Almost five years have gone by since it was announced that Blumhouse Productions and Universal Pictures were working on a new version of The Thing called Frozen Hell – and while that project still hasn’t made its way into production, Deadline reports that a sci-fi thriller called White Mars, which sounds quite similar to The Thing and is set to star Lucy Hale of Pretty Little Liars, Scream 4, Truth or Dare?, and Fantasy Island, will begin filming on November 11th. Filming will take place at Cinecittà Studios in Rome and the movie is going to be shot entirely in a virtual production environment.

Martin Owen (The Loneliest Boy in the World), who just co-directed a survival thriller called Above the Below with Idris Elba, will be directing White Mars from a screenplay by Matt Mitchell, Vicki Sargent, and Roo Berry. Set in an isolated Aquila Research Facility in Antarctica, White Mars follows microbiologist Sammie (Hale), as she fights to save her fellow crew members from a malevolent entity whose sole intention is to extinguish them all. Deadline says this will allow Hale to channel both Alien‘s Ellen Ripley and The Thing‘s RJ MacReady.

Future Artists Entertainment’s Matt Williams is producing the film with Neil Jones, as well as Steve Griffith and Steve Jelley from Singularity Entertainment. XYZ Films is co-financing with Singularity and is handling worldwide sales. This is the first feature for Singularity, “an entertainment company specializing in virtual production and streamlined processes for independent films.”

Hale had this to say about the project: “White Mars is an absolute psychological thrill ride, and I’m so excited to film this at the Cinecittà film stages in Rome. At the heart of this story is Sammie, a character I truly admire for her resilience and strength. I can’t wait to collaborate with Martin Owen, our incredible cast, and the entire team to bring this story to life.“

Matt Williams added, “I am excited for this to be the first of a multi-slate of films with the team at XYZ and Singularity. Together we will be bringing technologically advanced movie making to the independent market to compete visually with high end studio films. We are thrilled that Lucy is joining us on this action-packed sci-fi adventure as her character battles the sinister forces that threaten us all.“

Does White Mars sound interesting to you? Share your thoughts on this Lucy Hale sci-fi thriller by leaving a comment below.

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Hayden Christensen is going to have to use more than the force if he’s going to be part of a championship NASCAR team. But he’s giving it a go, leading a promotional video for the new Darth Vader-inspired Star Wars car and helmet for NASCAR. Check out the car:

For the design, Doug Chiang, an executive designer at Lucasfilm, had to figure out how to incorporate Darth Vader – and, thus, the Dark Side – into the vehicle’s scheme, which would then be complemented by the Star Wars title on the hood of the NASCAR . As for his love of both Star Wars and Hayden Christensen, Chiang said, “I just love Hayden. I love his character and I love what he brings to it, and so I’m hoping that this design will pay respect to both Hayden and Vader.” You can check out the promo video below:

Chiang elaborated on the Star Wars design for NASCAR by saying, “It’s interesting, because past car designs don’t apply, as each project is very new. Each one has its own challenges, and they’re always unique. It’s the same thing that we do with our Star Wars vehicles. You’ll think we’ve done so many spaceships now that it’d be very easy, but each one has a very specific demand, and each one is really, really challenging, because at the end, you’re dealing with an inanimate object that you’re trying to infuse with a lot of personality, and the personality is key. And so our goal was to make sure that it worked on a car, but then aesthetically, it had to marry the Vader aesthetic from the film to the car.” Judging by the video – which also features Hayden Christensen in the passenger seat of the vehicle, as driven by Bubba Wallace in his signature #23 –  it seems like the group nailed it.

This Hayden Christensen-endorsed car is just the latest Star Wars homage in the world of NASCAR, following those of the X-wing and TIE fighters, not to mention a Revenge of the Sith-wrapped car which Jeff Gordon drove. Their other movie wraps have also featured Jurassic Park, The Dark Knight Rises and even Shrek 2…

In other NASCAR and movie-related news, Frankie Muniz has devoted his future to the sport while Tom Cruise could be getting behind the wheel for another Days of Thunder.

What do you think of the latest Star Wars wrap from NASCAR?

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The Wizarding World of Harry Potter is conjuring more magic for the franchise’s future with plans to bring HBO’s upcoming TV series and WB’s Hogwarts Legacy sequel together for a unique storytelling experience. “We have known for some time that fans are looking for more things in this world, and so we’re spending a lot of time thinking about that,” David Haddad, president of Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment, told Variety. “Our insights tell us that there are not huge distinctions between a younger version of a fan and an older version of a fan. They’re just deep ‘Harry Potter’ fans, and we try to build authentic experiences to delight them.”

Regarding the effort to integrate the Wizarding World of Harry Potter across mediums, the upcoming sequel to 2023’s Hogwarts Legacy video game will incorporate “big-picture storytelling elements” with plotlines making their way into HBO’s Harry Potter TV series. According to Haddad, the overwhelming success of Hogwarts Legacy, which sold over 30 million copies globally, earning over $1 billion in revenue, helped energize the network’s desire for an episodic retelling of the world-famous story.

J.K. Rowling is not involved in managing the franchise; however, Warner Bros. Discovery executives will keep her in the loop, particularly if new material could alter the established canon. Everyone involved in the franchise’s future wants everything to be copacetic. You don’t get the keys to one of the entertainment industry’s most significant cash cows without running your plans up the flagpole.

Marrying HBO’s Harry Potter TV series with the Hogwarts Legacy sequel isn’t the only way WB plans to expand the franchise. A cooking competition show, Wizards of Baking, is also coming.

“When the merger happened, the Potter IP was first and foremost in my mind,” Betsy Ayala, the Food Network channel leader, says. “So I immediately called Dan Sacks at Warner Horizon and was like, ‘What do you think about us doing “Harry Potter” together with Food?’ And he was like, ‘I was actually thinking the same thing.’ So we immediately hit the ground running.”

Are you excited about WB’s plans to expand the Wizarding World of Harry Potter with new shows and interactive experiences? Do you think the original story needs an episodic reboot? Let us know in the comments section below.

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The 1980s horror film Spookies was a notoriously troubled production. Filming began in 1984 with Brendan Faulkner and Thomas Doran at the helm… but then creative and legal issues arose during post-production, so that version of the film (which was going by the title Twisted Souls) was never completed. Instead, an investor hired Eugenie Joseph to shoot new footage – involving a different cast and a lot more monsters – that was then mixed together with the footage left over from Faulkner and Doran. This mish-mash was released under the title Spookies in 1987, and over the decades it has developed a cult following. That’s why producer/co-writer Frank Farel is now moving ahead with the sequel Spookies II: Spookier, and he has told our friends at Bloody Disgusting that FX artists Gabriel Bartalos and Vincent J. Guastini, who worked on the first movie, are coming back for the follow-up!

The first Spookies (which, by the way, was shown on a memorable episode of The Last Drive-In with Joe Bob Briggs a few years ago) has the following synopsis: After their car breaks down, a group of travelers finds themselves stranded in a remote part of New England. When they take shelter in a spooky old mansion, complete with a graveyard, they discover a Ouija board and decide to spend the night attempting to summon some spirits. But the group soon learns that playing with the forces of black magic isn’t fun and games, and it’s not long before they’re head-to-head with all sorts of demonic creatures, shapeshifters, and other forms of evil, all of whom are more than happy to pick them off in the most gruesome of ways.

Doran passed away in 2016, but Spookies II: Spookier is working from an idea he put down on paper several years ago. Farel told Bloody Disgusting, “Tom’s concept utilized elements of the original — all the horror prerequisites, of course — to springboard to a thoughtful, high-stakes storyline that actually mattered, characters that engaged, some of the most unique and original high-concept monsters I’d ever imagined, and an attitude of irreverence toward the first movie I felt was hilarious and packed with potential. … I completed a Spookies II script draft in the more thoughtful, personally crafted vein of material [Doran and I] were turning out, together and separately, before and after the constricting circumstances of Spookies. Myself and especially Tom — always a tough audience — were the primary ones I had to please. I became convinced I really had something solid; equal parts fast-paced horror, comedy, and action. Feedback from other writers and filmmakers bolstered that confidence and set me off again on a well-traveled, usually harrowing path: let’s make a movie!“

Bartalos and Guastini will be co-producing the sequel, as well as designing the creature and makeup effects. Farel is currently seeking the funding that will allow him to get Spookies II: Spookier into production. He said he is “committed to making this movie as exciting, imaginative, funny and entertaining as humanly possible!“

Are you a fan of Spookies, and are you glad to hear that Spookies II: Spookier is in the works, with Gabriel Bartalos and Vincent J. Guastini coming back to provide the effects? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

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Michael Jackson fans need to wait longer for Antoine Fuqua’s highly-anticipated biopic about the King of Pop to rock their world after Lionsgate announced delays for two of its films. The studio’s Michael Jackson biopic, Michael, is moonwalking to a 2025 Easter window (April 18-20 to October 3) while looking to dominate the box office during the bunny-themed holiday. In addition to telling Michael to “Beat It” to later next year, Lionsgate dated Aziz Ansari’s upcoming comedy, Good Fortune, for October 17, 2025. According to Deadline, Good Fortune stars Keanu Reeves (John Wick, Toy Story 4, The Gift) and Seth Rogen (Sausage Party, Freaks and Geeks, Superbad). It focuses on “a well meaning but rather inept angel named Gabriel (Reeves) who meddles in the lives of a struggling gig worker (Ansari) and a wealthy capitalist (Rogen).”

“Michael will bring audiences a riveting and honest portrayal of the brilliant yet complicated man who became the King of Pop,” reads the official description. “The film presents his triumphs and tragedies on an epic, cinematic scale — from his human side and personal struggles to his undeniable creative genius, exemplified by his most iconic performances. As never before, audiences will experience an inside look into one of the most influential, trailblazing artists the world has ever known.”

Jaafar Jackson stars in Michael as the Gloved One, Michael Jackson. The rest of the cast includes Nia Long as Katherine Jackson, Colman Domingo as Joe Jackson, Miles Teller as long-time lawyer John Branca, Juliano Krue Valdi as young Michael Jackson, and Jackson’s real-Antoine Fuqua is directing from a script by John Logan. The production cooperates with the Jackson estate, which means they’ll be able to use his music, with 30 songs from Jackson’s catalog featured in the film.

Additionally, Larenz Tate plays Berry Gordy, the founder of Motown Records and impresario. Kat Graham (The Vampire Diaries, The Parent Trap) plays the legendary Diana Ross, the lead singer of the chart-topping Motown group The Supremes. Jessica Sula (Split, Malum) plays Michael’s older sister, La Toya, the fifth child and middle daughter of the Jackson family, who first gained recognition in the mid-1970s on the family’s variety TV series “The Jacksons.” She launched a solo career, releasing multiple albums in the 1980s.

Michael Jackson fans have waited years for a proper feature presentation celebrating the King of Pop’s life and legacy. While Jackson’s life isn’t squeaky clean, it remains unclear how far Michael will “walk into the weeds.”

Are you curious about Antoine Fuqua’s Michael Jackson biopic? Do you have a favorite Michael Jackson song or album? Jackson’s “Thriller” and “Off the Wall” albums are among my favorites, but I also appreciate the grooves from when he was with the Jackson 5. We’ll report on Michael‘s official release date when it’s announced.

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Its mean streak doesn’t get much press, but the hippopotamus is actually an incredibly dangerous creature. They’re so aggressive, they’re officially the deadliest large land mammal on the planet and are said to kill around 500 people every year in Africa. Now their rampage is set to extend to the screen, as Variety reports that the “nature run amok” survival thriller Hungry, which “pits a hungry hippo against a group of tourists,” is currently filming in Malta. Of course, the fact that a killer hippo movie is going by the title Hungry is a nod to Hasbro’s popular tabletop game Hungry Hungry Hippos, but this movie doesn’t have anything to do with Hasbro.

Written and directed by James Nunn, Hungry tells the story of a group of holidaymakers who must fight for their lives against a rampaging hippo on the loose after becoming lost in the Louisiana swamplands. The names of the film’s cast members have not yet been revealed. It’s also not clear why there’s a hippo loose in the Louisiana swamps – although there was an idea presented in 1910 that hippos could be brought over to Louisiana and Florida to deal with the spread of water hyacinths and be used as a new food source in the United States. That didn’t end up happening.

Nunn previously directed the shark thriller Shark Bait, the thriller Tower Block, and the action sequels The Marine 5: Battleground and The Marine 6: Close Quarters, as well as the Scott Adkins projects Green Street 3: Never Back Down, Eliminators, One Shot, and One More Shot.

Signature Entertainment’s Ben Jacques is producing Hungry, with Signature’s CEO Marc Goldberg and head of production & development Sarah Gabriel serving as executive producers. MUFX designer Dan Martin and VFX company Magic Dust VFX are responsible for bringing the story’s rampaging hippo to life.

My reaction to hearing that a killer hippo movie is on the way is, “It’s about time!” I’m looking forward to seeing how Hungry is going to turn out.

Does Hungry sound interesting to you? Share your thoughts on this killer hippo project by leaving a comment below.

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Ludicrous speed, go! Josh Gad (Frozen, Beauty and the Beast, Pixels) has “gone to plaid” since announcing his plans to develop a Spaceballs sequel. The promise of another Spaceballs movie is almost too outlandish to comprehend, as it has been roughly 37 years since the original comedy’s release. What business does Gad have releasing a new can of Perri-air into Mel Brooks’ legendary Star Wars spoof? Does he have the juice to resurrect the property? Where do you even begin to tackle such an intimidating task? Thankfully, Josh Gad told Forbes Spaceballs 2 is going better than well, and those who read the script have been “blown away” by its progress.

Gad is a multi-talented actor on the stage and screen, and Mel Brooks (who turned 98 this year) is in his corner. Gad and Brooks will produce Spaceballs 2, with Gad starring in the project and co-writing the script with Detective Pikachu scribe Benji Samit and Dan Hernandez. Josh Greenbaum (Strays, Barb and Star Go to Vista Del Mar, Will & Harper) takes point in the director’s chair with Kevin Salter executive producing.

Speaking with Gad about his new Dark Horse comic, The Writer, the Wolf Like Me actor said MGM would lock him in a Culver prison cell if he shared too many details about his Spaceballs sequel. Still, he did say, “Everybody who’s read it has been blown away. The process of working on this with and alongside Mel Brooks has been one of the highlights of my career.”

When pressed for more details, Gad continued, “It was sort of a fever dream that this all happened. Mel has been so unbelievably supportive, involved, and electrified by this because it’s the one that surprisingly got away. It’s a dream to be able to finally make the reality prophesied by Yogurt in the first movie happen. I can’t say more than that. I can’t tell you anything beyond [the] process at this point, but I can tell you every hour of every day right now is spent making this project closer and closer to reality — and I think we’re nearing the end zone here.”

We wish Josh Gad the best while making Spaceballs 2. He’ll need it. Brooks’ original comedy is considered one of his greatest films and a cult classic among Star Wars fans. In today’s social media climate, judgment will inevitably reign down like so many escape pods from Spaceball 1.

Are you excited about Josh Gad leading the charge alongside Mel Brooks for Spaceballs 2? Let us know what you think in the comments section below.

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Jonathan Haze had over 40 screen acting credits to his name, with many of those credits being earned on Roger Corman productions – and the one credit that stands out among all others came when Haze took on the role of Seymour Krelborn in Corman’s 1960 man-eating plant classic The Little Shop of Horrors. We lost Corman earlier this year, when he passed away at the age of 98. Now, The Hollywood Reporter has confirmed that we’ve lost Haze as well. His daughter Rebecca informed them that Haze passed away at his home in Los Angeles this past Saturday at the age of 95.

A cousin of drummer Buddy Rich, Haze was born with the name Jack Aaron Schachter in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on April 1, 1929. He worked the stage for Rich and was Josephine Baker’s stage manager for two years before he got into acting. He hitchhiked to L.A. and got a job pumping gas while waiting for his chance to break into the film world – and that chance came when he was introduced to Corman. He went by the stage name Jack Hayes when he made his screen debut in the 1954 creature feature Monster from the Ocean Floor, then the stage name evolved into Jonathan Haze as time went on.

As The Hollywood Reporter notes, Haze played “a contaminated man in Day the World Ended (1955), an outlaw in Five Guns West (1955), a dimwitted bartender in Gunslinger (1956), a pickpocket in Swamp Women (1956) — he trained the actresses how to fight in that one, too — a Latino soldier in It Conquered the World (1956), a manservant working for an alien in Not of This Earth (1957) and a diminutive Viking in The Saga of the Viking Women and Their Voyage to the Waters of the Great Sea Serpent (1957).” He was also “one of the three teenagers who stumble upon $250,000 worth of heroin and become dealers in the Warner Bros. drama Stakeout on Dope Street (1958), the first feature directed by Irvin Kershner.” They add, “In Apache Woman (1955), because it was cheaper for Corman to have actors change costumes instead of bringing in new actors, Haze and others played warriors on both sides of the battle.  Haze’s other work for Corman included The Beast With a Million Eyes (1955), Carnival Rock (1957), Naked Paradise (1957), Teenage Cave Man (1958), The Premature Burial (1962), The Terror (1963) and X: The Man With the X-Ray Eyes (1963).”

Haze also worked as a production manager on the likes of The Fast and the Furious (1954) and Medium Cool (1969), he was an assistant director on The Born Losers (1967), and he wrote the 1962 film Invasion of the Star Creatures. His uncredited appearance in 1967’s The St. Valentine’s Day Massacre was his last acting credit for several years, then he played a “Dapper Man” in 1982’s Vice Squad. He disappeared from the screen again until the late ’90s, when he showed up in Fred Olen Ray’s Invisible Mom II and the Corman serial The Phantom Eye. His last acting credit came on the 2010 film Nobody Smiling.

But, as mentioned, he’ll always be remembered for playing Seymour Krelborn, a job he earned $400 for. All of the interior scenes for The Little Shop of Horrors were filmed in just two days, followed by three nights of exterior shoots with a second unit crew. It was fast and cheap, but the movie still endures more than sixty years later and inspired a popular musical.

Haze was married to costume designer Roberta Keith, who just passed away in September, from the mid-1960s until their 1981 divorce. He is survived by his daughters Rebecca and Deedee, his grandchildren, Andre, Rocco, and Ruby; and his great-grandson, Sonny.

Our condolences go out to the family, friends, and fans of Jonathan Haze.

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After battling the Empire in a galaxy far, far away, Daisy Ridley is setting her lightsaber aside to pursue other exciting opportunities. She recently teamed with Goldeneye and Casino Royale director Martin Campbell for Cleaner, a hard-hitting action film starring Ridley as an ex-soldier turned window cleaner who works to rescue 300 hostages. Ridley’s Cleaner role highlights her knack for owning physically demanding roles. Now she’s reuniting with Campbell for Dedication, an action-thriller placing Daisy Ridley in a high-stakes mission in the Philippines.

Martin Campbell directs Dedication from a screenplay by Dan Gordon (Wyatt Earp, Passenger 57, Murder in the First). The story “follows Major Billie Jean Parker (Ridley), a decorated Marine Corps commander who is relieved of duty after a high-stakes mission in the Philippines results in civilian casualties, despite capturing anarchist leader Omar Romatas. Facing the loss of her career, she visits her dying father, Clyde, a former Marine, who asks her to attend a dedication ceremony for a school building named in his honor. The event takes a deadly turn when Omar Romatas’s vengeful son, Bento, launches an assault, taking hostages. Forced back into combat, Billie Jean sets traps and executes precise strikes to outwit the attackers. Her tactical instincts and ruthless efficiency shift the fight, as she confronts her past and proves her worth in a relentless battle that will define her legacy.”

“What a thrill to collaborate with a director of Martin Campbell’s pedigree whose eye for big-scale action was on spectacular display in the Bond franchise,” said Highland Film Group CEO Arianne Fraser. “Daisy Ridley will perfectly embody the multiple facets of a fallen war hero who is forced into combat mode one last time.”

Gordon’s Dedication screenplay stands to push Daisy Ridley to her limits as she kicks ass and takes name amid an all-out assault. Her character’s training makes her a unique soldier for the mission, as she fights to uphold her family name and make her mark. We’d love to see it.

Are you interested in what Daisy Ridley and Martin Campbell offer with Dedication? Let us know in the comments section below.

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The Sam Raimi-produced horror flick Don’t Move has proven to be a surprisingly big hit for Netflix. It topped their Top 10 service last week, beating higher profile original films, and the word-of-mouth on this twisted thriller has been through the roof. In it, Yellowstone’s Kelsey Asbille plays Iris, a grieving young mother who is suicidal after the death of her son. Her grief puts her in the crosshairs of Finn Wittrock’s Richard, a serial killer who injects her with a paralyzing agent. She manages to escape and has to play cat and mouse with the killer while barely mobile.

We’re pretty big fans of the movie here at JoBlo, with our own critic Tyler Nichols giving it a rave review (check it out here), and while we previously spoke to the cast and directors as part of Netflix’s Halloween-themed Netflix & Chills event, our Los Angeles based man-on-the-scene Ryan Cultrera has the chance to attend the streamer’s gala premiere for the film. While there, he had the opportunity to speak to a whole bunch of people involved with the movie, including stars Kelsey Asbille and Finn Wittrock, directors Adam Schindler and Brian Nello, writers TJ Cimfel and David White, and producers Alex Lebovici, Sarah Sarandos, and Zainab Azizi. If you’re a fan of this movie, check out the video (embedded above) for a deep dive into how this thriller was conceived, financed, and shot.

What did you think of Don’t Move? Let us know in the comments below!

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