Spiral director Darren Lynn Bousman wants in on the next Leprechaun movie. Venom: Let There Be Carnage pushes back carnage till later this year. Betty stalks a serial killer on Riverdale. Plus, Mortal Kombat’s Todd Garner on why Goro is so important to the film, and what’s coming on Nancy Drew. Spoilers, go!
The Last House on Needless Street
Deadline reports Andy Serkis is attached to produce a film adaptation of The Last House On Needless Street, Catriona Ward’s upcoming horror novel. The story is said to follow “Ted, who lives with his daughter Lauren and his cat Olivia in an ordinary house at the end of an ordinary street. An unspeakable secret binds them together, and when a new neighbor moves in next door, what is buried out among the birch trees behind their house will come back to haunt them all.”
Don’t Peek
Deadline additionally reports a feature-length adaptation of Julian Terry’s horror short, Don’t Peek, is now in development with Timur Bekmambetov attached to produce. The original short follows “a young woman discovering a frightening video game character intent on crossing into the real world.”
Leprechaun
Spiral: From the Book of Saw director Darren Lynn Bousman is still actively campaigning to direct the next film in the Leprechaun franchise.
Venom: Let There Be Carnage
Venom: Let There Be Carnage has been pushed back once again and is now scheduled for a September 17, 2021 release date. [Bloody-Disgusting]
Godzilla vs. Kong
A newly-revealed Funko Pop figurine gives us a look at Mechagodzilla’s appearance in Godzilla vs Kong.
Nerdist also has a look at other toys of Mechagodzilla, for a less chibi-fied look at the design.
Mortal Kombat
In conversation with Bloody-Disgusting, Mortal Kombat producer Todd Garner stated four-armed warrior Goro is “extremely integral to the plot.”
He’s extremely integral to the plot. He is a beloved character. He’s awesome. He’s obviously somebody that I would love to have in every movie. He’s also really expensive. Not going to lie. He’s really expensive. So again, if somebody wants to give me a billion dollars to go make a Goro movie, I’ll make a Goro movie. I’ll love that. Every second of him is a lot of money. Every second was like my house. So you got to use him sparingly, you got to be smart about how you use him. It’s not that we don’t love him, it’s not that he’s not hugely important. It’s just practically, he’s so damn expensive. So what we did is we knew that. You know that he’s expensive, you know that he’s beloved, you know he has to be in the movie, and you can’t just have him come in and just… It’s not like Indiana Jones where he comes in with two knives and you shoot him. You can’t do that. That’s no good. We had to figure out a real reason for him to be in the movie.
Arlo the Alligator Boy
Netflix has released a trailer for Arlo the Alligator Boy, an animated musical about a half-man, half-gator hybrid searching for his father in New York City.
Jakob’s Wife
Barbara Crampton plays a newly-minted vampire married to Larry Fessenden in the trailer for Jakob’s Wife, coming to VOD April 16.
Beacon 23
Game of Thrones star Lena Headey has been cast as the lead character, Aster, in Beacon 23— the upcoming series based on Hugh Howey’s 2015 sci-fi novel. The series follows Aster (Headley) who “mysteriously finds her way to Halan, a lonely beacon keeper, on his lighthouse in the darkest recesses of space.” Shortly after, “a tense battle of wills unfolds as Halan questions whether Aster is friend or foe.” [TV Line]
Monsters at Work
Mindy Kaling will lend her voice to Val Little, “an enthusiastic member of the Monsters, Inc. Facilities Team” in the upcoming animated series at Disney+. Bonnie Hunt will reprise her role as Ms. Flint in the series, as well.
Resident Alien
Good news—Resident Alien has been renewed for a second season at Syfy! [TV Line]
The Man Who Fell to Earth
The upcoming Man Who Fell to Earth TV series starring Chiwetel Ejiofor has moved from Paramount+ to Showtime. [Deadline]
Birdgirl
Paget Brewster’s Harvey Birdman, Attorney At Law character, Birdgirl, gets her own spinoff series beginning April 4 on Adult Swim.
Riverdale
Betty takes a stand against a serial killer in the trailer for next week’s episode, “Destroyer.”
Nancy Drew
Finally, Nancy Drew teams up with Gil Bobbsey in the trailer for next week’s episode, “The Bargain of the Blood Shroud.”
Banner art by Jim Cook