Walker Scobell, who co-starred with Ryan Reynolds in The Adam Project, had his heart set on playing this Deadpool & Wolverine variant, but didn’t get the job.
With “What We Do in the Shadows” coming to an end this year with the show’s final season, star Harvey Guillén has set up a brand new project to both star in and executive produce.
Harvey Guillén will star alongside Kate Siegel in the dark comedy Damned If You Do.
First reported by Deadline, the cast will also include Ginger Gonzaga (She-Hulk), Paulo Costanzo (Royal Pains), Beth Dover (Orange Is the New Black), Ed Weeks (The Mindy Project), Molly Bernard (Hit Man), Jillian Gottlieb (Soon By You), Matthew Stephen Smith (Too Hot to Handle), Liza Treyger (Survival of the Thickest) and Ashley Austin Morris (Inventing Anna).
Written by Ellen Adair and Eric Gilde, Damned If You Do marks the directorial debut of Jake Rubin and Evan Metzold. Here’s the official plot synopsis for the film:
“A group of teenage friends sold their souls to the devil. Naturally, life grants them different paths: a rock star, a tech mogul, and a high-profile activist.
“Years later, they must rely on an old classmate to try and escape Hell’s grasp before the contract’s deadline of their 25th high school reunion.”
OGM’s Matthew R. Cooper and Uwakokunre (Kokie) Imasogie are producing alongside Lior Haas. Executive producers include Rubin, Metzold, Harvey Guillén and Kate Siegel.
Filming is underway in New Orleans on Goons, a new Louisiana-set horror movie from The First Purge director Gerard McMurray. Deadline reports today that Chloe Bailey (The Exorcism, “Swarm”) and Michael Rainey Jr. (“Power”) are set to star.
McMurray co-wrote Goons with Hodge K. Johnson.
Plot details are scarce at this time, but Goons is said to be “set in the eerie backdrop of Louisiana cane fields and plantations.” Of course, the film’s title may hold clues.
“I’m beyond excited to direct a film in the horror genre. Goons is a love letter to my hometown of New Orleans, and a deeply personal story for me. Producing this film along with Confluential/New Fear Unlocked shows the power of Black storytellers with a collaborative spirit,” McMurray told Deadline.
Goons is fully financed and produced by Confluential Films through its new genre label New Fear Unlocked Productions. The label is dedicated to “bold, elevated, culturally specific horror films from creators of color.” The movie is also produced in association with McMurray’s Buppie Productions.
“I can’t wait for audiences to see what Gerard and I are cooking up with the kick-ass squad we’ve assembled. I also couldn’t be more excited to kick off New Fear Unlocked with this film from such a talented director,” said Tommy Oliver of Confluential Films/New Fear Unlocked Productions.
The very same faith that can drive humanity to build majestic works of art and band together to help those in need is also responsible for some of the most horrific events in our species’ history. This is something that genre filmmaker Ti West seems to understand very well, with many of his projects at least hinting at the darker side of faith.
From the Satanic-Panic-inspired murders of House of the Devil to the bible belt influences behind the X trilogy, it seems like West has been building up to the religious twist in the recently released MaXXXine for years now. However, there’s one underrated entry in the director’s filmography that I think epitomizes his obsession with faith-based horror while also setting the groundwork for much of his future work.
Naturally, I’m referring to the 2014 Found Footage thriller The Sacrament, a criminally underseen film that I’d love to revisit now that West has finally achieved superstar director status. So if you’re up for a deep dive into cults and the charismatic leaders that make them tick, why not grab your pocket bible and join me on this journey down a rabbit hole where religious horror meets tragic True-Crime?
First of all, I think it’s worth addressing that The Sacrament is the only Ti West movie so far to have actually been based on a real story. The film plays fast and loose with its terrifying source material, but the general premise is obviously lifted from the real-life tragedy surrounding Jim Jones and the mass suicide that occurred in Jonestown back in 1978. While I usually avoid dwelling on sensitive real-world terrors when discussing horror movies (especially those that play with our perceptions of reality), The Sacrament appears to have been a sincere attempt at making sense of one of the most senseless mass deaths in history.
The entire production stemmed from West realizing that no horror yarn he could conceive of would ever come close to competing with the disturbing real story that led to 918 people (including children) ending their lives at the behest of a single madman. With this in mind, the director ended up convincing genre veteran Eli Roth (who he befriended during the production of Cabin Fever 2) to help him produce a modernized retelling of the Jonestown Massacre. However, unlike the director’s previous retro thrillers, this project would be presented as a realistic piece of investigative journalism covering a fundamentalist cult out in the middle of nowhere.
Not only would the Found Footage approach allow West to tell a large-scale story without breaking the bank, but it also appears to have been a conscious decision meant to heighten tension as viewers feel just as trapped as our intrepid protagonists – all without resorting to masked killers and ghostly apparitions.
That’s why the execution here matters much more than the narrative itself, with the film slowly but surely chugging along to a foregone conclusion like a classic tragedy combined with a ticking time bomb. We know from the very beginning that things are going to go terribly wrong, and while several critics accused the film of being an exercise in misery due to its excessively bleak storytelling, I think the bleakness is the entire point. This is a cautionary tale, and that means that the viewing experience isn’t exactly meant to be pleasant or even cinematic.
We’ve seen plenty of movies about death cults before, but what really makes The Sacrament stand out is how grounded everything is. None of the fanatics are portrayed as brainwashed zombies, and there’s no obviously satanic imagery hinting at a sinister deity pulling the strings behind the scenes. In fact, Eden Parish initially doesn’t sound all that bad until you realize that their entire belief system hinges on a single unstable father figure.
The real Jonestown story is obviously much more nuanced – and arguably more interesting – than what we see in The Sacrament, with Jim Jones having a warped political agenda (he even preached in Brazilian favelas for a while in an attempt to understand racial and economic divides) while simultaneously believing himself to have been guided by the Angel of Death since childhood, but I think West was more interested in exploring the visceral horror of being at the mercy of radical beliefs rather than truly adapting real events.
Gene Jones’ excellent portrayal of Father is more of an archetype representing the concept of a manipulative cult leader rather than a one-to-one recreation of Jim Jones, an idea that only works due to the actor’s extraordinary performance. Jones’ deceptively warm demeanor is really the most compelling part of The Sacrament, with the character avoiding common villain tropes by disguising Father’s manipulation as well-intentioned religious fervor.
Unfortunately, the rest of the flick can’t quite do this performance justice, with a small collection of logical inconsistencies (like how the protagonists ignore several opportunities to either get the hell out of dodge or arm themselves in order to fight the cultists) and paper-thin characters souring an otherwise thrilling experience. While it makes sense that a Vice documentary wouldn’t exactly develop its journalists as three-dimensional human beings, the shifting points of view often make it feel like the movie is being shot by no one in particular.
Despite this, I really appreciate how the film tackles difficult subject matter without resorting to sensationalism. West even chooses to shoot the climactic deaths as if they’re unfortunate casualties in a faith-based war rather than the ritualistic sacrifice that we’d see in a traditional horror movie. Yes, there’s still plenty of blood and guts here, but none of it feels fun to watch, and having the climax take place in broad daylight makes everything feel even less glamorous.
Ultimately, The Sacrament has no pretentions of solving the problems presented by extremist cults (which would be an impossible task anyway), preferring instead to focus on the deadly consequences of letting others dictate our behavior. And while I understand that the flick’s down-to-earth approach isn’t for everyone, I appreciate the authenticity of it all.
So if you saw MaXXXine and feel like watching West tackle more overtly religious horror, why not revisit his first and only foray into POV filmmaking? At the very least, you’ll be able to enjoy a Found Footage flick that doesn’t rely on ghostly jump-scares or glitches to be scary – something that I think is already worth the price of admission.
Tim Burton’s sequel Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is headed to theaters on September 6, and Warner Bros. has officially put tickets up for grabs beginning, well, RIGHT NOW!
Additionally, a handful of brand new official posters have been released today, along with a 22-minute featurette video wherein the cast reflects on bringing this year’s sequel to life.
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice is officially rated “PG-13” for “Violent content, macabre and bloody images, strong language, some suggestive material and brief drug use.”
Michael Keaton stars alongside Winona Ryder in this year’s sequel, with the cast also including Jenna Ortega, Catherine O’Hara, Willem Dafoe and Monica Bellucci.
Here’s the official plot synopsis: “After an unexpected family tragedy, three generations of the Deetz family return home to Winter River. Still haunted by Beetlejuice, Lydia’s life is turned upside down when her rebellious teenage daughter, Astrid, discovers the mysterious model of the town in the attic and the portal to the Afterlife is accidentally opened. With trouble brewing in both realms, it’s only a matter of time until someone says Beetlejuice’s name three times and the mischievous demon returns to unleash his very own brand of mayhem.”
The original classic was directed by Tim Burton in 1988 and has become a cult favorite. It starred Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis as ghosts who haunt their old home. When a little girl (Winona Ryder) accidentally unleashes a mischievous ghost (Michael Keaton), the ghosts try to drive the homeowners (Catherine O’Hara and Jeffrey Jones) out of the house.
J.J. Abrams is directing a top secret untitled movie for Warner Bros., and Deadline reports this week that Jenna Ortega (Scream, Beetlejuice Beetlejuice) is in “final talks” to star.
Glen Powell (Top Gun: Maverick) is also finalizing his deal to star in the film.
Deadline reports today, “Few details are known about the movie, other than it’s not a time travel movie. J.J. Abrams wrote the script and his [company] Bad Robot is producing.”
J.J. Abrams will also be directing the untitled movie. Will this be a genre movie of some kind or something entirely unrelated to the sci-fi/horror sphere? Your guess is as good as ours.
