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‘Doctor Sleep’ Snoozes at Weekend Box Office

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What a difference a week makes.  Last weekend, Terminator: Dark Fate debuted with an underwhelming $29 million, appearing to be one of the biggest financial flops of the year.  Well, the executives at Paramount can stop looking for time machines to return to the past and cancel production on Dark Fate, as Doctor Sleep is taking all of the media’s slings and arrows, declaring The Shining sequel as an even worse disaster at the box office.

Warner Bros. Doctor Sleep finished second at the box office this weekend with a comatose $14.1 million.  Initial tracking and projections placed the sequel in the $25-$30 million range.  Finishing with less than half of that total is the type of miscalculation and result that leads to pink slips all around (in addition to the fact that Doctor Sleep lost to Midway, a war film that was on no one’s radar). read more

Final ‘Doctor Sleep’ Trailer Showcases Action at the Overlook Hotel

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With Stephen King’s It: Chapter Two dominating the box office and press coverage, it is easy to forget about King’s upcoming sequel to The Shining, Doctor Sleep.  If you’ve been remiss, today’s final trailer will certainly make long time fans of Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining happy, with multiple call-backs to the original, as well as images of new mayhem at the old Overlook Hotel.

The director of Doctor Sleep, Mike Flanagan, unveiled the final trailer on twitter today. read more

Mike Flanagan and Trevor Macy Bring New Horror Series ‘Midnight Mass’ to Netflix

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Director Mike Flanagan and producer Trevor Macy, the successful pair behind The Haunting of Hill House, are bringing a brand new horror series to Netfix entitled Midnight Mass.

According to an exclusive report by Deadline, “The seven-episode Midnight Mass follows an isolated island community that experiences miraculous events — and frightening omens — after the arrival of a charismatic, mysterious young priest. Flanagan will direct and serve as an executive producer alongside Macy.”  This deal was made possible due to “…the multi-year TV deal Netflix signed with the pair and their Intrepid Pictures earlier this year.” read more

‘The Haunting of Bly Manor’: A Horror News Network Wish List

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Mike Flanagan’s The Haunting of Hill House was a smash hit when it debuted on Netflix last October, but the series featured a very conclusive ending. Fortunately, Flanagan’s distinctive style for the franchise will live on with the announcement that The Haunting will return in the form of an anthology series in 2020. The next season will focus on Henry James’ 1898 novella, The Turn of the Screw, and it will be called The Haunting of Bly Manor. Given the incredible popularity and the positive critical response to Flanagan’s modern adaptation of Shirley Jackson’s The Haunting of Hill House, feverous anticipation and lofty expectations will surely swell as we get closer to Bly Manor‘s release date. read more

Mike Flanagan and Trevor Macy to Produce ‘The Haunting of Hill House’ Follow-Up and More Horror Television for Netflix

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Between the tremendous successes of The Haunting of Hill House and Gerald’s Game, Netflix knows they’ve got a creative team for the ages in Mike Flanagan and Trevor Macy. Writer/director Flanagan, and longtime collaborative producer Macy deserve all the praise they received this past fall when Hill House took off like a firecracker after years of excellent projects like Oculus and Hush, and today’s big announcement means that more quality horror content from their twisted minds will soon be streaming to a television near you! read more

Production Wraps on Mike Flanagan’s ‘Doctor Sleep’

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Doctor Sleep– the highly anticipated follow-up to The Shining by director Mike Flanagan- is one step closer to hitting theaters! The prolific filmmaker announced on his Facebook page that production on the film has officially wrapped. He also reflected on the awesome experience he had making the movie:

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Mike Flanagan Details Production of Extended Shots in Episode Six of ‘The Haunting of Hill House’

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Between his eye for ornate detail, his unconventional and well-earned scares, and his penchant for character-driven storytelling, Mike Flanagan is easily one of the most important horror directors working today. So when he takes the time to detail his process, horror fans and aspiring auteurs better take notice! Lucky for us, he spent some time on Twitter this morning breaking down the incredible extended shots in Episode Six of The Haunting of Hill House!

There are tons of reasons to be impressed by The Haunting of Hill House, but one episode in particular takes place in a funeral parlor with very few cuts for an hour-long program. The circling camera is bound to evoke a feeling of dread and claustrophobia in even the most hardened viewer as the events and circumstances of the characters spiral out of control; and Flanagan’s knack for supernatural surprises means it’s never safe to rest one’s eyes until the credits roll. According to this morning’s revelations, the daunting extended scenes were a part of Flanagan’s initial pitch for the series. He then walks readers through the ins and outs of production, including a series of time codes within the episode for each of the five shots. read more

Crain’s Story Likely Complete on ‘The Haunting of Hill House’

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Unless you are living under a rock you must now know that Netflix’s The Haunting of Hill House is taking the world by storm. Directed by Mike Flanagan (Hush, Oculus) Hill House follows the Crain family as they move into an old home hoping to fix it up and flip it for a profit.

Speaking with Entertainment Weekly (warning major spoilers at EW), Flanagan spoke on many different topics including the Shirley Jackson novel which inspired the series, the Bent-Neck Lady, spotting ghosts in the series, and much more. Perhaps the most interesting thing of note mentioned was that the director felt that the Crain’s story was finished even if the series gets a second season. read more

Why ‘The Haunting of Hill House’ is the Year’s Best Series

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Over the last decade there have been many very successful genre TV shows like Stranger Things, The Walking Dead, American Horror Story, and Bates Motel, just to name a few.  The latest series to scare up fans is The Haunting of Hill House from Netflix.  Unless you’ve been living under a rock, you’ve heard the show is just incredible and prompting friends and family to hold up in their homes binge watching it.  What make this series such a standout? In a word, everything. 

The show, adapted from Shirley Jackson’s novel of the same name, seems to have captured elements needed for film to perfection.  Front and center is the meaty storyline. Fans have seen cases where books don’t always translate to the screen. The Haunting of Hill House, however, delivers a story which transcends the horror or paranormal genre.  The plotline more than drives the series, it sucks the viewer in with weighty emotional family dynamics.  Not just telling the terrifying experiences of the Crain family, but really displaying the deep wounds and trauma left by those experiences. Yes, it delivers all the creepiness horror fans want, but also showcases the humanity that many genre shows and films tend to lack. read more

Ewan McGregor to Play Danny Torrance All Grown Up in ‘The Shining’ Sequel Doctor Sleep

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Who knew Danny Torrance would grow up to be such a hunk! The beyond-traumatized adolescent protagonist of Stanley Kubrick’s iconic 1980 film, The Shining, is the adult star of the upcoming sequel, Doctor Sleep. We’ve known for a while that Mike Flanagan (Oculus, Gerald’s Game, Hush) would be directing the film, based on the 2013 novel by Stephen King… but today we learned that the protagonist will be played by an A-List actor!

Variety reports that Ewan McGregor is set to star in the film as Danny Torrance, and that Stephen King himself has given his blessing to this exciting casting news. McGregor has over 80 acting credits to date, including fan favorite roles as Renton in Trainspotting and Obi-Wan Kenobi in the Star Wars prequel trilogy. While he’s certainly better known for action and drama roles than straight-up horror, he did happen to star in one episode of Tales from the Crypt in 1996. read more