The Black Phone author Joe Hill is working on a screenplay based on his own unpublished novella for Sony Screen Gems.

Speaking to Mashable, Hill explained that he’s been quietly writing scripts to maintain his Writers Guild of America healthcare in order to help pay for his wife’s cancer treatment.

“The script I’m working on now is an adaptation of an unpublished novella that I’d written that will be published eventually,” Hill said.

The Black Phone filmmaker Scott Derrickson helped Hill secure the job.

“I sent him this novella I had written that hadn’t been published and a pitch for how I’d adapt it, and he got psyched. And he’s like, ‘We gotta do this.’ And so he got me the gig to write the script. Now I’m revising it for Sony Screen Gems.”

Hill plans to continue writing a new screenplay every year in addition to a new novel each year in his 50s.

“The next two things I’ve got lined up are adaptations of other people’s words,” Hill noted, “which I’m really excited about.”

Meanwhile, Hill revealed to Mashable that an adaptation of his latest novel, King Sorrow, is being developed for TV.

No other details are available at this time, but the horror fantasy epic is described as a chilling tale of modern-world dangers, dark academia, and the unexpected consequences of revenge as six friends summon a dragon that demands human sacrifice.

Here’s the full synopsis for King Sorrow, which was published last month via William Morrow:

“Arthur Oakes is a reader, a dreamer, and a student at Rackham College, Maine, renowned for its frosty winters, exceptional library, and beautiful buildings. But his idyll—and burgeoning romance with Gwen Underfoot—is shattered when a local drug dealer and her partner corner him into one of the worst crimes he can imagine: stealing rare books from the college library.

“Trapped and desperate, Arthur turns to his closest friends for comfort and help. Together they dream up a wild, fantastical scheme to free Arthur from the cruel trap in which he finds himself. Wealthy, irrepressible Colin Wren suggests using the unnerving Crane journal (bound in the skin of its author) to summon a dragon to do their bidding. The others—brave, beautiful Alison Shiner; the battling twins Donna and Donovan McBride; and brainy, bold Gwen—don’t hesitate to join Colin in an effort to smash reality and bring a creature of the impossible into our world.

“But there’s nothing simple about dealing with dragons, and their pact to save Arthur becomes a terrifying bargain in which the six must choose a new sacrifice for King Sorrow every year—or become his next meal.”

Much like his father Stephen King, Hill’s work has been fertile ground for film and TV adaptations, including “Locke & Key,” “NOS4A2,” In the Tall Grass, and Horns.

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Described as “Ted meets ET,” David Mikalson’s raunchy comedy Goblin is being brought to life over at A24, and Deadline reports some rather surprising casting news today.

Kenneth Branagh has been cast to voice the titular Goblin in the upcoming A24 movie, with the character said to be “green-colored” as well as “anatomically correct.”

Skyler Gisondo (Superman) is also in talks to play the Goblin’s human best friend.

The mysterious project sounds a bit like films including A Gnome Named Gnorm and more recently, Frankie Freako, though it’s important to note that it’s not billed as a horror movie.

Deadline details, “After [Mikalson] hatched the idea to make an outrageous buddy comedy about a goblin, using a practical puppet and operating outside the Hollywood system, his script quickly got him a rep team. While others might have eyed the raunchy comedy as a writing sample or planned to wait to see the micro-budget version Mikalson has been directing in Kentucky, A24 jumped all over it. The hot indie essentially has agreed to finance a full feature.”

“There was a lot of interest, but A24 came with what Mikalson really wanted, after spending all his money crafting the puppet title character: they acquired the movie and agreed to let him make it with a significantly increased budget than what he had left after creating the anatomically correct title character,” Deadline’s report goes on to explain.

What does the titular Goblin actually look like? Well, a cake that Mikalson had whipped up for his reps might give us our first look at what to expect. Deadline explains the photo you’ll see down below, “Take a look at the cake he commissioned with Marc Gravelle at Cake Art in West Hollywood, to present to his reps as thanks for making his dream come true.”

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Ancient cave paintings often depict herds of prehistoric animals as witnessed by primitive humans, and photographers were taking pictures of cats almost as soon as the technology was invented, so it stands to reason that filmmakers have been working with animals, both cute and terrifying, since the art form was still in its infancy.

Unfortunately, animal performers rarely get the recognition they deserve, despite it being much harder for cats and dogs to maintain a career in show business. This is precisely why IFC recently published an open letter (jokingly) criticizing the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences once they discovered that Good Boy’s Indy the Dog is ineligible for a Best Actor award. And while we wait for the industry to start valuing its non-human workers, we’ve decided to compile a list celebrating six animal actors in horror movies who deserved Academy Awards!

For the purposes of this list, we’ll only be considering roles (mostly) portrayed by actual animals, so don’t expect to see effects-driven creations from films like Jaws or even King Kong. That being said, don’t forget to comment below with your own favorite non-human performers if you think we missed a particularly talented one.

With that out of the way, onto the list!

6. Tomorrow (Tarantula) – Tarantula! (1955)

Arachnids may not be the most expressive animals out there, but body language can often speak louder than fanged mandibles. That’s why I’d like to start off our celebration of animal performers with Tomorrow, the real spider that played the main antagonist in Jack Arnold’s seminal monster movie, Tarantula!

Directed across miniature sets through small jets of air pushing it in the right direction (and shot in slow-motion in order to make its movement seem unnatural), Tomorrow was one of the first effects-enhanced performers to make it big in Hollywood, and that’s why this freaky little spider deserves to be remembered alongside the likes of Andy Serkis.

5. Sparky (Sparky) – Frankenweenie (1984)

I actually think that 2012’s animated remake of Frankenweenie is one of Tim Burton’s best films, but there’s something special about watching an undead bull terrier and its precocious owner accidentally unleash chaos in a suburban neighborhood in live-action glory. Of course, the 1984 short only works because the titular canine is so darn lovable, and that’s why Sparky makes it onto the list.

Sharing a name with his fictional counterpart, this veteran animal actor imbued his role with so much chaotic charm that audiences barely noticed he was bruised and stitched up like he’d just been part of a veterinary autopsy gone horribly wrong. If you need further proof of Sparky’s talents, just check out his later appearances in classics like Blue Velvet and even Terminator 2: Judgement Day.

4. Charlie (Black Phillip) – The Witch (2015)

Overly committed method actors have become a contentious issue in Hollywood. These days, even casual filmgoers tend to roll their eyes at the idea of performers refusing to break character and even harassing fellow castmates as a way of settling into their roles. Still, I’d argue that there is one case where this phenomenon ended up helping the movie as a whole.

In Robert Eggers’ debut feature, the satanic Black Phillip was brought to life by a real goat named Charlie, with this 210-pound thespian repeatedly injuring co-star Ralph Ineson and delaying the shoot with his seemingly demonic levels of stubbornness. But his unpredictable behavior (and the fact that his co-stars were in constant fear of being gored by the creature) made the character that much scarier despite many of the goat’s scenes having to be cut due to Charlie’s overall disdain for the filmmaking process.

3. Unnamed Gambian Pouched Rat (Ben) – Willard (2003)

The second adaptation of Ratman’s Notebooks, 2003’s Willard, is my preferred version of the story due to Crispin Glover’s mesmerizing take on the titular outcast. However, the film also benefits from a series of standout rodent performances as Willard’s furry friends wreak havoc upon his enemies.

Of course, not all rats are created equal; the most memorable rodent in the film has to be the fearsome Ben. An oversized critter with a bad temper who ends up turning on Willard towards the end of the flick, Ben was brought to life by a Gambian pouched rat whose name was unfortunately never made public. Yet, this anonymous actor’s beady eyes are so expressive that you can’t help but sympathize with him even when he’s feasting on human flesh.

2. Schnitzel & Nico (Frodo) – A Quiet Place: Day One (2024)

While moviegoers are used to seeing a single actor play dual roles (think Michael B. Jordan in Sinners), the opposite usually only happens with young children and the occasional animal. Since the unpredictable nature of felines means that having an identical backup performer can literally save millions of dollars on a production, it makes sense that the most compelling character in Michael Sarnoski’s A Quiet Place prequel was played by a pair of cats named Schnitzel and Nico!

Though Nico had to undergo extensive makeup preparation so that his fur looked more like that of his spotted counterpart, the end result was one seamless performance that pushed the boundaries of what cats can be expected to do onscreen – and they both looked cute as hell the entire time. That’s why I’d argue that both of these furry performers deserved a nomination.

1. Jed (The Thing) – The Thing (1982)

Effortlessly transitioning between seemingly innocent sled dog and otherworldly invader, the Timber Wolf/Alaskan Malamute hybrid who plays the Thing’s initial form is one of the most effective horror actors in film history. Chosen for the role because of his nearly preternatural knack for following stage directions (as well as the natural predatory behavior resulting from his unique genetic heritage), Jed makes you fear the titular creature even before Carpenter begins to play around with gruesome practical effects.

Sure, Jed’s part in the flick may not be as extensive as some of the other critters on this list, but I struggle to think of any other animal actor that has had quite the same impact on the horror genre as this talented dog. In fact, director Ben Leonberg even cited Jed as an inspiration for Indy’s intense performance in Good Boy, so we couldn’t help but place him in the number one spot!

That being said, there’s always the chance that Jed wasn’t actually acting and really was just The Thing in disguise…

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Sleepaway Camp writer-director Robert Hiltzik has officially completed the script for the remake of his 1983 slasher.

AFA, the production company of “Saturday Night Live” stalwart Kenan Thompson and producer Johnny Ryan Jr. (Bill & Ted Face the Music, Good Burger 2), is behind the new take.

“Attention campers, our script has arrived. Please meet us at the waterfront after the social for a table read,” AFA shared on Instagram, referencing an iconic line from the cult classic.

“Casting notices coming soon.”

Hiltzik will return to the director’s chair for the film, which promises to stay true to the original story while adding in new twists.

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