In the wake of the box office success of Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire and the small screen success of “Monarch: Legacy of Monsters,” Legendary is leaning even harder into the Monsterverse that kicked off back in 2014. We’ve learned this afternoon that “Monarch: Legacy of Monsters” Season 2 has been officially ordered up for Apple TV+!

Additionally, “Apple TV+ has also struck a new multi-series deal with Legendary Entertainment, which includes multiple spinoff series based on the franchise.”

“Monarch: Legacy of Monsters” premiered late last year, the first small screen project from the big screen Monsterverse that includes Godzilla, King Kong, and other monsters.

Following the thunderous battle between Godzilla and the Titans that leveled San Francisco and the shocking revelation that monsters are real, “Monarch: Legacy of Monsters” tracks two siblings following in their father’s footsteps to uncover their family’s connection to the secretive organization known as Monarch. Clues lead them into the world of monsters and ultimately down the rabbit hole to Army officer Lee Shaw (played by Kurt Russell and Wyatt Russell), taking place in the 1950s and half a century later where Monarch is threatened by what Shaw knows. The dramatic saga – spanning three generations – reveals buried secrets and the ways that epic, earth-shattering events can reverberate through our lives. 

The upcoming second season of “Monarch: Legacy of Monsters” is executive produced by showrunners and co-creators Chris Black and Matt Fraction, along with Joby Harold and Tory Tunnell from Safehouse Pictures, Matt Shakman, Andrew Colville and Jen Roskind. Hiro Matsuoka and Takemasa Arita executive produce on behalf of Toho Co., Ltd., the owner of the Godzilla character. Toho licensed the rights to Legendary for “Monarch: Legacy of Monsters” as a natural byproduct of their long-term relationship with the film franchise.

“‘Monarch: Legacy of Monsters’ has left an indelible imprint on the hearts, minds and imaginations of audiences around the world, led by the brilliance of Chris, Matt, Kurt, Wyatt and the incredibly gifted talented cast and creative team,” said Morgan Wandell, head of international development for Apple TV+. “We couldn’t be more excited for viewers to not only have the chance to experience even more thrills in season two, but to embark on epic, new journeys in the franchise, as we expand Legendary’s Monsterverse.”

Ten years strong, Legendary’s Monsterverse is an expansive story universe of cross-platform experiences centering around humanity’s battle to survive in a world facing a catastrophic new reality – the monsters of our myths and legends are real. Beginning with the Godzilla film in 2014 and continuing through 2017’s Kong: Skull Island, 2019’s Godzilla: King of the Monsters, 2021’s Godzilla vs. Kong, and most recently the record-breaking Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire, which topped the box office with $380M million and counting after two weeks of release and still playing in theaters, the Monsterverse has accumulated over $2B at the global box office and expanded into the highly successful event series, Legendary’s Monarch: Legacy of Monsters for Apple TV+. Including an interconnected world of video games, graphic novels, toys and live experiences, the Monsterverse represents epic entertainment on the largest possible scale.

The first season of “Monarch: Legacy of Monsters” is streaming globally on Apple TV+ 

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Paramount’s hit horror movie Smile gets a sequel this Halloween with returning director Parker Finn’s Smile 2, and the first plot details have made their way out of Paramount’s CinemaCon presentation this afternoon. The first footage from the upcoming sequel was shown off at the event, but unfortunately it is not (yet) being released for the rest of us online.

The good news? A whole bunch of websites including Slash Film were on hand at CinemaCon this week, so we’ve at least got a Smile 2 footage description to work with for now.

Slash Film recaps what they saw, “The teaser footage for Smile 2 that played at CinemaCon 2024 was focused on the new character played by Naomi Scott — a music celeb whose glamorous world is about to get dragged to hell. After a few glimpses of her pop star performances, the footage showed Scott’s character getting a shock when a man (played by Lukas Gage) breaks into her dressing room and smiles creepily at her.”

“Elsewhere in the footage,” the website’s description of the CinemaCon footage continues, “she is confronted by a kid with braces who flashes her a similar malevolent smile.”

The announced cast for Smile 2 also includes Kyle Gallner (Smile), Rosemarie DeWitt (“The Staircase”), Lukas Gage (“The White Lotus”), and Dylan Gelula (Dream Scenario), alongside Raúl Castillo (Army of the Dead) and Miles Gutierrez-Riley (The Wilds).

Smile 2 is scheduled to hit theaters on October 18, 2024.

Parker Finn signed a multi-year, first-look deal with Paramount Pictures in the wake of Smile striking it big at the box office, and a sequel to the film was the first order of business.

Stay tuned for more on Smile 2 as we learn it. The first film scared up a whopping $217 million worldwide in 2022, all but ensuring that a sequel wouldn’t be too far behind.

The post ‘Smile 2’ Plot Details: Horror Sequel Will Follow a Popstar Afflicted by the Smile Curse appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

The bone-chilling Danish horror movie Speak No Evil is getting a remake here in the States courtesy of Blumhouse and Universal, and the official trailer has arrived tonight.

Universal will release their Speak No Evil remake on September 13, 2024.

Watch the official trailer below, fresh out of CinemaCon tonight.

James Watkins (The Woman in Black, Eden Lake) is directing Speak No Evil for Blumhouse and Universal, with Mackenzie Davis (Terminator: Dark Fate, Happiest Season) and James McAvoy (Split, Glass) set to star. Scoot McNairy (Argo) will also star.

In the remake, “When an American family is invited to spend the weekend at the idyllic country estate of a charming British family they befriended on vacation, what begins as a dream holiday soon warps into a snarled psychological nightmare.”

James Watkins also wrote the script for the Speak No Evil remake.

Jason Blum will produce the upcoming film for Blumhouse, with Paul Ritchie, Christian Tafdrup, Jacob Jarek, and Bea Sequeira serving as Executive Producers.

Directed by Christian Tafdrup, the original Speak No Evil was selected as one of Bloody Disgusting’s 12 Best International Horror Movies of 2022. Daniel Kurland raved about the highly distressing Danish nightmare, “This claustrophobic character study eerily examines the nature of evil and the chilling realization that there doesn’t always need to be a reason for wickedness. Speak No Evil feels like the twisted Danish cousin to Barbarian and every tense moment of silence feels like it could evolve into a totally different type of horror.”

The post ‘Speak No Evil’ Remake Trailer – James McAvoy Is Doing Really, Really Bad Things This September appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.

It may have taken forever for the first Five Nights at Freddy’s movie to finally get off the ground, but it’s officially full steam ahead for the sequel.

Expect to see Five Nights at Freddy’s 2 next Halloween season, as it’s currently set for Fall 2025 release.

The announcement came via CinemaCon and social media, and arrives shortly after producer Jason Blum teased a behind the scenes photo from inside Jim Henson’s Creature Shop. The sequel hadn’t been confirmed at the time of his posting, but this news makes it official.

Released in theaters and available for streaming on Peacock on the same day, the Emma Tammi-directed Five Night’s at Freddy’s was Blumhouse’s highest grossing movie of all time. In other words, it’s no surprise that the sequel was quickly greenlit.

In last year’s horror movie, “After accepting a security guard job from Steve (Matthew Lillard; Scream, Scooby Doo), Mike (Josh Hutcherson; The Hunger Games Franchise) discovers an abandoned restaurant may actually be haunted by murderous animatronics.”

No other details have been revealed as of yet, including plot or cast, but the first film left clear teases on where it could go next. No word at this time whether the sequel will also wind up day-and-date on Peacock.

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Danny Boyle and Alex Garland are reteaming for the long-awaited sequel to 28 Days Later and 28 Weeks Later, titled 28 Years Later, which plans to kick off a brand new trilogy.

Deadline reports tonight that Nia DaCosta (Candyman, The Marvels) is now in talks to direct the planned second installment in the 28 Years Later trilogy from Sony Pictures.

Last we heard, Garland will write the first film and Boyle will return to direct.

Deadline notes in their new report tonight, “While exact dates are unknown, sources [say] the plan is for Boyle to direct the first one later this year with the second film[ing] immediately after the first shoot which is why the studio is moving fast to lock in that second director. This way the directors can get on the same page on where they see the story while also bringing their own unique visions for each film. [Alex] Garland will pen each installment.”

Cillian Murphy (Oppenheimer) is on board as executive producer.

The original movie in 2002 starred Cillian Murphy and was written by Alex Garland and directed by Danny Boyle. In the smash hit horror film, “Four weeks after a mysterious, incurable virus spreads throughout the UK, a handful of survivors try to find sanctuary.”

A sequel, 28 Weeks Later, arrived in 2007. Juan Carlos Fresnadillo took over as director. In the sequel, which starred Jeremy Renner, “Six months after the rage virus was inflicted on the population of Great Britain, the US Army helps to secure a small area of London for the survivors to repopulate and start again. But not everything goes according to plan.”

Talks of a third installment in the franchise have been coming and going for the last several years now – at one point, it was going to be titled 28 Months Later – but it looks like this one is finally getting off the ground here in 2024. Stay tuned for more updates soon!

The post ’28 Years Later’ – ‘Candyman’ Filmmaker Nia DaCosta in Talks to Direct Second Movie in Planned Trilogy appeared first on Bloody Disgusting!.