ScreamWire Daily

Ian Tuason’s $500K horror debut Undertone — a sound‑design driven film about a paranormal podcaster — sold to A24 in a mid‑seven‑figure deal after its Fantasia premiere, and will receive an A24 theatrical release in March 2026.

Paramount moved André Øvredal’s Passenger up to May 22, 2026 — clearing the May 29 date occupied by The Backrooms — positioning the van-life demonic stalker thriller for a long Memorial Day weekend theatrical push and quicker streaming window if it underperforms.

Grind, a class-conscious horror anthology co-directed by Brea Grant, Ed Dougherty and Chelsea Stardust, premiered at SXSW after being self-financed by its creators—the filmmakers say they retain ownership and are seeking distribution post-festival.

Oliver Bernsen’s Bagworm premiered at SXSW and was praised as a dark, body‑horror-leaning, black-comedy odyssey anchored by a committed lead performance from Peter Falls and strong technical work, marking an SXSW breakout to watch.

At SXSW Steven Spielberg previewed Disclosure Day — an alien-themed film he directed described as a western-tinged sci‑fi — showing a sneak peek and confirming cast members Josh O’Connor, Emily Blunt, Colman Domingo and Colin Firth, with a June 2026 release window noted in coverage.

Ian Nathan’s documentary The Thing Expanded compiles five hours of new interviews and behind‑the‑scenes material — including John Carpenter on dangerous fire stunts and Rob Bottin’s effects — and is available for pre‑order on Blu‑ray/digital with a limited pre‑order window.

20th Century Studios is reportedly eyeing Michael Sarnoski (A Quiet Place: Day One) to direct the upcoming Alien: Romulus sequel following Fede Álvarez's departure — an early talent-targeting signal for the franchise's creative direction.

SXSW buzzer Monitor — produced by Temple Hill and directed by Matt Black & Ryan Polly — stars Brittany O'Grady as a content moderator who unleashes a tulpa-like entity; the slick, gore-forward feature looks franchise-capable and is seeking distribution after its festival premiere.

Chloe Okuno's next film Brides has cast Olivia Cooke in the lead — Okuno (known for horror work) is directing, signaling another genre-leaning feature with a recognized actress attached.

Radio Silence revealed that studio-mandated alternate cuts existed for 2022’s Scream (Scream 5), confirming there were two versions and detailing how the studio requested a truncated iteration during post-production.

Veteran genre actors Terry Kiser, Hannah Fierman, Andrew Hubatsek and Lynn Lowry have been cast in indie horror The Malakai, which follows a fractured couple and is led by Daniel John Kearney and Lucas Dunaway.

UCLA’s 2026 Hollywood Diversity Report shows films with 41–50% BIPOC casts outperform across metrics (median global $117.1M / domestic $52.6M), finds horror delivers the highest median ROI and skews majority‑BIPOC audiences, and flags a drop in female leads and directors.

SXSW Midnight selection Drag — directed by Raviv Ullman and Greg Yagolnitzer and starring Lizzy Caplan, Lucy DeVito and John Stamos — is a caustic, compact crime-thriller blending dark humor and serial-killer elements, described as likely to play well as an SXSW opener for the Midnighter strand.

Tales from Beyond the Pale launched Season Six (started Nov 2025) and continues monthly audio horror releases with new episodes from creators including Joe Maggio, Jenn Wexler, Ted Geoghegan and producer/host Larry Fessenden; episodes are available on Spotify, Apple Music and the show’s site.

Cinematographer Ksusha Genenfeld discusses shooting Millicent Hailes' SXSW-premiering PERFECT (which features Julia Fox) with a naturalistic, intimacy-forward approach, handheld coverage, a skeleton crew and shaping sunlight to sell a water-scarcity world.

Lionsgate’s new thriller The Gates, written and directed by John Burr, stars Mason Gooding, Algee Smith and Keith Powers as three young Black men trapped inside a gated community; the film features James Van Der Beek in his final performance.

Blumhouse Games and iam8bit released the promised physical PS5 edition of Cozy Game Pals’ Fear The Spotlight, offering both a standard retail version and an iam8bit-exclusive edition with additional collectibles.

/Film highlights Ali Larter's early scream‑queen work in 2000's Final Destination and connects it to the franchise's continued life—citing the 2025 revival Final Destination: Bloodlines and the series' expanded universe across novels and comics.

Miracle Media will release the supernatural revenge horror BAD VOODOO digitally in the UK on March 16 following its U.S. release; story follows four escaped convicts who encounter a home cursed by tragedy.

Dave Boyle’s Never After Dark, a Japanese supernatural chiller screened at SXSW, blends haunted-house conventions with a fresh supernatural wrinkle and a strong heroine according to Bloody Disgusting's review.

Fangoria confirmed a release date for Interview with the Vampire Season 3, signaling the continuation of Anne Rice adaptations on television (article gives scheduling details for the upcoming season).

Terror Vault returns to the historic San Francisco Mint with SLASHED: Return to Hellville, an immersive Halloween 2026 experience channeling 1980s slasher tropes where guests participate in a live investigation tied to the Shellville murders.

WGA West boosted its staff-union offer — adding roughly $800,000 in first-year wages and proposing 4% raises (on top of prior increases) across 2025–27 — but the WGSU rejected it and may picket upcoming AMPTP/MBA negotiations, creating a potential split during federation talks.

Nielsen delayed its monthly Gauge report one week to March 24 to incorporate ARF’s DASH universe estimates (MRC-accredited), a methodology change that will temporarily lift measured cable/broadcast viewership and reduce streaming figures while aiming for a more accurate TV landscape measurement.

Mike Flanagan’s reboot of The Exorcist has begun principal photography in New York City; Flanagan wrote and is directing (and EP), the ensemble cast includes Scarlett Johansson, Jacobi Jupe and Chiwetel Ejiofor, and the film is produced with Jason Blum/Blumhouse for a theatrical release via Universal (March 12, 2027 listed).

Kevin Williamson is writing a television series set in Universal’s classic monster universe — described as an adult Vampire Diaries-style show featuring Dracula, Frankenstein and the Wolf Man — part of a broader Universal Monsters push that includes recent and upcoming studio titles.

Brass Knuckle Films (co-founded by Robert Rodriguez and Alexis Garcia) unveiled a five-project slate — three Rodriguez originals and two investor-sourced projects — and has raised $2 million from over 2,000 investors, with plans to expand the slate further and fold contest-winning investor-writers into development.

Peacock unveiled first images from its Crystal Lake Friday the 13th series — casting Linda Cardellini as Pamela Voorhees and Callum Vinson as young Jason — confirming an active franchise revival for the platform and renewed mainstream investment in slasher IP; the article also cites the original film’s $59.8M box office on a roughly $650k budget.

Glass Entertainment Group founder Nancy Glass has converted multiple true‑crime podcasts into docuseries for Netflix, ABC News Studios and Paramount+ and is now shopping three more podcast-to-TV adaptations (including Love Trapped and The Crimes of Margo Freshwater); the podcast arm has generated 150M downloads across 12 series.

Producer William Lustig says the long-gestating Maniac Cop reboot is finally set to shoot this fall with Nicolas Winding Refn attached as director; the project survived HBO/Discovery turnaround and the production company will reveal financing/partner details later.

Critic praise for Prime Video's Scarpetta highlights strong performances (Nicole Kidman, Jamie Lee Curtis, Bobby Cannavale, Simon Baker, Ariana DeBose), the dual-timeline adaptation of Cornwell novels (Autopsy + Postmortem), and confirms a second season has already been ordered.

MovieWeb notes the Single White Female remake starring Jenna Ortega and Taylor Russell is moving forward in development with Sarah DeLappe attached as writer and the leads serving as EPs; no director or production timeline disclosed.

Vertpaint Games previewed Ritual Tides with a new gameplay trailer at the Future Game Showcase; the Lovecraftian horror title is being developed by an experienced team and has narrative backing from horror author Adam Nevill.

James Gunn's directorial debut Slither received a 20th‑anniversary 4K restoration and a new trailer, positioning the cult horror‑comedy for renewed festival and home‑video attention.