Dark Castle announces 3 new movies, "Haunted Hill" sequel

Joel Silver's Dark Castle Entertainment genre label has inked a multiyear pact with Warner Premiere to produce two or three films a year directly for DVD, beginning with sequel "Return to House on Haunted Hill."

Dark Castle -- backed by private equity and part of Silver Pictures -- also will produce original digital content for the Internet and wireless platforms that will be used to complement direct-to-DVD releases or to tell standalone stories that further the Dark Castle brand.

Warner Bros. launched Warner Premiere last year to make a play in the increasingly competitive direct-to-DVD and digital arenas.

Dark Castle won't produce just horror titles for Warner Premiere but other genre pics as well, including actioners and thrillers. Projects could encompass prequels, sequels and original titles that fit the Dark Castle brand.

And Dark Castle and Warner Premiere are sweetening the pot for consumers able to play high-def DVD formats, introducing "navigational cinema" technology that will allow viewers to interact with the storyline. Warners backs both Blu-ray and HD DVD.

The high-def version of "Return to House on Haunted Hill," set to bow in October under the Dark Castle Home Entertainment banner, will include seven viewer choices leading to over 90 iterations of the storyline, according to Warner Premiere prexy Diane Nelson.

"No one knows how to develop, produce or market to this audience better than Joel," Nelson said.

From Silver's perspective, pact gives Dark Castle the opportunity to expand its brand, work with newer directors and tell stories in a way that can't be done in a theatrical release.

"We are continually looking for fresh and edgy ideas for our films and for our fans to experience," Silver said.

The direct-to-DVD market has grown by 30% in the last five years.

Other film projects in development under the pact include supernatural thriller Widow Whisps; psychological suspense tale Odds, exec produced by JC Spink and Chris Bender; and Cheerleaders in Trouble, a homage to 1980s slasher pics.

Dark Castle, launched last fall, is backed by more than $240 million in equity. The holdings will be used to finance at least 15 movies over six years budgeted between $15 million and $40 million, with Warners distributing the entire slate.

Theatrical films already released under the label include "The Reaping." Upcoming films include "Whiteout" and "RocknRolla."



China-Singapore jointly produce "Painted Skin"

Donnie Yen is to star in Painted Skin, a rare Chinese supernatural actioner being put together as a China-Singapore co-production. The $10 million budget period pic is to be jointly helmed by Wilson Yip Wai-shun (who previously directed Yen in "Dragon Tiger Gate") and Andy Chin Wing-keung.

The pic will lense in China in the final quarter of this year or early 2008, with dates likely dependent on the schedule of as yet uncast female lead. Pic also features Singapore's Qi YuWu "(Home Song Stories"). With large digital effects quotient, pic is scheduled for delivery by end of 2008.

Story is about a love hate relationship between a vixen spirit and a group of humans, and has been adapted from a series of Chinese classic stories called "Strange Tales of Liaozhai."



Anonymous starting on "Animals"

Anonymous Content and T&C Pictures have signed Mark Blucas (Thr3e), Nicki Aycox (Dead Birds), Eva Amurri (Saved!), Andy Comeau (The Babysitters) and Naveen Andrews (Grindhouse, Lost) for the horror film Animals, which begins production this week in Salt Lake City.

Craig Spector (A Nightmare on Elm Street: The Dream Child) adapted his original novel, which he co-wrote with John Skipp. Helming the pic is Doug Aarniokoski (The Safe Side, Highlander: Endgame), assistant/second unit director on projects for Robert Rodriguez such as "Once Upon a Time in Mexico."

The story centers on a blue-collar man in a dying factory town whose life is jolted after becoming involved in a romantic triangle amid a spate of uncontrolled violence by...you guessed it...animals.



Unreleased "30 Days of Night" spawning a sequel?

According to a scooper at Cinemablend, there are already talks in progress for a sequel to Columbia Pictures' 30 Days of Night. Usually, every studio wants their films to become a franchise and many talk about how they can lead the film into a sequel if the first is a success.

David Slade's adaptation of the Steve Niles comic, 30 Days of Night, hits theaters October 19.

Synopsis - When Alaska goes dark for 30 straight days, vampires come out to feast...

...and if enough people watch them dine, you'll see a sequel.



(References - bloody-disgusting.com, variety.com, moviehole.net, aintitcoolnews.com, movies.yahoo.com)

Shakespeare-ian serial killer in "Two: Thirteen"

"Meet the Fockers" star Teri Polo is joining Dwight Yoakam, Mark Pellegrino, Mark Thompson and Kevin Pollak in the indie thriller Two: Thirteen.

Polo stars as a detective overseeing the investigation of a serial killer with a love of Shakespeare. Thompson plays a police profiler who has returned from psychiatric leave and gets drawn into the case. Pellegrino plays a target of the killer, and Yoakam plays a colorful club owner who becomes a source during the investigation. Pollak has a supporting role as the psychiatrist who treats Thompson's character.

Thompson wrote the screenplay for the thriller, which director Charles Adelman is shooting in Los Angeles.



Fox Announces Halloween Double-Feature Madness

Get ready for Halloween madness from Fox Home Entertainment. Today Fox announced a slew of new double-feature DVDs for September 11th, including the long awaited original Tales from the Crypt from 1972!

COMING TO DVD SEPTEMBER 11:

- Tales from the Crypt ('72) / Vault of Horror ('73)
- Chosen Survivors / The Earth Dies Screaming
- Devils of Darkness / Witchcraft
- Blueprint for Murder / Man in the Attic
- Gorilla at Large / Mystery at Monster Island
- The House on Skull Mountain / The Mephisto Waltz

In addition, Fox will re-issue the original 'The Fly' and 'Return of the Fly' in "The Fly Classic Collection", which also features 'Curse of the Fly's' home video premiere.



Fans of the Obscure 100 list Take Note - Witchfinder General on DVD

If you've been waiting for MGM Home Entertainment's release of Witchfinder General on DVD September 11, producer Philip Waddilove has confirmed that the movie will not only be presented as Michael Reeves’ Director Cut, but will also contain the original music score by Paul Ferris which was removed from all previous home video versions in the U.S.

For this DVD, Waddilove has also just recorded an audio commentary along with star Ian Ogilvy, and an additional supplement will be a collection of Waddilove's personal stills, taken on the set.



"Cujo" Special Edition DVD is going to be Widescreen?

Lionsgate Home Entertainment still has the rights to Stephen King's Cujo and they plan to release a new special edition on September 25th.

The disc arrives with a fullscreen transfer, a Dolby Digital 2.0 track, an audio commentary by director Lewis Teague and "Dog Days: The Making of Cujo," a documentary featuring all-new interviews with Teague, Dee Wallace, Dan Pintauro, producers Daniel H. Blatt and Robert Singer, King biographer Douglas E. Winter and others.

The doc is split into three parts (PART 1: The novel by Stephen King, how director Lewis Teague got involved, the screenplay adaptation, the casting, the locations, expressing a boy's fears visually, the challenging filming conditions. PART 2: Filming with the dogs, the inventive way of choreographing the attacks, working with the actors, finding the right ending for the film. PART 3: The editing, the scoring, the sneak previews, Cujo 24 years later...).

Just in case you didnt know about the film, a friendly St. Bernard named "Cujo" contracts rabies and conducts a reign of terror on a small American town.

Expected to Retail at $19.98.



J.J.Abrams bringing a Giant Monster from "Cloverfield"

In the midst of dissolving news that J.J. Abrams (Lost, Alias, Mission Impossible: III) is involved in the new Star Trek movie, news comes in on a super secret project entitled "Cloverfield", which is being referred to internally as "The Parasite."

Word from inside the company is that the film is a giant monster movie!

The scooper writes that "as I understand it, most of the film is going to be shot using home video cameras, as if from the point of view of real people who are experiencing an attack on New York."



Stephen King Gives "1408" a Big Thumbs-Up

From Stephen King's official website (stephenking.com):

"It's a pleasure to be able to recommend '1408,' the Dimension Pictures adaptation of my story.

It stars John Cusack and opens this Friday.

This is a genuinely disquieting movie--the damn thing gets under your skin and just CRAWLS there.

For one thing, what could be more terrifying than a man haunted by The Carpenters' "We've Only Just Begun?" I doubt if you'll hear much screaming in the theater (I could be wrong about that), but a lot of people are going to be sleeping with the lights on when it's over."

CHECK OUT 1408 COME FRIDAY!



(References - bloody-disgusting.com, stephenking.com, hollywoodreporter.com, dvddrive-in.com, aintitcool.com, davisdvd.com, moviehole.net)

Cowboys, Indians & Aliens?

Brian Grazer and Ron Howard will ‘Imagine’ “Cowboys & Aliens” to the big screen.

The “Da Vinci Code” team have joined Dreamworks and Universal Pictures to bring the popular graphic novel to cinemas.

The film, written by Mark Fergus and Hawk Ostby, mixes Western and science fiction genres. Set in 1800s Arizona, a skirmish between cowboys and Apaches is interrupted by the crash landing of a space ship. The alien commander plans to tame the Old West and enslave everyone, but the cowboys and Native Americans turn their six-guns against the alien invaders.

Tom Hanks or Russell Crowe? Which one do you think will get the starring role?



Pred-Alien in Alien vs Predator sequel?

When you prep a sequel you really need to up the ante, add something that we've never seen before, which appears to be the case with 20th Century Fox's Alien vs Predator 2: No Peace on Earth.

Today an image began circulating the web that shows what appears to be an Alien-Predator hybrid! The pic can be viewed here.

In this follow-up the iconic monsters from two of the scariest film franchises ever, wage war in an American Midwestern town - with the residents caught in the middle.

The Strause brothers-directed flick opens on December 25th nationwide.



First Official Image from "SAW IV"

Today Lionsgate provided the first look at Darren Lynn Bousman's Saw IV, which hits theaters everywhere on October 26.

Plotline - Jigsaw still haunts the living in Saw IV, forcing them to appreciate life, or face death. As a continuation of Saw III, Jeff must find his daughter and escape the building to which they are confined before they both die. After finding another tape of Jigsaw, Jeff realizes there may be a newly added piece of the puzzle that he must decipher before it’s too late.

Tobin Bell, Scott Patterson, Lyriq Bent, Justin Louis, Costas Mandylor & Angus Macfadyen all return.

The image can be viewed here.



Strathairn headlining "Two Sisters" remake

David Strathairn has signed on to topline the horror remake A Tale of Two Sisters for DreamWorks. Elizabeth Banks (Slither) already has joined the project, which is based on Kim Jee-Woon's 2003 Korean thriller of the same name.

Strathairn will play a concerned father of two girls who return home after spending time in a mental institution. Once there, they are forced to deal with their stepmother's (Banks) obsessive and unbalanced ways as well as an interfering ghost.

Brothers Thomas and Charles Guard will direct "Sisters," which is scheduled to start filming next month in Shreveport, La.

Craig Rosenberg penned the screenplay, with a rewrite from Carlo Bernard and Doug Miro.



Stephen King & Frank Darabont talk on "The Mist"

Stephen King knows it's the little things that frighten the most.

So it's fitting that the best-selling novelist, who has had more film adaptations from his work than any modern author, finds his short stories capturing Hollywood's attention these days.

Among them are the sinister hotel-room thriller 1408, opening Friday, the creatures-in-the-fog story The Mist, coming in November, and last year's TNT miniseries Nightmares & Dreamscapes, featuring eight short tales as hour-long episodes.

"When you have a shorter piece of fiction, one of the things that's attractive to filmmakers is the idea, 'We can riff on this. We can do more to it,' " King says, adding, "It gives them wiggle room."

Filmmakers say his short stories and novellas translate better to the screen because, unlike an epic-sized novel, huge portions of the story don't have to be dropped, irking readers and leaving the occasional massive plot hole.

Eli Roth was planning to adapt King's cellphone zombie novel Cell, which has an explosively violent opening sequence. But Roth recently said the project is on hold.

The next King adaptation is The Mist, about residents of a small town who take shelter in a grocery store during a storm and begin to turn on one another when creatures that may be harbingers of the apocalypse arrive in the clouds.

Frank Darabont, the writer/director of King movies The Shawshank Redemption and The Green Mile (which had four Oscar nominations, including adapted screenplay and best picture), is making The Mist, from King's 1985 collection Skeleton Crew.

He says the difference between a King short story and a King novel is the difference between going 10 rounds with the author in a boxing ring or having him rush up with a sucker punch. "It's his chance to take one cool idea he wants to whap you upside the head with. It's the difference between writing a great pop song and an opera."

Darabont previously focused his efforts on King's straighter dramas but wanted to tackle the author's horror storytelling for a change: "I wanted to make a very direct, muscular kind of film."

As for King's wiggle room: "You don't want to come in and put your fingerprints all over everything, but in translation from page to screen, there is always some reinvention."

In the case of The Mist, King praises a new ending Darabont crafted, saying it is so unsettling that for many years no studio would touch it. "The ending is such a jolt — wham! — it's frightening. But people who go to see a horror movie don't necessarily want to be sent out with a Pollyanna ending."






(References - bloody-disgusting.com, lionsgatefilms.com, moviehole.net, imdb.com, usatoday.com, movies.yahoo.com)

I have to say V, that I love your horror updates! Very informative-keep 'em coming! :)

Anchor Bay's "Hatchet" gets rated R

Today the MPAA officially gave Adam Green's Hatchet an "R" rating, thus eliminating any rumors or speculation that the original "NC-17" rating would effect the upcoming national theatrical run.

The "R" rating is for "extreme gory bloody horror violence, sexual conduct, nudity and language".

After a two month long process involving an appeal and multiple submissions to the ratings board, the film is finally in it's home stretch.

From writer/director Adam Green: "A big THANKS to everyone for their continued support and enthusiasm. Mainstream Hollywood claims that the fans will only support remakes and PG-13 horror at the box office these days. I hope that on September 7th we prove them wrong."

When a motley crew of tourists on a Haunted Swamp Tour wind up stranded, their night of comedic spooks quickly roller-coasters into a horrific nightmare as they struggle to escape the swamp alive…and with all of their pieces.

A spectacular throwback to 80’s horror and the film that’s been bringing audiences to their feet at film festivals worldwide and a cast that includes Robert Englund and Kane Hodder, HATCHET is filled with laughs, scares, and over-the-top death sequences you’ll have to see to believe.

HATCHET will open in theaters across America on September 7th.



(References - myspace.com/hatchetarmy, bloody-disgusting.com)

Casting News and Plot for "Alone in the Dark 2"

Rick Yune (Fast and the Furious, Die Another Day), Lance Henriksen (Pumpkinhead, Aliens) and Ralf Moeller (Far Cry, Postal, Seed) have all been cast in Uwe Boll's Alone in the Dark 2, the sequel to the theatrical flop from last year, which is going straight to video.

The film will involve a group of "witch hunters" tracking down a witch named Elisabeth Dexter.

The film begins shooting August 6 in LA and NY.

So tell me, how excited are you?:rolleyes:



Promo Art for Stuart Gordon's "Stuck"

The official promo artwork is released from Stuart Gordon's latest, Stuck, which is a thriller about a young woman who commits a hit-and-run, then finds her fate tied to her victim.

Based on a true story, “Stuck” introduces us to Brandi Helper, a young and compassionate caregiver at a retirement home whose life is turn upside down when she accidentally hits Tom Bardo, a homeless man. With the terribly injured Tom stuck in the windshield of her car, Brandi drives home and parks the car in her garage. Although she promises to take him to an emergency room, Brandi realizes that she will destroy her own future if she does so. Instead she decides to wait for Tom to die, so she and her boyfriend Rashid can dispose of the body. When Tom realizes this, he knows that his only chance of survival is to find a way to escape.

The film stars Stephen Rea, Mena Suvari, Russell Hornsby, Rukiya Bernard, John Dartt, John Dunsworth, Mauricio Hoyos, Patrick McKenna, Liam McNamara, Marguerite McNeil, Martin Moreno, Bunthivy Nou, Carolyn Purdy-Gordon, R.D. Reid and Wayne Robson.

The promo art can be viewed here.



TV's "T'Pol" Joins "Starship Troopers"

Everyone’s favourite expressionless Vulcan is headed back to Space.

Jolene Blalock, best known as the leggy ‘T’Pol’ on TV's “Star Trek: Enterprise”, will play the female lead in the forthcoming “Starship Troopers 3: Marauder”.

The actress is playing tough pilot Lola Beck.

The film, also starring Casper Van Dien, Amanda Donahue (“L.A Law”), Boris Kodjoe and Marnett Patterson, will film shortly in South Africa under the direction of Ed Neumeier.



(References - moviehole.net, StarshipTroopers3.net, bloody-disgusting.com)

"1408" hits jackpot, #2 at Box-Office

Dimension Films' Stephen King adaptation 1408 took in an estimated $20,175,000 for the #2 spot at the box office, making it the single highest grossing weekend opening for a King adaptation!

This also makes 1408 the only really successful horror film of 2007, further prepping the genre for a major climate change... to PG-13.

Could it be that the general horror audience is sick of the buckets of blood and guts?

Can you imagine a PG-13 Halloween or Saw IV?

The success of the film, however, is extremely important to the genre as it has shown that even in the midst of big summer movie madness a little horror film can still steal a chunk of change from the likes of Spidey, Shrek, The Fantastic Four and others.

Horror lives baby! Even if it's a little softer.



"Kill Bill - The Whole Bloody Affair" coming in November on DVD

It has already been three years since Quentin Tarantino's masterpiece Kill Bill (vol. 1, vol. 2) hit theaters.

The film, which starred Uma Thurman as a ex-assassin on a road to revenge, was split in two by Miramax due to it's length.

For years they've been promising us the uncut, re-edited single release of the film, which only screened once in it's entirety during a test showing.

This past week Amazon.com opened pre-orders for what they call Kill Bill - The Whole Bloody Affair, which is slated for DVD release on November 6, 2007.

You can view and pre-order your copy here.

Happy Holidays to us indeed!



New "Amityville" documentary in the works

Producer Ric Osuna is back again with more Amityville Horror goodies as he's prepping a new documentary on the history of The Amityville Murders.

The new doc will include re-enactments of sequences from the infamous '74 Amityville Murders that launched the "Amityville Horror" hoax - yes, for those of you who didn't know, it was revealed to be a hoax.

This will be Ric's directorial debut as he produced History's Mysteries: Amityville: The Haunting (2000) and wrote the book "The Night The Defeos Died" (2002).



Dimension Films' are pretty excited about "Mandy Lane"

Originally titled All the Boys Love Mandy Lane, Dimension Films' amazing '80s homage, Mandy Lane, is finally headed to theaters on July 20!

The announcement comes kind of late, but hopefully there will be enough time to give it a sufficient push - one that it really deserves.

In the film a group of high schoolers invite Mandy Lane (Amber Heard), a good girl who became quite hot over the summer, to a weekend party on a secluded ranch. While the festivities rage on, the number of revelers begins to drop quite mysteriously.



First teaser trailer for "I Sell The Dead" is out

The official website (scareflix.net) has launched the first teaser trailer for Glenn McQuaid's I Sell the Dead, which stars Dominic Monaghan, Ron Perlman, Angus Scrimm and producer Larry Fessenden.

The film is about two body snatchers Arthur Blake and Willie Grimes, who have pillaged their last grave. With just five hours before Arthur follows Willie to the chopping block, he recounts his life story to Fr Francis Duffy. It soon becomes clear that Blake and Grimes were no ordinary grave robbers. And through his stories the priest learns that not all corpses are equal.

I Sell The Dead is a kaleidoscope of terror that will leave you questioning life, death and what lies between.

You can view the teaser trailer here.

1408 looks like it will be a real winner.

I can't wait to see this and alky has said it's good...so it's good:)

I was the first one who saw it (read my short review in the Last Seen Movie thread) and I thought it was a fantastic movie with plenty of original jumpy scares to keep you up for one whole night. Its a must watch. Highly recommended by me.:)