Prequels, sequels, stop-motion, and creepy basements make up just a small part of today’s horror news, with big announcements about some new projects to wet your horror whistles. Check it all out here!
Ti West’s X may only have just hit theatres last week, but it’s already been winning the hearts of critics and audiences, earning a 97% Fresh rating on Rotten Tomatoes. That wasn’t the only X-related surprise this week, as the director revealed to his SXSW audience that a prequel film, shot in secret in New Zealand, was also on the way. Footage of the new film, which stars X‘s Mia Goth and was written by West, will play alongside the buzzy horror as it screens, with no word yet on the release of the full prequel.
Ben Charles Edwards’ new feature, Father of Flies has a brand new trailer that explores the horror of meeting an ex’s new partner. In the movie, “a young boy’s mother is pushed out of the family home and replaced by his father’s girlfriend. Now, he finds himself confronting terrifying supernatural forces. Have they always been there, or have they hitched a ride with the new resident?”
Father of Flies stars the late Nicholas Tucci (You’re Next, Myth, Wolfenstein: The New Order), Camilla Rutherford (Gosford Park), and Davi Santos (Good Sam, Tell Me A Story). Edwards directs from a script he co-wrote with Nadia Doherty. Check out the trailer ahead of Father of Flies‘ release on digital and VOD on April 12.
Henry Sellick (The Nightmare Before Christmas) is back with a new stop-motion project and has enlisted Jordan Peele to co-write with him. Wendell & Wild is a dark, twisted tale for Netflix which has apparently been in development since 2015 and will co-star Peele’s longtime collaborator Keegan-Michael Key.
Netflix says, “From the delightfully wicked minds of Henry Selick and Jordan Peele, comes Wendell & Wild, an animated tale about scheming demon brothers Wendell (Keegan-Michael Key) and Wild (Peele) – who enlist the aid of 13-year-old Kat Elliot – a tough teen with a load of guilt – to summon them to the Land of the Living. But what Kat demands in return leads to a brilliantly bizarre and comedic adventure like no other, an animated fantasy that defies the laws of life and death, all told through the hand-made artistry of stop motion.”
Check out this new cast reveal video that includes such powerhouses as Angela Bassett and James Hong ahead of Wendell & Wild‘s release on Netflix in October!
Legendary actor Rita Moreno will star in a new thriller at a staggering 90 years young. Moreno will star as a “psychopathic physics teacher” in a teen horror-comedy called The Prank. The film is the feature debut of director Maureen Bharoocha and premiered at SXSW last week. No release date yet since the film is seeking distribution, but we’ll keep you updated with any news.
In The Prank, “When Mrs. Wheeler (Moreno) threatens to fail everyone in Ben’s (Connor Kalopsis) physics class unless a recent test cheater comes forward, Ben panics about how the wrinkle in his GPA could affect his scholarship. So, as any high schooler would for a teacher they hate, Tanner devises a plan to frame Mrs. Wheeler for murder.”
Deadline reports that the SXSW thiller The Cow, starring Winona Ryder has distribution from Vertical Entertainment. The film is directed by Eli Horowitz (Homecoming).
In the movie, “Kath (Ryder) and her boyfriend (Gallagher Jr.) arrive at a remote cabin in the redwoods, only to discover that a mysterious younger couple is already there. The rental has apparently been double-booked, and with nowhere else to go, they decide to share the cabin with these strangers. When her boyfriend disappears with the young woman, Kath becomes obsessed with finding an explanation for their sudden breakup—but the truth is far stranger than she could have ever imagined.” The Cow co-stars Dermot Mulroney, Owen Teague, and Brianne Tju.
Chloe Okuno’s Watcher, which stars Maika Monroe and which screened last week at SXSW has a brand new teaser trailer. This is a good one and follows Julia (Monroe) as she’s being stalked by an unseen force known as The Spider. Check this one out ahead of Watcher‘s release on June 3 from IFC Midnight!
Huge news for fans of Scream (and after Scream 2022, who can blame them) as we got confirmation from Courteney Cox that she’ll be reprising the role of Gale Weathers in the 6th installment. Speaking of Scream 6, the other huge announcement was that the slasher will return to screens next March 31, 2023.
Filming on Scream 6 is set to take place here in Canada this summer. Radio Silence’s Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett will be back to direct from a script by returning writers James Vanderbilt & Guy Busick.
Netflix’s new 8-part Resident Evil series drops this summer, and is packing one hell of a cast with Lance Reddick as Albert Wesker, Tamara Smart, Ella Balinska, Siena Agudong, Adeline Rudolph, and Paola Nuñez. The series reimagines the classic video game as follows:
“2036 – 14 years after a deadly virus caused a global apocalypse, Jade Wesker fights for survival in a world overrun by the blood-thirsty infected and insane creatures. In this absolute carnage, Jade is haunted by her past in New Raccoon City, by her father’s chilling connections to the Umbrella Corporation but mostly by what happened to her sister, Billie.”
Resident Evil will hit the streaming giant on July 14, and from the looks of these new posters, will sport a bit of a different aesthetic from what we’re used to.
Too many people think of the late Anne Rice only as “the vampire lady” but her Lives of the Mayfair Witches series of novels have also been talked about for an adaptation (usually by NBC) for years. AMC has picked up a new 8-episode version of Rice’s trilogy for a release later this year. Variety reports that Alexandra Daddario (The White Lotus) has joined the cast of Lives of the Mayfair Witches as “Rowan, a brilliant doctor who grapples with her fate as the heir to a family of powerful witches.” A series version of Rice’s iconic Interview with the Vampire is also underway at AMC.
Finally, Brendan Muldowney’s The Cellar, starring Elisha Cuthbert in the spooky basement-themed thriller just had a successful screening at SXSW. The film, which comes to theatres and Shudder from RLJE Films on April 15 has a brand new trailer to give us a taste of what lurks down those basement steps. Check it out here!
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