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How Mick Garris’s ‘Masters of Horror’ Became ‘Fear Itself’

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Masters of Horror

Way, way back in 2005, Masters of Horror debuted on Showtime and gave horror fans an intense anthology series unlike anything we’d really seen at that point, and it all began when Mick Garris (Nightmare Cinema) invited a few of his fellow genre directors to a little informal dinner where they could all basically hang out and chat about their work and upcoming projects.

That first dinner reportedly included John Carpenter (Halloween), Stuart Gordon (Re-Animator), Tobe Hooper (The Texas Chain Saw Massacre), and Joe Dante (The Howling) among others.

One dinner became two, and before long, an idea sparked in Garris’s mind.

What if all these directors got together and worked on one project? That project became Masters of Horror, a series made up of hour-long episodes, each directed by a legit master of the macabre.

Masters of Horror on Showtime

On Friday, October 28, 2005, Masters of Horror debuted on Showtime with “Incident On and Off a Mountain Road” directed by Don Coscarelli (Phantasm) starring Bree Turner (Grimm), John DeSantis (Thir13en Ghosts) and Coscarelli’s long-time collaborator Angus Scrimm (Phantasm).

The episode received mostly positive reviews and was the beginning of what would become a season of highs and lows including “Cigarette Burns” from John Carpenter, Lucky McKee’s “Sick Girl”, and “H.P. Lovecraft’s Dreams in the Witch House” directed by longtime Lovecraft fan Stuart Gordon.

Interestingly enough, Takashi Miike (Blade of the Immortal) became perhaps the most controversial figure of the first season with an entry titled “Imprint.” The episode starred Billy Drago (The Hills Have Eyes) as a 19th century American journalist who returns to Japan in search of a prostitute with whom he’d fallen in love with years before only to discover the horrific events that befell her after he left.

The episode was cut by Showtime over its content, and Garris was quoted by the New York Times calling it “the most disturbing film I’ve ever seen.”

The success of the first season found Garris curating stories for season two. Several of the directors from season one returned, this time joined by Tom Holland (Fright Night), Rob Schmidt (Wrong Turn), Peter Medak (The Changeling), Brad Anderson (Session 9), Ernest Dickerson (Demon Knight), and Norio Tsuruta (Premonition).

All thirteen episodes of season two made it to air and while the overall season enjoyed generally positive reviews, Showtime inexplicably decided not to bring back the show for a third season.

Fear Itself

Garris and Lionsgate, who had begun funding the show, eventually signed a 13-episode deal with NBC for a new series titled Fear Itself operating under the same premise of an anthology series directed by horror film directors.

Of course, in the move to NBC, the stories became a bit tamer.

“The Sacrifice” was the debut episode of Fear Itself

The series premiered on Thursday, June 5, 2008 with Breck Eisner–who would direct the remake of The Crazies two years later in 2010–directing “The Sacrifice.” The episode starred Jesse Plemons (Black Mirror), Jeffrey Pierce (Castle Rock), and Rachel Miner (The Black Dahlia) in a story about four criminals on the run who take refuge in an isolated fort only to discover that their troubles are just beginning.

Unfortunately after a decent start in the ratings, viewership began to fall away almost immediately. Episodes helmed by returning directors Brad Anderson, John Landis, and Stuart Gordon, played alongside the work of Mary Harron (American Psycho), Ronny Yu (Freddy vs. Jason), Darren Lynn Bousman (Saw II), and Larry Fessenden (Jug Face).

The show was preempted by the Summer Olympics with five episodes left to air. It was meant to return after the Olympics had run their course that Summer but when the Games came to a close, NBC began airing reruns of other series during that time slot and no one saw the rest of Fear Itself until it was released on DVD in September of 2009.

Sadly, this was the end of Garris’s particular vision for this show, and honestly, I think we’re ready for a new iteration with brand new and diverse directors featured alongside some of those who helped shape the genre into what it is today.

If you’re feeling nostalgic, season one of Masters of Horror is streaming for free on The Roku Channel, Vudu, Tubi, and Vidmark and can be rented/purchased on Amazon and Fandango Now.

Season two is up for free on The Roku Channel, Tubi, and Vidmark with purchase/rent options on Vudu, Fandango Now, and Amazon, as well.

And finally, Fear Itself is streaming free on The Roku Channel and Vidmark and can be purchased on DVD at Amazon.

Who would you pick to direct new episodes of Masters of Horror? Let us know your choices in the comments below!

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Brad Dourif Says He’s Retiring Except For One Important Role

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Brad Dourif has been doing movies for nearly 50 years. Now it seems he is walking away from the industry at 74 to enjoy his golden years. Except, there is a caveat.

Recently, digital entertainment publication JoBlo’s Tyler Nichols talked to some of the Chucky television series cast members. During the interview, Dourif made an announcement.

“Dourif said that he’s retired from acting,” says Nichols. “The only reason he came back for the show was because of his daughter Fiona and he considers Chucky creator Don Mancini to be family. But for non-Chucky stuff, he considers himself retired.”

Dourif has voiced the possessed doll since 1988 (minus the 2019 reboot). The original movie “Child’s Play” has become such a cult classic it’s at the top of some people’s best chillers of all time. Chucky himself is ingrained in pop culture history much like Frankenstein or Jason Voorhees.

While Dourif may be known for his famous voiceover, he is also an Oscar-nominated actor for his part in One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest. Another famous horror role is The Gemini Killer in William Peter Blatty’s Exorcist III. And who can forget Betazoid Lon Suder in Star Trek: Voyager?

The good news is that Don Mancini is already pitching a concept for season four of Chucky which might also include a feature-length movie with a series tie-in. So, Although Dourif says he is retiring from the industry, ironically he is Chucky’s friend till the end.

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Editorial

7 Great ‘Scream’ Fan Films & Shorts Worth a Watch

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The Scream franchise is such an iconic series, that many budding filmmakers take inspiration from it and make their own sequels or, at least, build upon the original universe created by screenwriter Kevin Williamson. YouTube is the perfect medium to showcase these talents (and budgets) with fan-made homages with their own personal twists.

The great thing about Ghostface is that he can appear anywhere, in any town, he just needs the signature mask, knife, and unhinged motive. Thanks to Fair Use laws it’s possible to expand upon Wes Craven’s creation by simply getting a group of young adults together and killing them off one by one. Oh, and don’t forget the twist. You’ll notice that Roger Jackson’s famous Ghostface voice is uncanny valley, but you get the gist.

We have gathered five fan films/shorts related to Scream that we thought were pretty good. Although they can’t possibly match the beats of a $33 million blockbuster, they get by on what they have. But who needs money? If you’re talented and motivated anything is possible as proven by these filmmakers who are well on their way to the big leagues.

Take a look at the below films and let us know what you think. And while you’re at it, leave these young filmmakers a thumbs up, or leave them a comment to encourage them to create more films. Besides, where else are you going to see Ghostface vs. a Katana all set to a hip-hop soundtrack?

Scream Live (2023)

Scream Live

Ghostface (2021)

Ghostface

Ghost Face (2023)

Ghost Face

Don’t Scream (2022)

Don’t Scream

Scream: A Fan Film (2023)

Scream: A Fan Film

The Scream (2023)

The Scream

A Scream Fan Film (2023)

A Scream Fan Film
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Movies

Another Creepy Spider Movie Hits Shudder This Month

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Good spider films are a theme this year. First, we had Sting and then there was Infested. The former is still in theaters and the latter is coming to Shudder starting April 26.

Infested has been getting some good reviews. People are saying that it’s not only a great creature feature but also a social commentary on racism in France.

According to IMDb: Writer/director Sébastien Vanicek was looking for ideas around the discrimination faced by black and Arab-looking people in France, and that led him to spiders, which are rarely welcome in homes; whenever they’re spotted, they’re swatted. As everyone in the story (people and spiders) is treated like vermin by society, the title came to him naturally.

Shudder has become the gold standard for streaming horror content. Since 2016, the service has been offering fans an expansive library of genre movies. in 2017, they began to stream exclusive content.

Since then Shudder has become a powerhouse in the film festival circuit, buying distribution rights to movies, or just producing some of their own. Just like Netflix, they give a film a short theatrical run before adding it to their library exclusively for subscribers.

Late Night With the Devil is a great example. It was released theatrically on March 22 and will begin streaming on the platform starting April 19.

While not getting the same buzz as Late Night, Infested is a festival favorite and many have said if you suffer from arachnophobia, you might want to take heed before watching it.

Infested

According to the synopsis, our main character, Kalib is turning 30 and dealing with some family issues. “He’s fighting with his sister over an inheritance and has cut ties with his best friend. Fascinated by exotic animals, he finds a venomous spider in a shop and brings it back to his apartment. It only takes a moment for the spider to escape and reproduce, turning the whole building into a dreadful web trap. The only option for Kaleb and his friends is to find a way out and survive.”

The film will be available to watch on Shudder starting April 26.

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