who was part of the Bruceploitation explosion of the ‘70s, he added, “Bruce was a very dedicated performer and acting is not like kung fu. So it wasn’t actually as easy to imitate him as they thought, because of the acting component involved. At the start, we wanted to imitate our idol. But after making 10 or so movies, I started to create my own style — but at the same time, I was still following the spirit of Bruce Lee.”

That spirit of Bruce Lee found Le starring in a series of Bruceploitation entries, including Way of the Dragon 2, Enter the Game of Death and The Clones of Bruce Lee. Yeah, Bruceploitation made no secrets about what it was…There is a lot of the genre out there, but starting off with flicks starring Bruce Le and Bruce Li is the way to go — although we would of course recommend you do your homework on the inspiration first. There’s also a really cool documentary out there called Enter the Clones of Bruce.

While Bruceploitation is out of its peak, appreciation for Bruce Lee himself is experiencing some of a resurgence right now. Ang Lee even has a biopic in the works, which will come out more than 30 years after the Jason Scott Lee-starring Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story.

Are you a fan of the Bruceploitation genre? Who and which movie stands out for you? Drop your picks below!

The post Bruceploitation icon remembers “honor” of paying tribute to Bruce Lee appeared first on JoBlo.

When Warner Bros. Discovery dropped an anvil on Coyote vs. Acme, it was like Batgirl all over again — except it might have been an even bigger blow. While it’s up for serious questioning as to whether or not Batgirl was truly “unreleasable”, Coyote vs. Acme was by most accounts looking to be a pretty darn good movie. Now, the directors of Batgirl are showing their support for a fellow WBD movie that was left hovering over a cliff’s edge.

Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah, the directors behind Batgirl, showed their concern over how studios are willing to openly discard films, particularly name-checking the director of Coyote vs. Acme. “It’s an extra thing to worry about in Hollywood, and that’s sad. I think that we all are artists. We are friends with director Dave Green; he’s our boy. We hope that he will be able to do a movie in the future. I think that movies must be seen by the audience, and the audience must judge them.”

The announcements of both Batgirl and Coyote vs. Acme being canned have drawn the rightful ire of movie fans, with Warner Bros. coming under heavy scrutiny for just tossing them away despite the work and passion that went into them. But while Batgirl is very likely to never see release in any completed form, it’s still possible that Coyote vs. Acme gets its day. Regardless, in both instances, WBD peppered their statements with empty praise of being “grateful” for the filmmakers while also saying they had their own strategies (that is, a tax write-off…) in place.

Adil El Arbi and Bilall Fallah do at least have Bad Boys: Ride or Die out next week, while hopefully Dave Green can bring Acme vs. Coyote to the public sometime in the near future.

On Coyote vs. Acme’s shelving, star Will Forte said the following: “Super funny throughout, visually stunning, sweet, sincere, and emotionally resonant in a very earned way. As the credits rolled, I just sat there thinking how lucky I was to be a part of something so special. That quickly turned to confusion and frustration. This was the movie they’re not going to release?”

What do you make of the shelving of both Batgirl and Coyote vs. Acme? Do you see this to be a growing trend in the future of Hollywood? Share your thoughts below.

The post Batgirl directors lend sympathy to Coyote vs. Acme appeared first on JoBlo.

Hayley Atwell, who has played Agent Carter herself Peggy Carter in the Marvel Cinematic Universe and was recently seen in Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One, provides the voice of video game icon Lara Croft in the upcoming Netflix animated series Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croft – and today a quick teaser trailer for the show has arrived online! You can check it out in the embed above.

Netflix also gave the series a release date, with it dropping on October 10th. Here’s a bit more information, courtesy of Deadline: Based on the wildly popular action-adventure video game franchise launched in 1996, created by the British game developer Core Design, the anime will follow Croft’s Square Enix run, and is set after the events of the 2013 to 2018 video game reboot.

In addition to Atwell, the Netflix series features the voices of Allen Maldonado (Zip), Earl Baylon (reprising his role as Jonah from video games), with more cast members to be announced. The Witcher: Blood Origin’s Tasha Huo is the showrunner on the series. Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croft is produced by Crystal Dynamics and animated by Powerhouse Animation Studios, the company behind another animated video game adaptation on Netflix, Castlevania. Huo serves as executive producer alongside dj2 Entertainment founder Dmitri M. Johnson, Howard Bliss, Stephan Bugaj, and Jacob Robinson of Tractor Pants.

Lara Croft was previously played in live action by Angelina Jolie in the 2001 film Lara Croft: Tomb Raider and its 2003 sequel Lara Croft: Tomb Raider – The Cradle of Life. Alicia Vikander then took over the role in the 2018 reboot Tomb Raider. There was going to be a sequel to the Vikander film, but development took so long that the studio, MGM, lost the rights to the property. In addition to the Netflix animated series, there’s also a live-action Tomb Raider television series in development at Amazon, with Phoebe Waller-Bridge on board to write and executive produce. Other executive producers on the project include Ryan Andolina, Amanda Greenblatt, and dj2’s Dmitri M. Johnson.

What do you think of the teaser trailer for Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croft? Will you be watching this show when it reaches Netflix? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

The post Tomb Raider: The Legend of Lara Croft teaser and release date announced appeared first on JoBlo.

Danny Huston has quite a slate of movies coming up, including this summer’s The Crow and next year’s The Naked Gun. Notice anything about those titles? As we know, they’re remakes/reboots, with both facing immediate skepticism from fans of the originals who were all too aware that it’s impossible to live up to these classics. So, too, is Danny Huston, who has thoughts on how remakes should be done.

On the topic, Danny Huston told ComicBook.com that filmmakers should be responsible in their purpose for tackling a remake or reboot. “What I find challenging is, in a way, the idea of remaking something that’s already good. It’s like you kind of don’t want to touch it. You want to leave it alone. I remember my father saying, ‘Why are we remaking good movies? We should be remaking the bad ones and make them good.’” It should be noted that Huston’s old man, John, started off his career with a remake; but following his own wisdom, The Maltese Falcon was a remake of a 1931 movie (itself adapted from Dashiell Hammett’s book) so forgettable many of you might not have known it even existed.

Danny Huston continued, “So that’s where you’re cautious. And yet you have to kind of reinvent it. You can’t imitate it. But you’re inspired by it and that’s the tough balance to get.”

Both The Crow and The Naked Gun are classics of their genres, so uproar and raised eyebrows were expected. The former has been on the receiving end of the most hate, while many questioned if Liam Neeson could truly handle the spoof reboot. Danny Huston’s roles in both have not been disclosed at this point.

Danny Huston raises a pretty good point about reinvention. Sure, nobody wants their favorite movies touched or remade in any way, but if there can be a significant improvement or further exploration of the story – like, say, in the case of The Maltese Falcon – then it might be worth it. Taking a look at another remake Huston starred in, 2010’s Clash of the Titans, one could argue that no matter how charming the Ray Harryhausen work in the 1981 original is, the effects could have used some updating for modern audiences. It’s just too bad the entire movie ending up sucking…

What do you think of Danny Huston’s comments? Do you agree or disagree? Let us know in the comments section below.

The post The Crow/The Naked Gun star Danny Huston: You can’t try to reinvent classics appeared first on JoBlo.

As expected, The Garfield Movie seems to be squeezing out a victory opposite Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga at the weekend box office. Both films are in their second week of release, and Deadline has Garfield making about $12 million this weekend compared to $11.3 for Furiosa. To note, this margin is pretty slim, so the numbers could easily swing the other way by the time the final figures come in tomorrow afternoon. The Garfield Movie is looking at a roughly 53% week 2 drop, while Furiosa is in the 57% range. 

To be sure, those are steeper drops than we anticipated in our box office predictions earlier this week. I expected Garfield to claw its way to the top spot, but I thought decent word-of-mouth would allow both films stronger holds. Alas, that doesn’t seem to be the case. While the makers of The Garfield Movie are probably thrilled with these numbers, as it’s going to turn a tidy profit, this result isn’t quite as rosy for the big-budget Furiosa. 

While reporting last weekend’s box office figures, many people noted that Mad Max: Fury Road wasn’t a major cash cow at the box office, at least on opening weekend. However, that movie had serious legs, never dipping below 48% until late in its run. Furiosa isn’t holding up as well, and it is unlikely the film will finish its domestic run with over $80-90 million. 

John Krasinski’s IF and 20th Century Studios Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes should come in third and fourth place. IF is looking at a weekend total of just under $10 million, while Apes should finish around the $8 million mark. Kingdom is expected to have a bigger cumulative gross than the last film in the series, War for the Planet of the Apes, which is good news for a sequel in these box-office-challenged times.

Meanwhile, Crunchyroll’s Haikyu!! The Dumpster Battle looks to take fifth place, with it on track for a very solid $4 million weekend. IFC and Shudder also seem to have another horror hit on their hands, with In a Violent Nature pacing to finish around $2.2 million for the weekend on just over 1400 screens. 

What are you going to see this weekend? Let us know in the comments!

The post Early Box Office: The Garfield Movie set to beat Furiosa at the box office appeared first on JoBlo.

For years, Awesome Art We’ve Found Around The Net has been about two things only – awesome art and the artists that create it. With that in mind, we thought why not take the first week of the month to showcase these awesome artists even more? Welcome to “Awesome Artist We’ve Found Around The Net.” In this column, we are focusing on one artist and the awesome art that they create, whether they be amateur, up and coming, or well established. The goal is to uncover these artists so even more people become familiar with them. We ask these artists a few questions to see their origins, influences, and more. If you are an awesome artist or know someone that should be featured, feel free to contact me at any time at theodorebond@joblo.com.This month we are very pleased to bring you the awesome art of…

Chris Barnes

Chris founded BRUTAL Posters early 2018 and has since worked on multiple BAFTA and EMMY winning films & TV shows. His clients include Universal, Warner Bros, Paramount, BBC, ITV, Channel 4, MGM, A24, Gunpowder & Sky, Fangoria, Shudder, Arrow Video, Vinegar Syndrome, metal bands such as Cradle of Filth, Municipal Waste, Ingested, Skinless, and comedians such as Tom Davis and Dusty Slay.

JOBLO: What got you started as an artist?
CHRIS: I’ve always loved drawing and painting since childhood, and went on to study Art at college – specialising in pencil and acrylics. Once I finished college I regrettably didn’t do anything art wise until around 2017! I was involved in making a short film and when the time came to commission a poster we had no money! I knew absolutely zero about digital art but decided to try and knock something together on Paint! It was shit. I tried again. Also shit, but I loved trying, so became a bit obsessed by digital art and artists.

Who were some of your favorite artists growing up?
It’s the old cliché really: I was born in the 80s, so grew up gawping at Drew Struzan, John Alvin, etc, in the cinema foyer. Magic. I can’t explain how it makes me feel staring at their work, to this day. I get lost in it and obsess over every detail they crammed in there. There are tons more artists that I love, but thinking about it now those were the fellas that got me hooked.

Who do you really dig these days, follow on Instagram?
Maaan, tons! There’s no way I can avoid missing so many great ones out, but Steve Chorney, James Goodridge, Jason Edmiston, Paul Mann, Tony Stella, Kyle Lambert. Special shoutout to Marc Schoenbach too – when I was trying my best to learn about digital postermaking, Marc’s work cropped up and I was convinced they were vintage horror designs I’d somehow missed previously. As it turns out, of course, they’re brand new and opened my eyes to what’s possible. Marc’s since become a good mate and huge support. He’s the fucking man.

What advice would you have for budding artists today?
Work for you, design stuff that you’d like to look at. Enjoy it – even the ones that aren’t quite turning out as you planned. Keep going, get work behind you, practice. Share work, put it out there. It’s scary but fuck it, do it anyway. Some people won’t like it but that’s fine, because you will. Other people will too and they’ll hire you because they like what you do. Go easy on yourself.

What should we be looking out for from you in the future?
I only tend to plan work for around a month/6 weeks in advance, and I’m really thankful to have some slipcovers, posters, and album covers lined up. Plus, there’s some stuff I’ve finished a while back that’s due for release for Vinegar Syndrome, Yellow Veil, Culture Shock, and a couple of others which I’m looking forward to.

Being a fansite, we have to ask you… What are some of your favorite movies/TV shows of all time?
Yikes. I’ll stick to horror I watch on repeat for the movies: An American Werewolf In London, Hellraiser, Fright Night, A Nightmare On Elm St, Evil Dead. I bet you’ve never had anyone say these before!
Series: The Sopranos, The Sopranos, and The Sopranos. And Succession.

Scroll down to check out some of our favorite art pieces from Chris as we continue to follow his journey across his Website and social media hubs: Instagram / X / Poster Spy

Bad Taste

The Batman II

The Blair Witch Project

Breaking Bad

Cabal

Evil Dead Rise

Indiana Jones And The Dial Of Destiny

Joker: Folie à Deux

King On Screen

The Monster Squad

A Nightmare On Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors

The Omen

Predator

Return Of The Living Dead

Rick Rubin – The Crative Act: A Way of Being

Robocop

Rocky

The Shining

Succession

Talk To Me

Type 0 Negative

Vamp

X

The post Awesome Artist We’ve Found Around The Net: Chris Barnes appeared first on JoBlo.

Our choice for the greatest Kaiju movie of all time, Godzilla Minus One, has gotten a surprise release on Netflix! In most territories, including the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, you can find the movie streaming in Dolby Vision in both the original Japanese version and an alternate English dub prepared by the distributors (we recommend watching it in Japanese). 

This comes hot on the heels of an article we ran a few weeks ago bemoaning the fact that the film was hard to see in North America. So far no domestic physical media release has been announced. You can buy the movie through most digital retailers now too, including the black and white version, Godzilla Minus One/Minus Color (which is not currently on Netflix). 

Of course, this is pretty awesome news, considering how warmly the film was received by fans and critics. The movie ended up grossing an incredible $116 million worldwide (on a $12 million budget), which includes $56 million in North America. It’s currently the highest-grossing Japanese film of all time in the States and is the third highest-grossing foreign language film of all time in North America. It also won the Best Visual Effects Oscar this year and counts director Steven Spielberg among its fans.

We’ve been huge fans of Godzilla Minus One since it dropped back in December, with our own Jessica Dwyer doing a great video about how it might be the best Godzilla movie ever. Fans of the character have had a good year, with Adam Wingard’s Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire also a pretty big blockbuster. While it did terrific business, fans complained about a lack of Godzilla. Well folks, if you saw The New Empire and thought Godzilla lacked screen time, then Minus One is the movie for you! 

The post Godzilla Minus One gets a surprise Netflix release appeared first on JoBlo.

Scott Wampler, a co-host on the Stephen King-centric podcast The Kingcast, has sadly passed away. Wampler’s expertise, delivery and chemistry with Eric Vespe was some of the finest in dual-hosted entertainment podcasts, only highlighting the massive loss.

As Vespe posted on social media, “Scott Wampler passed away today. He was my friend, co-host, and partner in crime. I’m still in shock. I don’t know many details, but I know it was sudden and he was with friends.” He added, “I don’t know what to say right now other than he was a singular presence. Hunter Thompson would have called him ‘one of God’s own prototypes, a high-powered mutant of some kind never even considered for mass production.’ That’s the Scott I knew. Hilarious, infuriating, singular.”

The likes of Guillermo del Toro, Elijah Wood and Mike Flanagan – who have all been guests on The Kingcast – equally expressed their sadness over the loss of Scott Wampler. As Wood – who appeared on the podcast to discuss Misery – put it, “Oh man…Scott Wampler was a truly singular force; passionate, hilarious and loved by everyone who knew him. My heart is with his friends and family. What a shocking loss.” Meanwhile, Flanagan – who appeared on multiple episodes of the show and has adapted numerous King works – wrote, “I am absolutely gutted, shocked, and devastated to learn that Scott Wampler has passed away. He was a force, a friend, a collaborator, and one hell of a fantastic individual. I can’t find the words.” King himself also shared his sympathies:

Outside of The Kingcast, Scott Wampler also contributed to Fangoria, which paid tribute to him on their website. He, too, leant his stylings to the likes of Birth. Movies. Death. and Collider. Wampler was an easy writer and mind to enjoy and learn something from, proving to be a true voice in the overpopulated world of podcasts. No doubt he is missed by listeners, readers, collaborators, and celebrities.

No details about Wampler’s death have been released, although Fangoria did note that he passed away suddenly and without suffering.

Leave your condolences for the late Scott Wampler in the comments section below.

The post Scott Wampler, co-host of Stephen King podcast The Kingcast, dies appeared first on JoBlo.