THE GRUDGE

Starring: Sarah Michelle Gellar, Joe Drake, Nathan Kahane, Roy Lee, Doug Davison; PROD, Taka Ichise, Sam Raimi , Rob Tapert; DIR, Takashi Shimizu; DISTRIB, Sony.

Ghost House Pictures. Begins filming 1/26 in Tokyo.

THE RING 2

Starring: Naomi Watts, David Dorfman Roy Lee, J.C. Spink, Chris Bender; PROD, Walter Parkes, Laurie MacDonald; DIR, Noam Murro; DISTRIB, DreamWorks.

Dreamworks. Begins filming 1/04.

ULTRAVIOLET

Starring: Milla Jovovich , Cameron Bright; DIR-SCR, Kurt Wimmer; DISTRIB, Screen Gems.

Screen Gems. Begins Filming 2/04 in Shanghai.

UNTITLED BATMAN PROJECT

Starring: Christian Bale, Michael Caine, Katie Holmes; DIR, Christopher Nolan; SCR, David Goyer; DISTRIB, WB.

Warner Bros. Begins filming 2/04 in London.

UNTITLED ZORRO SEQUEL

Starring: Antonio Banderas, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Anthony Hopkins; DIR, Martin Campbell; DISTRIB, Sony.

Sony Pictures. Begins filming 4/04.

XXX2

Starring: Ice Cube, Samuel L. Jackson; DIR, Lee Tamahori; DISTRIB, Sony.

Columbia Pictures/Revolution Studios. Begins filming 8/04 in Washington D.C., Argentina.

12.29.03
Alien vs. Predator Featurette
We think this one may have been out there a bit but we just ran across it and in case any of you missed it, we just wanted to pass along the link. This one's to a featurette about the Alien vs. Predator movie and it talks a great deal about the plot. Click here for it.

Chronicles of Riddick Trailer
The Chronicles of Riddick trailer is online. Set to open next summer, you can take a look at a pretty good length trailer now. Click'm.

Stepford Wives Trailer Live
Check out the first trailer of Nicole Kidman in the remake of The Stepford Wives. Yahoo's got this one here.

Stepford Wives is slated to hit theaters June 11, 2004.

Web Site for Argento's Latest
Creature Corner reports (via Fango) that the official site for Dario Argento’s new flick The Card Player is now live. It’s a tricky one, though, first of all, it’s in Italian, which means you may need to use a translation site like Babel Fish to read the text. Once you open it, the site is set up as one devoted to the game of poker, and you have to do some clicking around to get to the movie info. Try it here. Be sure to click on the photos, that's how we finally got into the pop-up page that showed some actual pics from the movie.

Follow Morticians in Dearly Departed
Cinescape reports that A&E is jumping into the reality TV fray with a series following the day-to-day lives of a California family who are morticians. Dearly Departed is being likened to a real-life Six Feet Under and has been given a commitment of at least seven episodes. The show may be ready for air as soon as the second quarter of 2004.

The series will chronicle the duties of the Wissmillers sisters, three women who work for a mortuary in Poway, a suburb of San Diego.

Web Site Live for Shyamalan's The Village
Cinescape reports Touchstone has launched the web site for M. Night Shyamalan's The Village. There isn't a lot there yet but there is a trailer, a short synopsis and a listing for an upcoming interactive desktop. Check it out here: http://thevillage.movies.go.com/main.html

12.23.03
Latest Really Scary Updates
Be sure to check out the latest features including Ray Garton's Bloodshot Eye Movie Reviews where Ray wanders into the horror-filled world of one St. Nick. Also, Valarie Thorpe reviews Glen Hirshberg's collection The Two Sams and author Simon Wood stops in for a Scary Voices visit to the Doctor.

12.17.03
MGM & Dimension Partner for Amityville Flick
Variety reports MGM and Dimension films spared themselves a race to mount a remake of The Amityville Horror by pacting to partner on a single film. The two studios will also co-produce True Believers, the MGM-developed film that will mark the Hollywood directing debut of Hideo Nakata, director of original Ringu.

The Amityville Horror deal makes sense for both studios. MGM owned rights to the title of the 1979 horror hit. After Platinum Dunes scored a hit on its first project, a redo of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre, MGM moved quickly to bestow the title on the production shingle headed by Michael Bay, Brad Fuller and Andrew Form.

Dimension co-chairman Bob Weinstein then got into the haunted house game by acquiring a rival project script that was being developed by producers Randall Emmett and George Furla. He also landed rights and cooperation from George Lutz, who lived in the fabled Long Island house when it was supposedly haunted by ghosts.

Though Weinstein would have mounted a movie first for a summer 2004 release, the thrill of beating MGM proved less enticing when Dimension made a rich overall producing deal with the Platinum Dunes trio. Both studios will work with those producers on a single film.

MGM will take the lead on production and distribute in domestic territories, while Dimension distributes overseas. Dimension's project will be folded into the mix, and might serve as sequel material.

Dimension will take the creative lead and handle domestic territories on True Believers, an adaptation of the Doug Richardson novel about the intersecting paths of a senator with White House aspirations and a woman who wants to have a child with a deathrow inmate who claims to be a messiah. This marks the first film Nakata will direct in Hollywood.

Tremors 4 DVD Release Details
Here's the scoop on the upcoming DVD release of Tremors 4: The Legend Begins, coming from Universal Studios Home Video. A prequel to the original theatrical hit Tremors, this one explores the origins of the unforgettable underground creatures that made the original a cult classic and spawned a successful DVD franchise.

Michael Gross returns to the series as Hiram Gummer, the great-grandfather to Tremor's Burt Gummer, who must ride the remote mining town of Rejection, Nevada from an unseen predator. Bonus features include Special Effects Featurette: The Graboids Strike, a behind-the-scenes look, commentary with director S.S. Wilson, miniature, deleted scenes and a gag reel.

Check out the official site here: http://www.tremors4dvd.com

12.16.03
Gellar Joins Japanese Horror Remake
MediaSharx reports (via Daily Bite) Sarah Michell Gellar will star in The Grudge for Sam Raimi's Ghost House Pictures. The film is a remake of Takashi Shimizu's Japanese film JU-ON. The story is about a supernatural curse that passes from person to person, causing multiple murders. Takashi Shimizu will direct from a script by Stephen Susco. Raimi will produce with Rob Tapert and Taka Ichise.

Carnivale Picked Up for Second Season
Reuters reports HBO has ordered a second season of Carnivale, the Depression era circus drama. While not a hit, the show has performed respectably for the cabler.

Big Fish Writer Landed for Wonka
THR reports Warner Bros has tapped John August (Big Fish) to write the script for director Tim Burton's remake of Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory. Johnny Depp is slated to appear as Willy Wonka, the eccentric owner of a candy factory. Brad Grey, Richard Zanuck and Matt Baer are producing the project.

Jeepers Creepers 2 Online Game & DVD Trailer
The always kickass Emilie has sent us the link to a nifty Jeepers Creepers 2 online game. In this Pac-Man style game, you get to be the Creeper and begin the feeding fest! Check it out here: http://www.mgm.com/JC2/game.html

There's also a DVD trailer available online in anticipation of the Dec. 23 DVD release of Jeepers Creepers 2. Click on the following:

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12.11.03
Sword of Dracula #2 Preview
Image has posted a five-page preview of the second issue of Jason Henderson's vampires-versus-commandos series, Sword of Dracula.

Synopsis: "Part two in the 6-Issue arc 'The Elders.' Still reeling from their defeat at the hands of Dracula, Lord of the Vampires, Ronnie Van Helsing and her commandoes of the Polidorium deal with a vampire threat on the ski slopes. But below the Dead Sea, an ancient evil has awakened: one that disturbs even Dracula, who can sense their approach even from the Coast of Italy where his army lies camouflaged. An episode of raving angels, marauding vampires, and snowmobiles-- the revelation of a dark secret held by Ronnie Van Helsing. "

It's due to hit comic store shelves Dec. 10.

12.9.03
Rob Zombie & Steve Niles Form Production Company
Variety reports (via Cinema Eye) Rob Zombie has joined forces with writer Steve Niles to form Creep Entertainment International. As the title might suggest, the company will focus on horror-related films.

Creep will launch its projects as comic books before they hit the big screen. "Comics have become the storyboards for movies," said Zombie. "We're actually working backwards -- these look like comic adaptations of films."

The first three projects will be The Nail (1970s style satanic bikers), Lords of Salem (which will combine music and comics to tell the story of a satanic band), and Bigfoot (which is of course about sasquatch).

Zombies partner in this venture, Steve Niles has carved out a niche for himself in the horror comic book market with high-concept series like 30 Days of Night, which has already been optioned for Sam Raimi to direct.

The projects developed for Creep will remain separate from the individual projects Zombie and Niles already have in production. "...things that come out through Creep will be different from anything I do on my own," said Niles. "Creep is a way to differentiate projects, and hopefully it will become a reliable (brand)."

12.8.03
New Angelina Jolie Thriller Web Site Live
Warner Bros. has launched the official site for the Angelina Jolie starrer Taking Lives. Also starring Keifer Sutherland and Ethan Hawke, the movie tells the story of top FBI profiler, Special Agent Illeana Scott (Jolie), who doesn't rely on traditional crime-solving techniques to unravel the mysteries of a murderous mind.

Click here for the official site, which currently has photos, a trailer and longer synopsis.

Warner Bros. Genre Movie Date Changes
Variety reports (via Fango) on three date-changes for upcoming genre features. Lions Gate's child-cloning chiller Godsend is set for an April 30 opening, while Warner Bros.' dinosaur adventure A Sound of Thunder has moved from April to Aug. 20. Warners has also set a new date (Oct. 22) for the next Dark Castle film, and confirmed what that movie will be: the remake of House of Wax.

Edwin Neal Joins Satan's Playground
Filmmaker Dante Tomaselli contacted Fango with the news that Edwin Neal, the original Texas Chainsaw Massacre’s hitchhiker, has joined the cast of Tomaselli’s Satan's Playground, replacing originally cast Michael Berryman.

Due to scheduling conflicts, Michael will not be able to be in Satan's Playground, though we both look forward to working together in the future."

And the director is thrilled to have Neal taking over the role. "I thought his demented performance in [Chainsaw] was, hands down, one of the scariest portrayals of evil of all time," Tomaselli said.

The film, which also stars Felissa Rose and Ellen Sandweiss, begins shooting in New Jersey’s Pine Barrens region Dec. 5.

Billy Connolly Joins Lemony Snicket Flick
THR reports Billy Connolly is the latest actor to sign on to the feature adaptation of "Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events" for Paramount Pictures and DreamWorks.

Connolly will play Uncle Monty in the Brad Silberling-directed film, which is based on Daniel Handler's children's book series and is set to star Jim Carrey, Meryl Streep and Jude Law. The film follows the Baudelaire orphans on a series of adventures and unfortunate turns while mixing it up with the evil Count Olaf.

Steve Niles Inks Jekyll & Hyde Movie Deal with Dimension
According to The Hollywood Reporter, Dimension Films has acquired film rights to Steve Niles' Hyde, a comic book proposal that re-imagines the classic Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde horror story, in a deal worth mid-six figures.

Niles wrote the instant classic comic book series 40 Days of Nights, which is also being adapted to the big screen.

"The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde" was written in 1886 by Robert Louis Stevenson. The book, considered a Gothic horror classic, tells the tale of a wealthy doctor-scientist named Dr. Jekyll who unleashes the dark monster within himself by drinking a potion that he developed. The brutish monster is Hyde.

Clive Barker Directing Tortured Souls Film!
In what Variety terms a surprise move, Clive Barker is returning to the director's chair after an eight-year absence, inking a pact to helm Universal's horror pic Tortured Souls.

Barker last directed 1995 feature Lord of Illusions, a Scott Bakula starrer released by MGM.

Tortured Souls is Barker's own line of action figures, which debuted at the Intl. Toy Fair in Gotham in February 2001. They were released in limited numbers last July by Spawn helmer Todd McFarlane's McFarlane Toys. McFarlane will consult on the script and produce as well.

"We come from very different areas: I come from books and paintings, he comes from toys and comics," Barker said of his collaboration with McFarlane. "In the middle, we meet quite nicely, because we both love these kinds of movies, and both of us have a pretty encyclopedic knowledge of them, so we can always be referencing the things that really work for us."

Each of the six grisly Tortured Souls --- Talisac, Lucidique, Scythe-Meister, Agonistes, Mongroid and Venal Anatomica --- was sold with a chapter of an original Barker-penned storyline. The combined chapters form a novella outlining the Souls' origin.

For the bigscreen adaptation, Barker said, the "Souls" storyline centers on a man who decides he wants to be rid of his wife in favor of a more interesting life. The man "exchanges" his wife for a demon goddess from another world, throwing her into a shadowy world of monsters --- one from which she must escape and return to his everyday world to rescue their child and vanquish the demon.

12.2.03
It's Alive Director Acquires Remake Rights
About a year ago, we reported that Larry Cohen, director of It's Alive, was meeting with Warner Bros. to discuss a remake of that '70s horror flick. Now Variety reports Cohen has acquired the remake rights to It's Alive from Warner Bros. and is shopping a new monster-baby script around.

12.1.03
Franka Potente Horror Flick Pics
Empire magazine has the first look at Franka Potente (Run Lola Run) in director Chris Smith's Creep, currently shooting in London. Franka plays Kate, a woman who falls asleep at a station waiting for the last tube home. When she wakes up the station is deserted, but a train pulls up and she gratefully jumps on. That's when things take a sharp turn for the worse with the train juddering to a halt and all the lights going off.

Creep director Smith explains that he wants 'to explore our worst fears, beginning with the basics: the fear of being alone, being trapped and being in the dark... you will always feel that the worst is ahead, but you will have no choice but to watch.'

Click here for the pics.

Photos from Van Helsing
Coming Soon has posted a couple of photos of Hugh Jackman and Kate Bekinsale in Van Helsing. Check 'em out here.

Duchovny Confirms X-Files 2 Movie
Sci Fi reports David Duchovny, writing as a guest reviewer for the Razor gaming Web site, said that a second X-Files movie is in the works, with shooting to begin possibly next year. Duchovny also voices Mulder in the upcoming PlayStation 2/Xbox video game The X-Files: Resist or Serve, with his longtime co-star, Gillian Anderson, voicing Scully.

"I'm proud of The X-Files, and I'm very pleased to see how the video game will help extend the life of the series," Duchovny wrote. "We're also working to put together the next X-Files movie. I'd imagine we'd get into shooting in the next year or so, depending on when the script is written."

In the meantime, Duchovny said, the new video game title is the next best thing. "I think people will like the game as much as the show, because we all enjoy mysteries where everyone thinks that there's just one final answer that'll be uncovered at the end," he said. "Plus, games are an acting challenge for their favorite stars, who want to be tools for the people shaping the product. With TV and movies, actors have more control over the performance." The X-Files: Resist or Serve will be available Feb. 18, 2004, with a suggested retail price of $49.99.

11.29.03
Back by Popular Demand!
Screenwriter Tim Clark dropped in to let us know "Hair of the Dog" will be screening at NYC's Pioneer Theater in a return engagement Dec. 3 at 9 p.m. If you're in the area, be sure to check out this new award-winning film.

11.26.03
Spider-Man 2 & Hellboy Trailer Releases
Got word from Amy over at Sony that the first look at the Spider-Man 2 teaser trailer is coming this month.  The first theatrical target is The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King on Dec. 17, so many theaters will be showing the Spider-Man 2 trailer during the previews before that movie.  Look for it to premiere on the web Dec. 15 at sony.com/Spider-Man.

Also, the Hellboy trailer will be up with The Missing in theaters tomorrow.