We're two episodes into Loki's sophomore season, and it is already bringing a distinct flair to the tapestry of the Marvel Cinematic Universe. The season's second episode definitely delivered on that front, with long sequences set in the 1970s -- where Hunter X-5 / Brad Wolfe (Rafael Casal) is starring in a Zaniac! movie -- and 1980s -- where Sylvie (Sophia di Martino) has started a new life as a McDonald's employee. One thing that caught fans' attention was the visual approach to those sequences, and according to Loki director Dan Deleeuw, it was brought to life in a unique way. While speaking to ComicBook.com, Deleeuw spoke about the thought process behind these sequences, as well as the film grain that added a distinct sheen to the '70s and '80s sequences.

"Across the entire episode, we put film grain on it," Deleeuw explained. "So, that gave it -- not a patina per se, but when you went back in different time periods, it helps seat that and it made it more believable. I think the palette was incredibly important with McDonald's, because you started getting into the more vibrant eighties colors, in contrast to the more muted colors in the seventies. And then it was just having fun and designing the seventies, finding a reason that the punks and the mods would be together, finding just the right year, the mods, kind of coming back a little bit with the jam and then Quadrophenia coming out a couple years later. So you're thinking about all that stuff. It's the fun part of the puzzle, putting that together."

Why Is McDonalds in Loki Season 2?

In a recent interview with Fast Company, Loki producer Kevin Wright spoke about the decision to set part of Season 2 at the 1980s McDonalds, and about the feeling of nostalgia he hopes it inspires.

"This character had been on a decades-long, maybe centuries-long revenge mission, and the classic trope of those stories is that it's all-consuming and she's not thinking about what comes next. Now she has this moment of opportunity, where is she going to go?" Wright explained. "When we stayed in the view of character, this woman who went on the run as a child, had been running through time, a fugitive of time, living in apocalypses, never being able to relax or slow down, the novelty of walking into a 1980s McDonald's looked appealing. You play a Little League game and go to McDonald's. You go to a kid's birthday party at McDonald's. Someone like Sylvie would never have experienced that, and would be really taken by that."

"I was worried that McDonald's would think we wanted to do something ironic or make fun of them," Wright continued. "But we were selling an earnest story, a love letter to nostalgia through a character's eyes who will see all of the novelty and joy of it."

What Is Loki Season 2 About?

Marvel Studios fan-favorite Tom Hiddleston stars in Loki Season 2, returning as the titular God of Mischief for another round of time-traveling hijinx on Disney+ on October 5th. Loki is once again joined by Mobius (Owen Wilson) as the two attempt to keep the timelines intact. After the events of Season 1 saw his variant Sylvie (Sophia Di Martino) kill He Who Remains and unleash the wrath of Kang the Conqueror upon the Multiverse, Loki must once again embark on an adventure to keep reality from collapsing. Loki was last seen in the post-credits scene of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, where he and Mobius were keeping tabs on one of Kang's mysterious variants. Loki Season 2 will continue the story of the Multiverse Saga in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

ComicBook.com's podcast Phase Zero will be recording live episodes every week following Loki season 2's new episodes on Disney+. Each week we will review, breakdown, and discuss the latest installment of the new Marvel series immediately after the episode's conclusion! The new episodes will be broadcast live on the Phase Zero channel on YouTube before being made available on all major podcast platforms. Phase Zero will begin its 5-minute timer to start the live show at 9:45pm ET on Thursday, October 5. You can subscribe to the Phase Zero channel now and turn on notifications to make sure you don't miss the Loki Season 2 bonus episodes!

If you haven't signed up for Disney+ yet, you can try it out here.

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The season premiere of WWE SmackDown seemingly served as an early teaser trailer For WWE WrestleMania 40. The blue brand broadcast featured two brief, silent standoffs: Undisputed WWE Universal Champion Roman Reigns standing opposite Cody Rhodes and top prospect Jade Cargill confronting the most decorated women's champion of all-time, Charlotte Flair. While Reigns and Rhodes would be a rematch, Jade vs. Charlotte is a first-time-ever bout that fans have dreamt of for years. Charlotte and Jade have shown respect to one another on social media when they were in separate companies, but now that they share a locker room, it appears that it will be all business moving forward.

Ric Flair Responds to Charlotte's Stand-Off With Jade Cargill

Speaking to ComicBook.com at New York Comic Con while promoting his upcoming eBay collectible items, WWE Hall of Famer Ric Flair weighed in on daughter Charlotte Flair's recent confrontation with Jade Cargill on WWE SmackDown.

"Anything she does is money. If I give you my thoughts on it, she'll get mad because she doesn't like me talking about it. But I mean, you heard the crowd," Flair said. "Sometimes, it's meant to happen. I don't know whether Jade is gonna spend some time at NXT or not. I'm not sure. As a father's standpoint, as a wrestling fan, Jade don't want nothing to do with The Queen."

As Flair alluded to, Jade's permanent home within WWE is uncertain. She has made three televised appearances now, showing face at WWE Fastlane, WWE NXT, and now WWE SmackDown. Early reports indicated that she would call Monday Night Raw home, but recent television points to any of WWE's three brands being a possibility.

If Jade vs. Charlotte were to go down at WWE WrestleMania 40 in April, it's unclear as to if it would be a standard singles bout or a title match. Neither woman is a champion right now, but Charlotte is always an arm's length away from gold. The Queen has held a women's title on the main roster 13 times and has two NXT Women's Championship reigns to boot. If her black and gold title reigns are counted towards her overall world title count, that makes Charlotte a 15-time champion, one reign shy of tying her father's record.

"I know," Flair responded when ComicBook.com's Liam Crowley noted that Charlotte is coming for that record-breaking 17 title wins. "She hates me saying it, but it's the greatest thing the company could do."

News emerged late last year that The Keep, the novel by F. Paul Wilson, was set to get a reboot from filmmaker Greg Nicotero, though no substantial updates on the project have emerged since. Nicotero recently confirmed that fans haven't heard any updates because the project was delayed due to the writers' strike, though also admitted that, with the strike resolved, he hopes to be moving forward on the project in the near future. Given that the actors' strike is still ongoing, it's unclear when production could begin. In the meantime, fans can see Nicotero's Creepshow Season 4, which premiered on Shudder, AMC+, and AMC on October 13th.

"Unfortunately, we got hit with the writers' strike right around the time we were starting to pitch that. We have a really, really great take with a really great writer. We're ready to go back out with that," Nicotero revealed to ComicBook.com.

Wilson's website describes the story, "'Something is murdering my men.' Thus reads the message received from a Nazi commander stationed in a small castle high in the remote Transylvanian Alps. Invisible and silent, the enemy selects one victim per night, leaving the bloodless and mutilated corpses behind to terrify its future victims. When an elite SS extermination squad is dispatched to solve the problem, the men find something that's both powerful and terrifying. Panicked, the Nazis bring in a local expert on folklore -- who just happens to be Jewish -- to shed some light on the mysterious happenings. And unbeknownst to anyone, there is another visitor on his way -- a man who awoke from a nightmare and immediately set out to meet his destiny."

Nicotero added, "It's interesting, because the few people that I've talked to about the project, a lot of people don't realize that The Keep was one of the first -- the Nazi bad guys get their comeuppance because they come into contact with a force that is greater than them. Raiders of the Lost Ark, of course, did it. It's a great story. A lot of people don't realize that The Keep was really the [one] that did it. F. Paul Wilson was, really, the first guy to do it, to do it right."

The Keep was previously adapted into a film in 1983 by acclaimed filmmaker Michael Mann, though a series of behind-the-scenes challenges resulted in him disowning the theatrically released film, which was a disappointment both critically and financially.

"The challenge is making that story feel fresh, because it's been copied, even a lot from The Keep, quite a bit," Nicotero teased. "So I think we have a really great take on it and I'm really excited about it. So, soon, soon, soon."

Based on George A. Romero's iconic 1982 horror-comedy classic, Creepshow is still the most fun you'll ever have being scared. A comic book comes to life in a series of vignettes, exploring terrors ranging from murder, creatures, monsters, and delusions to the supernatural and unexplainable. You never know what will be on the next page...

Check out Creepshow Season 4 on Shudder, AMC+, and AMC now. Stay tuned for details on The Keep.

Are you looking forward to the reboot? Let us know in the comments or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

Percy Jackson and the Olympians is set to take fans across the world, both the real and mystical. The first season of Disney+'s live-action adaptation of Rick Riordan's best-selling novels brings the first installment, The Lightning Thief, to the streaming screen. As emphasized by Riordan, who also serves as an executive producer on the show, these first eight episodes are as faithful to the source material as possible. This means notable characters like Ares (Adam Copeland) play a major role while crucial locations like the St. Louis Arch are on full display.

Among those big locations is the Underworld. Greek mythology's answer to hell, this kingdom of Hades serves as the ultimate destination for Percy and company on their cross-country quest. The latest trailer shows a brief glimpse of Jay Duplass's Hades approaching Percy and Grover in his throne room. In a twist, the Percy Jackson depiction of the Underworld is not fiery and red but rather dreary and gray.

Percy Jackson's Production Crew Detail Creating the Underworld

Speaking to ComicBook.com at New York Comic Con, Percy Jackson and the Olympians production designer Dan Hennah (The Lord of the Rings) noted that this show's Underworld serves as the antithesis of Mount Olympus.

"It was really about [asking], 'What is hell?' Hell is nothing," Dan Hennah said. "I think the thing was to go monotone. To go surreal and have a surreal world. We also architecturally went to the opposite of Mount Olympus. It's an upside down world, an upside down version of Mount Olympus, but in a very, very distinctive Hades style. It's like Hades is the architect of his world."

Like most of Percy Jackson's big set pieces, the Underworld was created with a blend of practical and virtual effects. Much of the wider landscape was done on an Industrial Light & Magic Volume screen.

"I mean the underworld is such a beautiful environment in its own way," ILM VFX supervisor Jeff White said. "It really stands out from the rest of the series and I think there's a whole design language between Olympus above and Hades environment down below that we embraced for this. But it is a very black and white world and I think that kind of adds to the character of it."

"We came up with an idea that there isn't a sky there. It's basically a massive cavern like on a monumental scale," VFX supervisor Erik Henry added. "That meant it needed to have a ceiling instead of a sky. What we did is we had mountains that were there and through the clouds you can see that the mountains are kind of bleeding into the sky with this kind of black flow. I said it must be raining upside down because that's what's creating that. Black and white yes, but also something that is really arresting the images when you see them."

Percy Jackson and the Olympians begins streaming on Disney+ on December 20th.

Horror movies might be the easiest films in Hollywood to franchise. Halloween has thirteen movies (and a TV show on the way), Friday the 13th has twelve movies, and Amityville has become a catch-all name for a slew of low-budget schlock. Knowing that it's a little surprising that 2008's The Strangers took ten years to get just one sequel, and since then it's just been the two movies. That will soon change as the franchise is getting a facelift in the form of not just one new movie, but an entire trilogy that has already been shot and will be released next year.

Speaking with ComicBook.com in a new interview, director Renny Harlin (who helmed all three of the new movies) opened up about his plans for the new trilogy. When asked if the new movie, which he describes as not really a reboot nor a remake, would reference the other two The Strangers movies, Harlin replied: "Definitely." The filmmaker continued though, perhaps implying that any references to the original movies might be more in an Easter egg capacity and not in terms of continuity. He adds:

"I have to say that the original Strangers is one of my favorite horror films ever. I remember seeing it and, and not knowing anything about it and being just blown away that how random it's violence is, how these people get into a city situation which they don't understand at all. And us as the audience keep wondering why. And we realized like, like you said, it's just because they happen to be home in that house. And that's exactly what we are exploring. For me, it was very important to give the fans of the original film, give them the same experience. Obviously, the movie is not a carbon copy in any way, but it definitely has a similar story of two young people in an environment that should be cozy and safe and turns out to be a night of all nightmares. And I think it was very important to give the fans the similar experience that they enjoyed the first time. And then those who don't know anything about the original can come here here just with no expectations, give them something that will blow their socks off."

"I, as a fan of the original film, I wanted something that feels familiar, feels, truthful to the original. And then we obviously, we made a second movie and a third movie at the same time because we wanted to explore uh the reasons behind this. I feel like myself, and I'm sure a lot of the people who love the love, the original film were asking the question, like, why did this happen? And who were these people? And where did they come from and where are they going next? And that's the kind of answers that I wanted to explore in the second and the third movie and just go beyond what the original movie was."

The Strangers: Chapter 1 cast includes former Riverdale star Madelaine Petsch as Maya, with Froy Gutierrez as Ryan, and Rachel Shenton as Debbie. A previously released description for the movie described it as follows: "From master director Renny Harlin (Cliffhanger, Die Hard 2, The Exorcist: The Beginning) comes a new trilogy of terror. In Chapter I, Madelaine Petsch (TV's Riverdale) stars as a young woman starting a new life with her fianc?. Suddenly, during a road trip stop in a remote vacation rental in the woods, they become the prey of a mysterious gang of masked strangers who attack without warning or reason. What begins as a fight to stay alive becomes one woman's journey of courage and cunning in this horror series bridging three compelling films."

No official release date for The Strangers: Chapter 1 has been confirmed, but the movie and its two sequels will be released in 2024.

Avalon Hill has teamed up with actor, producer, director, and tabletop entrepreneur Matthew Lillard to create a special two-part Haunt for Betrayal at House on the Hill 3rd Edition as part of Betrayal Season of Treason. The new Haunt is titled Thirteen Ghouls Are All That, and is themed around Lillard's career in the form of a fictional actor named Dexter Norville and his sidekick P.I. Pup. Fans can tune into a live play of the new Haunt right here at 7 PM, but ComicBook had the chance to speak to Lillard all about the new Haunt, which features a host of easter eggs that fans who have followed Millard's career will undoubtedly get a kick out of.

"It's one of those things that in my life very rarely do opportunities come along and you're like, oh, I'm excited about this. You get lucky and you find something that speaks to you," Lillard said. "It speaks to the person you are and speaks to the brand that speaks to who you are as a person. Like me doing something for Doritos doesn't make any sense. Me doing something for Betrayal is like, oh, this is epic. Sitting down with the team and saying, 'Hey, what do you guys want from me? What do you expect?" Because in this kind of a relationship, I want to be engaged authentically, I don't want to just put my name on something because you're creating a Haunt."

"Let's dig in and let me help and let me be a part of the game design. Stepping into that and having the team sign onto that was really exciting, and then in the early part of the process, I was like, 'Hey, if we're using me, then let's build the Haunt around something I'm associated with, like becoming an older, fading actor,' which I thought was awesome. And so that's where we started that conversation," Lillard said.

The team mined Lillard's career and wove references into every part of the Haunt, and some of the Omens are fantastic, with Lillard noting some pretty deep cuts. "Let's find fun Easter eggs from my path in my career, I didn't think they would deliver such deep cuts. There are some cuts in there I'm like, 'Wait, I think this is from In the Name of the King: A Dungeon Siege Tale,' or there's just some random stuff, which I thought was hilarious for the weird obtuse Matthew Lillard fan out there who's followed along with my long and painful career. I think that when you give creative people the ability to do what they do best, and empower them to have fun, then you get these great results," Lillard said.

"I think that's what happened here. I think that collectively the team, I was like, 'Let's dig into my career, let's make fun of it, and let's have fun.' And I think that as you play through the game, you can feel that, the idea that the cats are coming. That's a reference to Wing Commander, but the idea of giving them an opportunity to poke fun at something, they had a blast. And I think that that comes off in the game," Lillard said.

Lillard had the chance to test the Haunt out at Gen Con, and it was another level of thrill to see the fans put the Haunt through its paces and come away having such a great time.

"Getting a chance to sit down at the table playing the new edition, playing through the Haunt itself was awesome. I played at home once and obviously, I read through all the cards and I got familiar with it," Lillard said. "Then we went and shot it at Gen Con and had an absolute blast playing it. That's when it comes alive. We were excited to be there and excited to play something for the first time. It had never been played before in that capacity, and so I think the game came to life through that, right through the live play."

"And look, you're surrounded by people, you're surrounded by the crew, you've got lights going, and there's a performative aspect of it, sure. But the good news is that the game held up," Lillard said. "You spent all this time and energy putting something together and in gameplay it was like, oh, this is as fun as we had hoped. That was the rewarding part. You put all the time and energy into it, and then once you get it and it goes live, under live fire, it was like a blast. So that's good."

"I'm excited for fans of the game, fans of Matthew Lillard and his weird career, getting to smash those two worlds together," Lillard said. "And the idea that the team Avalon Hill is making this haunt a free download, I think is super cool. I think it's a celebration and you don't see that very often from big corporations. The idea of, 'Hey, let's give back in this moment.' And trying to build the Season of Treason to try to support the game in this moment I think is super cool."

Lillard would love to team up on another Haunt down the line, but the idea of new people coming in and lending their unique voice to Haunts is one he hopes to see continue even if it's someone else.

"Yeah, look, I would love it. I think that the only important thing, in this moment, is that we deliver for the fans of Betrayal, something that they have fun doing, whether it's me or anyone else. I think that the intersection of pop culture and a game that gives you something fresh to play, I think it's exciting and really smart. It makes the game evergreen if you continually add cool nuance and cool and exciting ways to rope people into this awesome game, Lillard said.

If you are interested in checking out Matthew Lillard's new Haunt, you can download it free of charge on Hasbro Pulse, and the link will become available at 7 PM EST. You'll need the base game to play, so head over to Amazon or Walmart to pick it up.

When Warner Bros. Animation first announced that Joel McHale would be playing Johnny Cage in a series of animated Mortal Kombat movies, plenty of fans thought it was the perfect fit. Now McHale, who has played the part in three movies since 2020, says that's how he feels about Karl Urban, the Dredd and The Boys star who was recently tapped to play the role in live action. Noting that he is a fan of The Boys, McHale praised Urban's performance in the show, and said that bringing him in as Cage is "perfect casting."

Assuming the Mortal Kombat Legends movies continue, McHale isn't likely to lose his role anytime soon. Urban's take will first appear in Mortal Kombat II, the sequel to Warner's overperforming 2020 hit, joining a cast that includes Lewis Tan, Mehcad Brooks, and Tati Gabrielle.

"He's one of the better actors around," McHale told ComicBook.com's Chris Killian. "My sons and I watch The Boys religiously, so yeah, he's perfect. I think he was nominated for an Emmy for The Boys, pretty sure. It's perfect casting."

You can see the full video above.

Here's the official synopsis for Mortal Kombat Legends: Cage Match:

Neon lights... Suits with shoulder pads... Jumping from explosions in slow motion... In 1980s Hollywood, action star Johnny Cage (Joel McHale) is looking to become an A-list actor. But when his costar, Jennifer (Jennifer Grey), goes missing from set, Johnny finds himself thrust into a world filled with shadows, danger and deceit. As he embarks on a bloody journey, Johnny quickly discovers the City of Angels has more than a few devils in its midst. He faces off against a sinister secret society plotting a nefarious scheme, but the brutal fight against the bloodthirsty warriors of the Netherrealm is just beginning. Can Johnny, alongside other Mortal Kombat legends, save humanity...and, more importantly, his career?

The film stars Joel McHale (Animal Control, Community) as Johnny Cage and Jennifer Grey (Dirty Dancing, Red Oaks) as Herself. Also starring in the movie is Gilbert Gottfried (Aladdin, Royal Crackers) as David Doubldy, Dusan Brown (Ma Rainey's Black Bottom) as Chuck Golden, Grey DeLisle (Teen Titans Go!) as Kia, Robin Atkin Downes (Luck, DC Showcase: Constantine - The House of Mystery) as Shinnok, Zehra Fazal (Beavis and Butt-Head Do the Universe) as Jataaka, Gilbert Gottfried (Aladdin, Royal Crackers) as David Doubldy, Kelly Hu (Arrow, X2: X-Men United) as Ashrah, Matt Yang King (Elemental) as Concierge, Phil LaMarr (Futurama) as Brian Van Jones, Matthew Mercer (Resident Evil: Death Island) as Director/Bully, Dave B. Mitchell (Call of Duty franchise) as Raiden and Armen Taylor (Justice Society: World War II) as Master Boyd.

Mortal Kombat Legends: Cage Match is directed by Ethan Spaulding (Mortal Kombat Legends: Battle of the Realms) from a script by Jeremy Adams (Justice League: Warworld), who also penned the screenplays for the series' first three films, and supervising producer is Rick Morales (Mortal Kombat Legends franchise, Bablyon 5: The Return Home). All four films are based on the Mortal Kombat videogame franchise created by Ed Boon and John Tobias. Sam Register and NetherRealm Studios' Ed Boon are executive producers.

Mortal Kombat Legends: Cage Match will be available on October 17 to purchase Digitally from Amazon Prime Video, AppleTV, Google Play, Vudu and more. 4K Ultra HD and Blu-ray will be available to purchase online and in-store at major retailers. Pre-order your copy starting July 22, 2023.

Nearly 40 years after George A. Romero and Stephen King's Creepshow landed in theaters, Shudder revived the concept for an all-new TV series that captured the spirit of the original movie, yet shifted formats for the streaming age. The series has largely kept the spirit of the original movie alive while also bringing contemporary filmmakers into the fold, but one of the integral components of the original film, John Harrison, has returned to offer a more direct connection to the film that has become a cult classic among audiences. While Harrison composed the score of the original Creepshow, he directed two segments in Season 4 of the series. Creepshow Season 4 premieres on Shudder, AMC+, and AMC on October 13th.

Based on George A. Romero's iconic 1982 horror-comedy classic, Creepshow is still the most fun you'll ever have being scared. A comic book comes to life in a series of vignettes, exploring terrors ranging from murder, creatures, monsters, and delusions to the supernatural and unexplainable. You never know what will be on the next page...

ComicBook.com caught up with Harrison to talk the new season of the series, the lasting legacy of the franchise, and more.

ComicBook.com: There're so many other anthologies that have just been released over the years, what do you think it is about that original Creepshow and the concept of it that has just really resonated with fans over the years?

John Harrison: Well, I don't want to get too pretentious about it, but I think that part of it is that, first of all, it's a lot of fun. It's very creepy stories told exceptionally well by a master. And so, first of all, it's very, very well done. And you don't get the sense that you're really slumming it when you watch Creepshow. You're watching a really high-end movie. So I think that's one of the reasons it's held up for so long. But I think it's just the kind of storytelling, the stories, are very succinct. It's an anthology, so you're not spending two and a half hours trying to get to the point, and there's a place for that, of course.

But in these horror stories, I don't want to call them bite-sized, because they are certainly more than that, they have a way of getting under your skin really quickly. And then you move on to another story and it's got a completely different tone, style, and everything else that can really be different from the other ones. Therefore, you're constantly amused and entertained and hopefully frightened.

This might surprise you to hear, but horror fans can be a bit cynical about reboots or remakes or revivals or whatever. So if somebody was apprehensive about getting involved in the new Creepshow, if they were like, "George Romero's not involved, Stephen King's not involved, who the heck cares about that?" what do you think it is about the TV show that does really capture the spirit of that original movie?

Well, I have to point the finger at Greg Nicotero then, because even though Greg was not involved in the original Creepshow movie, he certainly was part of the whole Romero tribe, if you will, for many, many years, and has carved out a career on his own in terms of monster making and special effects and his own directing with things like The Walking Dead. We certainly give him the bonafides to enter this world, so that's number one. But I also want to give him credit and those of us who he's asked to join on this little odyssey of trying to maintain ... There's been a very definite directive to maintain the spirit and the fun and the style that George and Steve created back in the day. We are not reinventing the wheel here. We are trying to live up to the style that was created back then because that's what people still love, and we want to deliver that to them.

Yes, we have the advantage of some new technology and we have the advantage of some storytelling freedom that maybe we didn't have back then. But I would really say to anybody that's skeptical, you've got to jump in and have a look because you'll find a lot of stories that will give you the same thrill that you had when you watched the original movie. Not to take anything away from the original movie, it's The Godfather, but we tried to live up to it.

You bring up a good point about how Greg is masterminding things or serving almost as a mentor. Is there much collaboration between all of the filmmakers who are involved to either try and unify the tone or look of an installment or is the freedom in how you can set yourselves apart with each story?

Well, it's a little bit of both because Greg chooses all the stories. So, right from the jump, he has a continuum and a style that is uniform for the entire season. But each director, I think, that he is asked to be a part of it is going to bring something unique to it. That's the beauty of the anthology, that you can have different moments from different points of view throughout an entire season.

One unifying factor that has been very helpful, I think for all of us, is the inclusion of Rob Draper, who was a cinematographer. Rob was not involved in the original Creepshow, but he did the Tales from the Darkside TV series and he shot Tales from the Darkside: The Movie with me for Paramount. So first of all, he's a veteran of anthologies. He knows and loves the genre and the original Creepshow. And Greg enlisted him right from the get-go to be the cinematographer on this series so that he could bring a consistency of style and tone to the whole series. I think that other creatives involved Greg's shop, KNB Effects, all of us have been pulling in the same direction. I had the advantage of being George's first assistant director on the original movie, so I go back, I know what it's all about. But having these other team members has been really a wonderful way to keep it consistent.

What was it about "Smile" and "Baby Teeth" that really excited you as a filmmaker? Did Greg just think you'd be a good fit for them or was it that they really caught your interest?

Well, I was lucky because Greg picked them and he sent them to me and said, "I think I'd really love you to do these two." When I read them, I thought, well, he knows me. It was a really good choice. And the reason I really loved them is because they're very different.

"Smile" is a very odd, psychological horror story. There's not a lot of violence, not a lot of bloodletting. It's really all in the guy's mind and what's really happening to him and his wife for something that happened to them a long time ago. "Baby Teeth," on the other hand, is typical Creepshow. A young girl has an encounter with the Tooth Fairy, which is a little bit different than what she expected, let's put it that way. And it's got a very interesting and fun monster in it. For me, doing these two was just a lot of fun because I could exercise two different styles and have two different approaches.

Speaking of that creature in "Baby Teeth," what was the design process like for that? Was it a fully formed idea of what it would look like? Was it a collaboration between you and KNB?

It was mostly KNB. With these schedules and budgets, we don't have a lot of time, at least the director doesn't, for too much of the input into that. And besides, we're dealing with KNB, and what could be better? So Greg had an idea. Once he had settled on the story, I think he and his team had started to put together ideas for what this little creature could look like. When he showed them to me, I thought, "Well, geez, there's not much I can add. This is really great. Now the question is, how can I shoot it to its best effect?" And that's what I brought to the table.

You've worked on so many cool projects over the years, you've worked on other anthologies like Monsters and Tales from the Darkside. Do you think those projects could ever earn a similar revival or do you think, especially Tales from the Darkside and Creepshow, there's so much common DNA between those two TV shows and those two movies, do you think Creepshow's scratching that itch? Or do you think both Monsters and Tales from the Darkside are their own unique things, their own perspectives, that they're worth bringing back for a new generation?

Well, I think that they do have their own unique identity. I don't know, the question you're asking is almost more of a business question than it is ... Would I love to see a series of Monsters, would I love to see a series of more Darkside episodes? Sure. You got the money? I'll go do it. It's really a matter of a distributor, a network, or whoever who would want to pull that off.

Is there enough of an appetite for it? Yeah, I think so. There are a lot of anthology series now on TV. I think it's a storytelling paradigm that people like. I think that's been proven. I remember in the '90s, George and I used to go around L.A. and try to sell anthology series and we couldn't get arrested. We had a couple of ideas and we partnered up and we were going around town, couldn't get arrested.

I don't know, exactly, what tipped the balance. Both his movie and my movie were very successful, so I don't know why people didn't see it. But they didn't, until into the 2000s, and now there's a lot. I think, in general, there's a breaking point there, too, that horror, for a long time, was considered a low-rent arena in Hollywood. The movies made money and they made a lot of them, but it wasn't until ... Genre was a very hard sell in television for a long time. And then, somewhere around the 2000s, it started to happen.

I did the Dune miniseries, Ron Moore did Battlestar Galactica. They were hugely successful. All of a sudden, people started to say ... Genre and the Sci-Fi channel started coming up with stuff, people started to say, "Maybe genre really has a place." And now you turn on the television and everything's genre all the time. So it's maybe just a matter of timing, who knows?

For years, the various iterations of Dune were more like cult classics. You really had to find people super passionate about Dune to have a conversation. And now, what the most recent movie did and this upcoming movie is doing, it's taking it to a whole new level. I was just curious what your thoughts on that were, whether you enjoyed the movies or if you're just excited about the fact that the popularity of it will introduce new audiences to what you did with Dune?

Well, all of the above. I'm very excited about it. Richard Rubenstein and I were still involved in the development of several attempts to try to get it off the ground after my miniseries. And, maybe fortunately, some of those never came to pass because I think what Denis Villeneuve has done is just fantastic. And I love him as a director.

I wasn't involved at all in the latest movies except to have my name put up there, but I think it's just fantastic and I'm really looking forward to the new ones. I hope it does introduce a whole new audience to the Dune world. If they are able to get back and see my miniseries, I'm very proud of them. We were able to ... I think the success of them, they won a couple of Emmys and they were hugely successful here and abroad. I think they gave people faith that Dune actually could be adapted again.

The David Lynch version has its strengths, but clearly the run time that your miniseries was able to tap into helped make them understand that this cannot be contained to one two-hour experience. And clearly they've learned that lesson, I like to think entirely because of you.

Well, thank you very much. I'll take that.

Lastly here, and this might be something super specific, it might be completely off your radar, but when Eli Roth made his Grindhouse trailer, he used your music from Creepshow in "Thanksgiving." And now he's finally made his Thanksgiving movie into a full feature, is that something that you're at all involved with? Was it just a totally random selection of your piece of music for that trailer and now he's doing his own thing, or are you involved at all with this new Thanksgiving?

No, I'm not involved with it at all. I've been aware of it. Now, back in the day when Quentin [Tarantino] and Robert [Rodriguez] were doing the Grindhouse movies and Roth was going to do the ... They called me and said, "Listen, we love this piece and we want to put it in there and would you give us permission?" And, of course, I said, "Yes." But he's finally getting a chance to do it, so he's going to put his own imprimatur on it, and I'm sure the music that he'll choose will be pretty creepy.

Creepshow Season 4 premieres on Shudder, AMC+, and AMC on October 13th.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity. You can contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter.

Saturday Night Live is returning this weekend, and you can watch Bowen Yang in a new promo for Pete Davidson's first outing as host. However, that's not the only place you can currently watch Yang. The comedian is starring in Dicks: The Musical, which is now playing in select theaters before it gets a wide release later this month. Dicks: The Musical is a new musical comedy from A24 that's an adaptation of the off-Broadway show F*cking Identical Twins by Josh Sharp and Aaron Jackson. In the film, Sharp and Jackson star as Craig and Trevor, long-lost identical twins who reunite and decide to get their parents (Megan Mullally and Nathan Lane) back together. The movie also features Megan Thee Stallion as their boss and Yang as God. ComicBook.com recently had the chance to chat with Yang, Sharp, and Jackson alongside director Larry Charles. We brought up Yang playing God, and everyone had a fun response.

"Alanis is rolling in her grave," Sharp joked, referring to Alanis Morissette's stint as God in Dogma.

"It was pretty ... it was turnkey because I love the show so much," Yang explained when asked about stepping into the role. "God is mentioned in the show in the end, at the end of the original stage show in the same capacity that we used in the movie. And so they expanded the world of the movie so organically from the show. And I just went in and it was so fun. It was great."

You can watch the interview in the video at the top of the page.

Larry Charles Says Oppenheimer Deserves More Death Threats Than Dicks: The Musical:

Dicks: The Musical is a queer-led Rated R romp with hilariously crude humor, terrifying puppets, and many unexpected turns. During ComicBook.com's interview with Charles, who is best known for writing and producing episodes of Seinfeld as well as directing Borat, we asked if the creatives were worried about offending certain people. In his response, Charles explained why he thinks Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer should be more controversial than Dicks: The Musical.

"You're not the first person to ask about these death threats and things like that. But really Oppenheimer should be getting death threats. Not this," Charles proclaimed. "He killed millions of people and everybody's like, 'Oh, Academy Award.' But here we have Bowen Yang as God, and everybody's all upset that we're going to get death threats. I don't get it. I really don't."

Sharp added, "The truth is, we really were thinking more about the people that would get this movie more than the people that wouldn't. We were making a movie that we were like, 'We get this.' And I know there are people who are crazy enough to get it, and anybody else will buy a ticket anyway," he added while blowing a kiss to the camera.

"Unlike Oppenheimer, the Japanese will love this," Yang joked.

Dicks: The Musical will be released in theaters on October 20th.

Editor's note: Dicks: The Musical has a SAG waiver which allows the cast to give interviews during the SAG actors' strike.

Basim takes the reigns of Ubisoft's beloved Assassin's Creed franchise in Assassin's Creed: Mirage, and the game also ushers in a return to the original game's stealth-centric gameplay. Over the years Assassin's Creed has continued to reinvent itself and introduce new Assassins to the franchise, including Basim, who made his debut in Assassin's Creed: Valhalla. Actor Jack Quaid has been a fan of the franchise since the beginning, and couldn't be more thrilled to jump into Basim's early adventures in Mirage. ComicBook had the chance to speak with Quaid all about his time with Mirage as well as his love of the Assassin's Creed franchise overall, and the spark was first lit with the original Assassin's Creed.

"I go back to the first game with Assassin's Creed. I remember when I was in middle school, I'd have sleepovers with my friends and we would just be constantly playing it. I think what really hooked us was, I thought it was a really cool window into history," Quaid said. "I mean, yes, it's a video game, like the first one is set during the Crusades. That's just such an interesting time period, such a wild time, and the gameplay was always incredible. We loved the fact that you could parkour everywhere. I remember we loved the stealth gameplay."

That's one of several reasons why the concept of Mirage appealed to him, as Ubisoft has talked quite a bit about how Mirage implements more of the original game's stealth concepts. Over the past few entries, Assassins could pretty much jump into a fight and battle their way out of it in any fashion they chose. With Mirage, however, the focus shifts back to stealth and staying out of sight being the priority, though there's still plenty of fun to be had.

"I am what I describe as a little sneaky boy for when I play video games. I love stealth and I love that this game feels like it is going back to the roots of those original games where stealth is very... I feel like in a lot of games, stealth is an option, but not really the most fun way to play," Quaid said. "But in this one, it feels like stealth is the way to go, and I love sneaking up behind people with the hidden blade or choking somebody out. It's a good time. It's a very, very good time."

While Basim made his introduction in Valhalla, fans will see what led Basim to his adventure with Eivor and what shaped him as a person and an assassin. There have been so many great Assassins in the franchise's history already, and Quaid thinks Basim will be yet another fantastic addition to the legacy.

"It's always really exciting when you get to see kind of the backstory of a character that you've grown to love. I love that he hits all of the great notes of all of the best Assassin's Creed protagonists, which is they're a... I wouldn't say, average Joe, but someone who... It's a rags-to-riches story. You know what I mean? I love when they start out very much in their world with their own problems and they get thrust into this world of the Order," Quaid said. "I always loved those kinds of stories, so I think he's hitting all those notes, and it was great to play as him from humble beginnings."

Oh, and if you think you can just breeze through areas and lose any enemies without much effort, think again. "They don't forget about you in this game. The AI's really good. They're like, We've got to search for this guy. We're not going to forget about him just because he went into a bush," Quaid said.

We of course had to ask Quaid who his favorite Assassins were in the franchise, and while Altair came close, it was a Kenway and the beloved Ezio that made his top two. "Is it really basic of me to say Ezio and Altair, is that basic? I mean, I did love Edward Kenway. So I'll go Edward Kenway and Ezio. I think those are my two favorite protagonists," Quaid said.

Two stellar choices, though you really can't go wrong with most of the Assassins in the series. Let us know which Assassins has been your favorite in the comments or by hitting me up on Threads @mattaguilarcb, and you can jump into Basim's journey in Assassin's Creed: Mirage right now, which is available on PS4, PS5, Xbox, PC, and Luna.

The Buffy the Vampire Slayer universe returns this week in the Audible Original Slayers: A Buffyverse Story. The new story brings back several Buffy the Vampire Slayer stars, including James Charles Leary Clem, only this time, instead of a supporting character and ally to the main Scooby Gang, Clem is part of the main cast. There are new additions in the cast as well, including BAFTA-winning actress Laya DeLeon Hayes as Indira, a fresh-faced, brand-new Slayer who finds herself on a surprising mission that sees her teaming up with Cordelia the Vampire Slayer, Anya the ex-vengeance demon, and plenty others.

ComicBook.com had a chance to speak to Leary and Hayes together about their roles in Slayers: A Buffyverse Story. Here's what they had to say:

James, Clem is such a fun character, but he was always an ally and not a full member of the gang. He's much more integral to the here. How did it feel to get to see Clem become a full-fledged member of the Scoobies here?

James Charles Leary: It was my 2004 dream come true. No, Chris Golden and Amber Benson, who I've both known for a long, long time, came to me a while ago and said, "Hey, we're thinking about doing this and we're going to make Clem a main character." And I was like, "Wait, what? All right." And then it happened, and it was incredible. I loved every second of it, getting more time with each character and getting to work with people I'd never worked with. I never got to work with Charisma. My experience with Emma was small. I think I had maybe one scene with Amber. I'd never worked with Anthony Stewart Head. Those of us who know him call him Tony. So, I say this: 22 years ago this was an audition for five lines on one of my favorite TV shows, and that's all I thought it was going to be, five lines. Here I am 22 years later still talking about it, still being a part of it. I feel incredibly lucky and like I hit the lottery. Not the six-figure lottery, but the four-figure lottery.

Speaking of 22 years ago, Laya, you're playing a character who is a fangirl for the universe she's in, but it's a universe that had closed up shop, if I'm not mistaken, before you were born. Was it tricky to find that energy? Was there something in your own life that you are a fangirl about that you drew on for this? Or did you approach it differently?

Laya Deleon Hayes: That's part of the reason I'm an actor, even started being part of this industry, is because I was a fan when I was younger of Disney Channel shows. As I got older, I was a fan of theater. I was a big Hamilton fan when I was 12. I think that one of the things me and Indira have in common is when we love something, it does get very obsessive. But when it came to Buffy like you were saying, yeah, it was before my time. Like you said, they just kind of closed up shop once I was born.

I will say that making sure that I understood the tone and really what my new character was going to bring to something that had already been solidified, that was more of the, not even tough part, but maybe more of the thing that I was nervous about. It was before starting the project, but immediately after my first call with Amber, Christopher, and Kc, it was like all my nerves went away. They were just so cool and so comforting and so welcoming from the very beginning, and just a cherry on top with the cast too, because they were so open and generous as well. Other James, who plays Spike, on our first day, they were able to give me so much insight and even suggestions for episodes to watch, which was so unbelievably helpful. And again, you get those first-day jitters on any project that you're on. With this, I wanted to make sure that I was doing the show justice and these lovely people justice, and they made it such a wonderful environment for me from the beginning. Again, I'm very grateful for that.

JCL: Well, before you ask another question, I'm going to add to that. And I've said it before, but Laya came in and slayed from the get. A lot of this cast and I, even if we hadn't worked together, we've known each other for a very, very, very long time. She came in immediately and felt like someone we had worked with for 20 years, even though she was not even 20 years old. She is incredible and it's a great testament to her personality, talent, and professionalism. Because it was just like, "Oh no, no, she's been with us the whole time, right? No, she wasn't even born when the show went off the air. Shut up. What are you talking about?" So that's all I say about Laya.

LDH: Thank you. Thank you. This is a true treasure. He's really one of the sweetest people I've ever worked with truly. So thank you, James.

JCL: You're absolutely welcome.

Audio drama has really secene a resurgence in recent years. James, I know you've done some voiceover work for video games. Laya, I know you've done voiceover work. How did that experience serve you in doing audio drama where you're not going to have animation to carry the visuals and the character? Did it require a different acting toolset or were you able to fall back on those skills?

LDH: For me personally, yeah. I think I was more able to fall back on those voiceover skills because voiceover is such a long process period. I mean, starting out projects, especially with games, it's such a long process, so you really are, one, you're trusting your director and you're trusting your cast members in hopes that you're making this vision come to life, and on top of that, you're using your imagination. There's a huge emphasis on creating this world for yourself and understanding your character for yourself, and when you get in the booth, just playing and trying things out, seeing what works, seeing what doesn't work.

That's what was so beautiful about Slayers, we got to be in the booth together. But even though we can't see the animation or what these characters look like, we know what the show looks like. And on top of that, when you're doing another voiceover project, you don't see the animation sometimes until a year and a half or two years later. So, for me personally, it felt like the same thing. And a lot of my past voiceover experience was definitely able to help me in this realm.

JCL: For me, I loved the way that we recorded this, and I have done a lot of voiceovers where it's just you in a booth and you are saying wild lines. You're like, "Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. Blah, blah, blah. Blah, blah, blah," and you're having to do that over and over again with no one really reacting with you. So, this was really great to be able to look over at Laya and Emma and Charisma and James and everyone else, and be able to be like, we're reading a script together, we're reading a play. That's what I loved about it. As far as voiceover work, I don't tend to treat anything differently. Whether I'm doing voiceover or on camera or a play, I'm playing. It's just play. So, for me it's -- oh boy -- It's much more fun to play with others than to play with yourself.

I see what you did there.

JCL: Yeah, that one was in there and I just let it go. I'm sure the Audible people are losing their minds.

James, was there any challenge finding Clem's voice again, sans the prosthetics, or did it just come naturally?

JCL: No, surprisingly. I was actually very, very nervous about that. You can talk to my wife. The week before, I was terrified. I was afraid it was all about teeth. I was afraid it was about the makeup, and the second I stood in there and said my first line, which was with the other James, Mr. Marsters, the cheekbone himself, it was there; a testament to Chris and Amber's writing. There was never a second thought.

Slayers: A Buffyverse Story premieres exclusively on Audible, releasing all nine episodes on October 12th.

John Carpenter's films are iconic for a number of reasons, from their storylines to their performances to the filmmaker's direction, with the music for those films also making a major impact on audiences. Back in 2015, he released the album Lost Themes, which was comprised of entirely original music, which would lead to Lost Themes II in 2016 and then Lost Themes III: Alive After Death in 2021. Carpenter and his collaborators Cody Carpenter and Daniel Davies aren't slowing down anytime soon, as he recently confirmed that a new Lost Themes album was on the way. The filmmaker's latest project, John Carpenter's Suburban Screams, premieres on Peacock on October 13th.

While speaking with ComicBook.com about plans to do more live shows, Carpenter detailed, "No plans, exactly, but we'll see what happens. We have another Lost Themes in the making coming up, so we'll see. Never say never in this business."

Carpenter took his first Lost Themes albums on global tours, and also toured in support of Anthology: Movie Themes 1974-1998, which featured remastered versions of his iconic cinematic themes. His latest album, Anthology II: Movie Themes 1976-1988, is out now. Carpenter, his son Cody, and Davies also crafted the scores to David Gordon Green's Halloween trilogy and last year's Firestarter.

His latest project, John Carpenter's Suburban Screams, also includes all-new original music.

The new series is described, "John Carpenter's Suburban Screams is a genre-busting unscripted horror anthology series from the mind of legendary director, writer, and producer, John Carpenter. The series explores the dark secrets and unspeakable evil that sometimes lurks beneath the surface of the sun-drenched streets, manicured lawns, and friendly neighbors of suburbia. Each episode focuses on one true tale of terror, told by the real people who lived through it. Their firsthand accounts are brought to life through premium cinematic scene-work, news clips, home photos, and archival footage, combining the visual language of horror films with the tools and techniques of documentaries, creating a uniquely frightening experience for viewers."

John Carpenter's Suburban Screams premieres on Peacock on October 13th. Stay tuned for updates on Lost Themes IV. Anthology II: Movie Themes 1976-1988 is on sale now.

Are you looking forward to another album of original music from the trio? Let us know in the comments or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

Few people were expecting Emma Caulfield to reprise her Buffy the Vampire Slayer role as Anya, least of all Caulfield herself. Anya died in the climactic battle of Buffy the Vampire Slayer's series finale 20 years ago, a seemingly definitive end for the character. Caulfield tells ComicBook.com that she "never" thought she'd play Anya again until Amber Benson and Christopher Golden came calling with the idea for Slayers: A Buffyverse Story, the new Audible Original debuting this week, and suddenly Anya was back, along with her demonic alter ego, Anyanka, on a new adventure with some familiar friends and foes.

ComicBook.com spoke to Caulfield about her unexpected return as Anya. Here's what she told us about working on Slayers: A Buffyverse Story:

Jamie Lovett, ComicBook.com: Correct me if I'm wrong, but as far as I could tell, audio drama is not something you have much experience with from your career.

Emma Caulfield: That's totally true. Now I do.

What was your initial reaction when they came to you and said, "Hey, we're doing an audio thing." Is it something you wanted to try out before? Did it take you by surprise? What was the kind of gut reaction?

I very much wanted to try audio. I'd done a little bit with Robot Chicken and this other indie project called Fantasy Hospital, and I really, really, I just loved it. I think years and years ago, I tried to get a voiceover agent, and that didn't work out. They were like, "No thanks." I'm like, "Oh, harsh. Okay, fine, fine, no problem." Clearly, I'm doing it wrong, or I don't know. I don't know what they wanted, but I just didn't.

There's definitely a science to doing that. As fun as it was and is, I was surprised by how challenging it was. I was having so much fun doing it that I wasn't overwhelmed by the challenge. I wasn't like, "Oh God, I suck. I'm failing." I was just like, "Oh, wow. This is a whole other muscle I had not used really properly." And then I think by two-thirds of the way through, and I was like, "I'm fricking awesome. I'm so good at this. Oh my God, I want to do this forever," and then the project was over. I'm like, "Ah, dang it." So, I was like, "Please, Audible, I'll read directions. I'll read self-help books. What do you need? I'll read them for you." Because I just loved it. Love, love, love.

I look forward to Emma Caulfield as the voice of your GPS in the future.

Right? Like, "Hey bitch, make a left. All right. Hang a right."

You mentioned there was a challenge at first. You're playing a character from a TV show, and there's body language involved in that performance that I think was a big part of it. Was that part of the challenge, not having that body language and having to have her personality come up more through your voice performance?

Well, I would say the first challenge I had was remembering how to do Anya's voice. That was a specific thing that I did. And when I found that voice years ago, it was not something I had even practiced. Some characters just come, and some don't. That one just came. I was like, "Oh, I got you. I know what to do with you." And I hadn't revisited that since however many years it's been, Jesus, 20 or something. Finding her voice again and getting in there took about four takes, probably four or five takes. I was not quite there and too nasally, not enough of the things that just came second nature to me years ago. But then, once I got the hang of it again, that was pure fun.

I can't speak for anybody else, but I am actually really okay with not seeing anybody's reactions to what I'm doing. I think I've trained myself so much just in general to listen as a performer because the listening is where the reactions happen, honestly. Know your lines, but you can hear something when you're going over something in your head prior to shooting something. I mean, it's never going to sound like that when you're in person but, especially if you've spent some time with the character, you can almost anticipate how their eyes are going to go or how they're going to move their head or mannerisms that they've developed for the character. So, it can trip me up.

So, it was more than enough to have everyone in the room, and glance over and see them, but hearing everybody in my head taps into a whole different part of my imagination, and it was glorious. It was the most fun I've had on a job in years. It's one of my top, top, top, top favorite projects I've ever done. Loved it. And I never thought I would revisit that show in a million years. Never. But then knock, knock, and it's Amber, and I was like, "Hmm, what are you doing? What's up? What is this?" And that was enough for me.

You get to have a lot of fun in scenes where there's Anya, and then there's Anyanka, and I don't want to give away too much of what happened, but there's a third party involved.

The other one.

What was recording that? Were you doing and forth? Were you doing one at a time? Because just listening to it sounded wild.

Well, I'm so excited to hear that because I lived it, and it was exhausting and thrilling and weird and, on the spot, because that third one wasn't going to be like that at all. It's so hard to talk about it without talking about it. But we were in the moment when it came time to do that. And I was like, "Can I just try something super quick? I'm just going to see if this works." And I think it was like, "Okay, we'll just do that bit then. We'll isolate the audio on that and do it." And I was like, "Actually, I'm going to want to do the whole thing, all of them together, not break, just go from one to another like this, this, this." Which is what I did.

And again, not spoiling it, but there are so many variations between Anya's voice and then Anyanka's and then the third one; I must've looked absolutely batshit crazy for real because it felt crazy, and there's no way I didn't look crazy.

There was one take where I got tangled because I was moving so much, too. You do that a lot, something you would never do when it's being filmed, but to get the emotions right for the sound, I got caught up in my long cord with the headphones, and then I was starting to sweat because I'm getting in my internal dialogue. I am literally beginning a workout right now, going through all these, and there are pages and pages of it. I tried to take off my sweatshirt, but then I was caught in the thing, but I didn't want to break the characters. Sadly, we weren't filming then. I can't believe we didn't get that on film because that would've been forever in my personal blooper reel of all time, though I think we actually kept that take oddly enough, so we'll see.

Slayers: A Buffyverse Story premieres exclusively on Audible, releasing all nine episodes on October 12th.

Filmmaker John Carpenter has delivered audiences a number of rich and complex worlds with his movies, some of which have been embraced and expanded into other mediums. While his early feature film Escape from New York was turned into a rudimentary board game, more complex reimaginings of his worlds have been developed as tabletop experiences, while his 1982 film The Thing was turned into a video game in 2002. Being a fan of video games himself, Carpenter says that he could see his 1986 movie Big Trouble in Little China making for a good video game, while his 1987 Prince of Darkness likely wouldn't. His latest project, John Carpenter's Suburban Screams, premieres on Peacock on October 13th.

When asked by ComicBook.com about a film of his that would make a good video game, the filmmaker confirmed, "I don't know. I think, maybe ... Big Trouble in Little China, it seems to me would be a fun video game and kick ass. There's also, by the way, a Thing card game. I mean, there's a lot of these games. There's actually a They Live game. I don't know that there would ever be a Prince of Darkness game. I don't see that."

Carpenter's Halloween, as well as Big Trouble in Little China and The Thing, have been turned into board games, while Carpenter himself helped develop the upcoming video game Toxic Commando. With his many films touching upon horror, sci-fi, and fantasy, it seems like only a matter of time until a new video game is developed that immerses fans in his worlds.

As fans wait for the possibility of a John Carpenter video game, you can check out his new TV series Suburban Screams.

The new series is described, "John Carpenter's Suburban Screams is a genre-busting unscripted horror anthology series from the mind of legendary director, writer, and producer, John Carpenter. The series explores the dark secrets and unspeakable evil that sometimes lurks beneath the surface of the sun-drenched streets, manicured lawns, and friendly neighbors of suburbia. Each episode focuses on one true tale of terror, told by the real people who lived through it. Their firsthand accounts are brought to life through premium cinematic scene-work, news clips, home photos, and archival footage, combining the visual language of horror films with the tools and techniques of documentaries, creating a uniquely frightening experience for viewers."

John Carpenter's Suburban Screams premieres on Peacock on October 13th. Stay tuned for updates on Toxic Commando.

What movie do you think would make a good video game? Let us know in the comments or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

John Carpenter's 1982 film The Thing is considered a masterpiece in horror and science fiction among many audiences, with the film being just as effective today as when it was originally released more than 40 years ago. Not only do fans still praise the film, they still debate the final scene, in which Kurt Russell's MacReady and Keith David's Childs commit themselves to freezing to death to prevent a replicating alien from reaching the rest of the world, as audiences have questioned if either of the men are still human or if either have been infected. Carpenter himself says he definitely knows the answer, though will be keeping that information to himself. The filmmaker's latest project, John Carpenter's Suburban Screams, premieres on Peacock on October 13th.

The Thing cinematographer Dean Cundey has previously shared that specific lighting that can be seen in the eyes of human characters that can give away who is human and who is "The Thing," with the final moments of the film showing that MacReady has the light in his eyes and Childs doesn't appear to have them.

When ComicBook.com asked about the validity of Cundey's remarks, Carpenter clarified, "He has no clue." When pushed about whether there was a definitive answer or if it was intentionally ambiguous, Carpenter confirmed, "Yes, I know. I know who's the Thing and who's not in the very end."

As far as whether he would reveal that answer, the filmmaker teased, "Nope ... Cannot tell you. Sorry."

Cundey's remarks do hold true about earlier sequences in the film, though the theory doesn't seem to reflect the final scene. Carpenter went on to jokingly tease his former collaborator.

"[Dean Cundey] doesn't know. He has no idea. He puts the lights up. He puts the lights up, and we were in the snow. He has no clue," Carpenter expressed. After revealing that this news will be revealed to Cundey himself eventually, the filmmaker taunted, "You tell him that. Tell him he's full of sh-t."

Much like we might not ever get definitive answers about The Thing, many of the stories told in John Carpenter's Suburban Screams also don't have concrete endings.

The new series is described, "John Carpenter's Suburban Screams is a genre-busting unscripted horror anthology series from the mind of legendary director, writer, and producer, John Carpenter. The series explores the dark secrets and unspeakable evil that sometimes lurks beneath the surface of the sun-drenched streets, manicured lawns, and friendly neighbors of suburbia. Each episode focuses on one true tale of terror, told by the real people who lived through it. Their firsthand accounts are brought to life through premium cinematic scene-work, news clips, home photos, and archival footage, combining the visual language of horror films with the tools and techniques of documentaries, creating a uniquely frightening experience for viewers."

John Carpenter's Suburban Screams premieres on Peacock on October 13th. A new adaptation of The Thing is reportedly on the way.

What do you think of the filmmaker's remarks? Let us know in the comments or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

Filmmaker John Carpenter is known for telling terrifying tales on the big screen, but in the 13 years since the release of The Ward, Carpenter has been spending a significant chunk of time immersing himself in all the latest video games. The filmmaker has previously expressed his love for The Last of Us games, and it sounds as though he is just as big a fan of the HBO adaptation, as he noted it was "fabulous," to the point that he supports the story deviating from the source material. Carpenter's latest project, John Carpenter's Suburban Screams, premieres on Peacock on October 13th.

While speaking with ComicBook.com about his thoughts on the TV show, Carpenter praised, "Yes, I love it. Oh, it's fabulous." The filmmaker also hadn't heard the updates about the series' renewal, as he replied at the mention of Season 2, "Time out, time out. How do you know there's a Season 2?" In regards to the news, he echoed, "Fabulous."

The filmmaker isn't at all concerned about how Season 2 will likely deviate from the source material, as he expressed, "I love it. The story is great. Forget the game. The actors in the [show], just sensational. That was so well done."

Given that Carpenter directed an episode of Suburban Screams and his love of The Last of Us, some fans might wonder if he could take part in actually bringing an episode of Season 2 to life once the actors' strike is resolved. Fans shouldn't count on it, as Carpenter clarified, "No, I want to watch it. I don't want to work."

Luckily, fans can still see his return to horror directing with an episode of John Carpenter's Suburban Screams.

The new series is described, "John Carpenter's Suburban Screams is a genre-busting unscripted horror anthology series from the mind of legendary director, writer, and producer, John Carpenter. The series explores the dark secrets and unspeakable evil that sometimes lurks beneath the surface of the sun-drenched streets, manicured lawns, and friendly neighbors of suburbia. Each episode focuses on one true tale of terror, told by the real people who lived through it. Their firsthand accounts are brought to life through premium cinematic scene-work, news clips, home photos, and archival footage, combining the visual language of horror films with the tools and techniques of documentaries, creating a uniquely frightening experience for viewers."

John Carpenter's Suburban Screams premieres on Peacock on October 13th. Stay tuned for updates on the future of The Last of Us on HBO.

What do you think of the filmmaker's remarks? Let us know in the comments or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

Over the more than 40 years since Halloween was unleashed in 1978, the franchise has seen highs and lows and been rebooted and had sequels negate the events of previous installments, but with David Gordon Green's trilogy of Halloween films, fans were seemingly given the final entry in the decades-long bout between Michael Myers and Laurie Strode. The Halloween brand, however, will always be a hit with horror fans, so as reports emerge about the rights being shopped around, original director John Carpenter claims that Michael Myers and star Jamie Lee Curtis might still have unfinished business and that we can't really count on them being gone for good. Carpenter's latest project, John Carpenter's Suburban Screams, premieres on Peacock on October 13th.

When discussing with ComicBook.com how last year's Halloween Ends closed the chapter on Michael Myers and Laurie Strode definitively, Carpenter teased, "Don't you believe it yet. There's all sorts of ways of bringing Michael Myers back. There's all sorts of ways of telling that particular story. We'll just have to wait and see."

What was notable about Green's trilogy is that Carpenter served as a producer, marking the first direct involvement he's had in the franchise since the first sequels in the early '80s. As far as what advice he might have for the next filmmaker to tackle the mythology, Carpenter joked, "I can't help the new filmmakers. Plus, they have so many advantages over what I had when I was the same age. That makes me hate them! It's all great."

The series previously earned the spinoff Halloween III: Season of the Witch, an experience that left the Michael Myers mythology behind, as well as two reboots from director Rob Zombie, with all of these films earning mixed reactions from critics and audiences. It's currently entirely unknown how, or when, the Halloween franchise will continue.

In the meantime, audiences can watch true-life tales of terror in John Carpenter's Suburban Screams.

The new series is described, "John Carpenter's Suburban Screams is a genre-busting unscripted horror anthology series from the mind of legendary director, writer, and producer, John Carpenter. The series explores the dark secrets and unspeakable evil that sometimes lurks beneath the surface of the sun-drenched streets, manicured lawns, and friendly neighbors of suburbia. Each episode focuses on one true tale of terror, told by the real people who lived through it. Their firsthand accounts are brought to life through premium cinematic scene-work, news clips, home photos, and archival footage, combining the visual language of horror films with the tools and techniques of documentaries, creating a uniquely frightening experience for viewers."

John Carpenter's Suburban Screams premieres on Peacock on October 13th. Stay tuned for updates on the Halloween franchise.

What do you think of the filmmaker's remarks? Let us know in the comments or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

In his decades-long career, John Carpenter has worn many hats as a filmmaker, from director to writer to composer, though with his upcoming series John Carpenter's Suburban Screams, he's venturing into an all-new arena. While his previous work has seen him create or adapt thrilling tales of fictional terror, the new series explores all manner of terrifying tales that are based on true-life events, ranging from making connections with figures from the beyond thanks to a Ouija board to local legends about murderers whose legacies don't seem to stop at death. The series also sees Carpenter returning to the director's chair for an episode, having only helmed a music video since directing 2010's The Ward, for a story about a woman being relentlessly stalked for years. John Carpenter's Suburban Screams premieres on Peacock on October 13th.

The new series is described, "John Carpenter's Suburban Screams is a genre-busting unscripted horror anthology series from the mind of legendary director, writer, and producer, John Carpenter. The series explores the dark secrets and unspeakable evil that sometimes lurks beneath the surface of the sun-drenched streets, manicured lawns, and friendly neighbors of suburbia. Each episode focuses on one true tale of terror, told by the real people who lived through it. Their firsthand accounts are brought to life through premium cinematic scene-work, news clips, home photos, and archival footage, combining the visual language of horror films with the tools and techniques of documentaries, creating a uniquely frightening experience for viewers."

ComicBook.com caught up with Carpenter to talk developing the new series, his connection to Halloween, and other beloved stories he's delivered fans over the years.

ComicBook.com: We are now in October and I feel like, every October, there's this movie you did about "babysitter murders" or something that a lot of people watch in October. Do you personally have any Halloween traditions? Are you excited for October or are you like, "I'm just sick of people talking about Halloween. Let's get to basketball,"?

John Carpenter: B is the answer to that. Everything you said. I'm sick of it. Let's get to basketball.

Fair enough. Now, I was super excited to hear about Suburban Screams. It definitely came out of nowhere for a lot of us fans. What was the idea of, not only developing this project -- I talked to [producer] Sandy [King] about it a little bit, but how did the idea of you actually directing come about and what was it about that story that you directed that really excited you?

It's a real-life story, which I haven't really done before. I did real-life stuff in Elvis, but this is different. And I thought I could do something with it. I think that's what directors -- when they read material or they hear something, they think, "I can do something with that." That's what I thought. Because the shocking thing is, it went on for six years and it's not ended yet. I can't believe it. I thought, "Well, this is interesting. It's almost like being haunted by something."

I definitely feel like that sets it apart from other types of true-crime things that are out there, is that a lot of them have some happy ending. Not only is it not happy, but it's ominous.

You know it. Oh man, it's unbelievable.

Another thing that definitely sets this apart, for you, you've done plenty of horror, you've done some pretty graphic things in some of your movies. With a lot of true-crime stuff, they almost throttle the imagery for the reenactments. Your episode has violence, it has obscene imagery, it has the obscene phone calls. Were there any talks of, "How far do we push this? How authentic do we make it?"

No, nobody said anything. Nobody tells me anything.

I feel like if your name is on the title of the series, even if anyone did try to tell you what to do, it's a pretty good card for you to pull.

Well, I guess so. I don't know.

When collaborating with some of the other directors that were involved, was it the same thing where the different directors all had free reign over what they wanted to do or did you give them any overall direction or motivations?

Because of my training at USC, I cannot interfere with other directors. I just can't do it. It's forbidden. It's all their stuff. That's their movie. They need to step up and take responsibility for everything, and I just keep my mouth shut.

Another super exciting thing is, not only are you overseeing this project, but having actually directed, it's a new thing because you directed over Zoom, which, the commute to set I'm sure was a little bit easier. What was that process like for you? Was it a pretty natural thing or was there a learning curve?

It wasn't actually Zoom, but it was remote. There was a hookup we did with the crew in Prague so that I was looking in my big-screen TV in my front room, I could see through it, through the camera. Then I had a hookup next to me in my laptop where I could talk to people. It was a setup that was fabulous. I loved it.

The issue with all that is, like any directing assignment that you do, you just have to plan everything. You just have to plan every shot and then everything goes smoothly. That's what I did. I planned every shot, and I shared the shot list with my A.D., my assistant director, and my director of photography, so that we all knew what we had to do. That made everything go much smoother.

In that regard, I know one of the big things that you've mentioned when people ask you about directing another movie is just how much work is involved and how that's not at all of interest to you, to put in all that work and time and energy. But has this -- if you could direct a movie remotely from the comfort of your own front room, do you think you would be up for that? Or is directing an episode of a TV show much less involved than an entire movie?

Well, it's definitely much less involved, but it's frenetic. Sure, if I see a script or a story that I want to do, I'll do it. It doesn't matter ... whatever it is, I'll direct on the set. I'll stand there like a fool and direct. If there's something I love and want to do, that's the big issue.

I don't get much say in it, but I don't even think you should have to stand. I think they should get you a nice, comfy chair to hang out in.

Thank you. I think that's really good. That's smart.

This whole series, some of the stories are more real-life horrors, like the episode you directed about that stalker, that's a very real thing and there's proof of it. Some of them are a little bit -- there's Ouija boards and lots of local legends. I wondered if you, growing up, had any local legends of either spooky houses around town or creepy neighbors you shouldn't have gone near?

Well, there was the house that we all thought was haunted. It was out on Cemetery Road. I think every town has that. Every town has some place that people think, "Oh, there's something wrong with that." Sure, sure.

Did you listen to those warnings? Did you stay away from that house or did you ever go investigate?

I never investigated. No, no.

Leave it to the other folks to do it, and then they can report back to you.

That's exactly right.

Along those lines, some of the more supernatural things outside of your episode, do you believe all these legends from all of these episodes? Or do you think it even matters whether you personally believe them and it's just about the people relaying those stories that's what's important?

All right, here's what I'll say to you: the supernatural exists in movies, TV, books, in the media, and that's where it exists. I don't believe it exists in real life. Now, I'm open to seeing it. You have a ghost that I can take a look at and study for a minute? I'm open to it. You have a UFO that flies by, stops a minute, lets me look at it? I'm open to that. But otherwise, I don't ... Where is all this stuff? It doesn't exist around me.

So it sounds like your outlook on the supernatural is very similar to your outlook on directing, that you're not looking for it, but if it comes to you, you'll say, "Sure, come on in,"?

Well, not exactly.

Look, my first love of my life and my biggest love was movies, cinema. That's always been my driving force in my life. I don't mean to downplay my concern and love about films. I didn't ... That's what did it for me and continues [to do it for me].

I was curious about that. I think there's a little bit of -- definitely more on social media and the Internet -- that there can be an image of you that that your main focus is you want to make music, you want to play video games, and you want to watch basketball. Movies, you're not necessarily keeping up on them as much. When people ask you about new horror movies or whatever, I know you're not watching as much horror as maybe you used to. What excites you the most about contemporary cinema?

Well, I always love good movies, and I see most films -- that's a lie, I see a lot of new films. I don't see that many horror films. There's some I see. Jordan Peele, I love. It depends.

I'm a little more ... When I was younger, I would see everything to learn from it. Every single thing: bad, good, doesn't matter to me. I'm a little pickier now, quite a bit pickier, [if there's] something I'm interested in ... But I've become addicted to video games and basketball. It's just so much fun, and it takes me away from the horrors of the real world. So, why not?

I know you've said you like Jordan Peele, and I told him that you were a fan of his work, and he was shocked. He couldn't believe it, he had no idea you liked his movies, and so I wondered if you knew he loves your movies? Do you know how much of a fan Jordan Peele is of your work?

Look, I don't know anything, but I'd love to sit and talk with him. I think he's really talented.

I mean, this is it, I've got to get this out. I've got to get him this to make sure that you two can get together and collaborate.

Absolutely. As a matter of fact, just tell Jordan to get ahold of my agent. He can find out who that is, and we'll get together.

I'll send some emails to try and make this happen.

Good. My wife will cook us dinner. We'll sit and talk about movies, and there we go. I'm ready.

I know how much you love video games. I know that there was an Escape from New York board game, I know there was The Thing video game. Do you think there's another movie that you've made that would translate well to a fun, modern video game?

I don't know. I think, maybe ... Big Trouble in Little China, it seems to me would be a fun video game and kick ass. There's also, by the way, a Thing card game. I mean, there's a lot of these games. There's actually a They Live game. I don't know that there would ever be a Prince of Darkness game. I don't see that.

You say that now, but I would love if there was, if you remember the Trouble board game with the thing you had to pop in the middle, I like to think of Prince of Darkness, but with the big, green, swirling slime tube in the center that you have to flip over like an hourglass.

That's it. There you go.

I'm a huge Prince of Darkness fan, I think Prince of Darkness is definitely one of your most underrated and maybe overlooked movies to some audiences. I absolutely love that movie.

Thank you. I do love that movie, too.

I think the last time that I talked to you was before the release of Halloween Ends. You were pretty clear about, as long as Halloween makes money, there's going to be more Halloween. Jamie Lee Curtis is gone, Michael Myers is gone, I believe...

Don't you believe it yet. Don't you believe it yet. There's all sorts of ways of bringing Michael Myers back. There's all sorts of ways of telling that particular story. We'll just have to wait and see.

I don't know if you can tell, I've got some Halloween III decorations in the background.

I see them.

I love the anthology route. I wasn't sure if you had any advice to whoever the new filmmakers out there might be, of finding a new angle on Michael Myers or if they should go do a TV series that's completely unrelated?

I don't know. I can't help them. I can't help the new filmmakers. Plus, they have so many advantages over what I had when I was the same age. That makes me hate them! It's all great.

Well, I don't know, I feel like maybe if they can get you a nice paycheck, then maybe you might be willing to lend some expertise.

Sure. I'm ready to go.

Since so many of your movies have been revived, and I know you encourage people, as long as you're getting a credit, you encourage people to re-imagine, re-work some of your classic movies, but is there a movie of yours that you've made that you would almost want to pay them to stay away from, that just couldn't be done?

No. Have at it, man. Have at it.

I will say that I spoke to James Hong about The Rock's Big Trouble in Little China, and he was like, "No, don't do it, unless you're bringing back Lo Pan, no more Big Trouble."

Of course not. James is -- what a character. I really love James Hong.

Honestly, he seemed like he is ready to be Lo Pan again.

Yes, he is. He is.

He has not slowed down one step in all these years.

I know. It's amazing, isn't it?

I know that there's been a lot of listening parties for your new album, Anthology II, are there any plans of doing any live shows coming up or any tours?

No plans, exactly, but we'll see what happens. We have another Lost Themes in the making coming up, so we'll see. Never say never in this business.

That's great. I'm super excited for Lost Themes. I love what you and Cody [Carpenter] and Daniel [Davies] have been doing with that. They're fantastic.

Thank you.

Have you seen The Last of Us? I know you're a big fan of the game, have you watched the TV show?

Yes, I love it. Oh, it's fabulous. Fabulous, fabulous.

So are you looking forward to Season 2? I know there's going to be some changes from the source material.

Time out, time out. How do you know there's a Season 2?

They've already announced it.

Fabulous.

It's on pause because of the strikes. I know, obviously, you can't go and just do the second game, there's going to be some changes to the source material.

Fabulous. I love it. The story is great. Forget the game. The actors in the [show], just sensational. That was so well done.

I mean, I don't know, it sounds like we should get you on board for Season 2?

No, I want to watch it. I don't want to work.

I know you don't dissect your movies or look back on your movies the way that fans do, but all your fans love to debate what happens at the end of The Thing. Even [cinematographer] Dean Cundey has weighed in on the lights in the eyes as the giveaway of who's a human and who's not a human.

He has no clue. He has no clue.

Does that mean, do you have a clue? Do you have an answer between Kurt [Russell] and Keith [David]?

Yes, I know. I know who's the Thing and who's not in the very end.

Can I know?

Nope. Nope.

I tried. I did my best.

Cannot tell you. Sorry.

It sounds like Dean Cundey is full of crap is what you're telling me.

Yes, he doesn't know. He has no idea. He puts the lights up. He puts the lights up, and we were in the snow. He has no clue.

Well, next time I talk to Dean, I'll let him know he's full of it.

You tell him that. Tell him he's full of sh-t.

Another thing that I've always been curious about is, back in the '90s, you were working on a Creature from the Black Lagoon remake and Guillermo del Toro did his Creature from the Black Lagoon homage with The Shape of Water. It won all these awards, the Academy Award for Best Picture. Was your take on Creature from the Black Lagoon, was it going to be relatively straightforward and authentic to the source material or were you going to do a reinvention or go in some unexpected directions?

Well, the thing about Guillermo was that he did a movie about a girl f-cking a fish. We weren't going to do that. So there was no Oscar in our future. You have to have this girl f-ck a fish ... in order to win the Oscars.

So, for your version, it would've just been, like, foreplay, but then you would've cut before the actual fish f-cking?

That's right.

It's one direction to go. I'm not the Academy Awards, but it still sounds like you had a pretty promising idea.

Well, it could have been good. It was the Creature, we were going to redo the Creature, pretty faithful to the original, but we didn't do it. So, there you go.

Well, John, I really appreciate you taking the time to chat. I'm such a big fan of so much of your work. I can't wait to pick up the new album and keep my eyes out for Lost Themes IV. And what's going on with the Warriors and Chris Paul? How's the vibe after hating him for all these years and now he is one of you?

Well, there you go. I mean, he's a great player, so we'll see how it works. It could be great. It could also be sh-t. We don't know.

That's a great outlook for anything in life. "It could be great, it could be sh-t."

Well, that's the truth. Come on, man.

John Carpenter's Suburban Screams premieres on Peacock on October 13th.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity. You can contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter.

Having served as a producer on films like They Live, In the Mouth of Madness, and Village of the Damned, along with her work running Storm King Comics, Sandy King knows a thing or two about how to tell a frightening story in the genre space. For the upcoming Peacock series John Carpenter's Suburban Screams, King ventured into new territory, as the series explores real-life tales of terror, featuring not only dramatizations of those events, but also interviews with the people who experienced the unsettling encounters firsthand. John Carpenter's Suburban Screams premieres on Peacock on October 13th.

The new series is described, "John Carpenter's Suburban Screams is a genre-busting unscripted horror anthology series from the mind of legendary director, writer, and producer, John Carpenter. The series explores the dark secrets and unspeakable evil that sometimes lurks beneath the surface of the sun-drenched streets, manicured lawns, and friendly neighbors of suburbia. Each episode focuses on one true tale of terror, told by the real people who lived through it. Their firsthand accounts are brought to life through premium cinematic scene-work, news clips, home photos, and archival footage, combining the visual language of horror films with the tools and techniques of documentaries, creating a uniquely frightening experience for viewers."

ComicBook.com caught up with the producer to talk developing the new series, the challenges of bringing it to life, and more.

ComicBook.com: As someone who follows along with basically everything that you and John get up to, when he casually mentioned he directed a TV show a month or two ago, I was like, "What the hell is he talking about?" So how did Suburban Screams come together? Was it something you two had been working on for a long time, just under wraps, or did it come to you?

Sandy King: Well, it was all under wraps, but it came to us from the production company, DIGA. They had a great idea, and we're always up for new challenges. We don't like doing the same thing all the time. The idea of this hybrid show that was scripted and unscripted combined seemed really interesting, just because we hadn't done it before.

Also, the notion of what the stories represented was pretty interesting. Suburbia is a fun place to examine horror. For all the reasons that it seems safe and very obviously isn't. It's the monster under your bed. And then the fact that what we did was focus it on the survivors, the people left behind, the people who've been either the victims or those next to them or what was happening. In the case of a community held hostage, a person stalked, any one of those things, they're never not affected. We tend to think of crimes that are solved as having closure, but do those people ever really walk away unscathed? They don't. You can't help but be affected.

In the case of the one John directed, you have a woman who, six years later is still being stalked. You don't come away unscarred.

That one was particularly horrifying to watch, because so many people are used to, "...and then the cops caught him and that was it, and then they moved on." Just knowing that that is still going on definitely takes things to another level, in my opinion. From the time that you and John got involved, how much, if at all, did it change, did it evolve? Did you shine different perspectives on it? Did you alter the stories? Did you alter the tone, or is it pretty similar to what that core concept was?

We changed it to being survivor-based, victim-based, because the idea was, why do what's already being done where everybody focuses on the crime, focuses on the murder or that kind of thing, and that if it's already being done, why do it? We chose the stories we thought were the strongest because there was a slate of them.

The other thing we really pushed for was how to have an hour of what we do best -- entertaining -- in the realm of reality, where your interviews and your real pieces are the touchstones that remind the audience in the middle of the scripted portions. Yes, this really happened, and we also really kept a leash on it to not make the scripted portions untrue. Everything in these stories happened, we just heighten it. We want to make it a more immersive experience, where you're not just sitting back as a voyeur, we immerse you more in it.

What we brought to the reworking of the scripts and the template for how they're shot, those things, was to say, "Okay, what do we know from horror movies?" You have to come full circle. So we brought those elements into it when we were dealing with the writers and directors. How do you make this work so that our fans still get their thrills, but we're still being true to our subject matter.? There's only bits of, say, 10 seconds here or there that are more hallucinatory or more emphasizing the interior aspect of our characters.

That's another thing that I was very curious about is your background, your and John's backgrounds coming from the genre space, the horror film, the sci-fi space. How did you find that balance, whether it was in the script, in the direction, in the edit, how do you find that balance of being true to the real-life stories while also telling a good story? Because I'm sure that there's some contradictions in people recalling what happened to them, or some minor discrepancies, so how do you find that balance while also not exploiting or making light of these true life terrors that these people really went through?

I think the key there is to not make light of what their truth is, and their truth is their fact. It's what they live, and so what you have to do is respect what it is they now live with forever. If you look at what recently happened in Pennsylvania where the serial killer escaped and for two weeks essentially held that area captive and terrorized them, those people are going to live with those fears forever in some regard. Everybody else wants to think, "Oh, it's all okay. They caught the killer, the town is saved, no big deal." But those people are always going to be a little hesitant. They're always going to be a little fearful of what was so familiar and safe to them before. The same thing applies to all the people whose stories we tell. They're always going to live with that kernel of truth in them, their truth, that is going to make them afraid or changed in some way.

That's a truth that we can't betray if we're telling their stories, and remember that we met these people and interviewed these people, so there's a trust in their relationship with us, and you can't be jerks and then just suddenly put swamp monsters in their story or do something that makes it so that we think it was more terrifying. What terrified them should terrify our audience. We bring our skills into saying, "Okay, let's go through this. Let's find the parts of their stories that is what really drove them."

I feel like maybe it's a weird way to phrase this, as saying what your "favorite" episode is, because to say your "favorite real-life terrifying tale" isn't the way to phrase it, but is there an episode that you're particularly proud of, either because of the story that you got to tell or because of the way that the more cinematic elements of them came together?

Well, I'm really proud of the one John did, because I think we managed to get across the slow disintegration of this woman. I think that Julie [Stevens], the lead actress, really caught the paranoia as it grew and grew. I felt like we managed to make a suspense story really grow until her final falling apart and where she is now and the fact that it's still going on. So that's a big challenge when you have something that isn't an ax murderer, when you have something that isn't hanging bodies in a shed.

I think, also, that Bunny Man is really successful, because basically that's a hundred-year-old legend and that had a couple of foundations in fact that grew because of parents throughout the years trying to scare their kids into coming home at night. There were two modern occurrences that were in newspapers and things that didn't involve any deaths and all of that, but it grew largely because it was the age of when John Walsh's kid was kidnapped and that heightened everything, so various real-life occurrences played into the myth of the Bunny Man. I'd say probably the most artistic license was taken in reenactments in Bunny Man, but they were examining the legends that grew up around it, but I thought that was a very successful one that John directed.

Did you envision this series as a limited event or could this be coming back for future seasons further down the line? I know it depends on how audiences react to it, but would you like to continue this or was this a one-off limited series experiment?

It'd be fun to do more. We'd both love to have another season of it if the fans like it. That all depends on the numbers that come in. So far, the network seems happy, but the proof is going to be in how many people watch it, and they like it.

When this TV show, when the murmurs of it first started to come out, you and John had previously been working on Tales for a Halloween Night show and some people thought maybe there was an evolution from that into this. Is there any status update on that project, which seems to be its own very specific, unique thing that I know you've both been working on for years?

Well, that all fell apart when Discovery bought TNT, and they stopped unscripted and all that. I believe it's moving on for a second life at another network. We'll see what happens with that because it's a very different project. We've got, oh God, about four different projects at different places right now. And now that the writers' strike is settled, we'll see whether they all rise from the dead. Some of them ... Who has a stake through its heart and who walks like a zombie, I have no idea.

I'm a big They Live fan. It feels like, every year, it gets more and more prescient and more like reality and people are like, "There should be a new update of 'Eight O'Clock in the Morning' because it's so relevant," and all that stuff. Whether you were involved in it or not, do you think that's a story that could be told today, or would it feel almost like just too on the nose, too obvious of a thing to tell, given the current technology culture and political climate?

That's a little like watching CNN now, isn't it? I think that if you stay tuned, you might actually see something before too long.

I don't know if I should go grab a pair of sunglasses about what I'm about to see in the real world, or if that is a tease that maybe there is a new piece of entertainment on the way to keep my eyes out for.

There might be.

John Carpenter's Suburban Screams premieres on Peacock on October 13th.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity. You can contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter.

Just in time for Halloween, the all-new horror film The Mill has been released on Hulu, which delivers audiences an entirely unexpected experience. The new movie comes from director Sean King O'Grady and stars Lil Rel Howery, offering up a nightmarish scenario in which a man is tasked with a physically punishing task, but if he doesn't meet expectations, he could be putting his family and other mysterious captives in danger. Like many dystopic narratives, the less an audience knows, the better, though no matter how much you know about the story, you'll still never predict the film's twists and turns. The Mill is now streaming on Hulu.

Part of what makes the film so effective is the performance from star Howery, who is more known for his comedic efforts.

"Rel is obviously really well known for his comedies, but he's also incredible in Get Out, and I had the fortunate experience of working with him. He was in a movie that I produced called I Love My Dad, and I was sitting there on set watching him act and watching the seriousness with which he approaches his comedy and just his craft in general, and it just snapped into my mind, 'I really want to work with this guy in a drama,'" O'Grady shared with ComicBook.com about the casting decision. "Then when The Mill came around and I was reading the script, that was just a face I kept picturing. I kept thinking of Rel, and so we were super lucky. We sent him the script and he read it really quickly and got back to us and he wanted to do it and was excited about the challenge. It was just one of those situations, rare situations where there's a guy you really want for the role and he wants to do it. It never happens, ever."

Hulu describes the movie, "A businessman (Howery) wakes up beside an ancient grist mill situated in the center of an open-air prison cell with no idea how he got there. Forced to work as a beast of burden to stay alive, he must find a way to escape before the birth of his child."

One of the more exciting opportunities, and challenges, was designing the wheel that the businessman must push, because it's one thing to read about it in a script and it's another to showcase a more tangible visual of the relic.

"There's a lot of steps to getting there for sure. We were really lucky when we first started designing the set," O'Grady shared of building the prop. "My production designer, Amy Williams, she was in Italy where there happened to still be some of these medieval gristmills at old farms and things. She was doing actual research on the ground and sending me photos of what some of these things looked like, and so it evolved."

He continued, "It actually became much more of an ancient-style gristmill than we had originally envisioned. I think we saw a modern version of a gristmill. Then, from that point on, it was about figuring out, 'Okay, how much would this thing actually weigh?' Obviously these are made to be pushed, but they're made to be pushed by beasts of burden. What we ultimately landed on is: this is about the weight of a motorcycle and, take yourself, stand up a motorcycle, try to push a motorcycle across a parking lot. Not that hard for the first quarter mile. After you do it for a while, it's really hard. We thought that was a pretty realistic weight to give to it."

In addition to going into a dystopic story blindly, these are also worlds that have a lot of opportunities for expansion. O'Grady went on to address whether he sees more stories unfolding in this world.

"I want to have my cake and eat it, too, in that sense. I think that the movie does have a very definitive ending," the director confirmed. "I think it needed one for the experience that you see Joe go through here, but I also think is this the end of stories within this particular world? Absolutely not."

The Mill is out now on Hulu.

What did you think of the movie? Let us know in the comments or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

Social media platforms see people going viral for a number of reasons, with the sheer volume of users resulting in a brief shelf life for anyone who becomes a trending topic in any medium. Back in 2017, however, one journalist's chronicle of the bizarre occurrences he was experiencing in his apartment not only earned a short-term notoriety, but with the events unfolding over a number of months, this Twitter thread was a talking point for much longer than usual. The real-life events have been brought to life as the film Dear David by director John McPhail, which hits theaters, On Demand, and Digital HD on October 13th.

The film is described, "Shortly after comic artist Adam (Augustus Prew) responds to internet trolls, he begins experiencing sleep paralysis -- while an empty rocking chair moves in the corner of his apartment. As he chronicles increasingly malevolent occurrences in a series of tweets, Adam begins to believe he is being haunted by the ghost of a dead child named David. Encouraged by his boss to continue the 'Dear David' thread, Adam starts to lose his grip on what is online...and what is real. Based on the viral Twitter thread by BuzzFeed comic artist Adam Ellis."

ComicBook.com caught up with McPhail to talk adapting the story, ghost stories in the digital age, and more.

ComicBook.com: I know that this is a movie that's been a long time coming. Ever since that Twitter thread went viral, people have been wanting to see it brought to life. When you look back, did you have any connection to that Twitter thread while it was happening or did the movie just come about much later and bring up your awareness of it?

John McPhail: No, no, no. I was following it in 2017. I didn't find it on Twitter, I found it on one of those, "The scariest things on the Internet," one of those things, and I was totally hooked.

I suffer from sleep psychosis. It's not like sleep paralysis where I see things at the end of my bed or anything like that, so I connected with him at that point, because from what I suffer from, I feel like I can't breathe, I can't talk, I can't scream, and I've got this pressure pushing down on me, and my fiance's waking me up, and I'm going, "Ach."

When this script landed on my desk, I was like, "I know this. I know this." And as I said, the first things I thought about was all that sleep paralysis stuff, and was like, "Oh, I'm looking forward to doing that."

Once you got involved with this project, did you reach out to Adam much? Did you consult with him much? And then, also related to that, do you believe him about what he went through? Does it even matter?

We did connect. BuzzFeed connected us as I was coming onto the project. We were coming into pre-production, because my designer Josh Tompkin and I, we wanted to, not recreate the flat or his apartments, we wanted to have a bit of license with it, but I wanted to put things in there for fans of the original thread. This film takes a bit of dramatic license and veers off, but I knew I was going to upset a couple of folks, but I wanted to give them some things.

I wanted to give them the two cats. I wanted to have furniture from the apartment and areas that they would recognize and get excited about. He shared his comic books with me. He shared his photographs. He's in the film. He's in the background in a scene. And he was on set for a couple of days, so it was really nice to meet him and hang out with him. And yeah, he was super helpful with stuff like that.

Since this is a ghost story and you're taking dramatic license, does the truth of it all really even matter to you as a filmmaker?

I think that we tried to play with a little bit of that in the film, in the sense of that ... The question you're always asking is, did this happen or does he make it all up? I wanted to have that feeling of, "Is this actually happening or is he losing his mind?" and play with it in that sense so that that question was still always hanging around there.

Look, I believe. I've always felt like I've been guided along in life and guided down certain paths and things, so I believe. And so if he's made it all up, that's some commitment, real commitment, and you've got to applaud him for that. So I don't know. I asked him. He said "It happened," so I take the guy's word for it.

When it came to the visual design of David, when it came to translating that really rudimentary, two-dimensional image, that drawing in the real world into this film, what was that process like? Was it pretty straightforward or were there a lot of different variations on that visual look?

I've got a concept artist who, we just connected over Zoom. Obviously, this was during the COVID times and things, and he'd sketched out a whole bunch of stuff, and we went back and forth with the studio and stuff like that, what it was going to look like.

And then, when we got there, my prosthetics guy, two Daniels, literally my makeup and prosthetic designer came together, and we talked about what that wound would look like. I didn't want to go quite medical with a lot of it. I just wanted it to look cool and creepy and scary, and yeah. So we'd taken a little bit of fun with it.

When the script came to you, was there a specific scene or sequence that when you came to it, you were like, "Okay, I've got to do this. I'm absolutely hooked," or since you were a fan of the Twitter thread early on, was it just as soon as the script came across your desk, you were like, "Oh, whatever the script is, I'm on board,"?

It was Adam Ellis, the character, and the guy, because one of the things that ... Back in 2017, I stalked him a wee bit, going, "Is this real? Is this actually happening? Am I going to find something?" And he's a really funny, cynical, in-your-face kind of guy, and this story just didn't feel like it would've come from him ... And that in-your-face, cynical, laughing at trolls and stuff and pushing back, that kind of guy would be fun to see him go through this and have that journey with him.

That's what always draws me to a film, is always the character, that and the computer-game sequence. It was just this little bit in the script, but I was like, "Oh man, this could be so much fun and could be a total nod to A Nightmare on Elm Street 3, Freddy [Krueger], the puppet part where he is getting puppeted about."

And when I was watching that, I was like, "Oh, the peril in that part of the sequence comes from his friends." And so I brought in this cam where we're getting to see him in his own head as he's being puppeteered about and I got really excited about that. Augie, Augustus, who plays Adam, threw himself into that, so I loved shooting that, that whole sequence. So him pouring the booze over himself, crying and screaming, oh, it was so much fun, so, so much fun.

Generally speaking, what is so fascinating about urban legends in the digital age, as opposed to the guy with hooks for hands scratching on the car? What makes digital, contemporary urban legends so appealing and so fascinating?

I think it is just because it's new. It's still new. And particularly for this, because there was such an online presence with it, it was like, that had to have some sort of impact to the story and playing with it in that way, and, as I say, trying to compare a haunting to trolling. I feel there's this parallel where outside forces come into your safe space, and that was something that really appealed to us.

Dear David hits theaters, On Demand, and Digital HD on October 13th.

Will you be checking out the movie? Let us know in the comments or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

While it wasn't an initial hit with mainstream audiences upon release, the holiday-themed comedy-musical-horror movie Anna and the Apocalypse has been slowly earning a cult following, thanks to how it channels a variety of themes and tones and has also been made available on a variety of streaming services. As the title implies, there were some devastating ramifications of the world of the movie, which would present some challenges for continuing such a story, but director John McPhail recently teased that there have been some talks with the other filmmakers involved to return to that world in some capacity, though that it's so early in that process, he won't reveal what those talks are about. McPhail's latest film, Dear David, hits theaters, On Demand, and Digital HD on October 13th.

When asked if fans could anticipate any continuation of the film or a spiritual follow-up with former collaborators by ComicBook.com, McPhail admitted, "Yeah, 100%. We've talked about things like this. And more and more recently, we've got something. So we're not there, but we'll get there. We'll get there." When pressed for more insight, the director teased, "Well, it's just because it's so early, that ... Yeah, we do want it. We are all best friends. We're all the best of friends, and we would love to do something again in that world with who knows what."

The movie is described, "A zombie apocalypse threatens the sleepy town of Little Haven -- at Christmas -- forcing Anna and her friends to fight, slash, and sing their way to survival, facing the undead in a desperate race to reach their loved ones. But they soon discover that no one is safe in this new world, and with civilization falling apart around them, the only people they can truly rely on are each other..."

As fans wait for updates on an Anna and the Apocalypse continuation, they can watch McPhail's latest film, Dear David.

Dear David is described, "Shortly after comic artist Adam (Augustus Prew) responds to internet trolls, he begins experiencing sleep paralysis -- while an empty rocking chair moves in the corner of his apartment. As he chronicles increasingly malevolent occurrences in a series of tweets, Adam begins to believe he is being haunted by the ghost of a dead child named David. Encouraged by his boss to continue the 'Dear David' thread, Adam starts to lose his grip on what is online...and what is real. Based on the viral Twitter thread by BuzzFeed comic artist Adam Ellis."

Dear David hits theaters, On Demand, and Digital HD on October 13th.

Would you like to get an Anna and the Apocalypse sequel? Let us know in the comments or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

All eyes are on Swerve Strickland right now. The leader of the Mogul Embassy is currently on the run of his career in AEW, positioning himself as one of the company's top heels thanks to high-profile victories over the likes of Darby Allin and "Hangman" Adam Page. His recent in-ring performances and character work has regularly elicited praise from fans but has also caught the attention of greats within the wrestling world.

Hours after Swerve defeated Page at AEW WrestleDream, Adam Copeland made his AEW debut. The wrestler formerly known as Edge addressed his jump on the AEW WrestleDream post-show press conference, emphasizing that AEW's talent pool was too rich to pass up.

"I look at entire roster of fresh faces and so many talent that I've never laid hands on before, and that to me, for a person who's driven by challenges, that was the biggest thing," Copeland said. "I see a guy like Nick Wayne. I see Swerve. There's so many possibilities here."

Swerve Strickland Details Mentorship From Adam Copeland

Speaking to ComicBook.com, Swerve Strickland responded to Adam Copeland name-dropping him as a desired future opponent in his first time speaking on an AEW microphone.

"That shows that I'm on the radar. I'm not just a talent on the roster," Strickland said. "I'm not just a guy floating in the talent pool. That means I'm very visible. I'm on the top. I'm one of the priorities."

This is Swerve's first time sharing a locker room with Copeland since they briefly crossed paths as part of WWE SmackDown in 2021. Even though they were only on the same brand for a couple of weeks, Swerve and Copeland kept in contact.

"Me and Edge have been friends for the past three years. He has been somewhat of a mentor to me in those last three years," Swerve said. "He's been watching. We've been talking on the phone. He's been really criticizing a lot of my stuff in a good way. Productive criticisms. That's where I can't help but get better. I can't help but push myself and find unique ways to stand out. I'm not going to say everything has been a hundred percent perfect, but you have guys like Edge that see that. He understands what that entails. He's made his mistakes and he has grown from them, and he has built even more successes on top of that. He sees that in me."

In his early singles days in WWE, Copeland made a name for himself as a top heel. While his main priority was winning championships, Copeland also made sure to get under his opponents' skin by any means necessary.

As Swerve pursues his first singles title in AEW, he has followed a similar trajectory to Copeland's villainous days in the mid 2000s. Swerve has targeted top talent like Hangman Page and has made an effort to add a personal layer to their feud.

"For the guys in our position (heels), competing in that realm is just myself and Christian, who is another legend that's been doing this for 30 years," Strickland said. "I'm in a really good spot right now. I'm a new face of that role of villainy. That face of evil in a sense. You don't really see guys that look like me in that position rank that high, especially in this industry, it's very unique. That's what I bring. Uniqueness. I feel like Edge feels that."

Swerve takes on Bryan Danielson in an AEW TNT Championship No.1 Contender's Match this Tuesday on AEW Dynamite: Title Tuesday.

Author R.L. Stine has been captivating audiences for decades with his tales of terror, with his work on the Goosebumps novels being particularly beloved among younger readers. Stine's stories, along with cover art by Tim Jacobus, both intrigued and intimidated younger readers who were first getting a taste for spooky stories, igniting an interest not only in reading, but also in things that go bump in the night for young audiences. A new Goosebumps TV series is set to arrive on Disney+ that will appeal not only to the now-adult fans of the original novels, but also to entirely fresh fans, with Conor Welch and Pavun Shetty serving as producers on the new series. Goosebumps premieres on October 13th on Disney+ and Hulu.

Plunging viewers into a world of mystery and suspense, the new Goosebumps series follows a group of five high schoolers as they embark on a shadowy and twisted journey to investigate the tragic passing three decades earlier of a teen named Harold Biddle -- while also unearthing dark secrets from their parents' past.

Goosebumps stars Justin Long (Barbarian) and Rachael Harris (Lucifer), alongside newcomers Zack Morris (EastEnders), Isa Briones (Star Trek: Picard), Miles McKenna (Guilty Party), Ana Yi Puig (Gossip Girl), and Will Price (The Equalizer).

ComicBook.com caught up with the producers to talk the new series, honoring the source material, and what the future could hold.

ComicBook.com: This has such an interesting approach in the way it delivers its own standalone, wraparound storyline featuring these kids while also integrating the original stories in organic ways. So from the beginning, was this always the approach to developing that or did it evolve and shift back and forth between being its own thing and being more authentic adaptations?

Pavun Shetty: I mean, it definitely evolved and it's a great point because the books, which we grew up on, were very anthological. The original '90s series was very anthological, and we were lucky to have access to all of the books. So we needed to decide, are we doing a show where every episode is purely self-contained with a new cast and new issue, or are we going to do something more serialized?

I think we did a little bit of a hybrid that leans more towards the serialized nature. We decided to take five of the most popular books and incorporate them for the first five episodes, where you're following a different character, going through different hauntings from one of these books. So there is a standalone nature to what they're doing, but then in the middle of the season they realize that they're all going through this individually, and they come together, and from that point on they team up to survive and save the town. And then, we pulled Easter eggs from various books and threw them in for the rest of the season.

Was it very clear from the get-go, "These are the five we need to go with," or was it, "Well, we want to do this one, but it doesn't weave its way into the story as organically,"?

Conor Welch: We wanted, certainly, to incorporate five of the more popular books early on, but really the reason that we chose the five that we did were because they had very, very relatable, adolescent, evergreen issues at the core of them. The mask that haunts the girl who feels like she doesn't have an identity, but becomes an internet troll and then that turns into becoming a real troll. So it's little nuggets of actual, tangible, relatable issues. Those are the most important things for us. And then when you add on to that the haunting and elevate it with the genre, it just becomes more cinematic and exciting. But always, always for us, the most important thing was for it to be grounded in relatable emotional things.

R.L. Stine is such a prolific creative. What were the conversations like with him? Did he offer any impact or any feedback whatsoever or did he let the series just do its own thing?

Welch: A little bit of both. Basically, we had a meeting with him early on, which was a true career highlight considering how seminal he was to my wanting to be a storyteller myself. But really he just talked about where the series came from and it was similarly relatable, everyday issues exploded to this genre place, but always cut with levity and humor.

We wanted to use that as our North Star, and then thereafter, he would read scripts and watch cuts and stuff, but always was very, very positive. When he sent an email after watching the pilot for the first time, saying how much he liked it and how happy he was with the direction that we ended up going, it was just a really, really thrilling thing.

Not only are the books so important to so many young readers, but then there's the TV show and then there's the two movies. Did you explicitly approach this as, "Here's how we're going to set ourselves apart, and here's how we're going to honor those previous adaptations," or did you not even want to consider other adaptations when developing this show?

Shetty: Well, I think, for me, I had a personal connection because I read the books growing up, but then there's also a more practical one, which is the company I worked for the original film, actually produced the movies. The director of the first movie, Rob Letterman, also created this version of the Goosebumps show and directed the first episode. He came up with the idea for the TV show, and when we talked about what it could be, it was really important to us that we honor what people loved about the original because we don't underestimate how important these books are in people's lives. But we also wanted to update them and subvert expectations on people to be surprised when we did them. We wouldn't have done it unless it had a reason for existing on its own, so we wanted to make the humor be a little bit more sophisticated. We wanted the scares to be a little bit more intense, and we really wanted the issues that everyone was facing to feel authentic.

The last thing I'll say with that is that we wanted parents to be able to watch the show on their own, and we wanted the issues that the adults were grappling with to be really identifiable. We had the core stories, and we had the humor and horror that was embedded in the original stories that R.L. Stine created, and we wanted to develop a full, serialized show around that. Those books were always on our mind when we developed this.

Going along with that, I especially appreciated, being an adult, the show is a little bit more PG-13 in tone than when I revisit the '90s series. I'm like, "This doesn't entirely hold up," even if the core nuggets are still entertaining. What was that process like of finding the right tone, because it's almost even PG-15. There's definitely some very intense stuff in there. Was that ever a conversation of, "This is Disney+, let's make it a little bit more accessible" versus setting itself apart from the '90s series?"

Welch: Totally. It was always a conversation, and it was always wanting to toe that line as best we could, right? Because the books always felt like they were a little scarier, a little more elevated than maybe I should be reading at the time. We wanted the television show to feel the same way, that the jokes were a little edgier, but not inappropriate. That the scares were a little more intense, but never gory. We always had that line, that North Star in mind, but wanted to get up right at the edge of it. Because we'd never wanted to, as the books don't, ever wanted to pander to kids. We never wanted to talk down to kids, and we never wanted the adult audience to be bored with something that felt juvenile. All of those things were kept in mind. And I think Rob Letterman, Nick Stoller, and Hilary Winston, our showrunner, really did an excellent job of toeing that tightrope the whole way through.

Shetty: And being that high school kid is awkward, which is super funny, and it's also really scary. And so those things are inherent to the age, to our characters in the show, and so it was easy to pull from those real experiences that high school kids have and embed them in a show with actual scares.

R.L. Stine not only had Goosebumps, he had Fear Street, he's still publishing stuff, shockingly. He's still this creative force. What do you feel it is about R.L. Stine that sets him apart from other storytellers in the genre, either just horror storytellers in general or more in terms of younger readers who are just getting interested in the genre?

Shetty: I think there's two things, and they're particular to the Goosebumps books, are that he never pandered to kids. He always treated kids like they were adults, which is why people of all ages could read the books. I think the second thing is that the books were always scary, but also funny. He ended every chapter with a punchline. I think that was really important to the DNA of the books, and that's what sets them apart, and it's why they're so relatable and popular and timeless. When we created the show, that was extremely important to us, that we embraced that when we developed this.

What I liked is the way that it's balanced to bring original material and then honor the source material, and I noticed there's definitely some direct changes from the source material to how it's brought to life in the show. Was there any apprehension around that, of, "We might upset some devout fans the way we tweaked the storyline," or did it feel totally organic?

Welch: It felt very organic. As fans ourselves, we felt like we could see it through that prism. It was always intentional to have the DNA of the series, but never to feel like we had to be faithful to the storytelling. R.L. Stine and Scholastic were very generous with us to let us run with it in the way that we did. I think as huge fans ourselves, we always kept that in mind, like, "Will fellow fans like this?" And if the answer was, "Yes," we felt confident running with it.

Looking to the future, I know we have to wait and see how fans really connect with the series, but have there been any even just initial talks of, if there's a Season 2, Season 3, or whatever, do you think we can expect to see these characters on future journeys or would it be another new set of characters, another way to weave an entirely original story together?

Welch: We lucked out so significantly with the cast that we were able to assemble for this show. These five relatively unknown young adult actors just immediately found a chemistry and were able to play into their very natural and organic dynamics they had within the group. So yeah, our hope is to follow this group of kids and adults for many, many more seasons and many, many more episodes to come. Because we do have every one of the books of the canon at our disposal, and there's just a lot more to dig into.

Goosebumps premieres on October 13th on Disney+ and Hulu.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity. You can contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter.

An all-new adaptation of R.L. Stine's Goosebumps is set to hit Disney+ later this week, and given that there are dozens of novels set within that original series and that the TV show from the '90s ran for multiple seasons, some fans are curious about whether the upcoming adaptation will be a limited or ongoing experience. According to producers Conor Welch and Pavun Shetty, the hope is that, if a second season were to come together, it would focus on the same group of characters from this debut season experiencing more otherworldly encounters as opposed to being an all-new narrative. Goosebumps premieres on Disney+ and Hulu on October 13th.

"We lucked out so significantly with the cast that we were able to assemble for this show. These five relatively unknown young adult actors just immediately found a chemistry and were able to play into their very natural and organic dynamics they had within the group," Welch expressed to ComicBook.com. "Our hope is to follow this group of kids and adults for many, many more seasons and many, many more episodes to come. Because we do have every one of the books of the canon at our disposal, and there's just a lot more to dig into."

Shetty added, "I hope our grandkids will be watching all the [episodes], reading all the books, and their kids."

The original TV series would largely just deliver straightforward adaptations of beloved novels, though Goosebumps also earned two big-screen adventures, both of which were largely original narratives that borrowed characters and creatures from the source material. This new series allowed the creators to both deliver authentic interpretations of iconic stories while also framing them within an original narrative.

Plunging viewers into a world of mystery and suspense, the new Goosebumps series follows a group of five high schoolers as they embark on a shadowy and twisted journey to investigate the tragic passing three decades earlier of a teen named Harold Biddle -- while also unearthing dark secrets from their parents' past.

Goosebumps stars Justin Long (Barbarian) and Rachael Harris (Lucifer), alongside newcomers Zack Morris (EastEnders), Isa Briones (Star Trek: Picard), Miles McKenna (Guilty Party), Ana Yi Puig (Gossip Girl), and Will Price (The Equalizer).

Goosebumps premieres on Disney+ and Hulu on October 13th.

Are you hoping we get multiple seasons of the series? Let us know in the comments or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

While it's likely no surprise that a TV series inspired by a comic book is a success with audiences, Prime Video's The Boys has become such a success that it has earned its first spin-off series with Gen V, while the project has previously earned The Boys Presents: Diabolical, a series of animated stories set in that universe. With Gen V already proving to be a hit, fans are already wondering what the next spin-off series could be, though producer of both series Pavun Shetty confirmed that the priority is to explore a story worth telling, while also prioritizing developing a spinoff that is distinctly separate from the core series. Shetty recently produced Goosebumps, which premieres on Disney+ and Hulu on October 13th.

"We're lucky that fans love the show so much and there's real anticipation for Gen V, and there's a lot of characters to build upon. There's a lot of different areas from the books across time periods that we could really capitalize on," Shetty confirmed with ComicBook.com. "But, I think the most important thing for us there is that we are really diligent and thoughtful about what we do next."

He added, "We'd love to have multiple shows, but I think audiences are really savvy and sophisticated, and I think they understand when there's a reason a show is coming out for the proper reasons and there's a real story to tell and it feels of the same world, but different. I think they can sniff out when it's just a show for a show's sake, and so we are really thinking about what the next show could be and how it can be thoughtful and fit into the universe and feel like it's a puzzle piece that fits in with everything else, but is not just a show for show's sake."

Filming on Season 4 of The Boys concluded earlier this year, though the writers' and actors' strikes saw the post-production process be put on hold. Until then, fans can enjoy Shetty's work on the adaptation of R.L. Stine's iconic Goosebumps series.

Plunging viewers into a world of mystery and suspense, the new Goosebumps series follows a group of five high schoolers as they embark on a shadowy and twisted journey to investigate the tragic passing three decades earlier of a teen named Harold Biddle -- while also unearthing dark secrets from their parents' past.

Goosebumps stars Justin Long (Barbarian) and Rachael Harris (Lucifer), alongside newcomers Zack Morris (EastEnders), Isa Briones (Star Trek: Picard), Miles McKenna (Guilty Party), Ana Yi Puig (Gossip Girl), and Will Price (The Equalizer).

Goosebumps premieres on Disney+ and Hulu on October 13th. New episodes of Gen V premiere on Prime Video on Fridays. Stay tuned for updates on the future of The Boys franchise.

What spinoff would you like to see next? Let us know in the comments!

A new era of Carnage will dawn on the Marvel Universe in November when Marvel Comics launches a new Carnage series from writer Torunn Gr?nbekk and artist Pere P?rez. While the Venom symbiote is getting to know a new host over in Marvel's ongoing Venom series (also penned by Gr?nbekk), the new Carnage series sees the Carnage symbiote returning to the human it knows best, Cletus Kasady. While away, Carnage has been trying to rid itself of any weakness. One might assume that a reunion with Cletus would result in a killing spree, but things are more complicated than that.

ComicBook.com spoke to Gr?nbekk about the new Carnage series and what she has in store for the symbiote side of the Marvel universe. Here's what she told us about Carnage's quest for godhood.

Jamie Lovett, ComicBook.com: If someone's jumping into this series, what might they want to know about what Carnage has been up to recently?

Torunn Gr?nbekk: I think the main thing you need to know is that Carnage has been slowly trying to rid himself of any weaknesses, to the point where he's playing with the idea of being a god and maybe killing some gods. Is that the next level? And Cletus Kasady is not necessarily on board with that idea, but that's the main thing.

The announcement for this series made a big deal out of how this is a reunion for Cletus and Carnage. Why is that such a big deal? Venom seems to change host every other month. Why is this coming back to Cletus such an event?

Unlike a lot of the Symbiotes, Carnage and Cletus are intertwined in a very specific way, and I can only speak for myself here, but the thing that made me fall in love with Carnage was certainly Cletus. He's the most interesting part and I think in a lot of ways, Carnage knows that. Speaking to readers too, I think people feel like Cletus and Carnage, they're best together. We tried Carnage and he's done a bunch of other things, but we do bring Cletus back in a very specific way. I'm not sure how much I should say, but this is sort of a love letter to the original Cletus in many ways, and I do hope that people who enjoyed or fell in love with Carnage for Cletus will enjoy the series as much as I've enjoyed writing it.

You mentioned finding Cletus to be the most interesting part of Carnage. Can you talk a little about that? Because I feel like under the wrong writer, the impression can be he's a serial killer who likes to kill people, the end. What do you find more interesting about him that makes you want to write about this character and dig into him?

I think the thing is, he is a serial killer who likes to kill people. I'm not sure it's "the end," but it's certainly there. Going back and reading through a bunch of the '90s Cletus Kasady and Carnage comics, it became apparent that that is the throughline, the ode to the serial killer who likes to play with his food, and I suppose what's interesting is Cletus has always wanted to kill people, but no one ever gave him like, "Oh, it's because of his mother that he only kills women with blonde hair because blah, blah blah blah." He just enjoys the killing part, and I think the playing part, the playing with his food, and the victims and everything.

I do think he is the most interesting and believable serial killer in the Marvel universe. What I'm trying to do is, what do you do when the challenge is gone? What makes Cletus, Cletus? Because Carnage has been slowly taking away all the weaknesses, absorbing things to make sure that he can withstand fire and heat and sound, all the things that used to be a problem, and if he's invulnerable, is the challenge going to be there anymore? There must be a reason why he didn't go around killing ants before, right? Because there's no challenge to it. So, what's going to happen if you make him into a god? And what kind of a god would Cletus Kasady be? And for whom?

That's what we're playing with, the idea of what is a Carnage god, and how would that apply to the world today? I can say we're bringing Cletus back from the '90s. How will he feel about the world today, that it has, in many ways, been recreated in his image since the last time he was conscious?

You've written for Thor for Marvel. Has your experience working on those literal, fully formed gods affected your approach to Carnage asking these questions about his own pseudo-godhood?

Oh, absolutely. I think the thing you realize very fast when you're trying to write any mythology in anything is the limitations to godliness because no one has the actual powers of what we would consider the Christian God. Everyone has limitations and they are all failing. I suppose you can say that about the Christian God as well. If he had all of these powers that we can attribute him with, then why the fuck are we doing so poorly? That's the question.

I suppose when you work with Thor and everything, you get a sense they have to have something that's theirs that they care more about, and they feel a certain responsibility for. I'm trying to figure out what the scripture is according to Cletus. Who would look at Cletus Kasady and say, "Well, that's my god"? We try to answer that without being too cultish or literal about it. I feel like this is the most relevant comic for the time we're living in many ways. My approach to it is more about Cletus poking fun at patterns of humanity, the things we get obsessed with, the things we seem to consistently fail at, and expose that through his -- well, we're back to murdering -- his many, many murders because there will be some murders.

We have seen that cultish take on Carnage before. Can you talk more about how this take is different?

Well, it is the mystery of it all. And I think he's trying to create faith because that's what godliness is all about. To have faith, you have to have a mystery of some kind. Someone has to be, like, "No, I believe this thing," which makes it not literal but all about who will be tempted, who will be interested.

The thing is, Cletus Kasady makes some good points. That's what we're trying to get to. And he obviously does so in horrible, horrible ways. But the idea is to try to get around to people going, "Well, I mean, I can see it. I can see the scripture according to Carnage."

I think the team is amazing, the pages look stunning, and the subtlety of it all might be lost in all the blood and gore, but I do hope it's there. I do hope people will read it and think, "Well, there is something here." Carnage makes some points, is what I'm saying.

What atmosphere and tone are you and the art team trying to create? Are we looking a horror story? Something more noir? More action?

I would say we're going a little bit '90s. More realistic. There certainly are some symbiote nonsense horror pages. We have people being ripped apart. We have all the good stuff. But visually, I think it reads more '90s realism in many ways. And Pere, he gets it. Every single page is exactly where it's supposed to be. And our main -- I suppose you can say hero in this, I'm not sure what team we're playing on, at this point -- but we have Flash Thompson as our Carnage main adversary. Flash is one of those characters that can be a little too smooth, but Pere nails the expressions and the moodiness of it all. It's a joy, is what it is.

How would you say that Carnage is different from Venom? Because Venom now gets classified as an anti-hero, and I don't think anybody would use the word "hero" even with "anti" in front of it to describe Carnage. What is the separating factor between the two of them in your mind?

That's an interesting question. Venom, for the most part, is a hero who draws his own lines. Sometimes they're a little further out than you might want them to be, but he's also got a lot of love and respect for his host, especially in this run we're doing now. There is certainly a lot of care for both Dylan and Eddie. He misses Eddie. And I think Venom, in general -- if you look way beyond good and bad -- is not destructive in essence, while Carnage is. But there is certainly a lot of love between Carnage and Cletus, I would say, too. But in essence, Carnage is destructive while Venom is not.

You're also writing Venom, where Black Widow is coming in and getting that symbiote. Is this Carnage series intertwined with what's going on there? Are these characters on a collision course, or is it too early to talk about where those roads lead?

I don't want to say too much, but at some point, if you pay attention, there will certainly be some things. I think it makes complete sense to play around when you have the opportunity to do so, which we do. The two stories are set at the same time, in the same city, the same place, and you will certainly get a feel of that. Surely.

This may be getting into spoiler territory, but you mentioned two questions posed in this series: what is Carnage like as a god, and what happens after the challenge is gone for him? Can you offer any hint or tease as to what the answers might look like when he starts finding answers to those questions?

Well, I'll say that Carnage, the symbiote, begins the series by having these questions asked by -- someone asks him these questions. "What kind of god would you be if you were a god?" He doesn't have the answers. That's why he turns to Cletus Kasady, to get the answers, and Cletus takes on the challenge of figuring out what is scripture according to Cletus Kasady, or to Carnage, with passion. He really goes for it to try to figure it out.

I don't want to say too much. We do play around with the idea of faith and God and what that means to people now because we do live in a very interesting time when a lot of people are losing their faith, but they're still looking for spirituality. If the Marvel universe was real, and we knew that gods were real, and we had that confirmed several times, people would certainly turn to the gods they could find. But having said that, I do feel, in general, even though we are playing around with scripture and mythology and everything, it is, more than anything, a very human story. It's very human-centric, as that's what I like to do.

To me, I think this is the most relevant and interesting thing I've ever written for Marvel, and I sincerely hope that people will come along for the ride, even if you don't like Symbiotes. Trust me, there's some symbiote nonsense, but as long as you can get past Carnage throwing up a person, go with it, don't overthink the symbiote nonsense, and enjoy the other stuff.

Carnage #1 goes on sale on November 15th.

Dicks: The Musical was released in select theaters this weekend, and the soundtrack is officially available to stream. The new film sees Josh Sharp and Aaron Jackson reprising their roles from the off-Broadway show, F*cking Identical Twins. In addition to writing the script, the duo also wrote lyrics along with composer Karl Saint Lucy. ComicBook.com recently had the chance to interview Sharp and Jackson, and they talked about the music process, and working together on the project for so long.

"We would write the lyrics first and then we wrote with Karl St. Lucy, they did the music, the composer. And so Karl is incredibly talented and would just be like, 'Actually, you sound good here, not here,'" Jackson explained.

"But what we did realize is this thing has been in development for so long, and by the time we were shooting we're like, 'We've been blending for a decade, we've really gotten good at it.'" Sharp shared with a laugh.

You can watch ComicBook.com's interview with Josh Sharp, Aaron Jackson, Larry Charles, and Bowen Yang at the top of the page.

Dicks: The Musical Creatives on Working With Megan Thee Stallion:

Dicks: The Musical also stars Megan Thee Stallion, who sings "Out Alpha The Alpha" in the film. The song was produced by Marius de Vries and co-written by de Vries and co-composer Karl Saint Lucy. While interviewing the creatives behind Dicks: The Musical, ComicBook.com asked about working with Megan Thee Stallion, and they had nothing but kind words for the star.

"She's a niche artist," Sharp joked when we brought up Megan Thee Stallion's She-Hulk cameo. "She was great," Jackson added. "She was so professional, down to clown. I mean, she was a blast. My niece is obsessed with nails. She let me take pictures of her nails to send to my niece. She was just very cool."

"A person at that talent level could be a total pain to work with," Sharp added. "And you'd be like, 'Oh, it's worth it.' And she's not. She's nice and fun and hangs out ... Nothing but nice things to say about Meg."

"Very non-Diva-like," director Larry Charles added. "She's very cool."

"And gorgeous," Sharp continued. "Yeah, that was crazy," Jackson agreed.

What Is Dicks: The Musical About?

Dicks: The Musical is a new musical comedy from A24 that's an adaptation of the off-Broadway show F*cking Identical Twins by Josh Sharp and Aaron Jackson. In the film, Sharp and Jackson star as Craig and Trevor, long-lost identical twins who reunite and decide to get their parents (Megan Mullally and Nathan Lane) back together. The movie also features Megan Thee Stallion as their boss and SNL's Bowen Yang as God.

Dicks: The Musical is now playing in select theaters and opens everywhere on October 20th.

Editor's note: Dicks: The Musical has a SAG waiver which allows the cast to give interviews during the SAG actors' strike.

Dicks: The Musical is hitting theaters tomorrow, and it marks the latest film helmed by director Larry Charles. Charles is best known for writing and producing episodes of Seinfeld as well as directing Borat, and Dicks: The Musical marks his first time helming a musical. The A24 comedy is an adaptation of the off-Broadway show F*cking Identical Twins by Josh Sharp and Aaron Jackson. Both Sharp and Jackson returned to write the script for the film version, and they star in the project as Craig and Trevor, long-lost identical twins who reunite and decide to get their parents (Megan Mullally and Nathan Lane) back together. ComicBook.com recently had the chance to chat with Charles alongside the cast, and we asked what drew him to his first musical project.

"They drew me in with their work and their performances," Charles explained. "I mean, the music in the musical was amazing, and I am not necessarily a musical person, but I do have my tastes and this immediately grabbed me, the hooks, the lyrics. I just thought, 'These are some of the best songs I've heard recently.' I love the idea of being able to do something with those songs as well as the comedy of course."

Sharp added, "Also, Aaron and I obviously love musicals and there's probably some, you would guess we like Little Shop and Urinetown, Book of Mormon, and stuff. But Larry came in with a lot of the grand old musicals like Gene Kelly. Stuff that we love, too, but I wasn't always thinking about ... He's learning!"

"But those are very postmodern movies," Charles added. "Singin' in the Rain and On the Town, they're shot against blank walls and there's a lot of dream sequences, and they really kind of threw it all together very quickly. And I wanted this movie to have that vibe also, because it's a musical, we're not presenting a documentary, and yet it is more honest than most documentaries because you're seeing the process at the same time."

You can watch our conversation with Charles, Sharp, Jackson, and Yang in the video above. Stay tuned for more from our interview with the creatives behind Dicks: The Musical as well as stars Nathan Lane and Megan Mullally.

Dicks: The Musical will be released exclusively in theaters on October 6th.

Editor's note: Dicks: The Musical has a SAG waiver which allows the cast to give interviews during the SAG actors' strike.

Eli Roth's upcoming Thanksgiving movie is based on a fake trailer he created for 2007's Grindhouse, but with that trailer only including highlights from the fake feature, the actual feature is going to have to expand heavily from that original short. Despite all the expanding it has to do, one thing that won't be returning for the movie is the music composed by John Harrison, with those trailer cues being lifted from George A. Romero's 1982 film Creepshow. Even if Harrison isn't involved in the upcoming Thanksgiving, he has returned to the world of Creepshow, as he directed installments for the new season of the Shudder series. The new Creepshow premieres on October 13th and Thanksgiving hits theaters on November 17th.

"I'm not involved with it at all. I've been aware of it," Harrison confirmed with ComicBook.com about the new movie. "Now, back in the day when Quentin [Tarantino] and Robert [Rodriguez] were doing the Grindhouse movies and Roth ... They called me and said, 'Listen, we love this piece and we want to put it in there and would you give us permission?' And, of course, I said, 'Yes.' But he's finally getting a chance to do it, so he's going to put his own imprimatur on it, and I'm sure the music that he'll choose will be pretty creepy."

Thanksgiving is described, "After a Black Friday riot ends in tragedy, a mysterious Thanksgiving-inspired killer terrorizes Plymouth, Massachusetts -- the birthplace of the holiday. Picking off residents one by one, what begins as random revenge killings are soon revealed to be part of a larger, sinister holiday plan. Will the town uncover the killer and survive the holidays...or become guests at his twisted holiday dinner table?"

Even if the new movie won't feature the same sonic landscape, the first footage from the film teases that Roth will deliver some familiar violence from that original trailer.

While he didn't develop the music for the series, fans can still enjoy Harrison's return to the world of Creepshow, as he directed season premiere's "Smile" and the season finale's "Baby Teeth" segments.

Based on George A. Romero's iconic 1982 horror-comedy classic, Creepshow is still the most fun you'll ever have being scared. A comic book comes to life in a series of vignettes, exploring terrors ranging from murder, creatures, monsters, and delusions to the supernatural and unexplainable. You never know what will be on the next page...

Creepshow Season 4 premieres on October 13th. Thanksgiving hits theaters on November 17th.

Are you disappointed the music won't be in the movie? Let us know in the comments or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

The first season of Loki was released on Disney+ back in 2021, and the entire season was helmed by Kate Herron. Tonight, Loki is finally returning for its second season, but this time Moon Knight directors Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead are taking over directing duties. One behind-the-scenes creative who returned for the new season is costume designer Christine Wada. Earlier this week, ComicBook.com had the chance to chat with Wada about her creations, and she revealed what it was like working with Benson and Moorehead this time around.

"I just feel like this team, even with the different directors who are so respectful of what was built in Season One, and just so collaborative, that it didn't really change it," Wada shared of her Season 2 experience. "And I think that the vision has always been really solid, and [producer] Kevin Wright has always had this incredible big-picture mind for it, and then Tom [Hiddleston] as well. So it just worked. They seamlessly folded in."

During ComicBook.com's interview with Wada, she also explained why she wanted to return for Loki's second season.

"First of all, the story really never ended in Season One," Wada explained. "So I had to complete the journey with the team. But of course, I really do think that this team and this job is just incredibly special. I think that probably starts from the pages and Tom [Hiddleston] and just the dedication everybody has to building this story and the quirkiness of it ... there was no way I couldn't. I knew it wasn't going to be the exact same thing. I knew it would be just expanding on the original vision. I mean, I think the best way to describe it is, I never really thought that this would be Season Two. I've just seen it as Part Two."

What Is Loki Season 2 About?

Marvel Studios fan-favorite Tom Hiddleston stars in Loki Season 2, returning as the titular God of Mischief for another round of time-traveling hijinx on Disney+ on October 6th. Loki is once again joined by Mobius (Owen Wilson) as the two attempt to keep the timelines intact. After the events of Season 1 saw his variant Sylvie (Sophia Di Martino) kill He Who Remains and unleash the wrath of Kang the Conqueror upon the Multiverse, Loki must once again embark on an adventure to keep reality from collapsing. Loki was last seen in the post-credits scene of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, where he and Mobius were keeping tabs on one of Kang's mysterious variants. Loki Season 2 will continue the story of the Multiverse Saga in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Stay tuned for more from our interview with Christine Wada.

Megan Thee Stallion is a rapper known for hits such as "Savage," "Hot Girl Summer," "Big Ole Freak," and more. Lately, the Grammy-winning artist has been popping up on our screens. Last year, she made a hilarious cameo appearance in Marvel Studios' She-Hulk: Attorney At Law, and it was recently reported that she's in talks to appear in the Safdie Brothers' next film. This weekend, you can catch her on the big screen in Dicks: The Musical. Recently, ComicBook.com had the chance to chat with the movie's writers and stars, Josh Sharp and Aaron Jackson, alongside director Larry Charles. The creatives opened up about working with Megan Thee Stallion and had nothing but kind words for the star.

"She's a niche artist," Sharp joked when we brought up Megan Thee Stallion's She-Hulk cameo. "She was great," Jackson added. "She was so professional, down to clown. I mean, she was a blast. My niece is obsessed with nails. She let me take pictures of her nails to send to my niece. She was just very cool."

"A person at that talent level could be a total pain to work with," Sharp added. "And you'd be like, 'Oh, it's worth it.' And she's not. She's nice and fun and hangs out ... Nothing but nice things to say about Meg."

"Very non-Diva-like," Charles added. "She's very cool."

"And gorgeous," Sharp continued. "Yeah, that was crazy," Jackson agreed.

What Is Dicks: The Musical About?

Dicks: The Musical is a new musical comedy from A24 that's an adaptation of the off-Broadway show F*cking Identical Twins by Josh Sharp and Aaron Jackson. Both Sharp and Jackson returned to write the script for the film version, and they star in the project as Craig and Trevor, long-lost identical twins who reunite and decide to get their parents (Megan Mullally and Nathan Lane) back together. The movie also features Megan Thee Stallion as their boss and SNL's Bowen Yang as God.

Dicks: The Musical may sound like The Parent Trap, but it's a queer-led Rated R romp with hilariously crude humor, terrifying puppets, and many unexpected turns. During ComicBook.com's interview with the creatives, we asked if they were worried about offending certain people, and Charles explained why he thinks Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer should be more controversial than Dicks: The Musical.

You can watch our conversation with Charles, Sharp, Jackson, and Yang in the video above. Stay tuned for more from our interview with the creatives behind Dicks: The Musical as well as stars Nathan Lane and Megan Mullally.

Dicks: The Musical will be released exclusively in theaters on October 6th.

Editor's note: Dicks: The Musical has a SAG waiver which allows the cast to give interviews during the SAG actors' strike.

Frank Herbert's Dune novel from 1965 earned praise for decades among the sci-fi crowd, thanks in large part to its dense mythology and sprawling scope. The only drawback to the expansive nature of the book is it didn't lend itself to being easily adapted into live-action, which is one reason David Lynch's 1984 Dune was largely considered a disappointment. Luckily, director John Harrison knew the story would work better when stretched out into an episodic format, resulting in the three-part Frank Herbert's Dune miniseries. Director Denis Villeneuve adopted a similar approach, breaking the book up into two films, with Harrison recently reflecting on how he is "very excited" about what Villeneuve is doing with the story and how it could introduce newcomers to his own miniseries. Harrison most recently directed segments for Shudder's Creepshow, which returns on October 13th.

"I'm very excited about it. Richard Rubenstein and I were still involved in the development of several attempts to try and get it off the ground after my miniseries. And maybe fortunately, some of those never came to pass because I think what Denis Villeneuve has done is just fantastic," Harrison recalled to ComicBook.com. "And I love him as a director. I wasn't involved at all in the latest movies except to have my name put up there. But I think it's just fantastic and I'm really looking forward to the new ones."

He added, "And I hope it does introduce a whole new audience to the Dune world. If they are able to get back and see my miniseries, I'm very proud of them. We were able to ... I think the success of them, they won a couple of Emmys and they were hugely successful here and abroad. I think they gave people faith that Dune actually could be adapted again."

Clearly Harrison's time in the sci-fi world was much more positive than Lynch's, as that filmmaker has admitted he has no interest in learning anything about Villeneuve's take on the material.

While speaking with French outlet Cahiers du Cin?ma earlier this year, on the topic of Villeneuve's Dune, Lynch replied, "I will never watch it, and I don't even want you to tell me about it, ever."

Harrison directed two segments in Creepshow, including the season premiere's "Smile" and the season finale's "Baby Teeth."

Based on George A. Romero's iconic 1982 horror-comedy classic, Creepshow is still the most fun you'll ever have being scared. A comic book comes to life in a series of vignettes, exploring terrors ranging from murder, creatures, monsters, and delusions to the supernatural and unexplainable. You never know what will be on the next page...

Creepshow Season 4 premieres on October 13th. Dune: Part Two is currently slated to hit theaters on March 14, 2024.

What do you think of Harrison's Dune adaptation? Let us know in the comments!

The second season of Marvel Studios' Loki is premiering on Disney+ tomorrow, and it will feature the return of the main cast in addition to some exciting newcomers. Behind the scenes, the series will also see the return of costume designer Christine Wada, who recently spoke with ComicBook.com about the cast's outfits. During the show's first season, Wada made headlines for designing Slyvie's (Sophia Di Martino) costume to have easy access for breastfeeding. We asked Wada if she made any special modifications this time around, and she revealed she made detachable sleeves so the actors could be more comfortable between takes.

"Yeah, I think the Temporal Core suit, I definitely feel pretty proud of that engineering feat," Wada shared. "It was like building a spaceship," she added with a laugh. "I think it had similar specifications in terms of actors' needs. I really wanted to make sure they weren't going to get too hot in it. So I designed the sleeves to come off. So between takes, it wasn't having to get them out of the entire suit, which would take a lot of time. So I made it so we could just take off the sleeves. I've made it modular for actor comfortability."

"Those suits get really hot and they're cumbersome, but then to take it all the way off and put it all the way back on is a lot of time for camera to be waiting," Wada added. "So I was trying to figure out the Tetris of that, but also it helped to give the suit volume."

What Is Loki Season 2 About?

Marvel Studios fan-favorite Tom Hiddleston stars in Loki Season 2, returning as the titular God of Mischief for another round of time-traveling hijinx on Disney+ on October 6th. Loki is once again joined by Mobius (Owen Wilson) as the two attempt to keep the timelines intact. After the events of Season 1 saw his variant Sylvie (Sophia Di Martino) kill He Who Remains and unleash the wrath of Kang the Conqueror upon the Multiverse, Loki must once again embark on an adventure to keep reality from collapsing. Loki was last seen in the post-credits scene of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, where he and Mobius were keeping tabs on one of Kang's mysterious variants. Loki Season 2 will continue the story of the Multiverse Saga in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Stay tuned for more from our interview with Christine Wada.

Dicks: The Musical is hitting theaters this weekend, and it sees Josh Sharp and Aaron Jackson reprising their roles from the off-Broadway show F*cking Identical Twins. Both Sharp and Jackson returned to write the script for the film version, and they star in the project alongside Megan Mullally, Nathan Lane, Megan Thee Stallion, and Bowen Yang. Dicks: The Musical isn't the first time Mullally and Lane have worked together, so ComicBook.com asked them if their friendship helped make the absurdist moments of the new comedy easier to film.

"I think that really helps," Mullally shared. "We've done a couple of other shows on Broadway and I do think it helps to have a relationship and we're friends in real life and so it all helps. And I also like to try to crack him up."

Lane added, "Yes. She's very successful at doing that. Well, yeah, there was a lot of laughter because it is so absurd, so fun, and crazy.

"Yeah," Mullally agreed. "I think there was one point at which we both had to crawl on the floor and we were like, 'Medic!'"

Larry Charles Says Oppenheimer Deserves More Death Threats Than Dicks: The Musical:

Dicks: The Musical is a queer-led Rated R romp with hilariously crude humor, terrifying puppets, and many unexpected turns. Recently, ComicBook.com had the chance to chat with Sharp, Jackson, and Yang alongside director Larry Charles, who is best known for writing and producing episodes of Seinfeld as well as directing Borat. During the interview, we asked if the creatives were worried about offending certain people, and Charles explained why he thinks Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer should be more controversial than Dicks: The Musical.

"You're not the first person to ask about these death threats and things like that. But really Oppenheimer should be getting death threats. Not this," Charles proclaimed. "He killed millions of people and everybody's like, 'Oh, Academy Award.' But here we have Bowen Yang as God, and everybody's all upset that we're going to get death threats. I don't get it. I really don't."

Sharp added, "The truth is, we really were thinking more about the people that would get this movie more than the people that wouldn't. We were making a movie that we were like, 'We get this.' And I know there are people who are crazy enough to get it, and anybody else will buy a ticket anyway," he added while blowing a kiss to the camera.

"Unlike Oppenheimer, the Japanese will love this," Yang joked.

You can watch our interview with Nathan Lane and Megan Mullally above. Stay tuned for more from our interviews with the creatives behind Dicks: The Musical.

Dicks: The Musical will be released exclusively in theaters on October 6th.

Editor's note: Dicks: The Musical has a SAG waiver which allows the cast to give interviews during the SAG actors' strike.

The highly-anticipated second season of Loki is premiering on Disney+ this week, and it will see the return of Tom Hiddleston in the titular role as well as fan favorites like Owen Wilson as Mobius and more. The new season will also feature some fresh blood, including Academy Award-winner Ke Huy Quan (Everything Everywhere All At Once), who is known for his childhood roles as Short Round in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom and Data in The Goonies. ComicBook.com recently had the chance to chat with Loki costume designer Christine Wada, and we asked her about working with Quan, and she revealed that O.B.'s costume has some nods to Data.

"Oh my god, it's just like he brings a jumpsuit life to life," Wada shared when asked about working with Quan. "And it was really fun because he talked about, well, the first fittings, or maybe it was a phone call, he talked about patches because Data had patches and he was like, 'What about patches? It'd be so fun.' And it was really, but then it quickly just became OB. Now just he brings so much, I mean, you could put him in a paper bag and he would bring life to it."

"He's so sweet, but he also is very dedicated and does his homework and really talks about whether, 'Should this feel a little more vintage?' I mean, we always wanted it to feel like the '30s or '40s, so [his costume] was pulled from a vintage jumpsuit from that era."

Christine Wada on Returning For Loki Season 2:

Loki marks the first time in Wada's career that she has returned for a show's second season, and she shared with us her reason why...

"First of all, the story really never ended in Season One," Wada explained. "So I had to complete the journey with the team. But of course, I really do think that this team and this job is just incredibly special. I think that probably starts from the pages and Tom [Hiddleston] and just the dedication everybody has to building this story and the quirkiness of it ... there was no way I couldn't. I knew it wasn't going to be the exact same thing. I knew it would be just expanding on the original vision. I mean, I think the best way to describe it is, I never really thought that this would be Season Two. I've just seen it as Part Two."

What Is Loki Season 2 About?

Marvel Studios fan-favorite Tom Hiddleston stars in Loki Season 2, returning as the titular God of Mischief for another round of time-traveling hijinx on Disney+ on October 6th. Loki is once again joined by Mobius (Owen Wilson) as the two attempt to keep the timelines intact. After the events of Season 1 saw his variant Sylvie (Sophia Di Martino) kill He Who Remains and unleash the wrath of Kang the Conqueror upon the Multiverse, Loki must once again embark on an adventure to keep reality from collapsing. Loki was last seen in the post-credits scene of Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania, where he and Mobius were keeping tabs on one of Kang's mysterious variants. Loki Season 2 will continue the story of the Multiverse Saga in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.

Stay tuned for more from our interview with Christine Wada.

John Carpenter put himself on the map with Halloween in 1978, and while he would return to co-write Halloween II, he has largely been absent from the franchise, apart from producing David Gordon Green's trilogy of films. The filmmaker has still been closely attached to the holiday, having developed the comic series Tales for a Halloween Night, which has been in development to be adapted into a TV series for years. Carpenter's producing partner Sandy King has confirmed that one stumbling block for the TV series was the Warner Bros. and Discovery merger, while the writers' strike was yet another setback, so it's unclear when, or if, the project will come back from the dead in the future. In the meantime, fans can see Carpenter and King's new TV series John Carpenter's Suburban Screams when it premieres on Peacock on October 13th.

"Well, that all fell apart when Discovery bought TNT, and they stopped unscripted and all that. I believe it's moving on for a second life at another network. We'll see what happens with that because it's a very different project [from Suburban Screams]," King shared with ComicBook.com. "We've got, oh God, about four different projects at different places right now. And now that the writers' strike is settled, we'll see whether they all rise from the dead. Some of them ... Who has a stake through its heart and who walks like a zombie, I have no idea."

Despite its title, the comic book series has no connection to the Halloween franchise, instead with the stories all being evocative of All Hallow's Eve and channeling that spooky spirit.

One of the last updates on the project came back in 2022, where Carpenter expressed the delays with the project due to the pandemic.

"There's progress that's always being held up by COVID. We're trying to get it finalized," Carpenter confirmed with ComicBook.com last year. "It has a home. I won't tell you about it right now. I'll tell you about it when it finally comes to fruition."

Luckily, fans can still check out some frightening content from Carpenter and King on Peacock.

The new series is described, "John Carpenter's Suburban Screams is a genre-busting unscripted horror anthology series from the mind of legendary director, writer, and producer, John Carpenter. The series explores the dark secrets and unspeakable evil that sometimes lurks beneath the surface of the sun-drenched streets, manicured lawns, and friendly neighbors of suburbia. Each episode focuses on one true tale of terror, told by the real people who lived through it. Their firsthand accounts are brought to life through premium cinematic scene-work, news clips, home photos, and archival footage, combining the visual language of horror films with the tools and techniques of documentaries, creating a uniquely frightening experience for viewers."

John Carpenter's Suburban Screams premieres on Peacock on October 13th. Stay tuned for updates on Tales for a Halloween Night.

Are you looking forward to the new series? Let us know in the comments or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

In the late '80s, filmmaker John Carpenter delivered an adaptation of the Ray Nelson short story "Eight O'Clock in the Morning" with They Live, an experience that was not only an entertaining sci-fi film in its own right, but one that tackled themes of subliminal advertising and control by major corporate and political forces. Given that these themes feel just as fresh, if not even more relevant, in our current media and political climate, some feel like a new take on the material would be almost too obvious, though one producer of that film Sandy King recently hinted that there could be a new project connected to the movie on the horizon. King and Carpenter's next project, John Carpenter's Suburban Screams, premieres on Peacock on October 13th.

When asked by ComicBook.com if such a story would be possible today, King hinted, "That's a little like watching CNN now, isn't it? I think that if you stay tuned, you might actually see something before too long." In regards to whether this could mean a new chapter in the narrative could actually be coming, King hinted, "There might be."

Given that They Live was based on a previously published story, it's possible that a new adaptation could be developed that wasn't a direct remake of the 1988 film and instead is an experience that reimagined the key components of the source material. However, with a number of Carpenter films having been remade and rebooted over the years, a more straightforward revival of the story could be on the way.

This isn't the first time we've gotten a tease of They Live's future, as Carpenter himself expressed the possibility of it back in 2018.

"Well, I'm not gonna tell you about that, because it might be closer to reality than you think," Carpenter told Den of Geek in regards to a contemporary revival. "There was a feature film. It was a feature film called Resistance, written by, oh, the guy who did the [Planet of the] Apes movies. Matt Reeves. But then he moved on, and so the sequel is, well, we'll see. We'll just have to see."

In the meantime, fans can see Carpenter and King venturing into all-new territory for them and Storm King Productions, as Suburban Screams blends together genre elements with true-crime stories.

The series is described, "John Carpenter's Suburban Screams is a genre-busting unscripted horror anthology series from the mind of legendary director, writer, and producer, John Carpenter. The series explores the dark secrets and unspeakable evil that sometimes lurks beneath the surface of the sun-drenched streets, manicured lawns, and friendly neighbors of suburbia. Each episode focuses on one true tale of terror, told by the real people who lived through it. Their firsthand accounts are brought to life through premium cinematic scene-work, news clips, home photos, and archival footage, combining the visual language of horror films with the tools and techniques of documentaries, creating a uniquely frightening experience for viewers."

John Carpenter's Suburban Screams, premieres on Peacock on October 13th. Stay tuned for updates on the possible future of They Live.

Would you like to see They Live make a return? Let us know in the comments or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

Dicks: The Musical is a new musical comedy from A24 that's an adaptation of the off-Broadway show F*cking Identical Twins by Josh Sharp and Aaron Jackson. Both Sharp and Jackson returned to write the script for the film version, and they star in the project as Craig and Trevor, long-lost identical twins who reunite and decide to get their parents (Megan Mullally and Nathan Lane) back together. The movie also features Megan Thee Stallion as their boss and SNL's Bowen Yang as God.

Dicks: The Musical may sound like The Parent Trap, but it's a queer-led Rated R romp with hilariously crude humor, terrifying puppets, and many unexpected turns. Recently, ComicBook.com had the chance to chat with Sharp, Jackson, and Yang alongside director Larry Charles, who is best known for writing and producing episodes of Seinfeld as well as directing Borat. During the interview, we asked if the creatives were worried about offending certain people, and Charles explained why he thinks Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer should be more controversial than Dicks: The Musical.

"You're not the first person to ask about these death threats and things like that. But really Oppenheimer should be getting death threats. Not this," Charles proclaimed. "He killed millions of people and everybody's like, 'Oh, Academy Award.' But here we have Bowen Yang as God, and everybody's all upset that we're going to get death threats. I don't get it. I really don't."

Sharp added, "The truth is, we really were thinking more about the people that would get this movie more than the people that wouldn't. We were making a movie that we were like, 'We get this.' And I know there are people who are crazy enough to get it, and anybody else will buy a ticket anyway," he added while blowing a kiss to the camera.

"Unlike Oppenheimer, the Japanese will love this," Yang joked.

You can watch our hilarious conversation with Charles, Sharp, Jackson, and Yang in the video above. Stay tuned for more from our interview with the creatives behind Dicks: The Musical as well as stars Nathan Lane and Megan Mullally.

Dicks: The Musical will be released exclusively in theaters on October 6th.

Editor's note: Dicks: The Musical has a SAG waiver which allows the cast to give interviews during the SAG actors' strike.

Writer/director Anna Zlokovic first delivered audiences the disturbing short film "Appendage" back in 2021, though since first diving into the world of anxieties manifesting themselves as literal creatures, she has since returned to that world to expand the concept into the feature film Appendage. More than just expanding the run time, this new take on the concept brought together more characters and mythology for Zlokovic to dive into, all of which were rooted in the real-world concept of envisioning mental struggles as being a part of yourself, yet one that you could separate yourself from. Appendage is now streaming on Hulu.

When speaking with ComicBook.com about the inspiration for the original short, Zlokovic explained, "Honestly, it was anxiety. It was just having anxiety, having imposter syndrome, not knowing what to do with those emotions. I had a session in therapy probably 10 years ago or something where my therapist was like, 'Let's try this exercise where we separate your anxiety from yourself and we can have a conversation. Maybe we describe it, but just create a character from it.' And that always stuck with me. I think when I was trying to make this movie about anxiety, I was like, 'Hmm, that could be really, really cool. A cool monster movie.' And so that's where it came from."

Appendage is described, "Hannah (Hadley Robinson), a young fashion designer, seems fine on the surface, but secretly struggles with debilitating self-doubt. Soon these buried feelings begin to make Hannah physically sick and sprout into a ferocious growth on her body: The Appendage. As Hannah's health declines, The Appendage begins to fuel her anxieties -- her perceived lack of talent at work, her deteriorating relationships with her boyfriend and best friend, and her parents' lack of love and understanding. At her breaking point, Hannah makes a shocking discovery -- there are others out there like her."

Much like real life, the mythology of the Appendage feature film was more layered, with the feature allowing Zlokovic opportunities to expand on those sources of anxiety.

"You can only do so much with five and a half minutes. So I was really excited to dive into a longer form thing where we could delve in and recontextualize and be like, 'Okay, we talk about work. And then it's like three layers of Hell when we go into family relationships and then just deep childhood trauma.' And that was kind of exciting to expand it in that way, narratively," the filmmaker expressed.

Returning to this world for a feature didn't only bring an abundance of opportunity, but also some challenges.

"I think the tone was the biggest challenge. I always wanted it to land in this really nuanced place that was unexpected. I didn't want it to be too funny because I think if it went too campy, it would not be as sincere in terms of Hannah's struggle," Zlokovic pointed out. "And then if it's too dark, it's too isolating. So that was always the biggest challenge of where do we add humor? What are those moments? It's dark humor and how do we balance that with the psychological drama that fuels the whole story?"

After first doing a short horror-comedy and now expanding it into a feature horror-comedy, Zlokovic knows the iconic character she set her sights on.

"I would love to do a Frankenstein movie, so bring it on," Zlokovic confessed. "I think it'd be so rad. I think that story is emotional on so many levels, and I am very attracted to emotional horror."

Appendage is now streaming on Hulu.

What did you think of the movie? Let us know in the comments or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

Whenever the spooky season approaches, movie fans start to scour all of their favorite streaming services to find tales of terror to help them get into the Halloween spirit, with fans being lucky if a service has even a few dozen appropriate titles. For Shudder subscribers, however, it's an embarrassment of riches, as the streamer not only has hundreds of horror titles to watch all year, but they even have original titles that are exclusive to the service. Even though fans can dive deep into Shudder's vast library all year, October still brings with it some exciting additions to the streamer, as confirmed by VP of Programming Sam Zimmerman.

While fans can stream movies like Evil Dead 2, The Lords of Salem, Halloween, and The Babadook all month long, the coming weeks will see all-new and exclusive titles appearing on the service, like V/H/S/85 and When Evil Lurks, a new season of Creepshow will also debut on the service and later this month, as will the surprise double feature will premiere live on Shudder TV thanks to Joe Bob's Helloween. And if all of these choices feel overwhelming, Zimmerman himself will be manning the Halloween Hotline, where you can call in on Friday, October 27th to get personalized recommendations to satisfy your thirst.

ComicBook.com caught up with Zimmerman to talk October programming, celebrating Halloween, and more.

ComicBook.com: I haven't really talked to you since you had your son. As a horror fan, how has this changed your connection to horror? Or has it changed your connection at all?

Samuel Zimmerman: Honestly, that's a good question, because I don't know if it has yet. I know people who had a baby and then were incredibly sensitive to certain things in horror films. Obviously, many of them involving children. I haven't reached that threshold yet unless it's ... When it's wanton killing, killer-kid silliness, it doesn't bother me. When there's very sensitive things about babies, that's gotten to me a little bit.

The thing I've become most conscious of is, I don't want to force loving horror movies onto him, because I feel like that will be immediately reactionary. He'll be like, "It's not cool. You like it. You're my dad." So I feel like I have to figure out an Inception-style way to have this child appreciate horror in his life.

On the more genuine level, I'm sure for you it's, there is no differentiation between how you are as a horror fan as a dad, in that, how do you enjoy pizza as a dad? Everything about you is fundamentally, slightly different because you are a dad, so how are you going to know how that has impacted you? And then the other part of me is thinking, I'm glad that your son is, what, eight months? And you're already wondering, "How am I going to get him into horror?"

Or get him into it in a way that he likes it. I'm so conscious of ... Pop culturally, I feel like we live in a world where everything is so fandom-based, and people base a lot of things they do around their fandom. I don't necessarily want that to be the way I'm a dad, I want him to find the thing he appreciates and loves. And if it's horror, that's great, but if it's something else, then I'll learn something else about the world.

Just don't be upset if he's more into Peppa the Pig first, before something like Possession.

I would hope so. We do have a cool alphabet book called B Is for Boo. That's a fun one. There's a lot of ghosts and candy and Frankensteins and Draculas, and trick or treating.

Have you read the children's book adaptation of Halloween?

No.

It is shockingly good, because it is not one of those things where it is adapted into a cutesy Little Golden type of book. It is all of the plot points of Halloween including the deaths and the murder, but in a rhyme scheme, and with more playful illustrations. Maybe when he gets closer to six or eight, that'll be more appropriate. But keep that in mind.

Stewart Thorndike, who directed Bad Things, which we released just a few weeks ago, and Lyle, has children, and Stewart sent me a book about a bear who wants his hat back, and I think eventually murders to get it back. And that was a pretty incredible children's book to get in the mail.

We are officially in October. It's official. Since you and I, horror all year long is our love. So for you, when it does come to October, when it comes to Halloween, there's so much exciting, awesome stuff to do. But for you, what is your, "It's not Halloween unless I do this, it's not Halloween unless I watch this,"? What are your Halloween traditions, Halloween staples?

I say this just because we watched it last night. My wife hadn't seen it, but I've seen it many times, we watched Hell House LLC last night. And I think that's becoming a bit of a Halloween staple for me because it's so pure in the way it works. It really is like, "Here's something that shouldn't be able to move," the camera comes away, "Oh, it moved." And that never gets old. It feels like you're walking through a fun house. So Hell House LLC absolutely.

Ghostwatch, the BBC film is one of my favorite annual Halloween watches. I think it's maybe one of the best movies ever set on Halloween, and is so much fun and hopefully will be returning to Shudder in 2024.

I'm, of course, a big fan of all things autumnal, being from New York and the New England area, so I want to do things that involve cider and donuts and apples and sweaters and hayrides and people in grim reaper costumes jumping out at you. So all of the things that I think we think of as classically Halloween are important to me, and hopefully that extends into what the programming on Shudder is like in October, because I think yourself, me, Shudder is 24 hours a day, all year-round horror. So what does October mean when you are like that? To me, October is a feeling and it's like Halloween's in the air, it's crisp, it's mischievous. That's hopefully what the V/H/S films are doing and When Evil Lurks is doing. And Evil Dead 2 is on the service as of October. So I think to me it's about the feeling of October carrying through what I do but also what's on Shudder.

Speaking of Shudder, this month, is Jennifer Reeder the curator?

Jennifer Reeder is currently one of our guest curators, and we're going to have another one, which I think maybe you'll appreciate, though I know you have very intense opinions on hardcore music. But yes, Jennifer Reeder is currently our guest curator. And Jennifer Reeder directed Perpetrator, which we love and admire, and her taste is just as stupendous as her filmmaking skill.

And did you have to withhold a scoop there about hardcore music?

I don't know if it's much of a scoop, we just haven't announced it yet. And when the collection is up, you'll see it.

How dare you bait me like that! But it's nice to see that the frontman of Disturbed is curating some selections on Shudder.

The most hardcore man alive.

So going along with guest curation, if you, Sam Zimmerman, were to select the five titles that you are most excited for fans to watch on Shudder in October, what would be the things that are like, "If you sign up for Shudder right now, check out these five movies,"?

Okay, I'm going to do a mix of new and previous Shudder films.

I think maybe one of our most essential movies to watch this month on Shudder is When Evil Lurks. It's in theaters on Friday on October 6th, that comes to Shudder on October 27th. It is by Demi?n Rugna, who made Terrified, which is also known as Aterrados. He is a filmmaker from Argentina. I think he is a legitimate new-school master of horror. And When Evil Lurks is so terrifying and grisly and provocative and exciting, I think it's one of the best horror movies of the year. We're so proud of Demi?n, we're so proud of the film. I think it is an essential watch for the season. A hundred percent. By extension, but not an official selection of mine, Terrified. If you've not seen Terrified, I highly recommend it. It is one of the most perfect spooky, scary, bump-in-the-night films you can watch.

So, When Evil Lurks, then I'm going to highly recommend an Irish film called Caveat, which I love, that we released I think in June of 2021, but I may be mistaken. This is a film by a director named Damian McCarthy. We don't only work with Damians, but when we do, we're very excited by the work they do. This is Damian's first film. He did it really independently in Ireland. It's about a young man who comes out of a halfway house situation, is hired for a strange job to oversee his boss's niece as she grieves her father in a strange house. And then there are several things he has not been told about the house until he gets there. It's on an island, it's incredibly dilapidated, and he has to wear a strange harness that prevents him from going in certain rooms. This film is so unique and scary, and I, again, blow out the candles on a Friday night, perfect watch.

So When Evil Lurks, Caveat ... Deadstream, which we released last year, and to me is the perfect idea of what a horror-comedy is and can be, it's as funny as it is scary. It has that Halloween spirit of being mischievous but creepy, and this amazing mythology of all the weird guys going on around the house. There's the tall gentleman, and the demonic possession aspect of it. And I think Joseph and Vanessa Winter who created it are going to be perfect horror filmmakers. I adore them. By extension, their segment in V/H/S/99 is incredible. It's so funny, and I think it's wild that it took five films for someone to say, "We should send the camera to hell."

So we got Caveat, When Evil Lurks, Deadstream. I am going to also suggest V/H/S/85, because it comes out this weekend. And it is our third V/H/S production with a really astonishing lineup of directors. Scott Derrickson, David Bruckner, Natasha Kermani, Gigi Saul Guerrero, Mike Nelson. They all bring such individual perspectives to what they're trying to do within the framework of a V/H/S film in the '80s. And every segment is operating on a really high level. Every segment is its own thing, but they all work together beautifully and structurally surprisingly. So I think V/H/S/85 is really special, I'm very excited for the folks to see it. And then I'm just going to throw one that is not a Shudder original, but it is now on Shudder, and I think it's in my top five of horror films from 2000 to now, and that's Lake Mungo.

There's five.

There's my five.

I mean, because you slip Terrified in there...

By extension.

Fair enough, fair enough. Now, fans don't only have to hear what you would curate, because we have the Halloween Hotline where fans can call in and speak to you directly. What is the most rewarding aspect for you to get to connect with fans, and getting to connect them with movies that maybe they hadn't heard of and just learn from the Shudder community what they're interested in?

It's those two things. I mean, the actual act of getting to talk to our members around the country is always just so nice. Everyone is so kind and cool. And through the course of doing the hotline over a few years, we've had so many repeat callers and folks I've gotten to know a little bit better than just talking to them for two minutes once. So it's really nice to hear about their lives, and what they're doing, and how they're progressing, but also how Shudder is playing into it. So, A, just the general connection of talking to our members and hearing what they're into is really nice, and B, the joy of putting something on someone's radar that they have not seen yet but really loved is the coolest. It's something that I feel really grateful for when someone puts me onto a movie that I've never seen before and then it blows my mind. I only hope I can do the same.

And when it comes to, let's say someone calls and you're listening and you're like, "This person has terrible taste. They have awful taste"--

Never do that.

But, are you ever like, "I personally don't like this movie, but I think they will like it"? Or in your mind, are you like, "You're in the right direction, but let me push you towards something I, Sam, am more of a fan of,"?

No, I think Shudder, as a concept, has to do and showcase everything that the genre can. What I hope is that in doing so and in finding every nook and cranny of the genre and every subgenre, we're programming things that we're enthusiastic about. So when I speak to someone and maybe our tastes don't quite align, my job is to put myself in their shoes and say, "I hear what you're into, and I want to point you in the direction, because I think something else that you'll be into that you'll be excited by."

I think working at Shudder and being a part of Shudder has just made me generally more open. I think maybe some years ago you might've heard me say things like, "Oh, I'm not really into zombie movies," but that's a limiting perspective because there's always great zombie movies and something's going to come along and surprise you. So, I always try to be open. Also, the biggest lesson of my life is that I'm a huge Halloween III fan, and for so long the tide was not turned on Halloween III, people hated it. And when I was a kid it was just getting roasted a little bit for loving that movie. So I try not to roast others.

Also, how nuts is it that you and I bought matching Halloween III patches a decade ago?

Yeah. In Austin. I also bought an Alucarda shirt that day.

Absolutely did. But I was like, "How long? Oh, my God. I've known Sam for so long."

And we've appreciated Halloween III for so long, and it's so nice to see people come around on it.

Not to put you on the spot, but I've got my top four favorite horror movies. I like to keep the fifth pick rotating, so we're just going to stick with four. So I'm going to hit you with my top four and I want to hear what's a good double feature, what you think I should check out on Shudder. So, number one: Creepshow.

The Mortuary Collection. It's an anthology we released by Ryan Spindell. It's stylish and fun in the way Creepshow is. It's very arch in the way Creepshow is. And then also Creepshow is one of those rare anthologies that all comes from one director, and Mortuary Collection is as well. So I would line those up pretty quick.

And, as an extension, Creepshow, the TV series.

Well, that of course as well. Sometimes you don't want to be as obvious, but Creepshow the TV series. The way to go.

Number two: now streaming on Shudder, Possession.

Possession ... There are not many films in the world like Possession. However, I think one of the modern horror films that actually captures the spirit of someone like Andrzej ?u?awski is Resurrection, which came out last year with Rebecca Hall. I think the psychological distress and paranoia of that film, and then the shocking place it goes in its second half, gives me that sense that, here is someone who is operating on a similar level.

And Rebecca Hall also gives the most captivating, tortured performance. So they've got that in common also. Number three: Rosemary's Baby.

Rosemary's Baby ... I mean, there's a lot of films we have I think that are Satanic in nature in some respects. And so there's quite a few to choose from, but you know what I would say, in not a direct correlation because of pregnancy or anything like that, but we have a Bryan Bertino movie called The Dark and the Wicked. I think it's the nature of something that feels legitimately demonic. And I know Rosemary's Baby has an absurd sensibility, but I think a demon being visited upon your family, I would point someone toward The Dark and the Wicked.

I didn't have prepared answers for any of these, but as soon as you started ruminating, I jumped to Watcher with Maika Monroe.

That's great, yeah.

In that paranoid "is there something sinister, is it all in her head?" slowly paced world.

And I think there's something you're onto there about the general contemporary paranoia of being a woman, right? Rosemary's Baby is so much about, "I'm experiencing something and no one believes me." And Watcher is very much about that as well.

I might be misremembering, but I also think the opening title of Watcher is a pink, cursive font. Honestly, that could be all it was. It's like, "Oh, the words look the same. So watch those together." Lastly: Suspiria.

She Will. This is a witch film that came out last year that's also executive-produced by Dario Argento, so maybe the connection was made very quickly for me. But Alice Krige is in it, and she's incredible as this woman who goes to this resort, this wellness resort in the Highlands in the UK, and is manifesting witchcraft and witch power. And I think like Suspiria, it's kaleidoscopic, and it is sensual, and it is overall something really cool to be experienced.

Lastly here, I remember sitting with you when you were in talks to get this job at Shudder back in L.A., and you telling me, "It's a streaming service, and it's going to be just horror movies. It could be this really cool thing." And since then, not just you, but also just Shudder itself has become so unique compared to all of the other streamers out there, that it seems to be the only streamer whose focus is on quality and building a brand and building a connection with audiences. Between the originals, the various acquisitions, the TV shows,the Ghoul Log, The Core, Shudder TV, so many awesome things have come out of Shudder, do you have a dream project at Shudder that just hasn't quite come together yet that you are still working towards that you would like to see? Whether it is a programming thing or an interface thing?

The answer is not anything specific, but it's my general ambition, and what I try to say every year is I believe, if we can, and we should try, is that every year we should release the scariest film of the year. That is a very general ambition I have for Shudder. I think we may have done it this year with When Evil Lurks, and I look forward to all the work to do to make it happen in subsequent years.

You can stay up to date on all the latest Shudder updates on social media.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity. You can contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter.

Monster High 2 director Todd Holland says the sequel is bringing more action on Nickelodeon. The monsters are using their powers a lot more in Monster High 2. ComicBook.com's Aaron Perine talked to the filmmaker about the highly-anticipated sequel. Holland says that Clawdeen, Draculaura and Frankie Stein are in sophomore year, and their friendship is going to be put to the test. Challenges await the trio both inside Monster High and from outside those walls. Luckily, their powers are growing and there's no challenge they can't handle together. Here's what the director said about this year at Monster High.

"I gotta say honestly, remarkably, we raised the bar. We didn't have tons of more, tons, more resources, but we raised the bar. We didn't have tons of more, tons, more resources, but we raised the bar," Holland explained. "There is a little of slow start and then because a lot of set-up that has to happen. But, once it goes, it goes big. I think you're going to be excited. There's a lot of action in this one. A lot more boy monster powers, for the dudes watching."

"We finally got some boy monster powers in. And, they actually have the most expensive visual effects and monster powers. That's why they're hard to get in the movie. But, everybody's got stuff," the director added. "The actors saw the movie last night for the first time at out house. And Draculaura was saying, 'I had so much magic in all my scenes! I had no idea what this is gonna look like.' You know? She was bowled over. So, there's magic, there's action, there's monster powers. There's a lot going on."

Monster High 2 Premieres This Weekend

Monster High 2 was all-but a given considering the runaway success of Monster High: The Movie. Nickelodeon signed up for more spooky season hijinks in October of last year. Todd Holland is back in the director's chair and ready to up the ante with a trip back to everyone's favorite campus. During the first movie's launch week, Monster High: The Movie was the #1 kids and family movie on Paramount+. There were 4 million total viewers that weekend and that was more than enough. It feels like the Monster High fever hasn't really slowed down, especially with Halloween almost here again.

"We are ecstatic to tell the monstrous next chapter of this beloved franchise to our audience," said Zack Olin and Shauna Phelan, Co-Heads of Nickelodeon & Awesomeness Live-Action. "Monster High's message of embracing one's unique self is as important as ever and we look forward to expanding the stories of these fan-favorite characters."

What's New In Monster High 2?

Here's how Nickelodeon describes the new movie: "Monster High 2 follows Clawdeen Wolf (Miia Harris), Draculaura (Nayah Damasen) and Frankie Stein (Ceci Balagot) as they enter sophomore year at Monster High. The power of three is put to the test as they face even bigger challenges this year--new students, new powers, evolving friendships, and an even bigger threat that could not only tear their friendship apart, but could change the world forever. The movie will also introduce new character Toralei (Salena Qureshi), a feisty British were-cat, back after a year abroad in Scaris, France."

Monster High 2 streams on Paramount+ and Nickelodeon Thursday October 5 at 7p.m.

Are you excited for more Monster High? Let us know down in the comments!

This year marks 30 years since the release of Leprechaun, a unique horror-comedy that has earned seven sequels to date. While the film wasn't a tremendous success when it first landed in theaters, its blend of humor and terror resonated with audiences, at least enough for its legacy to not only still be felt, but enough for Lionsgate to announce earlier this year that a reboot was in the works. Mark Jones directed that original installment, which starred Warwick Davis in the titular role and also starred a then-unknown Jennifer Aniston. All eight Leprechaun films are currently streaming on Hulu.

The original film is described, "When a greedy tourist steals a Leprechaun's pot of gold, the evil sprite goes on a murderous mission to get it back."

"I think part of it was we didn't try to take ourselves too seriously. I put the elements that I knew ... I came from Saturday morning, I started out writing Scooby-Doo cartoons, and I was, by the way, I was eight years old when I directed Leprechaun, so I wanted to make that clear," Jones recently recalled to ComicBook.com about why the film has earned a lasting legacy. "So I really, really wanted to make it. I just didn't want another direct-to-video, '90s slasher movie. I just think the kids found that, and not just kids, but I mean younger people in their 30s, the people who were going to the theater. So I think it was the tone. And I even lit it with some color, and my DP, Levy Isaacs, who was terrific, he got it. We did a live-action Scooby-Doo-ish thing. If you notice the costumes on the kids or the wardrobe is colorful. So that was planned."

He added, "I did not think it would be going into number nine. If I did, I would've made a much better deal in the beginning, on the first one. So no, I didn't see it [becoming a fan-favorite], but once it got released ... And I was killed by the critics, they didn't understand what we were doing. So they think, they're comparing it to The Exorcist and big studio pictures. Now, they got it. It took 20 years, but they realized that it's a fun, cult classic. So I couldn't be happier."

Leprechaun was released a year before Aniston debuted in Friends, with no one knowing how successful the sitcom would be or that Aniston would become such a sensation in subsequent years. Even though Aniston didn't become a breakout hit after Leprechaun, Jones knew almost immediately that she had something special.

"When she walked in the room and we were looking at 200 girls, and she was really a nobody, she had done a couple of episodic things, but she walked in and I turned to my producing partner and I said, 'Boy, I hope she can act,' because she just had something in the room. She had a charisma. I mean, incredibly, an aura," the director confirmed. "And I said, 'There's just something about her,' and she could act."

He continued, "I actually fought the studio, it was down to her and another girl, and they wanted the other girl, and I said, 'We have to have Jennifer.' So I did win that battle. Of course, the studio now takes credit, but I did see it and I saw it on the set. Did I think she [would become] as big as she did? No, I would've kept her phone number so I could have borrowed some money from her if I knew she was going to get that big. But no, she did have, I thought, something very special."

All eight films in the Leprechaun franchise are now streaming on Hulu. Stay tuned for updates on the reboot of the Leprechaun series.

What do you think of the film? Let us know in the comments or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

Any cinematic franchise that is lucky enough to earn eight entries is likely going to have select installments that don't quite meet the expectations of the most effective entries, which can surely be said of the Leprechaun franchise. After Warwick Davis starred in the first six entries in the series, Leprechaun Origins aimed to reinvent the franchise, which delivered audiences a more monstrous take on the titular villain than the wisecracking character seen in the previous films. Director of the original movie Mark Jones recently looked back on the frustrations with the approach Origins took to the series. The entire Leprechaun franchise is now streaming on Hulu.

"[Leprechaun Origins] I thought was absolutely the wrong way to go," Jones shared with ComicBook.com. "For some reason, TriMark always wanted a straight horror thing, and I said, 'You're missing the humor.' They didn't use Warwick. [Leprechaun Returns] I thought was really good. I thought the actor portrayed a good version of Warwick, and it was a direct sequel, so I think they realized they needed to go back to the roots."

Speaking about the previously announced reboot, Jones continued, "I hope they continue and I know there's a reboot coming and I'll find out more about it, but I hope they go back to what made it work, which was the fun character and all that. So I wasn't real happy with Origins too much, only because it was the wrong direction and it didn't do well. Nobody likes it, the fans don't like it."

In 2018, Leprechaun Returns embraced the popular trend of trying to revive a franchise by delivering a direct sequel to the original installment, which starred Linden Porco as the Leprechaun. Despite being a fan of Leprechaun Returns, Jones would like to see Davis return to the series.

"I've talked to Warwick and I think he was unique. The fans loved him. He and I really created that character on the first one on the set and meeting," the director confessed. "So I think Warwick, it would be great to bring him back. At some point, he didn't really want to do horror because his kids were younger, but he said maybe when time goes on, and I think it's there. So we'll see. I think they should, and I actually have a project that would be interesting, and I have talked to Warwick about it, but there's nothing committed. So I think we should."

Stay tuned for details on the future of the Leprechaun franchise. All eight films are currently streaming on Hulu.

What do you think of the filmmaker's remarks? Let us know in the comments or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

Released back in 1993, Leprechaun has earned a passionate following among fans, with the movie earning seven sequels to date. It's hard to pinpoint the singular element that has made it such a success, as it occupies a unique place in the world of horror, largely due to the ways in which it blends elements of terror with silly slapstick. According to director Mark Jones, his initial approach to the material was to lean fully into the absurdity, as he recently confirmed that there's a director's cut of the film that is much goofier than the theatrical release, despite director's cuts often including more intense sequences that had to be trimmed to meet the demands of censors. The entire Leprechaun franchise is currently streaming on Hulu.

"I originally wrote it to be comedy-horror, and I said I didn't want to do a straight slasher and stuff," Jones recalled to ComicBook.com. "There is a director's cut somewhere and I got to find it ... The kids loved it, because I wanted it to be a kid's horror movie, like Scooby-Doo, but live-action. The studio wanted more hard R, and when they saw how the kids reacted and it became this classic thing, then they [said], 'Oh, we should have let you keep even more comedy.' I had a lot of battles with the studio, but eventually it came out, I think, because of [star] Warwick [Davis], Warwick got the humor."

While it might not particularly be known for its graphic violence, Jones noted that it was the inclusion of more violent scenes that sets the theatrical release apart from the director's cut.

When speaking about the differences, Jones detailed, "It had the violence in it. They added inserts later for a little more violence, but there were actual scenes, cartoon things. There were scenes of the Leprechaun being run over by the truck and we don't see them, and there's tire tracks and he digs himself up and he's got tire tracks down the back. A bunch of cute little scenes that they thought should be taken out. But it was my first-time picture. I didn't have final cuts, so I had to listen to them. So there was some comedy taken out."

The original film is described, "When a greedy tourist steals a Leprechaun's pot of gold, the evil sprite goes on a murderous mission to get it back."

The entire Leprechaun franchise is currently streaming on Hulu.

Would you like to see a director's cut of the film? Let us know in the comments or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

Prey has a surprise hidden in its footage. The new Predator movie was filmed primarily in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, and shot on the Stoney Nakoda First Nation lands (doubling for the Comanche Nation). After filming was over however, director Dan Trachtenberg realized a problem that they had, they needed extra footage that they hadn't shot. Luckily for him, Prey's visual effects supervisor Ryan Cook had a solution, extra footage from another movie that they could sneak in. That's right, in Prey there are two shots in the movie however that don't belong to the movie, at least not originally. You'd never know it, especially since some VFX have been added to make them fit into Prey, but for about ten seconds when you're watching Prey you're actually watching footage from 2020's Call of the Wild remake.

While watching Prey, be it on Hulu or when it arrives on 4K next month, you would never notice that for a few seconds it uses two shots originally meant for 2020's The Call of the Wild, but they're there. After Amber Midthunder's Naru escapes the Predator, fresh from killing a bear, she swims away in the river at about the 45:22 mark in the film, and for the next two shots of this movie the footage actually comes from The Call of the Wild (with Midthunder's character added with VFX).

The revelation for this footage comes via Dan Trachtenberg's commentary for the home media release of Prey. When the sequence begins to play out in the film, Amber Midthunder says on the commentary "That water was so cold," only for Trachtenberg to add, "That's not you. That's not even our movie." ComicBook.com spoke with Trachtenberg for the upcoming release of the film on home media, and naturally, we had to ask about it. As for how it came to be, it was like we said, simply a matter of production being over and realizing that they still needed a few pieces. You can see one of the shots below.

"Yeah, literally, we need those things. We need to transition," Trachtenberg revealed about The Call of the Wild footage in Prey. "We only got a little bit, we needed more and Call of the Wild is a 20th Century movie. And I remembered hearing on commentary for Blade Runner that the end of Blade Runner that has Decker driving off into the countryside was because Kubrick let him use the extra footage from The Shining, That already was like, 'Oh, that's the thing we can do.' And our effects supervisor worked on Call of the Wild and he shot second unit, shot the drone footage and was aware of it."

Prey using footage from another movie isn't unheard of in Hollywood, in fact plenty of high profile movies have done it in the past. Blade Runner as Trachtenberg said is one notable example, but in Raiders of the Lost Ark Steven Spielberg used footage from Lost Horizon to complete the movie. Classic Disney cartoons would reuse animatics with some frequency too, with Robin Hood re-using animation from Jungle Book, Snow White, and more. In short, Prey is in good company.

Prey is available now on 4K, Blu-ray and DVD October 3, with over two hours of all-new bonus features.

With Scott Derrickson's The Black Phone, based on the short story by Joe Hill, audiences were taken to the frightening world of "The Grabber," a disturbed kidnapper whose victims ended up leading to his downfall in a supernatural surprise. This world is full of various storytelling opportunities that could be set in the past, present, or future, with Derrickson confirming that a follow-up film is definitely still on the table, though if Ethan Hawke didn't return as The Grabber, it wouldn't be a story worth telling. Derrickson most recently contributed to the anthology film V/H/S/85, which hits Shudder on October 6th.

While speaking with ComicBook.com in support of V/H/S/85, when asked about a The Black Phone sequel, Derrickson confirmed, "It's possible. It's not a definite thing, but if it does become definite, you'll be the first to hear." As far as the importance of Hawke to the experience, Derrickson added, "I can tell you this much, I wouldn't make a Black Phone sequel without Ethan. I don't think there'd be any point in doing that."

Joe Hill similarly pointed out how the mask worn by The Grabber would be a significant fixture of any future films.

"There have been some really, really good conversations about a sequel. And the thing is, as soon as I saw the mask, which was designed by Tom Savini and Jason Baker, as soon as I saw the mask I thought, 'If this film is a hit, there'll be a sequel,' because the mask is so iconic," Hill admitted to ComicBook.com in 2022 about a sequel. "It is like Freddy Krueger's glove, it is like Michael Myers' mask, it is this thing where it's the imagery, iconic imagery, that haunts people's sleep. And, look, in horror, guys like Jason Voorhees and Freddy Krueger, and Frankenstein, and Dracula, none of these guys stay buried. They all claw their way out of the grave for a sequel and then a threequel."

He continued, "There have been talks about how to do a sequel that wouldn't suck. How to do a sequel that doesn't cheapen the film that came before, that's still scary, that's still intense, that feels organic. And those conversations have been pretty good. But if I were to provide any details, Scott and [writer C. Robert] Cargill would lock me in the basement in the film, and that's it. And the phone doesn't work. As you know, the phone doesn't work. I can't call anyone to get out. So I would decline to offer any real granular details about the possible sequel."

In the meantime, audiences can see Derrickson's latest effort in V/H/S/85.

This new sequel is described, "An ominous mixtape blends never before seen snuff footage with nightmarish newscasts and disturbing home video to create a surreal, analog mashup of the forgotten '80s."

Filmmakers who have contributed to this latest installment include Scott Derrickson (Sinister, Doctor Strange, The Black Phone), David Bruckner (The Ritual, Hellraiser - 2022), Gigi Saul Guerrero (Bingo Hell, The Purge TV series), Natasha Kermani (Lucky), and Mike P. Nelson (Wrong Turn - 2021).

Stay tuned for updates on a sequel to The Black Phone. V/H/S/85 hits Shudder on October 6th.

Would you like to see a sequel to The Black Phone? Let us know in the comments or contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter to talk all things Star Wars and horror!

Filmmaker, podcaster, and journalist David Farrier has spent years pursuing answers to all manner of questions, with the only consistency between his discoveries being that he can never really predict where any of these journeys will end up. Take his film Tickled, for example, which began with an investigation into viral videos featuring "competitive endurance tickling" and ultimately unraveled years of blackmail, coercion, and harassment from a mysterious and wealthy figure. Farrier's latest film, Mister Organ, similarly starts with what feels like a fairly innocuous inquiry, only to result in arguably his most harrowing and emotionally destructive experience yet. Mister Organ opens in New York and Los Angeles on October 6th and opens wide on October 13th.

Mister Organ is described, "Intrepid journalist and filmmaker David Farrier, whose previous film Tickled became a global sensation for exposing the dark underbelly of competitive endurance tickling, faces off against his greatest foe yet in Mister Organ, an enthralling and bizarre tale that finds Farrier in a dangerous game of cat and mouse with a mysterious con man who is wreaking havoc on his neighborhood."

ComicBook.com caught up with Farrier to talk Mister Organ, the impact of the experience, and more.

David Farrier: Oh, [a Sunn O))) shirt]? F-ck, I just saw them play for the first time last year. My God.

ComicBook.com: The winter tour?

They were with ... It was different from their normal setup, apparently. They had a big wall of speakers behind them.

Sounds on brand.

Maybe it does sound on brand. Anyway, it was just a lot, and I really enjoyed it.

This is from their most recent tour, and I would say it was better than other tours. Somehow it gets, believe it or not, Sunn O))) can get redundant, but something about this tour ... I don't know, I was more engaged than I normally was.

I saw them at the Lodge Room, in L.A., which was an old Masonic lodge, and it was a really cool venue. And yeah, it was good.

Well, honestly, that does relate to one of the most important things that I wanted to talk about. As soon as I watched Mister Organ, I went to check on you to make sure you were doing okay. I went to your Instagram, and you had posted a story of a screenshot of, I can't remember what song, but it was an Isis song off of Panopticon. So thank you for the Panopticon representation, that's my favorite Isis album.

I adore that band. Actually, back in 2018, I was staying in Eagle Rock, in L.A., and my neighbor was Aaron from Isis, and he was one of the first persons I told about Mister Organ. The band had come back to pay tribute for one of their friends, it was a special show they played. I went along, I talked to him backstage, and I was just talking about this documentary idea. And yeah, that was Mister Organ. Anyway, I love that band and I love those guys.

See, it's all connected. I wasn't just randomly bringing up Isis.

Yeah, and I invited him along. I've booked a theater at the Alamo, just to show friends and family and stuff, and he's one of the people that's coming along, so I'm excited to show him.

Well, we should talk about Mister Oregon at least a little bit, before my time is up. Between Webworm and Flightless Bird, between all the different things that you're doing, just exploring various corners of things that interest you or concern you or pique your curiosity, this situation with Mister Organ, the parking clamping, when was the moment that you thought, "Okay, I have enough here to definitely develop a documentary out of it,"?

I think it came about a year and a half in. I'd been writing about this really eccentric man in New Zealand, who would put a wheel clamp on people's cars when they left, and would then swindle them out of money. So there were a lot of versions of that, and there was a lot of wacky elements. But then, I started hearing mumblings in New Zealand around 2018, that he had had some dark influences on people. Sure, he was a con man, but he had also wiggled into other people's lives, and really derailed people.

When I saw that psychological aspect to it, that's when I thought, "Oh, I'd actually like to start telling this visually." I'd been waiting for something to sink my teeth into, after Dark Tourist and Tickled. And just the number of characters that started popping up around him, when I started poking into some of these darker areas, they all seemed just really interesting to me. And yes, eventually writing about something is great, to a point. But then, I think, certain things show that it should be told visually and that's what happened with this.

Whether it is Mister Organ or any of the other subjects you've explored, I understand that you have an outlet, you have an avenue, that you can provide regular updates about, or more frequent updates about. With Mister Organ, with Tickled, or something that you put a more definitive cap on, how do you know when to put that cap on? How do you know that you couldn't have done another, even just a few months, with Mister Organ?

It's so tricky. Well, one thing I learned from doing Tickled is that whenever you put the end on something, there'll always be more, so there's never an end. You would shoot things forever, otherwise. Tickled ended, suddenly I'm being sued twice in United States courts. That would make a really interesting part of Tickled, this courtroom drama, but I think you just get a sense of it in each story.

With Mister Organ, I set out to find out how this man operated, and why he was doing the things he was doing. When I got those things answered in a way that satisfied me, I just knew I had to stop, and put an end on things. I knew things would continue, as they did, but a few things happened. We ended up at this old psychiatric hospital towards the end of the film, and that was towards the end of my process. I just met a man who was incredibly damaged, but also, he lived at this old, shut-down psychiatric hospital.

He had so much insight, and said things -- the whole film would turn into this psychological model, but he came through with so much clarity that I knew I had an end, and I knew I wanted to have that as the end. That was just something I knew in my gut, and that's what the end of the film was.

I felt it was a powerful reveal for what your film intentionally and unintentionally says, just about human nature and human psyches. I saw an interview you did a few months back, where you said that you wouldn't make this again. Going along with that, even if you don't feel like you would make this again, do you feel you regret this entire experience?

No, I don't regret the entire experience. I feel really proud of what me and the team have made, and I think it's a deeply weird story, which is the stuff I like to make. I also think it speaks on behalf of the various victims that were involved. I feel really proud that their stories are out there.

The most rewarding thing is that people that have seen it at festivals, this is the feedback I get from some people, is that they see versions of Mr. Organ and people in their own lives, and they're like, "F-ck, I know this kind of guy," and this acts as a warning and also a nod, that they're not alone in this thing, and I find that really rewarding.

That was the dream result, is people clocking their own Mr. Organs in their own lives. At the same time, it's a Catch-22, because it was a really unpleasant, especially towards the end, process to make it. I still struggle with, would I rather have six years where I didn't have to think about this man at all? And that's a really tempting road to go down. But in saying that, I feel really proud of the response from audiences that have seen it. That's pretty validating, as well. But, at times, you're very tempted to just wish it all away.

You mentioned what has been so rewarding about the movie coming out, and so, going along with that, and your experiences of making it, how do you feel you have most changed? Other audiences can connect with the character of Mr. Organ, what do you feel you have taken away from the experience, either personally or professionally, releasing the documentary?

I think I've learned a lot about perseverance. It's happened with all my projects, Tickled and Dark Tourist. I'll hit a point where I just want it all to go away, and I'm just, "I hate what this is as a film. I hate what it's doing to me. I think it's worthless."

Everything I make, I go through that, and I definitely did that with Mister Organ, and elements of that are in the film, which is hard for me to watch back. But I think I am beginning to learn that it is worth persevering, and going through this process. Because, eventually, you will come out on the other side with something. If you have that original vision or idea of what you want something to be, it's to not lose sight of that, in all the mud of what you go through.

I just think I need to remind myself that, with any documentary, anyone that makes a doc, I think, talks about this. It's not an easy thing, it's not particularly glamorous, quite frustrating and hard. I think I just learned to maybe remember that a little bit more, and focus on the end goal, and not the current mud that you're in.

I don't personally feel like there's a difference between on-camera David and off-camera David, I feel they're one and the same. Of course, you have an interviewer voice, or an interviewer personality or stance or whatever, but I would argue that in Mister Organ, you are more emotionally vulnerable than in any of the other projects that you've been involved in. What was that like for you? Were you at all apprehensive to be that emotionally vulnerable and open on camera or were you in such a state that you don't even think about the fact that you're making a documentary?

No, it's a really good question. Believe it or not, I'm not a big fan of being on camera. I don't love it. I would love to be making things where I'm directing, and I'm not in it. It just happens that I get sucked into certain stories, so it helps with storytelling. And, also, it's a really great narrative device. If you are the one telling the story, it's a really helpful way to tell that story.

But yeah, as far as being emotionally vulnerable, when it's happening, I mean, I have a really close relationship with my DP, Dom Fryer, and Danny Watts, who was doing sound on this film. It would just be the three of us most of the time. I almost -- I'd forget they're there, and I'd direct certain scenes, but then, when I'm in them, we would discuss what was going to happen. Then I would just fully trust what Dom was going to capture, and forget they were there.

So when that emotional stuff happened at the moment, it was fine, it was just happening, and it was almost like they weren't in the room. It becomes difficult when you're in the edit, and you're in a different mind space, and you're watching all these scenes of yourself. I think it becomes hard there, but I think there was no choice but to put it in the film. I mean, part of what this turned into, it was meant to be a film about me investigating his other victims, but then, I turned into one of his victims, and so I couldn't just leave that out. That was just a process to go through. Didn't love it, didn't love it, but I'm happy with where we landed.

A little bit earlier, you brought up Dark Tourist. I was a big fan of your work on Dark Tourist, and I know some people were like, "Oh, let's bring it back, let's try and revive it." I'm one of those people who wanted to get more of that. Is that a project that is so far in your rearview now, that it's, "Okay, it's over and done with, and I'm just looking for new things to explore," or is there a chance that if Netflix unloads the rights or allows you to do with it what you want, could we ever see some version of that show come back?

Thanks for being into it. I mean, that was such a fun thing to make, and I made it with all my friends. Netflix, we pitched it to them, and they took it very quickly, off the back of Tickled, and I just made it with my friends in New Zealand. They were very hands-off. In the right circumstances, we've got a whole Season 2 mapped out, and that could happen.

At the same time, it's not a burning desire in my heart to make it. I just follow whatever is currently in front of me, that I find drawn into. And right now, literally right now, I'm just looking for that new thing. So yeah, if Netflix writes those big checks, if they get those streaming numbers up, then definitely wouldn't say no, or we might take it somewhere else.

But yeah, I don't want to be doing Dark Tourist for 10 seasons. I feel very happy doing the season of the show that I feel really happy with, and then making some other weird films, or another weird series, or not making any series, just working on Webworm, or a podcast or something. I'm not driven in that way. It's more just waiting for the story to appear, and then, figuring out what that thing could be.

Well, David, I really appreciate you taking the time to chat. I'm a big fan of the projects that you've done and I was taken totally by surprise with how self-reflective Mister Organ was, coming off of Tickled, which felt so narratively driven, following these threads of these people.

Thanks, man. Thank you.

That's what I was expecting. So for this to be so much more existential and ambiguous, yet so much more personal, I was really surprised and delighted.

Ah, thank you. Because I probably, I don't know, I'd like to take credit for it. I think I probably wanted to set out to make another Tickled, but it just didn't work out that way. I feel super proud that it is an entirely different beast, so thanks for saying that.

Also, I think, in ways, it's funnier than ... I think it's bleaker than Tickled was, but I also think some of the funny bits in there, I keep forgetting to say this, I think it is really f-cking funny at times, as well. There's some really funny New Zealand-isms in there, that I hope Americans get, and I like that aspect to it, as well.

If I wasn't out of time, I was curious about the whole New Zealand versus -- now you live in L.A., the differences in the communities.

Oh, so different.

But I do think there's universality to the narcissism and the gaslighting and all that stuff.

Oh, there is, yeah. I mean, the one thing I would say, is that in the edit for a lot of this, Trump was President through a lot of it, and I've talked about this a bit before. But yeah, there's definitely elements of Trump in Michael Organ. We're living in the perfect age where someone can just take their own version of reality and just run with it, and it works. When I was growing up as a kid, that's not really how the world worked.

But we're living in a time where you can invent your own reality, you can live it out, and it works fine. And I think that's definitely, certainly in the West, is incredibly universal.

Well, David, thank you again, really appreciate it. Big fan of your stuff.

It's nice to meet another Isis fan. Not the terrorist organization, but the band.

Well, I'm seeing Sumac next week, so if I cross paths with Aaron, we'll talk Mister Organ.

Yeah, f-cking A. And to be clear, I always get the Aarons confused. I know the drummer, Aaron Harris. Not Aaron Turner, the bearded f-cking maniac.

Never mind, I will not bring Mister Organ up ... I'm glad you cleared that up.

It'd be awkward. "Hey, David is harping on about how he knows you," and you meet him, and he's like, "Never heard of the guy." You're like, "That f-cking liar."

The family tree of the Old Man Gloom, Isis, Converge, all that stuff. I can't ever keep it straight.

Oh, Old Man Gloom, also ... Oh, my God. Huge fan. Anyway, I'll let you go. Thank you for talking to me.

Mister Organ opens in New York and Los Angeles on October 6th and opens wide on October 13th.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity. You can contact Patrick Cavanaugh directly on Twitter.

Encounters is the one of the top shows on Netflix, and the docuseries' is all about aliens and UFOs. Viewers from all sides of the Mulder and Scully spectrum are tuning in for the series, which documents cases of UFO sightings and alien encounters from across the globe. Speaking with ComicBook.com in an exclusive interview, series director Yon Motskin revealed that something like Encounters would never have been on his radar because as he put, he wasn't "an alien person." This side of his personality however made is what made him the exact person that Amblin and Netflix wanted to bring along for an alien non-fiction series. Motskin went on to tell us that despite feeling this way about aliens BEFORE making the series, he's had a major change of heart.

"I'm a massive believer now. I mean, my belief meter is sort of up to 11 or maybe even 12 now," Motskin revealed. "I really believe that there is something out there and I don't know what it is. I don't know why it is. I don't know how it is. I don't even know if it's sort of physical or metaphysical, if it's something to do with our consciousness or another frequency, but we can have a long conversation about what or how it could be, but it's very, very difficult for me to believe that there's nothing out there. And this comes from after speaking to many people that are much smarter than I am. There's a lot of scientists, entrepreneurs, people who have been studying this, many of them sort of in secret because they don't want to be perceived in a certain way, and I find it hard to believe that so many intelligent, bona fide people at well-known institutions, whether it's universities or government or others, are putting so much time and money into something that doesn't exist. So I believe."

Netflix Encounters trailer

As told from the perspective of firsthand experiencers - in the places where the sightings occurred - and guided by cutting-edge scientists and military personnel, the series goes beyond the science to highlight the profoundly human impact of these encounters on lives, families, and communities. A timely and timeless cosmic detective story, what will be revealed from this puzzle of seemingly unrelated encounters across different places, times, and cultures is a set of uncanny similarities, and one astonishing truth: extraterrestrial encounters are global, awe-inspiring, and unlike anything we've ever imagined.