The Rule of Jenny Pen stars John Lithgow and Geoffrey Rush discuss the panic-inducing Friday the 13th, Alien, & more

John Lithgow (Conclave) and Geoffrey Rush (Shine) are currently doing the press rounds for their psychological horror film The Rule of Jenny Pen, which will be getting a theatrical release, courtesy of IFC Films, on March 7th – and during their Jake’s Takes interview, they were asked for their thoughts on the horror films that were coming out when they were getting their careers started in the 1970s and ’80s. This allowed us to get some nice horror references from Lithgow and Rush, with my favorite moment being when Rush admits that the original Friday the 13th, released in 1980, gave him a panic attack when he saw it in the theatre!

Rush said, “Friday the 13th gave me an attack in the theatre. I had a serious panic attack watching that film. But I was more drawn towards Alien. Alien, when it came out, just came out of nowhere, and you went, ‘That creature that its blood can eat through three floors of a spaceship, you’re gonna have no chance.’ And the drool. It was such an elegant and stylish piece of work, you know what I mean? It didn’t have a schlock quality to it.”

Lithgow added, “For my part, I just loved horror films that all emanated from the horror of character. To me, the great horror films are things like Rosemary’s Baby and Misery, you know, just great acting performances where the terror comes just from exactly how some deranged people behave. I guess the first impact I ever had with horror was with the great Australian filmmaker George Miller, when I did The Twilight Zone: Terror at 35,000 Feet. I was not the monster in that one, I was reacting to the monster. I was playing the Geoffrey Rush role in that one. That was the first time I was asked to just scare the hell out of people, and I just loved every minute of it.”

Directed by James Ashcroft, who made his feature directorial debut with the 2021 horror thriller Coming Home in the Dark, The Rule of Jenny Pen has the following synopsis: Arrogant Judge Stefan Mortensen (Rush) suffers a near-fatal stroke, leaving him partially paralyzed and confined to a retirement home. Resistant to the staff and distant from his friendly roommate, Mortensen soon clashes with seemingly gentle resident Dave Crealy (Lithgow) who secretly terrorizes the home with a sadistic game called “The Rule of Jenny Pen” while wielding his dementia doll as an instrument of cruelty. What begins as childish torment quickly escalates into far more sinister and disturbing incidents. When Mortensen’s pleas to the staff go unanswered, he takes it upon himself to put an end to Crealy’s reign of terror. That sounds like a recipe for a good time to me. Ashcroft also wrote the screenplay with Eli Kent and Owen Marshall.

Catherine Fitzgerald and Orlando Stewart produced the film, with James Ashcroft executive producing alongside Eli Kent, John Lithgow, Geoffrey Rush, Emily Gotto, Nicholas Lazo, and Samuel Zimmerman.

Are you looking forward to The Rule of Jenny Pen? And what do you think of Geoffrey Rush and John Lithgow’s horror comments? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

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Deepest, Darkest anthology cast includes Rosario Dawson, Ernie Hudson, Tiffany Smith, Rahul Kohli, & more

Marc Bernardin, a television writer/producer (Star Trek: Picard) who has also written multiple comic books and hosts the Fatman Beyond podcast with Kevin Smith, has teamed up with writer/producer/actress Tiffany Smith (Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3) to create a new anthology called Deepest, Darkest, which will “weave together stories of horror, suspense, dark comedy, and edgy science fiction” – and they have assembled quite an impressive cast for the project. That cast includes Smith herself, as well as Rosario Dawson (Ahsoka), Ernie Hudson (Ghostbusters), Rahul Kohli (Midnight Mass), Phil LaMarr (Pulp Fiction), Raymond Lee (Top Gun: Maverick), Caitlin Bassett (Quantum Leap), Sujata Day (Definition Please), and Kevin Avery (The Great North).

Deepest, Darkest will consist of eight segments that are set to be directed by Bernardin, LaToya Morgan (The Walking Dead), Ubah Mohamed (The Handmaid’s Tale), Lamont Magee (Black Lightning), Deric A. Hughes and Benjamin Raab (Warehouse 13), Day, and Avery. Here’s the pitch: Have you ever had a secret? One so big, so awful, so horrifically extreme that you had no choice but to keep it to yourself? Something that if anyone else knew that revelation would shift your world on its axis? What if there was someone whose job it was to listen to those secrets — because she could never remember them? What would you pay for absolution?

Each story in the film will revolve around that most human of impulses: the keeping of secrets. Our central character is Tara, a survivor of a devastating accident who now suffers from short-term memory loss — and who makes ends meet by hiring herself out as sort of a freelance confessionist. Over the course of these eight chapters, we’ll examine that part of the human condition we keep closest to the vest. Guilt. Damage. Pain. And how through the telling of these stories we might exorcise that pain. Oh, and Tara will find herself in mortal danger. A lot.

Rachel Walker, Carrie Finn, and Kyle Smithers are producing the film, which has M3GAN screenwriter Akeela Cooper and Late Night with the Devil star David Dastmalchian on board as executive producers. The budget for the film is currently being raised on Kickstarter, with seven days left to go in the campaign. As of this writing, $136,668 has been raised of the $250,000 goal.

Rosario Dawson told Deadline, “I’m a big fan of… well, I guess I shouldn’t tell you which project I’m working on but all of the writers and directors [on Deepest, Darkest] are amazing, so getting a chance to work with them was an opportunity that I didn’t want to miss.“

Does Deepest, Darkest sound interesting to you? Share your thoughts on this anthology project by leaving a comment below.

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American Horror Stories season 4 gets October premiere date, cast includes Henry Winkler, Debby Ryan, & more

American Horror Stories, a streaming series spin-off from FX’s long-running horror anthology series American Horror Story, began with a seven episode first season in 2021, continued with an eight episode second season in 2022, and gave us a four episode third season in 2023. TV Line has now revealed that American Horror Stories season 4 is set to premiere on Hulu (and Hulu on Disney+ for bundle subscribers) on Tuesday, October 15th. The new season consists of five episodes, and all five will be available to watch on that date. TV Line also unveiled a partial cast list: Henry Winkler (Happy Days), Debby Ryan (Jessie), Michael Imperioli (The Sopranos), Dyllón Burnside (Pose), Jeff Hiller (American Horror Story: NYC), Jessica Barden (American Horror Stories), Angel Bismark Curiel (Pose), Guy Burnet (3 Body Problem), Victor Garber (DC’s Legends of Tomorrow), and June Squibb (Glee). They note, “Additional cast members are still to be announced.”

Created by Ryan Murphy and Brad Falchuck, the same duo that’s responsible for American Horror Story, this series is a weekly hourlong anthology that features a different horror story, some of which call back to the original series, in each contained episode. Obviously the “weekly” part of that description has been set aside for season 4, as it was for season 3, which was also given a binge watch release.

Murphy and Falchuk serve as executive producers on American Horror Stories alongside Alexis Martin Woodall, Max Winkler, Jon Robin Baitz, and Dr. Giggles director Manny Coto, who sadly passed away last year at the age of 62. The show is produced by 20th Television.

Those are all of the details we have on American Horror Stories season 4 at this time. TV Line wasn’t able to share any information on the stories the episodes will be telling, or the characters the actors will be bringing to life… But if you’ve watched the previous three seasons and/or American Horror Story, you probably know what to expect from this show by now.

Are you an American Horror Stories fan, and will you be tuning in for season 4? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

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Kevin Feige’s comfort viewing: Seinfeld, RoboCop, The Wrath of Khan, Friday the 13th, & more

For many fans around the world, the films and TV shows that make up the Marvel Cinematic Universe are among their top choices when it comes time kick back and relax with some comfort viewing. But for Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige, making those pieces of entertainment is his job, he’s surrounded by Marvel entertainment for his entire work day. So when he needs comfort viewing, it’s time to turn to something outside the MCU. Speaking with Mashable, Feige revealed that his comfort viewing choices include Seinfeld, RoboCop, Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan, and the Friday the 13th franchise!

When asked for his go-to comfort watch choices, Feige answered, “During the pandemic, I started watching a lot of Thin Man movies from the ’30s and a lot of Frank Capra films from the ’30s. I sort of had a gap in my cinematic viewing of late ’20s to early ’40s, so I ended up finding that very comforting.” He also gave a nod to the Preston Sturges movies of the ’40s, before adding, “I also am a big sci-fi nerd, so I’ll turn on RoboCop, I’ll turn on Wrath of Khan.” He also named The Wrath of Khan as his “go-to tearjerker.”

When he needs a laugh, Feige turns to Seinfeld. “Seinfeld I watch quite a bit, and that is a sort of ‘getting ready to go to bed’ show.” His Seinfeld fandom is why many of the codenames for MCU projects have been Seinfeld references.

Asked for a go-to horror choice, Feige answered, “I have a 15-year-old daughter who’s just recently discovered the Friday the 13th movies and all the Jason movies, which I don’t know if they’re super scary, but they’re fun to watch. That might even be comfort – is it weird to say that the Friday the 13th movies are comfort viewing? They kind of are.” Continuing with the horror discussion, Feige said, “Sometimes, like a movie like Hereditary, I’m not ever turning on again. That’s so scary. I guess if I wanted to scare the hell out of myself and just go into a really scared fetal position, I’d watch Hereditary.“

I have been a Marvel fan since I was a kid and have a lot of admiration for what Feige has done with the MCU, which I do consider to be a comfort to watch – but it’s when he combined the Marvel dedication with describing the Friday the 13th franchise as comfort viewing that Feige really proved himself to be a man after my own heart, because Friday the 13th is a franchise I love even more than the MCU and F13 movies are definitely one of the first things that come to my mind when I think of comfort viewing.

What do you think of Kevin Feige’s go-to comfort viewing choices? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

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The Terror: Devil in Silver: third season of AMC series rounds out cast with Judith Light, CCH Pounder, & more

Based on a novel by Dan Simmons (that you can buy HERE), the first season of the AMC series The Terror was about a doomed journey to the Arctic in the 1840s. Ordering a second season, AMC turned the show into an anthology, and season 2 told the story of a specter haunting prisoners in a Japanese internment camp during World War II. Now, after a five year break, the show is making a comeback with a new season called The Terror: Devil in Silver – and The Hollywood Reporter has broken the news that the cast includes Judith Light (Shining Vale), CCH Pounder (The Shield), Chinaza Uche (Dickinson), Hampton Fluker (Shades of Blue), b (You), Aasif Mandvi (Evil), John Benjamin Hickey (The Big C), Stephen Root (Barry), Hayward Leach (Tom Swift), Michael Aronov (The Americans), Marin Ireland (Justified: City Primeval), and Phillip Ettinger (First Reformed).

That group of a dozen actors joins the previously announced Dan Stevens (Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire).

Based on a novel by Victor LaValle (you can pick up a copy of that one HERE), The Terror: Devil in Silver is written by Chris Cantwell (Halt and Catch Fire) and LaValle. The story centers on Pepper (Stevens), a working-class moving man who, through a combination of bad luck and a bad temper, finds himself wrongfully committed to New Hyde Psychiatric Hospital – an institution filled with the people society would rather forget. There, he must contend with patients who work against him, doctors who harbor grim secrets, and perhaps even the very Devil himself. As Pepper navigates a hellscape where nothing is as it seems, he finds that the only path to freedom is to face down the entity which thrives on the suffering within New Hyde’s walls – but doing so may prove that the worst demons of all live inside him.

An AMC Studios Production, The Terror: Devil in Silver is already filming in New York and New Jersey. While previous seasons of The Terror had ten episode runs, this season will consist of six episodes.

Did you watch the previous seasons of The Terror, and will you be tuning in for The Terror: Devil in Silver? What do you think of the cast that has been assembled for the show? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

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Season 2 of Charles Band’s Full Moon Freakshow podcast features guests Tim Thomerson, Roger Avary, George Wendt, & more

Back in 2022, Charles Band, founder of the legendary company Full Moon, launched a podcast called Charles Band’s Full Moon Freakshow, where he talked to guests like John Carpenter, Bill Moseley, Tom Savini, Kane Hodder, Cassandra Peterson (a.k.a. Elvira), Barbara Crampton, Joe Bob Briggs, Joe Dante, Eli Roth, Rob Zombie, and more. Season 2 of Charles Band’s Full Moon Freakshow exclusively premiered for Full Moon Universe Patreon subscribers earlier this year, but now it’s ready to roll out on the Full Moon Features streaming service, Spotify, Apple, “and every other platform that you consume awesome podcast entertainment on!” The first episode was unveiled today, and since it was released on the Full Moon YouTube channel as well, I have it embedded at the bottom of this article. The guests on this first episode are Pulp Fiction co-writer / The Rules of Attraction director Roger Avary and his daughter / producer Gala Avary, the co-hosts of Quentin Tarantino’s Video Archives podcast.

The show has the following description: Join trailblazing producer, director, best-selling author and B-movie mogul Charles Band as he invites you into his weird world. Every week, Charlie sits down in the epicenter of the Full Moon universe in Hollywood, telling true tales from the front lines of strange cinema and welcoming a cavalcade of his favorite famous humans to share space and spill all! It’s the ULTIMATE pop culture sideshow; a funny, fascinating, insightful and often jaw-dropping exercise in un-PC fringe film culture banter, with one of genre film’s most iconic and enduring personalities serving as your ringmaster!

Other season 2 guests include Dee Wallace, William Forsythe, William Katt, Tim Thomerson, George Wendt, and Barbara Steele. Following the release of the first episode, Full Moon will continue to release episodes of Charles Band’s Full Moon Freakshow every week, giving us the chance to watch and/or listen to “hilarious and revealing interviews recorded at both the FM offices and on the road at conventions across America. You won’t want to miss a single episode!”

Charles Band is a fun interviewer and he lands a great line-up of guests for the show, so Charles Band’s Full Moon Freakshow is definitely worth checking out every week.

Will you be watching and/or listening to Charles Band’s Full Moon Freakshow season 2? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

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