Rainn Wilson reminds people he’s more than Dwight Schrute

Nicholas Alexander on November 7, 2022

Rainn Wilson is one of the most versatile actors in entertainment, but he is best known for his role as Dwight Schrute.

Although Wilson is most recognizable for his work on The Office, he says he doesn’t want to be remembered for that particular role.

Elaboration

Rainn Wilson spoke to Collider in a recent interview to explain his sentiments about his recognition as Dwight.

“Listen, obviously, most people know me from The Office, and they always will, and that’ll be on my tombstone,” said Wilson.

“My epitaph will be, ‘The guy who played Dwight.’ But I did dozens of roles before I played Dwight. I’ve played dozens of roles after Dwight.”

Other roles

Besides Dwight Schrute, Rainn Wilson’s other most famous role was in the coming-of-age Juno.

Although he played the memorable Rollo behind the cash register, Wilson still doesn’t list him as one of his favorite roles.

Instead, Rainn Wilson cites the 2010 cult classic Super as the work he is proudest of.

Super

In Super, Rainn Wilson played Frank Darbo, a fryer who decides to transform himself into a costumed vigilante named Crimson Bolt after his wife left him.

“We shot that super quick in Shreveport, scenic Shreveport, Louisiana,” said Wilson.

“But I think the combination of humor, darkness, tragedy, insane imagination – my brain gets touched by the finger of God.”

“I think it’s an extraordinary work, and I’m really proud to have been part of it.”

Rain Wilson’s choice comes as a surprise to fans as the film only earned $593,933 at the box office.

Additionally, Super scored 49% on Rotten Tomatoes.

Due to the low box office return, Super will likely not have a sequel.

However, Rainn Wilson’s Crimson Bolt made a cameo appearance in the 2019 film Brightburn as a photo.

Weird

Rainn Wilson’s latest project sees him alongside Daniel Radcliffe for Weird: The Al Yankovic Story.

He plays Dr. Memento, a real broadcaster.

Weird received rave reviews from critics, with Slate film critic Dana Stevens praising him for executing the meta theme:

Weird received rave reviews from critics, with Slate film critic Dana Stevens praising it for tackling the meta-theme:

“Though it wears out its welcome in one dreary stretch midway through, Weird: The Al Yankovic Story (which premiere on the free, ad-supported streaming service the Roku Channel on Friday) is an appropriately goofy tribute to its subject and co-creator: a movie parody about the life of a parodist.”

Reference:

Rainn Wilson says he doesn’t want to be remembered for his most iconic role

Diving into some of the most influential zombie films in horror

Claire Peterson on October 17, 2022

With modern horror, the zombie genre is among the most anticipated genres in entertainment today, whether it’s film or series.

The Walking Dead rejuvenated the genre, and its success (both comics and series) was primarily built on the foundations of George A. Romero’s works.

Here we will focus on the films that made the zombie genre a favorite among horror fans.

Note: The following article focuses on the mysterious nature of the zombie apocalypse. Movies about viruses, like 28 Days Later, are excluded.

Night of the Living Dead (1968 and 1990)

The modern zombie genre wouldn’t have existed without George A. Romero and John Russo.

Night of the Living Dead was a groundbreaking film that changed the media’s perception of zombies.

Before Romero, zombies were often associated with voodoo and Haitian witchcraft.

It was this film that created the way zombies are today.

Night of the Living Dead is also iconic for casting Duane Jones (an African-American actor) as the lead during a time of civil unrest and rampant racism.

Both films follow a group of people trapped on a farm in rural western Pennsylvania.

The group is tasked with surviving a growing horde of flesh-eating ghouls at night.

While George A. Romero directed the original, the 1990 remake was directed by Tom Savini, who assisted with the original’s special effects.

Savini’s version largely follows the same script but makes changes, following some of Romero’s original plans.

The Return of the Living Dead (1985)

Return of the Living Dead is the zombie movie that first used the classic “Brain!” line in parodies, cartoons, and games.

Although the film is titled “The Living Dead,” it is in no way related to the work of George A. Romero.

Instead, it was written and directed by legendary screenwriter Dan O’Brannon.

Return of the Living Dead is a horror comedy about warehouse workers, a gravedigger and a group of punks grappling with a horde of brain-hungry zombies.

In a nod to the movie Night of the Living Dead, warehouse workers accidentally open a barrel containing a zombie allegedly from the movie.

After the body is burned, the gas pollutes the air, causing toxic rain that revives the dead in a nearby cemetery.

Dawn of the Dead (2004)

Before starting the DCEU, Zack Snyder made his directorial debut with a remake of George A. Romero’s Dawn of the Dead.

Dawn of the Dead deviates from the original story but keeps the plot of a group of people trapped in a mall.

Snyder’s remake also brought running savage zombies back into the mainstream (Return of the Living Dead was one of the first to do so).

Shaun of the Dead (2004)

Shaun of the Dead, released the same year as the Dawn of the Dead remake, puts zombies in a mix of romance and comedy.

The film pays tribute to the works of George A. Romero (who loved the film).

Shaun of the Dead also continues Romero’s tradition of making a film with social commentary and using satire to tackle modern life.

Braindead (1992)

While zombie movies usually bring blood and guts, Peter Jackson took things to a new level.

The film follows a young man living with his opinionated mother, who is bitten by a rat-monkey hybrid from Skull Island (Jackson’s homage to King Kong before he directed the remake).

Despite being resurrected as a zombie and turning a handful of people, the man tries to keep his zombified mother a secret while he takes care of his family and his love life.

Braindead is one of the bloodiest films in the zombie genre, if not the bloodiest.

Land of the Dead (2005)

One of George A. Romero’s last three “dead” films, Land of the Dead, was originally the concept he planned for 1985’s Day of the Dead.

The success of Snyder’s Dawn of the Dead gave Romero the momentum needed to make this film.

Land of the Dead revolves around a group of survivors in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where a social divide exists.

The film also shows the evolution of Romero’s zombies from carnivorous spirits to creatures with some form of intelligence.

Dawn of the Dead (1978)

The Night of the Living Dead sequel, Dawn of the Dead, offers everything a horror fan could want.

Romero has involved horror, action, social commentary, and even comedy, making Dawn of the Dead the most comprehensive zombie movie.

Dawn of the Dead expands into Night of the Living Dead, revealing that the zombie apocalypse has taken place across the country.

In the film, a group of four manages to take a helicopter and take refuge in a shopping mall.

Having secured the ground, they fall into a false sense of comfort as the living and the dead wait outside.

Halloween movie recommendations: slasher films to binge

Nicholas Alexander on October 10, 2022

With Halloween coming in a few weeks, what better way to get into the spirit of the spooky season than by watching some horror movies?

However, horror branches out into many sub-genres, and the focus of this article is to take a look at some of the best movies in the slasher genre.

Psycho (1960)

Psycho is about Marion Crane (Janet Leigh), who leaves after stealing money from her employer to run away with her lover (John Gavin).

However, she makes a stop at the Bates Motel, run by the polite and quiet Norman Bates (Anthony Perkins), apparently dominated by his ruthless mother.

Alfred Hitchcock’s psychological horror may not have been the father of slasher films, but it’s often touted as one of the pioneering slasher films.

Psycho is easily one of the most recognizable films, and the shower scene has become one of the most iconic moments in film history.

The film’s music has also become synonymous with the slasher film genre.

Friday the 13th (1980)

Friday the 13th follows a group of teenage camp counselors as they try to fix and reopen an abandoned summer camp.

Aside from the challenge of renovating the old summer camp, they have to survive as someone tries to kill them.

Although there have been several slasher films, Friday the 13th is arguably the most influential of them all.

The cliché of a group of teenagers killed one by one in a field began with this 1980 slasher film.

Friday the 13th was responsible for initiating the “stalker” subgenre in slasher films that show the killer’s perspective as he follows his victims.

The Texas Chain Saw Massacre (1974)

Five hippies embark on a journey through rural Texas to investigate a case of grave vandalism.

Along the way, however, they arrive at a farm where they must survive a family of cannibals and a chainsaw maniac.

The Texas Chain Saw Massacre is considered to be one of the greatest and most influential films in the horror genre.

For many, it raised the bar and introduced the public to blood that wasn’t as common at the time.

One of the most iconic horror characters, Leatherface, is the archetype of the hulking silent killer with no personality.

Many horror directors have credited The Texas Chain Saw Massacre as a huge influence on their works, including Alien, The Hills Have Eyes, and House of 1000 Corpses.

Halloween (1978)

On Halloween night in 1963, six-year-old Michael Myers brutally murdered his 15-year-old sister, which led to him getting confined in an asylum.

Fifteen years after his murder, Myers manages to escape from the psychiatric hospital and the riots in his hometown.

Before Jason Voorhees, there was Michael Myers, who laid the groundwork for the masked silent killer who walked silently as his victims tried to escape.

The movie helped take the slasher genre to the next level and introduced the latest female trope.

Halloween also paved the way for others in the genre to follow.

A Nightmare on Elm Street (1984)

The Elm Street teenagers say they’ve all had nightmares and, surprisingly, dream of the same character.

After one of them dies in his sleep, they realize that in order to figure out how to defeat Freddy Kreuger (Robert Englund), it’s important to uncover the truth.

Before Vecna from Stranger Things, Freddy Kreuger was the character that haunted people’s nightmares.

He is easily recognizable by his burnt flesh, his beige fedora, his red and green sweater, and, of course, his metal claws.

A Nightmare on Elm Street also introduced the eerie use of surreal settings, with a haunting nursery rhyme about the villain.

Child’s Play (1988)

After being shot, a killer (Brad Dourif) uses dark magic to transfer his soul into a nearby doll.

A woman (Catherine Hicks) unknowingly purchases the possessed doll for her son (Alex Vincent).

When it comes to the slasher genre, it’s impossible to exclude the biggest killer doll from the list.

Chucky has given many children nightmares by bringing the killer doll concept to life on screens.

Friday the 13th Part 2 (1981)

The sequel to Friday the 13th will hit theaters a year later.

However, the storyline takes place five years after the event, with much of the same storyline.

The main difference is that this film marked the debut of the iconic character Jason Voorhees as the antagonist.

In this film, Jason remains the behemoth he knows today, but it wasn’t until Friday the 13th Part III (1982) that he wore his iconic hockey mask.

Scream (1996)

If there was a movie that took every element of the horror genre and created something new.

Filled with meta references, Scream makes countless references to the unspoken rules of the slasher and horror genres.

Scream spawned six sequels and a short-lived series, redefining the horror genre from the 1990s to the early 2000s.

I Know What You Did Last Summer (1997)

Urban legends have been the source of many horror films, and in the case of this film, they certainly cemented the hookman as a horror staple.

Four friends driving to the beach accidentally hit a pedestrian and dumped him in the harbor, vowing never to talk about the accident.

A year later, they are chased one by one and killed by an unknown attacker who uses a hook as a weapon.

I Know What You Did Last Summer, along with Scream, helped revive the horror genre in the 1990s.

Spawn reboot gets three big writers on board

Leah Cooper on October 10, 2022

As the comics continue to make the leap to the big screen, Spawn has once again joined the trend.

Although there was a movie over two decades ago, Image’s popular comic book superhero/antihero is finally getting a reboot.

The project recently received its latest announcement on Twitter.

The announcement

Creator and artist Todd McFarlane shared the great news Thursday that Spawn’s film has three writers on board: Malcolm Spellman, Scott Silver, and Mathew Mixon.

Malcolm Spellman helped write the Marvel series The Falcon and The Winter Soldier, while Scott Silver contributed to the gritty Joker movie in 2019.

While not much is known about Spawn’s reboot, actor Jamie Foxx is associated with the project as Al Simmons/Spawn.

However, a director has not yet been found and the full cast has not yet been announced.

Spellman’s enthusiasm for the project

Malcolm Spellman shared his excitement about working on the project, saying:

“I grew up in Berkeley, which is a comic book city,” he started.

“Todd McFarlane’s Spawn character was always one of my favorites — a Black superhero that was no bullshit, he was cool and dealt with modern issues.”

“Myself, Matt Mixon, and Scott Silver are pledged to honoring what Todd started and what Spawn is at its core, delivering something that’s relevant and edgy and unlike any other superhero movie out there.”

The long wait

A Spawn movie was released in 1997, starring Michael Jai White and John Leguizamo, but it was panned by critics.

Although the film was not well received, a sequel was in the works.

However, it made no progress.

Since then, fans have been waiting for Spawn to return to screens for years, as McFarlane teased a film adaptation.

Over the years, he kept assuring them that Al Simmons would be back.

“We’ve had some announcements of people who are attached to it, but not all of them,” explained McFarlane.

“We just wanna hold a little bit longer until we’re a little bit closer to the final script that we’re going to be selling out in Hollywood, so the buzz will be big.”

Todd McFarlane

For years, creator Todd McFarlane has been empathizing with frustrated fans eager to get a formal announcement.

Despite their frustrations, he kept quiet about the Spawn project, saying:

“I know when people don’t get concrete names and information and stuff, and when I have to say, ‘Stuff’s happening. Just wait,’ that’s not a very satisfying answer.”

“And that’s what’s frustrating, because I know that it’s way more than that happening.”

While fans expected McFarlane to share new details at San Diego Comic-Con this year, he explained that the plan was changing.

Spawn’s creative team held talks to reveal key details of the event, but decided to save it for New York Comic-Con 2022.

Meanwhile, Jamie Foxx shared that production has yet to begin but has seen the first concept art for the suit to be used in the film.

“I’ve seen a lot of concepts,” he said.

“Because Todd, what he does it, every single day he’s doodling and he’s fixing and he’s doing some things that, to me, I think is gonna be like way out when you see it.”

Reference:

Todd McFarlane’s Spawn film taps Joker, Falcon and Winter Soldier writers

Community to receive its long-awaited movie after Peacock picks up the project

Claire Peterson on October 6, 2022

Community is a much-loved series that aired between 2009 and 2015 and has always carried the tagline “Six Seasons and a Movie” since its second season.

Seven years after the end of the series, Community finally got the green light for a feature film.

In mid-2022, news surfaced of a possible upcoming movie, but no one knew when it would come.

On September 30, it was finally revealed that it had been picked up.

The news

The internet exploded when several stars started posting the prophetic phrase “And a movie” online.

It was revealed that Peacock commissioned a film about the underdog study group Greendale, founded by Dan Harmon.

The announcement revealed that the original cast members would be returning.

Joel McHale, Danny Pudi, Alison Brie, Gillian Jacobs, Ken Jeong, and Jim Rash have been confirmed to return as Greendale saviors.

Original cast members Yvette Nicole Brown and Donald Glover have yet to be confirmed to return.

Comedy legend Chevy Chase may not return as Pierce Hawthorne after the fourth season’s fallout, but anything is possible.

Behind the scenes

Aside from the film, Peacock managed to secure non-competing rights to air the sixth season of Community.

Susan Rovener, president of NBCUniversal’s entertainment content and streaming, shared her enthusiasm for the project, saying:

“‘Six seasons and a movie’ started out as a cheeky line from Community’s early seasons and quickly ignited a passionate fan movement for this iconic, hilarious, and cool (cool, cool) NBC comedy.”

“We’re incredibly grateful that 15 years later, we are able to deliver fans this promised movie and can’t wait to get to work with Dan Harmon, Andrew Guest, Joel McHale, Sony, and our partners at UTV to continue this epic comedy for Peacock audiences.”

Six seasons and a movie

The Community Movie has gotten more attention since Dan Harmon said it was possible to make it work, and Joel McHale’s tweet from Sept. 30 confirmed that it may be on the way.

McHale tagged his co-stars Peacock, Sony, Community and Gillian Anderson (accidentally because Gillian Jacobs didn’t have an account) and posted a photo with the hopeful words, “And a movie.”

The full line was first said by Abed Nadir (Pudi) in the second season episode, Paradigms of Human Memory.

The episode took a take of the “clip shows” trope in older shows, which usually recycle old clips to save money.

Instead, in Paradigms of Human Memory, they showed new clips of past events.

In one of the clips, Abed disguises himself as Cape (from the titular TV show) and accidentally spills Jeff Winger’s (McHale’s) lunch.

Jeff yells, “The show’s gonna last three weeks!” To which Abed replies: “Six seasons and a movie!”

The phrase became a rallying cry for community fans around the world, especially when the show was temporarily canceled after its fifth season.

Yahoo managed to pick it up and fulfill half of the prophecy.

Progress of the film’s development over the years

Community creator Dan Harmon said a movie would be made as early as 2016.

Over the years, he’s regularly updated his fans and hinted that a movie is in the works.

In August of this year, Harmon announced that he had pitched a Community film, and Peacock seemed interested.

Although he founded Community, Dan Harmon is only on board to write the film and serve as its executive producer.

He is joined in the role of executive producer by Joel McHale, Andrew Guest, Russ Krassnoff, and Gary Foster.

The film hasn’t found a director yet.

Reference:

Community is finally getting its long-promised movie

Prey (2022): More Than Just Another Hollywood Reboot

Edward Anderson on August 15, 2022

Prey is Hollywood’s latest remake/reboot film and continues the story of the alien hunter that debuted in the late 1980s.

Rather than continue the mess left by the 2018 movie Predators, Prey director Dan Trachtenberg decided to start over and bring audiences back to one of the earliest Predator stories.

Warning: spoilers ahead

Movie synopsis

“A skilled Comanche warrior protects her tribe from a highly evolved alien predator that hunts humans for sport, fighting against wilderness, dangerous colonizers, and this dangerous creature to keep her people safe.”

Plot

Prey introduces viewers to a time when machine guns didn’t become our first line of defense against alien threats.

In 1719, we meet Amber Midthunders Naru, a Comanche who yearns to prove herself as a warrior.

Naru sees the Predator’s arrival and believes it is a sign that she is ready to undergo the ritual to cement her status as a warrior.

When one of their hunters goes missing, Naru and her brother Taabe go in search of one of them.

While tracking down their tribe members, Naru is the only person to notice the unusual footprints and skinned rattlesnake – the remnants of the Predator’s hunt for a worthy opponent.

Naru helps Taabe track down the cougar who injured their hunter.

Naru weakens the wildcat before being knocked out in a fall after witnessing a burst of light from the forest.

Back in the village, Taabe takes the honor and title of the chieftain, leading Naru to hunt down the greatest threat to the tribe.

Accompanied by her dog Sarii, Naru comes across a field full of skinned bison.

On the journey, she is attacked by a grizzly bear who corners her in a beaver dam before witnessing the threat and brute strength of the Predator.

Naru narrowly escapes before encountering members of her tribe who have been sent to find her.

They take her by force before meeting the Predator, who efficiently reduces their number.

Again, Naru escaped before being captured by the French colonizers.

They use her and a captured Taabe as bait to lure the Predator, which quickly kills the French colonizers.

Naru returns to their camp and helps an injured Raphael Adolini, by giving him herbs that reduce his body heat, making him invisible to the Predator.

A step on his injured leg causes him to scream in pain, and he is killed, but Naru now knows how to get the upper hand against her enemy.

Taabe arrives on horseback to save his sister as he weakens the Predator.

However, the alien manages to kill Taabe. Naru takes Adolini’s rifle and escapes.

She later captures one of the French and uses him as bait for the Predator.

The Predator falls for it, and Naru uses the herb to sneak up behind it and shoot it in the head, disabling its helmet.

She drags the Predator into a swamp and uses its helmet’s projectile weapons against it.

The Predator dies from its wounds, and Naru decapitates the Predator before painting her face in its blood, taking its head and Adolini’s weapon with him.

Returning to the tribe, she is celebrated for her victory and becomes the new war chief.

Towards the end of the credits, a cave painting depicts three Predator ships emerging from the sky.

The cast

Amber Midthunder as Naru
Dakota Beavers as Taabe
Dane DiLiegro in the role of the Predator
Stormee Kipp as Wasape
Bennett Taylor as Raphael Adolini
Michelle Thrush as Aruka
Julian Black Antelope as Chief Kehetu

Review

One of the best sequels for the (small) screen, Prey combines modern technology with a nostalgic formula.

In a time when movies rely primarily on the green screen to tell a story, this Predator sequel takes viewers back to where the series began: in the wild.

The story works perfectly and shows the Predator before it became one of the deadliest hunters chasing Arnold Schwarzenegger, Danny Glover and Adrien Brody in its game.

Although not as technologically advanced as previous films, the film’s Predator features everything that made it a sci-fi icon – the invisibility cloak, projectile weapons (replacing cannons with mini darts) and the retractable blade.

The Predator’s helmet is also different, using a skull-like design that fits the era perfectly.

Prey didn’t have to rely heavily on CGI effects for his monster (aside from the invisible cloak scenes) and kept it pretty much the same as in previous films.

Dane DiLiegro has done a spectacular job that truly honors the legacy of the late Kevin Peter Hall, the original Predator.

In addition to the significant details of the Predator look, the production team’s efforts to portray the Comanche tribe in the film deserve credit for its accurate clothing, village setting, and hunting lifestyle.

Also not to be missed is the performance of Amber Midthunder.

Midthunder may be a new name for many, but she’s been in Hollywood for over two decades.

While online critics would quickly point to Naru’s characterization as another “Mary Sue,” their sentiments seem to be based on the trailer alone.

Throughout the film, Midthunder’s Naru showed intelligence in understanding the enemy’s strengths and weaknesses (noting the use of its shield and vision).

Rather than being “the last girl,” she displays the same spirit as beloved characters like Sigourney Weaver’s Ellen Ripley and Linda Hamilton’s Sarah Connor.

Despite the short run time, director Dan Trachtenberg managed his time wisely by enriching the backstory of Amber Midthunder’s character and the Predator before their eventual confrontation.

Trachtenberg has found the right balance to give viewers enough story to root for Naru as he built the Predator’s revelation, a task that usually ends with sloppy execution.

Prey also did well in attracting mainstream and Comanche audiences by shooting the film in both English and Comanche.

Overall, Prey managed to hit all the right notes.

Links to previous movies

Prey offers something new and familiar, which is why he receives positive words from all over the world.

Here we look at what connects Prey to other Predator standalone films.

Predator (1987)

The father of the franchise, Predator is famous for its story, which pits a group of seasoned veterans against an unknown enemy.

Predator and Prey share the same natural environment, so fans were excited to see how the final product would turn out, especially as Naru was without the weapons Schwarzenegger had at his disposal.

However, people tend to forget that even Schwarzenegger’s character gave up bullets to use his wits to take on the Predator – the same way Midthunder’s Naru finished off her enemy.

Dakota Beavers Taabe also repeats the iconic line, “If it bleeds, we can kill it.”

Predator 2 (1990)

The often overlooked sequel, Predator 2 is the movie that ties directly into Prey as the former Predator throws the same gun at Mike Harrigan (Danny Glover) that Naru took.

The gun might hint that a sequel might be underway, and the reception only reinforces that sentiment.

Predators (2010)

The 2010 action movie was the first to feature the different types of predators.

Prey continues this trend by wearing a Predator design initially used for the 1987 film and later used in the 2010 sequel.

It is possible that the helmet used here came from the same creature that attacked Adrien Brody in the film.

The Predator (2018)

Prey’s predecessor is the only film unrelated to it.