Movies
Sony Feeding ‘Slender Man’ to the Sharks?
In what appeared to be an absolutely brutal move, Sony Pictures has shifted the release of Slender Man, feeding it directly to New Line Cinema’s The Meg. Yes, the movie is going to be swimming with sharks when it opens against the summer blockbuster on August 10th, an interesting shift from its original Aug. 24 date.
Sony had not been supportive of the feature, with news hitting the trades back in May that the producers were shopping the film to other studios/streaming service after they allegedly had heated disagreements about the release strategy. It appears that no other deals were struck and now Sony will move forward with the release, which looks like a risky move against The Meg.
Following this post, we’ve been told by insiders that the move is more correlated to catching teenagers while they’re still on summer break. The film is tracking extremely well, our source tells us, adding that Sony’s target audience differs immensely from The Meg, which is allegedly targeting older males (they’re both rated “PG-13”). The international release will still be on August 24th.
Directed by Sylvain White, Slender Man centers on a tall thin horrifying figure with a featureless face that is responsible for the haunting, stalking and disappearance of countless victims.
“In a small town in Massachusetts, four high school girls perform a ritual in an attempt to debunk the lore of Slender Man. When one of the girls goes mysteriously missing, they begin to suspect that she is, in fact, HIS latest victim.”
The Conjuring and Wish Upon‘s Joey King and Julia Goldani Telles star with Captain Fantastic actress Annalise Basso, Jaz Sinclair (When The Bough Breaks), and Alex Fitzalan.
Thanks to ERC for the updated date.
UPDATED with new information and some editorial changes at 6:46 PM.
Movies
‘Werewolf By Night 2’? Michael Giacchino Says It’s Being Talked About But “Everything Takes Forever”
It was Oscar-winning composer Michael Giacchino who sat in the director’s chair for Marvel’s Disney+ Halloween special Werewolf by Night back in 2022, which was released in both throwback black & white as well as full color. But are we ever getting a sequel?
Giacchino tells Screen Rant in a new chat this week that he remains hopeful.
“We’re talking about it,” Giacchino explains. “Everything takes forever to do. There’s a lot of planning that has to happen. Everything has to fit in a particular place at a particular time.”
He adds, “So, nothing moves as fast as we’d like it to. But I hope one day that you will be sitting there watching another Werewolf by Night. That’s my hope.”
Inspired by horror films of the ’30s and ’40s, Marvel Studios’ Werewolf by Night takes place on a dark and somber night as a secret cabal of monster hunters emerge from the shadows and gather at the foreboding Bloodstone Temple following the death of their leader.
In a strange memorial to the leader’s life, the attendees are thrust into a mysterious and deadly competition for a powerful relic—a hunt that will ultimately bring them face to face with a dangerous monster.
Meagan Navarro wrote in her review for BD, “The MCU kicked the horror into overdrive with Werewolf by Night. The nearly hour-long feature presents as a classic horror movie, dropping viewers into the middle of a secret world of monster hunters. Film composer Michael Giacchino directs the special, penned by Heather Quinn and Peter Cameron. Giacchino focuses on evoking the classic horror vibe to assist in the initial worldbuilding. The events play out in monochrome, save for the vibrant red glow of the Bloodstone. Cigarette burns and film grain get added for that retro look. The rules of the hunt get relayed to the cutthroat candidates by way of reanimated dead, albeit in a much campier and family-friendly way via animatronics.”
“Aside from the aesthetics, Werewolf leans heavily into the mysterious,” Meagan continued. “The black and white cinematography more than sets the retro vibe; it allows the feature to remain accessible to a wider audience even as it lets its monsters and monster hunters spill plenty of blood. Toss in a Jack Pierce-inspired beast with practical application, and you’ve got a modern superhero story with a classic Universal Monsters makeover.”