Movies
Peter Weller Refused to Partake in This Awesome ‘RoboCop’ Documentary
This year marks the 30th anniversary of one of the greatest movies ever made, Paul Verhoeven’s RoboCop.
Even to this day, we’ve yet to see anything like it, and the concept to use crude robot technology in the future gives it a wicked post-apocalyptic aesthetic. It’s a goddamn masterpiece that also possesses one of the greatest ending scenes in the history of cinema. “Dick, you’re fired.”
To celebrate the film’s big landmark, fans crowd-sourced a brand new documentary perfectly titled “RoboDoc: The Creation of RoboCop“. The new feature length retrospective dives into the making of RoboCop (1987), its sequels and cultural impact over the last 30 years. It’s supported with over 90 of the original cast and crew with one exception: Dr. Peter Weller.
Weller, according to the trailer’s details, declined several requests to be interviewed for this film. Thankfully, the filmmakers have acquired archive interviews (both old and new) that are to be featured in the final film.
It’s a shame because this documentary looks phenomenal. In just this short trailer they tease all sorts of interesting reveals from RoboCop such as how it forced the MPAA to make changes to how troublesome and unfun the production was. There appear to be huge segments dedicated to the astounding sound design, not to mention stop motion work and design of the RoboCop costume. This looks like it’s going to be an absolute gem. Watch for release news when it comes in.
The buried origins of the cinema zombie will be explored in upcoming documentary Black Zombie, and Deadline reports that Kino Lorber has picked up the doc for U.S. release.
Kino Lorber will release Black Zombie in theaters later this year.
From writer and director Maya Annik Bedward, Black Zombie digs beneath the blood-soaked spectacle of modern horror to uncover the zombie’s buried and unsettling origins.
Long before it became associated with flesh-eating ghouls, the zombie was a living metaphor for slavery: not a monster, but the ultimate victim of colonial power.
Deadline further details, “Director Maya Annik Bedward traces the evolution of the zombie from colonial Haiti to contemporary Hollywood, reconsidering iconic films like White Zombie, Night of the Living Dead, and The Serpent and the Rainbow alongside archival footage, vérité scenes, and interviews with cultural historians, artists, and genre legends including Yves-Grégory Francois, Mambo Labelle Déesse, Slash, Tom Savini, and Zandashé Brown. Part cultural reckoning, part horror remix, Black Zombie exposes how a figure born from enslavement, spiritual belief, and resistance was transformed into one of pop culture’s most profitable monsters.”
“I’m thrilled to partner with Kino Lorber on the release of Black Zombie,” said Maya Annik Bedward. “The film explores the power of images to shape our understanding of history, culture, and race, making it especially meaningful to work with a distributor so deeply engaged with cinema’s past and present. Their passion for films that challenge, illuminate, and expand our understanding of the world makes them an ideal partner for bringing this story to audiences across the U.S.”
Kino Lorber’s Karoliina Dwyer adds, “The zombie is one of the most iconic images in cinema, and you’ll never look at them the same after watching Black Zombie. Maya Annik Bedward has crafted a fascinating, deeply researched documentary that unearths the long-buried Haitian origins of the genre, interrogating colonial, political, and Hollywood history to powerful and illuminating effect. We’re so proud to bring this documentary to U.S. audiences this fall.”
Executive producers for the documentary include music legend Slash.
‘I Walked With a Zombie’ (1943)
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