Alam Nyo Ba?

Despite mixed reviews, Scream 7 is giving the box office a much-needed jolt after several weeks of dismal returns. At one point, the slasher sequel, directed by Kevin Williamson, could have been different if Radio Silence directors Matt Bettinelli-Olpin and Tyler Gillett had remained a part of the franchise. Thankfully, the filmmaking duo is feeling chatty now that Scream 7 is playing in theaters, and they’re ready to tease their ideas, had they taken a stab at another bloody whodunit for the fan-favorite series.

Radio Silence Talk Scream 7

“We never read a draft of any version of Scream 7 that we were going to do because we had left to do Abigail before that,” Bettinelli-Olpin tells Entertainment Weekly, while referring to their 2024 vampire ballerina movie. “The thing that we had in our minds for Scream 7 was sort of like, ‘How hard can we go with this?’ It was the thing that we talked a lot about. For us, it was always this idea of, [if] Scream VI is like a secret feel-good movie, Scream 7‘s going to f— you up. That was as much as we ever got to.”

It doesn’t sound like Radio Silence got too deep into the weeds with Scream 7, as they were busy making Abigail, a fun horror film that doesn’t get enough love. I suppose that’s a good thing, as time spent on a project they would eventually abandon would have kept them from working on one of my most anticipated horror films of this year, Ready or Not: Here I Come.

How Far Did Radio Silence Get on Scream 7?

“Given that we expanded the sort of scope of the story by going to New York,” Gillet adds, “the other thing that we had talked about — just Matt and I, by the way, it wasn’t a conversation with the writers — was, ‘How do you do the opposite for 7?’ Like, shrink it down and make it this like ultra-contained, almost continuous, like minute-to-minute thing. But outside of our own stupid idea, we weren’t privy to any plan beyond just, ‘There’s gonna be another one.'”

Scream 7 welcomes Kevin Williamson, the original screenwriter of the Scream movies, back to the fold to direct and write the latest film in the franchise. Looking at reactions online, many Scream fans are loving the new chapter, while critics remain divided. Our own Tyler Nichols says Scream 7 has the worst final act in the franchise’s history. Now, I’ve not seen the movie yet, so I don’t know if I agree, but I’ve never found Scream finales to be all that exciting. It’s more about the thrill of the hunt for me, and wondering about who the killer (or killers) could be, not who they actually are. I plan to check Scream 7 out as soon as I get some time away from my desk. Hopefully, the end won’t get spoiled before I make it to the theater.

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Despite mixed reviews, it seems like any fear of “franchise fatigue” wasn’t warranted for Scream 7, with the latest film looking like it’s going to smash franchise records as far as opening weekends go. According to Deadline, the movie is on track for a $60 million weekend (about $20 million more than we predicted), which is significantly higher than the previous franchise record, which belonged to Scream VI with $44.4 million.

Scream 7 hits theaters under a cloud of controversy, with it having initially been intended to star Melissa Barrera and Jenna Ortega, who would have reprised their roles from the previous two installments. That plan went kaput when Barrera made social media posts about the Israel-Hamas war that initially provoked outrage in some Hollywood circles, leading to her dismissal. Ortega declined to reprise her role afterward, and the original director, Christopher Landon, also eventually stepped down, leading to a creative overhaul. This involved producers Spyglass going back to original franchise star Neve Campbell (who left the sixth film after a pay dispute) and Scream mastermind Kevin Williamson.

The reviews and audience reactions have been mixed (the B-minus CinemaScore is weak), but the box office has far exceeded anyone’s expectations. Even if it turns out to be front-loaded, this will be considered a major win for Paramount, which is distributing the film, so I’d expect an eighth film in theaters before long.

As expected, GOAT should be in second place with about $11.75 million and a $73 million domestic total. Wuthering Heights will come in third with $7 million for a $72 million total, meaning a $100 million finish is definitely out of reach for Emerald Fennell’s period pic. The rest of the top five will consist of concert films, with Twenty One Pilots: More Than We Ever Imagined – Live in Mexico City making $3.5 million. Neon’s EPiC: Elvis in Concert (read our review HERE) continues to perform well, expanding this weekend — it’s also looking at about $3.5 million.

What are you seeing this weekend? Let us know in the comments.

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You really have to give Matthew Lillard some serious credit. While arguably at the height of his fame in the late nineties thanks to his roles in Scream, Scooby-Doo, and other teen-focused movies, he’s always been able to reinvent himself. I remember being struck by his supporting performance opposite George Clooney in The Descendants some time ago, and while a lot of his contemporaries faded over the years, Lillard has maintained his place in pop culture. He’s similar — in some ways — to a guy like Brendan Fraser. He went away for a while, but at a certain point Hollywood woke up and realized just how beloved he really was, leading to a full-on resurgence for him in movies like Five Nights at Freddy’s. Now, there’s also some buzz about him possibly returning in Scream 7, which opens today.

Of course, Lillard is also an entrepreneur, having launched Ghost Face Vodka by Macabre Spirits, which pays tribute to his iconic role as one of the first Ghostface killers, Stu Macher. Our man Ryan Cultrera was able to attend the Los Angeles launch of a limited-run boxed set of the vodka, all of which are signed by Lillard. The red carpet took place at Funko Hollywood, and while he was there, Ryan not only got to chat with Lillard about the franchise’s lasting legacy, but also series mastermind Kevin Williamson, who takes the director’s chair on Scream 7 and used the opportunity to pay tribute to the late, great Wes Craven.

Plus, one of Lillard’s contemporaries, the great Michael Rosenbaum (Smallville), chatted with us about the horror icon he’d most like to grab a drink with, while Ice Nine Kills frontman Spencer Charnas — whose track “Twisting the Knife” appears on the Scream 7 soundtrack — talked to us about his contribution to the franchise.

Watch our event coverage embedded above and let us know in the comments if you’re checking out Scream 7 this weekend (read our review HERE).

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This is news we have reported multiple times before: there’s an adaptation of author / Satanic Panic screenwriter Grady Hendrix’s 2013 novel Horrorstör in development. Things are different this time around, though, because there’s a writer/director attached! The Hollywood Reporter has broken the news that Jonathan Levine – whose credits include All the Boys Love Mandy Lane, The Wackness, 50/50, Warm Bodies, The Night Before, Snatched, and Long Shot – has signed on to write and direct the film adaptation of Horrorstör for Searchlight Pictures.

Background

Published in 2014, Hendrix’s novel is set at the Orsk furniture superstore in Cleveland, Ohio. One morning, employees arrive to find broken Kjerring bookshelves, shattered Glans water goblets, and smashed Liripip wardrobes. Sales are down, security cameras reveal nothing, and store managers are panicking. To unravel the mystery, three employees volunteer to work a nine-hour dusk-till-dawn shift with plans to patrol the empty showroom floor, investigate strange sights and sounds, and encounter horrors that defy the imagination.

When we previously reported on an adaptation in 2014 and 2015, Horrorstör was going to become a television series written by Josh Schwartz and Michael Vukadinovich, with Charlie Kaufman on board as an executive producer. The show was set up at Fox, then moved to AMC, but never made it into production.

In 2020, New Republic Pictures acquired the rights to turn the story into a feature film, and they had Hendrix writing the screenplay himself. And that was the last we heard of it… until Levine signed on.

Producers

Brian Oliver of New Republic will be producing Horrorstör alongside Gillian Bohrer of Megamix, Adam Goldworm of Aperture Entertainment, and Brad Fischer. VP of production Richard Ruiz and production executive Apolline Berty are overseeing the project for Searchlight Pictures, reporting to heads of production and development DanTram Nguyen and Katie Goodson-Thomas.

Levine

In addition to the films mentioned above, Levine has also directed episodes of How to Make It in America, Rush, I’m Dying Up Here, Tell Me Lies, and Nine Perfect Strangers. He was also recently attached to direct a forty-years-later sequel to Dirty Dancing, but now it looks like that project will be moving forward with him only serving as an executive producer.

Hendrix

Grady Hendrix is said to be the second-best-selling horror writer in the world, behind Stephen King. His works include Satan Loves You, Horrorstör, My Best Friend’s Exorcism, Paperbacks from Hell: The Twisted History of ‘70s and ‘80s Horror Fiction, We Sold Our Souls, The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires, The Final Girl Support Group, These Fists Break Bricks: How Kung Fu Movies Swept America and Changed the World, How to Sell a Haunted House, and Witchcraft for Wayward Girls.

A while back, he contributed the 29 page short story Ankle Snatcher to the Amazon Original Stories Creature Feature collection, which also featured stories by Joe Hill, Josh Malerman, Paul Tremblay, Jason Mott, and Chandler Baker. The story quickly secured a film adaptation deal with Sony. When Amazon put together an original stories collection called The Shivers, Hendrix contributed the 35 page story The Blanks, which can be read in The Shivers Collection alongside stories by the likes of Stephen Graham Jones, Catriona Ward, Owen King, and, again, Joe Hill. The Blanks also secured a film adaptation deal, this one with 21 Laps, Aperture Entertainment, and the Netflix streaming service.

Horrorstör producer Adam Goldworm has a film adaptation of Hendrix’s comedy novella Badasstronauts in the works at Paramount Pictures, and I think it should star Bruce Campbell.

My Best Friend’s Exorcism was turned into a feature film that was released through Prime Video, and Horrorstör adaptations have been in the works for years. At first it was intended to be a TV series, now producers are aiming to turn it into a movie. A film adaptation of How to Sell a Haunted House is set up at Legendary Entertainment, and TV series adaptations of both The Southern Book Club’s Guide to Slaying Vampires and The Final Girl Support Group were in the works, but appear to have stalled out.

Hendrix also co-wrote the films Mohawk and Satanic Panic, as well as the documentary Iron Fists and Kung Fu Kicks. To date, his books have sold more than 2.4 million copies worldwide.

Have you read Horrorstör? What do you think of Jonathan Levine signing on to write and direct the film? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

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Maggie Gyllenhaal’s The Bride is set to hit theaters next week, but the first reactions to the gothic romance have begun trickling on social media following the film’s world premiere in London.

The film stars Jessie Buckley as The Bride and Christian Bale as Frankenstein’s Monster. “A lonely Frankenstein travels to 1930s Chicago to seek the aid of a Dr. Euphronius in creating a companion for himself,” reads the official synopsis. “The two reinvigorate a murdered young woman and the Bride is born. She is beyond what either of them intended, igniting a combustible romance, the attention of the police and a wild and radical social movement.“

The Bride First Reactions

According to Erik Davis, The Bride is a big swing, but one that definitely connects. “Maggie Gyllenhaal’s #TheBrideMovie swings BIG — ferocious, funny, chaotic, romantic and fueled by another knockout Jessie Buckley performance,” he wrote. “Buckley and Bale are a dream pairing because they’re both actors who fully commit and disappear into their roles. They bring a raw intensity and unpredictability that makes this inventive take on the Bride/Frankenstein story work. THE BRIDE! feels like a love letter to classic moviegoing wrapped inside a bold, modern monster movie. Honestly, we need more films like this.“

The Nerdist says, “Having watched The Bride, we can share that it’s a movie clearly made by someone who loves movies. The camera adores Jessie Buckley, who shines, and her character sweeps you off your feet into a lush, gothic romance that has one foot in reality and one in the world of the arcane. Christian Bale’s ‘Frank’ does Frankenstein’s Monster full justice and will pull on all your heartstrings. This movie’s aesthetics are bold, the dance sequences shine, and it really captivates you. It’s what going to the theater is all about.“

According to Rachel Leishman, “THE BRIDE is a love letter to storytelling, science fiction, movies, and so much more. A breathtaking look at Frankenstein and his love and a truly brilliant performance from both Jessie Buckley and Christian Bale. Maggie Gyllenhaal made something so special.“

BJ Colangelo was definitely a fan. “Maggie Gyllenhaal and Jessie Buckley built #TheBrideMovie in a lab to give me the movie of my dreams. A shrieking, brazen journey of an ungovernable woman and a man who wants her to burn it all down if it means feeling her warmth. I loved every second of it,” she said. “Most Frankenstein movies are about the hubris of man, but #TheBrideMovie takes it a step further by asking, ‘What do we do with the fuckmess they’ve left behind?’ This is one of the most daring and original films of 2026 and one of the best monster reimaginings of all time.“

Kristen Lopez said, “Maggie Gyllenhaal’s #TheBride is wild, audacious, & dgaf if you like it. Buckley & Bale thrill in a movie that feels like what JOKER: FOLIE A DEUX desperately wished it was. Gyllenhaal’s script has a lot of threads it doesn’t weave in perfectly. unlike anything out there.“

These types of first reactions are typically always positive, but we won’t have long to wait to find out for ourselves as The Bride is set to hit theaters on March 6.

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Three years ago, Legendary Entertainment’s remake of the infamous 1978 box office hit Faces of Death (get it HERE) went into production in Louisiana, with Barbie Ferreira of the HBO series Euphoria, Dacre Montgomery of Netflix’s Stranger Things, Josie Totah of the recent Saved by the Bell revival, Jermaine Fowler of The Blackening, and singer Charli XCX making up the cast. It’s been a long wait, but the new Faces of Death will be reaching theatres on April 10th – and today, a full red band trailer for the film has dropped online. You can watch it in the embed above.

Reminder

The first Faces of Death was about a pathologist exploring gruesome ways to die via footage purportedly culled from around the world. In reality, most of the death scenes were staged, but no matter, the movie had its producers’ desired effect: outrage, revulsion, banning (although not in 52 countries, as hyped by the film’s makers), and, of course, a money-making hit that spawned sequels and imitators. It was written and directed by John Alan Schwartz, who used multiple pseudonyms for several crew jobs on the flick.

Seven sequels followed over the next twenty-one years. Now writer Isa Mazzei and director Daniel Goldhaber, the team that brought us the Netflix release Cam, are making the remake for Legendary Entertainment and producers Don Murphy and Susan Montford’s company Angry Films.

New Film

Mazzei and Goldhaber provided the following statement about their approach to the concept: “Faces of Death was one of the first viral video tapes, and we are so lucky to be able to use it as a jumping off point for this exploration of cycles of violence and the way they perpetuate themselves online.“

When it was first announced that Mazzei and Goldhaber were taking on the project, it was said that their story would center on a female moderator of a YouTube-like website whose job is to weed out offensive and violent content and who herself is recovering from a serious trauma, who stumbles across a group that is re-creating the murders from the original film. But in the story primed for the digital age of online misinformation, the question is: Are the murders real or fake? 

Murphy and Montford are producing the Faces of Death remake with Divide/Conquer’s Adam Hendricks and Greg Gilreath. Rick Benattar serves as executive producer, with Cory Kaplan co-producing. Murphy and Montford have been hoping to make a new version of Faces of Death ever since 2006, and for several years they had J.T. Petty attached to write and direct. They started the development process over from scratch when they hired Mazzei and Goldhaber.

Are you looking forward to the Faces of Death remake? Take a look at the trailer, if you dare, then let us know by leaving a comment below.

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Cody

The What Happened to This Horror Movie episode on Drag Me to Hell was written by Jaime Vasquez:

Drag Me to Hell arrived in the spring of 2009 and became a surprise box office hit. Since its release, it’s stood out as a horror film that didn’t just torment its protagonist; it followed through, pushing its cruelty further than most mainstream thrillers were willing to go at the time. And that unapologetic approach came straight from Sam Raimi, a filmmaker who has never been especially interested in playing it safe.

But Raimi wasn’t always planning to direct the film himself.

So who was originally tapped to take the director’s chair? Who almost played the role of Christine Brown? And why did the film impress critics while leaving audiences sharply divided? Watch out for talking goats, cursed buttons, and loan extension requests that go very, very wrong, as we dig into What Happened to Drag Me to Hell.

From The Evil Dead to Spider-Man

Sam Raimi became one of the most successful directors in Hollywood, and it all started with movies that were goofy, spooky, and made on a shoestring budget. In the 1980s and ’90s, the Evil Dead trilogy built a devoted fanbase around the world. So when Raimi suddenly found himself directing the polished, crowd-pleasing Spider-Man, it caught a lot of people off guard. The low-budget horror guy in jeans and a T-shirt had officially become a studio filmmaker in a suit, overseeing massive Hollywood productions.

Raimi’s brother, Ivan Raimi, followed a very different path. He became a physician years before co-writing scripts for both The Evil Dead and Spider-Man trilogies. But one of his earliest Hollywood credits came from collaborating with several other writers on Darkman (1990), a comic-book-inspired action film that performed decently at the box office and earned even stronger reviews.

A Script That Sat on the Shelf

Though Drag Me to Hell felt like a return to Sam Raimi’s horror roots, the script itself had been sitting around for a long time. Raimi and Ivan originally wrote the story shortly after wrapping up Army of Darkness. Raimi then put it on the shelf while he moved on to other projects, eventually returning to it nearly two decades later.

At one point, Raimi even considered handing the directing duties off to Edgar Wright, who had already proven he could balance horror and comedy with Shaun of the Dead (2004). But Wright was tied up making the action-comedy Hot Fuzz, once again teaming up with Simon Pegg and Nick Frost. Beyond scheduling conflicts, Wright reportedly felt he wasn’t the right fit for the project. In the end, Raimi decided to take Drag Me to Hell into his own hands and direct it himself.

Inspired by Night of the Demon

One of the main inspirations for Drag Me to Hell was Night of the Demon (1957), released in the U.S. as Curse of the Demon. The film stars Dana Andrews as John Holden, a man determined to expose a cult leader who curses his victims by unleashing a demon upon them.

The story was adapted from M.R. James’ short tale “Casting the Runes,” in which a character is doomed after being handed a piece of parchment inscribed with cursed symbols. Once marked, the victim is hunted for a fixed number of days before being killed at a preordained time.

Despite the dread and sense of inevitability built throughout Curse of the Demon, its protagonists ultimately survive. The same cannot be said for Christine Brown in Drag Me to Hell. Interestingly, though, her fate wasn’t always meant to be so brutal.

An Alternate Ending

In an early version of the script, Christine’s coworker Stu Rubin played a much larger role. Written as a desperate man, Stu accepts a hitman job arranged by the mother of Christine’s fiancé, Clay. The plan is to stage a mugging that spirals out of control, leaving Christine shot and Clay unharmed.

Instead, Clay fights back and is accidentally killed. Christine offers what she believes is a priceless coin to appease the attacker, only to unknowingly pass along a cursed button from her coat, the same button that curses her in the finished film. In this version, Stu is dragged to hell while Christine survives, though her victory is bittersweet, as Clay dies from his injuries.

While that ending is far from merciful, many fans have argued that being dragged to hell feels like a more fitting punishment for Stu. The final film shifts that cruelty onto Christine instead.

Does Christine Deserve It?

Although Drag Me to Hell is framed as a dark comedy, viewers have long debated whether Christine truly deserves her fate. She does, of her own volition, deny Mrs. Ganush a loan extension, a morally questionable choice. But the punishment she receives feels wildly disproportionate.

When asked in 2009 whether the story was based on a specific myth or legend, Sam Raimi described it as a complete fabrication. That said, he and his team researched the name “Lamia,” discovering it appeared across multiple cultures, often describing different types of demons. Raimi ultimately framed the film not as a mythological tale, but as a traditional morality story, the kind of cautionary fables told for centuries.

Casting Christine Brown

Originally cast as Christine Brown was Elliot Page, then credited as Ellen Page. Page ultimately exited the project to star in the 2009 sports comedy Whip It, directed by Drew Barrymore. The role instead went to Alison Lohman.

Lohman later said she loved performing her own stunts, a commitment that gave the film a more physical, authentic feel and allowed production to keep shots intact rather than cutting around a stunt double.

To prepare, she immersed herself in classic horror, revisiting films like The Shining to get into the headspace of a character being pushed through increasingly terrifying situations. Filming proved so intense that Lohman admitted she sometimes relied on tequila at night just to get some sleep.

Justin Long, Lorna Raver, and a Milky Eye

Horror veteran Justin Long was cast as Christine’s fiancé, Clay Dalton. Long has described Clay as deeply rational and grounded, someone convinced there’s a logical explanation for everything. Long himself, however, has openly talked about his belief in the supernatural.

Playing the pivotal role of Mrs. Ganush is Lorna Raver. She reportedly auditioned with only the bank loan scene before later discovering just how far the story escalates. To shape Mrs. Ganush’s unsettling presence, Raver worked with a Hungarian dialect coach, translating portions of her dialogue into Hungarian, an effect Raimi liked so much he kept some of it in the final cut.

According to special effects artist Greg Nicotero, the makeup team knew they’d be working closely with Raver throughout the shoot. Aside from her milky eye prosthetic, the makeup was designed to enhance, not obscure, her features. As Mrs. Ganush’s rage intensified, so did her appearance.

Bugs, Mud, and Blood

For the infamous scene where Mrs. Ganush vomits bugs into Christine’s mouth, the effects team used a puppet head fitted with a hidden tube and plunger mechanism. When triggered, it launched maggots and worms toward Lohman. Some were CGI. Others were practical props, like pasta. Still unpleasant. Slightly less horrifying.

The graveyard sequence was saved for the end of production. After early mixtures caused Lohman to break out in hives, the team sourced mud from a spa in Calistoga, California. To stage it safely, they built a steel trapezoid around the coffin, allowing mud to pour in while Lohman performed inside. Rain rigs completed the look. The sequence took roughly two weeks to shoot.

The nosebleed scene was originally even more extreme, with blood spraying nearly 20 feet across the office. Greg Nicotero eventually got the rig working exactly as Raimi envisioned, only for Raimi to decide it was too much and scale it back.

The car attack sequence proved one of the most physically demanding scenes. Lohman and Raver were encouraged to really fight, comparing bruises afterward. The crew built a car that could come apart piece by piece to safely escalate the chaos.

Box Office, Reviews, and Divided Audiences

Drag Me to Hell was released on May 29, 2009, and performed well at the box office. Made for around $30 million, it earned roughly $91 million worldwide.

Critically, the response was even stronger, with many reviewers praising Raimi’s gleeful return to horror and his practical, effects-driven style.

Audience reactions, however, were more divided. While some viewers celebrated it as a return to Raimi’s roots, others criticized the heavy CGI, exaggerated performances, and what they saw as a predictable story. The result was a film critics largely embraced, but audiences couldn’t quite agree on.

The Uncut Version

To secure a PG-13 rating, four scenes were trimmed or altered for the theatrical release. The extended cut restores more graphic elements, including a bloodier nosebleed sequence and a more explicit depiction of Christine’s ritual sacrifice of her cat.

Even smaller moments were intensified, such as the aftermath of Mrs. Ganush’s fatal encounter with an anvil. The director’s cut pushes these scenes further, revealing just how much more extreme the film originally was.

Will There Ever Be a Sequel?

A decade after the film’s release, Raimi was asked whether a sequel was possible. He said he’d be open to the idea if someone came up with a strong story, but admitted the ending feels so final that he wouldn’t know where to begin.

And honestly, after that ending, it’s hard to argue.

Drag Me to Hell exists in its own dark corner of horror. Fans of Sam Raimi embraced it as a return to the genre that made him famous, while others walked away feeling the film was overtly cruel.

Interestingly, Alison Lohman has said she initially believed she was making a straightforward horror movie. It wasn’t until she watched it with an audience that she realized how strongly the tone leaned into dark comedy, as crowds laughed through some of the bleakest moments.

And tone matters. It tells the audience how to process what they’re seeing.

Drag Me to Hell may be grim, but it’s also packed with bursts of humor and exaggeration that pay tribute to old-school horror, the kind of movies that gleefully toy with their characters instead of guaranteeing safety for the protagonist. After all, this is the director of Evil Dead II, where even mounted deer heads can erupt into maniacal laughter.

Raimi’s return to horror was never going to be subtle. It was always going to be mean, playful, and a little unhinged. And that, my friends, is What Happened to Drag Me to Hell.

A couple of previous episodes of this show can be seen below. For more, check out the JoBlo Horror Originals YouTube channel—and don’t forget to subscribe!

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