Books

‘Haunted Universal Studios’ Author Brian Clune: The Horror News Network Interview

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Universal Studios will always hold a special place in the heart of every horror fan due to their dedication to the original screen monsters Frankenstein, Dracula, The Wolfman, The Mummy, and a host of others.  The original filming location for many of these classics took place on the grounds of the studio that is now more famous for the theme-park and tour it operates on a daily basis.  The famed Los Angeles location has a long history, and not only in terms of the thousands of films produced there.  Many have suggested that there might also be ghosts that inhabit the world-famous Universal Studios lot and theme park. read more

‘American Gods’ Renewed For Third Season

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Just one week after the season 2 debut of Starz American Gods, the fates have decreed (and that would be, of course, Starz, via Deadline) that the battle between the ancient and modern gods will continue for at least one more season.  In addition, following along the lines of many timeless tales, the motif of the replacement of old gods for new ones will continue next season, as Chic Eglee will replace Jesse Alexander as showrunner for season three.

Carmi Zlotnik, the god that oversees programming at Starz, exuberantly announced the news, stating that “Audiences continue to worship at the altar of American Gods and we are excited to be able to announce to all the true believers that there is more of this fantastical series to come.  With Chic (Eglee) at the helm, the invaluable insight and contributions of Neil Gaiman and the undeniable talent of this dedicated cast and crew, we know that the show will continue to deliver on the vision and promise laid out in the novel.” read more

Stephen King/Peter Straub Collaboration Novel ‘The Talisman’ Finally Headed to the Big Screen?

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According to Entertainment Weekly, fans are finally going to get the chance to see Jack Sawyer and Parkus (or Speedy Parker, if you prefer) venture across the Territories to save Queen Laura DeLoessian in a big screen version of Stephen King’s popular dark fantasy novel The Talisman which was co-written by Ghost Story author Peter Straub. Released in 1984, The Talisman has long been discussed as a potential film but, like many of King’s books, the length is always an issue. At 921 pages, The Talisman was King’s longest novel until he released an uncut edition of The Stand which went from 823 pages to 1,152. read more

Get Ready for the Apocalypse with the New Trailer for Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman’s ‘Good Omens’

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Preventing the Apocalypse is never an easy undertaking, especially when a demon and angel are forced to collaborate after that whole “battle for heaven” ordeal.  This is, of course, the subject of the late Terry Pratchett and Neil Gaiman’s 1990 novel entitled Good Omens, and soon you will be able to enjoy their tale in a completely new medium on Amazon Prime on May 31.

Good Omens stars David Tennant as the devilish Crowley and Michael Sheen as the angelic Aziraphale.  They are joined by Jon Hamm, Michael McKean, Miranda Richardson, Sam Taylor Buck (as the juvenile Antichrist, Adam Young), and Benedict Cumberbatch as Satan himself. read more

‘Horror Noire: A History of Black Horror’ Documentary: The Horror News Network Review

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Whenever a film becomes a surprise hit (and leaves an impression on Hollywood executives that are seeking to mine similar material for profit), there are sometimes some unexpected, positive side effects.  In the case of Jordan Peele’s Get Out, which captured the attention of both ticket buyers and studio heads, the shock waves of success helped to unearth and bring attention to some forgotten gems and underappreciated actors and filmmakers that helped pave the way for Peele’s triumph. read more

Shudder’s Upcoming ‘Creepshow’ Anthology Announces Story Line-Up

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Fans of the original George Romero and Stephen King collaboration Creepshow will be happy to heat that production has begun on Shudder’s new anthology series, bearing the same name and  format.

According to the official press release, the six-episode season will feature stories by a who’s who list of horror writers and an as yet to be revealed adaptation of a Stephen King story.  The story list so far includes: “By the Silvery Waters of Lake Champlain” by Joe Hill (NOS4A2), “House of the Head” by Josh Malerman (Bird Box), “The Companion” by Joe Lansdale (Bubba Ho Tep, Hap and Leonard), “The Man in the Suitcase” by Christopher Buehlman (The Lesser Dead), “All Hallows Eve” by Bruce Jones (The Hitchhiker), “Night of the Paw” by John Esposito (The Walking Dead: Webisodes), and “Bad Wolf Down” by Rob Schrab (Monster House).  Other installments will be lead by David Bruckner (The Ritual),  Roxanne Benjamin (Southbound) and Rob Schrab (Ghosted, Community). read more

Paramount Cancels David Fincher’s ‘World War Z’ Sequel

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The long-awaited sequel to World War Z has been officially cancelled by Paramount Pictures, according to an exclusive report from The Playlist.

The report cites the film’s ballooning budget as a concern, but the bigger concern for Paramount was where the funds were being spent. When it came down to gambling on future profits, Paramount took the safe bet, and bankrolled Mission Impossible 7 & 8 (which will arrive in the summer of 2021 and 2022) instead of continuing the zombie franchise.

World War Z 2 has a long history of delays and missteps, as the film was originally scheduled to be directed by A Monster Calls director J.A. Bayona.  When Bayona left the project, producer and star Brad Pitt went after Fincher, and announced that his Fight Club director would assume control of the project in the fall of 2016.  The World War Z sequel was then scheduled for a June 9, 2017 release date, but Paramount removed it from the schedule earlier in 2017. read more

Edwin F. Becker’s Book ‘True Haunting’ Is Being Developed as a Feature Film by Screen Gems

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The 1970s is famous for a number of haunted house and possession cases that everyone remembers, from the world famous Amityville Horror to England’s greatest haunting, the Enfield Poltergeist Case.  Many of these “real life” hauntings also received the Hollywood treatment, but up until now, no one ever decided to make a film based on television’s long forgotten first live exorcism, which aired on NBC in 1971.

Not until today that is, as Screen Gems (a company that never turned down a project it didn’t like) is ready to adapt Edwin F. Becker’s recollection of what he reports was an exorcism gone wrong in his book True Haunting.  According to an exclusive report by Deadline, Producer “Cindy Cowan has optioned the book, and will produce with Steve Bersch and Scott Strauss overseeing the project.” read more

CBS All Access to Adapt Stephen King’s ‘The Stand’ into 10 Episode Limited Series

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The folks at CBS All Access are working hard to make their streaming platform a one stop spot for horror programming. First, they became the exclusive home to Jordan Peele’s new The Twilight Zone reboot; and now they’re turning one of Stephen King’s most popular novels into (another) limited television series!

Variety reports that CBS Television Studios will produce a 10 episode limited series of The Stand for CBS All Access. Josh Boone (The New Mutants, The Fault in Our Stars) will direct the series, based on a script by Boone and Ben Cavell (Justified, SEAL Team, Sneaky Pete). The Stand is a passion project for Boone, who began his love affair with the novel when he was twelve and his religious parents burned his copy in the family fireplace: read more

Horror Legend Clive Barker Discusses His New Book and ‘Books of Blood’ and ‘Nightbreed’ Television Series

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Clive Barker is no stranger to anyone familiar with horror literature and films from the 1980s.  The noted writer, director, and artist has kept busy over the years, turning out a wide-variety of books, stories, and artwork, and he is about to enter the horror-verse in a big way in 2019 with a new book (Deep Hill), and two possible television series based on some of his most famous stories and films (The Books of Blood and Nightbreed).

According to an interview with Barker on his official website, Revelations, his latest novel “Deep Hill, is a little over halfway typed now. I am still working on it and am very excited about it. It’s a rather larger book than I thought it was going to be but, as you know, that always happens with me! It is not a book for the very young readers of Thief of Always, say, because it has some very dark, fantastical material in it. It does not, however, contain any sexual material and any cursing you may hear is nothing you wouldn’t hear on the nightly news, but it is scary and I won’t try and water that fact down. In fact in some ways I think it’s one of the scariest things I’ve done, because it mingles both imaginative scares (that is to say strange creatures and the like) with very threatening issues about the world we live in. Deep Hill involves a world of waste, how we deal with waste… read more