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5 Reasons You Need To See Blair Witch (2016)

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It Will Wreak Havoc On Your Nerves

This one is a real ride. It doesn’t take long for these folks to get out into the woods. And it really doesn’t take long to have creepy stuff start happening to them. From there on it becomes a nerve rattling ride that doesn’t let up. It is loud and fast. I’m not a claustrophobic person, but at one point in the film toward the climax, I think I did develop claustrophobia. It traces some of the same steps as the original, while also letting you know that you are on new grounds, and you and the audience around you is not safe from the Blair Witch.

The Original Made You Believe

When the first Blair Witch was released, it came with a marketing campaign that had more people believing in it than Orson Welles reading of ‘War Of The Worlds.’ A barrage of news reports, documentaries and general word of mouth all stated that these kids had really gone missing. It wasn’t until a couple of weeks after the release that people became aware that it was not real. For those of us that remember seeing it on opening night, you might recall an anxious-electricity in the audience. It felt unsafe to watch, it felt like a grade away from a snuff film. We were watching something that lives were sacrificed to watch. I was just young enough to believe and just old enough to feel the weight of watching three young people terrorized and taken by a mystery entity. It stayed with me, it stayed with a lot of us.

The Original Changed The Landscape

Following the intense popularity of Blair Witch, almost everyone and their grandmother adopted the “found footage” model. Each release since has either slaughtered or improved on the formula. Without Blair Witch, films like REC, Cloverfield and the like, may have never been made.

This One Answers A Lot Of Questions You Had From The First Blair Witch

A lot of people left theaters scratching their heads after the first Blair Witch. They wanted to see more and have their questions answered. This Blair Witch answers a lot of those questions and gives you a lot of what you wanted out of the original. While it does give you those answers, it also manages to pose new questions in the best possible ways. Its been a few days since I watched it and I’m still intrigued by the possible directions that some of what I watched could mean.

The Guys behind ‘The Guest’ and ‘You’re Next’ Write and Direct This One

Writer, Simon Barrett and director, Adam Wingard are easily two of my favorite creators in the genre right now. This duo has worked on several projects together. With each time out, they have managed to mesh genres together in fascinating ways to create films that flip tradition on its head, while creating new and fantastic work. Their outing with the Blair Witch is no different. They use trademark Wingard and Barrett story telling along with new tools to tell the story in a intensely terrifying and intriguing way.

Blair Witch is now playing at a theater near you.

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Russell Crowe To Star in Another Exorcism Movie & It’s Not a Sequel

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Maybe it’s because The Exorcist just celebrated its 50th-anniversary last year, or maybe it’s because aging Academy Award-winning actors aren’t too proud to take on obscure roles, but Russell Crowe is visiting the Devil once again in yet another possession film. And it’s not related to his last one, The Pope’s Exorcist.

According to Collider, the film titled The Exorcism was originally going to be released under the name The Georgetown Project. Rights for its North American release were once in the hands of Miramax but then went to Vertical Entertainment. It will release on June 7 in theaters then head over to Shudder for subscribers.

Crowe will also star in this year’s upcoming Kraven the Hunter which is set to drop in theaters on August 30.

As for The Exorcism, Collider provides us with what it’s about:

“The film centers around actor Anthony Miller (Crowe), whose troubles come to the forefront as he shoots a supernatural horror movie. His estranged daughter (Ryan Simpkins) has to figure out whether he’s lapsing into his past addictions, or if something even more horrific is occurring. “

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New F-Bomb Laden ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ Trailer: Bloody Buddy Movie

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Deadpool & Wolverine might be the buddy movie of the decade. The two heterodox superheroes are back in the latest trailer for the summer blockbuster, this time with more f-bombs than a gangster film.

‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ Movie Trailer

This time the focus is on Wolverine played by Hugh Jackman. The adamantium-infused X-Man is having a bit of a pity party when Deadpool (Ryan Reynolds) arrives on the scene who then tries to convince him to team up for selfish reasons. The result is a profanity-filled trailer with a Strange surprise at the end.

Deadpool & Wolverine is one of the most anticipated movies of the year. It comes out on July 26. Here is the latest trailer, and we suggest if you are at work and your space isn’t private, you might want to put in headphones.

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Original Blair Witch Cast Ask Lionsgate for Retroactive Residuals in Light of New Film

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The Blair Witch Project Cast

Jason Blum is planning to reboot The Blair Witch Project for the second time. That’s a fairly large task considering none of the reboots or sequels have managed to capture the magic of the 1999 film that brought found footage into the mainstream.

This idea has not been lost on the original Blair Witch cast, who has recently reached out to Lionsgate to ask for what they feel is fair compensation for their role in the pivotal film. Lionsgate gained access to The Blair Witch Project in 2003 when they purchased Artisan Entertainment.

Blair witch
The Blair Witch Project Cast

However, Artisan Entertainment was an independent studio before its purchase, meaning the actors were not part of SAG-AFTRA. As a result, the cast are not entitled to the same residuals from the project as actors in other major films. The cast doesn’t feel that the studio should be able to continue to profit off of their hard work and likenesses without fair compensation.

Their most recent request asks for “meaningful consultation on any future ‘Blair Witch’ reboot, sequel, prequel, toy, game, ride, escape room, etc., in which one could reasonably assume that Heather, Michael & Josh’s names and/or likenesses will be associated for promotional purposes in the public sphere.”

The blair witch project

At this time, Lionsgate has not offered any comment about this issue.

The full statement made by the cast can be found below.

OUR ASKS OF LIONSGATE (From Heather, Michael & Josh, stars of “The Blair Witch Project”):

1. Retroactive + future residual payments to Heather, Michael and Josh for acting services rendered in the original BWP, equivalent to the sum that would’ve been allotted through SAG-AFTRA, had we had proper union or legal representation when the film was made.

2. Meaningful consultation on any future Blair Witch reboot, sequel, prequel, toy, game, ride, escape room, etc…, in which one could reasonably assume that Heather, Michael & Josh’s names and/or likenesses will be associated for promotional purposes in the public sphere.

Note: Our film has now been rebooted twice, both times were a disappointment from a fan/box office/critical perspective. Neither of these films were made with significant creative input from the original team. As the insiders who created the Blair Witch and have been listening to what fans love & want for 25 years, we’re your single greatest, yet thus-far un-utilized secret-weapon!

3. “The Blair Witch Grant”: A 60k grant (the budget of our original movie), paid out yearly by Lionsgate, to an unknown/aspiring genre filmmaker to assist in making theirfirst feature film. This is a GRANT, not a development fund, hence Lionsgate will not own any of the underlying rights to the project.

A PUBLIC STATEMENT FROM THE DIRECTORS & PRODUCERS OF “THE BLAIR WITCH PROJECT”:

As we near the 25th anniversary of The Blair Witch Project, our pride in the storyworld we created and the film we produced is reaffirmed by the recent announcement of a reboot by horror icons Jason Blum and James Wan.

While we, the original filmmakers, respect Lionsgate’s right to monetize the intellectual property as it sees fit, we must highlight the significant contributions of the original cast — Heather Donahue, Joshua Leonard, and Mike Williams. As the literal faces of what has become a franchise, their likenesses, voices, and real names are inseparably tied to The Blair Witch Project. Their unique contributions not only defined the film’s authenticity but continue to resonate with audiences around the world.

We celebrate our film’s legacy, and equally, we believe the actors deserve to be celebrated for their enduring association with the franchise.

Sincerely, Eduardo Sanchez, Dan Myrick, Gregg Hale, Robin Cowie, and Michael Monello

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