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How Mick Garris’s ‘Masters of Horror’ Became ‘Fear Itself’

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Masters of Horror

Way, way back in 2005, Masters of Horror debuted on Showtime and gave horror fans an intense anthology series unlike anything we’d really seen at that point, and it all began when Mick Garris (Nightmare Cinema) invited a few of his fellow genre directors to a little informal dinner where they could all basically hang out and chat about their work and upcoming projects.

That first dinner reportedly included John Carpenter (Halloween), Stuart Gordon (Re-Animator), Tobe Hooper (The Texas Chain Saw Massacre), and Joe Dante (The Howling) among others.

One dinner became two, and before long, an idea sparked in Garris’s mind.

What if all these directors got together and worked on one project? That project became Masters of Horror, a series made up of hour-long episodes, each directed by a legit master of the macabre.

Masters of Horror on Showtime

On Friday, October 28, 2005, Masters of Horror debuted on Showtime with “Incident On and Off a Mountain Road” directed by Don Coscarelli (Phantasm) starring Bree Turner (Grimm), John DeSantis (Thir13en Ghosts) and Coscarelli’s long-time collaborator Angus Scrimm (Phantasm).

The episode received mostly positive reviews and was the beginning of what would become a season of highs and lows including “Cigarette Burns” from John Carpenter, Lucky McKee’s “Sick Girl”, and “H.P. Lovecraft’s Dreams in the Witch House” directed by longtime Lovecraft fan Stuart Gordon.

Interestingly enough, Takashi Miike (Blade of the Immortal) became perhaps the most controversial figure of the first season with an entry titled “Imprint.” The episode starred Billy Drago (The Hills Have Eyes) as a 19th century American journalist who returns to Japan in search of a prostitute with whom he’d fallen in love with years before only to discover the horrific events that befell her after he left.

The episode was cut by Showtime over its content, and Garris was quoted by the New York Times calling it “the most disturbing film I’ve ever seen.”

The success of the first season found Garris curating stories for season two. Several of the directors from season one returned, this time joined by Tom Holland (Fright Night), Rob Schmidt (Wrong Turn), Peter Medak (The Changeling), Brad Anderson (Session 9), Ernest Dickerson (Demon Knight), and Norio Tsuruta (Premonition).

All thirteen episodes of season two made it to air and while the overall season enjoyed generally positive reviews, Showtime inexplicably decided not to bring back the show for a third season.

Fear Itself

Garris and Lionsgate, who had begun funding the show, eventually signed a 13-episode deal with NBC for a new series titled Fear Itself operating under the same premise of an anthology series directed by horror film directors.

Of course, in the move to NBC, the stories became a bit tamer.

“The Sacrifice” was the debut episode of Fear Itself

The series premiered on Thursday, June 5, 2008 with Breck Eisner–who would direct the remake of The Crazies two years later in 2010–directing “The Sacrifice.” The episode starred Jesse Plemons (Black Mirror), Jeffrey Pierce (Castle Rock), and Rachel Miner (The Black Dahlia) in a story about four criminals on the run who take refuge in an isolated fort only to discover that their troubles are just beginning.

Unfortunately after a decent start in the ratings, viewership began to fall away almost immediately. Episodes helmed by returning directors Brad Anderson, John Landis, and Stuart Gordon, played alongside the work of Mary Harron (American Psycho), Ronny Yu (Freddy vs. Jason), Darren Lynn Bousman (Saw II), and Larry Fessenden (Jug Face).

The show was preempted by the Summer Olympics with five episodes left to air. It was meant to return after the Olympics had run their course that Summer but when the Games came to a close, NBC began airing reruns of other series during that time slot and no one saw the rest of Fear Itself until it was released on DVD in September of 2009.

Sadly, this was the end of Garris’s particular vision for this show, and honestly, I think we’re ready for a new iteration with brand new and diverse directors featured alongside some of those who helped shape the genre into what it is today.

If you’re feeling nostalgic, season one of Masters of Horror is streaming for free on The Roku Channel, Vudu, Tubi, and Vidmark and can be rented/purchased on Amazon and Fandango Now.

Season two is up for free on The Roku Channel, Tubi, and Vidmark with purchase/rent options on Vudu, Fandango Now, and Amazon, as well.

And finally, Fear Itself is streaming free on The Roku Channel and Vidmark and can be purchased on DVD at Amazon.

Who would you pick to direct new episodes of Masters of Horror? Let us know your choices in the comments below!

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New Vampire Flick “Flesh of the Gods” Will Star Kristen Stewart and Oscar Isaac

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Kristen-Stewart-and-Oscar-Isaac

80s nostalgia is still going strong in the horror community. As proof of this, Panos Cosmatos (Mandy) is developing a new 80s themed vampire film. However, unlike some of the other nostalgia bait films that have come out recently, Flesh of the Gods is packing some serious talent.

First, the film is written by the legendary Andrew Kevin Walker (Se7en). If that wasn’t enough, the film will star Oscar Isaac (Moon Knight) and Kristen Stewart (Underwater).

Kristen Stewart
Oscar Isaac, Flesh of the Gods article

Variety gives us a glimpse into the story line, stating that: “Flesh of the Gods is set in glittering ’80s L.A., where married couple Raoul (Oscar Isaac) and Alex (Kristen Stewart) each evening descend from their luxury skyscraper condo and head into the city’s electric nighttime realm. When they cross paths with a mysterious and enigmatic figure known as Nameless and her hard-partying cabal, the pair are seduced into a glamorous, surrealistic world of hedonism, thrills and violence.”

Cosmatos offers his own opinion of the film. “Like Los Angeles itself, ‘Flesh of the Gods’ inhabits the liminal realm between fantasy and nightmare. Both propulsive and hypnotic, ‘Flesh’ will take you on a hot rod joy ride deep into the glittering heart of hell.”

Producer Adam McKay (Don’t Look Up) seems to also be excited about The Flesh of the Gods. “This director, this writer, these incredible actors, vampires, choice ’80s punk, style and attitude for miles… that’s the film we’re bringing you today. We think it’s wildly commercial and wildly artful. Our ambitions are to make a movie that ripples through popular culture, fashion, music and film. Can you tell how excited I am?”

Flesh of the Gods is set to begin filming later this year. It will launch at Cannes with WME Independent, CAA Media Finance, and XYZ Films. The Flesh of the Gods does not currently have a release date.

That’s all the information we have at this time. Make sure to check back here for more news and updates.

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The Pope’s Exorcist Officially Announces New Sequel

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The Pope’s Exorcist is one of those films that’s just fun to watch. It isn’t the most terrifying film around, but there’s something about Russel Crow (Gladiator) playing a wise cracking Catholic priest that just feels right.

Screen Gems seems to agree with this assessment, as they have just officially announced that The Pope’s Exorcist sequel is in the works. It makes sense that Screen Gems would want to keep this franchise going, considering the first film scared up almost $80 million with a budget of only $18 million.

The Pope's Exorcist
The Pope’s Exorcist

According to Crow, there may even be a The Pope’s Exorcist trilogy in the works. However, recent changes with the studio may have put the third film on hold. In a sit-down with The Six O’Clock Show, Crow gave the following statement about the project.

“Well that’s in discussion at the moment. The producers originally got the kick off from the studio not just for one sequel but for two. But there’s been a change of studio heads at the moment, so that’s going around in a few circles. But very definitely, man. We set that character up that you could take him out and put him into a lot of different circumstances.”

Crow has also stated that film’s source material involves twelve separate books. This would allow the studio to take the story in all kinds of directions. With that much source material, The Pope’s Exorcist could even rival The Conjuring Universe.

Only the future will tell what becomes of The Pope’s Exorcist. But as always, more horror is always a good thing.

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New ‘Faces of Death’ Remake Will Be Rated R For “Strong Bloody Violence and Gore”

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In a move that should surprise absolutely no one, the Faces of Death reboot has been given an R rating from the MPA. Why has the film been given this rating? For strong bloody violence, gore, sexual content, nudity, language, and drug use, of course.

What else would you expect from a Faces of Death reboot? It would honestly be alarming if the film received anything less than an R rating.

Faces of death
Faces of Death

For those unaware, the original Faces of Death film released in 1978 and promised viewers video evidence of real deaths. Of course, this was just a marketing gimmick. Promoting a real snuff film would be a terrible idea.

But the gimmick worked, and franchise lived on in infamy. The Faces of Death reboot is hoping to gain the same amount of viral sensation as its predecessor. Isa Mazzei (Cam) and Daniel Goldhaber (How to Blow Up a Pipeline) will spearhead this new addition.

The hope is that this reboot will do well enough to recreate the infamous franchise for a new audience. While we don’t know much about the film at this point, but a joint statement from Mazzei and Goldhaber gives us the following info on the plot.

“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.”

“The new plot revolves around 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, that stumbles across a group that is recreating the murders from the original film. But in the story primed for the digital age and age of online misinformation, the question faced is are the murders real or fake?”

The reboot will have some bloody shoes to fill. But from the looks of it, this iconic franchise is in good hands. Unfortunately, the film does not have a release date at this time.

That’s all the information we have at this time. Make sure to check back here for more news and updates.

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