Exclusives
Jon Knautz Says No Movement Yet on ‘Jack Brooks’ Sequel, Talks Next Project
Fans of 2008’s Jack Brooks: Monster Slayer have long been awaiting a sequel to the cult DVD hit, but unfortunately there hasn’t been much news on that since the first film dropped. Nevertheless, when I got on the phone with director Jon Knautz today to discuss his upcoming (and very effective) indie horror film The Shrine (releasing July 15th), I thought I’d try to pump him for any information I could. Sadly, it seems the follow-up is stuck in development hell for now.
“We have a story for ‘Jack Brooks 2’ that I absolutely love, said Knautz. “It’s so much fun! We’ve been like playing around with it for…I don’t know, 2 1/2 years now…It’s big, that’s the only thing. I mean, part one ended like, you know, Jack’s going on to become Indiana Jones. So it’s like…it’s epic man. I’m so excited about it. We are developing it, but it’s just sitting in the development world. Unfortunately there’s no trigger on when it’s gonna go, but hopefully soon because we’ve got a hell of a story for it. I think fans are gonna go ape-shit, because it’s like [a] full-blown, in-your-face action movie.”
I mentioned that it sounded like he was going the same route that Sam Raimi did with Army of Darkness.
“You got it!” replied Knautz. “Exactly! It’s the ‘Army of Darkness’ version of ‘Jack Brooks’.”
Outside of that, the director also told me he’s working on a new untitled dark comedy that they’d just wrapped up a table read for a few minutes before I called him.
“What I’m really excited about is we’re doing something very different right now, just to kind of switch genres again,” he said. “We’re doing a sort of dysfunctional family dark comedy that I’m really pumped about. I had a script read this morning, and it’s great. It’s going really, really well. We’re gonna be shooting that pretty soon. Very character-based stuff, really funny, really dark, so I’m pretty excited about that.”
In other words, if Jack Brooks 2 does end up happening at some point, it’ll probably be quite awhile longer before we hear anything.
Exclusives
‘The Haunting of Pennhurst’ Exclusive Clip Trains Scare Actors For Historic Haunt in Tribeca Doc
The past and present collide in haunting, poignant ways in the genre documentary The Haunting of Pennhurst, which sees a Halloween haunt serve as a reclamation of true historic horrors.
Ahead of its world premiere at the 25th Tribeca Film Festival, we have an exclusive clip that sees scare actors in training for the Halloween season. The catch? This haunt is opening at the historic Pennhurst State School & Hospital site, a facility that caused immense harm to its disabled patients over decades of its operation.
In the documentary, “For over seventy years, Pennhurst State School & Hospital was called a place of care. What happened inside killed over half its population. It closed in 1987, leaving behind unmarked graves and an unresolved history. Today, on those same grounds, disabled performers – many living with the same conditions that once sent people to Pennhurst – put on their makeup, pull on their costumes, and prepare to scare people for a living.
“Through grit, compassion, and buckets of blood, the eclectic performers of the Pennhurst Asylum haunted attraction are wrestling with a space that is at once a lucrative business and a gravesite.”
The upcoming documentary hails from directing trio Nathan Stenberg, Mike Attie, and Katarina Poljak, who explore their socially-relevant subject through archival footage, first-hand accounts, and an immersive verité.
“Pennhurst has haunted us since we first passed through its dragon-tooth gates; the horrors of the institution echo through the site today. We are so grateful to bring this film to the Tribeca Festival, particularly the Escape from Tribeca section, which feels right for a story where past and present bleed together. We hope audiences leave unnerved and asking the same uncomfortable questions we did,” Attie, Stenberg, and Poljak said in a statement.
Watch the clip below that sees disabled and neurodivergent scare actors learning the ropes of a Halloween haunt, reclaiming the site’s grim history in the process.
Tribeca Screenings:
- Public 1 (Premiere) Screening – Friday, June 5 at 9:15PM at Village East by Angelika
- Public 2 Screening – Sunday, June 7 at 3:15PM at Village East by Angelika
- Public 3 Screening – Tuesday, June 9 at 6:15PM at Village East by Angelika