While the world continues to react to the latest Scream film, we here at Horror Junket look forward to another spooky week filled with screams, scares and dread. It's good to see all you horror fans back here for another rundown in horror. It might be early in the year but from what we're seeing, a lot of horror--whether they be movies, television shows, video games or literature, all kinds of scares are on the way, and a few of them will be mentioned later on in this Horrific Recap. If you haven't done so already, go on and grab that fright pillow tightly, as we begin our Horrific Recap with Sunday of last week.
January 16 - Sunday
Dying Light 2 Stay Human arrives in February but before that release date hits, fans can get a look at some gameplay footage to help keep that hype peaked for next month.
Techland's sequel to their 2015 horror survival hit moves from Dying Light's middle-eastern city of Harran, to a new location with Dying Light 2, a place called The City. The video is full of cutscenes from the game and every once in a while you'll catch a bit of actual game footage. It looks like a lot of the parkour and melee mechanics will be returning to Dying Light 2, as well as some familiar foes and obstacles that made Dying Light and enjoyable play.
Gamers can pre-order Dying Light 2 Stay Human right now and have it ready to play when the game releases on February 4 for PC, Xbox and PlayStation.
January 17 - Monday
Is Happy Death Day 3 in the works? A recent tweet from Jason Blum has this horror fan wondering just that after the horror producer asked for questions on Twitter.
Twitter user nour_saudi, inquired about a third Happy Death Day film and Blum was happy to answer that,"something is stirring."
With so much currently on Blum's plate, what with Halloween Ends and a trilogy of Exorcist films currently in the works, it's good to see that Happy Death Day is still on Blum's mind given everything else the producer of screams is involved in.
January 18 - Tuesday
Michael O’Leary will be joining the cast of Halloween Ends as Dr. Mathis, in the final film of the the new Halloween trilogy.
In a tweet that has since been deleted, O'Leary was happy to exclaim that he will be joining Halloween Ends on January 27, and is excited to star alongside the franchise's iconic star Jamie Lee Curtis, for the final showdown with Michael Myers...maybe. Currently in production and set for a release later this year in October, Halloween Ends will see the return of Andi Matichak as well as Kyle Richards, whose character Lindsey Wallace survived the slaughter that occurred in Halloween Kills.
Directed by David Gordon Green, Halloween Ends continues its work in production and will be released later this year on October 14.
Meat Loaf returns once again when he joins up with the TAPS team for a very special episode of Ghost Hunters.
No stranger to the ghostly supernatural show, currently in its 14th season, Meat Loaf will join Jason Hawes, Steve Gonsalves, Dave Tango and Shari DeBenedetti, for what should be an exciting ghost hunting adventure that will take the crew to a haunted house. Meat Loaf will return and guest star in the episode titled “The Haunted House on the Hill”, schedule to air on February 12 and available to watch on Discovery+.
January 19 - Wednesday
Gaspard Ulliel has passed away after a tragic ski accident today in southeastern France.
Born on November 25, 1984 in Neuilly-sur-Seine, Hauts-de-Seine, France, Gaspard Ulliel would begin acting as a youth, getting his first role in the 1997 TV movie Une Femme En Blanc at the age of 12. More roles would follow with Ulliel's casting in Summer Things with English actress Charlotte Rampling and the 2004 Jean-Pierre Jeunet film A Very Long Engagement , which he co-starred with acclaimed French actress Audrey Tautou.
In 2007, Gaspard's career really hit a high career note when he was cast a younger version of Hannibal Lecter, for the film adaptation of the Thomas Harris novel, Hannibal Rising. Though he would do well in the role, the film Hannibal Rising was not a hit. Ulliel would continue to show off his acting chops in the 2014 biopic film about fashion mogul Yves Saint Laurent titled Saint Laurent. More recently Gaspard Ulliel has been cast in the Disney+ superhero series Moon Knight, and will be one of the young actor's last roles, along with the film More Than Ever, which is currently in post-production.
Gaspard Ulliel was 37 when he passed.
January 20 - Thursday
Universal's upcoming A.I. horror film is set for release early next year.
Produced by James Wan's Atomic Monster and horror powerhouse Blumhouse, M3GAN will tell the story of Gemma, a robotics engineer at a toy company, who creates a doll that is quite handy around the house, and only made more lifelike due to its A.I. technology. When Gemma becomes the new caretaker of her niece, she enlists the help of her new creation to help out.
Starring Allison Williams, Jen Van Epps, Violet McGraw, Amie Donald and the voice of Kimberley Crossman, M3GAN will be directed by Gerard Johnstone, based on a script written by Akela Cooper. The horror that is M3GAN is still a long way out, scheduled to release next year on January 13, 2023.
January 21 - Friday
Meat Loaf, a great musician and actor, definitely no stranger to the world of horror, has passed away.
Texas born in September of 1947, or was it 1951? Maybe it was 1952 when Meat Loaf was born Marvin Lee Aday, earning the name Meat Loaf while playing high school football. He would get the acting bug early appearing in high school productions of Where's Charley? and The Music Man. Out of high school, Meat Loaf would form the band Meat Loaf Soul. They would turn down a record deal and go on to open for bands like Van Morrison--and his band at the time Them, as well as open for the legendary rock icon, Janis Joplin.
In the 1970s Meat Loaf would focus more on acting. Turning to Broadway, Meat Loaf would make a name for himself starring in plays like Hair and The Rocky Horror Picture Show, as well as taking roles in Off Broadway productions. In 1975, Meat Loaf would get a big break when cast in the feature film adaptation of the Broadway hit, The Rocky Horror Picture Show.
1977, Meat Loaf would go back to music and release the operatic rock album, Bat Out Of Hell, an album that has sold more than 50,000,000 copies worldwide. Meat Loaf would focus on his music throughout the 1970s and into the 1980s but that didn't stop Meat Loaf from acting in a few films. In 1993, Meat Loaf would release Bat Out Of Hell II: Back Into Hell, the album becoming a #1 hit in 28 countries around the world.
In 1999, Meat Loaf would secure his most important film role yet, and even though Fight Club was not a huge theatrical hit, the name Robert Paulson would carry through time, much like the name Tyler Durden would. Meat Loaf's love for music and acting was his life and would continue for decades more. In his lifetime Meat Loaf would release 16 albums, including a third Bat Out Of Hell album, and appear in over 40 films including one of my favorite on-the-road flicks, Black Dog.
Meat Loaf was 74 when he passed.
Dying Light 2 has been delayed on the Nintendo Switch but will still see its release on PC, Xbox and PlayStation next month on February 4.
Dying Light 2 as whole has been on the receiving end of numerous delays since the game's development was announced at E3 back in 2018. Originally scheduled for a January release in 2020. Dying Light 2 would see the game put on hold until the next year in December, with most everything in the world put on hold due to the COVID pandemic at the time. In September of last year Techland CEO Pawel Marchewka tweeeted that Dying Light 2 would face another delay but only by a couple months, stating that the game was complete but the extra months would ensure a more polished game.
A majority of gamers will still be able to enjoy Dying Light 2 when it release next month, but for those that were hoping to enjoy the game on their Switch, more patience will be needed. A release date for Dying Light 2 on the Nintendo Switch is no longer available but to those looking for a glimmer of hope, the game could be out as early as this year.
January 22 - Saturday
Shudder looks to Sundance Film Festival for its horror, picking up Speak No Evil before the film's Sundance premiere.
The horror tale from Denmark tells the story of two families, having met on a past holiday, decide to get together again for the weekend. Things are great at first but when the boundaries of hospitality are pushed, one family feels that they might in over their heads.
Starring Morten Burian, Sidsel Siem Koch, Fedja van Huêt, Karina Smulders, Liva Forsberg and Marius Damslev, Speak No Evil will premiere at the Sundance Film Festival on January 21, and later on January 29 at the Gothenburg Film Festival in Sweden. For those in Denmark, the official release of Speak No Evil will be on March 17. At this time there is no word on when Shudder will release the film through its streaming service.
That's all the horror I have for you from last week, horror fans. More is sure to come with a new week ahead of us, and I for one ask that it not include more losses in the world of horror. I can only ask. Until next week, horror fans, stay safe and take care.
