Conan O’Brien hosted The Tonight Show for less than eight months before he was ultimately replaced with – yet again – Jay Leno. While we don’t have the space to get into everything that went down behind the scenes, it was Leno who came out looking like the villain while fans and many within the industry threw their support behind Conan. One such name was Robin Williams, who had appeared on The Tonight Show under Conan’s short tenure a couple of times but made a gesture in a way that only a genuine good-hearted man would.
Speaking on his Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend podcast (via EW), the comedian remembered that Robin Williams reached out in the aftermath of The Tonight Show debacle. “Finally, the show is done, and I don’t know if I have a career anymore. What am I gonna do next? I’m lying on the floor in the living room of my house, and my phone rings, and I pick it up, and it’s Robin Williams…I don’t even know how he got my phone number. ‘How are you holding up, chief?’ And he said, you know, ‘You’re gonna be fine, you’re gonna be great.’”
But Robin Williams didn’t limit his support for Conan O’Brien with just a phone call: he gifted him a bike to help clear his head. “‘Ride around, you’ll feel better.’ And I went down and it was a Colnago, which is a very nice bike. And he said, ‘I told him to paint it in all these crazy Irish colors.’ I get down there and it’s the most ugliest— I mean, it was just greens and shamrocks and everything. And he was like, ‘You’re going to like that bike, chief. Don’t worry about it.’ I thanked him many, many times. I just couldn’t believe that he was thinking about me.”
These are just the sort of stories about celebrities we love hearing, especially from someone so beloved as Robin Williams, who passed away a decade ago. But it’s really not surprising at all, as Williams was known to be about as good of a friend as you could be, always looking out for you when you’re at your lowest. One of the most famous friendships he had was with Christopher Reeve, taking much of his time to cheer him up after his 1995 horse riding accident which left him paralyzed, even making him crack up by posing as a Russian doctor there to deliver a rectal exam. Williams has stuck up for his pals in less colorful ways, too, as Sally Field once remembered him ensuring she got to see her father after he suffered a stroke while she was making Mrs. Doubtfire.
And Robin Williams was right in that Conan O’Brien would rebound, as he has turned himself into a full-on brand, with numerous podcasts, a travel show, a spot hosting next year’s Oscars, and more.
When you think about popular video games making waves year-round, it’s usually not the side-scrolling indie titles with a unique art direction that earn their place as household names. Sure, they shake up the pond for a time, but sooner or later the hype is replaced by whatever AAAA title is in the works at…
When you think about popular video games making waves year-round, it’s usually not the side-scrolling indie titles with a unique art direction that earn their place as household names. Sure, they shake up the pond for a time, but sooner or later the hype is replaced by whatever AAAA title is in the works at…
Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake is the latest in a string of HD-2D RPGs that bring a modern, high-resolution twist to nostalgic pixel-art graphics. Fans have long thought Final Fantasy VI, the last game in the venerated series before it switched to polygons, would be a perfect candidate for the retro-feeling visual…
Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake is the latest in a string of HD-2D RPGs that bring a modern, high-resolution twist to nostalgic pixel-art graphics. Fans have long thought Final Fantasy VI, the last game in the venerated series before it switched to polygons, would be a perfect candidate for the retro-feeling visual…
Today, Roku, America’s #1 TV streaming platform, revealed that Kathryn Hahn (Agatha All Along, Wanda Vision) and J.K. Simmons (Spider-Man, Whiplash) will join season three of the Emmy Award nominated Roku Original series Die Hart. Tony Cavalero (The Righteous Gemstones, The Dirt) and Anna Garcia (Fly Me to the Moon, Hacks) will also come on board as cast members for the new season. The series will premiere exclusively on The Roku Channel on Friday, December 13.
The new cast members will join series veterans Kevin Hart and Nathalie Emmanuel, both of whom were nominated for Emmy Awards for their outstanding performances in seasons 1 and 2. In the series’ third season, Kevin Hart is done with the action — what he really wants is critical success. But acclaimed director Jackson Pepper’s (Simmons) help hurts, thrusting Kevin and Jordan (Emmanuel) onto the wrong kind of “most wanted” list.
Simmons will play Jackson Pepper, one of the all-time great directors, a force of nature who is serious, intense, thorny, and unpredictable. Hahn will take on the role of Jillian Avery, a recognizable Oscar-winning movie star at the peak of her profession. Agent Fisher, played by Cavalero, is a focused, intense, and easily agitated FBI agent with a deep secret. And Garcia’s character Pearl is a sweet and clueless aspiring actress, willing to do anything she can to be part of a Jackson Pepper film. Headshots of the newly added cast members can be found here.
Season three of “Die Hart” will be produced by Hartbeat, the global entertainment company at the intersection of comedy and culture. Kevin Hart, Bryan Smiley, Luke Kelly-Clyne, Jeff Clanagan, Tripper Clancy, Josh Ruben, and Ty Walker serve as executive producers. Season 3 was written by Tripper Clancy and directed by Josh Ruben. The series is overseen by Morgan Pichinson and Sabrina Lyall on behalf of Roku Originals.
Founded by Kevin Hart, Hartbeat is the global entertainment company creating content and experiences at the intersection of comedy and culture – with a mission to keep the world laughing together. Led by an award-winning team, Hartbeat is a valuable partner to the biggest entertainment companies, platforms and brands in the world, driving cultural currency and generating sales, subscriptions, buzz, and conversation with some of the most coveted audiences.
Back in 2020, the comic book arm of Legendary Entertainment brought the world a graphic novel called Bram Stoker’s Dracula Starring Bela Lugosi, which was exactly what the title promised – an adaptation of Bram Stoker’s 1897 novel Dracula that featured the likeness of genre icon Bela Lugosi, who played the title character in the classic 1931 film (not to mention more than 260 stage performances and 1948’s Abbott and Costello Meet Frankenstein), as Dracula. Now, Legendary has teamed up with Sara Karloff of Karloff Enterprises, as well as Kerry Gammill and El Garing, the team behind Bram Stoker’s Dracula Starring Bela Lugosi to bring us Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein Starring Boris Karloff, which features a new design for Frankenstein’s monster, but the creature has the face of genre icon Boris Karloff. Karloff, of course, played Frankenstein’s monster in 1931’s Frankenstein and reprised the role for Bride of Frankenstein in 1935 and Son of Frankenstein in 1939.
Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein Starring Boris Karloff has the following description: Decades before the works of Edgar Allan Poe, Jules Verne, and H.G. Wells, 18-year-old Mary Shelley wrote what many regard as the first work of science fiction when she penned Frankenstein: or, the Modern Prometheus, which was published in 1818. Over one hundred years later, in 1931, a hard-working but relatively unknown actor named Boris Karloff was cast to play Frankenstein’s monster in James Whale’s now classic movie adaptation. The film made Karloff a star and solidified Frankenstein’s monster as an icon of the silver screen. In 2024, Legendary Comics is proud to bring Shelley and Karloff together for the first time in a faithful adaptation of the novel starring the iconic actor in the lead role of the fully reimagined monster. In partnership with Sara Karloff of Karloff Enterprises, and featuring the artistic talents of Kerry Gammill and El Garing, the team behind the award-winning Bram Stoker’s Dracula Starring Bela Lugosi, this new graphic novel is certain to delight and terrify old and new fans alike.
Hardcover copies of the 120 page graphic novel are available for purchase through Amazon. Some sample images can be seen below.
Did you read Bram Stoker’s Dracula Starring Bela Lugosi, and will you be checking out Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein Starring Boris Karloff? Let us know by leaving a comment below.
Apple TV+ today unveiled a glimpse at its highly anticipated upcoming comedy The Studio, and announced that the new 10-episode half hour comedy starring Seth Rogen, who also serves as writer, director and executive producer alongside Emmy Award-nominee Evan Goldberg, is officially set to make its global debut on Apple TV+ with the first two episodes on Wednesday, March 26, 2025, followed by one episode every Wednesday through May 21, 2025.
In The Studio, Seth Rogen stars as Matt Remick, the newly appointed head of embattled Continental Studios. As movies struggle to stay alive and relevant, Matt and his core team of infighting executives battle their own insecurities as they wrangle narcissistic artists and craven corporate overlords in the ever-elusive pursuit of making great films. With their power suits masking their neverending sense of panic, every party, set visit, casting decision, marketing meeting, and award show presents them with an opportunity for glittering success or career-ending catastrophe. As someone who eats, sleeps, and breathes movies, it’s the job Matt’s been pursuing his whole life, and it may very well destroy him. The Studio assembles a star-studded ensemble cast that also includes Emmy, SAG and Golden Globe Award-winner Catherine O’Hara, Emmy Award-nominee Kathryn Hahn, IkeBarinholtz and Chase Sui Wonders.Academy Award-nominee and Emmy Award-winner Bryan Cranston will appear as a guest star.
Hailing from Lionsgate Television, The Studio is created by Multi-Emmy Award winners Peter Huyck and Alex Gregory along with Rogen and Goldberg, and Frida Perez. Point Grey Pictures’ James Weaver, Alex McAtee and Josh Fagen also serve as executive producers alongside Rogen and Goldberg.
The new project marks the latest collaboration for Apple TV+ and Rogen, and joins the recently renewed Apple Original comedy Platonic, in which Rogen stars and executive produces alongside Rose Byrne.
Apple TV+ offers premium, compelling drama and comedy series, feature films, groundbreaking documentaries and kids and family entertainment, and is available to watch across all of a user’s favorite screens. After its launch on November 1, 2019, Apple TV+ became the first all-original streaming service to launch around the world and has premiered more original hits and received more award recognitions faster than any other streaming service in its debut. To date, Apple Original films, documentaries and series have earned 523 wins and 2,373 award nominations and counting, including multi-Emmy Award-winning comedy Ted Lasso and historic Oscar Best Picture winner CODA.
Hey everyone, I’m Mike, and today, we’ll be talking about something horror fans across the globe have been discussing amongst each other in our blacked-out bedrooms since Terrifier 2 graced the screen a few years back. Should Art the Clown at this point, or ever be mentioned alongside the biggest names in slasherdom? Names like Michael Myers, Jason Voorhees, Freddy Krueger, Leatherface, Ghostface, and Pinhead? Today we’ll take a look at just why the answer is a resounding yes. Or at the very least will be. When it’s said and done. Welcome to ‘The Best of the Bad Guys’. Where we celebrate the best of horrors worst villains on a case-by-case basis.
For starters, we’ll talk about the main arguments that Art isn’t a horror icon already.
Let’s start with longevity. Some of you folks are no doubt angrily typing as you read this that Art simply hasn’t been around long enough to earn the title of horror icon. Well, put down your finger guns for a moment and remember that Art has been around for over a decade already! First appearing in the anthology horror film All Hallows Eve in 2013.
For comparison, at that point in the A Nightmare on Elm Street franchise? Freddy had already been through a whopping seven films. Jason had already taken Manhattan. Jigsaw was already in 3D. Most of even the best horror franchises were already on their way out. Art is just getting started. Imagine if Terrifier 4 and possibly 5 continue this trend. It’s possible we still haven’t seen the best Terrifier has to offer. Where the pendulum usually starts to swing in the other direction.
Since his first appearance in All Hallows Eve, Art’s had three dedicated films, with two of them defying expectations at the box office in the Terrifier trilogy. With at least a fourth on the way. Maybe a fifth. Even though creator and director Damien Leone will likely wrap up his story there, there’s nothing that says another creative team will never pick up Art’s tiny hat for their own take on the character. Or that he’ll return to it later in his career. It happens with all of them. Hell, if Dimension Films owned the franchise? The Weinstein’s would just give an Egg McMuffin to a bum on the street to make a direct-to-video sequel. Just to keep the rights in-house.
And don’t forget the inevitable remake.
The point is, there’s no end to how long the Terrifier franchise could terrify.
I will admit the one thing all these horror icons have going for them that could exclude Art, is that their first film landed them on the scene as undeniable classics. I think Terrifier is great. But it doesn’t carry the status of A Nightmare on Elm Street, Scream, Halloween, and the like. Hell, it didn’t even get a theatrical release initially. Art had to work his way and his budget up. But this is why I consider Terrifier 2 Art’s The Dark Knight; Introducing a game-changing hero in Sienna, where the former had upped the ante with Heath Ledger’s portrayal of the Joker.
Now, let’s compare some other areas where Art stacks up against his peers.
Though the franchise is so much more than that, the first thing we think about when we think about the Terrifier franchise is the kills. Those sweet, “scrub my eyeballs with bleach and call the therapist. We can forget Mom for a little while. We have a whole other bag of issues to discuss… No one kills like Art the Clown. Call me crazier than Vicky in the attic pleasing myself with a shard of glass, but I think it’s solidified. Art is the most gruesome killer franchise horror hath ever witnessed.
Michael loves his post-murder arts and crafts. Freddy can do things in your dreams no other killer could ever compare to (though we’ve proven Art can start some shit in dreamland too, so don’t count out the future getting wicked there). Jason has some hilarious and inventive brute-force murder death kills, of course. But there’s simply no one as brutal as Art. So we can put that baby to bed. To stand unequivocally above all in any category on the Mount Rushmore of horror is certainly worth paying attention to, right? He hasn’t just killed well. He’s made an expectation out of it. He’s created his own tradition.
Starting with an unforgettable moment in his very first feature film. A kill that I call “The Vagi-saw”. The moment Art brought that chainsaw down into that orifice, things changed. Each upcoming sequel would inevitably be expected to have a dismemorable moment like this. Hopefully topping the previous entry. To this point they have. In Terrifier 2, art maims, dismembers, and literally peels the skin off a teenage girl before rubbing her wounds in bleach and salt. Like some kind of even more satanic Guy Fieri. In Terrifier 3, Art as Santa Claus brings back the chainsaw and inserts it into a man’s rectum. Which, is both a visual representation of what happens to our bank accounts during the holiday season….and a franchise that has done something only the most legendary of franchises could. Build its own tropes.
In the same way that James Bond films have their over-the-top opening action sequences, Terrifier has at least ONE scene guaranteed to make you squeal in disgust. Saw had their gross-out traps, Scream has its killer reveals, and Terrifier has at least one centerpiece of truly depraved dismemberment in each entry. Art doesn’t stop there. Almost every kill in the last two films has been original, visually impressive, and worthy of putting your fork down and thinking about your sins for a while. Art has carved out his very own niche when it comes to the death of his victims. In a genre that thrives on it.
“But it’s all gore and no story!” folks who have never seen Terrifier 2 or 3 will shout. This leads us to our next reason for Art’s entry into the top tier of horror icons….his fantastical and ever-expanding lore.
It doesn’t even need to begin until his third on-screen appearance in Terrifier 2. Because a clown that looks like that, makes faces like that, and does depraved things like that to people’s nether regions is scary all by itself. For at least a while. Leone and crew knew this and let Art’s essence waft over the audience just long enough to start asking questions: “Wait, this isn’t just some guy in a clown outfit who snapped one day when he found out guac was extra? Oh, no. Well, what the ever-f*ck is he? Where does he come from? Who is going to stop him?”
and a legend begins to unfold…
Most horror icons have a great backstory. But it isn’t necessarily a requirement. The lore of Ghostface for instance lies in its ever-changing motives and revolving door of humans behind the mask (though one could argue it all originates from Maureen Prescott being kind of a tramp); We all know Jason’s backstory with his mommy.
For my money, the best horror backstories are those that leave their mystery boxes open. Even deep into their sequels. The questions that still to this day surround Michael Myers are what make him so appealing. Why did a random suburban kid just snap one day and become an unstoppable murder machine? When Rob Zombie tried to answer that mystical question with a shrug and a trailer park breakfast, it became infinitely less interesting.
I think the masterful gambit of a horror franchise composer is in their ability to, with every installment, give us a few answers, while asking a few more questions. Something Leone and company have done in droves.
Not only do fans of the Terrifier franchise hang on to each new installment with bated breath and a barf bag in hand, but to be enlightened by the next step in its ever-evolving story. We’re learning with each film a bit more about what Art is, what his intentions are, and where all this is going. Where are we heading with all the obvious references to the good and evil in religion? Not to mention the intrigue surrounding his sidekicks in The Little Pale Girl and Victoria. Terrifier 3 managed to add a demonic depth to the character of Vicky, while also leaving us with more questions to explore. Even the Terrifier ride itself has an intense and mysterious backstory involving multiple murders, according to the Terrifier 2 Novelization by Tim Waggoner.
What does it all mean? Terrifier is asking more new questions and creating more lore for its franchise than many others did at this point. Instead of trying to recapture the magic of its original film, it’s forging ahead into new territory. And is doing so dangerously. This isn’t a franchise we can expect to copy and paste things that have worked in the past to make a quick buck. It’s making slasher horror feel dangerous again. Something franchises like Halloween and Scream once did in their respective debuts.
You’ll notice I haven’t even begun to mention all the world-building and questions that surround Sienna and her father. Because that my friends, is the next point in my argument that Art is well on his way to cementing forever horror icon status: His final girl.
A main adversary is a must for an iconic horror villain. A victim-turned-heroine who overcomes all odds. The antithesis to the darkness of the villains we came to watch do murder. Without likable characters to root for we’d just be a bunch of sick fucks watching the innocent be slaughtered. Or sitting through Halloween Resurrection again.
I’m going to say something bold. I believe, even with just two film appearances under her belt, Lauren Lavera’s Sienna has already cemented herself as one of the best final girls in slasherdom.
Complete with her own badass synth music, (a wonderful throwback to A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors) we’re introduced to Sienna crafting a Halloween costume based on a character her artist Father made for her before his untimely passing. We quickly find out that she’s a good daughter, sister, and friend. She’s not an awkward church mouse afraid of human contact. She’s not just a sweet popular girl who happens to be dating the school douchebag only is somehow too dumb to notice it. She’s not walking around trying to convince us she’s Sarah Connor. She somehow escapes tired conventional final girl genre tropes without ever seeming like she’s trying. She’s both relatable and a natural badass. She even has a cool reason to wear a kick-ass costume.
She’s also not just another supposedly helpless teenage girl….
While waxing philosophical about horror icons with a friend the other day they asked “Who would win in a fight…. Jason Voorhees or Batman?”. And the question made me laugh because, of course (at the risk of angering some of you) the answer is Batman. One of the gaping holes of reason in our favorite slasher franchises comes from the paradox that we’re watching supernatural forces from the deep do battle with dumb teenagers….and often losing. If Laurie Strode, who is frightened by the sound of Pop Tarts finishing up in the toaster can defeat Michael Myers…..what chance would he have against Batman? I’m not trying to cast poor aspersions on my favorite films of all time. It comes with the territory and we see ourselves in our underdogs overcoming the inevitable. I get it, and it’s great and I wouldn’t change a thing.
I’m simply stating that Sienna is a breath of fresh air in more ways than one. While it hasn’t been fully divulged to us yet, she’s definitely of a power that serves the final girl’s purpose in a different way. As silly of an idea as it was, how fun was it to watch Tina Shepard and her telekinetic abilities square off against Jason at the end of The New Blood? I can’t escape the feeling we’re seeing something with Sienna that takes that idea and gives it the audience time to grow into it in a realistic way.
So we have our kills (top-notch), our lore (ever-expanding), and our final girl (a lovable badass). What else makes Art stand out? His personality.
While Michael and Jason are silent and only emote physically (sometimes unintentionally hilarious in the best of ways); Freddy and Chucky both have the propensity to be hilarious in their dickishness; Pinhead will dress your ass down like some kind of BDSM Shakespeare….on and on. A prerequisite for a truly great slasher should be that they have a distinct personality. And Art is again his own man.
He doesn’t speak (Although a particular scene in Terrifier 3 seems as if he may be speaking through Victoria. Another piece of interesting lore) but by God, does he ever emote. He’s downright hilarious at times. Or downright terrifying in an instant with a simple drop of his facial muscles and stare that could burn a hole through adamantium.
Though actor Mike Giannelli did a more than admirable job as the character in the aforementioned All Hallows Eve, there’s no doubt actor David Howard Thornton has breathed a unique life into this character and made it his own. His physical comedy in moments like when he runs into a room excited like a child on Christmas and holding the salt has made him the Jim Carrey of horror in my eyes.
And that’s why I fully consider Art the Clown a full-blown horror icon at this point.
It’s funny to me, we horror fans are often longing for the days of old. When slashers were taking over the box office and Freddy Krueger was on MTV. But in a world where an unrated horror movie just broke box office records, folks are protesting at the theaters, and Art and Sienna even just rang the bell at the stock market? It makes me think of when Andy from The Office said “I wish there was a way to know you’re in the good old days before you’ve actually left them”. Because we’re witnessing the birth of a horror icon right now.
A couple of the previous episodes of The Best of the Bad Guys can be seen below. To see more, click over to the JoBlo Horror Originals YouTube channel – and subscribe while you’re there!
Back in early 2023, it was announced that Best Actor Oscar nominee Riz Ahmed (Sound of Metal) and Lily James, who was nominated for an Emmy for her performance as Pamela Anderson in Pam & Tommy, had signed on to star in the thriller Relay for director David Mackenzie, whose credits include Outlaw King,Under the Banner of Heaven, and Best Picture nominee Hell or High Water. By the end of April, they were joined in the cast by Sam Worthington of the Avatar franchise and production was underway. A year and a half later, Relay has finally secured a U.S. distribution deal, with Bleecker Street revealing that they’re planning to give the film a theatrical release sometime in 2025.
Worthington and Mackenzie previously worked together on Under the Banner of Heaven. Details on his Relay character have not been revealed.
Mackenzie wrote the screenplay for Relay with Justin Piasecki, whose only previous credit is a 2008 short film. The story Mackenzie and Piasecki crafted together sees Ahmed taking on the role of Tom, a world class “fixer” who specializes in brokering lucrative payoffs between corrupt corporations and the individuals who threaten their ruin. He keeps his identity a secret through meticulous planning and always follows an exacting set of rules. But when a message arrives one day from potential client Sarah (James), needing Tom’s protection just to stay alive, the rules quickly start to change.
While we’ve been waiting for the movie to secure distribution, it was screened at the Toronto International Film Festival. A good number of positive reviews came out of that screening, as can be seen on Rotten Tomatoes.
Mackenzie is also producing Relay alongside Thunder Road’s Basil Iwanyk, Sigma’s Gillian Berrie, and Black Bear’s Teddy Schwarzman. Black Bear’s Michael Heimler and John Friedberg executive produce with Thunder Road’s Erica Lee and Charlie Morrison. Black Bear fully financed the film. UTA Independent Film Group worked with Black Bear to arrange the financing.
Relay sounds interesting to me and I’m a fan of Hell or High Water, so I look forward to seeing how this is going to turn out. Are you interested in Relay? Let us know if you’ll be watching this movie in 2025 by leaving a comment below.
