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INTERVIEW: Robert Englund talks ‘True Terror’ on the Travel Channel

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True Terror

**This interview with Robert Englund for True Terror includes light spoilers. Readers beware.

“You’re all my children now,” Robert Englund growled into the phone to a group of reporters who’d gathered to chat with the legendary actor about True Terror, a new show he’s hosting on the Travel Channel.

The series, which premieres on Wednesday, October 18, 2020 at 10 pm EST, digs deep into strange and reportedly true stories from the history of the U.S. with Englund hosting and narrating reenactments involving everything from a dragon sighting in 19th century Arizona to a blood drinking religious cult and a particularly macabre ghost story surrounding the invention of the telephone.

The actor couldn’t be prouder of the series and he told us it was the sort of “comfort food” aspect of the show that initially drew him to True Terror.

“It’s sort of equal parts Rod Serling Twilight Zone with some of the aspects of that great Robert Stack series, Unsolved Mysteries, you know, and then just a dash of Dateline,” he explained. “I like the comfort food aspect that it has this structure and this formula that we know. And it’s something you can tune into and learn something dark from the sort of underbelly of the American psyche.”

Further, it was the fact that all of the stories included in the series began as newspaper articles that really piqued Englund’s interest.

It’s one thing when you’re told a story by your brother’s cousin’s best friend from high school and quite another when you read the same story in your local newspaper. This adds a layer of reality to the stories, no matter how crazy they may seem, but also a level of genuine terror and unease at times even for the show’s host.

Englund pointed to a particular story that took place during one of several smallpox epidemics from the nation’s history.

“I had no idea that there was some scam between coroners and the guys that drove the charity wagons to the cemetery, coffin makers…and the last buck stopping with the gravedigger,” he said. “That, in fact people were literally being buried alive for profit!”

Stories like this, of course, often become inflated and conflated with others, leading to urban legends that we tell to this very day.

We’re all familiar with tales of the sasquatch, aka Bigfoot, but did you know one of our most famous presidents once had an encounter?

That doesn’t mean that the sources for these tales aren’t fascinating all on their own, however. The actor and host admits, for instance, that when he first saw that they would be doing a segment that involved sasquatch, his thoughts first turned to sitting in a drive-in theater on a double date watching The Legend of Boggy Creek.

He knew, of course, that there is a long history of sightings and that they date back to indigenous population in the U.S., but he wasn’t sure just what kind of story they would be telling on the show.

“When I saw the title to that segment, I thought, ‘Uh oh, here we go,'” Englund said. “And then, when we did our segment–and not only was it published in newspapers, but we actually have a president of the United States, Theodore Roosevelt, as one of our sources.”

Throughout True Terror‘s six themed episodes, there are a variety of chilling tales to experience and quite naturally the conversation turned to Englund’s own experiences with the strange and inexplicable during which he recounted a story that his mother related to him.

Describing her as a chain-smoking, martini-drinking liberal who once worked on the Adlai Stevenson campaign in the 1950s in California, his mother, apparently, often told a story that occurred during a horrible flood in the 30s in Los Angeles.

She was living in a sorority house at the time, and she and her sorority sisters had stayed up late listening to the radio and the reports of flooding. When the rest of her friends retired for the evening, she stayed up to wash out the coffee cups and clean up the kitchen when there was suddenly a knocking at the front door.

His mother opened the door to find one of her sorority sisters standing there soaking wet. She brought her inside and made her a cup of coffee and they sat and talked while the girl rested before telling Englund’s mother she intended to go up to a local boarding house to stay with a friend.

The next day, the police showed up to inform them they’d found the body of their classmate.

“But, they had found it like 36 hours before, which would have been about, you know, 12 to 15 hours before my mother made a cup of coffee for her,” Englund said. “And my mother said she went back and found the coffee cup, and it had lipstick on it.”

As True Terror goes, that would make one hell of a segment. Alas it was never covered in the newspapers.

Robert Englund thinks H.H. Holmes would make a fascinating topic for season two of True Terror and we couldn’t agree more!

There is one story, however, that Englund would very much like to see covered if/when season two of the series should come to fruition, and it all centers on the Chicago World’s Fair in the 1890s and the rise of serial killer H.H. Holmes.

The actor has recently become fascinated with the story after reading Erik Larson’s book, The Devil in the White City.

“[He] exploited the growth of the fair and the growth in the population in Chicago and the country girls coming to town for the fair,” the actor said. “And, you know, there’s some estimates that he may have killed up to 200 people. I’m not sure–I don’t know. But, they never found all the bodies.”

Holmes would definitely be a fascinating story to tell alongside stories of unnatural killers, ghosts, and the occasional psychic visions of True Terror.

The series premieres tomorrow night at 10 pm EST on the Travel Channel. Check your local listings for more airing information and prepare yourself for True Terror with Robert Englund!

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New Poster Reveal For Nicolas Cage’s Survival Creature Feature ‘Arcadian’ [Trailer]

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Nicolas Cage Arcadian

In the latest cinematic venture featuring Nicolas Cage, Arcadian emerges as a compelling creature feature, teeming with suspense, horror, and emotional depth. RLJE Films has recently released a series of new images and a captivating poster, offering audiences a glimpse into the eerie and thrilling world of “Arcadian”. Scheduled to hit theaters on April 12, 2024, the film will later be available on Shudder and AMC+, ensuring a wide audience can experience its gripping narrative.

Arcadian Movie Trailer

The Motion Picture Association (MPA) has given this film an “R” rating for its “bloody images,” hinting at the visceral and intense experience awaiting viewers. The film draws inspiration from acclaimed horror benchmarks like “A Quiet Place,” weaving a post-apocalyptic tale of a father and his two sons navigating a desolate world. Following a catastrophic event that depopulates the planet, the family faces the dual challenge of surviving their dystopian environment and eluding mysterious nocturnal creatures.

Joining Nicolas Cage in this harrowing journey are Jaeden Martell, known for his role in “IT” (2017), Maxwell Jenkins from “Lost in Space,” and Sadie Soverall, featured in “Fate: The Winx Saga.” Directed by Ben Brewer (“The Trust”) and penned by Mike Nilon (“Braven”), “Arcadian” promises a unique blend of poignant storytelling and electrifying survival horror.

Maxwell Jenkins, Nicolas Cage, and Jaeden Martell 

Critics have already begun to praise “Arcadian” for its imaginative monster designs and exhilarating action sequences, with one review from Bloody Disgusting highlighting the film’s balance between emotional coming-of-age elements and heart-pounding horror. Despite sharing thematic elements with similar genre films, “Arcadian” sets itself apart through its creative approach and action-driven plot, promising a cinematic experience filled with mystery, suspense, and relentless thrills.

Arcadian Official Movie Poster

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‘Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey 3’ Is a Go with Enhanced Budget and New Characters

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Winnie the Pooh 3

Wow, they’re churning things out fast! The upcoming sequel “Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey 3” is officially moving forward, promising an expanded narrative with a larger budget and the introduction of beloved characters from A.A. Milne’s original tales. As confirmed by Variety, the third installment in the horror franchise will welcome Rabbit, the heffalumps, and the woozles into its dark and twisted narrative.

This sequel is a part of an ambitious cinematic universe that reimagines children’s stories as horror tales. Alongside “Winnie the Pooh: Blood and Honey” and its first sequel, the universe includes films such as “Peter Pan’s Neverland Nightmare”, “Bambi: The Reckoning,” and “Pinocchio Unstrung”. These movies are set to converge in the crossover event “Poohniverse: Monsters Assemble,” slated for a 2025 release.

Winnie the Pooh Poohniverse

The creation of these films was made possible when A.A. Milne’s 1926 children’s book “Winnie-the-Pooh” entered the public domain last year, allowing filmmakers to explore these cherished characters in unprecedented ways. Director Rhys Frake-Waterfield and producer Scott Jeffrey Chambers, of Jagged Edge Productions, have led the charge in this innovative endeavor.

The inclusion of Rabbit, heffalumps, and woozles in the upcoming sequel introduces a new layer to the franchise. In Milne’s original stories, heffalumps are imagined creatures resembling elephants, while woozles are known for their weasel-like characteristics and a penchant for stealing honey. Their roles in the narrative remain to be seen, but their addition promises to enrich the horror universe with deeper connections to the source material.

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How to Watch ‘Late Night with the Devil’ from Home: Dates and Platforms

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Late Night With The Devil

For fans eager to dive into one of this year’s most talked-about horror films from the comfort of their own home, “Late Night with the Devil” will be available for streaming exclusively on Shudder starting April 19, 2024. This announcement has been highly anticipated following the film’s successful theatrical release by IFC Films, which saw it earning rave reviews and a record-breaking opening weekend for the distributor.

“Late Night with the Devil” emerges as a standout horror film, captivating audiences and critics alike, with Stephen King himself offering high praise for the 1977-set film. Starring David Dastmalchian, the movie unfolds on Halloween night during a live late-night talk show broadcast that disastrously unleashes evil across the nation. This found footage-style film not only delivers scares but also authentically captures the aesthetic of the 1970s, drawing viewers into its nightmarish scenario.

David Dastmalchian in Late Night with the Devil

The film’s initial box office success, opening to $2.8 million in 1,034 theaters, underscores its wide appeal and marks the highest opening weekend for an IFC Films release. Critically acclaimed, “Late Night with the Devil” boasts a 96% positive rating on Rotten Tomatoes from 135 reviews, with the consensus praising it for rejuvenating the possession horror genre and showcasing David Dastmalchian’s exceptional performance.

Rotten Tomatoes score as of 3/28/2024

Simon Rother of iHorror.com encapsulates the film’s allure, emphasizing its immersive quality that transports viewers back to the 1970s, making them feel as if they are part of the eerie “Night Owls” Halloween broadcast. Rother lauds the film for its meticulously crafted script and the emotional and shocking journey it takes viewers on, stating, “This whole experience will have viewers of the Cairnes brothers’ film glued to their screen… The script, from beginning to end, is neatly sewn together with an ending that’ll have jaws on the floor.” You can read the full review here.

Rother further encourages audiences to watch the film, highlighting its multifaceted appeal: “Whenever it is made available to you, you must attempt to view the Cairnes Brothers’ latest project as it will make you laugh, it will creep you out, it will amaze you, and it might even strike an emotional cord.”

Set to stream on Shudder on April 19, 2024, “Late Night with the Devil” offers a compelling blend of horror, history, and heart. This film is not just a must-watch for horror aficionados but for anyone looking to be thoroughly entertained and moved by a cinematic experience that redefines the boundaries of its genre.

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