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Horror Pride Month: Writer/Actor Ava Davis

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Patrick Morgan Horror Pride Month

The first time I saw Ava Davis act was in Melissa Kunnap’s short filmĀ Feast, and I was completely taken in by her performance. She had a quality that I could not quite describe but I knew I was seeing something real in her every gesture.

Little did I know when I wrote that review that I would have the privilege of sitting down to chat with Ava for Horror Pride Month this year. As it turns out, Davis is even more gracious and emotionally open than I could have imagined.

“Horror movies terrify me,” she began on a Friday afternoon in May. It’s not the typical response one expects when chatting with someone with genre work under their belt, but she went on. “Being in them is one thing but watching them gives me so much anxiety. I think Iā€™ve become more of a fan recently in working with Melissa and realizing that horror is a way to confront issues in kind of a safe way to neutralize them. If you give a demon a name, then you take away its power and I love that about horror.”

Davis and Kunnap are working on another short film together at the moment called Torn Together, something equally as terrifying as Feast in a completely different way,Ā and this time Morgan is helping pen the script which dives deep into highly personal subject matter.

For Davis this means facing identity and what it means to be herself.

“It’s taking a lot of personal issues and giving them faces and names,” she explained. “It’s been therapeutic but at some point, Melissa and I realized that other people were going to see this! This is a conversation I’ve only had with my mirror before and now I’m putting it out there for everyone to see.”

That inner conversation has centered, in part, on her personal transition journey. Part of which has involved looking for images in the media with which she can identify.

“When I first started this journey with my therapist I told them there was nothing and no one out there that I could really identify with,” she explained. “What’s crazy is that in the last four years we suddenly haveĀ Pose andĀ Star which has a trans woman in the lead. Then Laverne Cox was onĀ Orange is the New Black! I don’t know quite where my transition journey will lead me but it’s been amazing to see these examples in the media.”

Davis points out that many of the roles she’s been sent out for on auditions have either been prostitutes or roles that were tied up in just being trans rather than being a person. Furthermore, she says what she’s grown to love about the genre is that it empowers its protagonists which could be a boon for trans portrayals in media.

This is whyĀ Torn Together and her other projectĀ Duchess of Grand Park has meant so much to her.

“I’ve been thinking of this as my year of empowerment,” she said. “If I’m not finding the roles that I want to play, I’m going to write them myself.”

It’s the kind of attitude I’ve seen from a lot of LGBTQ filmmakers during Pride Month, and honestly it gives me hope.

As our time was coming to a close, I circled back around to the beginning and asked her what type of horror she really loved and she surprised me once again when, with a sheepish tone she said the one thing IĀ wasn’t expecting.

“I really kind of like the first two parts of theĀ Scary Movie franchise.”

Turns out Ava Davis has a thing for horror comedies and as I quickly dropped a few suggestions and we prepared to end the interview, I couldn’t help feeling that she’s well on her way to becoming a horror fan in every sense of the word.

If there’s one thing I’m absolutely certain of, it’s that Ava Davis can and will provide the kind of representation for others that she’s looked for herself. AndĀ that is exactly what the world needs.

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New Poster Reveal For Nicolas Cage’s Survival Creature Feature ‘Arcadian’ [Trailer]

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Nicolas Cage Arcadian

In the latest cinematic venture featuring Nicolas Cage, Arcadian emerges as a compelling creature feature, teeming with suspense, horror, and emotional depth. RLJE Films has recently released a series of new images and a captivating poster, offering audiences a glimpse into the eerie and thrilling world of “Arcadian”. Scheduled to hit theaters on April 12, 2024, the film will later be available on Shudder and AMC+, ensuring a wide audience can experience its gripping narrative.

Arcadian Movie Trailer

The Motion Picture Association (MPA) has given this film an “R” rating for its “bloody images,” hinting at the visceral and intense experience awaiting viewers. The film draws inspiration from acclaimed horror benchmarks like “A Quiet Place,” weaving a post-apocalyptic tale of a father and his two sons navigating a desolate world. Following a catastrophic event that depopulates the planet, the family faces the dual challenge of surviving their dystopian environment and eluding mysterious nocturnal creatures.

Joining Nicolas Cage in this harrowing journey are Jaeden Martell, known for his role in “IT” (2017), Maxwell Jenkins from “Lost in Space,” and Sadie Soverall, featured in “Fate: The Winx Saga.” Directed by Ben Brewer (“The Trust”) and penned by Mike Nilon (“Braven”), “Arcadian” promises a unique blend of poignant storytelling and electrifying survival horror.

Maxwell Jenkins, Nicolas Cage, and Jaeden MartellĀ 

Critics have already begun to praise “Arcadian” for its imaginative monster designs and exhilarating action sequences, with one review from Bloody Disgusting highlighting the film’s balance between emotional coming-of-age elements and heart-pounding horror. Despite sharing thematic elements with similar genre films, “Arcadian” sets itself apart through its creative approach and action-driven plot, promising a cinematic experience filled with mystery, suspense, and relentless thrills.

Arcadian Official Movie Poster

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‘Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey 3’ Is a Go with Enhanced Budget and New Characters

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Winnie the Pooh 3

Wow, they’re churning things out fast! The upcoming sequel “Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey 3” is officially moving forward, promising an expanded narrative with a larger budget and the introduction of beloved characters from A.A. Milne’s original tales. As confirmed by Variety, the third installment in the horror franchise will welcome Rabbit, the heffalumps, and the woozles into its dark and twisted narrative.

This sequel is a part of an ambitious cinematic universe that reimagines childrenā€™s stories as horror tales. Alongside “Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey” and its first sequel, the universe includes films such as “Peter Panā€™s Neverland Nightmare”, “Bambi: The Reckoning,” and “Pinocchio Unstrung”. These movies are set to converge in the crossover event “Poohniverse: Monsters Assemble,” slated for a 2025 release.

Winnie the Pooh Poohniverse

The creation of these films was made possible when A.A. Milneā€™s 1926 childrenā€™s book “Winnie-the-Pooh” entered the public domain last year, allowing filmmakers to explore these cherished characters in unprecedented ways. Director Rhys Frake-Waterfield and producer Scott Jeffrey Chambers, of Jagged Edge Productions, have led the charge in this innovative endeavor.

The inclusion of Rabbit, heffalumps, and woozles in the upcoming sequel introduces a new layer to the franchise. In Milne’s original stories, heffalumps are imagined creatures resembling elephants, while woozles are known for their weasel-like characteristics and a penchant for stealing honey. Their roles in the narrative remain to be seen, but their addition promises to enrich the horror universe with deeper connections to the source material.

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How to Watch ‘Late Night with the Devil’ from Home: Dates and Platforms

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Late Night With The Devil

For fans eager to dive into one of this year’s most talked-about horror films from the comfort of their own home, “Late Night with the Devil” will be available for streaming exclusively on Shudder starting April 19, 2024. This announcement has been highly anticipated following the film’s successful theatrical release by IFC Films, which saw it earning rave reviews and a record-breaking opening weekend for the distributor.

“Late Night with the Devil” emerges as a standout horror film, captivating audiences and critics alike, with Stephen King himself offering high praise for the 1977-set film. Starring David Dastmalchian, the movie unfolds on Halloween night during a live late-night talk show broadcast that disastrously unleashes evil across the nation. This found footage-style film not only delivers scares but also authentically captures the aesthetic of the 1970s, drawing viewers into its nightmarish scenario.

David Dastmalchian in Late Night with the Devil

The film’s initial box office success, opening to $2.8 million in 1,034 theaters, underscores its wide appeal and marks the highest opening weekend for an IFC Films release. Critically acclaimed, “Late Night with the Devil” boasts a 96% positive rating on Rotten Tomatoes from 135 reviews, with the consensus praising it for rejuvenating the possession horror genre and showcasing David Dastmalchian’s exceptional performance.

Rotten Tomatoes score as of 3/28/2024

Simon Rother of iHorror.com encapsulates the film’s allure, emphasizing its immersive quality that transports viewers back to the 1970s, making them feel as if they are part of the eerie “Night Owls” Halloween broadcast. Rother lauds the film for its meticulously crafted script and the emotional and shocking journey it takes viewers on, stating, “This whole experience will have viewers of the Cairnes brothersā€™ film glued to their screen… The script, from beginning to end, is neatly sewn together with an ending thatā€™ll have jaws on the floor.” You can read the full review here.

Rother further encourages audiences to watch the film, highlighting its multifaceted appeal: “Whenever it is made available to you, you must attempt to view the Cairnes Brothersā€™ latest project as it will make you laugh, it will creep you out, it will amaze you, and it might even strike an emotional cord.”

Set to stream on Shudder on April 19, 2024, “Late Night with the Devil” offers a compelling blend of horror, history, and heart. This film is not just a must-watch for horror aficionados but for anyone looking to be thoroughly entertained and moved by a cinematic experience that redefines the boundaries of its genre.

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