The Exorcist: Believer made just under $3 million from its Thursday preview screenings, may have an opening weekend in the $30 million range

There’s a new Exorcist movie in theatres now. The Exorcist: Believer (read our review HERE) is tracking to have the highest opening weekend of the entire franchise and might end up pulling in an amount somewhere in the range of 30 to 36 million. Its theatrical run got started last night, and according to The Hollywood Reporter it drew in $2.85 million from those Thursday preview screenings.

Most of the film’s reviews are negative – it currently has a 20% score on Rotten Tomatoes and JoBlo’s own Chris Bumbray described it as “abysmal” – so we’ll have to wait and see if that’s going to have any impact on the opening weekend box office.

Director David Gordon Green crafted the story for The Exorcist: Believer with Danny McBride (who wrote all three of the new Halloweens with him) and their Halloween Kills co-writer Scott Teems, then wrote the screenplay with Peter Sattler (Broken Diamonds). Here’s the synopsis: Since the death of his pregnant wife in a Haitian earthquake 12 years ago, Victor Fielding has raised their daughter on his own. But when Angela and her friend Katherine, disappear in the woods, only to return three days later with no memory of what happened to them, it unleashes a chain of events that will force Victor to confront the nadir of evil and, in his terror and desperation, seek out the only person alive who has witnessed anything like it before: Chris MacNeil.

Ellen Burstyn reprises the role of Chris MacNeil, the character she played in the 1973 classic The Exorcist, “an actress who has been forever altered by what happened to her daughter Regan five decades before.” An interview with Burstyn is included in the new featurette. She is joined in the cast by Leslie Odom Jr. (Hamilton) as Victor, Lidya Jewett (Nightbooks) as Angela, and newcomer Olivia O’Neill as Angela’s friend Katherine. Ann Dowd (The Handmaid’s Tale) plays Victor and Angela’s neighbor, and Jennifer Nettles (The Righteous Gemstones) and Norbert Leo Butz (Fosse/Verdon) play Katherine’s parents. Original The Exorcist star Linda Blair is in there as well, reprising the role of Chris MacNeil’s daughter Regan.

Okwui Okpokwasili (Master) is also in the cast as Doctor Beehibe, and Raphael Sbarge (Carnosaur) plays a pastor.

The Exorcist: Believer was produced by Jason Blum, David Robinson, and James Robinson. Green, McBride, Stephanie Allain, and Couper Samuelson serve as executive producers. Ryan Turek oversaw the project for Blumhouse.

This movie is meant to be the first entry in a new trilogy of Exorcist sequels, and Universal Pictures and Peacock forked over an amount somewhere in the range of $400 million to acquire the rights to distribute this trilogy. Universal has already announced a release date for the second entry; The Exorcist: Deceiver will be reaching theatres on April 18, 2025.

Did you check out The Exorcist: Believer during its Thursday previews? Will you be contributing to the opening weekend haul? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

David Bruckner, Mike P Nelson, and Natasha Kermani discuss their new anthology film and how they pulled off the 80’s look.

The V/H/S franchise has become a behemoth over the years. What started as a quaint series of shorts has become an annual tradition for horror fans. And while not every segment always hits, the ones that do leave a lasting impression. And V/H/S/85 (here’s our review) is no different, planting itself firmly in the decade of decadence, the 80’s feels like a place this series was made for. I was fortunate enough to sit down with directors David Bruckner (Hellraiser 2022), Mike P. Nelson (the Wrong Turn reboot) and Natasha Kermani (Lucky) for an interview to discuss how they got involved with the series. We go over how the stories are concocted, just how much collaboration there is between the segments, and how they get that unique look.

V/H/S/85 plot: An ominous mixtape blends never before seen snuff footage with nightmarish newscasts and disturbing home video to create a surreal, analog mashup of the forgotten 80s.

Bruckner had this to say about the project: “The V/H/S series is a continued love letter to found footage nastiness and the mad variety of anthology horror. Having helmed a segment of the OG film, I’m beyond excited to be back behind the camera in V/H/S/85, alongside some of my very favorite voices in the genre.”

V/H/S/85 IS STREAMING ON SHUDDER ON OCTOBER 6TH, 2023.

The 1989 slasher Cutting Class, starring Brad Pitt, is getting a 4K release from MVD Rewind Collection in 2024

Back in 1989, just a few years before he broke into the Hollywood A-list level, Brad Pitt starred alongside Donovan Leitch, Jill Schoelen, Roddy McDowall, and Martin Mull in the slasher movie Cutting Class – and MVD Rewind Collection has announced that they will be celebrating the 35th anniversary of Cutting Class by giving the film a 4K release on January 16th!

Directed by Rospo Pallenberg from a screenplay written by Steve Slavkin, Cutting Class has the following synopsis: High school can be murder. Just ask Paula (Jill Schoelen, The Stepfather). Her overprotective father disappears during a weekend hunting trip. She’s being romantically pursued by Brian Woods (Donovan Leitch, The Blob), a creepy classmate who recently graduated from a mental institution. Her jealous jock boyfriend Dwight (Brad Pitt, Moneyball) is looking for any reason to release his juvenile rage. The lecherous school principle Mr. Dante (Roddy McDowall, Fright Night) is after her student body, and her friends and teachers are rapidly falling victim to a silent, shadowy mass-murder. As the body count rises, Paula begins to suspect that any one of her reckless suitors could be the twisted killer. But unless she learns his identity soon, her high school education will quickly come to a nasty end.

The 4K disc will be released in a two-disc set with a Blu-ray copy of the film. Blu-ray.com reports that the discs will have these special features:

DISC ONE – 4K BLU-RAY

4K RESTORATION BY VINEGAR SYNDROME (2018)
Audio: LPCM 2.0 Mono, Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo
Optional English Subtitles
Original Theatrical Trailer (2:33, HD)
Collectible LaserVision Mini-Poster
Reversible artwork (reverse side features MVD Rewind Collection Artwork and Rewind number sequence)
Limited Edition Slipcover (First Pressing Only)(with Rewind number sequence on right spine)

DISC TWO – BLU-RAY

Audio: LPCM 2.0 Mono, Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo
Optional English and Spanish Subtitles
Interview with star Jill Schoelen (20:26, HD)
Interview with star Donovan Leitch (16:25, HD)
“Kill Comparisons” featurette (3:53, HD)
“Find The Killer and Win” VHS Video Store Retailer Promo (4:04, SD)
R-Rated / Edited Version of “Cutting Class” (91 mins, SD)
Original Theatrical Trailer (2:33, HD)

Are you a fan of Cutting Class, and will you be picking up a copy of this 4K/Blu-ray set? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

Daniel Brown’s Your Lucky Day trailer starring Euphoria’s Angus Cloud depicts an intense final performance from the late actor.

Before Angus Cloud’s death at age 25 in late July, the Euphoria actor completed work on Daniel Brown’s Your Lucky Day, an intense-looking thriller featuring Cloud as a trivial criminal whose plan to steal a winning lottery ticket spirals out of control. In the Your Lucky Day trailer, Brown depicts how a split decision to seize an opportunity to change your future can turn deadly.

In the promo, Cloud’s desperate character, Sterling, spontaneously decides to rob a lottery winner at a local convenience store. As the conflict intensifies and push comes to shove, Sterling does the unthinkable by killing a rookie cop, landing himself in a position to take hostages or risk incarceration. With $156 million on the line, Sterling and the survivors of the incident enter a pack to split the money after covering Sterling’s tracks. “Nobody ever got rich without doing no crime,” Sterling says in the trailer as six strangers debate the morality and consequences of accepting money for their silence.

Still, the thing about killing a cop is they protect their own. “They don’t arrest cop killers, they execute them,” one of the survivors says in the trailer, warning Sterling about a murder squad of uniforms inevitably heading their way. As walls close around them, hostage group members take matters into their own hands, begging the question: Who will survive and claim the ultimate prize?

“Movies are for everyone, so the goal was to make a thrilling, fun and entertaining movie that could also be about something deeper — a look at one of those larger-than-life moments that we all hope for and ask, ‘Is this really worth it?’” Brown said in a statement.

Cloud leads Your Lucky Day as his final on-screen performance before his untimely passing earlier this year. Elliot Knight, Jessica Garza, Sterling Beaumon, Mousa Hussein Kraish, Spencer Garrett, and Jason O’Mara also star. Dan Brown directs from a script he wrote with Well Go USA releasing the film in theaters on November 10, with a digital release set for November 14.

What do you think about today’s Your Lucky Day trailer? How far would you go for a winning lottery ticket? Let us know in the comments section below.

A trailer has been released for the creature feature The Loch Ness Horror, which reaches digital and DVD next month

Uncork’d Entertainment will be giving the creature feature The Loch Ness Horror a digital and DVD release on November 7th – and one month out from that release date, we’ve gotten our hands on a trailer for the film! You can check it out in the embed above.

Written and directed by Tyler-James, whose previous credits include Deadly Waters, Sky Monster, and Dinosaur Prison, The Loch Ness Horror has the following synopsis: A submarine vanishing prompts a rescue operation that comes face to face with the cause -The Loch Ness Monster. Having escaped the Loch, it is now unleashing decades of pent-up aggression on all those it encounters. In a fight for survival, our team of rescue operatives must overcome the terrors both beneath them and within their ranks.

The film stars Becca Hirani (Medusa’s Venom), May Kelly (Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey), Matthew Baunsgard (Legend of Lizard Man), Lila Lasso (Mary Had a Little Lamb), Tara MacGowran (Mother Krampus), Beatrice Fletcher (Beneath the Surface), Giedre Jackyte (Return of the Salem Witch), Mike Kelson (The Jengaburu Curse), Rob Kirtley (The Rise of the Beast), Howard j Davey (Children of the Night), and Dan Gittens (Rip & Run).

Keith Leopard, the President of Uncork’d Entertainment, had this to say: “Fans of The Meg and Tremors will definitely want to check out The Loch Ness Horror when we release later this year. This one has some great special effects and some superbly thrilling sequences.“

Beyond The Loch Ness Horror, Tyler-James has already made a couple more creature features that are awaiting release: Monsternado and Crocodile Swarm.

While it doesn’t appear to be a remake, this movie shares its title with a 1982 monster movie. The ’82 version of The Loch Ness Horror was directed by Larry Buchanan, the self-proclaimed shlockmeister who also made classics like In the Year 2889, The Eye Creatures, Zontar, the Thing from Venus, Curse of the Swamp Creature, Creature of Destruction, It’s Alive!, and Mars Needs Women.

What did you think of the trailer for Tyler-James’ The Loch Ness Horror? Will you be watching this movie next month? Let us know by leaving a comment below.

It has been confirmed that Night of the Demons 2 star Zoe Trilling (a.k.a. Geri Betzler) passed away at the too-young age of 57

Geralyn Marie Betzler worked on several movies throughout the ’80s and ’90s. On her first feature, 1985’s Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, she was credited by her full birth name, but as her screen acting career went on she would take credit as either Geri Betzler or Zoe Trilling – and it’s that second name that most fans seem to know her by. Among her credits are episodes of Guiding Light, 21 Jump Street, and Married… with Children, and the films Amityville Horror: The Evil Escapes, They Came from Outer Space, The Borrower, Dr. Giggles, Night Terrors, Hellbound, and Leprechaun 3 – but her most popular role may be in the 1994 horror comedy Night of the Demons 2, where she stole the show as bad girl Shirley Finnerty. Sadly, just as Night of the Demons 2 is reaching Blu-ray courtesy of Scream Factory, it has been confirmed that Betzler / Trilling passed away last month at the age of 57.

Here’s an obituary from Star Tribune: Geri was born on May 27, 1966 in Wausau, WI, and died on September 8, 2023 in Vista, CA. Geri was a remarkable child and a brilliant, determined, independent woman. At age 18 she moved from Minnesota to Los Angeles, CA to pursue a career in acting and dance. She supported herself by working at a bakery and setting up a distributorship in LA for a small fresh juice company, known today as Naked Juice. She also taught Aerobics in a number of studios, including Jane Fonda’s. At the same time she enrolled in acting and ballet classes. She began her acting career in 1985 with TV roles including a part as Lacey Bauer in the TV series Guiding Light. Throughout her career, she continued to perform guest roles in TV series and theater productions in Los Angeles and New York. She is most know for her roles in horror productions such as Genie in Night Terrors and Shirley in Night of the Demons. She left the film industry and became a choreographer at American ballroom in New York City, as well as a yoga instructor and personal trainer in both NY and LA. She was preceded in death by her grandparents, Norma and Frank Theisen, Agnes and Frank Betzler; step-father, Jerry Ruona; aunts and uncles, Sherry (Jim) Bias, Mary Fayfield, Janie (Mike) McNamara, Willard (Birdie) Betzler, and Violet (Hershel) Bachman. Geri is survived by her mother, Phoebe Ruona, Minneapolis; brother, Mike Betzler, Minneapolis; uncle, Bob Fayfield, Shorewood; step-siblings, Karie Ruona, Minneapolis; Mark Ruona, Minneapolis; Julie Ruona, Clearwater, FL,; numerous cousins, and lifelong friends: Loretta Falcone, San Jose, CA: Michael Libow, Los Angeles, CA; Don Schneider, New York City, and father, Larry Betzler, Chula Vista, CA. A private internment will be held at Lakewood Cemetery, Minneapolis.

Betzler’s Night of the Demons 2 director Brian Trenchard-Smith paid tribute to her on Facebook: I am sorry to report the passing of Zoe Trilling who gave such a standout performance in my Night of the Demons 2. Only 57, gone too soon. I remember her skill as an actor, her sense of humor and her warm luminous personality. Cast and crew always had a good time when she was on set. In my view, and that of several directors, she deserved a much bigger career. She was an undiscovered gem. My condolences to all who like myself and my wife had the privilege of knowing Zoe Trilling.

Original Night of the Demons director Kevin Tenney also posted about her: Best known to horror fans for her roles in Night Terrors, Leprechaun 3, and Night of the Demons 2, Zoe Trilling was also part of what we in the industry call a Loop Group, a small collection of actors who add background dialogue and crowd noises to finished films in post production. I worked with her in this capacity on my film Pinocchio’s Revenge. She was even prettier in person than she was on film, and much more petite than I expected. She was also genuinely sweet and down to earth as well as being massively talented. When we needed a devastated mother to tell our lead actress over the phone that her son was dead, Zoe broke down into tears, sobbing uncontrollably as she delivered the news, a performance much stronger and more emotional than I could’ve hoped for from a disembodied voice that would be barely audible in the final mix. She was the very epitome of a seasoned professional, in spite of her young age. We tried desperately to locate her to do an interview or commentary track for the new Blu-ray release of Night of the Demons 2, but she was absent from social media of any kind. And now I find that she passed away just last month right here in California. So, here’s to you, Zoe. Gone too soon and too young to be gone, you’ll be sorely missed by your fans and colleagues alike.

I haven’t seen all of Geri Betzler / Zoe Trilling’s screen performances, but I have seen several of them, and her performance in Night of the Demons 2 is one that always stuck with me. I expected to see her in a lot more films after that, but sadly, it wasn’t to be.

Our sincere condolences go out to Geri Betzler / Zoe Trilling’s family, friends, and fans.

Castlevania: Nocturne Season 2 is happening on Netflix after the success of the animated series first monster-infested season.

Grab your holy water and a fork and knife for some delicious wall chicken because Castlevania: Nocturne is stabbing a stake through a second season on Netflix! Castlevania: Nocturne debuted on September 28, picking up 300 years after the events of the original Castlevania series. Nocturne unfurls its leathery wings on the streamer after four successful seasons of the original series inspired by the beloved Konami video game franchise.

Set in 1792, during the French Revolution, Castlevania: Nocturne focuses on Maria Renard and Richter Belmont, a descendant of Trevor Belmont and Sypha Belnades. While the first series drew inspiration from Castlevania III: Dracula’s Curse and Castlevania: Curse of Darkness, Nocturne is primarily based on the 1993 video game Castlevania: Rondo of Blood and its 1997 sequel Castlevania: Symphony of the Night.

Here’s the synopsis for the first season of Castlevania: Nocturne:

In a remote part of western France, the counter-revolutionary aristocracy has forged an alliance with a terrifying Vampire Messiah, who promises to ‘eat the sun’ and unleash an army of vampires and nightcreatures to crush the revolution and enslave humanity. Annette, a sorceress from the Caribbean, seeks out Richter Belmont, last descendant of the long-fabled family of vampire hunters, to lead the resistance.

“Thanks to all of the Castlevania fans old and new for the amazing response and support!” said Creator/Showrunner Clive Bradley and showrunner Kevin Kolde in a joint statement. “We are excited to be able to bring you more Castlevania: Nocturne and the next chapter in the rise of Richter Belmont.”

Frederator Studios’ Kevin Kolde, the original series developer, serves as showrunner on Castlevania: Nocturne. Clive Bradley (Trapped) is writing and executive producing alongside Kolde. Powerhouse Animation is handling the animation, with Sam and Adam Deats directing.

Castlevania: Nocturne has been attracting hordes of fans since the show’s late September debut. Nocturne flew to the Netflix streamer’s Top 10 English TV list at the start of October and planted its flag in the Top 10 in 40 countries.

Are you excited about Castlevania: Nocturne Season 2? Do you think it lives up to the quality of the original series? Let us know in the comments section below.