It was a delightfully dreadful Halloween Week here at Splash Page as we geared up for the day in which we can wear our favorite superhero and villain costumes out on the town and not have to deal with strange looks from the general public. In case you were busy getting your costume ready and missed something, here's a rundown of the big news from this week:
- This week, we packed in five days worth of exclusive horror previews, setting it off with a look at Jason Henderson’s “Sword of Dracula: The Dracula War."
- We followed that up with Viper Comics’ upcoming “Attack of the Killer Tomatoes” series.
- Devil's Due made Reality TV even more horrifying with a look at their new “Chucky” comic.
- The fine folks at Boom Studios gave us a trifecta of terror with first looks at “Fall of Cthulhu: Apocalypse,” “Zombie Tales” and “Salem.”
- Finally, Dark Horse capped off the frightful festivities with a look at where it all began with an eight-page story from “Creepy” Archives, Vol. 2.
- But it wasn’t all don’t-read-‘em-in-the-dark previews during Halloween Week! “Hellboy” and “Buffy” writer Christopher Golden reminded us all about the magic (or should we say, “magik”) of Halloween.
- And Neil Gaiman announced that he will be the producing the "The Graveyard Book" movie.
- With all of the Halloween goodness going on around here, you’d think there was no new comic news – and you’d be wrong! For starters, Robert Downey Jr., Don Cheadle and Jon Favreau were all officially confirmed for “Iron Man 2” AND “The Avengers.”
- “Watchmen” stars Carla Gugino and Malin Ackerman talked about their mother/daughter dynamic in the film.
- We took you behind these scenes at the “Coraline” screening with director Henry Selick.
- It looks like a “Preacher” movie is back on track, and we offered up our choices for the cast.
- And lastly, MTV launched MTVMusic.com – which means you can watch Prince’s “Batdance” whenever and wherever you want!
And there you have it, Splash Pagers! Hope you have a happy – and above all else, safe -- Halloween!
As Halloween Week at Splash Page comes to a close, we proudly present a first look at Dark Horse Comics' upcoming second volume of their "Creepy" Archives -- reprinting the scariest stories from some of the greatest names to ever grace comics.
Before comics were invaded by mindless zombies, before Chucky caused havoc on reality TV, and before psychotic, bloodthirsty tomatoes struck fear into the hearts of everyone, comics were just plain "Creepy."
In our final Halloween horror preview this week on Splash Page, Dark Horse Comics has offered up an exclusive sneak peek at their second volume of "Creepy" Archives (hitting stores on Dec. 24). The groundbreaking magazine series which ran for nearly three decades -- doing for horror comics what "MAD Magazine" did for humor -- featured some of the most iconic artists and writers to ever work in the industry, including Alex Toth, Johnny Craig, Steve Ditko, Frank Frazetta, Wally Wood and several other four-color legends.
After the jump, check out an exclusive bone-chilling story from the upcoming "Creepy" Archives Vol. 2, and learn more about the influence of this historic magazine. Read more...
So they're finally going to make a "Preacher" movie. Who should they cast? We have a few recommendations.
JESSE CUSTER
When "Preacher" was first getting off the ground years ago, James Marsden was cast as Jesse, a former preacher who has the Voice of God -- when he speaks, you have no choice but to follow his command, even if it's "Eat your gun." Marsden, no offense, doesn't seem quite that powerful. But Nathan Fillion -- who already played a nasty preacher on "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" and got the western thing down pat on "Firefly" -- seems like he could make anyone do his bidding.
Runners-up: Johnny Depp, Casey Affleck, or Matthew McConaughey (if you dye his hair black).
TULIP O'HARE
Tulip is a tomboy who her dad (when he thought she'd be a he) wanted to name John William Grady O'Hare. Practically raised as a boy, Tulip needs to have a certain toughness -- no big, weepy empathetic eyes. Cameron Diaz originally wanted the part, but she still seems a little too sweet. How about Ali Larter?
Runners-up: Terminatrix Kristanna Loken also has the right look, but does she have the range? Read more...
Halloween Week continues here on Splash Page with more exclusive interviews, previews and features covering the scariest comics hitting shelves in the days to come. Check back each day this week for more horror that hails from the world of comics.
"So there's this guy, okay?"
For "Salem: Queen of Thorns" writers Chris Morgan and Kevin Walsh, that's how all their story ideas start out -- and their current action-adventure miniseries set in one of the most infamous periods in American history is no exception. The "guy" in question this time around eventually became Elias Hooke, a sickle-wielding action hero who once fanned the flames of Salem's notorious Witch Trials, but now attempts to make up for his sins by destroying an evil creature known as "The Queen of Thorns."
"He is so close to being a bad guy, so close to being a supervillain," said Morgan, who counts the screenplay for "Wanted," the big-screen adaptation of Mark Millar's 2003 series, among his previous projects. "I'm always like, 'Thank God he's one of the good guys, because if he ever turns, we're f---ed." Read more...
FROM MOVIES BLOG: After generating some major mainstream buzz with "Changeling," it looks like J. Michael Straczynski is making a big (and possibly risky) return to the science-fiction genre. According to The Hollywood Reporter, he's been hired by Warner Bros to pen their remake of the sci-fi classic, "The Forbidden Planet."
For those who haven't seen it, "Planet" is the futuristic tale of an expedition sent from Earth to the planet Altair IV to check up on a scientific colony set up 20 years earlier. Only one member is left -- Dr. Morbius, who lives with his daughter and Robby the Robot, the rest having been wiped out by a mysterious force. Morbius reveals he's boosted his intellect with the technology left behind by Altair's extinct race -- but unsurprisingly, using it produces a few nightmares, too.
Read more about the choice of well-known comics writer J. Michael Straczynski for the "The Forbidden Planet" remake at MoviesBlog.MTV.com.
If anyone still doubts that comic book movies are coming up in the world, look no further than this item in The Hollywood Reporter: Apparently, "Spider-Man 4" has landed one heck of a screenwriter in Pulitzer Prize winner and playwright David Lindsay-Abaire. What this means for James Vanderbilt's previous draft is anyone's guess, particularly since plot details remain under tight wraps. But since Lindsay-Abaire's plays focus on (in his own words) "outsiders in search of clarity," the choice suggests that Columbia wants a return to a character-driven "Spider-Man," and a Peter Parker who struggles with his heroic powers.
Columbia has a tradition of hiring top-notch writers for the "Spider-Man" franchise -- if he signs on, Lindsay-Abaire will follow in the skilled footsteps of Alvin Sargent and Michael Chabon. Of course, as "Spider-Man 3„ proved, having a fantastic writer like Sargent doesn't always mean a crowd- or critic-pleasing movie. Read more...
Halloween Week continues here on Splash Page with more exclusive interviews and previews of the scariest comics hitting shelves in the days to come. Today we give you you a FULL, 8-PAGE STORY from Boom Studios' upcoming "Zombie Tales" #9 anthology.
Kim Krizan wants to eat your brain. No, not really -- but she does want to defy your expectations.
The Oscar-nominated writer of 2004's "Before Sunset," Krizan returns to a decidedly different world from her film projects in an upcoming issue of Boom Studios' horror anthology "Zombie Tales." Her contribution to the anthology, "Summer 2061," is a sequel to a story she contributed to the first issue of the anthology series, "Spring 2061," and picks up where Krizan’s group of human resistance fighters left off: in a world ruled by zombies.
"Its about Zombie Olympics," Krizan told MTV News about the second installment of her zombie trilogy, which concludes in "Zombie Tales" #11. "This zombie has turned humans into slaves for entertainment, and this human group has come out of hiding to witness the situation. They are faced with a decision about how they’ll handle this. They're vastly outnumbered, so they can decide to scamper back to their cave or do something about it -- facing the probability that they will be killed." Read more...
By now we've all heard about DC's intentions to "go dark" on their upcoming slate of films -- and more specifically, the rumors about making the next "Superman" film take a note from "The Dark Knight" in terms of tone and story.
Since then, just about everyone in Hollywood and within the comic industry has put their 2-cents in on the subject of what to do with "Superman" -- everyone that is, except the star of "Superman Returns," Brandon Routh.
However, over at IESB.com, Routh broke his silence on whether or not Superman should be darker, saying, "I don't think the character necessarily has to be darker, I think he is kind of dark in a sense, emotional dark, in 'Superman Returns,' and the movie as a whole was slightly dark...You make the stakes higher, you make the villain darker, I think that's a way to do it. But I don't think Superman himself needs to be darker. He definitely has to struggle, how does Superman be a part of the world? And does he have to make sacrifices to be a part of that world? To fit in and what purpose does he really play in the world? Those are all kind of dark places to explore. But, I don't think Superman should ever be dark and brooding, that's not his nature." Read more...
Last week, we brought you the news that "Pineapple Express" director David Gordon Green had been chosen to helm an adaptation of the 2004 Dark Horse Comics miniseries "Freaks of the Heartland," by Steve Niles and Greg Ruth. In our assessment of the news, we celebrated Ruth's artwork as one of the series' highlights.
Tor.com has posted an extensive interview with Ruth in which he discusses his career, personal highlights and creative process, and also weighs in on the upcoming adaptation of "Freaks." While Ruth reports that the film "is not going to be the book exactly," the spectre of story adjustments didn't seem to be keeping him up at night. Read more...
Cinematical got their hands on an exclusive first look at the new theatrical poster and a whole mess of photos for the upcoming film, "Fanboys," and from the looks of things, the much-delayed film is dipping into every conceivable geek reservoir it can find.
The film tells the story of a group of, well, fanboys, who prior to the release of "Star Wars: Episode I," decide to break into George Lucas' Skywalker Ranch to steal a copy of the film to show to a friend who's dying of cancer. While the premise of the film is a bit dated by now (and can you imagine "Episode I" being the last movie you ever see?!), it does promise to have Kristin Bell in a Slave Leia costume, so take that for what it's worth.
After the jump, check out the poster in full. And maybe it's just us, but we think it's implying something about us fanboys skills with the ladies... Read more...
