Arrow Video Unveils December 2020 Streaming Lineup!

Arrow Video, the acclaimed British indie film distributor, has unveiled the December 2020 lineup for its subscription-based ARROW platform full of cult classics, hidden gems and iconic horror films including the exclusive debut of The Bloodhound, and the Finnish holiday gem Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale!

RELATED: AMC+ Announces First-Ever The Walking Dead Holiday Special

The seasons kick off with Naughty or Nice, featuring tearaway teens and maniacal killers, the worst of Santa’s naughty list: The Violent Years, Bloody Birthday, Children of the Corn, The El Duce Tapes, Doom Asylum, The Hooked Generation. December 1 then brings some festive fear and cheer with Jalmari Helander’s Finnish holiday gem Rare Exports. Lastly, December 1 will include Survivor Ballads: Three Films by Shohei Imamura (Black Rain, The Ballad of Narayama and Zegen), exclusively on ARROW.

The temperature drops and the body count rises December 7 with the It’s Cold Outside lineup, including The Chill Factor, The Deeper You Dig, The Wind and more to send shivers down your spine, as well as Shogun’s Joys of Torture, a classic Ero guro from writer/director Teruo Ishii, known in Japan as The King of Cult.

December 11 begins with the platforms’s second team up with AGFA, sharing favorites from the American Genre Film Archive including Bad Black, Who Killed Captain Alex?, Scary Movie, The Violent Years and Reefer Madness. December 14 goes country with counterprogramming, Arrow Essentials: Westerns. As the holidays go in to full speed, ARROW invites you to Eat Drink and Be Merry on December 21, anchored by a decadent feats of titles including La Grande Bouffe, Microwave Massacre, The Happiness of the Katakurisis, The Stuff, Zombie for Sale and Return of the Killer Tomatoes.

RELATED: New to Stream: Magnolia Selects’ December 2020 Lineup

ARROW is available in the US and Canada on all Android devices, all Amazon Fire devices, all Roku devices and on all web browsers, with the platform offering fans a free 30-day trial and subscriptions as low as $4.99 monthly or $49.99 annually, with a planned UK rollout in 2021.

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Star Wars: George Lucas Reveals Reason for Selling Lucasfilm to Disney

Ever since the Star Wars sequel trilogy concluded its Skywalker Saga with 2019’s Rise of the Skywalker, many fans have been wondering what it would have been like if creator George Lucas was the one who had directed the latest trilogy, especially when many in the fandom were disappointed with Disney’s treatment of the later films in terms of story and character development. Now, fans will get an idea why Lucas decided to give up his directing duties on Star Wars with writer Paul Duncan taking to Twitter to share an excerpt from his interview with Lucas for his upcoming book about the long-running sci-fi franchise.

Why did George Lucas sell Lucasfilm in 2012? He tells me why in this extract from my new book The #StarWars Archives Eps I-III. My unboxing video here: https://t.co/M907YGZsjm pic.twitter.com/MEPRStOil8

— Paul Duncan (@kershed) December 3, 2020

RELATED: George Lucas Planned to Make Darth Maul the Star Wars Sequel Villain

In the interview, Lucas opened up about his game-changing decision of selling Lucasfilm to Disney, revealing that even though it was very difficult to give up the control of the franchise, it was the right thing to do in order for him to be able to prioritize his personal life.

“At that time I was starting the next trilogy; I talked to the actors and I was starting to gear up. I was also about to have a daughter with my wife. It takes 10 years to make a trilogy – ‘Episodes I ‘ to ‘III’ took from 1995 to 2005,” Lucas explained on the time-demanding effort of building up a Star Wars trilogy. “I’d still be working on ‘Episode IX!’ In 2012, I was 69. So the question was am I going to keep doing this the rest of my life? Do I want to go through this again? Finally, I decided I’d rather raise my daughter and enjoy life for a while.”

He continued, “I could have not sold Lucasfilm and gotten somebody to run the productions, but that isn’t retiring. On ‘The Empire Strikes Back‘ and ‘Return of the Jedi‘ I tried to stay out of the way but I couldn’t. I was there every day. Even though the people were friends of mine and they did great work, it wasn’t the same as me doing it. It was like being once removed. I knew that probably wouldn’t work again, that I’d be frustrated.

I’m one of those micro-manger guys and I can’t help it. So I figured I would forgo that, enjoy what I had and I was looking forward to raising my daughter. Also, I wanted to build a museum, which I’d always wanted to do, so I was thinking, ‘If I don’t do this now, I’ll never get that done.’”

RELATED: The 5 Essential Ahsoka Episodes of The Clone Wars

Lucas also dispelled fan speculations that he was tired of the franchise, as he stepped away from the sequel trilogy by admitting that letting go of his creation wasn’t easy for him and that he did plan on being a little bit involved in Disney’s creative process.

“I’ve spent my life creating ‘Star Wars’ – 40 years – and giving it up was very, very painful,” He revealed. “But it was the right thing to do.”

He continued, “I thought I was going to have a little bit more to say about the next three because I’d already started them, but they decided they wanted to do something else. Things don’t always work the way you want it. Life is like that.”

In 2012, Disney officially acquired Lucasfilm as its subsidiary for more than $4 billion. Since then, they had full control over the Star Wars franchise. Despite earning a box office gross of more than $4 billion, the sequel trilogy wasn’t received well by fans. However, it has been gaining momentum lately due to the success of Disney+’s The Mandalorian series.

(Photo by Michael Kovac/Getty Images for Dodge)

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McFarlane Toys Unveils Dune 2021 Collectible Figures!

Though the latest adaptation of Frank Herbert’s iconic sci-fi epic may be 10 months away, McFarlane Toys has unveiled its full line of collectible figures from Denis Villeneuve’s Dune designed from the film’s ensemble cast. The figures, which are now available for purchase, can be viewed in the gallery below!

RELATED: Legendary Reportedly Upset With Godzilla vs. Kong, Dune HBO Max Shift

The DUNE BUILD-A 7-INCH line includes: 

Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet)

Click here to purchase your own Paul Atreides figure!

• Paul Atreides, the leader of this epic adventure, is featured in a Fremen Stillsuit that enables the human body to survive in the sun-scorched open deserts of Arrakis.
• Paul comes with a crysknife, twin blades, a base, and the piece to the Build-A Rabban figure.

Lady Jessica (Rebecca Ferguson)

Click here to purchase you own Lady Jessica figure!

• Lady Jessica, a member of the order of the Bene Gesserit and highly skilled in hand-to-hand combat, is featured in a Fremen Stillsuit that enables the human body to survive in the sun-scorched open deserts of Arrakis.
•  Lady Jessica comes with a crysknife, fremkit, a base, and the piece to the Build-A Rabban figure.

Duncan Idaho (Jason Momoa)

Click here to purchase your own Duncan Idaho figure!

• Duncan Idaho, the most gifted Swordmaster in the Known Universe, is featured in a Fremen Stillsuit that enables the human body to survive in the sun-scorched open deserts of Arrakis.
•  Duncan comes with two swords, a base, and the piece to the Build-A Rabban figure.

Stilgar (Javier Bardem)

Click here to purchase your own Stilgar figure!

• Stilgar, leader of the Fremen warriors of Dune and a man of great wisdom, is featured in a Fremen Stillsuit that enables the human body to survive in the sun-scorched open deserts of Arrakis.
• Stilgar comes with a crysknife, fremkit, base, and the piece to the Build-A Rabban figure.

Beast Rabban Build-A-Figure (Dave Bautista)

• Rabban, a towering brutal force of nature, is assembled when combining all four pieces from the McFarlane Toys Dune Build-A line: Duncan Idaho, Lady Jessica, Paul Atreides, and Stilgar.
• Rabban comes with his deadly inkvine whip and sword.

In addition to the Build-A 7-Inch figures, which all retail for $25 each, McFarlane Toys is also offering an impressive Dune Collectible 12-inch Baron Vladimir Harkonnen figure inspired by the likeness of Stellan Skarsgård. The 12-inch figure captures the essence and likeness of the all-consuming figurehead of House Harkonnen as he hovers menacingly over his Dune base. Harkonnen rules through fear, determined to take back the throne of galactic power and reclaim the spice-rich sands of Dune from House Atreides by deadly means. The figure, which retails for $40, can be purchased here!

A mythic and emotionally charged hero’s journey, the Dune movie tells the story of Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet), a brilliant and gifted young man born into a great destiny beyond his understanding, who must travel to the most dangerous planet in the universe to ensure the future of his family and his people. As malevolent forces explode into conflict over the planet’s exclusive supply of the most precious resource in existence — a commodity capable of unlocking humanity’s greatest potential — only those who can conquer their fear will survive.

Buy the book that started it all here!

The star-studded cast includes Timothée Chalamet (Call Me By Your Name), Rebecca Ferguson (Mission: Impossible — Fallout), Oscar Isaac (Star Wars: The Last Jedi), Josh Brolin (Avengers: Endgame), Stellan Skarsgård (Thor: The Dark World), Dave Bautista (Guardians of the Galaxy), Stephen McKinley Henderson (Fences), Zendaya (Spider-Man: Far From Home), Chang Chen (Love And Destiny), Sharon Duncan-Brewster (Sex Education), with Charlotte Rampling (The Night Porter), Jason Momoa (Aquaman) and Javier Bardem (No Country For Old Men).

RELATED: POLL RESULTS: What Did You Think of the Dune Trailer?

Villeneuve is best known for directing Blade Runner 2049 as well as Sicario. Though Dune will likely resemble the former film more than the latter, both display the sort of experience directing arid, desolate locales that a fan would want in their Dune director, considering a sizable chunk of the story takes place on a desert planet.

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Legendary reportedly upset with Godzilla vs. Kong, Dune HBO Max shift

Last week brought the jaw-dropping announcement that Warner Bros. was electing to bring all of its 2021 releases to theaters and HBO Max simultaneously and now it’s been revealed that Legendary is reportedly upset that Godzilla vs. Kong and Dune were included in the bunch, according to Deadline.

RELATED: All 2021 WB Movies Getting Simultaneous Theatrical/HBO Max Releases

The studio behind the MonsterVerse and Denis Villeneuve’s adaptation of Frank Herbert’s Dune was previously in talks with Netflix about possibly bringing the the latest chapter in in the former series to the streaming platform in a $250 million deal, but Warner Bros. reportedly pulled the deal and set it for the digital/theatrical release without notifying Legendary. With the banner having provided an estimated 75 percent of $165 million budget for Dune and similar figures for Godzilla vs. Kong, Legendary is reportedly getting ready to or already has sent legal letters to WB to challenge their decision.

The epic action-adventure Godzilla vs Kong will pit two of the greatest icons in motion picture history against one another — the fearsome Godzilla and the mighty Kong — with humanity caught in the balance.

The film stars Alexander Skarsgård (Big Little Lies, The Little Drummer Girl), Millie Bobby Brown (Stranger Things), Rebecca Hall (Christine, Professor Marston and the Wonder Women), Brian Tyree Henry (Atlanta, Widows), Shun Oguri (Gintama), Eiza González (Baby Driver), Jessica Henwick (Iron Fist), and Julian Dennison (Deadpool 2). Also starring in the highly-anticipated movie are Kyle Chandler (The Wolf of Wall Street, Manchester by the Sea) and Demián Bichir (The Nun, The Hateful Eight).

The fourth installment in Warner Bros.’ Pictures and Legendary’s Monsterverse is directed by Adam Wingard from a script written by Oscar nominee Terry Rossio (Pirates of the Caribbean, Deja Vu, Shrek). The film is being produced by Mary Parent, Alex Garcia, Eric McLeod, and Brian Rogers, with Kenji Okuhira, Yoshimitsu Banno, Jon Jashni and Thomas Tull serving as executive producers. Jay Ashenfelter, Jen Conroy and Tamara Kent are co-producers.

The most recent film in Legendary’s MonsterVerse, Godzilla: King of the Monsters, hit theaters last summer. It ended with Godzilla taking his rightful place as the ruler of all Titans. Unfortunately, the movie was a financial disappointment, grossing only $385.9 million against a budget estimated to be as high as $200 million.

RELATED: AMC Speaks Out Against Warner Bros.’ HBO Max 2021 Announcement

A mythic and emotionally charged hero’s journey, the Dune movie tells the story of Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet), a brilliant and gifted young man born into a great destiny beyond his understanding, who must travel to the most dangerous planet in the universe to ensure the future of his family and his people. As malevolent forces explode into conflict over the planet’s exclusive supply of the most precious resource in existence — a commodity capable of unlocking humanity’s greatest potential — only those who can conquer their fear will survive.

Buy the book that started it all here!

The star-studded cast includes Timothée Chalamet (Call Me By Your Name), Rebecca Ferguson (Mission: Impossible — Fallout), Oscar Isaac (Star Wars: The Last Jedi), Josh Brolin (Avengers: Endgame), Stellan Skarsgård (Thor: The Dark World), Dave Bautista (Guardians of the Galaxy), Stephen McKinley Henderson (Fences), Zendaya (Spider-Man: Far From Home), Chang Chen (Love And Destiny), Sharon Duncan-Brewster (Sex Education), with Charlotte Rampling (The Night Porter), Jason Momoa (Aquaman) and Javier Bardem (No Country For Old Men).

RELATED: POLL RESULTS: What Did You Think of the Dune Trailer?

Villeneuve is best known for directing Blade Runner 2049 as well as Sicario. Though Dune will likely resemble the former film more than the latter, both display the sort of experience directing arid, desolate locales that a fan would want in their Dune director, considering a sizable chunk of the story takes place on a desert planet.

Godzilla vs. Kong is set to hit theaters and HBO Max beginning May 21, 2021 while Dune will release on October 1, 2021.

The post Legendary Reportedly Upset With Godzilla vs. Kong, Dune HBO Max Shift appeared first on ComingSoon.net.

Matt Reeves to Produce New Period Horror Film Switchboard

According to The Hollywood Reporter, The Batman director Matt Reeves has partnered with Paranormal Activity EP Steven Schneider to produce a new period horror film titled Switchboard. Reeves is no stranger to the horror genre as he previously directed 2008’s monster film Cloverfield and 2010’s Chloe Grace Moretz-led film Let Me In.

RELATED: Terence Winter Departs Matt Reeves’ The Batman Spinoff Series

Written by actor-scribe Devon Graye (Dexter, I See You), Switchboard will be set in the late 1940s. It will center around a young female switchboard operator who finds herself communicating with, and possibly targeted by, an active serial killer. As their conversation intensifies, she begins to question her safety, her sanity, and, ultimately, her very reality.

The project will be produced by Reeves and Rafi Crohn through their 6th & Idaho banner along with Pictures Films’ Margot Hand and Joshua Thurston. Schneider, who had also produced the Pet Sematary remake, will also serve as a producer with Armaan Zorace’s Dark Hell co-financing and producing the project.

RELATED: New The Batman Set Photos Reveal First Glimpse at the Batcave

The project is the latest addition to Reeves’ growing list of upcoming projects which include: Warner Bros’ The Batman starring Robert Pattinson; a The Batman spinoff series centered around the Gotham City PD; and Mattson Tomlin’s upcoming feature directorial debut film Mother/Android.

(Photo by Jamie McCarthy/Getty Images)

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Extraction: Joe Russo Teases Potential Shared Movie Universe Is in Development

During CCXP, Extraction writer Joe Russo revealed that as he and Anthony Russo continue working on the Netflix sequel, they are also developing a potential shared movie universe for the franchise with star David Harbour, who played Gaspar in the movie, possibly leading a spinoff of his own (according to Collider).

RELATED: Death to 2020: Samuel L. Jackson, Lisa Kudrow, & More Join New Netflix Mockumentary

“I’m still not gonna commit because I think it’s more exciting to surprise people, but I will say this: we are working at building out a universe of films that could potentially explore some of the other characters from the first movie and some new characters, and see more historical interaction between the characters,” Russo told the outlet. “So if you’re interested in David Harbour’s character, you just may get to see him in a future Extraction movie.”

The filmmaker also added: “I think what makes that a compelling element to the Extraction universe is it is a global franchise telling global stories, and we’d like to diversify the point of view in those movies.”

The Extraction sequel is expected to begin production sometime in 2021.

Extraction (formerly titled as Dhaka) takes place in an underworld of weapons dealers and traffickers and follows a young boy who becomes the pawn in a war between notorious drug lords. After being trapped by kidnappers inside one of the world’s most impenetrable cities, his rescue beckons the unparalleled skill of a mercenary named Tyler Rake. But Rake is a broken man with nothing to lose, harboring a death wish that makes an already deadly mission near impossible.

The cast included Chris Hemsworth (Thor: Ragnarok), David Harbour (Stranger Things, Black Widow), Derek Luke (13 Reasons Why), Fay Masterson (Vice), Golshifteh Farahani (Paterson), and newcomer Rudhraksh Jaiswal.

RELATED: It’s Super Kids vs. Aliens in Netflix’s We Can Be Heroes Trailer

Joe Russo wrote the script while Sam Hargrave, known for his stunt work in multiple MCU movies as well as small roles in action films such as Atomic Blonde, made his directorial debut with the film.

Extraction was produced by Netflix and Avengers: Endgame directors Anthony and Joe Russo through their AGBO banner along with Hemsworth, Mike Larocca, and Eric Gitter.

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CS Recommends: Kristen Stewart’s Underwater Plus Soundtracks & More!

Stuck inside? Don’t know what to watch/read/play/listen to? ComingSoon.net has got you covered. In this week’s CS Recommends our staff kicks off gives you solid tips on the best media to consume during your downtime, including the sci-fi horror movie Underwater starring Kristen Stewart and more! Check out our picks below!

RELATED: CS Holiday Gift Guide Part 1: Movies & TV!

MAX EVRY’S RECOMMEND: Legend of the Lost

Click here to purchase!

In light of Sophia Loren’s current Oscar heat for her performance in The Life Ahead, why not check out Henry Hathaway’s 1957 desert adventure Legend of the Lost? Starring The Duke himself, John Wayne, alongside Loren and South Pacific’s Rossano Brazzi, the film charts a seemingly pious doctor’s quest to find the lost city his father was on the trail of before he vanished. Loren’s sexy Dita decides to tag along, causing a rift between the Wayne and Brazzi characters as they both fall in love with her. And honestly… who wouldn’t? It’s a fun three-hander combined with a treasure hunt and a romance in classic Hollywood style, shot on some gorgeous locations that look excellent on the Kino Lorber Blu-ray transfer.

KYLIE HEMMERT’S RECOMMEND: Underwater

Click here to purchase!

Kristen Stewart has proven time and time again that she is one of Hollywood’s most talented stars, and her role as Norah Price in 2020’s sci-fi horror Underwater now stands as one of my favorite performances by the Happiest Season star to date. Directed by William Eubank and written by Brian Duffield and Adam Cozad, the action kicks off immediately as the movie follows a crew of oceanic researchers working for a deep-sea drilling company try to get to safety after a mysterious earthquake devastates their deepwater research and drilling facility located at the bottom of the Mariana Trench. The group eventually discovers what they’re dealing with isn’t what they first assumed and are soon faced with hostile creatures who begin taking out the crew one by one in often terrifying circumstances. Underwater may stumble a bit in its narrative as the tale unfolds, but where it shines are its characters and a largely impressive cast led by Stewart who help to make moments of horror feel as claustrophobic as possible while giving much-needed heart to the story.

GRANT HERMANNS RECOMMENDS: Krampus

Click here to purchase!

In honor of the film’s fifth anniversary and arrival of the holiday season, I am looking back to Mike Dougherty’s second directorial and season-centric outing Krampus. Centered on a dysfunctional family reunion causing a young boy to lose his holiday spirit and thus incite the wrath of the titular entity, leading the family to have to band together to avoid a monstrous fate. The ensemble roster for the film all portray their roles phenomenally, especially Toni Collette and David Koechner, the decision to utilize both practical effects and CGI proves a brilliantly terrifying one and the hint of dark comedy strewn throughout makes for an endlessly enjoyable outing sure to bring audiences back for multiple viewings.

MAGGIE DELA PAZ’S RECOMMEND: Extreme Job (South Korean Film)

Click here to purchase!

Directed by Lee Byeong-Heon, Extreme Job centers around a group of detectives led by Captain Ko, who hasn’t been promoted for a very long time due to a string of failed operations by his Narcotics squad. Because of continuous mistakes, they have been given one last chance to redeem themselves and to prevent the impending disbandment of their team. In order to carry out their career-saving mission which involves undercover surveillance against a notorious drug syndicate, they’ve decided to take over a rundown chicken restaurant as their perfect stakeout spot and undercover disguise. However, things don’t go as planned as the restaurant unexpectedly becomes popular with the public due to a great recipe. Now, they must try to find a way to fulfill their mission while running a booming chicken place.

This 2019 action-comedy film is currently the second-highest-grossing and second most-viewed film in South Korea. Overall, it’s a really entertaining film that is perfect for family viewing this holiday season. What I like the most about the film is its wit and quirkiness that will undoubtedly make you smile or laugh from the first scene up to its last. It most importantly featured a great main cast, who skillfully portrayed their characters’ different personalities and effectively showcased their squad’s strong teamwork. Even though it had a not-so-unique plot, their dynamic chemistry and the leading performance of the versatile Ryu Seung-ryong are what really resonated the most with viewers and carried the film towards its success. So, if you’re looking for something fun and easy to watch during the holidays, I highly recommend you check out Extreme Job!

JEFF AMES’ RECOMMEND: Alien (2 CD Set) by Jerry Goldsmith

Click here to purchase!

Intrada re-stocked a couple of big soundtrack titles, namely complete scores for Alan Silvestri’s Back to the Future and Back to the Future Part II and Jerry Goldsmith’s masterwork Alien. Presented in a terrific 2CD set, Alien is classic Goldsmith and boasts a variety of haunting cues as well as a surprising amount of grandeur. Much of the music written for the film didn’t make the cut, which is why this release is a must-have for fans who want to hear the score as Goldsmith originally intended. Throw in a handful of alternate cues and the original soundtrack album and you have yourself a fine Christmas gift for any film music collector. Just make sure and snag this release while you can, or you’ll end up paying an arm and a leg on eBay.

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The Goonies cast reunite for script reading for No Kid Hungry charity

After gathering together for Josh Gad’s Reunited Apart back in April, the cast of the fan-favorite adventure film The Goonies are reuniting virtually for a special script reading event to raise funds for No Kid Hungry, an organization working to help feed kids and families during the pandemic and beyond.

RELATED: Spielberg Talks Potential Goonies Sequel During Reunited Apart with Josh Gad

Exciting news! The cast of The Goonies will be reuniting for a LIVE virtual script read next Saturday, December 5, at 8pm ET benefiting @nokidhungry.

Learn more: https://t.co/eBJYT5jr85 #GooniesLive pic.twitter.com/7bZ1TLhawM

— No Kid Hungry (@nokidhungry) November 25, 2020

The special event, which is set to air on Saturday, December 5 at 5 p.m. PST, will include Josh Brolin, Corey Feldman, Sean Astin, Kerri Green, Martha Plimpton, Ke Huy Quan, Jeff Cohen, Joe Pantoliano and Robert Davi as well as special guests Zach Braff, Cary Elwes, Donald Faison and Gad!

“The same spirit of bravery, sacrifice and camaraderie that the Goonies showed in our movie is what families all over the world are experiencing as we all face this pandemic,” director/producer Richard Donner said in a statement. “We are honored to have the opportunity to help No Kid Hungry and to hopefully bring a little light and love into homes across the globe.”

The virtual reunion will be broadcast and available for viewers to watch and donate at the official site, with the event being free to the public though No Kid Hungry encouraging donations even as small as $1 as, due to the global pandemic, one in four kids could face hunger this year and every dollar will go towards their plan to make sure kids are fed during this crisis and all year long.

RELATED: Veep Cast Reuniting for Virtual Table Read for Voting Efforts in Georgia

“Millions of kids in America rely on the meals they receive at school for the nutrition they need,” Tom Nelson, President and CEO at Share Our Strength, the organization behind the No Kid Hungry Campaign, said in a statement. “With more students learning virtually than ever before with record jobs and wages lost, an unprecedented number of kids are going hungry during this crisis. Amidst this increased need and an uncertain school year, kids need our support more than ever. We’re grateful to the cast of The Goonies, Warner Bros., Warner Media and those tuning in to the reunion special to help ensure kids have access to the food they need.”

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CS Interview: Marshall Bell On Playing Kuato in Paul Verhoeven’s Total Recall

ComingSoon.net had the opportunity to speak with Total Recall star Marshall Bell on playing Kuato and George in director Paul Verhoeven’s Oscar-nominated 1990 sci-fi thriller which is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year and will soon be released on 4K and Blu-ray on December 8! You can check out the interview below and pre-order your copy of the 30th Anniversary Edition here!

RELATED: CS Interview: Popeye Star Paul Dooley on the Film’s Blu-ray Arrival & 40th Anniversary

Directed by Paul Verhoeven and written by Ronald Shusett, Dan O’Bannon, and Gary Oldman from a story by Shusett, O’Bannon, and Jon Povill, the classic sci-fi feature tells the story of a construction worker who suddenly finds himself embroiled in espionage on Mars and unable to determine if the experiences are real or the result of memory implants.

Inspired by the short story “We Can Remember It for You Wholesale” by Philip K. Dick, the movie also stars Arnold Schwarzenegger, Rachel Ticotin, Sharon Stone, Michael Ironside, and Ronny Cox.

RELATED: CS Interview: Star Aaron Eckhart Talks Crime Thriller Wander

Total Recall reportedly had a budget of $65 million, making it one of the most expensive movies made at the time of its release. The film earned $261.3 million at the box office following its debut on June 1, 1990.

ComingSoon.net: It’s so interesting because I was just thinking about this Orson Welles quote, where he was talking about his performance as Harry Lime in The Third Man. He’s like, oh, this is a Mr. Wu role. This is the role where everybody for the first act says, “Where’s Mr. Wu? You know, when’s Mr. Wu coming?” And then when he shows up, you’re just, ah, you’re just awestruck. And it occurred to me that that’s the same thing with Kuato.

Marshall Bell: Wow. That happens to be one of my most — when I think about it, that movie, as just a spy freak, that movie is one of my favorite movies of all time. I’ve actually seen it in Vienna.

CS: Oh wow.

Bell: Even on New Year’s Day. So and I remember that. That’s pretty great. I wouldn’t go that far. But thank you.

CS: Well, it is true, though.

Bell: I mean, I hadn’t thought of that, but now that I do think of it, it is kind of like that.

CS: Yeah. No other character in the picture —

Bell: They do kind of less of a build-up, but they do — when Kuato’s here, and then you wait for Kuato, and wait. Again, that’s true. George isn’t there very much, so he doesn’t have much time to say it, but yeah, you’re right.

CS: Yeah and there’s graffiti all over the movie and everybody’s talking about Kuato and Kuato this and Kuato that.

Bell: Yeah, yeah, yeah.

CS: At the time, you were the go-to character guy. You popped up in this and that and you’re always great. 

Bell: I have been around very long. Since the movie Twins increased my profile a little bit so that I seem to have popped up. Well, I mean, I was around. I was in Stand By Me and a few things. Yeah, you’re right. But I only started about three years before that, period.

CS: Wow.

Bell: I mean, there are five years, I started in 1984.

CS: That’s true. And you tended to play these kind of stern like, authority figure type of people. And here, you’re playing this kind of unassuming guy, and then it turns out you’re actually playing the big hero of the film.

Bell: Well, kind of. I mean, kind of. It’s totally a joint deal. We’ve really turned out — after the fact to be a fortunate thing is kind of Kuato and George. I mean, George’s real thing is he is kind of second fiddle to Kuato because he’s really Kuato’s carrier. And he defers to Kuato himself. I mean, I felt very much like Kuato was the deal. And it turns out when people mention his name, they don’t mention George, they mention Kuato. The fortunate thing was they say, “Did you play Kuato?” And I get to say, “Yes.” I actually auditioned for Kuato after the movie was in the can.

CS: Oh really?

Bell: Yeah. That voice was me. So when people say, “You’re Kuato,” I go, “Yes, I am.”

CS: Oh okay. I had no idea that they did some kind of digital thing to your voice?

Bell: No, I kind of made that up. I mean, I suppose, yeah, of course they did. But Paul and I, you know, Paul was my pal by then, and Paul and I dicked around in the recording room a little bit with that voice. But that was me.

CS: That’s interesting. Yeah.

Bell: I think they digitized it some, yeah.

CS: Yeah, so I guess you kind of had a little bit of an Edgar Bergen, Charlie McCarthy kind of thing going.

Bell: You’re giving me all this new material. I like that. I’ll go with that. I don’t mind that at all, no. I’ll go there. But it’s not quite, because I wasn’t ventriloquiding or anything.

CS: Right.

Bell: I don’t know if that’s a word.

CS: No, but I’m just learning now that you did this voice and to me, the voice was so powerful because it’s like, it’s not like Yoda. It’s not like some booming, powerful voice. It’s very kind of — it almost sounds like he’s like, struggling to talk and he’s very weak and it’s — yeah, it makes him very sympathetic.

Bell: Well, this is like when you go into an ADR room and it’s dark and you start recording. And usually, you’re just doing your own stuff over. But we just made this up, so there was Paul next to me. And so, it was a day’s work. We were creating that and we took a long time to create that. You know, and no, no, no, that’s horrible. No, you know, so but then, I mean, he actually liked my instincts, because he was very good to me actually, on that.

CS: That’s so cool.

Bell: And there were other people who auditioned for that, by the way. I had to audition for it.

CS: Oh wow. Do you remember who you were competing against?

Bell: Who I was competing with?

CS: Yeah.

Bell: Well, the most famous name — I don’t know if I like — I’m such a fan and I got to eat lunch with him. I did a movie with him. But the most famous name that I heard was Don Ameche.

CS: Oh wow. That would’ve been different.

Bell: And I revered him. I’m a groupie for that era. I care about Brad Pitt because he’s a nice guy, but Brad Pitt or I could have dinner with Don Ameche, I’m going with Don Ameche.

CS: Oh of course. Yeah, and he’d been around forever. He’d been in freaking Love Boat and stuff.

Bell: I heard that name. And then there were others I didn’t hear. I was competing for that. I didn’t realize I was, but I was.

CS: Wow. And can you talk a little bit about, of course, the other big component of this performance is Rob Bottin’s amazing makeup work. 

Bell: He became a very, very close friend of mine. I think he’s the kind of Rembrandt or better, the Leonardo da Vinci of prosthetics people. I’ve worked with him a lot more than one time. I’ve done commercials with him. He’s gotten me work on commercials. I mean, I think I’m qualified — he’s the best that there ever was.

CS: I’m sort of inclined to agree with you. Stan Winston was really good, Rick Baker was really good, but there was something about what Rob did that had just this extra layer of just super realism to it.

Bell: Hey man, you want a demon, just forget about it… Nobody gets [demons] like him.

CS: Yeah. And he’s sort of become the J.D. Salinger of makeup people now. Is he still working and stuff?

Bell: Yeah, no, totally. He won’t call me back.

CS: Oh wow.

Bell: But I mean, even speaking of demon, though I say that, even Kuato, what made him so kind of interesting was given any other kind of circumstance, that could’ve been a demon. But then, it was the opposite of that.

CS: Yeah.

Bell: Well, if he just took that look, you could say — but it wasn’t. It was the opposite of a demon is what was so cool about that.

CS: Yeah, he kind of looked like an old Jewish guy you would see at a bathhouse or something.

Bell: You don’t know any of those, do you? I wish bathhouses were open, I want a sauna.

CS: I wanted to ask about one other film before we have to go just because I saw it again recently and it’s one of those movies, I’m sure you have some of these yourself, but it’s one of those movies where I want to love it so bad because it’s a great director, it’s a great idea for a movie, and it just didn’t really work. And I watched it like three times, and it’s never quite worked for me and that’s Innocent Blood.

Bell: Yeah. Oh, I just was going to — I have that DVD here and I was about to pull it out. And I will look at it again. I don’t agree with you, but then I’m in the tank for the director and I refuse to not say everything he does is the greatest movie ever made. That’s where I’m coming from on it. I got it, actually. I did not agree with that. I got it. But then, if you know the guy and you know where he’s coming from, it’s like when Paul did the Showgirls. Well, okay, everybody hated it, but I didn’t hate it because Paul made all those choices. In other words, he didn’t make a mistake. He chose that.

CS: Well, yeah.

Bell: And it didn’t work. And Landis, man, come on… To be in his movies is just a big deal.

CS: Right. Well, and you’re in Oscar, too which is a movie I actually think is really underappreciated. 

Bell: Another guy said that. I agree with that, too.

CS: On Innocent Blood, do you remember the discussions about the tone of it? It’s a very kind of tricky tone he’s trying to do, because it’s a little bit comedic, it’s a little bit scary.

Bell: On working on Innocent Blood, well, look. He reached out, too. He took an actress that was a French star, but was iffy to go say, well, it’s going to work in America. And I got it and I loved her in it and I loved Anthony in it a lot. But you know, I liked it. But again, I’m not going to say I don’t like it because I like everything he does.

CS: Me too. I agree with you.

Bell: I just saw the remake of, there’s a new remake of “Thriller”. Come on, man. And it’s just ridiculous how good he is.

CS: Oh yeah, I love John. He’s great. I guess that’s it for us today. But it was a pleasure talking to you.

Bell: Yeah, it was fun.

CS: Hopefully we’ll get to chat again sometime.

Bell: I’m going to have to work with the comment about Kuato being an old Jewish guy in a bathhouse. I thank you for all those things.

CS: You’re welcome.

Bell: That line, what was the other one? You gave me a line.

CS: Oh I did? It was like Edgar Bergen and Charlie McCarthy.

Bell: Yes, yeah, those three things, yeah.

The post CS Interview: Marshall Bell On Playing Kuato in Paul Verhoeven’s Total Recall appeared first on ComingSoon.net.

CS Interview: Star Aaron Eckhart talks crime thriller Wander

ComingSoon.net got the opportunity to chat with Golden Globe-nominated actor Aaron Eckhart (The Dark Knight, Thank You for Smoking) to discuss his role in the mystery crime thriller Wander, which is now available on digital platforms and VOD! Click here to rent or purchase the film!

RELATED: Wander Trailer Starring Aaron Eckhart & Tommy Lee Jones

ComingSoon.net: So Wander is an interesting little film. But what about it really drew you to want to be a part of it?

Aaron Eckhart: Well, you know, it’s really just the actor in me. I like the story. I like the fact that the guy is going in the late stages in grief or the middle stages of grief and he has to deal with the fact that his daughter is gone and his wife is pretty much gone from him and he’s got to deal with life. It’s sort of how a man deals with those characteristics of grief and picks himself back up and then he gets in this conspiracy thing. I just felt it was a fun character to play and it was and he has a lot of idiosyncrasies and he’s kind of a weird guy and I just thought that would be cool.

CS: What would you say were some of the biggest creative challenges getting to the heart of your character?

AE: Well, it’s always how you feel about your loved ones. You know, I think that’s pretty universal in movies, and movies are all about destruction and death and all of that, the hurtful things in life. So that’s what an actor has to go through. I felt getting in touch with a daughter that I’ve never had personally, but, you know, what would happen if a family member died in said circumstances or when one’s faced with having to contend with something that’s larger than himself, like a government conspiracy that you believe isn’t right. What are your morals and what are your ethics and what are you willing to do? Are you willing to put your life on the line? What are you willing to stand up to in this life? And those are all things that I admired in Arthur. I also admired in him that he sort of got out of life. He’s living in a trailer and a piece of land in New Mexico and he’s sort of checked out and found his own groove. I liked that, I liked the fact that he removed himself from the world because I think at all, certainly in these times, you know, we’re all sort of feeling that way. And sort of looking up at the stars and saying, ‘Hey, what’s this all about?’

CS: So then, given the real conspiratorial paranoia nature of the character, did you find you had to do some research of your own to sort of get in that mentality, look at some crazy conspiracy sites out there?

AE: Yeah, I did, I absolutely did. You know, interestingly enough, when you start scratching the surface, you kind of figure out, ‘Hey, there might be something to this.’ Certainly, in Arthur’s case, he was worried. I think people for the most part are worried about control. Everybody, I think everybody does, wants to be free and to live the life that they choose to live. But when somebody else, because of power or greed or whatever it is, decides that through coercion or violence they are going to take that freedom away from you in order to experiment or whatever it is, things get real, and that’s what happened to Arthur, when he saw that these people were being duped. They were being brought to Mexico for a particular reason — freedom or whatever it was — and building a new life and they get injected with this little mechanism that basically has power over their life and controls their movement, controls their thoughts and can kill them in an instant. When you start scratching the surface about that with all this new technology and all that sort of stuff, you realize that it can happen. So in Arthur’s case, too, it’s interesting. In order to shut people up about these things, they’re called conspiracy theories and paranoid and that sort of stuff and Arthur has a radio show that he does on the internet and he starts looking like a whack job. So that all plays into it. But there are forces out there, I guess, that are trying to do some bad things and Arthur came up against them. And again, that’s what I liked about the film was that Arthur stood and faced them and stared them down and tried to get to the bottom of it.

CS: Just watching it, even though there’s not a lot of action in it, it felt like it must’ve been a really physically draining role. Was it very taxing for you to portray the character?

AE: Yeah, it was. It was extremely, emotionally and also physically because I mean, there’s a lot of stuff that is not in the film that we did, but first of all, you have to look at the movie in terms of its geography, its landscape. We’re out there in the middle of New Mexico in the heat — beautiful place, has its own sort of magic and mystery and enigma to it, you know, with the running train, the day and the night and how Arthur, how he responds to those forces. There was a lot of running around, a lot of heat. But mostly, emotional damage. I thought the role was tough in that way, and Arthur has a limp and that sort of thing. You know, that’s what I found fun about the movie was I tried to inject any sort of action I could into it or any sort of impediment that I could get into the movie, I really tried to be affected by the sun and all the issues that the movie covered and really get into it. Half the time I lived in a small little house in the middle of nowhere and was dealing with rattlesnakes and all that sort of New Mexico landscape. And it can work on a man, and I tried to get that into the movie.

CS: Well, I think it comes across very well. What would you say was one of the more challenging moments to film in it?

AE: Oh challenging was it’s always challenging just staying in any sort of crazy emotion. You know, when you see a horror film and if you look at a horror film and you say, ‘Wow, over the course of weeks or months, that person had to stay in that place for that long like they were scared to death or whatever it was,’ and it really is taxing mentally and to be believable. When you see the death of somebody on the news or whatever and they’re newly kneeling over the dead body of their son and their daughter, whatever it is, that’s not acting. I mean, that’s the real deal. And to give homage to that or to really get that right, you have to put yourself there and that’s always what I find to be the hardest part about acting, is the sustainability and how much concentration it takes and the sacrifices that you have to make on a daily basis while you’re filming in order to stay in that place because everybody’s buoyant. They want to come up for air every once in a while. But in filming sometimes, especially when you see films that you like or characters that you admire, they often have to stay in a pretty dark place.

CS: So one of the things, too, I really found interesting about Arthur was his voice and I’m curious, was that from you, was that from the script, was that from director April?

AE: No, I think that was me and it’s just, as a voice, when I started rehearsing it and putting the limp in there and all that sort of stuff. You know, the train is such a great symbol for this because you’re in America, Middle America, out in the middle of nowhere in the desert and this train blows past you with that hot wind. And it’s sort of like “Crazy Train.” It’s sort of like you hear the song “Crazy Train,” and that’s what the voice is. It’s “Crazy Train.” It’s that voice that’s been beaten down, that’s not sure of himself, that’s in agony, that’s tired, mentally tired. And that’s what I tried to do with the voice.

CS: I think it worked well for the character, I dug it. So what was it then like getting to work alongside fellow Two Face alum Tommy Lee Jones for the film?

AE: [Laughs} It was good. I think Tommy looks very cool in this movie. He fit right in from day one, and Tommy’s a great actor. What can you say? I mean, he’s an Academy Award winning actor and I’ve been a big fan of his for my whole career and admire him greatly. And to have him out there — plus, he’s from New Mexico or he lives in New Mexico and knows New Mexico like the back of his hand. I mean, he has that sort of “Crazy Train” element about him. So he was a great addition to the movie and was a great sidekick and partner to work with.

CS: And you two have such great chemistry in the film. What was it like building that up off camera before they started rolling?

AE: Well, Tommy got there — we didn’t have a lot of time for that, but it just comes through. I’ve always admired actors because that’s what I do and I love to hear their stories, and especially such seasoned actors as Tommy Lee Jones. I just have a love in my heart for them and I’m just like a kid in a candy store. I like to sit at their feet and listen to stories and that sort of stuff. So it doesn’t take very much for me to appreciate and ingratiate myself to those guys and that’s what we did offscreen, you know. ‘Tell me this, tell me that, what happened, blah, blah, blah.’ It just was effortless and as soon as Tommy put on those, I think they were yellow-colored glasses, I was like, ‘Right on, man. Let’s go make this movie. It’s so cool.’

CS: What was it also like trying to build that rapport with Heather Graham for the film?

AE: Well, Heather is, again, she’s great. She’s an actress and Heather plays my friend in it. So there’s a totally different energy from Tommy Lee Jones. When you were with Heather, you would open up to her and have nice, I don’t know the word, soft conversations. You just want to be vulnerable around her because she’s so sweet and helpful, emotionally helpful. So it was a relief to be around her in that sense. She’s very giving and it’s interesting when you look at how you are, because I don’t really look at that in that sense, but how you are with different characters on a daily basis while you’re making a movie. With Tommy, it’s one energy, and with Heather, it’s another. With Katheryn, it’s another because Katheryn, she double crosses me the whole time. And so, I think that even the energy with Katheryn and Heather was different.

CS: To look away for the film for the last question, you were one of the main stars in the first two Has Fallen movies. We didn’t get to see you in the third one. But with a few more in the works, I’m curious if they found a way to bring you back, would you be open to returning?

AE: No. No. No, I’m done with that. I’m done with that. The President has retired. He’s golfing.

CS: Just like the current one.

AE: Just like, yeah [chuckles]. So no, I’ve got other things to do.

RELATED: CS Video: The Informer Interview With Star Joel Kinnaman

After getting hired to probe a suspicious death in the small town of Wander, a mentally unstable private investigator becomes convinced the case is linked to the same ‘conspiracy cover up’ that caused the death of his daughter. The film is directed by April Mullen from a screenplay she co-written with Tim Doiron.

Wander stars Aaron Eckhart (Erin Brockovich, The Dark Knight), Tommy Lee Jones (The Fugitive, Men in Black films), Heather Graham (Boogie Nights, The Hangover trilogy), Katheryn Winnick (Bones, Vikings), Raymond Cruz (The Closer) and Brendan Fehr (Roswell).

Wander is produced by Doiron, Mullen, Andre Relis, Chad A. Verdi, Douglas Falconer and Mary Aloe.

The post CS Interview: Star Aaron Eckhart Talks Crime Thriller Wander appeared first on ComingSoon.net.