Movies
The Terrifying Goblin Shark Inspired the New ‘Alien: Covenant’ Monster
Sorry for the nightmares that GIF is probably going to cause.
There’s a reason I don’t go in the water, and it’s because I’m terrified of the monsters that live beneath the surface. Discovery’s “Shark Week” seems to uncover a horrifying new species of shark each and every year, but it was their profile on the Goblin Shark that really did me in. Once I laid eyes on that nasty sumbitch, my Jaws-fueled fears of the water became 100% justified.
It’s worth noting, per Wikipedia, that “given the depths at which it lives, the goblin shark poses no danger to humans.” Still though, I don’t intend on taking any chances.
The rare species of deep-sea shark is known for a few key qualities, including its almost translucent appearance, its long flat snout, and most horrifying of all, its “highly protrusible jaws containing prominent nail-like teeth.” Their inner mouths have been compared to the Alien franchise’s Xenomorph, so it makes sense that Ridley Scott drew inspiration from the scariest shark in the sea for the series’ newest creature. In Alien: Covenant we will meet the Neomorph, a new breed of monster that is essentially outer space’s answer to the Goblin Shark.
Scott must be a fan of “Shark Week” because the physiology of the Neomorph was directly inspired by the nightmarish Goblin Shark. From what we gather, the mutated environment the crew members find themselves in has black pods growing on trees and the ground, which release spores when disturbed. The spores then enter the body through the ears and nostrils, resulting in the growth of the Neomorphs inside the infected hosts. One Neomorph will burst through the back of one of its unlucky victims, using its dorsal spikes and pointed head to breach the surface.
As you probably spotted in the various trailers and TV spots for Alien: Covenant, we will see at least one Neomorph in various stages of its life cycle – it’ll be wreaking havoc alongside one of the franchise’s familiar Xenomorphs. Unlike the classic creatures, the new Neomorph is slightly translucent in appearance and is “more animal-like in behavior, with fang-like teeth.”
Sound familiar? It’s a Goblin Shark on two legs, and we’re all screwed.
It’s interesting to note that the new Neomorph design is very similar to the “Beluga Xenomorph,” which hardcore fans may remember from an early iteration of the Prometheus script.
Alien: Covenant takes off for Paradise on May 19, 2017.
Movies
‘The Conjuring 4’ – Michael Chaves Directing Planned Final Installment in Main Series
The hugely successful Conjuring Universe is getting a brand new installment with The Conjuring 4, and THR reports tonight that Michael Chaves is on board to direct.
Chaves just directed Conjuring Universe installment The Nun II, and he also previously directed The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It, the main series’ third movie.
The Conjuring 4 is said to be the final installment in the main series, THR notes.
David Leslie Johnson-McGoldrick (The Conjuring 2) wrote the screenplay for the fourth movie.
THR adds, “Plot details are being kept six feet under but once again supernatural investigators Ed and Lorrain Warren will face creaky doors, shadows in the windows, inverted crosses, and a demonic possession or two. Stars Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga are expected to return and the feature is eyeing a summer shoot in Atlanta.”
Also returning to produce are franchise mainstays James Wan and Peter Safran.
The Conjuring films are based on the real-life case files of paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren, played by Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga respectively.
There are currently eight films in The Conjuring universe — The Conjuring, Annabelle, The Conjuring 2, Annabelle: Creation, The Nun, Annabelle Comes Home, and The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It. The eighth film, The Nun 2, was released just last year.



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