Movies
The ‘Puppet Master’ Remake Begins Filming Next Week!
Comedy thesp Thomas Lennon (Hellbaby, “The State”) is bringing his charm to the Puppet Master remake, which begins principal photography in Dallas next week.
Titled Puppet Master: The Littlest Reich, the entire cast includes Jenny Pellicer, Nelson Franklin (Scott Pilgrim, Jobs), Charlyne Yi (Cloverfield), and Alex Beh, with genre fav Barbara Crampton (From Beyond, Re-Animator, You’re Next, Sun Choke), Tina Parker (“Breaking Bad”, The Final Destination), Skeeta Jenkins and the great Michael Paré (Streets on Fire), Variety is reporting.
Sonny Laguna and Tommy Wiklund, who helmed the awesome Evil Dead-esque Wither, will direct from a script written by Bone Tomahawk screenwriter S. Craig Zahler.
“Puppet Master: The Little Reich” centers on a recently divorced young man discovers a mint condition Blade doll in his deceased brother’s closet and plans to sell the toy at a convention in Texas celebrating the 30th anniversary of the infamous Toulon Murders. All hell breaks loose at during the auction when a strange force animates all of the various puppets throughout the convention as they go on a bloody killing spree.
Producers assert that the new will include the puppet mayhem mixed with comedy while expanding upon Toulon’s backstory, which makes Lennon the perfect choice. Udo Kier, which Bloody Disgusting exclusively revealed as part of the cast, will portray Toulon. Zahler sought out Laguna and Wiklund to direct due to his interest in their previous micro-budget horror films.
Dallas Sonnier and Amanda Presmyk are producing for Cinestate, along with Jack Heller of Assemble Media. Transformers producer Lorenzo di Bonaventura and Mark Vahradian of Di Bonaventura Pictures are also producers on the project along with frequent Laguna & Wiklund partner David Liljeblad.
Fangoria Studios and Panick Studios are turning horror comic Black Diamond into a film, and Variety reports that Ernest Dickerson (Tales from the Crypt: Demon Knight) will direct.
Black Diamond comic book creator Brendan Columbus will write the screenplay.
Black Diamond follows Owen and Victoria Welch on a family ski trip that spirals into a nightmare. When their son is abducted by a mysterious cult, the couple is pushed to the brink and faced with a soul-crushing ultimatum: sacrifice another child or lose their own forever.
The comic book series from Panick Entertainment is described as a “chilling folk horror thriller blending Hitchcockian psychological tension with the dread of The Wicker Man.”
“Black Diamond was my attempt to put everything I love about thrillers on the page,” Columbus tells Variety. “I want to make sure it feels like you physically can’t leave the theater or else you’ll miss the next twist or turn. With his masterful cinematic eye and his great story sense, Ernest is going to scare the hell out of everyone with this one.”
“Black Diamond immediately grabbed me because its horror is rooted in impossible human choices,” says Dickerson. “It taps into parental fear, morality, isolation, and survival in a way that is so unsettling and emotionally real. That combination will make for a very suspenseful and exciting cinematic experience.”
Ernest Dickerson is directing and executive producing the feature film. Black Diamond will notably be Ernest Dickerson’s first feature film as director since Double Play in 2017, though he has in more recent years been directing for an impressive string of television shows including “The Man in the High Castle,” “The Purge,” “Raised by Wolves,” “Bosch,” and “DMZ.”
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