Now, I would be remiss to not bring up how very off that last season felt, in comparison to past ones. If not for the Crypt Keeper’s bookends, it was like a different show at that point. Essentially, it was when you assessed how much had changed. Producer Gilbert Adler was responsible for those divisive renovations; his moving production to England was an attempt to give Crypt “a shot in the arm”. What he instead did was create obstacles for both himself and the series. Some could be overcome, whereas others were less yielding.

Fans decry Season Seven, but in all fairness, Season Six wasn’t all roses, either. And like Six, Seven does have a few bright spots. The move to merry England couldn’t completely undo what we love about the series. Yes, there was a decline in gore; the dial had especially been turned down on those big, bloody conclusions we all love. It must be said, though, that the final season was hardly the only one to be gruesome-lite. Plenty of past episodes also did without copious amounts of the red stuff. 

At the time, traveling abroad may not have been seen as a bad thing. The new season was off to a strong start, based on favorable reactions to the premiere. The Natasha Richardson-starring opener, “Fatal Caper” (Bob Hoskins, Colman deKay, A. L. Katz, Gilbert Adler), is as ridiculous as it is clever. However, it would soon become apparent that not everything to come in Season Seven was up to the same standards as that first episode. It was going to be a bumpy ride, to say the least.

Most will agree that the seventh season wasn’t a complete bust. The blood-soaked “Horror in the Night” (Russell Mulcahy, John Harrison) is atmospheric and trippy; there, a jewel thief (James Wilby) experiences a nightmarish evening while hiding out in a haunted hotel. Then there is what many consider to be the season’s standout, and perhaps even the last great episode of the series. In the gritty “Confession” (Peter Hewitt, Scott Nimerfro), a detective (Ciarán Hinds) suspects a screenwriter (Eddie Izzard) is behind a string of murders. Although it is a strange way to end things, “The Third Pig” (Bill Kopp, Pat Ventura) also has its admirers; this animated entry is a demented new spin on the classic fairytale “The Three Little Pigs“, as opposed to anything out of EC Comics‘ vault.

Another fine episode is “A Slight Case of Murder”, which I find a bit lighthearted for Tales from the Crypt. In spite of all the killing, of course. It also makes good use of the scenery change; an upside of the show’s relocation is the real estate. A Tudor-style home sits at the heart of this amusing episode, written and directed by Brian Helgeland (A Nightmare on Elm Street 4: The Dream Master, 976-EVIL). Cozy mystery lovers should be quite smitten with the story’s choice of venue.

A common complaint about Season Seven is its lack of star power. Gone were the days when anyone who was anyone in Hollywood stopped by and played a role. That said, it wasn’t as if the series was now just hiring nobodies off the street; the problem was that many American viewers weren’t as familiar with the new casts. “A Slight Case of Murder” was such a case, given how Francesca Annis, Elizabeth Spriggs, and Christopher Cazenove weren’t exactly household names in the States. Naturally, the English would have an easier time recognizing the leads of this and other Season Seven episodes.

“A Slight Case of Murder” is an example of a crabby author getting what’s coming to them. Generally speaking, the horror genre has never cared much for depictions of kind writers. And here, Annis plays that rather irritable novelist whose next bestseller is at risk of being published posthumously. After brilliantly insulting her neighbor, an aspiring author named Mrs. Trask (Spriggs), Sharon Bannister detects a prowler. She then takes no comfort knowing the intruder is just her ex (Cazenove). He’s not here to reminisce about old times.

The last page from “A Slight Case of Murder!”, as seen in EC Comics’ The Vault of Horror.

The episode, while amusing, feels like it belongs in another anthology. The one I’m thinking of, on account of the British actors and the story being centered around jealousy, is Tales of the Unexpected. That series, by the way, also eventually went overseas; some later episodes cast Americans and were set in the U.S. So, yes, “A Slight Case of Murder” isn’t a thing like classic Crypt, but it is awfully charming.

By now, no one should be shocked to learn that an episode of Tales from the Crypt is different from its basis. In fact, the “A Slight Case of Murder!” found in EC’s The Vault of Horror bears no resemblance to Helgeland’s adaptation. An old doctor returns to his hometown to solve a bunch of murders—the victims were all women. At each crime, there was no sign of a break-in, seeing as how the women’s doors and windows were locked from the inside. The sheriff says the only other way in, in one case, was a hot-air vent. He concludes no human could have fit through that, but the doctor suggests the culprit is “not an ordinary human”.

The doctor meets with the sheriff at an old house formerly known as the Bates Mansion. Yet before revealing the killer’s identity, the doctor tells a story about a local widow named Amelia Bates. After her newborn turned out to be—and I’m merely quoting writers Bill Gaines and Al Feldstein—a “misshapen monster”, Amelia asked the doctor to tell everyone her child was a stillborn. She kept that underdeveloped, slithering boy a secret from everyone; only the doctor knew.

Years later, that same child went on to murder a series of women. All of whom rejected his love. And who, pray tell, did that baby become? The town’s sheriff, that’s who! The last frame of the comic, one showing the sheriff’s hidden mechanical body, is so startling that it’s actually disappointing that Tales from the Crypt didn’t properly adapt this story. It would have fit in so well with the older seasons.

As they say in the biz, the show must go on—and Tales from the Crypt did just that, even when the quality had noticeably dropped. But like I always tell myself during the lesser episodes, any Crypt is still better than no Crypt.

Along with Seasons One through Six, Season Seven of Tales from the Crypt can be streamed on Shudder, starting on June 12.

A delightful shot from “A Slight Case of Murder” suggests Elizabeth Spriggs’ character, Mrs. Trask, is more devilish than she first seemed.

The post Tales from ‘Tales from the Crypt’: Exhuming The Final Season’s “A Slight Case of Murder” Episode appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

What’s interesting is that Sarsgaard will play a new, original character not featured in the Naughty Dog video game on which the series is based: Amon, one of the leaders of The Seraphites.

The casting news arrives as production on season three takes a pause for what’s expected to be a month, as the FIFA World Cup takes over Vancouver as one of its host cities. Once filming resumes, production is expected to continue through the year in preparation for the planned premiere in 2027. 

Season 2 picked up five years after the events of the first season, which centered on a hardened survivor smuggling humanity’s last hope out of an oppressive quarantine zone, two decades after modern civilization was decimated. Plot details for season three haven’t been revealed yet, other than that it will shift to Abby’s perspective and factor the Seraphites heavily.

Kaitlyn Dever stars as Abby, who will be the centerpiece of the upcoming season, alongside Bella Ramsey as Ellie. Isabela Merced, Gabriel Luna, and Jeffrey Wright also star.

Season 2 cast members Ariela Barer, Tati Gabrielle, and Spencer Lord have been promoted to series regulars. Patrick Wilson (The Conjuring), Jason Ritter (Freddy vs. Jason), Clea DuVall (The Faculty), Li Jun Li (Sinners), and Jorge Lendeborg Jr. (Bumblebee) will also appear in Season 3.

HBO renewed “The Last of Us” for a third season ahead of its Season 2 premiere, but it’s expected to be the final chapter of the post-apocalyptic drama series.

The Last of Us video game co-creator Neil Druckmann stepped down as co-showrunner last year, leaving Craig Mazin (“Chernobyl”) as the sole showrunner for Season 3.

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The season one finale is set to arrive on Wednesday, June 17, on Apple TV, but don’t worry, Major Tom Loftis (Matthew Rhys) has declared the island safe and open to visitors next season in an announcement video below. 

“Season two is about how everything is great on the island, and there’s nothing to worry about,” said creator, showrunner, and executive producer Katie Dippold.

“From the moment audiences arrived in Widow’s Bay, they’ve been hooked on every eerie mystery, unexpected laughs, and cursed secret that Katie, Hiro, Matthew, and the entire team have created,” said Matt Cherniss, head of programming, Apple TV. “It’s become one of those shows everyone’s talking about, and we’re thrilled to see audiences continue to embrace it. We can’t wait to return for another season.”

The series takes place in a “quaint island town 40 miles off the coast of New England.  But something lurks beneath the surface. Mayor Tom Loftis (Matthew Rhys) is desperate to revive his struggling community.  There’s no wifi, spotty cellular reception, and he must contend with superstitious locals who believe their island is cursed.  He wants these people to respect him.  They don’t.  They think he is soft and cowardly.  And he is.

“But Loftis is determined to build a better future for his teenage son and turn the island into a tourist destination.  Miraculously, he succeeds: tourists are finally coming. Unfortunately, the locals were right.  After decades of calm, the old stories that seemed too ludicrous to be true start happening again.”

Stephen Root, Kate O’Flynn, Kingston Rumi Southwick, Kevin Carroll, and Dale Dickey also star.

Daniel Kurland wrote in his “Widow’s Bay” review for Bloody Disgusting, “Season One makes a perfect first impression, and its debut is strong enough that viewers will want to set up permanent residency there. There’s an excellent sense of storytelling, character development, and an engaging mystery that’s strengthened through pitch-perfect horror and comedy.

This is the best news, especially as Apple TV announced a new, multi-year overall deal with Dippold. Here’s to hoping Widow’s Bay never closes to visitors.

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Prime Video will premiere all ten episodes of season two on Friday, July 31.

“Batman: Caped Crusader” is a hard-boiled look at the vigilante’s early years, reimagined by J.J. Abrams, Matt Reeves, Bruce Timm, Sam Register, and Ed Brubaker.

“Welcome to Gotham City, where the corrupt outnumber the good, criminals run rampant, and law-abiding citizens live in a constant state of fear. Forged in the fire of tragedy, wealthy socialite Bruce Wayne becomes something both more and less than human—The Batman.

“His one-man crusade for justice attracts unexpected allies within the GCPD and City Hall, but his heroic actions spawn deadly, unforeseen ramifications.”

The new premiere date comes with a suitably dark first look at some of Gotham’s denizens, including Edward Nygma, Carrie Kelly, and Roxy Rocket, who will be featured in the upcoming season. 

Returning voice cast includes Hamish Linklater as Bruce Wayne/Batman, Jamie Chung as Harley Quinn/Harleen Quinzel, Jason Watkins as Alfred Pennyworth, Eric Morgan Stuart as Commissioner Jim Gordon, Krystal Joy Brown as Barbara Gordon, Michelle C. Bonilla as Renee Montoya, and Bumper Robinson as Lucius Fox.

Executive producers J.J. Abrams, Matt Reeves, and Bruce Timm are back for “Batman: Caped Crusader” Season 2. James Tucker, Geoffrey Thorne, Sarah Geismer, Rachel Rusch Rich, and Sam Register also executive produce.

You can catch up on season one now on Prime Video. Our own Daniel Kurland described this noir series as having more in common with EC Horror Comics than DC Comics.

He wrote that the series‘ “immersion into EC Comics ideology and a true indulgence in horror is a superpower that’s more fascinating and dangerous than any WayneTech gadget or Kryptonite-powered super-suit.”

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The third season will premiere on July 26, 2026.

In “The Walking Dead: Dead City” Season 3, “Maggie and Negan finally put aside their differences to build the first thriving community in Manhattan since the apocalypse, but when chaos in the city begins to arise, they are forced to question: have they learned from their old wounds or will their dark past spell doom for the entire city?”

There’s a lot of humor in the new trailer below, which introduces a few new faces among the New York City community.

Fan favorites Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Lauren Cohan star alongside Gaius Charles, Lisa Emery, Logan Kim, Keir Gilchrist, Aimee Garcia, Jimmi Simpson, and Michael Emery. 

Raúl Castillo (Army of the Dead, Smile 2) has also joined “Dead City” Season 3.

Seth Hoffman (“The Walking Dead”, “Prison Break”) is the showrunner for Season 3.

The series is executive produced by Scott M. Gimple, chief content officer of The Walking Dead Universe, Showrunner Seth Hoffman, Cohan, Morgan, Brian Bockrath, and Colin Walsh. 

Lauren Cohan as Maggie Rhee, Jeffrey Dean Morgan as Negan – The Walking Dead: Dead City _ Season 3, Episode X – Photo Credit: Robert Clark/AMC

Lauren Cohan as Maggie Rhee, Jeffrey Dean Morgan as Negan – The Walking Dead: Dead City _ Season 3, Episode X – Photo Credit: Robert Clark/AMC

Lauren Cohan as Maggie Rhee, Jeffrey Dean Morgan as Negan – The Walking Dead: Dead City _ Season 3, Episode X – Photo Credit: Robert Clark/AMC

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Look for “The Shards” to premiere on FX and Hulu on August 5 at 6 p.m. PT.

Igby Rigney (“The Fall of the House of Usher”), Homer Gere (“The Agency”), Graham Campbell, Kaia Gerber (Shell), Evan Rachel Wood (“Westworld”), Igby Rigney, Wes Bentley, and Hayes Warner star.

Set in 1981 Los Angeles, the semi-autobiographical, dark coming-of-age tale follows a 17-year-old Ellis during his final year at the elite Buckley prep school. Upending the character’s world is the arrival of a mysterious new student, Robert Mallory, whose unsettling presence coincides with the activities of a serial killer known as The Trawler.

In the series, Rigney will portray Ellis, and Campbell will play Thom. Gere, son of actor Richard Gere, has been cast as Robert Mallory. Frequent Murphy collaborator Max Winkler (“American Horror Story,“ “Grotesquerie”) is attached to direct. 

The series is produced by 20th Television in association with Ryan Murphy Television. 

The series is produced by 20th Television in association with Ryan Murphy Television. Murphy, Ellis, and Winkler will executive produce alongside Nick Hall, Kathleen McCaffrey, and Brian Young.

Author Bret Easton Ellis previously attempted to launch an adaptation of The Shards at HBO, with both Luca Guadagnino (Bones and All, Suspiria) and Kristoffer Borgli (Dream Scenario) eyed to helm the adaptation, though the project didn’t move forward at that time. Guadagnino is currently attached to tackle a different Ellis adaptation, though, with American Psycho.

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Expect “Scooby-Doo: Origins” on Netflix in 2027.

The new series is “a modern reimagining of the iconic mystery-solving group of teens and their very special dog. During their final summer at camp, old friends Shaggy and Daphne get embroiled in a haunting mystery surrounding a lonely lost Great Dane puppy that may have been a witness to a supernatural murder.

“Together with the pragmatic and scientific townie, Velma, and the strange, but ever so handsome new kid, Freddy, they set out to solve the case that is pulling each of them into a creepy nightmare that threatens to expose all of their secrets.”

As previously revealed, Maxwell Jenkins (“Lost in Space”) will play Fred, Tanner Hagen (“The Pitt”) will play Shaggy, and Abby Ryder Fortson (Ant-Man) will play Velma, joining Mckenna Grace (Scream 7) as Daphne, and and Paul Walter Hauser.

Addional cast includes:

• Rusty Schwimmer (The Pitt, Righteous Gemstones)
• Peter Macon (Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes, The Orville)
• Maxwell Simkins (Shifting Gears, Sleepover)
• Jona Xiao (The Pitt, Eyes of Wakanda)
• Dani Deetté  (The Runarounds, FBI: Most Wanted)
• Elysée Sanvillé (72 Hours)
• Alex Isles (Normal with a Capitol N)
• Avery Kristen Pohl (General Hospital, Never Have I Ever)
• Pamela Mitchell (1883, Perry Mason)
• Ross Kimball (Jury Duty, Masterminds)
• Sara Gilbert (The Connors)
• Wynn Everett (Chad Powers, She Dances)
• Sauriyan Sapkota (Midnight Club, House of Usher)
• Bruce McGill (Lioness, Reacher)
• Sherilyn Fenn (Twin Peaks, Of Mice and Men)

Josh Appelbaum (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol) and Scott Rosenberg (Venom, Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle) serve as showrunners and writers.

Toby Haynes (“Andor,” “Black Mirror”) will direct the first of eight episodes, in addition to serving as an executive producer.

Launched by Hanna-Barbera with the 1969 animated series “Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!,” Scooby-Doo has remained one of pop culture’s most recognizable characters with more than a dozen animated series, three theatrical films, and more.

The post Netflix Rounds Out ‘Scooby-Doo: Origins’ Cast with Rusty Schwimmer, Sherilyn Fenn, and More appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

The animated series will premiere June 26 on Disney+ with 22 half-hour episodes, along with a new short-form series featuring four episodes: “Doug Unfiltered,” “Ghosted By A Ghost,” “Creepy Crepe,” and “What Is That Thing?” 

The official synopsis promises all sorts of monster mayhem: “When best friends Bobby and Romy accidentally open a portal to evil, their tranquil coastal town transforms into a hotspot for terrifying creatures of doom. As the ordinary teens navigate this extraordinary mystery, they face off against literal and inner monsters in this epic comedy that combines thrills, chills, and emotional spills.“

The voice cast includes Max Mittelman as Bobby, Madison Calderon as Romy, Noel Gibson as Kim, Jon Bailey as Doug, and Zehra Fazal as Jenny.

“The Doomies” is produced by Academy Award®-nominated studio Xilam Animation for Disney Television Animation and co-created by Andrès Fernandez, Pozla (aka Rémi Zaarour), and Henry Gifford.

Fernandez directs all 22 episodes, and Xilam’s Marc du Pontavice serves as producer.

Check out the charming new trailer and key art below that introduce a group of kids joining forces to deal with their town’s pesky supernatural problem. Nothing appears safe from monsters, not even cake.

Coinciding with the series’ debut on Disney+, “The Doomies” was also officially selected to screen in competition at the 2026 Annecy International Animation Film Festival in the TV Films category. The episode “Night of the Fishing Dead” was selected from more than 2,400 submissions and will be screened alongside other official selections from June 21-27. 

Look for “The Doomies” later this month.

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All eight episodes of  “Human Vapor” will premiere July 2 on Netflix.

Watch the brand new official trailer below.

Here’s the full official synopsis: “Kenji Okamoto (Shun Oguri), a detective on suspension, is recruited to hunt down the criminal behind a series of unprecedented murders. It all starts when a college professor suddenly swells and explodes on live television.

“Before anyone can process this bizarre event, a man calling himself the Human Vapor (UTA) announces that he will perform a series of murders, sending society into a great panic.

“Kenji and reporter Kyoko (Yu Aoi) devote themselves to uncovering the truth and catching the culprit, who seems to be mocking the authorities as they struggle to close in on him. With each new killing, he corrodes society with a formless, pervasive fear.”

“A legendary Toho film is rebooted with a brand-new story,” Netflix previews. “VFX by the Academy Award-winning team Shirogumi that amazed the world with its work on Godzilla Minus One is combined with an extraordinary sense of scale, represented by grand car chases. A visual experience of a new dimension that far surpasses past Japanese drama series.”

Shun Oguri, Yu Aoi, Suzu Hirose, Kento Hayashi, and Yutaka Takenouchi star.

Shinzo Katayama directed “Human Vapor,” written by Yeon Sang-ho (Train to Busan) and Ryu Yong-jae. This marks the first collaboration between Netflix and Toho Studios.

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Created by Owen Dennis and produced by CBS Studios and Innersloth, all ten episodes of Among Us are now available to stream exclusively on Paramount+. 

The series follows “a group of eccentric, monochromatic Crewmates of a ship transporting junk across the galaxy who must root out an Impostor in their midst before they fall victim to its villainous designs.”

It’s based on the globally popular multiplayer social deception game of the same name, which has been brought to life in the brand new trailer below.

Among Us boasts a star-studded voice cast, too:

• Yvette Nicole Brown as “Orange”
• Kimiko Glenn as “Cyan”
• Liv Hewson as “Black”
• Ashley Johnson as “Purple”
• Wayne Knight as “Lime”
• Phil LaMarr as “Brown”
• Randall Park as “Red”
• Dan Stevens as “Blue”
• Debra Wilson as “Yellow” and “Computer”
• Elijah Wood as “Green” 
• Patton Oswalt as “White”

Animation studio Titmouse is behind the series. 

Among Us became a global sensation in 2020, generating more than 4 billion views on YouTube and over 1.22 billion viewing sessions on Twitch.  In October 2020 alone, it ranked #1 on Google Play in 66 countries and #1 on iOS in 55 countries, with Top 100 placements in nearly every market worldwide. The game is available on PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store, the Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One and Xbox Series.

The paranoid phenomenon now heads to Paramount+ in animated series form. Watch the new trailer below as all episodes launch on streaming today.

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Meet the real-life Scooby-Doo below!

Maxwell Jenkins (“Lost in Space”) will play Fred, Tanner Hagen (“The Pitt”) will play Shaggy, and Abby Ryder Fortson (Ant-Man) will play Velma, joining Mckenna Grace (Scream 7) as Daphne in the upcoming live action prequel series, “Scooby-Doo: Origins.”

The new series is “a modern reimagining of the iconic mystery-solving group of teens and their very special dog. During their final summer at camp, old friends Shaggy and Daphne get embroiled in a haunting mystery surrounding a lonely lost Great Dane puppy that may have been a witness to a supernatural murder.

“Together with the pragmatic and scientific townie, Velma, and the strange, but ever so handsome new kid, Freddy, they set out to solve the case that is pulling each of them into a creepy nightmare that threatens to expose all of their secrets.”

Josh Appelbaum (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol) and Scott Rosenberg (Venom, Jumanji: Welcome to the Jungle) are showrunners and writers.

Toby Haynes (“Andor,” “Black Mirror”) will direct the first of eight episodes, in addition to serving as an executive producer. Greg Berlanti (“Riverdale,” “Chilling Adventures of Sabrina”) will executive produce the upcoming Netflix series with Sarah Schechter and Leigh London Redman via Berlanti Productions and its overall deal with Warner Bros. Television.

Look for “Scooby-Doo: Origins” on Netflix in 2027.

For more than 50 years, Scooby-Doo has been a pop culture powerhouse — three theatrical films, more than a dozen animated series, and nearly 40 animated home entertainment movies later, Mystery Inc. is stronger than ever. As one of the most recognizable and iconic franchises in entertainment, Scooby-Doo continues to thrill fans across generations.

Here is your first look at the live action Scooby-Doo in Netflix’s upcoming SCOOBY-DOO: ORIGINS.

The brand new series premieres in 2027.pic.twitter.com/FtTVTTweWF

— Bloody Disgusting (@BDisgusting) June 8, 2026

Scooby-Doo: Origins. Scooby on the set of Scooby-Doo: Origins season 1. Cr. Steve Dietl/Netflix © 2026

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Expect “Ghostbusters: Night Shift” to clock in on Netflix in 2027!

Netflix previews, “Ghostbusters: Night Shift, a series from Netflix and Sony Pictures Animation based on the beloved Ghostbusters franchise, will debut exclusively on Netflix in 2027.

“The new series marks the next chapter in the franchise’s ghoul-catching legacy, bringing supernatural comedy and paranormal action back to animation.”

The upcoming animated series from Netflix will be executive produced by Ben Hibon, Elliott Kalan, Jason Reitman, Gil Kenan, Amie Karp, and Dan Aykroyd.

Reitman, son of Ivan Reitman, director of the original Ghostbusters features, and Kenan co-wrote the franchise’s most recent installments, Ghostbusters: Afterlife and Frozen Empire.

“This isn’t the first time the Ghostbusters universe has gone animated,” Netflix reminds in their press release today. “The 1980s and ’90s saw The Real Ghostbusters and Extreme Ghostbusters take over the small screen. For now, you can rest assured: If there’s something strange in your neighborhood, a Ghostbuster will be on the job — even if it’s after hours.”

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Daughters Emily and Daisy Head said in a statement to the BBC that their father “passed away peacefully of complications due to pneumonia, surrounded by his family.”

Their statement continues, “It has been, and forever will be, an honour and a privilege to be his daughters, and to have witnessed firsthand the impact both he and his work have had on so many. We know how dearly he will be missed by friends, colleagues, and fans of the shows he was in — he loved his job very much, and he always considered himself incredibly lucky, to have been able to work alongside such exceptionally talented people, in such wonderful productions, across a career that spanned several decades.”

Anthony Head more recently played Rupert Mannion in 18 episodes of “Ted Lasso,” with the English actor’s film and television credits dating back to 1978. On the horror front, Anthony Head starred in Darren Bousman’s Repo! The Genetic Opera, as well as 2011’s Ghost Rider: Spirit of Vengeance, Let the Wrong One In, “Warehouse 13,” and “The Canterville Ghost.”

Also of note here in the world of horror, Anthony Head once played Dr. Frank-N-Furter in a London stage production of The Rocky Horror Picture Show back in the 1990s.

Outside the horror world, Anthony Head’s film and television credits well exceed 100 different productions and include “Highlander,” “NYPD Blue,” “Silent Witness,” “Doctor Who,” And Starring Pancho Villa as Himself, “Little Britain,” The Magic Door, “Sensitive Skin,” Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street, “Free Agents,” The Iron Lady, Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters, “You, Me & Them,” “Dominion,” A Street Cat Named Bob, and Batman: Gotham by Gaslight.

“Buffy” actor James Marsters writes on Instagram, “There’s a hole in the World. Anthony Head has passed on from us. He was an unflaggingly kind and steady presence on the set of Buffy, and the best actor in the cast. He was the best of us. I was lucky to have known, and learned from him. He left the world a better place for his presence. Thank you Tony for all you gave.”

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Sandwiched between “Let the Punishment Fit the Crime” (Russell Mulcahy, Ron Finley) and “Whirlpool” (Mick Garris, A. L. Katz & Gilbert Adler) is the most severe episode of the bunch. Maybe the entire series? William Malone and Dick Beebe’s “Only Skin Deep” traded the show’s typical sense of fun for startling amounts of bleakness and kink.

“Only Skin Deep” is, apart from the Crypt Keeper’s intro and outro, noticeably unfunny. There are no considerable attempts at making the viewer laugh. Come to think of it, if those bookends had been replaced, and there was more of a sci-fi element in the story, HBO could have easily squeezed this tale into that successor anthology, Perversions of Science (1997). In Crypt, though, “Only Skin Deep” is much too grim for an audience that had become accustomed to campiness and levity.

What makes “Only Skin Deep” feel dark, among other things, is its protagonist. Showing up to a Halloween party where he’s not welcome, and where his former girlfriend (Diane DiLasco) is attending, Carl Schlag (Peter Onorati) first comes across as your standard bitter ex. You soon realize it’s much worse than that, once Carl threatens Linda (“You know, silly me, thinking I gave you what you deserved. If I’d have done that, I’d have killed you”). Now, I haven’t forgotten that Tales from the Crypt was teeming with vile men who did women harm. Yet Carl’s brand of misogynistic menace hits differently—it borders on being too realistic for this kind of series.

Mike Vosburg’s EC-style comic cover for “Only Skin Deep”, as seen in the Tales from the Crypt episode.

Despite donning a party mask for much of the episode, Carl can’t ever mask his true nature. The invitation did say “come as you are”, after all. That inability to change and be better, however, is why Carl ends up in such a karmic predicament. His outburst of anger at the party attracts the attention of one loner partygoer named Molly (Sherrie Rose, who was also in Season Four’s “On a Deadman’s Chest”). Her bone-white, featureless “mask” and body-bag costume don’t initially register as too strange, especially on a night like this. But at a party chock-full of colorful, cartoonish, and lighthearted ensembles, it does look out of place.

Darkness attracts darkness as Carl ditches the party and accompanies the mysterious Molly to her place. Which, by the way, should have been an immediate red flag. But perhaps she’s so hot, he doesn’t seem to mind the serial killer aesthetic. Resembling a warehouse that has been converted into living spaces, but never then decorated to remove the cold, industrial look, Molly’s home (or lair) is as gloomy as this whole episode feels. It’s like the set of a grungy music video, albeit a tad cleaner. The environments in a typical Crypt episode tend to be small, overfilled, and broken-in. Warm, regardless of any weird goings-on. All that empty space in Molly’s hovel, on the other hand, elicits a creepy feeling that Carl was unwise to ignore.

Tales from the Crypt featured more sex than it didn’t, but hands down, “Only Skin Deep” boasts the steamiest scene in the show’s history. Pushing it over the line, in addition to Onorati showing bare buns and the camera never turning down one of his pelvic thrusts, is the twisted dirty talk. Carl stays in the moment, whereas Molly unleashes charged lines like “the hurt, the anger, give it to me” and “take it out on my flesh like you want to”. It’s all quite kinky, as well as tied into the story’s theme of pain.

How else “Only Skin Deep” differs from other episodes is its twists. Or rather, its lack thereof. Nothing comes as a great surprise here, particularly because the deuteragonist’s ulterior motives are so obvious. By no means is Molly a wolf in sheep’s clothing; her face is a fright mask, she practically reeks of death, and she lives in what can best be described as a serial killer’s hideout. That last-act revelation of Molly’s mask really being her face is also nothing shocking. Cleverness is certainly not this episode’s strength.

A page from “…Only Skin Deep!”, as seen in EC Comics’ Tales from the Crypt.

While “Only Skin Deep” isn’t the most universally loved episode of Tales from the Crypt, it’s an interesting preview of William Malone’s future as a director. Most notably, he went on to helm House on Haunted Hill (1999) and FeardotCom (2002), the former of which was co-written by Dick Beebe, this episode’s writer. Dark Castle Entertainment, that genre house founded by Crypt producers Joel Silver, Robert Zemeckis, and Gilbert Adler, was instrumental in bringing out Malone’s gruesome, over-the-top vision in House on Haunted Hill. However, FeardotCom and Malone’s Masters of Horror episode, “Fair-Haired Child”, are the most stylistically compatible with “Only Skin Deep”.

As one might guess, this episode is nothing like its source material. The “…Only Skin Deep!” found in the pages of EC Comics is set during Mardi Gras in New Orleans, and save for its last couple of pages, is pretty sweet in nature. There, a man named Herbert is enamored with a woman he met five years prior to the present-day story. Every year, he has come down to Mardi Gras to see Suzanne, who’s always dressed as a hag-faced witch. Well, this time, Herbert plans on popping the question and marrying someone who is, for the most part, a total stranger. Suzanne accepts his proposal, but with one condition: they stay in costume until they’re officially hitched. You can probably see where this is going…

Once they are married, Suzanne remains incognito, even when she and Herbert have consummated their vows. A semi-predictive nightmare then rattles Herbert; he dreamt that Suzanne’s real face was as wizened as her mask. Finally, in his haste to find out the truth, Herbert winds up killing his new wife. Faceless and well on her way to bleeding out, the dying Suzanne manages to say she never wore a mask.

For more traditional EC-style ghastliness, your best bet is reading the comic. It’s wickedly sad. For something less conventional, as far as Tales from the Crypt goes, the role-reversing adaptation is worth watching. It’s not the best this show had to offer, although Malone’s visual style, plus the sexual abandon, does set the episode apart. If nothing else, “Only Skin Deep” leaves an impression that, even years later, shows no signs of fading.

Season Six of Tales from the Crypt can be streamed on Shudder, starting on June 5.

Tales from Tales from the Crypt celebrates the show’s Shudder premiere by singling out one episode from each season. So don’t even think about changing that dial, boys and ghouls. More spot-“frights” are to come.

Carl discovers Molly’s collection of human ‘masks’ in the Tales from the Crypt episode, “Only Skin Deep”.

The post Tales from ‘Tales from the Crypt’: Exhuming Season Six’s “Only Skin Deep” Episode appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Created by “Castlevania” showrunner Adi Shankar, the animated adaptation of the popular Capcom game introduces a world where sinister forces seek to open a portal between the human and demon realms. 

Caught in the middle is orphaned demon-hunter-for-hire Dante, unaware that the fate of the balance falls to him.

Across its two seasons, the series has appeared on the Netflix Global Top 10 for four weeks, with season one accumulating  21.7M views in 2025, and season two already off to a strong start, accumulating 6.4M views in just two weeks. All of which to say that the rapid renewal for the third and final season doesn’t come as a surprise.

“For those of you who have been paying attention to the episode names, I have been showing you the structure the entire time. This was always Dante’s Divine Comedy with guns and a red coat. Season 1 was Inferno. Season 2 was Purgatorio. Season 3 will be Paradiso. These three seasons make up ‘The Force Edge Saga.‘ Since its inception, ‘The Force Edge Saga‘ was designed as a movie trilogy disguised as a television series,” Shankar said of the announcement.

The voice cast for “Devil May Cry” Season 2 is led by Johnny Yong Bosch (“Mighty Morphin Power Rangers”) as Dante, Robbie Daymond (“Critical Role”) as Vergil, and Scout Taylor-Compton (Rob Zombie’s Halloween) as Lady.

Daniel Kurland wrote in his second season review for BD, “Winning chemistry between Dante and Vergil, as well as a narrative that isn’t afraid to put other characters in the spotlight, helps this season overcome some of the past season’s hurdles. This is a tight, economical season that doesn’t overstay its welcome, but part of the charm and impact is weakened the second time around. “

Created by Hideki Kamiya, the first Devil May Cry game was released in 2001. There are now five main games in addition to several reboots, spin-offs, special editions, and mobile games.

Catch up on the first two seasons now streaming on Netflix.

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Which has led to a very mixed bag of results that’s usually viewed as a hollow exercise in IP renewal that’s become a growing cliche that’s something to mock. Dead Ringers, Fatal Attraction, Presumed Innocent, and even The Birds are just some of the most recent titles in the movie-to-limited series pipeline. Admittedly, this formula can still work. It just needs to actually have not only a point of view, but a point, otherwise it’s destined to disappear into the vast streaming abyss.

Cape Fear definitely has a point of view and is well aware that it’s the fourth proper adaptation of this story — fifth if The Simpsons’ masterful “Cape Feare” parody is included. It’s an adaptation that’s not only aware of its past’s baggage, but intentionally embraces it and uses it to its advantage. Nick Antosca’s Cape Fear is so exciting because it functions as a remix of every version of this story — the ’60s film, Martin Scorsese’s ’90s remake, and John D. MacDonald’s original novel, The Executioners — to create this glorious amalgamation of the narrative. It’s not unlike what was done with Bryan Fuller’s Hannibal series and how it remixed the breadth of Thomas Harris’ works and their cinematic adaptations. 

This approach is most effective when certain iconic scenes from the ’90s film are recontextualized and given to different characters in order to make grander thematic statements. It’s a really striking approach that reflects the generational ripples and overlap between these adaptations, yet it’s never distracting or ostentatious to anyone who is experiencing this story for the first time. It helps this series feel different from the deluge of forgettable adaptations that are flooding the market.

On paper, Antosca is the perfect showrunner to tell this story. He has an impressive body of work to pull from that includes horror series like Channel Zero, Hannibal, and Brand New Cherry Flavor, but also lots of true-crime titles like The Act, A Friend of the Family, and Candy. This series falls squarely within these two extremes as it blurs the lines between these genres and styles of horror storytelling. It’s Big Little Lies on bath salts. Cape Fear perhaps doesn’t need to exist, but it’s still a hell of a terrifying experience that has something timely to say.

Horror is full of stories in which one bad day is all it takes to break someone and turn them into a completely different person. Cape Fear isn’t doing exactly this. It’s more of a psychological waterboarding until the target’s sense of self is eroded to rubble. However, it takes the kernel of this idea and expands it onto the pristine ideal of the picturesque American family. It plays with the self-aware realization that the stories we tell are not necessarily what we think they are.

It’s a story about forgiveness, salvation, and revenge that blows up the Bowden family when a violent offender, Max Cady (Javier Bardem), is released from prison and systematically sets his sights on the people he holds accountable. Anna and Tom Bowden (Amy Adams and Patrick Wilson), the married couple who represented his case in court, receive a rude awakening when Cady’s psychological torture tour begins. Cape Fear, as a property, is most famously known for being the ultimate cat-and-mouse psychological thriller. This rendition culminates in such an explosive climax that’s right out of a slasher film. 

Antosca was involved with an unproduced Friday the 13th reboot draft back in 2015, and there are certainly moments in which Max Cady moves with the hulking intensity of Jason Voorhees. So much of what makes all this work rests on Bardem’s complex performance. He’s very careful not to just copy Robert Mitchum or Robert De Niro’s versions of Cady, while he also taps into a terrifying intensity that feels completely different from what he brought forward with No Country for Old Men’s Anton Chigurh.

Apple TV’s new series also introduces a mental injury to Cady that adds psychological fractures that pull him between different versions of events as he struggles to grasp the truth. It’s an element that’s not exactly necessary and often feels like a convenient obstacle that can be activated whenever necessary. However, it allows for some creative visual flourishes and more opportunities for Bardem to get lost in Cady’s complexities.

Opposite Bardem’s Cady, Adams and Wilson do some of their best work as Anna and Tom. Anna is much more front and center than Tom, and Cape Fear is really Adams and Bardem’s time to shine. Wilson still does amazing, understated work, especially whenever the rug gets pulled out from under him regarding someone in his family. The visceral, brutal violence that Cady introduces to the Bowden family hits hard and highlights the anger and intensity that’s fundamental to this story.

What Cape Fear does best is its enlightening deconstruction of the ideal American family, how much work it takes to preserve such a pure thing, and the lengths that people go when they feel like the sanctity of this union is under fire. All it takes is for one of these foundational pillars to weaken before the whole unit becomes compromised. It moves the damage and pressure from one family member to the next as everyone struggles, and it’s unclear what will be left of this family when all is said and done.

This dynamic makes Cape Fear’s story so much more layered and interesting than if the series were just focused on Cady, Anna, and Tom, rather than making their children as much of a priority. Each member of the Bowden family experiences their own obstacles and arcs, although Natalie (Lily Collias) and Zack’s (Joe Anders) storylines are often the most grating. It all boils down to forgiveness, identity, and wanting to be perceived as the person we think we are, versus how we’re viewed by the public, and the dangerous dissonance that can exist between these separate selves.

These ideas are at their most potent when Cape Fear taps into the growing paranoia that bubbles up to the surface and becomes unbearable, so that even the littlest action is triggering. These moments are usually captured through a more erratic filming style that ramps up the tension for both the characters and the audience, unsure of what will strike and when. 

Cape Fear never struggles to create uncomfortable setpieces where the anxiety just crescendos and hangs over the scene. On this note, the series’ musical score really captures the perfect aesthetic. It immediately evokes the suspenseful power of the previous Cape Fear films whenever Bernard Herrmann’s virtuosic original theme kicks in. It’s magic every single time.

Antosca delivers an exhilarating update to a classic thriller that pushes its source material to exciting, new places that justify its existence. It’s an exciting story that’s full of terrifying performances and cataclysmic consequences. Admittedly, Cape Fear could have been shortened to eight episodes rather than ten. There are a few plot threads that feel unnecessary and artificially expanded upon, but every episode is still an adrenaline-pumping experience.

If nothing else, it reminds audiences why Cape Fear is such an evergreen story that’s lasted the test of time and will continue to unnerve and get under the skin of whole new generations.

The 10-episode series will make its global debut on June 5 with a two-episode premiere on Apple TV, followed by new episodes every Friday through July 31, 2026.

The post ‘Cape Fear’ Redefines A Cutthroat Classic & Turns The American Dream Into A Psychological Nightmare [Review] appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

In “Crystal Lake,” Mrs. Voorhees finally takes center stage. And star Linda Cardellini talks a little bit about that in a new chat with The Hollywood Reporter this week.

“With Crystal Lake, A24, Peacock and [creator] Brad Caleb Kane all came together and they just had this concept for making this story about Pam Voorhees,” Cardellini (who is playing Mrs. Voorhees in the show) explains. “And if you watch the original movie, it really operates like a whodunit. Spoiler: at the end, you find out that it was Pam Voorhees.”

Cardellini continues, “She’s only in the movie for the last little bit, but she leaves this impression on the entire franchise. There’s so many movies subsequent that you’d think Jason’s always been in that mask doing what he’s doing. But that wasn’t the case. It just seemed like something that I had never done.

“I haven’t seen that many female slashers like that. To dive into who she might have been, I thought, well, that’s something I’ve never done. When I’m looking for things to do next, I ask myself what’s something I haven’t done yet. And that was one of them.”

“There’s fertile backstory there,” the actress also notes, explaining that the original Friday the 13th left the door wide open to examine the backstory behind the Camp Crystal Lake carnage. And that’s exactly what we’re getting when “Crystal Lake” premieres October 15 on Peacock.

Callum Vinson (“Chucky”) is playing young Jason in “Crystal Lake,” which will tell the origin story of the masked slasher who has stalked the grounds of Crystal Lake for decades.

Linda Cardellini stars as Pamela Voorhees, a mother who gave up a singing career to raise her special needs child, only to take a dark turn when she loses her son — Jason.

From A24 and streamer Peacock, “Crystal Lake” will notably be the first official Friday the 13th project since the Platinum Dunes remake of the original classic way back in 2009.

The post ‘Crystal Lake’ – Linda Cardellini Teases the Show’s Approach to Mrs. Voorhees appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

“Your Baggage“, directed by Andrew DeYoung (Friendship), sees O’Flynn’s scene-stealing Patricia once again renew her fight with the Michael Myers-like stalker that slaughtered her peers during her adolescence. Thrillingly, it makes for one extended chase sequence that sees Patricia trying to warn others, while evading the undead killer.

In short, this episode’s incredible riff on Halloween and the slasher subgenre transformed Patricia into a fierce Final Girl.

“Well, that felt like a bucket list that I didn’t know was on my bucket list until I did it, but when I did it, I just lapped up every minute,” O’Flynn tells Bloody Disgusting of her triumphant turn this episode. “It felt fantastic for her to get that moment where she is becoming a badass. That was amazing.”

The actress turned to a few notable references for her performance. “Horror-wise, I go back to my youth, which was referenced in some of the episodes: Wicker Man, Carrie, and Rosemary’s Baby, that sort of thing is my kind of vibe.”

O’Flynn also notes how the series’ unique tone allows for so much creative freedom to make bold swings. “There’s something very freeing about it. Every moment is up for grabs, so it’s like we don’t have to totally land in one direction or another. It keeps it alive.“

Patricia is the eccentric assistant to Matthew Rhys‘ Mayor Tom Loftis, who’s at the forefront of trying to solve the island’s pesky curse predicament. Rhys felt the same about “Widow’s Bay” and its rare ability to make you laugh and scream in equal measure, stemming from series creator Katie Dippold. 

“The mandate was, ‘It’s a real world with real people. You play for real.’ There’s no playing for comedy or horror,” Rhys echoes O’Flynn’s sentiments on how freeing the series’ tone has been.

New episodes will release every Wednesday through June 17 only on Apple TV+.

Kate O’Flynn in “Widow’s Bay,” now streaming on Apple TV.

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The entire experience is magic, but not because some supernatural thrall has been activated. What’s going on is even more special. It’s the power of the effusive fandom that’s been authentically assembled by AMC’s sublime Immortal Universe, namely Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire, now, The Vampire Lestat.

The Vampire Lestat is far from the first Anne Rice adaptation, and it’s not as if there’s been a lack of erotic vampire material for audiences to sink their teeth into. On June 2nd, during a one-night-only spectacle, New York City’s prestigious Beacon Theatre shook from Sam Reid’s bravado performance and an audience full of adoring fans who had already memorized Lestat’s songs.

It’s clear that The Vampire Lestat just hits differently than its predecessors. It’s become more than just a TV series at this point, and this opulent display of ego, swagger, and pure sex is the perfect way to premiere the new season and give back to the fans who helped make Interview with the Vampire/The Vampire Lestat such a breakout success. It’s exactly the sort of hyperbolized hedonism that would make Lestat cackle.

For all intents and purposes, AMC has successfully created the illusion that this concert/premiere is just one of the many destinations on Lestat and his band’s 54-stop tour that is simultaneously playing out on this season of television. It’s such a sophisticated and thorough level of interactive fan engagement that the audience doesn’t just understand, but also manages to accentuate through its involvement.

It’s a level of seamless synergy that’s not unlike the give-and-take relationship of vampire and victim. 

Before the concert started, “LeStans” were sitting in the Beacon and flipping through a fake Rolling Stone issue with Lestat emblazoned on the cover, complete with interviews with the undead frontman inside. Other fans were admiring the vinyl pressing of Lestat’s EP as they walked past a section of undead band merch. Fandom and fantasy blur together, and it all becomes this elaborate, immersive experience. Fan celebration, erotic gothic fantasy, and a lavish rock concert transform into one beautiful thing.

To this point, AMC Global Media’s Chief Content Officer and President of AMC Studios, Dan McDermott, introduced the event by reiterating to fans, “You are the heartbeat of the series.” That’s abundantly clear on nights like this as that heartbeat collectively pulses to this performance. In terms of how AMC engages with The Vampire Lestat’s fans, it’s as bold a reinvention as the season itself.

This intuitive gamble speaks to AMC’s creativity in this department and a fandom that is eager to seize such opportunities. It’s the same innovation that led to zombie walks for The Walking Dead and real-life Los Pollos Hermanos restaurant pop-ups from Breaking Bad. It’s a great way to pump up the audience for The Vampire Lestat and then maintain that enthusiasm for the whole season.

For most series, a rock ‘n’ roll concert just doesn’t make any sense as a promotional tool. The Vampire Lestat finds itself in a very unique position where it can deliver an excellent concert at an iconic theater, but also use it to showcase The Vampire Lestat’s music by Daniel Hart (who was shredding on stage alongside Reid and the rest of their band) and, more than anything, Sam Reid’s endless charisma.

The way in which Reid feeds off of the crowd’s energy, modulating his performance and giving different sections of the Beacon life, is a perfect distillation of the series’ thoughtful relationship with its audience and how it’s become such a breakout success for AMC. AMC Studios President Dan McDermott emphasized that the fans are the reason that the show is still here and why an event like this is even possible. It’s rare to see a series in which every single cog in the machine is so perfectly attuned to its fans. Reid’s fans already cheer whenever they see him, so why not translate that to a concert setting?

It’s clear in this season of television that Reid was born to be a rock star, but it’s surreal to see him effortlessly command the stage — and the audience — at every step of the concert. He recites Shakespeare monologues and bitches out Armand between songs, all while the audience screams in support. For the duration of this concert, Reid is Lestat, and he’s given thousands of fans a memory that’s as immortal as any vampire.

Now bring on the encore and get this show on the road!

The post ‘The Vampire Lestat’ Concert Event Launches New Season With The Ultimate Expression Of Fandom appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

“The Hunting Party” ultimately ended up feeling like “Hannibal”-lite, but it wasn’t without its fun. Unfortunately, the NBC series has now been cancelled after just two seasons.

The Hollywood Reporter notes, “sources tell The Hollywood Reporter that Universal Television, which produces the series, will look to find a new home.”

The viewership just wasn’t there, with “The Hunting Party” averaging “3.7 million viewers after a week of DVR playback” for Season 2, “down 13 percent from its first season.”

It’s always possible that “The Hunting Party” could find a new home on a different network or a streaming service, but at this time the series is completely dead in the water.

In the series, which also streamed on Peacock, “a small team of investigators are assembled to track down and capture the most dangerous killers our country has ever seen, all of whom have just escaped from a top-secret prison that’s not supposed to exist.”

Melissa Roxburgh, Nick Wechsler, Patrick Sabongui, Josh McKenzie, and Sara Garcia star. JJ Bailey created the series and was the show-runner alongside Jake Coburn.

The post ‘The Hunting Party’ – NBC Serial Killer Series Has Been Cancelled After Two Seasons appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

Billy Barratt (Bring Her Back), Emily Carey (“House of the Dragon”), Esther McGregor (“We Were Liars”), Faly Rakotohavana (“UnPrisoned” ), and Mia Isaac (“American Horror Stories”) are the latest additions.

They join previously announced leads Maisy Stella (My Old Ass) and newcomer Tatum Grace Hopkins, who play childhood best friends Chloe and Max, respectively.

The series follows Max, who is, per the official synopsis, “a photography student, who discovers she can rewind time while saving the life of her childhood best friend, Chloe (Stella). As she struggles to understand this new skill, the pair investigates the mysterious disappearance of a fellow student, uncovering a dark side to their town that will ultimately force them to make an impossible life or death choice that will impact them forever.”

Barratt will star as classmate Nathan; Carey is set to play one of Nathan’s close friends, Victoria Chase; McGregor will play missing student Rachel Amber. Rakotohavana has been cast as Warren, and Isaac is set as Kate Marsh, both good friends of Max’s.

Tom Cullen (“Downton Abbey”), Leisha Hailey (“The L Word”), Raúl Castillo (Smile 2), and Owen Teague (IT) also star.

“Life Is Strange” is created by showrunner and executive producer Charlie Covell (“The End of the F**king World“), with Mackenzie Dohr (“Widow’s Bay“, “WandaVision“) writing and executive producing.

As if all the aforementioned talent isn’t enticing enough, Karyn Kusama (The Invitation, Jennifer’s Body) will direct the first two episodes and executive produce under her Familystyle production banner. 

Life Is Strange, developed by Don’t Nod Entertainment and later Deck Nine with Square Enix’s External Studios serving as publisher, has amassed over 20 million players since its launch in 2015.

The Twin Peaks-inspired game has since launched a franchise that includes 2017’s Life Is Strange: Before the Storm, 2018’s The Awesome Adventures of Captain Spirit, 2018’s Life Is Strange 2, 2021’s Life Is Strange: True Colors, 2022’s Life Is Strange Remastered Collection, 2024’s Life Is Strange: Double Exposure, and this year’s Life Is Strange: Reunion.

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The novel was published by Orion Books in 2019, and Stephen King is one of the twisted tale’s many fans. He called it a “nightmarish story” that’s “incredibly propulsive and original.”

“You won’t shake it for a long time,” King added.

Deadline reports that Michael Sarnoski (Pig, A Quiet Place: Day One, The Death of Robin Hood) will executive produce the series for HBO, and he’s also directing the pilot episode.

Jodie Comer will star in HBO’s “The Chain.” In the eight-episode series, Comer plays Rachel, a suburban mother who must consider the unthinkable when her daughter is kidnapped.

Damon Lindelof (“Watchmen”) is show-running “The Chain” for HBO.

Damon Lindelof also co-wrote the pilot episode with Carly Wray (“Mad Men,” “Westworld”), based on a story by Lindelof, Wray, and Breannah Gibson (“The Penguin”).

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Not just loss. Not just unsuccessful inadequacy. But true, all-encompassing, cataclysmic failure.

The Vampire Lestat, much like the two seasons of Interview with the Vampire before it, is a series that’s profoundly interested in failure. The type of failure that can only be understood by someone who has been making the same mistakes for over 250 years. The Vampire Lestat is utterly consumed by failure, but also temptation, regression, obsession, and evolution. It remains unparalleled when it comes to sprawling, epic love stories that endure for centuries. 

The new season reminds us that we’re all slaves to the past, whether it’s in terms of repeating it or trying to rise above it. This season is such a potent cocktail of pain, vanity, fear, and regret that’s shared between this sad collection of lost souls that culminates in such explosive bursts of tremendous emotion. Human, vampire; nobody wants to burn alone. It’s all too appropriate that a season that functions as a sweeping ode to failure is genuinely one of the year’s most perfect pieces of television, horror or otherwise.

At first, The Vampire Lestat’s transition to rock and roll may seem like a radical pivot. However, this is a series that continues to creatively mythologize and normalize vampires. It presents them as a crucial societal pillar and creates rewarding parallels between vampires and rock stars, right down to their parasitically adoring groupies. Lestat goes so far as to argue that vampires are the original rock stars, and it uses Lestat’s latest metamorphosis as a way to highlight these toxic, unbalanced relationships.

Sam Reid as Lestat De Lioncourt and Jennifer Ehle as Gabriella – Anne Rice’s The Vampire Lestat _ Episode 02 – Photo Credit: Sophie Giraud/AMC

It’s a truly perfect setup that’s a beautiful extension of the previous two seasons as well as a sublime rebirth into a new “hedonistic pursuit of extremity.” It’s an inspired way to continue the franchise’s “interview” and unreliable narrator concept, while also doing something completely original with the construct. Each episode of this season takes Lestat’s traveling menagerie to a different city on his band’s 54-stop tour, while a foreboding sense of dread accumulates over the global catastrophes that are the consequence of this tour and its corresponding album.  

Lestat is like a virus that passes through these metropolitan cities, leaving them ravaged and changed by the time that he leaves. It leads to some stunning commentary and visuals of the New World Order that gradually sets in over the season. Additionally, there’s a powerful apathy to the idea that Daniel Molloy’s (Eric Bogosian) published exposé on Lestat would fizzle out after a year and that humanity would move on and stop caring as they flock to the next big thing that they’re supposed to care about. It’s a cynicism that makes so much sense for this universe and individuals who have been around for centuries and seen it all.

That being said, those who are hoping for more of a direct adaptation of Anne Rice’s Queen of the Damned are going to need to be a little more patient. Much like how the series’ first two seasons are companion pieces and halves of a longer story, The Vampire Lestat leaves its Akasha (Sheila Atim) teases to its final episodes. These perfectly set up a hypothetical fourth season, which would presumably tackle the rest of Damned’s material.

Jacob Anderson as Louis De Pointe Du Lac – The Vampire Lestat – Photo Credit: Sophie Giraud/AMC

It’s amazing that Letstat’s whole rockstar persona functions as a petty, egotistical response to regain control of the narrative so that his songs are the definitive text that usurps Daniel’s novel. It’s the perfect distillation of Lestat as a character and one that facilitates a deeply entertaining and even campier season of television that goes places that would have previously been impossible. The series’ evolution remains one of the most fascinating and impressive things about this season.

The Vampire Lestat’s rebirth is a reflection of life’s cyclical nature and how everything old is new again. This is highlighted both explicitly and subtly through not just the season’s messaging, but also through some clever and ambitious casting choices. Several actors pull double duty this season. This could easily be a disaster in less-skilled hands, and yet it’s never a distraction here. If anything, it manages to beautifully enhance the series’ obsession with duality.

The series digs deeper than ever into its characters, but the filmmaking artistry has never been better. It’s a self-indulgent display of aesthetic extremes that underscores how much care is put into every single frame. Much of this season is presented like a rock band doc that shifts between different film styles. It’s such a natural fit that meshes with the series’ broader tendency to be a cinematic magpie. There are so many different directions that The Vampire Lestat could take for its band material. The decision to explicitly pull from Madonna: Truth or Dare is so gonzo but perfect. It’s a strong way to put Lestat on a pedestal and simultaneously demystify him as his many sides are portrayed through the season’s fractured, nonlinear meta-narrative.

Sam Reid as Lestat De Lioncourt – The Vampire Lestat – Photo Credit: Sophie Giraud/AMC

To this point, there’s so much effort going into Lestat’s music. These are immaculately written by Daniel Hart, and they all feel like actual songs that could top charts and get audiences screaming and dropping drugs, even without any vampire glamor influencing their opinion. It’s hard territory to authentically nail, and it makes all the difference that The Vampire Lestat knocks it out of the park in this department and features a season that’s full of genuine bangers, rather than one half-decent song that’s repeated ad nauseam. It also doesn’t hurt that this season Baz Luhrmanns the fuck out when it comes to these grandiose musical spectacles. 

Sam Reid embodies the rock star persona so effortlessly that it’s wild to think that this wasn’t always the role that he was playing. It fits him as snug as leather pants. Lestat’s fame becomes so intense that there are literally people cosplaying as him in crowds so that his ego can reach even more untenable heights. This artificial future is powerfully juxtaposed against Lestat’s past, including some key formative moments from his life. There’s also a heartbreaking confrontation that arguably hits even harder than season two’s best moments. It’s so encouraging and exciting to see that The Vampire Lestat continues to top itself and that its best work is not behind it. It’s still finding new ways to thrive.

The series’ narration has always been on point. However, it’s easy to forget just how precise every word is and how perfectly Rolin Jones sticks the landing with his interpretations of these characters and Anne Rice’s universe, while still making it his own. ”Serving cunt has its consequences” might also be the most Lestat line to ever Lestat. Alternatively, the new role Daniel takes on as the director of a Lestat documentary is such a fun position for him to slide into that it becomes another playful echo of the past. It all reinforces the idea that we filter ourselves through the company we keep and that there’s conflict when we’re confronted with the truth.

The Vampire Lestat is everything you could want and then some. It’s a moving meditation on fame, fandom, and legacy that pushes its characters and relationships to their most satisfying places yet. Admittedly, this season throws a lot of new characters at the audience, but this never feels overwhelming or that this influx of new faces is superfluous.

I genuinely don’t know how these seven episodes could be any better. It’s the best Anne Rice adaptation to date and a series that truly feels like it’s just getting started and has greater highs to hit. Bring on the Queen of the Damned.

The Vampire Lestat premieres on June 7 on AMC and AMC+.

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Another big fan of “Widow’s Bay”? Master filmmaker Guillermo del Toro!

Guillermo del Toro took to social media this weekend to rave, “If I may- in my estimation- #WidowsBay may very well be the best streaming series in a long time… and hands down one of the most mesmerizing acts of narrative prestidigitation in Horror.”

If I may- in my estimation- #WidowsBay may very well be the best streaming series in a long time… and hands down one of the most mesmerizing acts of narrative prestidigitation in Horror.

— Guillermo del Toro (@RealGDT) May 30, 2026

Daniel Kurland wrote in his “Widow’s Bay” review for Bloody Disgusting, “Season One makes a perfect first impression, and its debut is strong enough that viewers will want to set up permanent residency there. There’s an excellent sense of storytelling, character development, and an engaging mystery that’s strengthened through pitch-perfect horror and comedy.”

A cursed coastal town is plagued by the supernatural in Apple TV series “Widow’s Bay.”

The series takes place in a “quaint island town 40 miles off the coast of New England. But something lurks beneath the surface. Mayor Tom Loftis (Matthew Rhys) is desperate to revive his struggling community. There’s no wifi, spotty cellular reception, and he must contend with superstitious locals who believe their island is cursed.”

“But Loftis is determined to build a better future for his teenage son and turn the island into a tourist destination. Unfortunately, the locals were right. After decades of calm, the old stories that seemed too ludicrous to be true start happening again.”

Katie Dippold (2016’s Ghostbusters, Haunted Mansion) is the series creator & showrunner. New episodes will release every Wednesday through June 17 only on Apple TV+.

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Deadline notes that the high profile package is “being taken out to buyers,” with Tom Spezialy (The Leftovers, Watchmen) attached as the writer of The Birds limited series.

Universal International Studios and Heyday Television are behind the project.

Deadline details, “The Birds limited series is described as a visceral, present-day reimagining of Hitchcock’s classic set in Spezialy’s home state of Alaska with a murder mystery at the center and new characters, led by a new female protagonist, Myra Massey (Sarah Snook).”

“The Birds introduces traveling magistrate Myra Massey (Snook) as she returns to her isolated Alaskan hometown for a routine presumptive death hearing, expecting a simple cold case. Instead, she finds her childhood friend’s bullet-ridden body,” Deadline further details. “When Myra is forced to step outside her role as judge to untangle the mystery, nature itself turns hostile with a wave of bird attacks. Now, Myra isn’t just trying to close a case, she’s fighting to survive in a place where death lurks in both the shadows and the skies.”

Released in 1963, Alfred Hitchcock’s The Birds was based on the same-named story by Daphne du Maurier, published in 1952. The film spawned a mostly-forgotten sequel in 1994.

Sarah Snook in ‘Run Rabbit Run’

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Even then, the profit-driven machinations behind film distribution can still result in movies becoming unavailable to legally stream or purchase – and that’s not even mentioning the recent trend of studios scrapping completed projects in order to guarantee a bigger tax break.

However, for every Batgirl and The Golem, there’s a case where dedicated fans have managed to unearth elusive media and make it available for everyone. This month had one such pleasant outcome when dedicated cinephile Darren Payne announced via film preservation FB Group Film is Fabulous that he’d recovered a long-lost episode of the BBC’s 1968 anthology series Late Night Horror.

Directed by Paddy Russell and written by I Am Legend scribe Richard Matheson, “No Such Thing as a Vampire” is a 25-minute short following a doctor’s wife who becomes ill and soon suspects that she’s actually being visited by a blood-sucking vampire. What follows is a gruesome tale that pushes the limits of 1960s horror programming with a surprising amount of disturbing imagery.

Pictured: BBC’s ‘Late Night Horror’ Title Card

This story is only the second of Late Night Horror’s six episodes to be recovered (with Russell’s other grim tale, The Corpse Can’t Play, having been found back in 2016), as the program’s terrifying reputation led to the BBC scrapping and allegedly destroying the show entirely after receiving numerous complaints from sensitive viewers.

As Doctor Who fans are sadly aware, the BBC also had a nasty habit of taping over “unwanted” recordings as a cost-saving measure back in the day, so the fact that Payne recovered a private 16mm telerecording of the show after inquiring about a collection of mystery reels at England’s Regent Theater is nothing short of a small miracle.

That being said, while No Such Thing as a Vampire was originally broadcast in color, the surviving copy is limited to black-and-white (though Payne guarantees that the film remains just as terrifying without the added color). There’s also talk of an experimental color recovery process being planned for the print, though there’s no guarantee that it’ll work out.

The high-resolution digital scan of No Such Thing as a Vampire is set to make its public debut during this year’s edition of the UK’s Grindfest on September 20, with the footage then being returned to the BBC for a wider release!

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Mickle is directing as well as co-writing the FX series with Katz.

Deadline notes that the neo-noir series is billed as “Cormac McCarthy meets John Carpenter.”

The outlet details, “That Texas Blood is a neo-noir Western following Sheriff Joe Bob Coates of Ambrose County, Texas, who questions his place in an increasingly violent world when a man returns home following the sudden disappearance of his brother, causing a spiral down into a past filled with treachery and blood.”

Chris Condon and Jacob Phillips are behind the comic book series from Image.

Jim Mickle directed the films Stake Land, We Are What We Are, and Cold in July, and he more recently directed the television shows “Hap and Leonard” and “Sweet Tooth.”

E.L. Katz, meanwhile, directed the movies Cheap Thrills and Azrael. His TV directing credits include “The Haunting of Bly Manor,” “Channel Zero,” “Swamp Thing,” and “Teacup.”

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By the 1990s, Curry had made a considerable transition to voice acting. His chops could be heard in a number of children’s shows, including The Pirates of Dark Water, Darkwing Duck, Aaahh!!! Real Monsters, Superhuman Samurai Syber-Squad, and The Wild Thornberrys. Of course, Curry didn’t completely stay off camera back then; one particular live-action role of his still stays with me and, undoubtedly, plenty of others who grew up on Tales from the Crypt (1989–1996).

Having first seen Season Five’s “Death of Some Salesmen” at a pretty young age, I didn’t invest a lot of thought into who played the characters in these macabre stories I loved. So I most certainly didn’t stop to notice that all three members of the Brackett family were played by Tim Curry. My awareness of this awesome triple play came later in life, but I also wasn’t surprised. By then, I had become much more aware of Curry’s skills as an actor.

Like other episodes of Tales from the Crypt, “Death of Some Salesmen” doesn’t exactly match up with its source material. The destinations are the same in either story; the door-to-door protagonist meets an untimely end during his travels. In EC Comics’ version, though, you may actually feel some sympathy for the main character. Here we find a man who was just looking for help, as opposed to his next sucker.

Mike Vosburg’s comic-style artwork for “Death of Some Salesmen”, as shown in the Tales from the Crypt episode.

In a story written by Al Feldstein and drawn by Jack Kamen, “Death of Some Salesmen!”—EC loved its exclamation points!—began with Stuart Thatcher getting caught in a heavy downpour. His recent failed attempts at selling some mysterious item have led him to give up and go home. It’s only once Stuart’s car stalls that he goes knocking on the wrong door in the middle of the night. At a house on a hill, Stuart is taken in by a woman who bears a resemblance to the Crypt-Keeper, the hosting GhouLunatic of A Crypt of Terror (which was later retitled Tales from the Crypt). This Henrietta and her husband, Eban, don’t waste any time before they let their guest feel threatened.

Had it not been for Stuart mentioning his line of work, perhaps he would have lived longer. Mr. Thatcher wasn’t even there to pull a fast one on this gruesome couple, much less sell whatever he was selling. All he simply wanted was to use their phone (and understandably, they didn’t have one). Nonetheless, Henrietta and Eban have been burned in the past, so their mouths start foaming at the mere mention of “traveling salesman”.

Stuart, like Ed Begley Jr.’s character in the TV adaptation, learns what’s up early on. And that’s only because Henrietta and Eban give their unwelcome guest a ghastly tour of all their new appliances, as well as the salesmen who provided them. Mind you, not every one of those peddlers ripped them off, but alas, even the decent ones didn’t go unpunished. Henrietta and Eban killed them just the same as the dishonest salesmen. The couple also stored their victims’ bodies inside of said appliances (e.g., one corpse is found inside a freezer). More or less, this is what happened in the Crypt episode before Begley’s character is knocked unconscious by “Pa” Brackett.

Shifting into the adaptation, which was directed by Gilbert Adler and co-written by Adler and A. L. Katz, that salesman truly got what was coming to him. After all, he was selling fake cemetery plots to the grief-stricken. And after swindling Yvonne De Carlo’s poor character in a scene that really sold how unscrupulous this Judd Campbell guy is, there was no turning back. Thankfully, the episode also doesn’t disappoint by not delivering the most logical outcome for Begley’s role: to make him dig his own grave.

A page from “Death of Some Salesmen!”, as seen in EC Comics’ The Haunt of Fear.

Now, the comic showed Stuart getting what wasn’t owed to him; Henrietta and Eban were just taking out their grievances on whoever was available. That same story also ended more straightforwardly, seeing as how the couple didn’t bother to trick Stuart. No, they made their plan clear from the beginning. And after Eban retrieved that enigmatic piece of merchandise from Mr. Thatcher’s car—a handy-dandy meat slicer—these potential customers tested the product in the only way they saw fit.

Meanwhile, in Tales from the Crypt’s version, there was some attempt at deceiving the deceiver. The logic of that scheme isn’t especially brilliant, or even sound, but Curry’s presence more than makes up for the so-so writing. He disappeared into all three of his roles here—and not because of the heavy makeup and prosthetics. No, Curry got absolutely lost in his characters, and the outcome is as brilliant as it is repulsive.

Tales from the Crypt was never too apologetic about itself; that’s something its fans can attest to, as well as appreciate. And although “Death of Some Salesmen” does become an endurance test at times—it seemed almost hellbent on making the audience gag and squirm—that depravity, along with Curry’s total extraness, is its selling point. Above all, this episode is a shining example of bad taste done very well.

Season Five of Tales from the Crypt can be streamed on Shudder, starting on May 29.

Tales from Tales from the Crypt celebrates the show’s Shudder premiere by singling out one episode from each season. So don’t even think about changing that dial, boys and ghouls. More spot-“frights” are to come.

Tim Curry as Winona Brackett in “Death of Some Salesmen”.

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Naver Webtoon debuts Maengjong on May 30.

The series hails from Haemuri (Olgami) and will trace the high school origins of how shaman duo Hwarim and Bonggil, played by Kim Go-eun and Lee Do-hyun in the 2024 film, came together to face occultish threats.

The story is set to begin when “Hwarim, who has been concealing her identity following a childhood encounter with a snake spirit called Jin, crosses paths with Bonggil at their school.”

Variety notes that Exhuma director Jang Jae-hyun participated in the project’s early concept stage.

“We are presenting ‘Maengjong,’ a new series capturing the appeal of the horror-occult genre, ahead of the full summer season,” said Lee Jeong-geun, Naver Webtoon’s Korea webtoon content leader. “With the high school story of Hwarim and Bonggil, who left a strong impression in the film ‘Exhuma,’ enhanced by Haemuri’s characteristic tense direction, we expect it will be a welcome work for genre fans.”

“It is meaningful that the spin-off story of ‘Exhuma,’ loved by many audiences, expands by meeting the new grammar of webtoon,” said Lee Hyeon-jeong, managing director of the film business division at Showbox, which distributed the film. “We hope it will be a fresh experience for both film fans and webtoon readers.”

Exhuma was a breakout hit in 2024, becoming the first Korean occult film to surpass 10 million ticket buyers and the country’s highest-grossing film of the year. I wrote in my review that “the intricately woven Exhuma delivers one of the year’s biggest surprises in horror so far.”

The bond between Hwarim and Bonggil was one of the film’s highlights, making this prequel webtoon a must for fans.

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Does that grab hold of your attention? Because it damn sure snatched up mine!

Mac Smullen (Children of the Moon) wrote the pilot for Sunken Meadow on spec, with North Road Television Studios picking up the hot series project “in the seven-figure range.”

Deadline also notes in today’s exclusive report, “Insiders also add that [Margot Robbie’s] LuckyChap is potentially coming on as a producer but no deal has been reached yet.”

North Road’s Amy Israel, Josh Stern, and Peter Chernin will executive produce.

Stay tuned for more much on the intriguing Sunken Meadow as we learn it.

‘Six Feet Under’

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So, is this puppet-themed story the most ghastly thing to come out of Tales from the Crypt? Hardly. “Strung Along”, however, understood how to use its time well, how not to drag out the violence, and how to shock the audience. Funny enough, though, this is an episode that, in spite of its haunting ending, feels tamer than the source material. The comic counterpart for “Strung Along” goes out on a note that is perhaps too disturbing, even for Tales from the Crypt.

Before going any further, take a look behind the scenes of “Strung Along”. This late Season Four episode might not have the directing pedigree of others in the series—this season alone had episodes directed by William Friedkin and John Frankenheimer—but it was helmed by the Crypt Keeper’s maker and handler. Special effects wizard Kevin Yagher, who was requested to create the show’s iconic host, was also responsible for getting John Kassir cast. After gaining experience in the director’s chair, beginning with Season Two’s “Lower Berth”, Yagher came back for an episode that felt right up his alley.

Mike Vosburg’s comic-style artwork for “Strung Along”, as shown in the Tales from the Crypt episode.

There seemed to be no one better to direct “Strung Along” than the person who brought Chucky into the world. Yagher was built for a story about killer puppets. Or so, that’s what this episode appears to be about (spoiler: it is). Initially, a murderer on strings looms over that plot of a faded puppeteer and his shady wife, until it’s time for the inevitable reveal. The show’s own “no batteries” scene, you could say. Smartly, though, Yagher and co-writer Yale Udoff (Bad Timing) didn’t allow their collaboration to be so routine. What you think will happen, most definitely does happen—just now in a different way.

This episode is partly in the vein of classic psychological thrillers—the kind where, bit by bit, someone is driven to madness by someone close to him or her. And here, the victim of such malice is a retired puppeteer (or marionettist) named Joseph Renfield (Donald O’Connor). Once a successful entertainer, Joseph is now deeply unhappy. A bad heart has ended his career, as well as caused problems in his marriage. With all this free time on his hands, Joseph’s mind also wanders. He’s become suspicious about his wife, Ellen (Patricia Charbonneau), as she spends every Tuesday night at her acting class.

It doesn’t take a detective to figure out what’s going on here, especially after Ellen supplies the assistant needed for Joseph’s sudden comeback; someone in her acting class, a guy named “David” (Zach Galligan), is quickly brought in to help organize the new show. That handsome stranger is actually more into mechanical, or remote-controlled, puppets, but he’s a fast learner. David is also the only person who looks to be supporting Joseph and his new project. Ellen lays it on pretty thick with her disruptions and open hostility, whereas Galligan’s role is a little less obvious. So much so that you’re almost disappointed once the ruse is over and the villains show their hand. Joseph is so pathetic that you wish David’s friendship had been genuine.

As for the “Strung Along!” found in EC Comics’ The Vault of Horror, there is no David character, or even any kind of convoluted plan to murder Joseph’s parallel. That even more depressed marionettist, Tony Zargano, feels the full anger of his money-grubbing wife, Nora, before she simply leaves him. Fed up with her husband’s blue period and no longer living the life of luxury, Nora gives up her long con, says words that could cut steel, and then storms out. It’s really more heartbreaking than horrifying.

A page from “Strung Along!”, as seen in EC Comics’ The Vault of Horror.

If not for its last two pages, the comic version of “Strung Along!” wouldn’t qualify as horror. Most of the story just shows Tony stuck in his bed, reminiscing about the past, and trying to figure out why things went so wrong in life. It’s that familiar sort of tragedy that’s been long associated with brilliant artists. Yet as a change of pace, it’s the comic, and not the Crypt adaptation, that draws a fuller picture of the character. Tony’s fragile heart keeps him immobile but also reflective.

The comic’s shift into horror occurs as soon as Nora has a supposed change of heart. The story’s remainder is largely saturated in blues and blacks, and apart from the last two panels, Nora’s face is never shown to the audience. She never speaks a word, either. Regardless, a reconciliation commences, and Nora makes Tony’s last night on Earth “complete”. The next morning, the cops show up to find both Tony and Nora dead; it’s safe to assume he had a heart attack. Nora, on the other hand, died before her reunion with Tony. Those marionettes, in their own twisted way, wanted to make sure that their friend would have one last night of happiness.

So, as you can see, Tales from the Crypt opted for a necrophilia-free ending. After serving up a plot twist that feels like it came out of an old Jimmy Sangster script, “Strung Along” delivers the comeuppance portion of the story. It just couldn’t end with Ellen and David/Rick scaring poor Joseph into another heart attack. No, the episode needed to make good on its promise of a killer Koko the Clown. However, instead of a drawn-out chase sequence, the episode spits out a conclusion that is both fulfilling and eerie. You’re left with a rather creepy last image.

While the comic ends up being more depraved, Tales from the Crypt’s “Strung Along” is more of a complete story. The latter also doesn’t skimp on the grisliness. Either way, you’ll be sure to get your fill of puppet horror.

Season Four of Tales from the Crypt can be streamed on Shudder, starting on May 22.

Tales from Tales from the Crypt celebrates the show’s Shudder premiere by singling out one episode from each season. So don’t even think about changing that dial, boys and ghouls. More spot-“frights” are to come.

A giant puppet made in Joseph Renfield’s (Donald O’Connor) image, as seen in “Strung Along”.

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Watch the first look teaser below to get a peek at the next chapter, premiering on Prime Video in 2027. 

The series “explores the twisted origins of Vought International.” It’s been described as a murder mystery that traces the origins of the evil Vought corporation.

The supes at the center of Vought Rising include:

• Jensen Ackles as Soldier Boy
• Aya Cash as Stormfront
• Mason Dye (Teen Wolf, Stranger Things) as Bombsight
• Elizabeth Posey (Heels) as Private Angel
• Will Hochman (Blue Bloods) as Torpedo

KiKi Layne, Jorden Myrie, Nicolo Pasetti, Ricky Staffieri, and Brian J. Smith also star.

Paul Grellong will serve as showrunner and executive producer.

Eric Kripke, Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg, James Weaver, Neal H. Moritz, Pavun Shetty, Ori Marmur, Ken Levin, Jason Netter, Garth Ennis, Darick Robertson, Michaela Starr, and Jim Barnes also serve as executive producers on the series. 

Kripke recently teased that viewers should expect a much grittier tone than The Boys. “It’s definitely got some Boys‘ DNA in that it’s irreverent and graphic,” Kripke said. “But it has this sort of lovely, almost noir-like murder mystery — not Black Noir but actual noir. There are detectives and twists, and there’s a murder that then opens up into a bigger conspiracy.

The series is produced by Sony Pictures Television and Amazon MGM Studios, in association with Kripke Enterprises, Point Grey Pictures, and Original Film.

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This freedom has allowed adult stories like Preacher and even Invincible to be adapted in all of their bloody glory without the need to compromise the action in order to secure a profitable PG-13 rating. That’s also how we got Prime Video’s incredibly successful adaptation of Garth Ennis and Darick Robertson’s The Boys, a satirical comic book that went on to become one of the most popular superhero deconstructions in media.

However, with the show finally reaching its conclusion after seven years of bloodthirsty setup, long-time fans are left to wonder where they’ll turn to for their next dose of horror adjacent comic book thrills.

So, here’s a list highlighting five ultraviolent comics that also deserve the The Boys adaptation treatment, as there are plenty of genre stories that would make for some riveting programming.

That being said, this is far from a comprehensive list, so don’t forget to comment below with your own comic book favorites if you think we missed a particularly gnarly one.

With that out of the way, onto the list!

5. Wanted

Yes, I’m very much aware that Wanted already has a reasonably successful film adaptation from 2007, but as much as I enjoy that batshit crazy movie about curving bullets and deciphering prophecies from textile mills, it has absolutely nothing to do with Mark Millar’s original story!

The real Wanted was actually about the son of a superpowered killer discovering that our reality is controlled by a secret society of supervillains who emerged victorious from a war against superheroes and wiped everyone’s memories so that they could continue their nefarious activities in the shadows. In a media landscape dominated by superhero stories and fantastical cinematic universes, I think a supervillain story taking place in a more grounded reality would be a breath of fresh air. That’s why Wanted makes it onto the list, though it’s a shame that Eminem is a bit too old now to finally play the main character who was clearly based on his appearance.

4. Brat Pack

Brat Pack is probably the most controversial book on this list, with this dark satire of superhero sidekick stories delving into uncomfortable territory in order to condemn child abuse and the underlying fascism behind vigilante justice. However, despite being a frequently unpleasant read with divisive story beats regarding homophobia and sexual assault, enough time has passed that I believe a new generation of writers could tactfully approach the subject matter in order to expose how media empires exploit children.

There have been enough real-life scandals since 1990 to inform a serious Brat Pack adaptation that could very well turn out to be one of the most important Superhero stories ever put to screen – so long as the showrunners treat the subject with the respect it deserves.

3. The Strange Talent of Luther Strode

Equal parts horror comedy, Spider-Man homage, and parody of those Charles Atlas bodybuilding advertisements that used to haunt comic books during the ’50s and ’60s, The Strange Talent of Luther Strode is one of the most insanely creative projects to come out of the industry in decades.

That’s also why I think Justin Jordan and Tradd Moore’s high-octane parable about a troubled teenager who suddenly becomes a hulking strongman could also turn out to be TV’s next big superhero-themed hit. And if you ask me, a digitally de-aged Alan Ritchson would be perfect for the role of Luther!

2. Nemesis

The sadistic brainchild of Mark Millar and Steve McNiven, Nemesis is so edgy that it often becomes an unintentional comedy. And yet, there’s an undeniable charm to the over-the-top cynicism of this ridiculously hyperviolent story that can best be described as: “what if Batman was the Joker?”

However, the farcical world of Nemesis is so over-the-top that an appropriately satirical adaptation has the potential to surpass its source material. Hell, the added limitations of a TV budget might even help to make this a more easily digestible experience, though it really depends on who might be cast as the Patrick-Bateman-esque title character.

1. Something is Killing the Children

Putting James Tynion IV and Werther Dell’Edera’s action-horror opus on this list is kind of a cheat since an adaptation has been in the works since 2021, but until Blumhouse gives us an update on the long-gestating movie and animated series, I’ll continue to beg for a live-action rendition of Something is Killing the Children!

In this ultraviolent Boom! Studios series, we follow monster hunter Erica Slaughter as she hunts down hungry abominations that are usually only able to be seen by kids. While the overarching story here is perfect for a multi-season TV epic (and maybe even a couple of spin-offs), there’s also plenty of room for monster-of-the-week stories too.

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They join previously announced leads Maisy Stella (My Old Ass) and newcomer Tatum Grace Hopkins in the series adaptation of the mystery adventure video game.

The show follows “Max (Hopkins), a photography student, who discovers she can rewind time while saving the life of her childhood best friend, Chloe (Stella).

“As she struggles to understand this new skill, the pair investigate the mysterious disappearance of a fellow student, uncovering a dark side to their town that will ultimately force them to make an impossible life or death choice that will impact them forever.”

Cullen is set to play Mark Jefferson, Max’s teacher. Hailey will play Chloe’s mother, Joyce Price, with Castillo as Chloe’s stepfather, David Madsen. Teague will appear as local drug dealer Frank Bowers.

“Life Is Strange” is created by showrunner Charlie Covell (“The End of the F***ing World”), who also writes along with Mackenzie Dohr (“WandaVision”). Karyn Kusama (Jennifer’s Body, The Invitation) will direct the first two episodes.

The series hails from Square Enix, Story Kitchen, and LuckyChap, with Amazon MGM Studios producing. Executive producers include Covell, Dohr, Kusama, Dmitri M. Johnson, Michael Lawrence Goldberg, Timothy I. Stevenson, Jen Roskind, Dani Gorin, and Natalie Berkus.

Developed by Don’t Nod Entertainment and later Deck Nine with Square Enix’s External Studios serving as publisher, Life Is Strange has amassed over 20 million players since its launch in 2015.

The video game franchise also includes 2017’s Life Is Strange: Before the Storm, 2018’s The Awesome Adventures of Captain Spirit, 2018’s Life Is Strange 2, 2021’s Life Is Strange: True Colors, 2022’s Life Is Strange Remastered Collection, 2024’s Life Is Strange: Double Exposure, and this year’s Life is Strange: Reunion.

Tom Cullen in “Knightfall”

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Kerry Washington (Django Unchained, Wake Up Dead Man) is set to star and executive produce.

Chris Luccy (“A Million Little Things”) is penning the adaptation, with McG (Terminator Salvation, The Babysitter) on board to direct.

In the series, “After taking the life of a disturbed man in the line of duty, Detective Elise Sutton (Washington) – a devoted wife, loving mother, and cold case specialist — reels from the guilt of her actions.

“To convince herself that she did the right thing, she makes contact with a mysterious man that she saved that day, only to discover that he’s not at all what he seems. She’s soon caught in a dangerous game of cat and mouse, following the clues he leaves for her and realizing that the only person who can stop him… is her.”

20th Television and Kapital Entertainment are behind the show, with Walker producing. Executive producers include Luccy; Washington & Pilar Sivone for Simpson Street; McG, Mary Viola & Corey Marsh for Wonderland Sound and Vision; and Aaron Kaplan for Kapital Entertainment.

Released in 2023 by Blackstone Publishing, What Remains is described as a “dark, twisty, and highly addictive psychological thriller” in the vein of The Woman in the Window and The Silent Patient.

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It’s no surprise that there are plenty of age-based horror films like Cocoon, The Leech Woman, and Old that tap into this space, not to mention genre movies like VFW, which celebrate bad-ass boomer energy. 

In this sense, Netflix’s The Boroughs isn’t doing anything that hasn’t been done before. It’s an eight-episode series that looks at a bunch of people who feel invisible to society, only for them to gain a remarkable purpose that won’t just change their lives, but the entire world. It’s full of futile rage against getting older that’s balanced by the reassuring freedom that comes from accepting that it’s a normal – and even empowering – experience. It’s a sci-fi horror adventure about how to find meaning, value, and community when you feel utterly alone and like you’re just marking time.

The Boroughs is guilty of coming across as “Geriatric Stranger Things” as it stumbles through often-clunky puzzle-box storytelling. There’s still a lot of heart on display in this inspirational story, even if it’s unlikely to capture a fraction of Stranger Things’ fandom and become Netflix’s next big hit.

The Boroughs. (L to R) Clarke Peters as Art, Alfre Woodard as Judy, Alfred Molina as Sam, Denis OÕHare as Wally, Geena Davis as Renee in The Boroughs. Cr. Courtesy of Netflix © 2026

The new series takes an idyllic retirement community – the titular Boroughs – and transforms it into a paranormal prison where its discarded residents are turned into defenseless cannon fodder. Sam Cooper (Alfred Molina) is a retired engineer with a respect for the classics who becomes the newest resident. He’s immediately skeptical of this macabre community that’s proudly billed as “a town that’s just for grown-ups.”

Cooper is a curmudgeon with a capital C who can’t even let his guard down around his family. There’s an authenticity to the formulaic-but-comfortable lifestyle that’s laid out for Cooper and his fellow neighbors. He is an empathetic character, despite his rough edges. The bristling and loss of autonomy that he experiences highlights the similarities between trauma and getting older, with both subtly affecting one’s sense of self and physical body.

It’s fair for Cooper – or anyone – to resent having their agency taken away from them. Cooper grows especially resentful of this scenario and the Boroughs’ many modern creature comforts, such as the community’s personal Alexa-esque digital A.I. helper. 

The Boroughs. Alfred Molina as Sam in The Boroughs. Cr. Courtesy of Netflix © 2026

The Boroughs is a little glib when it comes to how it juxtaposes youth and modernity against the older generation in order to make its points. The same is true regarding how it approaches loneliness as a sickness and that a place like this can actually be an opportunity to live, rather than a place where people fade away and die. The Boroughs isn’t subtle about any of this, but it’s a mission statement that works more than it doesn’t, thanks to a cast that’s full of phenomenal performances.

The best thing that The Boroughs has going for it is a murderers’ row of top-tier performances. Bill Pullman, Geena Davis, Denis O’Hare, Clarke Peters, and Alfre Woodard help round out the cast alongside Molina. Everyone really commits and is clearly having fun in these roles. It’s a delight to just watch these characters bounce off of each other and slowly open up, even when it’s mundane moments where there are no active threats.

It’s a series that’s all about celebrating life, but there’s also a really melancholy nature to all this. This isn’t wholly unexpected in a series like this, as characters reflect on their fleeting mortality and how much of their lives they have left. Wally’s (O’Hare) storyline about dealing with a terminal illness as he tries to embrace an existence of “cocktails and chaos” is particularly poignant. Each episode functions as cathartic character studies outside of the grander paranormal developments.

The Boroughs. Cr. Courtesy of Netflix © 2026

The Stranger Things parallels in The Boroughs are front and center, right down to the Duffer Brothers being on board as executive producers. There are also shades of other mysterious community series like Wayward Pines, From, and even The Prisoner present here, with some Stepford Wives-esque conformity thrown in for good measure. Also, much like Stranger Things before it, The Boroughs suffers from the ongoing issue with Netflix programs where characters repeat the plot and what they’re about to do ad nauseam. It also doesn’t help that The Boroughs is airing at the same time as Apple TV+’s far superior Widow’s Bay, which nails this type of tone and genre so damn well. 

The Boroughs is at its best once it gets out of its own way, but there are still awkward affectations and unnecessary vestiges of puzzle-box storytelling that don’t feel natural. It actually feels like a series from the early 2010s during the height of the Lost copycat craze. It’s easy to picture The Boroughs as a successful contemporary to Revolution and Alcatraz, whereas its mysteries struggle to pull their weight in a modern context. 

The Boroughs. Clarke Peters as Art in The Boroughs. Cr. Courtesy of Netflix © 2026

There’s plenty in The Boroughs that falls short of expectations. However, it’s not just hollow and gratuitous mystery-driven storytelling. There are satisfying answers that connect to creative mythology that explore an original idea through a curious lens. It’s also clever to connect antiquated technology and relics of the past to Cooper and company’s solution to these supernatural threats. 

It’s earliest episodes take a minute to find their rhythm and really get moving. It gradually overcomes a cumbersome start in order to become something really special and heartwarming once it does its own thing. I found myself caring less about the mystery and more about these characters. There’s inventive lore, but also some telegraphed twists. The tone is also initially all over the place as if it can’t make up its mind over whether it’s supposed to be a comedy, drama, or horror series.

The Boroughs takes a really long walk to make its points. Some people may jump ship along the way, but they’re still powerful thoughts, all the same. The season ultimately turns into a battle between compliance and rebellion that’s presented through a supernatural filter, but speaks to a universal concept. It works well enough for what it is.

There are creative monster designs, suspenseful stakes, and effective needle drops that speak to these characters. Outside of its heartfelt performances and brief flashes of inspiration, The Boroughs is unfortunately as forgettable as the very people who have been shipped off to its community.

All eight episodes of The Boroughs begin streaming on May 21, 2026.

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The hit horror anthology has also added Mena Suvari (American Beauty) and Berto Colon (“The Night Agent”) to its cast. The latter will reportedly play Joe the Doorman, who is employed by Jessica Lange’s character.

Created by Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuk, “American Horror Story” Season 13 is currently in production for a September premiere on FX. Plot details are under wraps.

FX teased, “American Horror Story has redefined the genre with various installments featuring a creepy murder house, a coven of witches, a traveling freak show, a haunted hotel, and the apocalypse itself.

“Which iconic horrors will return to haunt the hallowed halls of 13 and what new terrors await? Light your candles, draw your pentagrams, and prepare for a supreme surprise.”

Emma Roberts and Sarah Paulson are confirmed to reprise their “American Horror Story: Coven” characters Madison Montgomery and Cordelia Goode.

The cast also includes Lange, Evan Peters, Angela Bassett, Kathy Bates,Billie Lourd, Gabourey Sidibe, Leslie Grossman, Ariana Grande, Joey Pollari, Paul Anthony Kelly, and cult filmmaker John Waters.

Murphy, Falchuk, Ned Martel, Charlie Carver, Eric Kovtun, Nissa Diederich, Scott Robertson, Tanase Popa, Crystle Roberson Dorsey, Jennifer Salt, and Tim Minear serve as executive producers.

Produced by 20th Television, “American Horror Story” has amassed over 100 Emmy nominations and 17 wins since its launch in 2011.

Mat Fraser in “American Horror Story: Freak Show.” Photo: Michele K. Short/FX

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The prequel series set decades before the events of its parent show recently wrapped production and is set to launch in 2027 on Prime Video.

It’s set “in 1950 and focuses on fan-favorite character Soldier Boy (Jensen Ackles) and season two breakout Stormfront (Aya Cash). The story has been described as a twisted murder mystery that charts the origins of the sinister Vought corporation.”

Also appearing in “Vought Rising” are:

• Mason Dye (Teen Wolf, Stranger Things) as Bombsight
• Elizabeth Posey (Heels) as Private Angel
• Will Hochman (Blue Bloods) as Torpedo

As mentioned in season five of “The Boys,” these supes, along with Soldier Boy and Stormfront, are the only success stories from Dr. Frederick Vought’s V1 trials and were rendered immortal as a result. Ethan Slater‘s Thomas Godolkin from “Gen V” could also appear in this spinoff.

Get a peek at Bombsight, Private Angel, and Torpedo below.

According to series creator Eric Kripke in an interview with THR, “Vought Rising” will still retain the signature satirical gore but with a much grittier, noir tone.

“It’s definitely got some Boys‘ DNA in that it’s irreverent and graphic,” Kripke said. “But it has this sort of lovely, almost noir-like murder mystery — not Black Noir but actual noir. There are detectives and twists, and there’s a murder that then opens up into a bigger conspiracy.”

The showrunner also teases a much darker depiction of the ’50s: “We wanted dirty and grimy. There would be heroin dens and gay bars and this underbelly of popular culture at the time.”

Eric Kripke, Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg, James Weaver, Neal H. Moritz, Ori Marmur, Pavun Shetty, Ken Levin, Jason Netter, Garth Ennis, Darick Robertson, and Michaela Starr also serve as executive producers on the series. The series is produced by Sony Pictures Television and Amazon MGM Studios in association with Kripke Enterprises, Point Grey Pictures, and Original Film.

“Vought Rising” joins spinoff series “The Boys Presents: Diabolical” and the recently canceled “Gen V.” Previously announced spinoff series “The Boys: Mexico” is still on the way. 

Elizabeth Posey as Private Angel. Amazon MGM Studios

Mason Dye as Bombsight. Amazon MGM Studios

Will Hochman as Torpedo. Amazon MGM Studios.

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Hosted by “Jackass” star Johnny Knoxville, the two-part special concludes tomorrow, May 20, at 9pm ET/PT on Fox. The first half is currently available on Hulu.

In our exclusive clip below, a player is forced to hold a large insect in her mouth while tarantulas are dumped on her head.

The competitors include Tatum (25, Scottsdale, AZ), Adrienne (26, Sachse, TX), Blake (26, Delray Beach, FL), Brion (42, Oxford, MS), Jeff (48, New Jersey City, NJ), and Meg (45, Murrells Inlet, SC).

“Fear Factor: 48 Hours of Fear” is a spin-off of “Fear Factor: House of Fear,” which premiered in January and was renewed for a second season last month.

Joe Rogan hosted “Fear Factor” during its original run on NBC from 2001-2006 and again for its revival in 2011-2012. Ludacris served as host for MTV’s iteration of the show from 2017-2018.

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Currently in production, the second season of Shudder‘s horror anthology series from “Slasher” creators Aaron Martin & Ian Carpenter is titled “Hell Motel: Murder at Red Mountain.”

“Set at a mountain resort known for eliminating people’s inhibitions and amplifying their desires, the new season continues to reveal the chilling consequences of surrendering to our darkest impulses amidst the unique Cold River landscape.

“As guests and staff go missing without explanation and violent incidents increase, it becomes clear that Red Mountain has a long, horrific history for a reason and that no one is safe.”

Sawa stars as Patrick, a man with a thirst for alternative facts and theories who comes to the resort to look into historic mysteries tied to Red Mountain.

Additional cast members will be announced at a later date.

Martin and Carpenter serve as showrunners in addition to executive producing alongside Christina Jennings, Scott Garvie, and director Adam MacDonald (Backcountry, This Is Not a Test).

“We’re thrilled to open a chilling new chapter of ‘Hell Motel’ from the brilliant minds of Aaron Martin and Ian Carpenter, who continue to push the boundaries of horror. Shudder members know great scares when they see them, and this season delivers the tension, terror, and terrifying good fun they expect from Shudder,” said Courtney Thomasma, Executive Vice President of Linear and Streaming Products, AMC Global Media.

The Shudder Original Series is developed and produced by Shaftesbury, in association with Canadian broadcaster Hollywood Suite and with the participation of Ontario Creates and the Canadian Film or Video Production Tax Credit.

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“The Walking Dead” veteran Channing Powell will serve as showrunner and writer, in addition to executive producing with Stallone and D. Matt Geller (Kiss of the Spider Woman).

The series will draw from Barker’s original 4MK trilogy — 2017’s The Fourth Monkey, 2018’s The Fifth to Die, and 2019’s The Sixth Wicked Child — as well as the recently announced prequel trilogy, which kicks off with The First Scarlet Door on September 22.

Set in Chicago, Barker’s novels follow Detective Sam Porter as he hunts the elusive Four Monkey Killer, a murderer who has terrorized the city for years with a chilling and highly personal code of judgment.

Guided by the maxim “hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil,” the killer removes the ears, eyes, and tongues of his victims, turning every crime scene into a ritualized message. But the true horror lies in the unspoken fourth commandment, “do no evil,” which reveals the killer’s deeper agenda: exposing hidden corruption by punishing the guilty through the people they love most.

“J.D. Barker has created a world with enormous scale, real danger, a ruthless narrative engine, and the kind of mythology that is tailor-made for premium television,” said Stallone. “Channing Powell is not only a powerhouse writer and producer, but a true creator with a rare command of dark, character-driven storytelling, and she is exactly the right force to bring 4MK to the screen. This is the kind of property that audiences don’t just watch, but get pulled into, and it has all the makings of a series that can hit hard, travel globally, and leave a real mark.”

“What drew me to 4MK immediately was its intensity, its intelligence, and the way it keeps tightening the screws until you can barely breathe,” added Powell. “Beneath the suspense is a story about guilt, justice, corruption, and the emotional wreckage people leave behind. J.D. Barker has created a world that is bold, dangerous, and deeply addictive, and Sylvester Stallone and the Balboa team provide the invaluable support needed to bring my adaptation to the screen, driving this series toward real scale.”

“From the start, 4MK was designed to be a relentless, psychologically charged ride, one where every revelation cuts deeper, every secret carries a cost, and every character is forced to confront the darkest parts of themselves,” notes Barker. “Sylvester Stallone and the team at Balboa immediately saw the power, danger, and franchise potential in that world, and Channing brings exactly the kind of instinct for character, tension, and longform storytelling that can make it land with real force on screen. With this creative force, 4MK won’t just be gripping television, it will be the kind of series that gets under people’s skin and stays there. I couldn’t be more excited to see it come to life.”

Powell worked as a writer and consulting producer on “The Walking Dead” and “Fear the Walking Dead” before co-creating and showrunning “Tales of the Walking Dead.”  She currently serves as co-executive producer on “From.”

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Based on the Marvel comic Spider-Man Noir, all eight episodes of the live-action series stream next Wednesday, May 27, on Prime Video.

In his first leading television role, Nicolas Cage stars Ben Reilly, a seasoned, down-on-his-luck private investigator in 1930s New York, who is forced to grapple with his past life, following a deeply personal tragedy, as the city’s one and only superhero.

Lamorne Morris, Li Jun Li , Karen Rodriguez, Abraham Popoola, Jack Huston, and Brendan Gleeson also star.

Guest stars include Lukas Haas, Cameron Britton, Cary Christopher, Michael Kostroff, Scott MacArthur, Joe Massingill, Whitney Rice, Amanda Schull, Andrew Caldwell, Amy Aquino, Andrew Robinson, and Kai Caster.

Co-showrunners Oren Uziel (22 Jump Street) and Steve Lightfoot (“The Punisher”) developed Spider-Noir with the Academy Award-winning team behind Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse: Phil Lord, Christopher Miller, and Amy Pascal.

Sony Pictures Television produces. Emmy winner Harry Bradbeer (“Fleabag,” Enola Holmes) directed the first two episodes.

Executive producers include Lord, Miller, Aditya Sood & Dan Shear for Lord Miller, Pascal for Pascal Pictures, Cage, Uziel, Lightfoot, Bradbeer, and Pavlina Hatoupis (“The Alienist”).

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The cast and crew of Netflix’s mysterious sci-fi series take you behind the scenes in the new featurette, which also includes some new footage.

Created by showrunners Jeffrey Addiss & Will Matthews (“The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance”), all eight episodes stream this Thursday, May 21.

“In the sun-drenched expanse of the New Mexico desert lies The Boroughs, a picturesque retirement community promising its residents the time of their lives.

But for new arrival Sam Cooper, paradise feels more like a prison. Everything changes when a terrifying nighttime encounter reveals that something monstrous is stalking the manicured cul-de-sacs.

Dismissed by the powers that be as just another confused old man, Sam finds unlikely allies in a band of neighborhood misfits: a sharp-witted former journalist, a spiritual seeker, a cynical music manager, and a brilliant doctor running out of options.

Overlooked and underestimated, these unlikely heroes must band together to unravel the dark truth at the heart of The Boroughs before their time runs out.”

Alfred Molina, Geena Davis, Alfre Woodard, Denis O’Hare, Clarke Peters, Bill Pullman, Carlos Miranda, Jena Malone, Seth Numrich, and Alice Kremelberg star.

The cast also features Ed Begley Jr., Dee Wallace, Eric Edelstein, Rafael Casal, Mousa Hussein Kraish, Beth Bailey, Karan Soni, and Jane Kaczmarek.

Ben Taylor (“Sex Education”) directs the first two episodes, with Augustine Frizzell (“Euphoria”) and Kyle Patrick Alvarez (The Stanford Prison Experiment) helming the others.

“Stranger Things” creators The Duffer Brothers executive produce with Hilary Leavitt for Upside Down Pictures, alongside Addiss, Matthews, and Taylor.

“So many of the actors of this age, even legends, aren’t given an opportunity to shine like action heroes. They’re often cast as grandparents,” Ross Duffer told Netflix. “It was definitely a pinch me moment when we went to that first table read, because these are all legends and they’re still at the top of their game, and they just love being there. You just saw the joy.”

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Variety shares that Tubi has acquired the North American rights to the anime series, while Cartoon Network will run it internationally.

In the show, while visiting Japan on the ultimate foodie adventure, Scooby-Doo and Shaggy unwittingly unleash hundreds of mythical monsters that are causing trouble across the country.

With the help of Scooby’s uncle Daisuke-Doo, magical girl Yume, and gadget whiz Takumi, the group embarks on a mystery filled with monster chasing and fun chaos.

“Yokoso Scooby-Doo!” — which means “Welcome Scooby-Doo!” — is produced by Warner Bros. Animation and animated by Japan’s OLM (“Pokémon,” Nyaight of the Living Cat).

Itsuro Kawasaki (“Psycho-Pass”) will direct, with Francisco Paredes (“Muppet Babies”) serving as co-producer.

“Scooby-Doo is one of the most beloved franchises in entertainment, and ‘Yokoso Scooby-Doo!’ lets us reinvent it in a way fans haven’t seen before,” said Tubi chief content officer Adam Lewinson. “By bringing Scooby and Shaggy into a bold anime world set in Japan, we’re connecting with global fandoms and delivering the kind of fun, chaotic mystery that travels across generations.”

“Welcome to Mystery Inc., Tubi!” added Warner Bros. Animation president Sam Register. “We’re excited to partner on this next chapter as we push the Scooby-Doo franchise forward with its first-ever original anime series. Alongside the amazing artists at OLM, we’ll unmask a new batch of mysteries, signature hijinks, and – of course – plenty of Scooby Snacks, all brought to life through the dynamic artistry of anime.”

Welker is the original voice of Fred, dating back to 1969’s “Scooby-Doo, Where Are You,” and has been the voice of Scooby-Doo for more than two decades. Lillard played Shaggy in the live-action Scooby-Doo movies before voicing the character in several animated series and movies.

Meanwhile, Netflix is currently in production on “Scooby-Doo: Origins,” a live-action series starring Mckenna Grace, Maxwell Jenkins, Tanner Hagen, and Abby Ryder Fortson.

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Mel Brooks is executive producing the brand new series project.

The new series hails from a trio of creative minds behind FX’s “What We Do in the Shadows“: Stefani Robinson, the writer and showrunner for the new series; Taika Waititi, attached to direct the pilot; and Garrett Basch. All three will executive produce.

“Very Young Frankenstein blends inspiration from the fan-favorite movie with the inventive, irreverent spirit that has defined FX comedies over the years, making this a completely original take on the classic story,” said Nick Grad, President of FX Entertainment. “In the hands of FX veterans Stefani, Taika and Garrett, alongside the iconic Mel Brooks, we know that fans will have as much fun watching this series as we’re having making it.”

The cast features Zach Galifianakis (The Hangover), Dolly Wells (Pride and Prejudice and Zombies), Spencer House (“Space Force”), Nikki Crawford (“Cruel Intentions”), Kumail Nanjiani (Eternals), and Cary Elwes (Saw) as the President of the United States.

The 1974 original starred Gene Wilder as a young Dr. Frankenstein, who followed in his ancestor’s freaky footsteps by reanimating a dead body after inheriting a castle in Transylvania. Peter Boyle, Cloris Leachman, Marty Feldman, Teri Garr, and Madeline Kahn also starred in Mel Brooks’ brilliantly outrageous riff on Mary Shelley’s classic story.

Stay tuned for more details on the “Very Young Frankenstein” series.

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During a recent live interview with Happy Sad Confused, Hopper actor David Harbour appeared via video to ask the “Stranger Things” creators about their first choice for the role.

“It was Billy Crudup,” Matt Duffer divulged. “Everything happens for a reason, right? So it’s like, once it kind of clicks into place. But, yeah, Billy Crudup passed. I don’t think he was doing much TV at the time. Now he’s doing ‘Morning Show.'”

Ross Duffer added, “Honestly, [David] just came in and one of our casting directors thought he could be great for the role. He came and read. He just did one take. We weren’t even there, we just saw the tape, and it was just so clear, instantly: this is Hopper. And we just cast him right then and there.”

“Stranger Things,” which ran on Netflix for five seasons between 2016 and 2025, turned Harbour from a character actor into a leading man.

Harbour can next be seen in Violent Night 2, in theaters December 4, and Avengers: Doomsday, out December 18. His upcoming projects include John Rambo and A Head Full of Ghosts, both in post-production.

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Billy Crudup in ‘Alien: Covenant’

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Olivier Award-winning playwright Morgan Lloyd Malcolm (Netflix’s “Obsession“) is attached to write the series.

Published in 1980, Puffball was previously adapted into the 2007 film of the same name by Nicolas Roeg.

The novel follows “a young London couple, Liffey and Richard, who move to the country with the expectation of having children. Their neighbors are Mabs and Tucker, a farming family with five children of their own.

“Mabs, jealous of the newcomers’ easy life, sends Tucker to sleep with Liffey while Richard is away, priming her with an herbal aphrodisiac, but she becomes angry when Liffey becomes pregnant and finds that she herself is suddenly unable to conceive.”

The new take on Puffball is not yet attached to a network, but Firebird is backed by BBC Studios.

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Check out the official teaser trailer below for your invite back to “Dead City.”

You’ll also find a preview of the season over on Entertainment Weekly this afternoon, which features some first-look images from Season 3 along with a very intriguing tease.

EW writes, “things are changing up quite a bit for Season 3, with [stars Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Lauren Cohan] filming an entire alternate reality episode taking place in a very different looking New York City.” The outlet further teases a scene they previewed, “While we’re quite used to seeing the characters of Negan and Maggie in New York at this point, something about this particular scene still feels odd. Why is Morgan’s Negan — clad in black from beanie-wearing head to boot-wearing toe — also sporting an ankle monitor? How come the streets seem so clean? Why is that random couple who look like they stepped out of an Old Navy catalog just strolling down the street all nonchalant? AND WHERE ARE ALL THE ZOMBIES?!?”

Fan favorites Jeffrey Dean Morgan and Lauren Cohan star alongside Gaius Charles, Lisa Emery, Logan Kim, Keir Gilchrist, Aimee Garcia, and Jimmi Simpson.

Raúl Castillo (Army of the Dead, Smile 2) has also joined “Dead City” Season 3.

In “The Walking Dead: Dead City” Season 3, “Maggie and Negan finally put aside their differences to build the first thriving community in Manhattan since the apocalypse, but when chaos in the city begins to arise, they are forced to question: have they learned from their old wounds or will their dark past spell doom for the entire city?”

Seth Hoffman (“The Walking Dead”, “Prison Break”) is the showrunner for Season 3.

Source: Entertainment Weekly

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She joins Maya Hawke (“Stranger Things”) and Kerry Condon (The Banshees of Inisherin, F1) in the project.

Set in the Adirondacks, the multi-generational series explores the Van Laar family’s dark secrets, class tensions, and the mysteries surrounding the disappearance of 13-year-old Barbara Van Laar from her family’s summer camp — in the wake of an earlier family tragedy that may be related.

As the past and present collide, the Van Laars’ wealth and influence unravel, revealing the damaging consequences of privilege and the abuse of power.

Rubin will play Louise Donnadieu, a working-class counselor at Camp Emerson whose life is upended when one of her young campers, Barbara, goes missing.

Condon plays Barbara’s mother, Alice Van Laar. Hawke plays Judy Luptack, investigator on the case.

Moore and Liz Hannah (The Post, “Mindhunter”) serve as co-showrunners in addition to executive producing with Neal H. Moritz & Pavun Shetty for Original Film (“The Boys,” I Know What You Did Last Summer).

Sony Pictures Television is the studio behind “The God of the Woods.” Stay tuned for more casting announcements.

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Because I did say “rarely”, there is one specific episode that, perhaps for others as well, leaves me a little panicked. It fueled a phobia I didn’t even know I had until I saw it play out on screen. Now, that dread remains intact as I rewatch Season Three’s “Abra Cadaver”. Dying is one thing, but to witness your own autopsy? Maybe feel all the sensations that come with said event? Yeah, I will probably never have to go through the same ordeal that Tony Goldwyn’s character endured, yet Crypt made sure that I would always fear the slim possibility.

Season Three was off to a strong start; the opening two episodes, “Loved to Death” (Tom Mankiewicz, Joe Minion) and “Carrion Death” (Steven E. de Souza), each left a lasting mark. Even today, it’s hard to forget either Mariel Hemingway’s lovesick performance or the stalking vulture that finally got to feast on Kyle MacLachlan. While the Michael J. Fox-directed episode, the tongue-in-cheek “The Trap” (written by Scott Alexander), wasn’t at all frightening, it was at least amusing. 

Mike Vosburg’s comic-style artwork for “Abra Cadaver”, as shown in the Tales from the Crypt episode.

Then came “Abra Cadaver”, that memorable collaboration between Stephen Hopkins and Jim Birge. It was unlike any of the previous three episodes, seeing as how this one employed a heavy gimmick. That, of course, being the first-person perspective used throughout most of the story. Shooting from a corpse’s POV not only made “Abra Cadaver” stand out, it also put the audience in the protagonist’s shoes. That way, it’s almost as if you’re going through the same nightmare as Doctor Carl Fairbanks.

It wasn’t unheard of for Tales from the Crypt to use first-time or inexperienced writers, although in Jim Birge’s case, this looks to be his only known writing credit. Meanwhile, director Stephen Hopkins had come off directing two sequels, A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child (1989) and Predator 2 (1990), after debuting with an underseen (but worth seeing) Australian slasher called Dangerous Game (1988). In the years after his Crypt debut—Hopkins would return for episodes “Beauty Rest” and “Staired in Horror”—he directed Judgment Night (1993), The Ghost and the Darkness (1996) and Lost in Space (1998).

This episode’s EC Comics basis can be found in the Tales from the Crypt story called “Dead Right!”. Keep in mind, there was another comic of the same name found in EC’s Shock SuspenStories; Demi Moore, who was in Ghost (1990) with Goldwyn, starred in its TV adaptation. But naturally, they couldn’t have two episodes called “Dead Right”, so Crypt gave this a new (and punnier) title. Either way, the two plots remain about the same. 

A page from “Dead Right!”, as seen in EC Comics’ Tales from the Crypt.

In EC’s version, long-time friends and bachelors Joseph Fairbanks and Carl Winston are having their weekly dinner together when Joseph suddenly poisons his pal’s drink. This was after Joseph was going on again about his seemingly preposterous theory: can the senses remain active even in the event of death? From there, it appears as if the recently bankrupt Joseph is causing Carl’s untimely death so that he can then inherit his fortune. Being a physician too, Joseph could put “died of natural causes” on Carl’s death certificate without raising any suspicions. 

“Dead Right!” enters more familiar territory as Joseph, along with accomplice Ben Norton, goes through the motions of autopsying Carl’s body while Carl is still conscious but paralyzed. The two then bring the victim to his own funeral before taking him to his final resting place. Once at the graveyard, Joseph reveals it was all a gag to prove his outlandish theory. Unlike in “Abra Cadaver”, though, Carl never wakes up long enough to know Joseph was pranking him; he died of a heart attack sometime ago. You’re left wondering if Joseph confessed to his crime, or if, because Carl was already pronounced dead and halfway buried, he simply kept quiet.

Tales from the Crypt obviously reworked the comic quite a bit. In “Abra Cadaver”, the two main characters, Carl and Martin Fairbanks, are biological brothers, not lifetime friends who seem like brothers. They’re also younger than their older EC parallels. In the black-and-white flashback set some years in the past, you see where Carl (Goldwyn) and Martin (Beau Bridges) first began their sibling issues. What started out as a brotherly rivalry between two surgeons-in-training eventually turned into a rather sad, lifelong scenario where Carl awaits whatever revenge Martin has supposedly cooked up for him.

Tony Goldwyn, Beau Bridges and Tom Wright in Tales from the Crypt, “Abra Cadaver”.

That prank from the prologue, which was essentially Carl scaring Martin into a heart attack, has since haunted Goldwyn’s character. No amount of apologies, be it verbal, monetary, or whatever else Carl throws at him, can make the now partly disabled Martin forgive his brother. Instead, Martin is more concerned with death and voodoo. Oh, and exacting his vengeance after all this time. What vengeance it is!—Martin’s payback makes Carl’s zombies-in-the-morgue joke look like total child’s play.

What felt like days to Goldwyn’s tortured character was roughly ten minutes for the audience. You’re there with him every step of that awful journey, imagining all the pricks, prods, and cuts inflicted upon his defenseless body. For an episode that is relatively light on the red stuff, it feels violent. Kind of like how The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974) is remembered as gory, when in truth, it’s pretty tame in that regard. It just goes to show that the suggestion of harm can be as great, if not more effective, than seeing the knife actually pierce the skin.

Circling back to my irrational fear, a kind of variation of taphophobia, I realized “Abra Cadaver” isn’t the first media to prey on this arcane anxiety of mine. After seeing it unfold in Crypt, I found similar depictions in Buried Alive (1990), Nightmares & Dreamscapes: From the Stories of Stephen King (“Autopsy Room Four”), and Beyond Belief: Fact or Fiction (the Robert E. Lee-inspired segment “The Burial”). Surely the list goes on, as does my unease towards the idea of a fate I deem worse than death.

“Abra Cadaver” is high-concept Tales from the Crypt at its best. Darkly funny, thoroughly suspenseful, and damn merciless, this episode was the show dipping into almost purely psychological horror.

It wouldn’t be the last time, either.

Season Three of Tales from the Crypt can be streamed on Shudder, starting on May 15.

Tales from Tales from the Crypt celebrates the show’s Shudder premiere by singling out one episode from each season. So don’t even think about changing that dial, boys and ghouls. More spot-“frights” are to come.

The post Tales from ‘Tales from the Crypt’: Exhuming Season Three’s “Abra Cadaver” Episode appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.