Connect with us

News

Could Hannibal Continue With Amazon?

Published

on

Update (06/25): Fuller spoke with Deadline, and pretty much said it’s unlikely that Netflix will get it, and seemed to make the case for Amazon as the front-runner. Here’s the quote:

Netflix has been great in expressing their enthusiasm for the show but it’s just not feasible for them to pick it up. The deal with Amazon, I believe, precludes other streaming services. So that wouldn’t give Netflix what they need as a distributor in terms of first rights, etc.

Read the full interview here.

Original Article: Ok, it’s been a day, and fans have had time to process the news that Hannibal is going away from NBC and may never come back after Season 3 wraps up. The good news is that there seems to be quite a bit of hope about the potential for the show to continue on with another network.

Hannibal is optimistic

In fact, it’s pretty clear that there is some interest out there, not to mention rabid fan support. That’s no guarantee that our wishes will be fulfilled, but I’d say that in this era in which TV shows are being resurrected left and right there’s a very good chance it will happen with Hannibal.

A lot of people are hoping Netflix will save it, as it has done this with other shows, but if you ask me, it’s more likely that Amazon would do so. Consider the following excerpt from this uplifting Film School Rejects article:

Hannibal‘s consistently abysmal ratings ended up being a godsend. The show’s teetered on the brink of cancellation after every season, meaning that Fuller & co have already made multiple pre-emptive trips down “Who Wants To Buy Hannibal?” lane. In dealing with those “other options,” it sounds like Fuller’s just going to be making a few calls from the ol’ rolodex.

After the first season, Hannibal‘s ratings had already slumped and NBC was wavering on a second year. Early buzz from Deadline? That “at least one cable network,” plus Amazon’s still-in-its-infancy TV department were both interested in snatching up the show. Same deal after season two: Fuller, Gaumont and the rest were making inroads with other outlets in advance, just in case Hannibal was axed.

Then consider this excerpt from a Deadline article from Monday:

The cancellation news is barely a couple of hours old, but I hear that there has been a significant interest in Hannibal from other outlets. The one that would make most sense is Amazon, which already has exclusive rights to the existing three seasons of the show as part of a four-year, five-show deal with NBCUniversal. The deal is in the middle of its term, which would complicate potential negotiations with Amazon competitors like Netflix.

Yep, Amazon secured exclusive streaming rights to Hannibal back in 2013, when in a press release, it said shows like Hannibal are “big wins for our customers.”

Amazon is trying like hell to compete with Netflix on the original programming front, and Hannibal could provide a particularly helpful spark in that department.

Here’s some similar thinking from Forbes:

If, like a FBI profiler, you want to know where Hannibal might dine next, then it’s best to follow the money. If the license fee is as small as reported, then look for a streaming service to pick up NBC’s side of the deal. Hulu and Netflixhave experience saving shows, from Degrassi to The Mindy Project, but Amazon’s a likelier host. It already has a streaming deal in place, and the website’s still looking to expand its content and user base. Hannibal won’t be a big hit on a network, but next to something like Transparent or Catastrophe, the show’s still pretty big news.

It also helps to keep in mind that pretty much everything Amazon does is in the interest of getting more Prime subscribers. It even built a laughing stock of a smartphone for that very purpose. They’ve thrown tons of money at this objective, and there’ no reason to think there would be much financial hesitation about bringing on Hannibal.

Amazon is just one potential destination for this show, but it’s an intriguing one.

Of course there are petitions out there for fans to show their support, though I’m not sure how good much difference those will actually make. Even still, the fan support is obvious from social media, and frankly there’s a lot of optimism in the media in general about the future of this show.

At the end of the day, the news that the show is being canceled sucks, but there’s actually good reason to be hopeful for its resurrection.

 

Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Click to comment

You must be logged in to post a comment Login

Leave a Reply

News

Brad Dourif Says He’s Retiring Except For One Important Role

Published

on

Brad Dourif has been doing movies for nearly 50 years. Now it seems he is walking away from the industry at 74 to enjoy his golden years. Except, there is a caveat.

Recently, digital entertainment publication JoBlo’s Tyler Nichols talked to some of the Chucky television series cast members. During the interview, Dourif made an announcement.

“Dourif said that he’s retired from acting,” says Nichols. “The only reason he came back for the show was because of his daughter Fiona and he considers Chucky creator Don Mancini to be family. But for non-Chucky stuff, he considers himself retired.”

Dourif has voiced the possessed doll since 1988 (minus the 2019 reboot). The original movie “Child’s Play” has become such a cult classic it’s at the top of some people’s best chillers of all time. Chucky himself is ingrained in pop culture history much like Frankenstein or Jason Voorhees.

While Dourif may be known for his famous voiceover, he is also an Oscar-nominated actor for his part in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. Another famous horror role is The Gemini Killer in William Peter Blatty’s Exorcist III. And who can forget Betazoid Lon Suder in Star Trek: Voyager?

The good news is that Don Mancini is already pitching a concept for season four of Chucky which might also include a feature-length movie with a series tie-in. So, Although Dourif says he is retiring from the industry, ironically he is Chucky’s friend till the end.

Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Continue Reading

Editorial

7 Great ‘Scream’ Fan Films & Shorts Worth a Watch

Published

on

The Scream franchise is such an iconic series, that many budding filmmakers take inspiration from it and make their own sequels or, at least, build upon the original universe created by screenwriter Kevin Williamson. YouTube is the perfect medium to showcase these talents (and budgets) with fan-made homages with their own personal twists.

The great thing about Ghostface is that he can appear anywhere, in any town, he just needs the signature mask, knife, and unhinged motive. Thanks to Fair Use laws it’s possible to expand upon Wes Craven’s creation by simply getting a group of young adults together and killing them off one by one. Oh, and don’t forget the twist. You’ll notice that Roger Jackson’s famous Ghostface voice is uncanny valley, but you get the gist.

We have gathered five fan films/shorts related to Scream that we thought were pretty good. Although they can’t possibly match the beats of a $33 million blockbuster, they get by on what they have. But who needs money? If you’re talented and motivated anything is possible as proven by these filmmakers who are well on their way to the big leagues.

Take a look at the below films and let us know what you think. And while you’re at it, leave these young filmmakers a thumbs up, or leave them a comment to encourage them to create more films. Besides, where else are you going to see Ghostface vs. a Katana all set to a hip-hop soundtrack?

Scream Live (2023)

Scream Live

Ghostface (2021)

Ghostface

Ghost Face (2023)

Ghost Face

Don’t Scream (2022)

Don’t Scream

Scream: A Fan Film (2023)

Scream: A Fan Film

The Scream (2023)

The Scream

A Scream Fan Film (2023)

A Scream Fan Film
Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Continue Reading

Movies

Another Creepy Spider Movie Hits Shudder This Month

Published

on

Good spider films are a theme this year. First, we had Sting and then there was Infested. The former is still in theaters and the latter is coming to Shudder starting April 26.

Infested has been getting some good reviews. People are saying that it’s not only a great creature feature but also a social commentary on racism in France.

According to IMDb: Writer/director Sébastien Vanicek was looking for ideas around the discrimination faced by black and Arab-looking people in France, and that led him to spiders, which are rarely welcome in homes; whenever they’re spotted, they’re swatted. As everyone in the story (people and spiders) is treated like vermin by society, the title came to him naturally.

Shudder has become the gold standard for streaming horror content. Since 2016, the service has been offering fans an expansive library of genre movies. in 2017, they began to stream exclusive content.

Since then Shudder has become a powerhouse in the film festival circuit, buying distribution rights to movies, or just producing some of their own. Just like Netflix, they give a film a short theatrical run before adding it to their library exclusively for subscribers.

Late Night With the Devil is a great example. It was released theatrically on March 22 and will begin streaming on the platform starting April 19.

While not getting the same buzz as Late Night, Infested is a festival favorite and many have said if you suffer from arachnophobia, you might want to take heed before watching it.

Infested

According to the synopsis, our main character, Kalib is turning 30 and dealing with some family issues. “He’s fighting with his sister over an inheritance and has cut ties with his best friend. Fascinated by exotic animals, he finds a venomous spider in a shop and brings it back to his apartment. It only takes a moment for the spider to escape and reproduce, turning the whole building into a dreadful web trap. The only option for Kaleb and his friends is to find a way out and survive.”

The film will be available to watch on Shudder starting April 26.

Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Listen to the 'Eye On Horror Podcast'

Continue Reading