paranormal activity

After the success of the ultra-tepid and mega-overrated “Paranormal Activity”, Paramount is hoping that lightning will strike twice by starting Insurge Pictures, an in-house effort that will distribute films budgeted under $100,000. While this sounds awesome at first glance, we all know this'll just become another home for Hollywood vanity project for the likes of Steven Soderburgh and George Clooney to “get back to their roots” by using digital cameras to make scathing indictments of the US military complex starring porn stars and cameos from former teen-stars trying to shed their pretty boy image. On the plus side, you might get to see James Van Der Beek's dong.

Eric Roberts has signed the dotted line to star in the SyFy movie “Sharktopus”. I know that I've been a champion of these movies in the past, but, after the release of “Mega-Shark vs. Giant Octopus”, I find it hard to give a damn anymore. These movies used to be reviled and spit on, which, for me, added to their charm, but, for some reason, with the release of “MS v. GO”, they became a part of the hipster culture and they became “cool” bad movies. “Hey bro, I can't make it to our Brooklyn-based indie art-rock collective band meeting tonight! SyFy has Cyndi Lauper is taking on a Spider-Megalodon!” (And, even more, am I the only one who feels like a total dick actually writing “SyFy”? That channel has gotten so pretentious I'm surprised they haven't done a Phillip K. Dick miniseries yet, with a soundtrack by Joanna Newsom.)

Director Stephen Soderberg has fast tracked his next project, the outbreak action-thriller "Contagion". Joining him will be Matt Damon, Jude Law, Kate Winslet and Marion Cotillard. So far, the origin of the outbreak is unknown but investigation shows it is narrowed down to either a viral situation or runaway actor egos.

Normally I don't like to fuel crazy rumors, but this one is too good to pass up. The story that Universal is a planning a possible "Jaws" remake has been around for awhile. Think a reboot is bad enough? How about a reboot starring Tracy Morgan in the place of Matt Hooper?

In other star packed ego news, Rachel Weisz will star along side Daniel Craig and Naomi Watts in the haunted house thriller "Dream House". Reportedly, Weisz will be filling the lead role originally given to Watts.

"Paranormal Activity" continues to make waves as it scares the vino out of Italy. The country's emergency response service has been flooded with calls from teenagers and youth suffering from panic attacks after viewing the commercials. So far, the government has yet to ban the film.

Draco Malfoy has joined the cast of "The Apparition", a story about a couple haunted after a college experiment. So far, it would appear that Tom Feldon is going to be cast as the film's 'star power'.

"The Crazies" director Breck Eisner has the bug for remakes. The director has signed on for his next project, a remake of David Cronenbergs "The Brood".

A new clip arrives online of the upcoming "Solomon Kane", giving us the first glimpse of James Purefoy in the title role.

With the success of "Paranormal Activity", it was only a matter of time before The Asylum sunk their claws into the subject matter. For your viewing pleasure, here is their low budget plot borrowing, "Paranormal Entity"

Speaking of "Paranormal Activity", do you need even more of the story? How about the first five pages of the upcoming IDW Comic Adaption entitled "Paranormal Activity: The Search for Katie"?

Generally speaking, a poster for an upcoming big-budget Hollywood remake isn't much of a news item. However, the latest "Clash of the Titans" poster is seriously badass, and worthy of your attention. Medusa would be proud.

British zombie fans, rejoice! Apparently, George A. Romero's upcoming "Survival of the Dead" will infect Region 2 DVD players on March 15th, 2010. Stateside fanatics, I'm afraid, may have a while to wait.

If, for some strange reason, Oren Peli's "Paranormal Activity" left you wanting more, be sure to check out the new digital comic book available exclusively on iTunes. Remember: That's boredom you're experiencing, not demonic possession.

Those jonesing for another installment of the new "Friday the 13th" franchise aren't going to be happy, as the sequel to Marcus Nispel's dodgy remake has been moved to an undetermined date. Given the film's lukewarm reception, I'm honestly not surprised.

For you "30 Days of Night" fans, producer JR Young sits down with Dread Central to talk details of the sequel, "30 Days of Night: Dark Days". Principle photography for the film officially wraps today.

Rushing to capitalize off of the already phenomenal box office sales, the "Paranormal Activity" DVD and Blu-ray have been announced for December 29th. Details on the extras are slim aside from both the theatrical edit of the film and an unrated version with alternate ending.

Gamestudio Undead Labs has announced a zombie MMO. So far, only a console version has been announced.

New murmurings come to light about the proposed "Crow" franchise reboot. There is little available on new reboots except to remind you that this isn't going to be a direct remake of the first film. Look for new makeup and a possible known actor in the title role as well.