Director Fede Álvarez’s contribution to the Alien franchise, Alien: Romulus, is set to reach theatres on August 16th – and with that date just a couple of weeks away, a new promo, described as a “terrifying new sneak peek,” has arrived online, along with a batch of exhibitor posters. You can watch the promo in the embed above, and the exhibitor posters can be found at the bottom of this article.

When this project was announced near the start of 2022, it was said that Álvarez pitched the idea to Ridley Scott years ago and it stuck with Scott. So in late 2021, he called Álvarez and asked if he still wanted to make an Alien movie. Clearly, the answer was yes. 20th Century Studios division president Steve Asbell told The Hollywood Reporter that they picked up the project “purely off the strength of Fede’s pitch. It was just a really good story with a bunch of characters you haven’t seen before.“

It has also been said that the story Álvarez and co-writer Rodo Sayagues crafted for Alien: Romulus is not connected to the other films in the Alien franchise – but it’s not ignoring any of the other entries, either. Álvarez has been clear about the fact that his story takes place within the established franchise continuity. In fact, it slots right in between the events of Alien and Aliens. It has the following official logline: The sci-fi/horror-thriller takes the phenomenally successful “Alien” franchise back to its roots: While scavenging the deep ends of a derelict space station, a group of young space colonizers come face to face with the most terrifying life form in the universe.

The film stars Cailee Spaeny (Priscilla), David Jonsson (Industry), Isabela Merced (Madame Web), Archie Renaux (Shadow and Bone), Spike Fearn (The Batman), and Aileen Wu (Away from Home). Merced has previously said there’s a scene in the film that’s so disgusting that a lot of viewers will have to look away. Graphic and gruesome is what we expected from this movie as soon as it was announced that it was being made by the director of Evil Dead 2013 and Don’t Breathe. It has received an R rating for bloody violent content and language.

Are you looking forward to Alien: Romulus, and will you be catching it on the big screen in August? Let us know by leaving a comment below – and take a look at these exhibitor posters while you’re scrolling down:

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Ten months have gone by since it was announced that Republic Pictures had acquired the North American distribution rights to the action horror film Azrael, for release through Paramount Global Distribution, in a high seven figure deal… and during that time, the distribution deal apparently fell apart, because Deadline reports that Azrael‘s North American distribution rights are now in the hands of IFC Films and the Shudder streaming service. IFC Films has already chosen a date for the theatrical release: September 27th. The movie will then be making its way to Shudder sometime later in the year.

Directed by E.L. Katz (The Haunting of Bly Manor) from an original screenplay by You’re Next writer Simon Barrett, Azrael has the following synopsis: In a world in which no one speaks, a devout female-led community hunts down a young woman who has escaped her imprisonment. Recaptured by its ruthless leaders, Azrael is to be sacrificed to pacify an ancient evil that resides deep within the surrounding wilderness – yet she will stop at nothing to ensure her own freedom and survival. From the seeds of this gritty, relentless parable of sacrifice and salvation, comes an immersive, real-time, action horror tale.

Samara Weaving, whose previous credits include Ready or Not, Mayhem, The Babysitter, Guns Akimbo, Scream VI, and episodes of Ash vs. Evil Dead, plays the title character.

Joker financier Jason Cloth and his C2 Motion Picture Group partner Dave Caplan provided the financing for Azrael. Caplan and Barrett produced the film with Dan Kagan, while Cloth served as executive producer alongside Katrin Kissa.

Michael Rothstein and Sam Hall’s Mossbank are handling the international sales. Rothstein provided the following statement: “From the first minute we read it, we were captivated by the world of Azrael and the potential of a film so relentless and action-packed for its genre – distinguished by its own unique voice, which has so much to say. E.L. Katz and Simon Barrett have delivered something truly visionary, which will undoubtedly connect with a global legion of fans. And we couldn’t think of a more perfect heroine in Samara Weaving, who’s at the peak of her powers right now.“

Are you looking forward to Azrael, and are you glad to hear that IFC Films will be releasing it in September, with a Shudder release to follow? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

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There’s nothing worse than making a cool airship in The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, launching off into the sunset, and then watching in horror moments later as all your Zonai pieces slowly disappear one-by-one. Fortunately, there are glitches to get around this, and Japanese player Peco used them to live…

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There’s nothing worse than making a cool airship in The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom, launching off into the sunset, and then watching in horror moments later as all your Zonai pieces slowly disappear one-by-one. Fortunately, there are glitches to get around this, and Japanese player Peco used them to live…

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For many fans around the world, the films and TV shows that make up the Marvel Cinematic Universe are among their top choices when it comes time kick back and relax with some comfort viewing. But for Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige, making those pieces of entertainment is his job, he’s surrounded by Marvel entertainment for his entire work day. So when he needs comfort viewing, it’s time to turn to something outside the MCU. Speaking with Mashable, Feige revealed that his comfort viewing choices include Seinfeld, RoboCop, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, and the Friday the 13th franchise!

When asked for his go-to comfort watch choices, Feige answered, “During the pandemic, I started watching a lot of Thin Man movies from the ’30s and a lot of Frank Capra films from the ’30s. I sort of had a gap in my cinematic viewing of late ’20s to early ’40s, so I ended up finding that very comforting.” He also gave a nod to the Preston Sturges movies of the ’40s, before adding, “I also am a big sci-fi nerd, so I’ll turn on RoboCop, I’ll turn on Wrath of Khan.” He also named The Wrath of Khan as his “go-to tearjerker.”

When he needs a laugh, Feige turns to Seinfeld. “Seinfeld I watch quite a bit, and that is a sort of ‘getting ready to go to bed’ show.” His Seinfeld fandom is why many of the codenames for MCU projects have been Seinfeld references.

Asked for a go-to horror choice, Feige answered, “I have a 15-year-old daughter who’s just recently discovered the Friday the 13th movies and all the Jason movies, which I don’t know if they’re super scary, but they’re fun to watch. That might even be comfort – is it weird to say that the Friday the 13th movies are comfort viewing? They kind of are.” Continuing with the horror discussion, Feige said, “Sometimes, like a movie like Hereditary, I’m not ever turning on again. That’s so scary. I guess if I wanted to scare the hell out of myself and just go into a really scared fetal position, I’d watch Hereditary.“

I have been a Marvel fan since I was a kid and have a lot of admiration for what Feige has done with the MCU, which I do consider to be a comfort to watch – but it’s when he combined the Marvel dedication with describing the Friday the 13th franchise as comfort viewing that Feige really proved himself to be a man after my own heart, because Friday the 13th is a franchise I love even more than the MCU and F13 movies are definitely one of the first things that come to my mind when I think of comfort viewing.

What do you think of Kevin Feige’s go-to comfort viewing choices? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

The post Kevin Feige’s comfort viewing: Seinfeld, RoboCop, The Wrath of Khan, Friday the 13th, & more appeared first on JoBlo.

Shortly after starting my remote Star Wars Outlaws hands-on, I get what I’ve been waiting months for: a chance to ride protagonist Kay Vess’ speeder bike. There are few things that feel more apt for a Star Wars game than streaking across the surface of a planet on a motorcycle that hovers a few inches off the ground,…

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Shortly after starting my remote Star Wars Outlaws hands-on, I get what I’ve been waiting months for: a chance to ride protagonist Kay Vess’ speeder bike. There are few things that feel more apt for a Star Wars game than streaking across the surface of a planet on a motorcycle that hovers a few inches off the ground,…

Read more…

If you were an 80s kid, chances are that Time Bandits was a staple of your movie memories. The Terry Gilliam fantasy epic combined the wackiness of Monty Python comedy with an epic adventure through history. Produced by George Harrison, Time Bandits was the first part of a loose trilogy that includes Brazil and The Adventures of Baron Munchausen. In the years since it premiered, Time Bandits has kept a cult following and is now back with a new iteration from Taika Waititi and Jemaine Clement.

In the new Time Bandits, Kevin (Kal-El Tuck) has few friends, and his family thinks his fascination with history is weird. When the Time Bandits, led by Penelope (Lisa Kudrow), land in his bedroom, Kevin joins the ragtag crew through various eras of history ranging from the Trojan War to Prohibition and beyond. On their trail are the forces of the Supreme Being (Taika Waititi) and Pure Evil (Jemaine Clement), who want the Bandits’ stolen map so they can reign over the whole universe.

I chatted with series creators and stars Waititi and Clement about their new take on the classic film. Taika Waititi, who also directed several episodes, talked about bringing the same whimsy and humor the duo brought to What We Do In The Shadows to a show appropriate for all ages. Jemaine Clement talked about how they chose which embodiments of good and evil they would play in the show and their memories of Terry Gilliam’s film. Check out the full interview in the embed above.

Time Bandits premieres on July 24th on AppleTV+.

The post Interview: Taika Waititi and Jemaine Clement talk about their family-friendly adventure series Time Bandits appeared first on JoBlo.

Robert Downey Jr.’s run as Tony Stark in the Iron Man and Avengers films would help to usher in and solidify the cinematic universe that changed the plane of mainstream Hollywood films. His face became the face of Marvel Studios and his comeback story is the stuff of legends. Not only would he recover from being seen as a huge risk, but Downey Jr. also made a statement with his post-Tony Stark career as he earned himself an Academy Award win after his acclaimed performance in Christopher Nolan’s Oscar darling Oppenheimer.

It’s safe to say that Downey Jr.’s stock has skyrocketed even further and as the MCU seeks to recapture its glory days of success, many find his recent casting as Victor Von Doom as both exciting and confusing. However, now that Downey Jr. has shown his range capabilities, not only from Oppenheimer but also from his various character portrayals from the HBO series, The Sympathizer, Marvel would not shy away from giving him the absolute best pay in order to lock him down. According to Variety, the deal that Downey Jr. signed with Marvel when he agreed to return includes immense luxuries such as private jet travel, dedicated security and a whole “trailer encampment.”

Downey Jr. is no doubt the golden boy for the studio and his massive take from three Iron Man films, four Avengers films and his smattering of auxiliary appearances earned him somewhere between $500 million and $600 million. His total payday hasn’t been disclosed, but the Russo brothers are also swimming in riches Scrooge McDuck-style as even though their deal doesn’t include back-end compensation, it is said to contain performance escalators that kick in at the $750 million and $1 billion thresholds. Their good faith with the company also comes after their two Avengers films, Infinity War and Endgame, would rake in an incredible $4.851 billion combined.

It was confirmed last Saturday night that the Russo Brothers will be directing both Avengers: Doomsday and Avengers: Secret Wars, with the first featuring Robert Downey Jr. as supervillain Victor Von Doom, undeniably a replacement for Kang following Jonathan Majors’ various issues. With Secret Wars slated for 2027 and Doomsday 2026, that will allow a perfect set-up of RDJ as the latest – and perhaps greatest – threat to the MCU!

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Genre filmmaker Mike Flanagan has brought feature film adaptations of the Stephen King novels Gerald’s Game and Doctor Sleep to the screen, and recently wrapped up post-production on a feature adaptation of the King short story The Life of Chuck. His production company Intrepid Pictures is currently developing a TV series adaptation of King’s epic The Dark Tower saga for Amazon’s Prime Video. For a while, he was also set to make a movie based on King’s novel Revival, but that fell apart. But one King story he wanted to bring to the screen and never got the chance to work on was the short story 1408, which served as the basis for a 2007 film that was directed by Mikael Håfström from a screenplay by Matt Greenberg, Scott Alexander, and Larry Karaszewski, and starred John Cusack and Samuel L. Jackson. Flanagan missed out on 1408, but that’s okay because he went on to, as he says, rip it off for his 2013 film Oculus, which he first shot as a short film in 2006.

During a Q&A with Fangoria editor Michael Gingold at Fantasia Fest, Flanagan said (with thanks to IndieWire for the transcription), “I really wanted to do 1408. I couldn’t because who the hell was I, for one thing, and they were making the movie already… But that’s Oculus if you replace the hotel room with a mirror, down to the long history of it. 1408 has this incredible monologue basically about the history of the room. That was terrifying to me. And so the structure of Oculus, the short, is exactly the structure of 1408 the short story. You’re told the history of the object — or of the room in the case of the story — and then a skeptical protagonist is left alone in there. In mine, it was a true believer protagonist trying to prove the point, but I just ripped off 1408. That’s where it came from.“

Directed by Flanagan from a screenplay he wrote with Jeff Howard, the feature version of Oculus has the following synopsis: Haunted by the violent demise of their parents 10 years earlier, adult siblings Kaylie and Tim are now struggling to rebuild their relationship. Kaylie suspects that their antique mirror, known as the Lasser Glass, is behind the tragedy. The seemingly harmless reflections contain a malevolent, supernatural force that infects the mind of anyone who gazes into it. As Kaylie gets closer to the truth, the siblings become caught in the mirror’s evil spell.

The experience of making Oculus turned out to be a great benefit when he was offered the chance to make the TV series The Haunting of Hill House, based on a novel by Shirley Jackson. “The Haunting of Hill House was an interesting case because that was brought to me. I believed that The Haunting of Hill House had been perfectly adapted by Robert Wise in 1963. It is a perfect movie. And I said, ‘Well, the novel as it stands, works for about 90 minutes. So if you’re talking about a TV show, you need to do a radical expansion.’ I just did Oculus. The Haunting of Hill House (the TV series) is Oculus, except instead of two siblings there are five. It’s two timelines braided together, same technique for cutting back and forth between them. It’s all about family trauma and the disagreement about a traumatic event in their childhood while they’re forced to confront that dramatic event in the present. It’s just Oculus, but it’s Oculus for 10 hours.“

What do you think of Flanagan “ripping off” 1408 to come up with Oculus, then using Oculus as the inspiration for his The Haunting of Hill House series? Share your thoughts on these quotes by leaving a comment below.

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