Halloween’s Danny McBride Was Scared John Carpenter Would Laugh In His Face When Pitching The Sequel

Halloween’s Danny McBride Was Scared John Carpenter Would Laugh In His Face When Pitching The Sequel

Picture having the opportunity to meet your greatest cinematic idol - in particular the director of your favorite film of all time. Now imagine that meeting being the opportunity for you to pitch said creator on a new film to continue the classic's legacy. That's exactly the scenario in which Halloween co-writer Danny McBride found himself in the making of the recent horror blockbuster, and while his concept eventually won out, he was seriously afraid of John Carpenter treating him like a young punk. McBride recently offered his account of the encounter, saying,

I don’t think in my head I ever thought we’d actually be able to make the film, so it became very real when we started walking up the front steps of John Carpenter’s office. I think I turned to David [Gordon Green], and it was just this panic moment of realization of like, 'We’re about to meet John Carpenter, and one of our heroes of filmmaking could quite possibly laugh in our face.' And John just kind of said, ‘Alright, let’s hear it,’ and just wanted us to get down to business.

You could imagine the pressure on Danny McBride and Halloween co-writer/director David Gordon Green, as they were walking into a meeting with the man who created the epic horror that is Michael Myers. With a reputation for not suffering fools, John Carpenter can be intimidating to those who don't know what they're doing. Lucky for them, and the rest of the world, they knew exactly what they were doing.

As David Gordon Green explained to Vice during a paired interview with his fellow filmmaker, he and Danny McBride had a clear vision in mind when it came to the Halloween sequel they wanted to make. This was shown in their decision to ignore every single sequel in the series, as they wanted to be the only sequel to John Carpenter's 1978 original. Such a choice not only gave audiences something new and fresh to look forward to, it gave the series a new lease on life; one that Carpenter clearly appreciated, given his ultimate involvement with the project as a producer and composer. Considering his history with the franchise only extended to writing Halloween II and producing Halloween III: Season of the Witch, it's not a huge shocker that he was okay with the bulk of everything else being junked.

All it took to win over John Carpenter for Halloween's 2018 sequel was two things: a chance to indulge in his passion for music, via the film's score, and the opportunity to set the franchise's history straight. Danny McBride and David Gordon Green gave him both opportunities, and the rest is now noteworthy cinema history.

Whether any potential follow ups past this point will have that much luck remains unknown. But for now we at least have two Halloween films that John Carpenter personally approves of - both now available on home video for your personal enjoyment.

Us Ending: What Happens And What It Means

Us Ending: What Happens And What It Means

Warning: Spoilers for Us are in play. If you haven't seen the film yet, you're going to want to bookmark this piece and come back after you've seen the film.

Everyone expected writer/director Jordan Peele's follow up to Get Out to be just as twisted, and just as deep, as his Academy Award-winning opus. But I don't think anyone would have expected just how hard Us decided to go when it comes to its end product. Like any good puzzle maker, Peele leaves a lot of clues and easter eggs throughout this film for the audience to put together. And the picture it reveals is something truly Biblical in scope.

Needless to say, if you haven't seen Us, you totally have to. Not only because it's a fantastic film that'll have you talking for days, but because what we're about to go into isn't going to make a lot of sense without that knowledge. So if you're planning on seeing the film, go do that now or whenever it's possible. Then come back, and dive into the deeper waters of the film's symbolism, as we're about to do now.

What Happens At The End Of Us

By time Us is ready to wrap up its narrative, we see Lupita Nyong'o's Adelaide, as well as her doppleganger Red (also Nyong'o), squaring off in an underground bunker. This confrontation comes after Red kidnaps Adelaide's son, Jason, and takes him into the bunker through an entrance in the maze that the two met at in 1986. Finding her way back underground, Adelaide is eventually given the entire story behind Red and the Tethered's existence.

As it turns out, the Tethered were an experiment in creating replicas of every human being in the surface world. An experiment that succeeded in physical copies, but as Red explains, fails in recapturing the souls of those copied. The project was eventually ditched, with the Tethered left to languish underground in their society of half-formed clones.

Eventually, this makes way for a sentiment of insurrection, with the Tethered world planning to surface and take their place in the sun. And leading the way is Red, the only clone with actual speech who's “different” from the rest. After this exposition is delivered, the two parties get into a fight, with Adelaide being the winner. Killing Red, she rescues Jason, and brings him back to the surface.

But as it turns out, Adelaide wasn't actually who she said she was. As it turns out, she was a Tethered who escaped, switching places with the real Adelaide back in 1986. So in actuality, Red was living Adelaide's life from that point forward, and vice versa. The only person that knows this besides her is Jason, who looks at his mother in horror before putting his mask back on. The film ends with a wide shot of the Tethered holding hands across America, with the news media covering the event through helicopter coverage. This is all pretty deep, but what does it mean exactly?

What It Means

Us feels like it's a film tackling that old socio-political saw best known as “the Haves, and the Have Nots.” In this case, everyone on the surface is a Have, while the Tethered are most definitely Have Nots. After decades of being confined underground, and being forced to live their lives unattended, uncared for, and impoverished, the Tethered are ready to mount an offensive and overthrow their surface-dwelling counterparts.

Now while we see a lot of the Tethered killing their surface-world counterparts, that doesn't look like it was their initial intent. We see beds made, with fresh jumpsuits and shoes in the underground bunker, so it feels like the initial plan would have been to simply supplant the surface world with their own numbers. But of course, there was resistance, it didn't work, and then the murders started.

Putting all of this together, Us is a story of revolt between the Haves and Have Nots, with the Have Nots trying to seize what they feel is rightfully there's. After being denied proper lives for so long, they hatch a plan to get into the mainstream and take over, all thanks to Adelaide being “special,” thus offering them a leader that could get the job done. If Red and Adelaide never switched, this may have never happened.

But looking deeper, Us also feels like a story of the political approaches and policies of the 1980s gone wrong; and their repercussions coming home to roost in the modern day. The entire story is one, big loop that spans from 1986 to the present day, with those created to be lesser than eventually taking over in one, apocalyptic gesture of dominance.

At the heart of it all though is a sentiment that any one of us is just a thin line away from being a Have or a Have Not. While we're all unique, it's the circumstances we're raised in that make us one or the other. Red was tired of being a person of the underground, so she switched places with Adelaide, and it wasn't too hard for her to fit in. As the film says through rather pointed, but understated dialogue, they're Americans. Looking through the hints scattered throughout Us, it's not hard to see this point being expertly sewn together throughout this slow burn narrative.

The Clues

Sifting through all the details that Jordan Peele slipped into Us, it's clear to see what's at work during the unfolding of the story. Even the detail that this film takes place between 1986 and 2019 is vital, as it's a 33 year story. Palindromes are a big symbol in the story that Peele is trying to tell, and there's a pretty huge one that recurs throughout: 11:11. In particular, there's a Bible verse that's attached to this numerical coincidence, Jeremiah 11:11, which says the following:

Therefore thus saith the Lord, Behold, I will bring evil upon them, which they shall not be able to escape; and though they shall cry unto me, I will not hearken unto them.

Now if that doesn't sound like a biblical reckoning, I don't know what does. The Tethered are that great evil, and judging by the gigantic red wall that's crossing the country, there is definitely no escape from them. But that's only the beginning, as the symbolism gets really political when you run back to the film's opening. A sequence where we're shown a TV spot for the “Hands Across America” initiative.

Meant to be a fundraiser to combat homelessness and hunger, the massive human chain of people holding hands raised money and awareness for those two causes that took up a lot of political real estate in the 80's. So much so that, as shown in another easter egg at the beginning of the film, they had already spawned a movie that spoke to the subject, with even more of a sci-fi/horror flavor.

Stashed right in frame, next to a copy of The Goonies, is a VHS of the cult classic C.H.U.D., a film that involved toxic waste storage mutating New York City's homeless population into cannibalistic humanoid underground dwellers. While the Tethered resurfacing in Us is more of a political statement, the creatures in C.H.U.D. were surfacing to feed on the surface world; but either way, the statement was that if we ignored the homeless problem long enough, it would come home to roost eventually.

Combining these clues gives you a story that, basically, tells us that if we keep ignoring our problems and disregarding our differences, they're going to come back to haunt us. And if we're not careful, that visitation will result in a reversal most foul. We can either be our greatest friends, or our worst enemies; and in the end, the decision is left to Us.

What other clues to the ultimate message did you spot in Us? Head to the comments section and clue us in! Get it?

Captain Marvel Has Already Hit A Box Office Milestone

Captain Marvel Has Already Hit A Box Office Milestone

Phase Three of the Marvel Cinematic Universe continues to pump out the hits, as every single blockbuster has been a critical and financial success. This includes the newest installation, Anna Boden and Ryan Fleck's 90's origin story Captain Marvel. Brie Larson finally made her Marvel debut as Carol Danvers, in a capsulated story that had connections to the greater MCU, including Guardians of the Galaxy. And it's making a ton of money at the box office.

Prior to its release, it wasn't clear how much of a hit Captain Marvel would be. Audiences hadn't met the title character yet, and there was some backlash and online trolling directed toward Brie Larson. But that hasn't stopped the blockbuster from raking in the cash, as it recently broke $500 million at the global box office. And it's not even a week old.

This box office update comes to us from Variety, and shows how Captain Marvel is going higher, further, faster than the film's haters predicted. Captain Marvel's success was far from guaranteed in the time before it finally arrived in theaters, although moviegoers are clearly shelling out cash to meet the ultra powerful protagonist.

Captain Marvel is the first time a brand new character has gotten their own MCU blockbuster in years, as both Spider-Man and Black Panther appeared in Captain America: Civil War before getting their respective solo movies. And while Hope became a superhero in Ant-Man and The Wasp, fans knew and loved her from the first movie.

Pre-sales for Captain Marvel no doubt helped its strong box office performance, as the hardcore Marvel fandom ran to theaters to see the penultimate installment of the MCU's Phase Three. In fact, it was among Marvel's strongest in regards to pre-sales, so its domestic opening weekend was winning before it began. The international markets have been particularly kind to Carol Danvers, as the movie has made $325.6 million in its first week in theaters across the world.

Ahead of the film's release, Captain Marvel star Brie Larson came under fire for comments she made about diversity in the press. With the film industry's focus on inclusion both in front of and behind the camera, Larson lamented that most film critics were white men. This comment proved to be the catalyst for some serious trolling, as haters took to the film's Fandango and Rotten Tomatoes pages, and sent audiences scores plummeting.

But the haters who claimed they were boycotting Captain Marvel don't seem to have made much of a difference, given how quickly the film has ascended to the $500 million mark. It should be fascinating to see how much more money the blockbuster makes for Marvel Studios, and how Brie Larson's signature character becomes a larger presence in the greater MCU.

Captain Marvel is in theaters now, and the title character will pop back up in Avengers: Endgame on April 26th. In the meantime, check out our 2019 release list to plan your next trip to the movies.

Having Adorable Dog Co-Stars Can Be A Struggle According To A Dog’s Journey Cast

Having Adorable Dog Co-Stars Can Be A Struggle According To A Dog’s Journey Cast

Do you ever just look across the way, make eye contact with a woofer and time just stops? What were you doing with your day again? Suddenly nothing matters, you just have to pet the dog in front of you. Now imagine that energy on the set of a movie.

It’s the ruff stuff Henry Lau and Kathryn Prescott had to deal with while working on A Dog’s Journey. When I recently interviewed the pair for CinemaBlend, they told me of this unique struggle. Here’s what Lau had to say:

That was actually the most difficult thing working with the dogs because they were just so adorable. We’d be acting, running through lines and a dog would just be looking up at you and we were just like ‘don’t pet him, don’t pet him, don’t pet him, focus, focus, don’t pet him.’

As far as workplace difficulties go, many of us would gladly trade this one for our own. This is an adorable insight into working with doggos on a movie from the 29-year-old actor. During the recent A Dog’s Journey press day, Henry Lau and Kathryn Prescott elaborated about the dynamic the dog actors brought to set. In their words:

Henry: There’s this big, big dog (called Duke in the movie) and he was just the king on set.

Kathyrn: Yeah, he was very happy to be there and giant, so it was known when Gary was walking on set.

It looks like the cast established some connections to the canine talent! Kathryn Prescott, who plays the film’s central character CJ, continued to gush about them:

I loved Phil as well who played Big Dog. I thought he gave one of the standout dog performances of the film. He’s a rescue aswell and he’d only been trained I think eight days to do all his paw stuff and all the tricks that he did. I think he knocked it out of the park.

Does the Oscars have a Best Supporting Dog Actor award? Maybe it should! Phil could go head-to-head with the pair of Belgian Malinois that Halle Berry trained with for John Wick 3. You can watch the fresh faced actors from the Dog’s Purpose sequel vouch for them in our exclusive interview below:

Kathryn Prescott and Henry Lau play childhood besties CJ and Trent, who each adopt from a litter puppies as children. CJ’s pup is the dog who has been reincarnated for over 60 years in A Dog’s Purpose, namely as Bailey to Dennis Quaid’s Ethan. The film tracks their relationship as they grow up into teens and then adults and as Bailey lives different lifetimes as CJ’s sworn protector.

Both actors are relative newcomers to the big screen. Kathryn found her breakout role as the titular character in the MTV drama Finding Carter for two seasons. Henry is a former K-pop star from the group Super Junior-m, who has recently pursued a career in acting.

A Dog’s Journey opens this weekend alongside John Wick 3 and The Sun is Also A Star. Judging from Thursday night numbers, John Wick will be the top dog. The last film in the franchise based on W. Bruce Cameron’s doggo novels was a box office success, as it made $205 million worldwide on a $22 million budget. We’ll see how A Dog’s Journey does amidst May’s packed movie season.

New Aladdin Clip Is Set Right Before ‘A Whole New World'

New Aladdin Clip Is Set Right Before ‘A Whole New World'

Disney’s live-action remake undertaking will soon continue with the release of a new Aladdin and fans are especially awaiting the new versions of the beloved songs from the 1992 animated musical. Is it from a new fantastic point of view? Check out this new look that sets up the highly-anticipated “A Whole New World” reimagining:

Swept away yet? The glimpse from Walt Disney Studios shows the beginning of Aladdin and Jasmine’s night before they board their magic carpet ride and break into song. Under the alias of “Prince Ali”, Aladdin is convincing the princess of Agrabah to leave her comfort behind the walls of the castle her confined world of books and maps and really go out and see the world with him. Before she can shoot out a round of excuses as to why she can’t, he reveals his magic carpet and asks her if he trusts her.

Disney fans know the “do you trust me?” line is straight out of the animated film. In the original, Jasmine first meets “street rat” Aladdin who feeds the same quote. So when the princess hears this from Ali, she knows it’s the guy she’d been crushing on from her rogue adventure outside the castle walls.

It’s a sweet moment between the couple that is lovably reminiscent of the 1992 classic. Aladdin exudes confidence with his prince persona, as he offers to show her the world and the couple will soon break out into song. The clip ends conveniently right before the track begins, serving as the perfect tease for the upcoming live-action flick. I for one am happy they cut it where they did, a moment like this should be seen for the first time on the big screen.

The first Aladdin trailer did include a bit of the “Whole New World” song including the new vocals by Mena Massoud and Naomi Scott, but we’ll likely have to wait until the movie hits theaters later this month before we see the full sequence.

Aladdin is a remake of the fairytale, this time with the Genie to be played by Will Smith. The actor will be adding his own comedic flavor to the film and rapping the character’s signature track “Friend Like Me”. Smith recently paid a visit to Jimmy Fallon and spit a few bars and while it’s a departure from what we remember, it’s a fun new take on it.

The movie will also include two brand news songs, one another duet between Aladdin and Jasmine and the other a solo tune from Jasmine. Mena Massoud also recently teased an all-improv scene between him and Will Smith in the film.

After the under-performing result of Disney’s last live-action offering Dumbo, Aladdin is tracking to have a more successful opening weekend during the Memorial Day holiday with four-day weekend projections between $85 million and $115 million.

Did the new clip get you excited for the upcoming magic carpet ride in Aladdin when it hits theaters on May 24? Sing your song in the comments below.

The Cute Homage Peter Parker Pays To Tony Stark In New Far From Home Trailer

The Cute Homage Peter Parker Pays To Tony Stark In New Far From Home Trailer

Warning: SPOILERS for Avengers: Endgame are in play. If you still want to avoid being spoiled, head on to another story and come back once you’ve seen the film.

In the wake of Avengers: Endgame’s climactic finale, the world is mourning Tony Stark’s death after he used the Infinity Gauntlet to take down Thanos and his invasion army. And one of the most prolific mourners is, undoubtedly, Peter Parker, who became a sort of son to the genius billionaire playboy philanthropist before he had a family of his own.

So obviously, when someone as influential as Tony was to Peter passes, the young hero is going to want to pay tribute to the man who helped him become an Avenger in the first place. And in Spider-Man: Far From Home’s latest trailer, we saw a fitting homage to Tony Stark, as Peter Parker now has Tony's last pair of iconic sunglasses, as you’ll see in the screenshot from the trailer below:

First seen in Avengers: Infinity War, Tony Stark had been wearing a pair of rather sharp Dita Mach-One sunglasses in his final arc in the Marvel Cinematic Universe. So naturally, upon his passing, someone had to inherit them. While his wife, Pepper Potts, or even his daughter, Morgan, might have been good heirs, seeing those shades go to Peter feels rather apt.

Despite not being an actual heir by blood, Peter Parker is the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s current heir to Tony Stark’s mantle. He even says in the new trailer, “The world needs the next Iron Man,” and looking at the rest of the trailer at hand, it looks like Peter might be keen on trying to fill that void. Though if Tony were to give him advice on the matter, he’d probably tell him not to try so hard, and to just be that friendly neighborhood Spider-Man he’s always been.

We’ll see Peter Parker undoubtedly learning some similar lessons in Spider-Man: Far From Home, as a class trip to Europe starts out like the usual fun and games, but turns into serious business. With Nick Fury and Maria Hill drafting Spider-Man into assisting Quentin Beck’s Mysterio in fighting the Elementals waging war on the continent, the usual teenager abroad antics are going to be the least of Peter’s worries on his itinerary.

And where else would be a better place for someone like Peter Parker to learn the lessons of being a hero than in a variety of beautiful European settings? We don’t know where we’d suggest as alternatives, but we do suggest that you watch the Spider-Man: Far From Home trailer again (or for the first time) below:

You still have some time to prepare for Spider-Man: Far From Home, as it takes its first bows on July 2, with tickets now available for opening weekend showings. Which means you have plenty of time to see Avengers: Endgame, which is currently in theaters.

Samuel L. Jackson Fought To Balance Comedy With Action In The New Shaft

Samuel L. Jackson Fought To Balance Comedy With Action In The New Shaft

When thinking about the Shaft franchise of films, comedy isn’t something that really springs to mind in the forefront of possibilities. But with the legendary bad mother heading back to screens later this month, in the second reboot to carry the Shaft name, it’s readily apparent that the smooth action will be balanced by a comedic tone that the series will be new to.

It’s a prospect that could scare both fans of the original and anyone new trying to get into the Shaft series with the fresh start offered by Tim Story’s reboot. But those concerns were put to ease to a certain extent, based on what Samuel L. Jackson told CinemaBlend and a selected group of journalists, during a set visit that took place early last year. In particular, Jackson provided the following commentary on how he fought to keep the balance between the jokes and the action:

The previous Shaft was a little more serious, I guess, in terms of what was going on between me and Peoples (Jeffrey Wright’s villain). The level of danger in this changes, because they want it to be light, and there was a conversation about it. The first script was a ‘ha, ha, ha, ha, ha’ script, and I’m like ‘Wait a minute, you really can’t do that because Shaft means something to us, iconically, historically, and mythologically.’ So we can show the lighter side of who he is, in terms of what his attitude is, but the level of danger, of what’s going on in the script, has to be the same thing. So when it’s serious, it has to be very serious.

Shaft certainly isn’t the first reboot to take a storied franchise and inject it with a sense of humor that wasn’t previously there. But as we’ve seen in the past, that experiment doesn’t always work, and sometimes can be kind of embarrassing. So it’s noteworthy and important when someone like Samuel L. Jackson, who is a fixture of the franchise since his turn in the John Singelton-directed 2000 movie, raises concerns as to how to make a leap into more comedic waters believable.

Samuel L. Jackson’s efforts seem to have worked pretty well, as in addition to the remarks he provided above, all on hand were shown a sizzle reel for the film, put together from raw footage of what Shaft had filmed up to that point. And from that early footage, the mixture of swagger and laughter seemed pretty balanced.

In one moment, Shaft is mocking his own son for his more modern sensibilities, and in the next he’s breaking a man’s arm for information. It’s something so legit, it was included in the film’s trailer; and that particular well of humor was something that Jackson also spoke towards during the Shaft set visit.

Complimenting what Samuel L. Jackson said about honoring the character and franchise that John Shaft and his descendants are at the heart of, Jackson discussed how the story of Jessie T. Usher’s JJ learning to become a true Shaft plays into the humor of the film. Which, according to Samuel L. Jackson, involves the following:

And to take a kid that [his mother] molded into what he is now: an I.T. graduate who’s an FBI agent, that has no real street sense, he’s a suburban kid who has the name Shaft. And now he’s in an environment that he has to live up to in a specific way. Because of who Richard [Roundtree] was, because of who I am, because of what he needs to be. So when people say, ‘That’s a Shaft,’ they have to see a Shaft. So he’s learning to be a Shaft against everything he’s been taught him.

The generation gap in the Shaft family is something that’s been played well in the marketing campaign for the film, so at least in that respect, the comedy/action mix looks to really be working. Three generations of complicated men, with no one to understand them but each other and the women in their lives, is something that assuredly lends itself to a fair amount of humor.

And as we’ve seen in the reactions to the looks at Richard Roundtree, Samuel L. Jackson, and Jessie T. Usher in action, the fans are ready to see this family team up to solve crime on the streets of any city they choose to hit. If everything else can line up in the constellation of jokes and jabs, this just might be the sleeper summer hit that Warner Bros. is hoping for the film to be.

Shaft opens in theaters on June 14, and if you’re interested in more content pertaining to the film’s release, stay tuned to CinemaBlend as we’ll have more coverage in the coming weeks.