Movies
‘Grudge’ Set to Curse Summer Audiences
Sony is making an interesting move with Grudge, the Nicolas Pesce-directed re-remake that stars Insidious lead Lin Shaye.
Originally slated to obliterate the box office on Aug. 19, Sony shifted the film to a summer release, on June 21, 2019. The original date was in line with massive hits like Don’t Breathe and Annabelle: Creation, and will instead brave a summer release against major competition – like Toy Story 4. New Line released its Conjuring sequel in June and it was a monster hit. This should be fun!
Also starring are Andrea Riseborough, Demian Bichir (The Nun), and John Cho (“The Exorcist”), as well as Betty Gilpin (“Glow”), William Sadler (The Mist), Jacki Weaver and Frankie Faison.
Based on a script by Midnight Meat Train and Pet Sematary scribe Jeff Buhler, it’s a new take on the 2004 pic (itself based on the 2002 Japanese original Ju-on), which starred Sarah Michelle Gellar as a nurse in Tokyo who is afflicted by a curse that created uncontrollable homicidal rage.
This will be the twelfth Ju-On/The Grudge film, which also has a video game, two short films, and several graphic novels included in the collection.
There’s no slowing down Alice Maio Mackay. The filmmaker behind So Vam, Bad Girl Boogey, and this year’s The Serpent’s Skin is already back with sci-fi horror Our Effed Up World.
Starring Annapurna Sriram (Fucktoys), Sara Thompson (“One of Us is Lying”) and Jess McLeod (It’s a Wonderful Knife) and produced by Dark Star Pictures, the film will receive its International Premiere at Fantasia Film Festival on July 18, 2026.
The first teaser has arrived ahead of its fest screening, which sees a group of friends contend with terror from outer space when it crash lands nearby.
The synopsis reads: “Sheri thought her biggest problem in life was dealing with the recent loss of her beloved grandma. But when a mysterious entity crash lands in the woods, only she and her group of shitkicker friends are what stands in the way of an insatiable, intergalactic hunger.”
Scott Major, Brandon Flynn, Jordan Dulieu, JackHaven, Leela Varghese, Tommy Dorfman, and Chris Gun also star.
I Saw the TV Glow and Teenage Sex and Death at Camp Miasma filmmaker Jane Schoenbrun produces.
Mackay directs from a script co-written with Ben Pahl Robinson.
Mackay shares of her latest, “Our Effed Up World is my latest no budget queer film. I wanted to delve into a completely new sub-genre—sci-fi. But still through my signature lens and blend of campiness and melodrama. This project allowed me to take a step back from all the horrors that are happening around us and to really reflect on what makes us who we are and what we need to do to hang on to what is important in our lives. Whilst also being a rumination on grief and how we cope with living in an ‘effed” up world.'”
The 30th edition of Fantasia begins today; stay tuned for more from our coverage of the fest.
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