Exclusives
Fresh Progress From Hell: ‘Constantine’ Sequel Still in the Cards
I’m pretty sure my balls shriveled up inside my body while talking to legendary producer Lauren Shuler Donner, who received the Producer’s Showcase Award at Thursday night’s Saturn Awards. I approached her in the press room backstage with just had one question on my mind – ‘will Constantine 2 ever move forward?’ – and she…kinda answered me. Put a cup on and peruse on inside.
“I hope [it happens]. I want to,” she said. “We tried it, we always got there, and then we had a few bumps in the road. Keanu was involved with us, everybody was. We just had a few bumps in the road.”
The project isn’t dead in the water yet, though: “We’re gonna try again…we heard a good take,” she told me before brushing me aside, presumably on her way to enjoying a blood-soaked, extra-rare steak dinner at some swanky Beverly Hills establishment. At least, that’s what I envisioned in my own head.
The 2005 Francis Lawrence directed film was an adaptation of the DC/Vertigo comic book “Hellblazer”. It told the story of irreverent supernatural detective John Constantine (Reeves), who has literally been to hell and back. When Constantine teams up with skeptical policewoman Angela Dodson (Rachel Weisz) to solve the mysterious suicide of her twin sister (also played by Weisz), their investigation takes them through the world of demons and angels that exists just beneath the landscape of contemporary Los Angeles. Caught in a catastrophic series of otherworldy events, the two become inextricably involved and seek to find their own peace at whatever cost.
Out today in select theaters and on digital platforms is heartfelt and playful documentary Mockbuster, which sees a director cold call a studio and ask to helm a lost-world dinosaur epic.
Inexplicably, they say yes.
Our exclusive clip below highlights both the comedic nature of this bizarre scenario as well as the pressures of shooting dino feature The Land That Time Forgot in a mere six days, with no real feature experience.
A dino attack scene causes friction on set in this scene.
In the documentary, “A struggling filmmaker’s opportunity collides with chaos and compromise when Sharknado’s notorious studio, The Asylum, invites him to direct a ‘mockbuster.’ With six days, a micro budget, and mounting pressure, Mockbuster is a comedic, behind-the-scenes documentary exploring the balance between low-budget filmmaking and creative ambition.”
More than just an inside look at filmmaking via low-budget film studio The Asylum, it doubles as one man’s pursuit of his dreams to charming, humorous effect.
“Mockbuster is a documentary about my own journey, but it’s also a love letter to one of the last grindhouses still functioning in Hollywood. We get to meet the characters and creators of some of the most infamous (and most hated) B-movies of the last few decades. People who make movies purely for profit – no pretension, no artistry, just monsters, C-listers, and chaos. A film that both genre fans and cinephiles can enjoy. But Mockbuster isn’t just about filmmaking, it’s about losing sight of your dreams, and reclaiming them in your own twisted way,” Director Anthony Frith said in a statement.
From Executive Producer and famed documentarian David Farrier, Mockbuster opens in select theaters and on digital platforms beginning July 10.