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Interview: Shane Black on the Making of ‘The Predator’

Published

6 years ago

September 4, 2018

No one has had a longer history with the Predator film series than Shane Black. In the summer of 1986, Black traveled to Mexico to play Rick Hawkins, a comic book-loving soldier who became the first victim in the 1987 film Predator.

All photos courtesy of Fox

After the blockbuster success of 2013’s Iron Man 3, which Black co-wrote and directed, Black started giving serious thought to the idea of revisiting, and reinventing, the Predator film series.

More than thirty years after portraying Rick Hawkins in the first Predator film, Black is awaiting the release of his latest directorial effort, The Predator, which Black co-wrote with longtime friend Fred Dekker.

Black says that his goal with The Predator was to recapture the excitement and suspense contained within the 1987 film while answering questions regarding the Predator creatures and their origin planet.

In this interview, Black describes the long journey he’s taken with the Predator film series, from actor to director, and explains what sets The Predator apart from the previous Predator sequels and spinoff films.

DG: What is it about the first Predator film that’s still so exciting, more than thirty years after the film’s release?

SB: The first Predator film was a zeitgeist film. Predator was pure pulp entertainment. Predator combined the alien movie craze, inspired by James Cameron’s Aliens, and the Rambo war movie craze. Predator also had mystery and tension. I think that Predator is the ultimate genre film.

DG: I read that, besides acting in Predator, you wanted to study the craft of filmmaking, with an eye towards eventually making your feature directorial debut. What did you learn, as a filmmaker, during the making of Predator?

SB: I saw how a director operated on the set of a feature film. I saw what actors did when they were filming and when they weren’t filming. I studied John [McTiernan] as he was lining up shots, and I also paid attention to the work he did when he wasn’t filming. At night, when he had free time, he would look around, study future filming locations, prepare a speech he wanted to deliver to the cast and crew. He was prepared for anything that might happen. This was all fresh to me.

FIND OUT WHY SHANE BLACK WANTED TO REVISIT THE PREDATOR FILM SERIES IN PART TWO OF THE INTERVIEW

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Netflix Releases First BTS ‘Fear Street: Prom Queen’ Footage

Published

12 hours ago

April 30, 2024

Timothy Rawles

It’s been three long years since Netflix unleashed the bloody, but enjoyable Fear Street on its platform. Released in a tryptic fashion, the streamer broke up the story into three episodes, each taking place in a different decade which by the finale were all tied together.

Now, the streamer is in production for its sequel Fear Street: Prom Queen which brings the story into the 80s. Netflix gives a synopsis of what to expect from Prom Queen on their blog site Tudum:

“Welcome back to Shadyside. In this next installment of the blood-soaked Fear Street franchise, prom season at Shadyside High is underway and the school’s wolfpack of It Girls is busy with its usual sweet and vicious campaigns for the crown. But when a gutsy outsider is unexpectedly nominated to the court, and the other girls start mysteriously disappearing, the class of ’88 is suddenly in for one hell of a prom night.”

Based on R.L. Stine’s massive series of Fear Street novels and spin-offs, this chapter is number 15 in the series and was published in 1992.

FEAR STREET: PROM QUEEN IS NOW IN PRODUCTION 🩸 Welcome to Shadyside High. We're gonna have a killer time. pic.twitter.com/jDl0zRa2CH
— Netflix (@netflix) April 30, 2024

Fear Street: Prom Queen features a killer ensemble cast, including India Fowler (The Nevers, Insomnia), Suzanna Son (Red Rocket, The Idol), Fina Strazza (Paper Girls, Above the Shadows), David Iacono (The Summer I Turned Pretty, Cinnamon), Ella Rubin (The Idea of You), Chris Klein (Sweet Magnolias, American Pie), Lili Taylor (Outer Range, Manhunt) and Katherine Waterston (The End We Start From, Perry Mason).

No word on when Netflix will drop the series into its catalog.

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News

Live Action Scooby-Doo Reboot Series In Works at Netflix

Published

13 hours ago

April 30, 2024

Timothy Rawles

The ghosthunting Great Dane with an anxiety problem, Scooby-Doo, is getting a reboot and Netflix is picking up the tab. Variety is reporting that the iconic show is becoming an hour-long series for the streamer although no details have been confirmed. In fact, Netflix execs declined to comment.

If the project is a go, this would be the first live-action movie based on the Hanna-Barbera cartoon since 2018’s Daphne & Velma. Before that, there were two theatrical live-action movies, Scooby-Doo (2002) and Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed (2004), then two sequels that premiered on The Cartoon Network.

Currently, the adult-oriented Velma is streaming on Max.

Scooby-Doo originated in 1969 under the creative team Hanna-Barbera. The cartoon follows a group of teenagers who investigate supernatural happenings. Known as Mystery Inc., the crew consists of Fred Jones, Daphne Blake, Velma Dinkley, and Shaggy Rogers, and his best friend, a talking dog named Scooby-Doo.

Normally the episodes revealed the hauntings they encountered were hoaxes developed by land-owners or other nefarious characters hoping to scare people away from their properties. The original TV series named Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! ran from 1969 to 1986. It was so successful that movie stars and pop culture icons would make guest appearances as themselves in the series.

Celebrities such as Sonny & Cher, KISS, Don Knotts, and The Harlem Globetrotters made cameos as did Vincent Price who portrayed Vincent Van Ghoul in a few episodes.

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BET Releasing New Original Thriller: The Deadly Getaway

Published

13 hours ago

April 30, 2024

Cameron McFarland

BET will soon be offering horror fans a rare treat. The studio has announced the official release date for their new original thriller, The Deadly Getaway. Directed by Charles Long (The Trophy Wife), this thriller sets up a heart racing game of cat and mouse for audiences to sink their teeth into.

Wanting to break up the monotony of their routine, Hope and Jacob set off to spend their vacation at a simple cabin in the woods. However, things go sideways when Hope’s ex-boyfriend shows up with a new girl at the same campsite. Things soon spiral out of control. Hope and Jacob must now work together to escape the woods with their lives.

The Deadly Getaway is written by Eric Dickens (Makeup X Breakup) and Chad Quinn (Reflections of US). The Film stars, Yandy Smith-Harris (Two Days in Harlem), Jason Weaver (The Jacksons: An American Dream), and Jeff Logan (My Valentine Wedding).

Showrunner Tressa Azarel Smallwood had the following to say about the project. “The Deadly Getaway is the perfect reintroduction to classic thrillers, which encompass dramatic twists, and spine-chilling moments. It showcases the range and diversity of emerging Black writers across genres of film and television.”

The Deadly Getaway will premiere on 5.9.2024, exclusively ion BET+.