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[News Bites] More Pilot Casting, Event-Sized ‘Battle: Los Angeles’ Sequel, Rick Baker’s Incredible ‘MIB:3’ FX Work & ‘Dracula’ the Lawyer!

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Men in Black 3

Columbia Pictures is moving forward with a sequel to Battle: Los Angeles after it made nearly $212 million at the boxoffice worldwide. Our friends at Collider recently caught up with director Jonathan Liebesman, who offered the following when asked of the sequel’s status: “We’ve just started the script now so that’s where we are. We have just begun the script,” he explained addeing, “But what’s exciting is it sounds like the budget will be as big. They’re really going to make it an event.” The movie was inspired by unexplained true events back in 1942.

Storm Warning star David Lyons has been cast in the JJ Abrams/Eric Kripke NBC drama pilot “Revolution,” directed by Jon Favreau, “about a group of survivors in a world where all forms of energy have mysteriously ceased to exist.” He will play the charismatic Marine Bass, a role which became vacant after Billy Burke, who was originally cast in the role, was just promoted to play the lead Miles, reports Deadline. Also cast in the pilot is Maria Howell in the supporting role of the regal and fiercely intelligent Grace.

The site also adds that Erik Palladino (Buried) has been added to ABC drama pilot “666 Park Avenue” in the recurring role of Tony Demeo. The thriller, based on the Gabriella Pierce book series of the same name, “centers on a young couple (Rachael Taylor and Dave Annable) that accepts an offer to manage one of the most historic apartment buildings in New York City. They unwittingly begin to experience supernatural occurrences, which complicate and endanger the lives of everyone in the building.

In a little random cool news, an article at THR explains that for more than a century, Bram Stoker’s Dracula has set the standard in the horror genre — yet the author also managed to set the bar quite high in contract negotiations. A new version of “Dracula” is about to be published, and the most fascinating inclusion is Stoker’s 1897 contract, which reveals he got a 20 percent royalty fee — about twice as much as most authors get today. The publishers of the new version say it indicates that Stoker, who studied law, knew what he was doing. Right on Stoker! Click the link for the article.

Courtesy of Stark Industries comes the below images from behind-the-scenes of Columbia Pictures’ Men in Black 3, all of which show the incredible work of special effects mestro Rick Baker! Directed by Barry Sonnenfeld for release on May 25, the pic stars Will Smith, Tommy Lee Jones, Jemaine Clement and Emma Thompson in a time travel genre pic that’s jam-packed with alien creatures (plenty on display inside!) Men in Black 3

Men in Black 3

Men in Black 3

Men in Black 3

Men in Black 3

Men in Black 3

Horror movie fanatic who co-founded Bloody Disgusting in 2001. Producer on Southbound, V/H/S/2/3/94, SiREN, Under the Bed, and A Horrible Way to Die. Chicago-based. Horror, pizza and basketball connoisseur. Taco Bell daily. Franchise favs: Hellraiser, Child's Play, A Nightmare on Elm Street, Halloween, Scream and Friday the 13th. Horror 365 days a year.

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‘Abigail’ on Track for a Better Opening Weekend Than Universal’s Previous Two Vampire Attempts

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In the wake of Leigh Whannell’s Invisible Man back in 2020, Universal has been struggling to achieve further box office success with their Universal Monsters brand. Even in the early days of the pandemic, Invisible Man scared up $144 million at the worldwide box office, while last year’s Universal Monsters: Dracula movies The Last Voyage of the Demeter and Renfield didn’t even approach that number when you COMBINE their individual box office hauls.

The horror-comedy Renfield came along first in April 2023, ending its run with just $26 million. The period piece Last Voyage of the Demeter ended its own run with a mere $21 million.

But Universal is trying again with their ballerina vampire movie Abigail this weekend, the latest bloodbath directed by the filmmakers known as Radio Silence (Ready or Not, Scream).

Unlike Demeter and Renfield, the early reviews for Abigail are incredibly strong, with our own Meagan Navarro calling the film “savagely inventive in terms of its vampiric gore,” ultimately “offering a thrill ride with sharp, pointy teeth.” Read her full review here.

That early buzz – coupled with some excellent trailers – should drive Abigail to moderate box office success, the film already scaring up $1 million in Thursday previews last night. Variety notes that Abigail is currently on track to enjoy a $12 million – $15 million opening weekend, which would smash Renfield ($8 million) and Demeter’s ($6 million) opening weekends.

Working to Abigail‘s advantage is the film’s reported $28 million production budget, making it a more affordable box office bet for Universal than the two aforementioned movies.

Stay tuned for more box office reporting in the coming days.

In Abigail, “After a group of would-be criminals kidnap the 12-year-old ballerina daughter of a powerful underworld figure, all they have to do to collect a $50 million ransom is watch the girl overnight. In an isolated mansion, the captors start to dwindle, one by one, and they discover, to their mounting horror, that they’re locked inside with no normal little girl.”

Abigail Melissa Barrera movie

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