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The Scarlet Gospels is the horror novel of 2015!

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In November of 1986, Clive Barker first unleashed his most enduring creation on the world, when Dark Harvest published his novella The Hellbound Heart. It was an intimate story involving a secretive family, the unlikely opening of the gates to hell, and a group of creatures known only as the Cenobites. The Hellbound Heart laid the foundation for a long-running series of films, comics and stories for the past three decades. And introduced us to a now classic icon of modern horror, the Lead Cenobite, who came to be known as Pinhead over the years.
Mr. Barker was not yet a household horror name at the time, but he was well on his way. At the time, he had only published his hugely influential Books Of Blood and his first novel The Damnation Game. He had received the incredible blessing of Stephen King, who labeled him “The future of horror”.The influence of Hellraiser over the years has been astounding. A very personal glimpse into the deviations and fantasies of a young author were there on the big screen for all to witness, and the film tapped a vein in popular culture that had fans clamoring for more Pinhead.
While the first few sequels, most notably Hellbound : Hellraiser 2, built upon the foundation Barker originally created, the quality of the films strayed further from the source material with each following film. Now, nearly three decades later, Barker has returned to the material with a vengeance. First announcing that he will be heavily involved in a new film iteration of the classic, and bringing our anti-hero back to the pages in his first full-length horror novel in years!clive-barker-and-pinhead1Make no mistake, The Scarlet Gospels is a straight up horror novel, featuring all of the psychosexual deviant behavior and twisted visions we have come to expect from the depths of hell. It brings us an uncompromising vision of Clive Barker’s Hell, and expands and builds upon his own mythology in ways no one else has in the intervening decades.

Barker has his own distinct vision of the architecture and hierarchy of the underworld, and he brings it to life in painstaking detail with this new novel. Right from the first pages, we are witness to the return of the beloved Priest of Hell, disrespectfully known as “Pinhead” but never to his face, and his epic crusade to essentially take over Hell. It is an interesting new way to look at an established character, especially one who we have seen mainly in short scenes in the films, his new ambition all consuming.

In fact, the most fascinating thing we get from this novel is the extended view of who this Lead Cenobite really is, as compared to who he would like to be, and who the audience perceives him as. Despite all of the intimidating and serene speeches of suffering we have seen over the years, we learn that Pinhead is in fact very low on the totem pole of Hell. All of his interdimensional meddling over the years has essentially been keeping this priest in his place as a glorified dog catcher, collecting up strays and mutts who chance upon the unassuming portal in the shape of a puzzle box.

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The Scarlet Gospels documents his time and rise to power as he assuredly slaughters and slays through the ranks of the Underworld.  Of course that means we are introduced to many characters, including armies of angry demons and wise old alchemists, all the way up to the Lord of Hell himself, Lucifer. But the Lord of Hell is not alone in showing us these sights. Tying together some of his other literary work, Barker crosses the paths of his iconic Cenobite with the fascinating character of Harry D’Amour and his friends. D’Amour is a character that originated in the short story The Last Illusion (brought to the screen by Scott Bakula in the film Lord Of Illusions) and made an appearance in Barker’s giant fantasy epic Everville. His vast knowledge of supernatural events and somewhat unlucky knack of being in the wrong place at the wrong time put D’Amour and his friends directly in the path of Pinhead’s crusade. The story of D’Amour and his friend’s involvement is a fascinating one early on in the novel, and their involvement is central to the world Barker is building. They are especially good comic relief and add a heart and a more human point of view to the spectacle.

And what a spectacle it is! An epic war in Hell, instigated and carried out by the priest who has had enough of his miniscule position and has ambitions bigger than any mortal or demon. The final third of the book is an action-filled war of epic proportions deep in the bowels of Hell, putting Pinhead in a position we fans had never imagined. The warrior of Hell has come to take over, and he has all manner of magic and torture at his disposal, and will stop at nothing to achieve his lofty goals. It is immensely satisfying reading, written in an excitable style by one of the great imaginers of our generation. It isn’t often that a complete re-invention of a decades- old character is successful, but this one hits all of the right notes. This novel is what King was talking about back in the 80s when he had seen the “future of horror”. The future is now. Clive Barker is back and Pinhead has come to take over.

The Scarlet Gospels is the horror novel of 2015!

Order your copy here!

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The Original ‘Beetlejuice’ Sequel Had an Interesting Location

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beetlejuice in Hawaii Movie

Back in the late ’80s and early ’90s sequels to hit movies weren’t as linear as they are today. It was more like “let’s re-do the situation but in a different location.” Remember Speed 2, or National Lampoon’s European Vacation? Even Aliens, as good as it is, follows a lot of the plot points of the original; people stuck on a ship, an android, a little girl in peril instead of a cat. So it makes sense that one of the most popular supernatural comedies of all time, Beetlejuice would follow the same pattern.

In 1991 Tim Burton was interested in doing a sequel to his 1988 original, it was called Beetlejuice Goes Hawaiian:

“The Deetz family moves to Hawaii to develop a resort. Construction begins, and it’s quickly discovered that the hotel will be sitting on top of an ancient burial ground. Beetlejuice comes in to save the day.”

Burton liked the script but wanted some re-writes so he asked then-hot screenwriter Daniel Waters who had just got done contributing to Heathers. He passed on the opportunity so producer David Geffen offered it to Troop Beverly Hills scribe Pamela Norris to no avail.

Eventually, Warner Bros. asked Kevin Smith to punch up Beetlejuice Goes Hawaiian, he scoffed at the idea, saying, “Didn’t we say all we needed to say in the first Beetlejuice? Must we go tropical?”

Nine years later the sequel was killed. The studio said Winona Ryder was now too old for the part and an entire re-cast needed to happen. But Burton never gave up, there were a lot of directions he wanted to take his characters, including a Disney crossover.

“We talked about lots of different things,” the director said in Entertainment Weekly. “That was early on when we were going, Beetlejuice and the Haunted MansionBeetlejuice Goes West, whatever. Lots of things came up.”

Fast-forward to 2011 when another script was pitched for a sequel. This time the writer of Burton’s Dark Shadows,  Seth Grahame-Smith was hired and he wanted to make sure the story wasn’t a cash-grabbing remake or reboot. Four years later, in 2015, a script was approved with both Ryder and Keaton saying they would return to their respective roles. In 2017 that script was revamped and then eventually shelved in 2019.

During the time the sequel script was being tossed around in Hollywood, in 2016 an artist named Alex Murillo posted what looked like one-sheets for a Beetlejuice sequel. Although they were fabricated and had no affiliation with Warner Bros. people thought they were real.

Perhaps the virality of the artwork sparked interest in a Beetlejuice sequel once again, and finally, it was confirmed in 2022 Beetlejuice 2 had a green light from a script written by Wednesday writers  Alfred Gough and Miles Millar. The star of that series Jenna Ortega signed on to the new movie with filming starting in 2023. It was also confirmed that Danny Elfman would return to do the score.

Burton and Keaton agreed that the new film titled Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice wouldn’t rely on CGI or other other forms of technology. They wanted the film to feel “handmade.” The film wrapped in November 2023.

It’s been over three decades to come up with a sequel to Beetlejuice. Hopefully, since they said aloha to Beetlejuice Goes Hawaiian there has been enough time and creativity to ensure Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice will not only honor the characters, but fans of the original.

Beetlejuice, Beetlejuice will open theatrically on September 6.

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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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