Entertainment Weekly has exclusively debuted three brand new images from Ebenezer this week, giving us new looks at Johnny Depp’s Scrooge as well as Ian McKellen’s Jacob Marley, Tramell Tillman’s Ghost of Christmas Present, and Rupert Grint’s Bob Cratchit.

Ti West’s vision for A Christmas Carol? A spookier version than we’ve seen before.

Ti West explains to EW, “I’ve always thought no one’s really made the movie version where the ghosts are a little bit spooky.”

“I love the book, so I’m really not trying to do a spin on the story that is not faithful to the story or is some sort of meta tweak on it,” he tells the outlet. “It is genuine. It has its own perspective, and it has its own places where it deviates a little bit. And stylistically, I do certain things with it that are maybe in my wheelhouse, but they’re all very much in reverence of the text.”

Paramount is bringing Scrooge to theaters on November 13, 2026.

Andrea Riseborough (Possessor), Daisy Ridley (Star Wars franchise), Sam Claflin (The Hunger Games franchise), Charlie Murphy (“Peaky Blinders”), Arthur Conti (Beetlejuice Beetlejuice), and Ellie Bamber (“Willow”) also star in Ebenezer.

Nathaniel Halpern wrote the adaptation for Ti West to direct.

Written by Charles Dickens, the classic tale of A Christmas Carol has been adapted for the screen countless times over the years, with notable film adaptations including Scrooge (1951) starring Alastair Sim, Scrooge (1970) starring Albert Finney, A Christmas Carol (1984) starring George C. Scott, Scrooged (1988) starring Bill Murray, The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992) starring Michael Caine, and A Christmas Carol (2009) starring Jim Carrey.

A Christmas Carol is classically a period piece ghost story. As Luiz H.C. wrote here on Bloody Disgusting, “Isn’t it weird how the single most influential piece of Christmas-related media is technically a horror story? One can even make the argument that Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol paved the way for the rise of Victorian Spiritualism during the following decade.”

The post ‘Ebenezer’ – New Images Preview Ti West’s Christmas Ghost Story Starring Johnny Depp appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Johnny Depp will play Ebenezer Scrooge in Ti West’s Ebenezer, and Paramount is bringing the film to theaters on November 13, 2026. Watch the official trailer down below.

The tagline? “The name you know. The story you don’t.”

Andrea Riseborough (Possessor), Ian McKellen (The Lord of the Rings), Tramell Tillman (“Severance”), Rupert Grint (Harry Potter franchise), Daisy Ridley (Star Wars franchise), Sam Claflin (The Hunger Games franchise), Charlie Murphy (“Peaky Blinders”), Arthur Conti (Beetlejuice Beetlejuice), and Ellie Bamber (“Willow”) also star.

Deadline had detailed in a recent report, “This version, a thrilling ghost story set in Dickens’ London, follows one man’s supernatural journey to face his past, present and future and fight for a second chance. Stephen Deuters and Jason Forman to executive produce.”

Nathaniel Halpern wrote the adaptation for Ti West to direct.

Written by Charles Dickens, the classic tale of A Christmas Carol has been adapted for the screen countless times over the years, with notable film adaptations including Scrooge (1951) starring Alastair Sim, Scrooge (1970) starring Albert Finney, A Christmas Carol (1984) starring George C. Scott, Scrooged (1988) starring Bill Murray, The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992) starring Michael Caine, and A Christmas Carol (2009) starring Jim Carrey.

A Christmas Carol is classically a period piece ghost story. As Luiz H.C. wrote here on Bloody Disgusting, “Isn’t it weird how the single most influential piece of Christmas-related media is technically a horror story? One can even make the argument that Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol paved the way for the rise of Victorian Spiritualism during the following decade.”

The post ‘Ebenezer’ Official Trailer – Ti West Turns Johnny Depp into ‘A Christmas Carol’ Icon Scrooge appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Johnny Depp will play Ebenezer Scrooge in Ti West’s Ebenezer, and Paramount is bringing the film to theaters on November 13, 2026. Check out the official poster below.

The tagline? “The name you know. The story you don’t.”

Andrea Riseborough (Possessor), Ian McKellen (The Lord of the Rings), Tramell Tillman (“Severance”), Rupert Grint (Harry Potter franchise), Daisy Ridley (Star Wars franchise), Sam Claflin (The Hunger Games franchise), Charlie Murphy (“Peaky Blinders”), Arthur Conti (Beetlejuice Beetlejuice), and Ellie Bamber (“Willow”) also star.

Deadline had detailed in a recent report, “This version, a thrilling ghost story set in Dickens’ London, follows one man’s supernatural journey to face his past, present and future and fight for a second chance. Stephen Deuters and Jason Forman to executive produce.”

Nathaniel Halpern wrote the adaptation for Ti West to direct.

Written by Charles Dickens, the classic tale of A Christmas Carol has been adapted for the screen countless times over the years, with notable film adaptations including Scrooge (1951) starring Alastair Sim, Scrooge (1970) starring Albert Finney, A Christmas Carol (1984) starring George C. Scott, Scrooged (1988) starring Bill Murray, The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992) starring Michael Caine, and A Christmas Carol (2009) starring Jim Carrey.

A Christmas Carol is classically a period piece ghost story. As Luiz H.C. wrote here on Bloody Disgusting, “Isn’t it weird how the single most influential piece of Christmas-related media is technically a horror story? One can even make the argument that Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol paved the way for the rise of Victorian Spiritualism during the following decade.”

Johnny Depp is going full Scrooge with a special appearance at San Diego Comic-Con.

Depp stars in director Ti West’s A Christmas Carol movie EBENEZER, in theaters November 13, 2026. pic.twitter.com/A3Ws0nlg4m

— Bloody Disgusting (@BDisgusting) July 23, 2026

The post ‘Ebenezer’ – Johnny Depp is Scrooge on First Official Poster for Ti West’s ‘A Christmas Carol’ Movie appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

It’s been a month of Jack the Ripper texts on Murder Made Fiction podcast and while the quality has been consistent, the approach to arguably one of the most famous unsolved murders in true crime history has varied widely.

Naturally made-for-TV movies like 1997’s The Ripper (listen here) and the Michael Caine-led Jack The Ripper miniseries from 1988 (listen here) have been a bit more sedate, while Alfred Hitchcock’s 1927 silent film The Lodger (listen here) and Hugo Fregonese’s 1953 Man in the Attic (listen here) were “classier” affairs.

We left our most contemporary, big budgeted, big screen adaptation for last and boy, do the Hughes Brothers lean into the gore! While From Hell isn’t on par with the wave of Torture Porn titles that would come out of Hollywood only a few years later, compared to every other Jack the Ripper text, this one is quite a bit more salacious.

In the film, Detective Frederick Abberline (Johnny Depp) is assigned to the case of the Whitechapel murders. A killer is targeting a specific group of sex workers, lead by Heather Graham‘s Mary Kelly (and her terrible wig!). The deaths appear to be tied to the inner circle of people who know about the marriage and out of wedlock birth of a baby with ties to Prince Albert Victor (Mark Dexter).

Over time it’s revealed that a shadowy cabal, the Freemasons, are actively working behind the scenes to manipulate events in favour of the monarchy, leaving Abberline and his partner Sergeant Peter Godley (Robbie Coltrane) to go up against Queen Victoria’s royal physician, Sir William Gull (Ian Holm – fantastic) and his lackey, coach driver Netley (Jason Flemyng), who will stop at nothing to keep the truth hidden.

Can Abberline protect Mary Kelly? Will the Freemasons and Queen Vic throw Sir William under the bus? And how many people will end up lobotomized by the end of the 2+ hour film?

Listen to find out!

Want even more Murder Made Fiction? Be sure to check out the pod’s Patreon feed, where Jenn and I have 140 hours of content including episode by episode coverage of S01 of AMC’s The Terror and, starting in April, coverage of nuclear disasters like HBO’s miniseries, Chernobyl.

The post ‘From Hell’ Upped The Gore for Jack The Ripper Films [Murder Made Fiction Podcast] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Priced at $70, sales will launch next Thursday, December 4, at 9am PT exclusively from Mattel Creations.

Director Tim Burton‘s signature style blends seamlessly with the Monster High aesthetic on the doll, which stands 10.5″ tall and features 11 points of articulation.

In addition to hands adorned with scissors, it features a faux leather bodysuit with buckle straps, sheer skirt, mechanical heart headband, and knee-high boots with heels featuring movie-related Easter eggs.

The Skullector doll is housed in fold-out packaging along with a doll stand and a certificate of authenticity.

Johnny Depp stars in the 1990 gothic romantic fantasy with Winona Ryder, Dianne Wiest, Anthony Michael Hall, Kathy Baker, Vincent Price, and Alan Arkin.

Written by Caroline Thompson (The Nightmare Before Christmas, The Addams Family), the film follows a gentle boy with metal shears for hands whose solitary life is upended when he is taken in by a suburban family.

Edward Scissorhands was recently released on 4K Ultra HD and Digital to commemorate the anniversary.

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The post Monster High Celebrates ‘Edward Scissorhands’ 35th Anniversary with Skullector Doll appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

The new take on Charles Dickens‘ 1843 novel will be released on November 13, 2026 via Paramount.

Ti West (X, The House of the Devil) is directing from a script by Nathaniel Halpern (“Legion,” “Tales from the Loop”).

A thrilling ghost story set in Dickens’ London, the film follows one man’s supernatural journey to face his past, present, and future and fight for a second chance.

Depp will star as Ebenezer Scrooge. Sources say Tillman will play the Ghost of Christmas Present. Riseborough and McKellen’s roles are unknown at this time.

Stephen Deuters and Jason Forman serve as executive producers with Emma Watts producing.

Ebenezer: A Christmas Carol is not the only dark version of the classic Christmas story on the horizon, as Robert Eggers is developing a version starring Willem Dafoe.

The post Ian McKellen & Tramell Tillman Join Johnny Depp in Ti West’s ‘Ebenezer: A Christmas Carol’ appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Johnny Depp will reportedly play Ebenezer Scrooge in Ti West’s Ebenezer: A Christmas Carol, with Andrea Riseborough (Possessor) also attached to star in the film.

Paramount will release the film in theaters on November 13, 2026.

Deadline details in their report this afternoon, “This version, a thrilling ghost story set in Dickens’ London, follows one man’s supernatural journey to face his past, present and future and fight for a second chance. Stephen Deuters and Jason Forman to executive produce.”

Nathaniel Halpern wrote the adaptation for Ti West to direct.

Written by Charles Dickens, the classic tale of A Christmas Carol has been adapted for the screen countless times over the years, with notable film adaptations including Scrooge (1951) starring Alastair Sim, Scrooge (1970) starring Albert Finney, A Christmas Carol (1984) starring George C. Scott, Scrooged (1988) starring Bill Murray, The Muppet Christmas Carol (1992) starring Michael Caine, and A Christmas Carol (2009) starring Jim Carrey.

A Christmas Carol is classically a period piece ghost story. As Luiz H.C. wrote here on Bloody Disgusting, “Isn’t it weird how the single most influential piece of Christmas-related media is technically a horror story? One can even make the argument that Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol paved the way for the rise of Victorian Spiritualism during the following decade.”

The post ‘Ebenezer: A Christmas Carol’ – Ti West Directing Dickens Tale With Johnny Depp as Scrooge appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Directed by Tim Burton, the 1990 gothic romantic fantasy has been newly restored in 4K with Dolby Vision HDR and Dolby Atmos audio.

Special features:

• New 4K Restoration of the Film
• Dolby Vision/HDR Presentation
• Dolby Atmos Audio
• Audio Commentary by Director Tim Burton
• Audio Commentary by Composer Danny Elfman
• Making-of Featurette with Cast & Crew

A kindly inventor once created a gentle young man named Edward but passed away before he could finish his work – leaving Edward with only metal shears for hands. Lonely until welcomed into a pastel suburbia by a kind Avon lady, Edward’s story still resonates today with its timeless message: to embrace what makes us different, and to discover that wonder often lies just beyond the unknown.

Johnny Depp stars with Winona Ryder, Dianne Wiest, Anthony Michael Hall, Kathy Baker, Vincent Price, and Alan Arkin star.

Caroline Thompson (The Nightmare Before Christmas, The Addams Family) penned the script. Danny Elfman composed the score.

The post ‘Edward Scissorhands’ Celebrates 35th Anniversary with SteelBook 4K UHD Release This Month appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

The four-part series follows Burton’s dream journey into the themes and relationships that shape his work, from the misunderstood monster to the dichotomy of dark vs. light and the magic of collaboration with fellow “outsiders.”

Marking the first time that Burton has supported a project about his career, it includes exclusive interviews, unpublished artworks, and a never-before-seen stop-motion short.

Johnny Depp, Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder, Danny DeVito, Christopher Walken, Jenna Ortega, Christoph Waltz, Mia Wasikowska, Helena Bonham Carter, and Danny Elfman are among the interview subjects.

Directed by Tara Wood (QT8: The First Eight), the first episode premiered at last year’s Tribeca Film Festival as a sneak peek.

“Following the incredible response to Episode 1 at Tribeca and the fans’ voracious desire for more, I’m thrilled to announce the completion of the long-awaited Tim Burton docuseries!” said Wood.

“Tim tells his life story through his filmography, and the doc takes us on a truly inspiring journey through decades of cinematic history, filled with deep personal insights, passions, and struggles — the challenge is keeping it to four episodes!”

With the full series now complete, WME boarded the project to handle global sales.

The post Preview the Tim Burton Docuseries with Johnny Depp, Michael Keaton, Winona Ryder, & More appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

After seven weeks of our Icons and Anniversaries theme, which included titles like Bob Clark’s Black Christmas (listen), Kevin S. Tenney’s Night of the Demons (listen), and Robert Zemeckis’ Death Becomes Her (listen), we’re ready to wrap things up with Wes Craven‘s iconic slasher entry, A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984).

In the film, Nancy Thompson (Heather Langenkamp), her boyfriend Glen (Johnny Depp), best friend Tina (Amanda Wyss) and Tina’s on again/off again boyfriend Rod (Nick Corri) are all plagued by the same nightmare of a burned man with knives for fingers.

Then Tina is brutally murdered in her sleep and Rod is blamed for her death. Nancy tries to tell her mother Marge (Ronee Blakely) and Lieutenant father Don (John Saxon) about Fred Krueger (Robert Englund), but the evasive parents refuse to listen.

With no choice but to take responsibility for her own survival, Nancy sets a trap to lure the dream demon into the real world. But if Nancy doesn’t wake up screaming, she may not wake up at all!

Episode 307 – A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)

For our final week of Gay Divas and Anniversaries, we’re revisiting Wes Craven’s iconic 1984 franchise starter, A Nightmare on Elm Street for its 40th anniversary.

From discussions about why Nancy (Heather Langenkamp) is *the* Final Girl to Fred(dy) Krueger’s challenging backstory to the film’s financial issues, this is the perfect capper to our two month theme.

Plus: Sta Awake & a carafe full of coffee, the possibility of a new entry in the series, Marge’s ties to Black Christmas‘ Mrs. Mack, and NoES‘ perfect homage to The Shining. This film truly has it all!

Cross out A Nightmare on Elm Street!

Coming up on Wednesday: We’re jumping back to pre-Hays Code times to unpack the murder mystery behind The Thirteenth Guest (1932)! Pro tip: watch the B/W version on YouTube, not the colourized version on Tubi.

P.S. Subscribe to our Patreon for over 343 hours of Patreon content including this month’s new episodes on Hannibal Season 1 Episode 11, Time Cut, Heretic, Smile 2 and a brand new audio commentary on Silent Night, Deadly Night for its 40th anniversary. 

The post Two Horror Icons Were Born in 1984’s ‘A Nightmare on Elm Street’ [Horror Queers Podcast] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Everybody loves a bad boy. There’s something appealing about a guy who disregards the rules and dreamy delinquents have been known to make even wholesome girls grow weak in the knees. Sometimes it’s the air of danger that heightens the appeal, allowing us to look past the most monstrous physiques.

The new horror comedy Lisa Frankenstein delivers a swoon worthy monster with Cole Sprouse’s Creature, a resurrected corpse who’s spent the last two centuries buried in the local Bachelor’s Cemetery. His tears may smell, and his body may be rotting, but the hunky fiend has an attractive glimmer in his sensitive eyes.

And just like Lisa (Kathryn Newton), we can’t resist this piano-playing killer and would gladly overlook a few graveyard worms for the privilege of putting him back together. He’s not the only one, though: Horror has a long history of crush-worthy monsters, horrific hunks, and beautiful beasts. Needless to say, we went beyond ’89 for this one.

Edward – Edward Scissorhands

Every little girl dreams of a handsome prince from a magical castle who will sweep her off to a winter wonderland. For horror lovers this fantasy tends to skew a little darker. Tim Burton brings this gothic vision to life with Edward Scissorhands, a suburban fairy tale starring a strangely handsome monster. When Avon saleswoman Peg (Dianne Wiest) finds a pale young man with wiry hair and scissors for hands, she brings him back to her pastel home where he falls in love with her beautiful daughter Kim (Winona Ryder).

Though initially caught off guard, Kim eventually warms to this compassionate outcast who wants nothing more than the love of a family. And Kim is not alone. Johnny Depp won over the world with his dreamy portrayal of this sensitive loner. Even better, the film led to Gen Z power couple Depp and Ryder, two of the world’s most attractive actors on the verge of super stardom. Dating Edward might lead to a few cuts now and then, but any man who can style your hair, trim your hedges, and create a fantasy snowscape has got to be worth at least a second date.

R – Warm Bodies

Zombies aren’t exactly known for being hunky – unless we’re talking about the hunks of human flesh that fall off their decomposing bones. But Jonathan Levine’s horror rom-com Warm Bodies gives us a delightfully dreamy zombie named R (Nicholas Hoult) who spends his days roaming the airport and absorbing human memories from the brains of his victims. After killing and eating a survivor of the zombie apocalypse, R develops feelings for his girlfriend Julie (Teresa Palmer). He saves her from a roaming horde of zombies and helps her return to her militarized enclave. As the two grow closer, R finds himself slowly returning to his human form. Could love be the cure for the zombie apocalypse? When the undead crush is played by future heartthrob Nicholas Hoult, that just may be the case.

Pinhead – Hellraiser

Clive Barker’s 1987 film is not only one of the most decadent and thematically rich horror films of all time, it gave rise to one of the genre’s most unique villains. This dark tale of forbidden love may center a toxic romance between Frank (Sean Chapman) and Julia (Clare Higgins), but there’s no doubt that the film’s iconic star is an entity known as Lead Cenobite or Pinhead (Doug Bradley).

Originally named the Hell Priest, this angel to some, demon to others leads a group of interdimensional beings who can be summoned by solving an intricate puzzle box. Once called, the Cenobites will drag the puzzle’s owner to another world where they will explore the outer limits of pleasure and pain. Inspired by 80s BDSM culture, Pinhead wears black leather robes sewn into his skin with intricate straps, and metal fastenings. His pale head is pierced with rows of nails that only add to the creature’s devilish allure.

With an austere voice and ominous warnings, there’s something deliciously seductive about this powerful monster who emerges from a forbidden lair to tempt us with the promise of excruciating pleasure.

Scott Howard – Teen Wolf

High school can be a tricky time for the lovelorn. Hormones are raging, peers and cruel, and it’s difficult to find acceptance in the complicated social hierarchy. And that’s if you’re NOT turning into a werewolf. Unfortunately 17-year-old loser Scott Howard (Michael J. Fox) has been noticing some bodily changes that go a bit beyond the regular realm of teenage angst. His hearing is ultra-sensitive, his nails have grown incredibly sharp, and long hair has begun to sprout all over his body.

It seems Scott has inherited the werewolf’s curse: a generational anomaly that doesn’t make him hunger for human flesh but does include superhuman abilities. Scott is terrified that his classmates will discover his secret, but a public transformation sparks Wolf Fever throughout his small town. Suddenly popular, Scott leads his basketball team to victory, wins a role in the school play, and lands a date with the most popular girl in school. But this sudden reversal of fortune leads to the age-old question: Will they accept Scott for himself or do they only have eyes for the Wolf? Played by the charming Michael J. Fox, this dreamy werewolf is one we’d want around even when the moon isn’t full.

Billy Hutcherson – Hocus Pocus

What girl doesn’t love the strong, silent type? There’s nothing more intriguing than a mysterious stranger who stands in the shadows not uttering a word. Unfortunately the reanimated corpse of Billy Butcherson (Doug Jones) has a troubling reason for his silent demeanor. Winifred Sanderson (Bette Midler), oldest of a trio of legendary witches, sewed his lips together in a fit of rage after discovering his love for her sister Sarah (Sarah Jessica Parker). Adding insult to injury, she brings him back to life only to retrieve a powerful book from a group of mischievous kids. But just when it seems the Sanderson Sisters may achieve eternal life, Billy reverses course and unleashes his pent-up rage against the sinister witch.

Though initially a villain, this tall and lanky zombie becomes a protector at the very moment Dani (Thora Birch) and her brother Max (Omri Katz) need him the most. Even decapitation is not enough to keep him from fulfilling his life and afterlife-long mission to defeat Winnefred Sanderson. Designed to be a punk rock version of Ichabod Crane, this cute corpse with his tousled hair, expressive eyes, and well-defined cheekbones goes from pursuer to savior in the blink of an eye. It’s no wonder millennials have grown up smitten with the silent but swoon worthy colonial monster.

Hellboy – Hellboy

Is there anything more attractive than a red hot demon with a heart of gold? Hellboy, aka Anung Un Rama, is a demon/human hybrid summoned from hell as a baby by the Third Reich. Raised as a normal child, he now works as an investigator for the Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense (B.P.R.D.) But aside from his snarky sense of humor, Hellboy is anything but normal. With blazing red skin, he is a muscle-bound brute with a devilish tail and massive horns protruding from his broad forehead. He may file these unusual appendages down to look like oversized goggles, but fully grown out these demonic antlers only add to his roguish charm.

Hellboy is usually spotted wearing a long trench coat, further amplifying his devil-may-care allure. He may be hot, but what truly sets this handsome monster apart is his genuine desire to save the world. Whether you’re lusting after Ron Perlman, David Harbour, or perhaps the original comic book images, rest assured this is a crush so powerful that it might just bring about the apocalypse.

Pennywise – It and It Chapter Two

Most children of the ’80s grew up afraid of clowns after watching Tim Curry’s iconic performance in the miniseries adaptation of Stephen King’s It. Ironically, their children might grow up with an attraction to clowns thanks to Bill Skarsgård. His depiction of Pennywise the Dancing Clown in Andy Muschietti’s 2017 film adaptation delivers a new and, yes, enticing stab at the shape-shifting monster.

Gone are the Bozo-esque pom-poms and the curly red wig. Skarsgård’s interpretation of the character takes inspiration from 19th century clowns. With a dirty, white tunic, puffed shoulders, and a ruffled collar, Muscietti’s films deliver a slimmer, and dare we say more attractive shape. Muschietti’s sequel It Chapter Two gives us a glimpse of the handsome Swedish actor out of makeup as well as an illustration of the sinister man roaming the streets of Derry sans costume. Whether in or out of his terrifying make-up, there’s no doubt this dreamy clown has the power to make us swoon as well as scream.

Lisa Frankenstein is only in theaters this Friday. Get Tickets Now!

The post Hot For Monsters: Horror’s Most Crush-Worthy Beasts [1989 Week] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Kept a secret until today’s release, Tim Burton’s Sweeney Todd makes its 4K Ultra HD debut in the Paramount Scares: Volume 1 box set, alongside four other Paramount horrors!

The full lineup includes…

Rosemary’s Baby (1968)—Newly remastered on 4K Ultra HD, this iconic classic celebrates its 55^th anniversary this year. With groundbreaking camerawork and bone-chilling suspense, Rosemary’s Baby gave birth to the modern thriller. Featuring extraordinary performances—including Ruth Gordon in an Oscar®-winning role as an eccentric neighbor—the film received extensive critical praise. Widely considered to be one of the greatest horror films of all time, Rosemary’s Baby was selected for preservation in the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress in 2014.

Bonus Content (on Blu-ray Disc):

• Rosemary’s Baby – A Retrospective
• Mia and Roman
• Theatrical Trailer
• 50th Anniversary “Redband” Trailer

Pet Sematary (1989)— Written for the screen by internationally renowned author Stephen King and based on his iconic bestseller, director Mary Lambert’s thrilling Pet Sematary electrified audiences upon its release in 1989, earning more than $57 million to become the highest grossing horror film of the time. The shocking depiction of unspeakable evil was remastered in 4K under the supervision of Lambert using the original film negative.

Bonus Content (on Blu-ray Disc):

• Commentary by director Mary Lambert                                           
• Pet Sematary: Fear and Remembrance                                             
• Pet Sematary: Revisitation                                                     
• Stephen King Territory                                             
• The Characters 
• Filming the Horror
• Galleries                                                       
• • • Storyboards Introduction by Mary Lambert                                                    
    • Storyboards                                                 
    • Behind the Scenes                                                     
    • Marketing                                                                                                

Smile (2022)—This terrifying and inventive film from writer and director Parker Finn became a true horror phenomenon, earning more than $217 million at the global box office and becoming the #1 original horror movie of 2022. A sequel is in development with Finn set to return as director.

Bonus Content (on 4K Ultra HD Disc):

• Commentary by director Parker Finn      
• Something’s Wrong with Rose: Making Smile      
• Flies on the Wall: Inside the Score                         
• Deleted Scenes with Optional Commentary by director Parker Finn                                    
• Laura Hasn’t Slept – Original Short with Introduction by director Parker Finn

Crawl (2019)—Produced by Sam Raimi and directed by Alexandre Aja, this unexpected and suspense-filled creature feature took audiences and critics by storm with its story of a father and daughter trying to survive a hurricane beneath a house filling with water…and alligators. With a budget of $13 million, Crawl generated more than $91 million worldwide.

Bonus Content (on 4K Ultra HD Disc):

• Intro to Alternate Opening (HD)              
• Alternate Opening (HD)                             
• Deleted and Extended Scenes (HD)                                                                                
• Beneath Crawl (HD)                                   
• Category 5 Gators: The VFX of Crawl (HD)                                        
• Alligator Attacks (HD)    

Sweeney Todd (2007) – Johnny Depp and Tim Burton join forces again in a big screen adaptation of Stephen Sondheim’s award-winning musical thriller.

Bonus Content (on 4K Ultra HD Disc):

• Behind the Scenes Look
• Press Conference
• The Real History of the Demon Barber
• Musical Mayhem
• Sweeney’s London
• The Making of Sweeney Todd
• Grand Guignol
• Designs for a Demon Barber
• A Bloody Business
• Moviefone Unscripted with Burton and Depp
• The Razor’s Refrain
• Photo Gallery

The post Tim Burton’s ‘Sweeney Todd’ Makes 4K Debut as Mystery Title in New Paramount Scares Box Set appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

After closing our month of erotic thrillers with a look at the Wachowski sisters’ queer neo-noir Bound and the ultra sexy queer French thriller Stranger By the Lake, we’re kicking off spooky season (and our 250th episode!) with a look at Tim Burton‘s 1999 ode to Hammer Horror: Sleepy Hollow!

In Sleepy Hollow, Ichabod Crane (Johnny Depp) is sent to Sleepy Hollow to investigate the decapitations of three people. While there, he becomes romantically entangled with Katrina Van Tassel (Christina Ricci) and discovers that the murderer is the legendary apparition The Headless Horseman (Christopher Walken and Ray Park).

Be sure to subscribe to the podcast to get a new episode every Wednesday. You can subscribe on iTunes/Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, iHeartRadio, SoundCloud, TuneIn, Amazon Music, Google Podcasts, and RSS.

Episode 250: Sleepy Hollow (1999)

Watch your head because we’re kicking off spooky season (and our 250th episode!) with a look at Tim Burton’s extremely Halloween-y classic Sleepy Hollow (1999)! From Johnny Depp’s effeminate interpretation of Ichabod Crane to Miranda Richardson’s devilishly campy climactic performance, this movie has it all!

Join us as we praise, well, pretty much everything about Tim Burton’s ode to Hammer Horror (and Disney’s animated version of the story). But hey, the movie kills a kid! Plus: Elfman’s score, bad wigs, eating the rich, and Joe teaching Trace what a trompe-l’œil is.

Cross out Sleepy Hollow!

Coming up on Wednesday: It’s a Friday the 13th this week so we’re hading back to Crystal Lake to discuss the very first sequel Friday the 13th Part 2!

P.S. Subscribe to our Patreon for nearly 265 hours of Patreon content including this month’s new episodes on No One Will Save You, Totally Killer, Saw X, Exorcist: Believer, and our audio commentary for the month will be on John Carpenter’s classic Halloween.

The post ‘Sleepy Hollow’: Tim Burton’s Ode to Hammer Horror [Horror Queers Podcast] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Paramount Pictures will release the 1999 Tim Burton horror movie Sleepy Hollow on 4K + Blu-ray + Digital Code on September 5, 2023, just in time for Halloween.

You can pre-order Sleepy Hollow on 4K Ultra HD from Amazon today.

In the film, “Ichabod Crane (Johnny Depp) is sent to Sleepy Hollow to investigate the decapitations of three people; the culprit is legendary apparition The Headless Horseman.”

Depp and Ricci starred alongside Christopher Walken, Miranda Richardson, Michael Gambon, Caspar Van Dien, Ian McDiarmid, Lisa Marie, and Michael Gough.

[Related] Heads Will Roll: Looking Back at Tim Burton’s ‘Sleepy Hollow’ 20 Years Later

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February has truly been a ride as Trace and I venture through the wilds of Weird Sex Month. After spending the last few weeks of January buried in films of the 2000-2010s with remake House of Wax (2005) and Crimson Peak (2015), February has been dedicated to the early 1980s with Videodrome (1983) and Possession (1981).

Now we’re up to 2014’s Tusk, Kevin Smith‘s second foray into horror. The film stars Justin Long as Wallace, a d-bag podcaster who travels to Canada to mock a boy who cut off his leg on the internet. When the story falls through, Wallace travels to a remote mansion to meet with Howard Howe (Michael Parks), a recluse with plenty of stories and…odd interests.

When Howard goes missing, it’s up to his girlfriend Ally (Genesis Rodriguez) and Not-See Party podcast co-host Teddy (Haley Joel Osment), along with a bizarre French Canadian detective (an uncredited Johnny Depp), to track him down. But what they discover in Howe’s makeshift zoo is unlike anything seen on film before: Mr. Tusk, the human walrus.

Be sure to subscribe to the podcast to get a new episode every Wednesday. You can subscribe on iTunes/Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, iHeartRadio, SoundCloud, TuneIn, Amazon Music, Acast, Google Podcasts, and RSS.

Episode 217 – Tusk (2014)

Subscribe to the Not-See Party podcast and be wary of walrus dicks because for week 3 of Weird Sex Month, we’re talking about Kevin Smith’s second foray into horror, 2014’s Tusk. Along for the Canadian journey is Dede Crimmins, who has watched this movie *a lot.*

Yes, this is the infamous “Justin Long gets turned into a Walrus” movie and we have plenty of thoughts on his early douchebag performance, Michael Parks’ epic monologues, the fetish-y Mr. Tusk skin suit, and…oh right, Johnny Depp’s grating (or funny?) supporting performance.

Plus: what the hell is a sex fetish act called The Whistling Walrus?

Cross out Tusk!

Coming up on Wednesday: Weird Sex Month wraps up with a true “how did this get made” entry as we revisit the $70M budgeted, Mike Nichols-directed, Jack Nicholson and Michelle Pfeiffer starring romantic horror film, Wolf (1994).

P.S. Subscribe to our Patreon for more than 227 hours of additional content! This month, we’ve got episodes on Roxanne Benjamin’s There’s Something Wrong with the Children, Brandon Cronenberg’s Infinity Pool, Elizabeth Banks’ Cocaine Bear, and an M. Night Shyamalan double bill: Knock at the Cabin, complemented by an audio commentary on The Village.

The post The Weird Walrus Fetish in Kevin Smith’s ‘Tusk’ [Horror Queers Podcast] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Therefore, whilst Yagher may not have been a household name – or even particularly well known amongst movie buffs –he was certainly leaving his fingerprints all over the industry. Taking advantage on his newfound clout, and eager to progress his career, he began looking for projects that would allow him to flex his directorial muscles, whilst also capitalizing on his background in effects.

He probably had several pitches floating around, but the one that Yagher was really passionate about was an adaptation of Washington Irving’s The Legend of Sleepy Hollow. Enamored with the idea of taking this modest piece of folklore and using it as a springboard for creating his own slasher property, he began developing a spec script that updated the Headless Horseman so that he was more like an eighteenth-century version of Jason Voorhees. Rather than just a spooky ghost-story, this version would be an unstoppable revenant, one who would enact ‘’a spectacular murder every five minutes’’.

To help him flesh out the treatment, Yagher enlisted the help of Andrew Kevin Walker (a fellow Tales from the Crypt alumnus) who had recently finished his calling card screenplay, Se7en. Together, the pair made a number of radical deviations from Irving’s source, completely overhauling elements of story, drastically changing the characters, and infusing the gothic atmosphere with lashings of gore. 

In their interpretation, protagonist Ichabod Crane was to be reimagined as a bumbling detective – as opposed to a school teacher – who is sent to the close-knit community of Sleepy Hollow to ascertain why the town elders are all having their heads ‘’lopped off’’. To do this, he utilizes advanced scientific methods and forensic techniques, so that he can piece together the town’s sordid history. Without giving anything away, he soon finds himself ensnared in a dense conspiracy of feuding relatives, witchcraft accusations and lustful secrets. 

You can read the full thing online if you want. It’s a fun, pulpy read that cleverly mixes aspects of period drama with schlocky B-movie thrills. Moreover, as you would expect from Walker (the guy who infamously put Gwyneth Paltrow’s head in a box), it’s got some smart twists along the way, rarely playing out in the way you’d expect. 

After shopping the idea around to various studios, many of whom were skeptical of the unconventional take, the duo eventually managed to secure a deal with producer Scott Rudin. They agreed that Yagher would get to fulfil his ambition of directing, whilst Walker would continue to refine the script. It was a dream come true, but there was just one problem. Yagher was already signed on to helm another feature, in order to get a little practice in.

Unfortunately for him, that shoot turned out to be the catastrophic Hellraiser: Bloodline, a notoriously difficult production that was plagued with behind-the-scenes issues and creative spats. Suffice it to say, the negative word of mouth did no favors for Yagher’s reputation and he was soon bumped down from director of Sleepy Hollow, to prosthetic makeup designer. It’s hard to say if Bloodline was directly responsible for the demotion, but the timelines do sync up.

With the director’s chair now vacated, Paramount began headhunting for a replacement, one who would be capable of balancing the project’s old-school creepiness with its more overtly slasher-style influences. In the end, they decided upon Tim Burton, with the rationale being that his trademark aesthetic would line up perfectly with the gothic fairy-tale. 

Meanwhile, for his part, the quirky auteur was attracted by the opportunity to make a fully-fledged horror movie, something which he’d never done before. Sure, he’d dabbled in the territory a little and most of his work was already steeped in the supernatural, but this would be the first time that he’d really get to go to town with scares. And he was chomping at the bit to try it out. 

Deciding to preserve Walker and Yahger’s contributions, the director was happy with the story treatment and so instead focused his attention on designing the look of Sleepy Hollow. The resultant sketches and concept art, which can be glimpsed in the making-of documentary, are every bit as striking as you would expect, hearkening back to the Hammer horror films of yore whilst also feeling distinctly Burtonesque. Once all of that was in place, he then assembled a dream team of collaborators (Emmanuel Lubezki as DOP, Danny Elfman on composing duties and a smattering of British character actors in front of the camera) to make his vision a reality. 

And what a dazzling vision it was! Released in 1999, Sleepy Hollow might just be the most visually arresting horror film of all time. Every shot is artfully constructed and drenched in atmosphere. The imagery is haunting, the lighting effects are gorgeous, the landscapes are astonishing and even the soundstage bits are breath-taking, thanks to the immaculate production design and chilling weather effects.

It’s clearly a production where everyone was bringing their A-game and refused to compromise on the visuals. For example, the actual town itself was built from the ground up in the UK, after they failed to find anywhere that lived up to their ambition. Honestly, there’s a magic to it that Burton has been unable to replicate since. Nowadays he’s too reliant on lame green screen or digital cheats, but here he tried to do everything in camera, no matter how challenging, and it really pays off. 

Of course, being pretty isn’t enough to prop up an entire film. You also need to have a compelling narrative. Luckily, Burton chose to retain Yagher and Walker’s ingenious shooting script (which is largely unchanged, except for a slightly modified opening and romance subplot), meaning that he was working from a strong foundation. 

As aforementioned, the goal here was to meld together a period-piece with a relentlessly paced slasher, and this screenplay is almost a perfect execution of that concept. It’s overflowing with smart, era-appropriate dialogue, exciting set-pieces and an intriguing historical background. Even better, by drawing on his experience writing Se7en, Walker manages to offer up a dark, procedural mystery that keeps you guessing throughout. It’s kind of like Scream, only if you replace all the horny teenagers with stuffy old men in ludicrous wigs.

Speaking of which, as with those Hammer horror movies that inspired Burton, the cast of talented character actors here lend proceedings an air of sophistication that you don’t often associate with horror. From Michael Gambon, to Richard Griffiths, Christopher Walken, Ian McDiarmid, Christina Ricci and Michael Gough, they’re all committing to the trashy material, making it feel like a prestige picture that’s been hijacked by a rampaging Michael Myers.  

As for Yagher, whilst he may not have been able to direct his passion project, he did at least get to put his personal stamp on the incredible death scenes. Making use of all his makeup expertise, he ensures that every kill is convincing, creative and enjoyably gruesome. What makes this achievement all the more impressive is that he couldn’t really push the boat out too much, given that the horseman’s M.O necessitates that everyone is dispatched with a blow to the head. 

However, Yagher finds a way to keep these decapitations feeling fresh, shaking up the formula with each one. So, we have heads being struck off with blunt force, skewered with swords, sent spinning through the air and chopped off at all kinds of crazy angles. This means that you never get bored of seeing them, even if they are basically just variations on the same kill.

Granted, it does help that the prosthetics are so lifelike and meticulously realized. Even the most observant viewer will struggle to pinpoint the transition between a real actor’s head and their fake plaster cast, because the attention to detail is just so remarkable. The prosthetics have acrylic teeth, realistic muscles tissues and hairs that were individually punched into their skin. Because of this, you never doubt them for a second. Likewise, the mechanical rigs that are used for the more elaborate deaths are just as impressive, enabling decapitated bodies to collapse and fall in believable ways. 

There’s just so much to praise with this magnificent chiller: the menacing score; the fantastic villain, the lavish costume design; the way that it doesn’t pull its punches – even going so far as to decapitate a toddler! Plus, it was a big hit at the time, emerging as Johnny Depp’s highest performing movie at the box office and earning three Oscar nominations. Yet for some inexplicable reason it has now faded into relative obscurity and no one seems to remember it with much fondness. 

Which is sad, because Sleepy Hollow is genuinely one of the most entertaining films of the 1990s and a testament to what the horror genre is capable of when it’s afforded a proper budget. Indeed, scary movies of this scale are becoming increasingly rare and you won’t find another one quite like it, especially in the contemporary marketplace. With that said, as we approach its 20th anniversary, why not revisit this underrated gem? If nothing else, you’ll be treated to mesmerizing visuals, killer effects and a tightly constructed screenplay.

Oh, and while you’re at it, take a moment to acknowledge the genius of Kevin Yagher. He may not have directed this movie, but it’s his baby through and through and he deserves some credit. 

The post Heads Will Roll: Looking Back at Tim Burton’s Gothic Horror Film ‘Sleepy Hollow’ 20 Years Later appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

The move is part of a fresh strategy for the Universal monsters properties, bringing creative directors with distinctive visions to the classic characters, adds the site.

Johnny Depp was previously attached to The Invisible Man, but he will not appear in this film. Sources tell the mag that he still may be featured in another one of the monster movie projects in development.

“Throughout cinematic history, Universal’s classic monsters have been reinvented through the prism of each new filmmaker who brought these characters to life,” said Peter Cramer, Universal’s president of production. “We are excited to take a more individualized approach for their return to screen, shepherded by creators who have stories they are passionate to tell with them.”

The site also notes that the hiring Whannell does not necessarily mean this will be the next monster movie to go into production, as other pitches are also coming together revolving around different characters. Before the plug was pulled on the “Dark Universe”, Universal had planned reboots of The Creature From the Black Lagoon, The Bride of Frankenstein, among others. It’s unclear if they’ll re-reboot Dracula, The Wolfman or even The Mummy.

The talent previously attached to various monster roles like Depp, Javier Bardem, Tom Cruise, and Russell Crowe still have the option to appear in the movies after a filmmaker with a new vision is brought on.

The post Blumhouse Reviving Universal Monsters Starting with Leigh Whannell’s ‘The Invisible Man’ appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Heat Vision unearthed a 1999 interview with Charlie Rose in which the star said that while he loved working with director Tim Burton, he always had the feeling of insecurity, especially with Edward Scissorhands, which was released the first week of December 1990.

Depp explained that for Scissorhands, Burton rehearsed the rest of the cast, except for him, which was a double-edged sword.

“He didn’t know exactly what I was going to do when I walked on the set, the same thing with Ed Wood,” Depp told Rose. “In fact, I spent the first two weeks of Ed Wood, and Scissorhands and Sleepy Hallow thinking I was going to be fired, that I was going to be replaced. But luckily Tim was happy with the stuff, and I didn’t lose my job.”

Rose did not believe Depp was serious, to which Depp responded, “I swear to you.”

He then told his Hanks story.

“I can remember when we were doing Scissorhands we were living in this sort of resort, some kind of country club thing, and there was a knock on the door … one afternoon while everyone was off rehearsing,” Depp said. “There were two young girls at the door and I thought, ‘Oh, they found me and maybe they want me to sign something, I don’t know.’ So, I opened the door and said, ‘How do you do?’ and they said, ‘Hi. Is Tom Hanks here? Does he live here?’ I said, ‘What? No. Not yet.’ And I was convinced that Hanks would be replacing me. I was convinced. It was one of the most frightening moments in my career.”

Here’s the entire interview that was uploaded two years ago. While it was never really in consideration, could you see Tom Hanks as Edward Scissorhands? I mean, Burton did turn Michael Keaton into Beetlejuice…

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This morning he shared his latest video effort, “KILL4ME”, a Giallo-inspired pseudo-slasher once again starring Manson’s BFF, Johnny Depp. I don’t understand Manson’s obsession with “KILL4ME”, which is easily my least favorite song on the album. I’m hoping we get a video for “Saturnalia” or the title track in the coming months as well.

The video for “SAY10” is way more fun.

The post Watch Marilyn Manson’s Giallo-esque “KILL4ME” Music Video appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

In the hopes of taking a break from his daily life as a world-famous detective, Hercule Poirot (Kenneth Branagh) boards the Orient Express for some much needed R&R. While aboard the train, Poirot meets the rather detestable Edward Ratchett (Johnny Depp, the most understated he’s been in years), who asks him to figure out who has been leaving him threatening notes since his arrival on the train. After declining his offer with a hilariously succinct response (“I don’t like your face”), Ratchett is found murdered in his train cabin. Poirot then begins interrogating the remaining passengers on the train in order to solve the murder.

The suspect list is a long one: we’ve got a governess (Daisy Ridley), a count (Sergei Polunin), a countess (Lucy Boynton, The Blackcoat’s Daughter), a widow (Michelle Pfeiffer), a professor (Willem Dafoe), a missionary (Penélope Cruz), an assistant (Josh Gad), a princess (Judi Dench), a doctor (Leslie Odom Jr.) a butler (Derek Jacobi), a salesman (Manuel Garcia-Rulfo) and a maid (Olivia Colman, Hot Fuzz). And yes, I took those descriptions from the trailer.

As evidenced by that lengthy cast list, Murder on the Orient Express is a very crowded film. In fact, that proves to be the film’s only major flaw. Green could have afforded to excise two or three characters from his screenplay in order to flesh out the others. No one player is given the focus, save for Branagh of course. His Hercule (pronounced air-cyule, and he won’t let you forget it) is given a lengthy introduction before the film even boards the titular vehicle, and he remains the focus for the remainder of the film. Distributor 20th Century Fox is clearly wanting to start a franchise with Murder on the Orient Express, and is using the film to re-introduce an iconic character to a new audience. This isn’t too problematic since Branagh portrays Poirot with a quirky and infectious sense of glee. With every other line out of his mouth inspiring a chuckle, he manages to run away with the film.

Unfortunately, this leaves everyone else in the cast to a limited amount of screen time, making them no more than one-dimensional characters. Boynton and Polunin are particularly shafted, each of them earning a mere three scenes at most. You’d be hard-pressed to distinguish between the characters had they been portrayed by a cast of unknowns, however. That being said, we are dealing with a plethora of extremely talented actors and they all make the most of their screen time. Pfeiffer, in particular, manages to overcome the weaknesses of Green’s script and give us the most well-rounded character outside of Poirot.

The real star of the film is Haris Zambarloukos’ luscious cinematography. Filled with gorgeous shots of snowy landscapes, the film never ceases to amaze. Zambarloukos shows even more talent in the confined spaces of the Orient Express (one overhead shot near the end of the first act stands out). Working with that limited space, he conveys a necessary sense of claustrophobia while still managing to give Jim Clay’s detailed production design the attention it deserves. It’s easy to see why Branagh, who previously worked with him on Thor and Cinderella, decided to bring him back for this film.

Murder on the Orient Express is so committed to its old-fashioned sensibilities that some viewers may find the proceedings to be lacking in the twists and turns that modern audiences are used to, but Green keeps things moving at a brisk pace and the nearly 2-hour runtime flies by. It is never boring, and it feels like the equivalent of a fun summer read. What more can you ask for in a film like this? The climactic reveal may not pack as much of a wallop as it did in 1934, but it injects the film with a necessary moment of emotional resonance that elevates it above more shallow entries in the genre. Admittedly, I probably enjoyed the film more because I have never read Christie’s novel or seen Sidney Lumet’s 1974 film adaptation of it, thereby retaining a somewhat necessary element of surprise. It will be interesting to see if it holds up on a repeat viewing.

For those looking for an involving murder mystery that is respectful of its source material and filled with an all-star cast, look no further than Murder on the Orient Express. With any luck the film will find an audience (20th Century Fox seems to have confidence that it will, as it ends with a tease for a sequel featuring one of Poirot’s other well-known cases), especially seeing as how it is representative of a type of film we don’t really see anymore. I’d be all for a new Poirot film every couple of years. Lord knows there’s plenty of source material to draw from.

The post [Review] ‘Murder on the Orient Express’ is a Lovely Ode to Old-Fashioned Murder Mysteries appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

A not-so-shocking report over at THR says that writer-producers Alex Kurtzman and Chris Morgan, who were hired as Universal’s “Dark Universe” architects, have departed the franchise.

Just five months after Universal released a cast photo promising a slew of movies starring the likes of Johnny Depp, Russell Crowe, and Javier Bardem — all drawn on characters like the Invisible Man, Wolf Man and Frankenstein in its stable of classic horror films — none of the projects appears to have a pulse.

As the site notes, in early October, Universal pulled the plug on preproduction that had started in London for Bride of Frankenstein — which was to have followed The Mummy as the second entry in the series — partly because execs felt the script by writer-director Bill Condon wasn’t ready. Angelina Jolie had been courted for the lead but is now not attached. Insiders insist Condon (Beauty and the Beast) remains attached, but no date has been set to resume work, and a Feb. 14, 2019, release has been shelved.

“Emblematic of Dark Universe’s problems is the tony office building on the Universal lot that was revamped at considerable expense for the new venture. After being decked out in monster regalia, it now sits mostly empty.”

With the head of the snake lopped off, Universal allegedly isn’t pulling the plug. The site notes that the studio is exploring its options. One road involves offering the IP to high-profile filmmakers or producers with ideas for one-off movies not connected to a larger universe. It’s also possible that the studio could find a new architect who could overhaul the concept (James Wan, maybe?).

Universal president of production Peter Cramer sidestepped the issue, claiming that they’re more focused on getting a special kind of director than worrying about release dates.

“We’ve learned many lessons throughout the creative process on Dark Universe so far, and we are viewing these titles as filmmaker-driven vehicles, each with their own distinct vision,” says Cramer. “We are not rushing to meet a release date and will move forward with these films when we feel they are the best versions of themselves.”

This is a load of crap, especially considering they hired Alex Kurtzman to head the Dark Universe and direct The Mummy, and Bill Condon for Bride of Frankenstein. The extra special irony in Cramer’s statement is that Guillermo del Toro‘s The Shape of Water, opening Dec. 1, 2017, is directly inspired by The Creature From the Black Lagoon, and will be an Oscar-contender for Fox Searchlight. What makes this even more hilarious is that del Toro was once attached to direct a Black Lagoon remake for Universal. Hmmmm?

While Universal may be seeking other options, they’ve yet to crack the Monsterverse with their horrid films ranging from The Wolfman to Dracula Untold. As horror purists, we hope they can figure this out, but for now, at least we have del Toro’s The Shape of Water to tide us over.

Thoughts?

The post Universal Goes Back to the Drawing Board as Dark Universe Producers Abandon the Franchise appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Marilyn Manson‘s video for “SAY10”, off his 10th studio album Heaven Upside Down, is horror fan’s wet dream. The video features a woman being attacked by a black-gloved killer in an homage to classic Giallo films. Not only that, but it’s a loving tribute to A Nightmare on Elm Street and its star Johnny Depp, who also appears alongside Manson as Cain and Abel in the music video!

[Related] Interview: Marilyn Manson’s Fire Burns Again on Emotional ‘Heaven Upside Down’

One of the coolest scenes in Elm Street is when Freddy Krueger comes out of the wall and looms over a sleeping Nancy. Here, Manson echoes the sequence using the same special effect trickery: a sheet. Later in the video, Manson nods directly to Depp’s Elm Street demise by covering himself in blood. It’s a reference to the scene in Craven’s classic slasher when Freddy pulls Depp into his bed, unloading buckets of blood all over his ceiling. Spectacular! Heaven Upside Down is out now on Loma Vista.

THIS. IS. NOT. WORK. SAFE.

The post Marilyn Manson’s Bloody ‘SAY10’ Video Stars Johnny Depp and Pays Tribute to ‘A Nightmare on Elm Street’! appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

“Charlie Sheen was initially cast as Heather’s boyfriend, and he wanted $3,000 a week, which we couldn’t afford,” Shaye explained.

At the time, Sheen had already been working on Red Dawn, which raised his profile. Fate would have its way, however, with the role being passed onto Johnny Depp. Imagine a world in which Depp didn’t break out battling Freddy Krueger… it’s possible he wouldn’t have starred in “21 Jump Street”, not to mention Platoon, Edward Scissorhands, Ed Wood and everything thereafter. Crazy.

Thanks to the power of money, Depp was sucked into his bed in the now legendary sequence, although it would have been fun to see Sheen in the same role.

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The TV adaptation, which is being written by James V. Hart (Hook, Crossbones) and Jake Hart, with former “CSI: NY” showrunner Pam Veasey on board as showrunner, will be based on the universe of the Secret World IP. It will center on a team of undercover agents and the shadowy war between secret societies: the Illuminati, Dragon and the Templar. Central to the plot is their battle against the supernatural in an adventure that spans across our world, and incorporates the realms of ancient myths and legends, as well as today’s conspiracy theories and headline news.

Johnny Depp, Christi Dembrowski, Sam Sarkar and Gudrun Giddings will produce with Veasey.

Created by Norwegian developer and publisher Funcom, the original game was first published in 2012 as one of that year’s top games .

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Published in 1934, Agatha Christie’s mystery novel Murder on the Orient Express was first adapted for the big screen by Sidney Lumet in 1974, and most recently got a made-for-TV adaptation in 2001. Now, over 80 years after being published, the novel gets a brand new adaptation from director Kenneth Branagh and producer Ridley Scott.

The trailer for Branagh’s Murder on the Orient Express just hit today, and it introduces the cast of characters aboard the titular train. One of them is a killer. But which one?

In the film…

What starts out as a lavish train ride through Europe quickly unfolds into one of the most stylish, suspenseful and thrilling mysteries ever told. From the novel by best selling author Agatha Christie, “Murder on the Orient Express” tells the tale of thirteen strangers stranded on a train, where everyone’s a suspect. One man must race against time to solve the puzzle before the murderer strikes again.

Tom Bateman, Kenneth Branagh, Penélope Cruz, Willem Dafoe, Judi Dench, Johnny Depp, Josh Gad, Derek Jacobi, Leslie Odom, Jr., Michelle Pfeiffer, Daisy Ridley, Marwan Kenzari, Olivia Colman, Lucy Boynton, Manuel Garcia-Rulfo and Sergei Polunin star.

The mystery begins on November 10th.

The post [Trailer] Who’s Responsible for the ‘Murder on the Orient Express’? appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Universal Pictures just announced that its series of films reviving the studio’s classic monster characters for a new generation, beginning with next month’s The Mummy, will be known as the Dark Universe. Furthermore, they’ve officially confirmed that several HUGE stars are on board to star in the subsequent films in the brand new universe.

The Invisible Man and Frankenstein’s Monster will be played by, respectively, blockbuster icon Johnny Depp and Academy Award winner Javier Bardem. They join superstar Tom Cruise as soldier of fortune Nick Morton and Oscar winner Russell Crowe as Dr. Henry Jekyll, who lead the all-star cast of The Mummy along with Sofia Boutella.

Bill Condon will direct Bride of Frankenstein, to be released in February 14, 2019.

At its organizing principle, Dark Universe films are connected by a mysterious multi-national organization known as Prodigium. Led by the enigmatic and brilliant Dr. Henry Jekyll, Prodigium’s mission is to track, study and—when necessary—destroy evil embodied in the form of monsters in our world. Working outside the aegis of any government, and with practices concealed by millennia of secrecy, Prodigium protects the public from knowledge of the evil that exists just beyond the thin membrane of civilized society…and will go to any length to contain it.

The motion logo for the new initiative features a musical theme composed by Danny Elfman and will debut in theaters preceding The Mummy, out on June 9.

Dark Universe was begun by core creatives Alex Kurtzman and producer Chris Morgan. Also joining the enterprise to inspire and entertain a new generation are such visionary talents as Oscar winner® Christopher McQuarrie (Mission: Impossible series, The Usual Suspects) and David Koepp (War of the Worlds, Jurassic Park).  

Check out the Dark Universe logo below!

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We’re now two weeks away from the release of Disney’s Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, the fourth sequel in the Johnny Depp-led franchise that kicked off way back in 2003. The two most recent installment both featured rocker Keith Richards in the role of Captain Teague, father of Jack Sparrow, but he’s not the only iconic musician donning the dreads and braided beard for the franchise.

Confirming a rumor, Paul McCartney, who of course needs no introduction, just showed off a character poster that gives us our first look at his Dead Men Tell No Tales cameo! McCartney is credited as “Jail Guard 2” on IMDb, and we have no way of knowing how big or small his role will be. But we’ll find out real soon!

Check out the poster below.

Johnny Depp returns to the big screen as the iconic, swashbuckling anti-hero Jack Sparrow in the all-new installment.

Captain Jack feels the winds of ill-fortune blowing strongly his way when deadly ghost sailors, led by the terrifying Captain Salazer, escape from the Devil’s Triangle bent on killing every pirate at sea – notably Jack. Jack’s only hope of survival lies in the legendary Trident of Poseidon. At the helm of the Dying Gull, his pitifull small and shabby ship, Captain Jack seeks not only to reverse his recent spate of ill fortune, but to save his very life from the most formidable and malicious foe he has never faced.

In theaters May 26th from directors Espen Sandberg and Joachim Rønning, the film’s cast also includes Geoffrey Rush, Javier Bardem, Kevin R. McNally, Stephen Graham, Golshifteh Farahani, Kaya Scodelario, Brenton Thwaites, Orlando Bloom, David Wenham, and Stephen Graham.

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Apparently a Jack Sparrow (Johnny Depp) origin story, Captain Salazer’s (Javier Bardem) motive comes when a young Sparrow takes everything from him. The CGI to make Depp look younger is pretty crazy…

Johnny Depp returns to the big screen as the iconic, swashbuckling anti-hero Jack Sparrow in the all-new “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales.” The rip-roaring adventure finds down-on-his-luck Captain Jack feeling the winds of ill-fortune blowing strongly his way when deadly ghost sailors, led by the terrifying Captain Salazer (Javier Bardem), escape from the Devil’s Triangle bent on killing every pirate at sea – notably Jack. Jack’s only hope of survival lies in the legendary Trident of Poseidon, but to find it he must forge an uneasy alliance with Carina Smyth (Kaya Scodelario), a brilliant and beautiful astronomer, and Henry (Benton Thwaites), a headstrong young sailor in the Royal Navy. At the helm of the Dying Gull, his pitifull small and shabby ship, Captain Jack seeks not only to reverse his recent spate of ill fortune, but to save his very life from the most formidable and malicious foe he has never faced.

In theaters May 26th from directors Espen Sandberg and Joachim Rønning, the entire cast includes: Johnny Depp, Geoffrey Rush, Javier Bardem, Kevin R. McNally, Stephen Graham, Golshifteh Farahani, Kaya Scodelario, Brenton Thwaites, Orlando Bloom, Paul McCartney, David Wenham, and Stephen Graham.

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Johnny Depp returns to the big screen as the iconic, swashbuckling anti-hero Jack Sparrow in the all-new “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales.” The rip-roaring adventure finds down-on-his-luck Captain Jack feeling the winds of ill-fortune blowing strongly his way when deadly ghost sailors, led by the terrifying Captain Salazer (Javier Bardem), escape from the Devil’s Triangle bent on killing every pirate at sea – notably Jack. Jack’s only hope of survival lies in the legendary Trident of Poseidon, but to find it he must forge an uneasy alliance with Carina Smyth (Kaya Scodelario), a brilliant and beautiful astronomer, and Henry (Benton Thwaites), a headstrong young sailor in the Royal Navy. At the helm of the Dying Gull, his pitifull small and shabby ship, Captain Jack seeks not only to reverse his recent spate of ill fortune, but to save his very life from the most formidable and malicious foe he has never faced.

In theaters May 26th from directors Espen Sandberg and Joachim Rønning, the entire cast includes: Johnny Depp, Geoffrey Rush, Javier Bardem, Kevin R. McNally, Stephen Graham, Golshifteh Farahani, Kaya Scodelario, Brenton Thwaites, Orlando Bloom, Paul McCartney, David Wenham, and Stephen Graham.

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Johnny Depp returns to the big screen as the iconic, swashbuckling anti-hero Jack Sparrow in the all-new “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales.” The rip-roaring adventure finds down-on-his-luck Captain Jack feeling the winds of ill-fortune blowing strongly his way when deadly ghost sailors, led by the terrifying Captain Salazer (Javier Bardem), escape from the Devil’s Triangle bent on killing every pirate at sea – notably Jack. Jack’s only hope of survival lies in the legendary Trident of Poseidon, but to find it he must forge an uneasy alliance with Carina Smyth (Kaya Scodelario), a brilliant and beautiful astronomer, and Henry (Benton Thwaites), a headstrong young sailor in the Royal Navy. At the helm of the Dying Gull, his pitifull small and shabby ship, Captain Jack seeks not only to reverse his recent spate of ill fortune, but to save his very life from the most formidable and malicious foe he has never faced.

In theaters May 26th from directors Espen Sandberg and Joachim Rønning, the entire cast includes: Johnny Depp, Geoffrey Rush, Javier Bardem, Kevin R. McNally, Stephen Graham, Golshifteh Farahani, Kaya Scodelario, Brenton Thwaites, Orlando Bloom, Paul McCartney, David Wenham, and Stephen Graham.

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You may be wondering why we’re covering Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, but I don’t think you’ll be asking yourself that question after you get an eye-full of some of the awesome creatures you’ll be meeting in this one. AMC Theaters just got their hands on some exclusive concept art that teases the film’s ghost sharks, and we figured you’d dig it.

Because ghost sharks. I mean come on. This is too cool.

Johnny Depp returns to the big screen as the iconic, swashbuckling anti-hero Jack Sparrow in this year’s all-new adventure.

The rip-roaring adventure finds down-on-his-luck Captain Jack feeling the winds of ill-fortune blowing strongly his way when deadly ghost sailors, led by the terrifying Captain Salazer (Javier Bardem), escape from the Devil’s Triangle bent on killing every pirate at sea – notably Jack. Jack’s only hope of survival lies in the legendary Trident of Poseidon, but to find it he must forge an uneasy alliance with Carina Smyth (Kaya Scodelario), a brilliant and beautiful astronomer, and Henry (Benton Thwaites), a headstrong young sailor in the Royal Navy. At the helm of the Dying Gull, his pitifull small and shabby ship, Captain Jack seeks not only to reverse his recent spate of ill fortune, but to save his very life from the most formidable and malicious foe he has never faced.

In theaters May 26th from directors Espen Sandberg and Joachim Rønning, the entire cast includes: Johnny Depp, Geoffrey Rush, Javier Bardem, Kevin R. McNally, Stephen Graham, Golshifteh Farahani, Kaya Scodelario, Brenton Thwaites, Orlando Bloom, Paul McCartney, David Wenham, and Stephen Graham.

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Johnny Depp returns to the big screen as the iconic, swashbuckling anti-hero Jack Sparrow in the all-new “Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales.” The rip-roaring adventure finds down-on-his-luck Captain Jack feeling the winds of ill-fortune blowing strongly his way when deadly ghost sailors, led by the terrifying Captain Salazer (Javier Bardem), escape from the Devil’s Triangle bent on killing every pirate at sea – notably Jack. Jack’s only hope of survival lies in the legendary Trident of Poseidon, but to find it he must forge an uneasy alliance with Carina Smyth (Kaya Scodelario), a brilliant and beautiful astronomer, and Henry (Benton Thwaites), a headstrong young sailor in the Royal Navy. At the helm of the Dying Gull, his pitifull small and shabby ship, Captain Jack seeks not only to reverse his recent spate of ill fortune, but to save his very life from the most formidable and malicious foe he has never faced.

In theaters May 26th from directors Espen Sandberg and Joachim Rønning, the entire cast includes: Johnny Depp, Geoffrey Rush, Javier Bardem, Kevin R. McNally, Stephen Graham, Golshifteh Farahani, Kaya Scodelario, Brenton Thwaites, Orlando Bloom, Paul McCartney, David Wenham, and Stephen Graham.

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It’s been six years since the hit franchise’s last sequel, but Captain Jack Sparrow is finally set to return this coming May in fifth installment Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales. Fresh out of the Super Bowl comes a brand new trailer that gives us our first look at Sparrow in the upcoming film, and if it’s any indication, the drunken pirate hasn’t lost a step.

Check out the Super Bowl spot below, along with a new poster!

Joachim Rønning and Espen Sandberg directed the new installment.

Javier Bardem, Geoffrey Rush, Kaya Scodelario and Orlando Bloom also star.

Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales is in theaters May 26th, 2017 in 3D, RealD 3D and IMAX 3D.

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With such a towering entity of evil, it’s no surprise that the horror genre has used the Devil as a character in several films over the years. Obviously, it’s hard to get something like that right but there have been a few instances where the portrayal was something incredible and memorable.

So, let’s go ahead and take a look at some portrayals of actors who brought the baddest of the bad to the silver screen!

Peter Stormare – Constantine

Many consider this to be the best portrayal in movie history. I absolutely wouldn’t go that far but I will say that it’s a damn good one or else I wouldn’t have put it on this list! Stormare may have looked human but there was a strange serpent-like quality about his speech and mannerisms. He plays the role with glee and obviously relishes every moment he has onscreen. After all, if you’re gonna be Lucifer, may as well have fun being bad!

Robert De Niro – Angel Heart

I feel like horror and film noir are two genres that haven’t crossed paths enough times. There’s something delightful about watching a detective movie that feels dour. Plus, horror films are often rather pessimistic, so combining the two seems like a win-win situation. Can you imagine more movies like Lord of Illusions? I’d be 100% into that!

Anyways, Robert De Niro plays Louis Cyphre (Lou Cyphre -> Lucifer), a mysterious man who hires private investigator Harry Angel (Mickey Rourke) to investigate the disappearance of a singer by the name of Johnny Favorite. The investigation takes Angel to New Orleans, where a string of murders begin happening and Angel finds himself caught in the middle.

De Niro is 100% classy here. Impeccably dressed and almost aristocratic in appearance, he brings an elegance to the role while still emitting waves of malevolence. It’s a masterful performance.

Al Pacino – The Devil’s Advocate

I feel like someone was watching “Law & Order” and suddenly said, “What if I wrote that but with Satan as the bad guy?” Not that I’m complaining about this film as I think it’s a lot of fun but I was always curious how it came to be.

Pacino is, as always, an absolute delight to watch. It feels like he’s madly in love with playing such a villain and he can’t contain himself. Every moment he’s on the screen is lifted by his exuberance and it makes for one of the most charismatic portrayals of the Devil cinema has ever seen.

Viggo Mortensen – The Prophecy

While this movie, in my opinion, really hasn’t aged all that well, there’s no denying that the brief cameo from Viggo Mortensen is the highlight of the film. He plays the role a bit more subtly than others on this list. Yes, he roars at that weird sycophant by his side but that’s about as far as he goes in his first appearance. Never raising his voice, he knows his presence alone is all it takes to ensure everyone’s attention is set solely on him.

Emmanuelle Seigner – The Ninth Gate

If you thought Satan could only be portrayed by a man, think again. Seigner’s approach to this role is to use seduction, manipulation, and her wiles to get what she wants. It probably helps that her role is kept as mysterious as possible, which only adds to the big reveal. While it’s easy to think of her as a guardian angel for Corso, she’s in reality the means by which the ritual will take place.

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Per The Hollywood Reporter, Depp and a handful of other big name talents came on board to help 16-year-old cancer patient Anthony Conti bring to life his zombie film The Black Ghiandola. Depp was joined by folks like Sam Raimi, David Lynch, Catherine Hardwicke, Laure Dern, Penelope Ann Miller, and J.K. Simmons. The film was shot over the course of five days last month, with Raimi, Hardwicke, and Ted Melfi (St. Vincent) taking turns in the director’s chair.

Conti wrote the script with Scott Kosar, who penned the 2003 Texas Chainsaw Massacre remake. Additional writing was contributed by Wash Westmoreland (Still Alice).

In Black Ghiandola:

A young man risks his life saving a young girl he has grown to love after his family has been killed during a zombie apocalypse.

Anthony Conti, who is battling stage IV adrenal cortical cancer, stars in the short film.

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This time, Johnny Depp’s Captain Jack Sparrow will battle the supernatural. The sequel’s title, “Dead Men Tell No Tales”, is an uber cool reference to the rides at Walt Disneyworld and Disney Land!

Captain Jack Sparrow finds the winds of ill-fortune blowing even more strongly when deadly ghost pirates led by his old nemesis, the terrifying Captain Salazar, escape from the Devil’s Triangle, determined to kill every pirate at sea…including him. Captain Jack’s only hope of survival lies in seeking out the legendary Trident of Poseidon, a powerful artifact that bestows upon its possessor total control over the seas.

The teaser trailer gives us our first look at Javier Bardem as the aforementioned Captain Salazar, while Geoffrey Rush is confirmed to return as Barbossa.

Hopefully it brings the franchise back to its roots with Gore Verbinski’s absolutely astounding 2003 Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl. Joachim Rønning and Espen Sandberg direct this time around with Kaya Scodelario and Orlando Bloom also starring alongside Depp.

The Pirates movies have made $3.7 billion at the global box office.

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Kilar is probably most well known to the horror audience for his work on Francis Ford Coppola’s Bram Stoker’s Dracula, a wonderful score that embodies the age, romance, excitement, terror, and epic nature of the infamous vampire story.

But the lesser-seen gem The Ninth Gate has an equally brilliant score, one that mixes beauty and terror with a delightfully cheeky and playful quality that embraces the absurdity of the movie while highlighting the mystic air that pervades throughout.

Corso’s theme reminds me of bumbling detectives who stumble and flounder yet are absolutely endearing. This matches his character who, while clever and fascinating, also manages to get himself caught in situations that are out of his control. But tracks like “The Ninth Gate” or “Liana’s Death” remind the viewer that what they are watching is a fun film with a blasphemously serious plot. After all, raising the Devil is not an event to be held lightly.

That’s where Kilar’s brilliance comes into play. I firmly believe that the reason I enjoy The Ninth Gate so much is because of how his score moves the story along. I can go from my lips pursed in suspense to an ear-to-ear grin in the span of moments, all thanks to the wit of the music.

If you haven’t given the music a chance, I highly recommend picking up Silva Screen’s black vinyl edition. There’s also a flame variant they pressed but that had some pressing issues, so it’s safer to go the route that will get you the best audio experience.

And if you haven’t seen the movie, definitely pick up a copy on Amazon.

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This news came just after Smith found out that the film, originally rated R, had been bumped down to a PG-13 rating for unknown reasons.

The full trailer is now here and cooks up trouble with “bratzi,” you know, Smith dressed up as a foot tall Canadian Nazi made of sentient Bratwurst. There’s also a ton of shit emojis, a monster with a hockey mask (nope, not Jason), and Stan Lee!

We also get to see a film starring Smith and his BFF Johnny Depp’s daughters, Harley Quinn Smith and Lily-Rose Depp.

The two star as Colleen Collette and Colleen McKenzie, who are teenage besties from Winnipeg who love yoga and live on their smartphones. But when these sophomores get invited to a senior party by the school hottie, the Colleens accidentally uncover an ancient evil buried beneath their Canadian convenience store. They join forces with legendary man-hunter Guy Lapointe to fight for their lives.

The pic also stars Michael Parks, Justin Long, Genesis Rodriguez, Ralph Garman, Jennifer Schwalbach, Harley Morenstein, Stan Lee, Tony Hale, Natasha Lyonne, Austin Butler, Adam Brody, Tyler Posey, Jason Mewes, and Johnny Depp.

Tour dates:
6/1 – New Orleans, LA at the Joy Theater
6/2 – Ponte Vedra, FL at Ponte Vedra Concert Hall
6/6 – Houston, TX at The Houston Improv
6/12 – Columbus, OH at Studio 35 Cinema & Drafthouse
7/8 – Durham, NC at The Carolina Theatre
7/12 – San Jose, CA at The Improv
7/17 – San Francisco, CA at Cobbs Comedy Club

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This news comes just after Smith found out that the film, originally rated R, had been bumped down to a PG-13 rating for unknown reasons.

But I digress… here’s a new international trailer that shows how wild and wacky this genre comedy is going to be.

What can we expect? How about a box filled with “bratzi,” you know, Smith dressed up as a foot tall Canadian Nazi made of sentient Bratwurst. Not kidding. Take a look.

We also get to see a film starring Smith and his BFF Johnny Depp’s daughters, Harley Quinn Smith and Lily-Rose Depp.

The two star as Colleen Collette and Colleen McKenzie, who are teenage besties from Winnipeg who love yoga and live on their smartphones. But when these sophomores get invited to a senior party by the school hottie, the Colleens accidentally uncover an ancient evil buried beneath their Canadian convenience store. They join forces with legendary man-hunter Guy Lapointe to fight for their lives.

The pic also stars Michael Parks, Justin Long, Genesis Rodriguez, Ralph Garman, Jennifer Schwalbach, Harley Morenstein, Stan Lee, Tony Hale, Natasha Lyonne, Austin Butler, Adam Brody, Tyler Posey, Jason Mewes, and Johnny Depp.

Tour dates:
6/1 – New Orleans, LA at the Joy Theater
6/2 – Ponte Vedra, FL at Ponte Vedra Concert Hall
6/6 – Houston, TX at The Houston Improv
6/12 – Columbus, OH at Studio 35 Cinema & Drafthouse
7/8 – Durham, NC at The Carolina Theatre
7/12 – San Jose, CA at The Improv
7/17 – San Francisco, CA at Cobbs Comedy Club

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Alex Kurtzman and Chris Morgan are overseeing this new universe, which will see each of the movies having some sort of interaction with the others, kinda like how the MCU films all play into each other. The pair spoke about their vision in an interview last year.

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Anyways, the last we heard was earlier this month when a site had quoted Burton as saying that the Beetlejuice sequel was “a go and has been approved by the Warner Bros. team,” further adding, “we have talked with the cast members we wanted for the film and they are all on board, this includes both Winona and Michael.” This was shot down a day later when a rep told the site: “Tim’s focus is entirely on Miss Peregrine’s Home For Peculiar Children set for a September 30, 2016 release and developing Dumbo.”

While this is true, we’re hearing that the continual hold up was actual due to Keaton’s return to super stardom. In short, you can thank Birdman and Spotlight for the delay. The proverbial ball was pushed back uphill when Keaton was nominated at last year’s Oscars for for “Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role” for his portrayal of Riggan in Birdman.

Allegedly, Burton has a small window to make a Beetlejuice sequel happen, and Keaton is dragging his feet due to him having a renaissance in his career. What we’re being told is that Burton has decided to “move on” and has enlisted his regular partner in crime, Johnny Depp, to fill the shoes of the “Ghost with the most.”

This makes a whole lot of sense considering that, since Depp appeared in Burton’s Edward Scissorhands, he’s gone on to collaborate with the Gothic filmmaker in Ed Wood, Sleep Hollow, From Hell, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Corpse Bride, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, Dark Shadows and even Alice in Wonderland.

Allegedly, Depp is boasting his performance as Guy Lapointe in Kevin Smith’s Tusk, and plans to deliver a similar style, while also adding a cockney accent to his  interpretation of Beetlejuice.

With an April 1, 2018 release date slated, Burton is also said to still be interested in helming Candyland, the adaptation of the popular board game, as well as Hot Topic: The Movie and Little Shop of Horrors.

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That is the question that Kevin Smith posed to audiences in 2014 with his body-horror-comedy Tusk. Apparently, no one wanted to know the answer because the film flopped in theaters. When Tusk premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival in Septembe of 2014, it actually received mostly positive word-of-mouth from viewers. Once it saw a wide release two weeks later however, people couldn’t seem to stop shit-talking it.

It’s no secret that hating on Kevin Smith seems to be the cool thing to do nowadays (even more cool than hating Eli Roth). Many of his “fans” claim he hasn’t made a legitimately good movie since Chasing Amy in 1997. I would argue that Dogma, Clerks II and Zack and Miri Make a Porno are all winners, but what do I know? Hell, I even like certain things about Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back and Jersey Girl (it’s really not that bad).

Smith would make his first foray into horror with Red State, a political crime-horror film with an admittedly fantastic cast (how he managed to nab John Goodman and Melissa Leo I’ll never know) that sparked controversy from the get-go when Smith chose to self-distribute the film under the SModcast Pictures banner with a traveling show in select cities. It divided critics (though it’s got a better-than-you’d-expect 58% Rotten Tomatoes score) and audiences alike, but I personally think it’s pretty great, save for that tacked on after-school-special ending. The polarizing reviews that  film received would not hold a candle to those of his next film: Tusk, the first installment of his “True North” trilogy that continues with this year’s Yoga Hosers (read our review) and next year’s Moose Jaws, which I am particularly excited for.

As someone who has either loved or really liked most of Smith’s work (save for Mallrats and the atrocious Cop Out, which wasn’t even his script so I can’t really hold him responsible for that one), it makes perfect sense to come to the defense of Tusk, which sees quite a bit of hate here in Bloody Disgusting’s comments section. Even Mr. Disgusting loathes the film. I may not be able to make any converts, but my hope is that this post will serve as a safe haven for those of you who do like the film and feel like you can’t come clean for fear of an online verbal bashing. Let it be known that I am here for you! Tusk is actually a pretty great movie, Guy LaPointe and all!

***SPOILERS BELOW***

The plot of Tusk is a timeless one: an elderly man (Michael Parks, who owns the movie) wants to turn another man into a walrus so that he can be his companion for life. The whole film essentially plays like a pseudo sequel to Quint’s USS Indianapolis speech from Jaws.

The story behind the film’s creation is an interesting one. From Wikipedia:

The idea for the film came during the recording of SModcast 259 The Walrus and The Carpenter. In the episode, Smith with his longtime friend and producer Scott Mosier discussed an article featuring a Gumtree ad where a homeowner was offering a living situation free of charge, if the lodger agrees to dress as a walrus. The discussion went on from there, resulting in almost an hour of the episode being spent on reconstructing and telling a hypothetical story based on the ad. Smith then told his Twitter followers to tweet “#WalrusYes” if they wanted to see their hypothetical turned into a film, or “#WalrusNo” if they did not. A vast majority of Smith’s following agreed that the film should be made. The post on Gumtree was in fact a prank post by noted Brighton poet and prankster Chris Parkinson, who upon hearing of the planned film said he was a big fan of Smith and that he would love to be involved. Smith eventually hired Parkinson as an associate producer in November.

So really, if anyone is to “blame” for Tusk, it’s Smith’s followers (many of whom apparently went on to hate the film), but I digress. Many people seem to dislike Tusk based on the plot alone, but if that’s the case, why did they watch it in the first place? Clearly the film wasn’t meant for someone who doesn’t want to see a movie about a man turning another man into his walrus friend.

Let’s get this out of the way: lead character Wallace Bryton (Justin Long) is a huge asshole. Nothing about him inspires sympathy for what happens to him later in the film. This may pose a problem for some viewers, especially those looking for legitimate horror. You can’t have horror without a character to care about, amiright?

That being said, the scene where Wallace discovers that his leg has been amputated is easily the highlight of the film (unless the walrus suit reveal is your favorite, I go back and forth). It is reminiscent of Misery, but it’s possibly one of the most unsettling scenes put on film in recent memory.

Even if you can’t stand Long’s character, you have to admit that no one deserves that fate. Long’s reactions to his missing limb are haunting, and almost (almost) make you forget what a terrible person his character is. Once he is in his full walrus suit, Long is essentially relegated to just hopping around and grunting for the remainder of the film. Still, he makes for a pretty convincing walrus. That reveal is equal points humorous and shocking though. Kudos to Smith for not holding back with that creature design. The quick-zoom-out of the camera when Walrus Wallace first makes his appearance adds to the hilarity of the situation.

As mentioned previously, Parks owns Tusk. He gives such a compelling performance and really just falls into the roll. After his performance as Pastor Cooper in Red State, it’s easy to see why Smith wanted to cast him as the villainous and completely unhinged Howard Howe in Tusk. Even if you hate the film, you’ve got to admire Parks’ commitment. He legitimately sells his characters obsession with a walrus named Mr. Tusk, and actually makes you feel a little bad for him when you learn that he had to eat him to survive (though, in a very The Mist-like twist, help arrives just moments after he has finished his meal).

One aspect of the film that doesn’t entirely work is the character of Ally, played by Génesis Rodríguez. Her willingness to help Wallace after admitting to Teddy (and the audience, in a scene that practically breaks the fourth wall) how awful he treats her and how terrible he makes her feel is confounding. Maybe it’s just because I lack the empathy that the character does, but it just doesn’t seem believable that she would fly to Canada to rescue someone who makes her happy that her dad isn’t alive to see her. Her monologue at the midway point of the film is exceptional though. It’s just a shame that all of the character development built up during it is ruined when she decides to go rescue Wallace.

Even Teddy’s (Haley Joel Osment) motivations aren’t entirely clear, since he’s the one having sex with Ally, (though Smith does hide his identity for a good five minutes before revealing who it is Ally is talking to). I get it: they’re best friends, but Wallace is a huge douchebag and Teddy must not like him too much if he’s having sex with his girlfriend. Teddy and Ally’s unclear motivations for wanting to save Wallace are really my biggest complaints about Tusk. Osment is pretty fun in the role though, and it is nice to see him back on the screen, even if he spends the first half of the movie laughing obnoxiously.

Humor plays a big part in Tusk, and Smith’s frat-boy humor is present throughout the film, although not as prevalently as it is in something like Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back. From the constant mentions of walrus penises to the fact that Wallace’s podcast is named “The Not-See Party” (Teddy is afraid of flying so Wallace goes to interview their guests and during the podcast he tells Teddy about his experience since Teddy hasn’t seen he interview subject), it’s all a little juvenile, but most of it works in the context of the film.

Let’s get to the walrus elephant in the room: Johnny Depp’s portrayal of Guy LaPointe. If anyone was on the fence about Tusk at this point in the film (he show up exactly 63 minutes into the proceedings), Depp undoubtedly managed to knock them off of it. While he is only present in the final 40 minutes of the film (and not even all of it), he is a bizarre character that turns Tusk into a completely different film than what it once was before. Horror comedy is a tricky thing to nail with audiences. The main reason for this is that what scares one person may not scare someone else and what one person finds funny may induce eye-rolls from another person. When you combine two polarizing genres into one, it further narrows your audience.

Guy Lapointe is the turning point of Tusk, and I am apparently in the minority of audience members who finds him to be absolutely hilarious. From the moment he did his impression of a crucified T-rex (“It is one fuck of a bummer to look at I will tell you that!”), I was sold. It completely offset any of the horror that came before it, and that’s alright! Smith opted to turn his truly disturbing body-horror film into a straight-up comedy, and it does work. It just doesn’t work if you didn’t shift tone/genres with the film when he appeared.

Depp shares only one scene with Parks, and it is truly a wonder to behold. It’s only four and a half minutes long, but Smith successfully manages to blend humor and tension fairly well in this battle of wits stupidity between the two characters.

LaPointe is a quirky character, and the fact that he’s got a leading role in Yoga Hosers makes me even more excited to see it (and if you were on the fence about that film, you probably just decided whether or not you want to watch it).

Smith does attempt to infuse some political commentary in Tusk, which comes across as a little ham-handed. LaPointe’s insistence that “The real savage animals are the human beings” feels shoe-horned in and unnecessary. Maybe I’m just overthinking it (or did Smith just under-think it?), but it’s worth mentioning.

From a technical standpoint, Tusk is fairly competent. The budget seems a little too small to make use of a good cinematographer. It’s not that the cinematography is bad, per se, it’s just that Tusk is a very contained film. Most scenes take place in a room, though Howe’s mansion is glorious to look at. The music is also appropriately creepy, though the use of Fleetwood Mac’s “Tusk” in the film’s climactic battle, while fitting, is a little too on the nose. “Tusk” is one of my favorite songs though so I can’t complain about that too much, but I can just see the eye rolls in the audience the second those drums started playing.

Adding to my affinity for the film is the fact that I really do like Kevin Smith. I even like the way he sneaks his love for Canada in his films (“How’s everything over at Degrassi? You kids still getting knocked up and shot at?” and “I told him Canada doesn’t have any serial killers!” are the standouts in Tusk). I may have never met him, but he is always comes across as a pretty decent guy in his interviews. His reluctance to follow the majority has always been one of his most endearing qualities, no matter how many time it gets him in trouble. He just doesn’t give a fuck and he does whatever he wants. Not many Hollywood directors can say that about themselves.

Look, no one would accuse Tusk of being high art, but it knows exactly the kind of film it’s supposed to be, which is a silly, disturbing body-horror film. Tusk may not be your Mr. Tusk (and really, don’t we all want to find our own Mr. Tusk?), but it’s certainly not the train-wreck so many people make it out to be.

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Co-executive producer and effects legend Greg Nicotero revealed this in a lengthy interview with EW, explaining:

“One of the other heads, I don’t know if I’m going to get in trouble if I say this, was Johnny Depp,” revealed Nicotero.

“I think we had sculpted an emaciated version of a dummy head for something and we used Johnny Depp’s head as a basis just for a clay sculpt. I can’t remember who the third one is, but I’m in good company. Norman kept saying he wanted the heads when we were done shooting. I said we’ve got to wait until the picture is logged. I think one of the funniest moments we’ve shot in the season is when the Savior sticks his hand inside the head and puppeteers it to start talking. I laughed so hard when we shot that scene.”

Check out the shots, both courtesy of AMC and EW.

TheWrap also noted that, back in Season 1 of “Game of Thrones,” creators David Benioff and D.B. Weiss apologized for putting a prosthetic head of President George W. Bush on a spike, hours after news that their show had done so hit the internet.

“We use a lot of prosthetic body parts on the show: heads, arms, etc.” Benioff and Weiss said. “We can’t afford to have these all made from scratch, especially in scenes where we need a lot of them, so we rent them in bulk. After the scene was already shot, someone pointed out that one of the heads looked like George W. Bush.”

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Real quick though, for those of you unaware, Kilar is the man who also composed Bram Stoker’s Dracula, which won an ASCAP award and was nominated for a Saturn. If you can watch that movie and not be thrilled by the music, then I just don’t get you. What a masterpiece of music!

The 1999 mystery thriller was directed by Roman Polanski and starred Johnny Depp, Lena Olin, and Frank Langella. It was loosely based on “The Club Dumas” by Arturo Peréz-Reverte (which is a fantastic book, I might add) and follows rare book dealer/expert Dean Corso (Depp) as he investigates and tracks down the last three remaining copies of “The Nine Gates of the Kingdom of Shadows”, a book that is thought to be an adaptation of a story written by the Devil himself. As Corso’s investigations progress, the bodies begin piling up and the intrigue reaches supernatural levels. It’s not a flawless movie by any stretch of the imagination but I always have a blast watching it, especially considering how beautiful many of the locations are.

Anyways, coming back to the story at hand, Silva Screen Records has announced that The Ninth Gate will be receiving a limited edition vinyl run of 1,000 copies for this year’s Record Store Day. The album will be a 2xLP edition sleeved in a gatefold package and pressed on flame colored vinyl. Very fitting indeed!

You better believe that this is one of the titles that I will fight tooth and nail over to get my hands on come Record Store Day!

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The original 1933 film was an adaptation of H.G. Wells’ novel of the same name, which followed Griffin, a mysterious man who managed to make himself invisible but was unsuccessful in finding a way to reverse the process. The film was directed by James Whale and produced by Carl Laemmle Jr., who also produced The Mummy.

Alex Kurtzman and Chris Morgan are producing and spearheading the revival films, which is clearly one of Universal’s biggest priorities for the next several years. The idea of a MCU-esque world where horror icons interact with one another over several films is extremely exciting, even though it’s been done before. Still, the possibilities are pretty much endless and it’ll be fascinating to see how they pursue these stories and create something fresh and new with them.

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The studio has announced that Star Wars: Episode VIII will be hitting theaters on December 15th, 2017, which means the film has been pushed back nearly a full seven months from its original release date of May 26th, 2017. Additionally, they’ve announced Dead Men Tell No Tales will be coming out on July 7th, 2017.

Produced by Jerry Bruckheimer and directed by Joachim Rønning and Espen Sandberg, Dead Men Tell No Tales is currently in post-production.

In Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales, “Johnny Depp returns as Captain Jack Sparrow with Geoffrey Rush back on board as Barbossa, Orlando Bloom resurfacing as Will Turner, and a terrifying new adversary, Captain Salazar, played by Javier Bardem, in the mix.”

No details regarding the plot of Star Wars: Episode VIII have been released. What we know is that it’s written and directed by Rian Johnson with Kathleen Kennedy and Ram Bergman producing and J.J. Abrams, Tom Karnowski, and Jason McGatlin acting as executive producers. It is set to begin principal photography in London next month.

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I was a huge, no, massive fan back in the day. I still watch Mallrats religiously, and think Chasing Amy, while unintentionally misogynistic, is great stuff. I’m all about the old stuff.

But, man, I really think that Kevin Smith sucks now.

Cop Out was unwatchable, Red State lacked intensity and was dull, and Tusk was mean-spirited dribble.

Now, while we wait for Smith’s story in Holidays, he’s heading to Park City, Utah to premiere Yoga Hosers, a spinoff to Tusk, to critics, fans and buyers.

What can they expect? How about a box filled with “bratzi,” you know, Smith dressed up as a foot tall Canadian Nazi made of sentient Bratwurst. Not kidding. Take a look.

Wow.

We also get to see a film starring his and his BFF Johnny Depp’s daughters, Harley Quinn Smith and Lily-Rose Depp. Yay.

The two star as Colleen Collette and Colleen McKenzie, who are teenage besties from Winnipeg who love yoga and live on their smartphones. But when these sophomores get invited to a senior party by the school hottie, the Colleens accidentally uncover an ancient evil buried beneath their Canadian convenience store. They join forces with legendary man-hunter Guy Lapointe to fight for their lives.

The pic also stars Michael Parks, Justin Long, Genesis Rodriguez, Ralph Garman, Jennifer Schwalbach, Harley Morenstein, Stan Lee, Tony Hale, Natasha Lyonne, Austin Butler, Adam Brody, Tyler Posey, Jason Mewes, and Johnny Depp.

Look. I love horror movies. I love movies. I do not want to be disappointed. I’m crossing my fingers that something connects here and Yoga Hosers changes my opinion of Smith. Let’s talk after we’ve all seen it. Cool?

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Below is the official Sundance festival poster for Kevin Smith’s Yoga Hosers, which stars Johnny Depp as a Quebec police detective who is enlisted by two convenience store clerks — played by Smith’s and Depp’s daughters, Harley Quinn Smith and Lily-Rose Depp, both 15.

Those of you unfortunate enough to see the trash heap known as Tusk will have seen Harley Quinn and Lily-Rose as clerks in a cameo. The duo have to deal with Justin Long’s rude character before his eventual run-in with Michael Parks. The scene is being spun off into a feature with the two daughters who put on a poor performance in Tusk. Now, they must carry a feature alongside Depp, who also put forth the worst performance of his career in Smith’s toothy horror film.

In Yoga Hosers, also written by Smith, “Colleen Collette and Colleen McKenzie are teenage besties from Winnipeg who love yoga and live on their smartphones. But when these sophomores get invited to a senior party by the school hottie, the Colleens accidentally uncover an ancient evil buried beneath their Canadian convenience store.”

Yoga Hosers also stars Tusk alums Michael Parks, Justin Long, Haley Joel Osment, Genesis Rodriguez, Ralph Garman and Harley Morenstein. Tony Hale, Natasha Lyonne, Austin Butler, Adam Brody, Tyler Posey and Jason Mewes also star.

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Starring Johnny Depp, Anne Hathaway, Mia Wasikowska, Sacha Baron Cohen, and Helena Bonham Carter along with the voices of Alan Rickman, Stephen Fry, Michael Sheen and Timothy Spall, the film is directed by James Bobin and produced by Tim Burton. It will be released on May 27th, 2016.

I don’t know many people who liked Burton’s take on Lewis Carroll’s story, which is a book that I love and read through once every two or three years. And while there are people who think a sequel can’t really get any worse, I’m seeing this and think that it can’t really get any better. There is simply way too much CGI that is blatantly obvious for me to feel like anyone is ever in any danger. The best kinds of CGI are the ones that are used to amplify what’s already physically there, not the other way around.

Alice’s tales through Wonderland take the strange sights we see in nature and amplify them to surreal levels. However, there is always something grounding those images in reality, be it a forest, an ocean, a chessboard, or a house that is too small to contain Alice. These kinds of images can easily be filmed and then the additions come on top of that.

Sorry for ranting, it’s just that I love the Alice mythos and I think that going down a CGI-heavy route such as this is almost insulting to what could be if the effort were put in. Get Stan Winston to make a real Jabberwocky just like how a real T-Rex was made for ‘Jurassic Park’. Yeah, it’s unreliable and unwieldy. But when you see it on the big screen and marvel at the beauty of it, doesn’t that make it all worth it? Isn’t that what going to the movies is all about?

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