What is up, horror fans and thank you for stopping by the site today. I'm excited to get this new idea off the ground, as a way to provide you with all the horror news that happened last week. I won't ramble on so grab your pillow tight — a little tighter now, and lets recap last week's spooky news.
June 6
Sad, terrible news came midday about the passing of Clarence Williams III, who was battling cancer up until his death. Williams is best known in the world of horror as Mr. Simms, the eccentric funeral director in Tales From the Hood. He also appeared in Twin Peaks as FBI agent Roger Hardy, and later in his career in the film American Nightmares. Clarence Williams III was 81 when he passed.
June 7
A new cast member was announced for Renny Harlin's upcoming horror film, The Refuge. Jason Flemyng will join Harlin in his next film, about a US military veteran who is not quite the same after he returns home from Afghanistan. While his symptoms and behavior are dismissed as PTSD, his wife believes that he has been possessed.
I'm always excited to hear that Jason Flemyng has been cast in a film — any film, his range of acting is quite extraordinary. I mean he can do comedy, dramatic roles and he did a very adequate job as Mr. Hyde.
Later on in the day, Rob Zombie would take to his Instagram to announce his next film, The Munsters. Rumors of Zombie's interest had been swirling for a bit. It was no secret that the director, singer and songwriter was a fan of the 1964 classic television show, that unfortunately ran for only two seasons.
I've read some mixed reviews online and I will encourage people not to go passing judgement just yet. I know I am not alone when I say this — and I stand by my words, I liked the Rob Zombie Halloween films. With that said, I am excited to see what he will do with The Munsters because, lets face it, that attempt on television years ago was no bueno.
June 8
Tuesday came screaming around the corner with news of another Stephen King adaptation and the celebration of Ghostbusters Day.
The unofficial holiday that celebrates the New York based ghost wranglers, was celebrated this year by fans and their extravagant pieces of cosplay, along with the release of heavily sought after collectables.
Movie screening events also took place throughout the day, whether it was at a convention or online from the comfort of home. Ghostbusters Day is truly a celebration that brings fans together, especially this year with the excitement for the upcoming sequel, Ghostbusters: Afterlife, releasing this November.
As previously mentioned, Tuesday also brought news of another Stephen King adaptation. Fans of a certain 1958 beauty, brace yourselves because this news could be hit or miss. I must admit that I still don't know how I feel about this one. Director Bryan Fuller, the dazzling mind behind the late and great, Hannibal, will team up with Blumhouse and Sony Pictures to once again bring Stephen King's killer car classic, Christine, to a theater near you. The film is still in the very early stages of development but those involved have said that John Carpenter's cult classic of a film, will be mostly ignored in order to stay more faithful to the novel.
June 9
Mid week hit and Wednesday gave horror fans a first look at the cover art for the upcoming video game, Evil Dead: The Game. Bloody Disgusting was kind enough to share the artwork before the highly anticipated gameplay reveal that would occur the next day. Evil Dead: The Game will be a multiplayer experience that will have you looting, crafting and surviving as Ash, Lord Arthur, Kelly and more, against the Kandarian Demon that is hunting you down.
June 10
It was a rather exciting Thursday for Harry Melling, who will be taking on the role of a younger Edgar Allan Poe in the upcoming film The Pale Blue Eye. He will join Christian Bale in the Scott Cooper directed adaptation of the Louis Bayard novel, which takes place at the prestigious West Point Academy in the autumn of 1830.
Melling, fresh off a hot streak with The Devil All the Time and The Queen's Gambit, will be a joy to watch as he portrays one of the most historic and prominent figures of gothic horror.
Coming back to what was already mentioned above, Ash Williams and crew got their own exciting trailer/gameplay reveal on Thursday and it was a treat to watch. Footage taken from the upcoming Evil Dead: The Game was unleashed upon the internet in a nearly three minute video. Within that small time frame, the gameplay was able to humorously highlight all the hack-slashing, shooting and blood splash that awaits gamers when the multiplayer experience releases later this year.
June 11
It's not your typical horror experience but when my Friday morning started with reading about Michael Packard's morning, it had me thinking, "Damn nature! You scary!"
Packard was lobster diving off the coast of Provincetown, Massachusetts when he was swallowed by a humpback whale, at first thinking he had been swallowed by a great white shark.
“I was completely inside; it was completely black,” recounted Packard. “I thought to myself, ‘there’s no way I’m getting out of here. I’m done, I’m dead.’ All I could think of was my boys — they’re 12 and 15 years old.”
Packard escaped the experience when the whale spit him out. He was able to swim back to his boat a small distance away and get himself checked out at the hospital.
Back on land it was revealed that Lance Reddick would play Albert Wesker in the new Resident Evil series coming from Netflix. Announced back in August 2020, a cast photo was finally released via Reddick's Twitter during Netflix's Geeked Week.
The tweeted pic showed that actresses Ella Balinska, Tamara Smart, Siena Agudong, Adeline Rudolph, and Paola Nunez would help to bring another Raccoon City story to life, as we follow Wesker's two daughters over two different timelines.
June 12
Saturday it was announced that Kevin Bacon would be taking on a new role and my Tremor flags went up. Well folks, Kevin Bacon will not be returning with any worms but he will be joining the upcoming reboot of The Toxic Avenger.
Bacon joins Peter Dinklage, Jacob Trembley and Taylour Paige for an updated telling of the story of Troma's largest star, Toxie. Legendary will produce the film along with the man that started it all, Lloyd Kaufman.
E3 was in full swing this weekend and I had my fingers crossed for some horror game announcements. During the Ubisoft panel— and much to my surprise, Rainbow Six announced that they were taking the their gameplay to a more extraterrestial level.
The announcement for Rainbow Six Extraction was revealed and the gameplay could not be more awesome. Blast your way through hordes of aliens, as you and your team press forward on a rescue mission that is set across 12 maps. We don't have long to wait either because the game is scheduled to release later this year on September 16.
Well, that's the rundown for horror last week but before I wrap this one up tight and light it, I ask you to check out some horror I've personally been following:
If you haven't seen it yet, check out Fried Barry on Shudder from director Ryan Kruger. The movie is an absolute trip and if you're skeptical, check out what I have to say about Fried Barry, here.
Also a big shout out to Rob & Steve Riff On Horror. I've been lurking on their Facebook and Instagram for a couple months now and I like what they bring to horror. Their sites have been linked and I encourage you to check them out for further links and horror.
That's it for now, I wish you all the utmost of horror and dread for the coming days and don't forget to scream every now and then.
