Netflix, BUDDY & Sitges Film Festival

Hollywood’s AI working group is going public with a framework that separates human-controlled generative workflows from uses that replace performers or writers; Kathleen Kennedy and Susan Ruskin are fronting the rollout.

Molly Beth Thomas and Ellarose Kaylor co-star in the feature following a group of models, creators and reality stars swept up in a weekend getaway murder mystery

Neon is front-loading Na Hong-jin’s creature epic with a Sept. 7 premium-format one-night event at 175 U.S. locations before Sept. 9 wide release; Plus M pre-sold roughly 200 territories out of Cannes and South Korea is already at $35 million.

$14 million US TIFF Midnight Madness acquisition for Obsession resets the ceiling for Canadian genre exports; Telefilm’s 2024 survey says horror’s “must-see in theatres” score more than doubled since 2019. Oddfellows has a first-look with Warner Bros., Chris Ferguson’s Phobos is feeding Vancouver’s horror pipeline, and projects like 4x4: The Event and Paranormal Activity 8 underscore the country’s breakout bench.

ModRetro has lined up Buddy: The Video Game, an 8-bit survival-horror adaptation of the feature BUDDY, with PlayInstinct developing and ModRetro publishing. The game extension turns the upcoming horror film into a transmedia IP play before the movie even hits theaters.

PANICK Entertainment, Compass International Pictures and Further Front are launching a Halloween comic set in the game’s 1978 continuity; Hans Rodionoff and Adam F. Goldberg write, with issue one dropping Nov. 4.

Inde Navarrette boards survival horror Invertigo; Matthias Hoene directs from a Kathy Charles and Billy O'Brien script, with filming already staged across Thailand, the U.S. and the U.K.

Worldwide streaming rollout lands Sept. 18 for Tristan Reed’s found-footage slasher The Depths; Terror Films Releasing is premiering it across Tubi, Chilling, The Roku Channel and Fandango at Home.

Sitges spotlights its 59th-edition Spanish fantastic slate, with psychological thriller Las hijas, survival horror 11 and gothic vampire tale Upiro among the titles; Selecta Visión has Upiro set for Spanish theatrical release in Feb. 2027.

SCREAMBOX sets an exclusive September 1 debut for the 84-minute woods-set slasher Deathwoods, from Bloody Disgusting/Cineverse with Felissa Rose among the cast.

Paramount’s pending Warner Bros. Discovery takeover hits a legal and political wall as the California AG antitrust case heads toward a March 2027 trial; the clock is now tied to a $7 million-a-day ticking fee, a possible $7 billion breakup bill, and relocation threats out of California.

Sarajevo’s CineLink awarded Emilija Gašić’s folk horror Wolf Days the €20,000 Eurimages Co-Production Development Award, while Filip Mojzeš’ The First Week of August won the €30,000 HBO Award; Mamayi received a €20,000 Eurimages Special Award.

Australian horror keeps exporting because the genre travels on clean concepts, low-budget economics and festival pathways; Wolf Creek, The Babadook and Talk to Me remain the template, with Screen Australia pushing regional specificity as a commercial advantage.

Five Canadian features are set to world premiere at Fantastic Fest, keeping the Austin genre market stocked with northern imports; the headline withholds the titles.

Ron Perlman boards Amazon MGM’s Seasons ahead of a September production start in Ireland; Drew Hancock’s horror-thriller adapts Matt and Harrison Query’s book and short story, with Lily James and Jack Reynor already attached.

Adult Swim passed on Yule Log 3 after a cable-strategy reset, but Casper Kelly has already pitched the sequel and says the meta-horror franchise still has runway.

Tubi makes its horror hub permanent, with more than 13,000 hours and 53 million monthly viewing hours as Terror on Tubi goes year-round across multiple territories. Shudder extends Season of Screams through New Year’s Eve, while HBO renews IT: Welcome to Derry for a 1935-set season 2.

Steven Yeun boards Pagans as star and executive producer, locking in Netflix’s straight-to-series supernatural drama from Joshua Zetumer. Drew Goddard, Sarah Esberg, Jonathan van Tulleken and Sandra Oh are also EPs on the project.

1983-set creature feature Wekiwa rolls into production next month near Orlando, with Oscar-winning sound designer Richard L. Anderson writing and directing. Billy Zane, Kevin Chapman, and C.S. Lee board the cast.

Netflix sets Monster: The Lizzie Borden Story for Sept. 17; Ryan Murphy and Ian Brennan shift the anthology to Lizzie Borden, with Ella Beatty, Charlie Hunnam, Rebecca Hall, and Vicky Krieps aboard.

Fourth and final Yellowjackets season lands Nov. 20 on Paramount+ Premium Plan; Lionsgate Television produces and Paramount Global Content Distribution handles the series.

First licensed Jason Universe haunted attraction lands at 13 Thirteenth Floor venues this Halloween; Horror, Inc. and Thirteenth Floor Entertainment Group are turning Friday the 13th into an interactive, choose-your-ending maze play.

A24 veteran Kate Fassl joins Square Peg as head of comms and talent relations; the Ari Aster/Lars Knudsen banner is scaling its slate with Primetime, Scapegoat and an Arkasha Stevenson horror film, plus TV setups at MediaRes, Netflix and Amazon.

Georgian director Ana Urushadze is prepping third feature Fear of Butterflies, a detective story about a woman nearing 30 facing mental and physical disturbances, with mysticism and body horror. Ivo Felt’s Allfilm will co-produce; financing and a Georgian shoot remain uncertain.

Shudder’s Season of Screams runs Sept. 1-Dec. 31 with four months of originals, franchise returns and live watch parties; key plays include V/H/S/Mixtape, The Creep Tapes season 3, Joe Bob’s Halloween House Party and a live FANGORIA Chainsaw Awards broadcast.

Dark Sky Films sets an August 21 theatrical-plus-digital rollout for folk horror Blood Shine; the Beverly Hills premiere was briefly interrupted after an attendee lost consciousness during a scene.

Magnolia Pictures locks Japanese horror pic Never After Dark for a U.S. theatrical rollout this Halloween season. The trailer pushes Stephen King and Scott Derrickson praise into the marketing mix ahead of release.