News

Gold Derby's top news stories for May 23, 2025.

The Wheel of Time canceled after three seasons on Prime Video

Amazon has canceled fantasy series The Wheel of Time after three seasons. The series, which premiered on Prime Video in 2021, was based on the popular novel series by Robert Jordan, and featured a large ensemble cast led by Rosamund Pike. The third season made Nielsen's top 10 list of streaming originals, but the renewal bar is high for expensive fantasy series.

Cannes' Un Certain Regard winners revealed

The 2025 winners of the Un Certain Regard section of the Cannes Film Festival, which honors early career filmmakers, have been revealed. La misteriosa mirada del flamenco (The Mysterious Gaze of the Flamingo), the debut feature of Chilean filmmaker Diego Céspedes, won the top Un Certain Regard Prize. Colombian director Simón Mesa Soto won the second-place Jury Prize with his film Un Poeta (A Poet). Palestinian...

“Corsage” and “Phantom Thread” actor Vicky Krieps and “The Zone of Interest” and “White Lotus” star Christian Friedel have joined Aimee Lou Wood and Johnny Flynn in the cast of “The Idiots.”

Krieps won Cannes’ Un Certain Regard best performance award and the European Film Award for “Corsage” in 2022. Friedel is a two-time nominee for best actor at both the European and German film awards.

Other actors joining the cast are Barbara Marten and three-time German Film Award nominee Rainer Bock.

The film is to be directed by Polish filmmakers Małgorzata Szumowska and Michał Englert, and is co-written by Szumowska and Englert together with Kasper Bajon and Bríd Arnstein. Englert will also serve as cinematographer. International sales are being handled by the Match Factory.

The story is based on the novel “The Gambler Wife: A True Story of Love, Risk, and the Woman Who Saved Dostoyevsky” by Andrew D. Kaufman,...

Award-winning European actors Vicky Krieps (Corsage, Phantom Thread) and Christian Friedel (The Zone of Interest, White Lotus) have joined the ensemble cast of The Idiots, the new film from Polish directors Malgorzata Szumowska and Michal Englert (Woman of…, Never Gonna Snow Again).

Friedel’s White Lotus co-star Aimee Lou Wood, and Ripley actor Johnny Flynn headline the project in a cast that also includes Dune: Prophecy actress Barbara Marten, and Rainer Bock (Wonder Woman, The White Ribbon).

Szumowska and Englert co-wrote The Idiots together with Kasper Bajon and Bríd Arnstein, basing the story on Andrew D. Kaufman’s 2021 novel The Gambler Wife: A True Story of Love, Risk, and the Woman Who Saved Dostoyevsky, which follows the lives of the famous Russian writer Fyodor Dostoyevsky and his wife Anna during a period that inspired him to write his classic The Idiot.

Wood and Flynn play Anna and her husband, nicknamed Fiedya.

Vicky Krieps and Christian Friedel have joined the cast of Malgorzata Szumowska and Michal Englert’s The Idiots.

Krieps, Friedel, Barbara Marten and Rainer Bock join previously-announced cast members Aimee Lou Wood and Johnny Flynn, with filming scheduled to begin next month.

The Idiots is based on Andrew D. Kaufman’s 2021 novel The Gambler Wife: A True Story of Love, Risk, and the Woman Who Saved Dostoyevsky. The film will tell the story of Russian writer Dostoyevsky and his wife Anna on their honeymoon trip to Baden – the period in his life that inspired him to write The Idiot.

Szumowska...

Set in the same universe as Denis Villeneuve's Oscar-winning movie franchise, Dune: Prophecyis a prequel series that aired on HBO and Max last year to generally positive reviews. The network moved quickly to renew the epic action series for Season 2 before the finale, and it seems the big-budget production will begin rolling cameras sooner rather than later. Dune: Prophecy takes place 10,00 years before the events of the film series and follows the origins of the Bene Gesserit, a super-powered sociopolitical and religious entity with far-reaching influence across the galaxy.

During an interview with Collider, Dune: Prophecy star Josh Heuston, who portrays Constantine Corrino in the show, revealed that Season 2 will begin filming this August and continue until the end of the year. There is no release date yet, but fans can probably expect the show to return on HBO and Max sometime in 2026. For reference, the first season took...

The wait is over for Dune fans! In partnership with HBO and Legendary Entertainment, Warner Bros. Discovery Home Entertainment is bringing the highly anticipated HBO Original drama series Dune: Prophecy: The Complete First Season to 4K Uhd, Blu-ray and DVD on May 13, 2025. The series is co-produced by HBO and Legendary Television. Get ready to binge all 6 episodes from the epic sci-fi adventure, along with over an hour of bonus content, including 5 extended featurettes and an all-new, never-before-seen featurette exclusive to 4K Uhd, Blu-ray, and DVD. Pre-order your copy today.

Dune: Prophecy: The Complete First Season is also available now to purchase Digitally from Amazon Prime Video, AppleTV, YouTube, Fandango at Home, and more.

From the expansive universe of Dune, created by acclaimed author Frank Herbert, and 10,000 years before the ascension of Paul Atreides, Dune: Prophecy follows two Harkonnen sisters as they combat forces that threaten the future of humankind and...

HBO’s saga of scheming space nuns and clueless royals rumbles to a close. Our review of Dune: Prophecy episode 6…

Nb: The following contains relatively minor spoilers for Dune: Prophecy episode 6. All the same, we’d advise you watch the finale first before reading the paragraphs below.

Together, dear readers, we’ve made it. Through the jarring edits, the meaningful looks, the scheming and the space weasels. Everything we’ve experienced in Dune: Prophecy so far has built to this – the grand finale. The moment where truths are revealed and scores are settled. Well, sort of.

In the land of television, final episodes are often supposed to leave us with something to chew over and questions to ask ourselves. But not quite like this. Maybe it’s just this writer, but there were at least two moments in episode six that prompted reactions along the lines of, ‘Eh?’ and ‘Wait,...

Dune: Prophecy is getting a second season!

The HBO Original drama series has been renewed for a second season, ahead of the season one finale debuting Sunday (December 22) at 9:00 p.m. Et/Pt.

The first episode has amassed approximately 15 million viewers, according to the network.

Keep reading to find out more…

Sarah Aubrey, Head of Max Original Programming, says: “Dune: Prophecy has captivated audiences around the globe thanks to the visionary leadership of showrunner and executive producer Alison Schapker, who will continue to guide this grand tale of truth and power. We are incredibly grateful to our partners at Legendary and to our extraordinary cast and crew for their service to the Imperium. We’re excited to collaborate with this team again to see what they have in store.”

Here’s the official logline: “From the expansive universe of Dune, created by acclaimed author Frank Herbert, and 10,000 years before the ascension of Paul Atreides,...

The HBO Original drama series Dune: Prophecy, co-produced with Legendary Television, has been renewed for a second season, ahead of the season one finale debuting on Sunday, December 22 at 9:00 p.m. Et/Pt. Across Max territories, the first episode has amassed approximately 15 million viewers.

From the expansive universe of Dune, created by acclaimed author Frank Herbert, and 10,000 years before the ascension of Paul Atreides, Dune: Prophecy follows two Harkonnen sisters as they combat forces that threaten the future of humankind, and establish the fabled sect that will become known as the Bene Gesserit.

The series is inspired by the novel Sisterhood of Dune written by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson.

The cast includes Emily Watson, Olivia Williams, Travis Fimmel, Jodhi May, Mark Strong, Sarah-Sofie Boussnina, Josh Heuston, Chloe Lea, Jade Anouka, Faoileann Cunningham, Edward Davis, Aoife Hinds, Chris Mason, Shalom Brune-Franklin, Camilla Beeput, Jihae, Tabu, Charithra Chandran, Jessica Barden,...

“Dune: Prophecy” has secured a renewal for a second season ahead of the HBO drama’s Season 1 finale.

The prequel series, which is inspired by Brian Herbert and Kevin J. Anderson’s novel “Sisterhood of Dune” and co-produced with Legendary Television, takes place 10,000 years before the ascension of Paul Atreides. It follows two Harkonnen sisters as they combat forces that threaten the future of humankind, and establish the fabled sect that will become known as the Bene Gesserit.

“Dune: Prophecy” stars Emily Watson, Olivia Williams, Travis Fimmel, Jodhi May, Mark Strong, Sarah-Sofie Boussnina, Josh Heuston, Chloe Lea, Jade Anouka, Faoileann Cunningham, Edward Davis, Aoife Hinds, Chris Mason, Shalom Brune-Franklin, Camilla Beeput, Jihae, Tabu, Charithra Chandran, Jessica Barden, Emma Canning, Yerin Ha and Barbara Marten.

The show is executive produced by Alison Schapker, who serves as showrunner, Diane Ademu-John, who co-developed the series, and Anna Foerster, who directed multiple episodes including the premiere.

Veteran TV actor Barbara Marten is the standout in another uneven Dune: Prophecy chapter. Our review of episode 5:

Nb: In line with Film Stories policy, the following review is certified spoiler-free for Dune: Prophecy episode 4, but does contain spoilers for earlier instalments.

In a series so far heavy on serious faces and whispered rumours of doom, one of its unexpected delights is actor Barbara Marten. A veteran of such British TV shows as Brookside, Casualty and The Bill, she’s quietly bustled and swished through Dune: Prophecy as the captivatingly severe Sister Avila.

A voice of reason among the increasingly fractious sisterhood, Avila’s one of those characters who doesn’t drive the plot, but instead becomes a welcome presence who you’re always pleased to see whenever they show up.

In episode five, Avila stumbles on a secret Tula (Olivia Williams) has kept secret for a few days...

When you purchase through our links, we may earn an affiliate commission.

The Devil’s Hour is a British supernatural thriller drama series created by Tom Moran. The Prime Video series follows Lucy, a social worker who mysteriously wakes up every night at exactly 3:33 am in the middle of the so-called devil’s hour and after having some terrifying visions she soon finds herself connected to a series of brutal murders in the area. The Devil’s Hour stars Jessica Raine, Peter Capaldi, Nikesh Patel, Alex Ferns, Meera Syal, Barbara Marten, Phil Dunster, Benjamin Chivers, and Brandon Bendell. So, if you loved the thrilling mystery, complex story, and compelling characters in The Devil’s Hour here are some similar shows you should check out next.

Shining Girls (Apple TV+) Credit – Apple TV+

Shining Girls is a psychological thriller drama series created by Silka Luisa. Based on the 2013 novel The Shining Girls by author Lauren Beukes,...

Amazon Prime Video has released the first trailer for their critically acclaimed series The Devil's Hour (2022). Stars Peter Capaldi (Doctor Who) and Jessica Raine will return as Gideon and Lucy for the supernatural crime thriller. Season 1 followed a social worker, Lucy Chambers, who has terrifying visions every night at 3:33 a.m., also known as "the devils hour", and explores her mysterious connection to a killer, Gideon Shepherd, his knowledge of Lucy, and the nightmarish phenomena she's experiencing.

Check out the new trailer for The Devil's Hour Season 2 below.

Season 1 ended with a cliffhanger after revealing Lucy's connection to Gideon and the recent murders in the story. The series was originally conceived as a trilogy, and the show was already been renewed for both a second and third season back in November 2022. The first season of The Devil's Hour was hugely well-received upon release, and boasts an incredible 88% audience score...

Peacock Announces “Based on a True Story” Season 2 Premiere, Releases First Look

The Bartletts are back on the case. Peacock has announced the Season 2 premiere date for its hit comedy-thriller series “Based on a True Story,” starring Kaley Cuoco and Chris Messina. The series follows Ava (Cuoco) and Nathan (Messina), a married couple feeling the weight of life and work amidst endless bills, marriage squabbles, mounting work pressures, and a baby on the way. But their lives get a shake-up when, spurred by Ava’s passion for true crime, she realizes that plumber-turned-family friend Matt (Tom Bateman) is the serial killer behind a string of unsolved murders in L.A. and the pair blackmail him into co-creating a podcast about his “work.”

Watch the “Based on a True Story” Season 2 date announcement teaser below:

In Season 2, Ava and Nathan are three months into parenthood, and Ava is determined to resist her true-crime obsession,...

The Devil's Hour season 2 offers the first look at the return of Doctor Who star Peter Capaldi in the Prime Video supernatural thriller with an almost perfect Rotten Tomatoes score. Created by Tom Moran with fellow Doctor Who alum Peter Moffat as showrunner, the six-episode show debuted in October 2022. It follows a social worker who wakes up every day at 3:33 Am, experiencing strange visions at the so-called devil's hour. It has already been renewed up to a third season, which will be its last.

RadioTimes.com has now unveiled the first photos of The Devil's Hour season 2, ahead of the release of new episodes on October 18.

The images offer a glimpse of The Devil's Hour cast returning to their roles. That includes Capaldi as Gideon, the mysterious criminal that can remember his future. Jessica Raine, meanwhile, plays the central social worker. Nikesh Patel plays Ravi, a detective with a fear of blood.

Prime Video has unveiled the first look at the second season of the mind-bending thriller The Devil’s Hour, which will launch exclusively on Prime Video globally on October 18.

The Devil’s Hour Season 2 sees Lucy (Jessica Raine) and Gideon (Peter Capaldi) forming an uneasy alliance to prevent a recurring tragedy and hunt down an elusive monster.

Lucy’s double life sees her torn between family and duty as she finds herself in the crosshairs of her past-life husband, Di Ravi Dhillon (Nikesh Patel). Assisting Dhillon in his investigation is DS Sam Boyd (Saffron Hocking), who Di Lucy Chambers mentored in a previous life.

Meanwhile, Isaac (Benjamin Chivers) is discovering new emotions daily and struggling to keep his balance in a reality that rejects his existence. Fresh mysteries unfold as our stories converge on one explosive moment that will change the fate of our characters for the rest of their ever-recurring lives.

As revealed via The Radio Times, a first look at Season 2 of The Devil's Hour has been released, with the underrated Prime Video series ready to return after two years. In the images, five of the main cast of Season 2 are seen immersed in the intriguing mystery that unfolds in Season 2. This five includes Doctor Who star Peter Capaldi as Gideon Shepherd, Jessica Raine as Lucy Chambers, Nikesh Patel as Ravi Dhillion, Phil Dunster as Mike Stevens, and Saffron Hocking as DS Sam Boyd. Also returning for Season 2 are Benjamin Chivers, Alex Ferns, Barbara Marten, Thomas Dominique, and Rhiannon Harper-Rafferty.

Prime Video has unveiled the first look at season two of the mind-bending thriller, ‘The Devil’s Hour,’ which will launch exclusively on Prime Video globally on 18th October.

The series stars Jessica Raine (Patrick Melrose, Informer), Peter Capaldi (Doctor Who, The Thick of It), Nikesh Patel (Starstruck), Phil Dunster (Ted Lasso) and Meera Syal. Saffron Hocking (Top Boy) also joins the cast for season two.

Season two sees Lucy (Jessica Raine) and Gideon (Peter Capaldi) forming an uneasy alliance to prevent a recurring tragedy and hunt down an elusive monster. Lucy’s double life sees her torn between family and duty as she finds herself in the crosshairs of her past-life husband, Di Ravi Dhillon (Nikesh Patel). Assisting Dhillon in his investigation is DS Sam Boyd (Saffron Hocking) who was mentored by Di Lucy Chambers in a previous life.

Phil Dunster as Mike

Meanwhile, Isaac (Benjamin Chivers) discovers new emotions...

The Turning is a reimagined version of The Turn of the Screw with significant differences in setting and character development. The movie doesn't confirm the existence of ghosts haunting the mansion, leaving Kate mentally shaken and unsure of reality. The ambiguous ending of The Turning, criticized by many, prompts an alternate ending where Miles' possession by Peter Quint is left unresolved.

When The Turning was released in 2020, it was panned by critics and left many viewers confused about its ending. Based on the 1898 Henry James horror novella, The Turn of the Screw, The Turning follows Kate Mandell (Mackenzie Davis), a young woman who is hired to become the governess for Miles (Finn Wolfhard) and Flora Fairchild (Brooklynn Prince), the children of a wealthy family after the death of their parents. Kate's primary responsibility is to take care of the children, but that task soon becomes difficult when ghosts suddenly start haunting Miles and Flora.

The first season of the “spectacularly dark” thriller series The Devil’s Hour (watch it Here) launched exclusively on Amazon’s Prime Video on October 28th – and the show has been so successful during its first month of release, Amazon has announced that they’ve ordered two more seasons! The Devil’s Hour season 2 will begin filming sometime in early 2023.

Amazon’s Dan Grabiner had this to say about the renewal: “We’re thrilled with the audience response to The Devil’s Hour, and can’t wait to share the next chapter of this mind-bending story. Fans can look forward to plenty more twists and turns in this remarkable tale from first-time series creator Tom Moran, and welcoming back our immensely talented cast, led by Jessica Raine and Peter Capaldi.“

Series creator Tom Moran added: “Telling a story on television is a precarious business. Season 1 of The Devil’s Hour was just the beginning...

One of Amazon Prime’s most recent releases, The Devil’s Hour premiered on 28th October, and is a twisty, high-concept thriller that will keep you guessing all the way through its six episodes.

The series is written by Tom Moran, and comes from the team behind Sherlock and Dracula, including former Doctor Who showrunner Steven Moffat. The plot centres on a troubled woman who wakes up every night at 3.33am – the so-called devil’s hour – and sees terrifying visions, which get her caught up in a series of brutal murders and a disappearance from many years ago.

The show boasts an impressive lineup of acting talent – so let’s meet the cast of The Devil’s Hour:

Peter Capaldi as Gideon Shepherd

Capaldi plays the reclusive Gideon, an apparently murderous obsessive on a mission, and a mysterious, enigmatic figure. We’ve recently rounded up Peter Capaldi’s best roles, but...

"There's no pattern… it's just chaos." Or is it…?? Amazon has unveiled an official trailer for a chilling new supernatural thriller series arriving this fall titled The Devil's Hour. It will be streaming on Prime Video on October 28th just in time for Halloween weekend scares. The title refers to the time of 3:33Am, known as "the Devil's Hour," and the story involves a woman who wakes up every night at that exact time by terrifying visions. Described as a "gripping psychological thriller" series where Lucy's nightmares draw her into a hunt for a serial killer in a world where nothing is as it seems. Starring Peter Capaldi and Jessica Raine, with a supporting cast including Nikesh Patel, Meera Syal, Alex Ferns, Phil Dunster, Barbara Marten, and Cecilia Blair. This gets extra mysterious with that one "are you a time traveler or a fortune teller?" question, on top of...

Amazon released a teaser trailer for their “spectacularly dark” thriller series The Devil’s Hour back in May, and now a full trailer for the show has arrived online – along with the information that the series will be launch exclusively on Amazon’s Prime Video on October 28th. You can watch the trailer in the embed above.

Scripted by Tom Moran, The Devil’s Hour stars Jessica Raine (An Adventure in Space and Time) and Peter Capaldi (Doctor Who). The series consists of six episodes that tell the story of

Lucy (Raine), who is woken every night by terrifying visions at exactly 3.33am: the devil’s hour. Her eight-year-old son is withdrawn and emotionless. Her mother speaks to empty chairs. Her house is haunted by the echoes of a life that isn’t her own. When Lucy’s name is inexplicably connected to a string of brutal murders in the area, the...

"We didn't leave him... He is always with us." Rlje Films has revealed an official trailer for a horror film titled The Twin, which takes place in Finland following an American family that moves there after losing one of their children. The film is opening in Finland first in April, then in the US this May. The film is about a mother who needs to confront the unbearable truth about her surviving twin son. She must "unravel the torturous truth about her son and confronts the malicious forces attempting to take a hold of him." Teresa Palmer stars, along with Steven Cree, Barbara Marten, and Tristan Ruggeri playing both of the twin boys. Another epic horror thriller from Finland! Wow - this has some incredible shots in it. Definitely not a low key indie - this seems to have some big thrills and intense twists in the story. The trailer is worth a look.

The Twin Trailer — Taneli Mustonen‘s The Twin (2022) movie trailer has been released by Shudder. The Twin trailer stars Teresa Palmer, Steven Cree, Barbara Marten, Tristan Ruggeri, and Ergo Küppas. Crew Aleksi Hyvärinen and Taneli Mustonen wrote the screenplay for The Twin. Panu Aaltio created the music for the film. Daniel Lindholm crafted [...]

Continue reading: The Twin (2022) Movie Trailer: Teresa Palmer protects her Son from Malicious Forces in Taneli Mustonen’s Psychological Drama...

The title launched pre-sales at last year’s EFM and is close to selling out for Film Constellation.

UK sales and finance outfit Film Constellation has closed further deals on Don Films’ English-language horror The Twin from Finnish director Taneli Mustonen.

Following its market premiere at the EFM, it has sold to Italy (Notorious Pictures), Portugal (Nos Audiovisuais) and Turkey (Bir Film), with Spain, Eastern Europe and Japan currently under negotiation.

The title, which launched pre-sales at last year’s EFM, is close to selling out for Film Constellation and previously sold to France (Mediawan), German-speaking territories (Leonine Studios) and Shudder for North America,...

Sales and production company Film Constellation has secured further pre-sales on upcoming English-language horror “The Twin,” starring Teresa Palmer and directed by Taneli Mustonen (“Lake Bodom”), with Bf Distribution boarding the film in Latin America and Studio Dhl in South Korea. Film Constellation has also revealed the art for the film’s poster (see below).

Palmer stars as a young mother who is haunted by the violent death of one of her twins. As she and her partner set out to rebuild their lives in the Scandinavian countryside, they soon come to realize that some secrets are so evil, they need to be buried twice.

Steven Cree and Barbara Marten (“The Turning”) also star.

Previously announced sales on the film, signed at script stage, include France (Mediawan), German-speaking territories (Leonine), Benelux (Dutch Filmworks), Cis (Nashe Kino), Mena (Falcon Films), Taiwan (Deepjoy Picture Corporation), Indonesia (Pt Prima) and Vietnam, Malaysia, Cambodia...

Exclusive: Patrick Melrose actress Jessica Raine and Doctor Who star Peter Capaldi have been cast as the leads in Amazon’s The Devil’s Hour, the latest series from Sherlock and Dracula producer Hartswood Films.

From rising British writer Tom Moran, The Devil’s Hour is a UK original that tells the story of Lucy Chambers (Raine), a woman who wakes up every night at exactly 3.33Am, in the middle of the so-called devil’s hour between 3Am and 4Am.

Lucy Chambers’ eight-year-old son is withdrawn and emotionless. Her mother speaks to empty chairs. Her house is haunted by the echoes of a life that isn’t her own. Now, when her name is inexplicably connected to a string of brutal murders in the area, the answers that have evaded her all these years will finally come into focus.

Capaldi features in the six-part series as a reclusive nomad, driven by a murderous obsession.

Taneli Mustonen’s English-language feature recently wrapped production.

Taneli Mustonen’s English-language horror The Twin has secured two further European sales deals, as principal photography has completed in Estonia and Finland.

Leonine Studios and Mediawan jointly acquired the film for German-speaking and French-speaking territories respectively, from sales agent Film Constellation.

The deal marks the first time the companies have jointly acquired a film since Paris-based Mediawan purchased a stake in Germany’s Leonine in 2020.

Finnish production company Don Films has also released a first image of Teresa Palmer in the film.

Palmer stars as a young mother plagued by the...

Leonine Studios and Mediawan have boarded upcoming English-language horror “The Twin” for German-speaking and French-speaking territories respectively. The deal, inked by Film Constellation, marks the first time Leonine and Mediawan have jointly acquired a film.

Don Films has unveiled a first image of the film by Finnish director Taneli Mustonen (“Lake Bodom”), which recently wrapped principal photography in Estonia and Finland. First footage will be shown to buyers at the Cannes Film Market. “The Twin” has also been selected to take part in Frontières Platform, the genre-focused event run by Fantasia and Cannes Film Market.

Teresa Palmer stars in the lead role of a young mother plagued by the violent death of one of her twins. The film also stars Steven Cree and Barbara Marten (“The Turning”). As the family sets out to rebuild their lives in the quiet Scandinavian countryside, they soon come to realize that some secrets...

Warning: this A Discovery of Witches review contains spoilers.

A pregnancy! Something really has stuck its finger into the creature gene pot and swirled it around hasn’t it? First it was daemons born to witches and vice versa, now a vampire and a witch have conceived, going against millennia of biology. Whatever next – big, fiery birds swooping out of people’s midriffs to smite their enemies? Yes, exactly! Don’t you just love fantasy?

Corra the firedrake is Diana’s long-promised familiar, an elemental creature unlocked by reaching level six of her weaver training. Knot of one: the spell’s begun. Knot of two: the spell is true. Knot of six: Ca-Kaw! Ca-Kaw! In the same way that Diana’s spellbound powers sprang up to defend her from danger, Corra is here to protect Diana from her foes.

This week, those foes were the cartoonish Kit and Louisa, who...

“The story had held us, round the fire, sufficiently breathless” — so begins Henry James’ The Turn of the Screw, an 1898 novella that’s the closest thing to a template for every haunted house story to thrill and chill you. If you’ve seen the 1961 classic The Innocents, or really any movie featuring spooky mansions where things that go bump in the night and your psyche, then you know the basics. Floria Sigismondi’s The Turning updates James’ tale to the early ’90s (one of the first things we hear is...

Floria Sigismondi’s The Turning, based on Henry James’ novella The Turn Of The Screw, is the exact spookless blunder that gives “January Horror” a pitiful reputation. Chad and Carey Hayes seem utterly lost without James Wan’s partnership since their screenplay barely reflects basic three-act structures. Scares are beyond stale, Mackenzie Davis is walled within a dusty structure of haunted tropes, and to top it all off, there’s no finishing punch. Really no third act at all given how Sigismondi’s “exit, stage left” into the credits crawl is laugh-out-loud incompetent. I deeply, sincerely, hate this movie, and “hate” is a word this critic rarely allows into play.

Spoilers to follow, because I have some major thoughts on the film’s ending. It’s impossible to gloss over or ignore. You’ve been warned.

Ms. Davis plays Kate, a hired governess who becomes live-in caretaker to siblings Flora...

Ever since #MeToo opened the world’s eyes to the horrors of toxic masculinity, horror filmmakers — particularly female ones — have been finding increasingly creative ways to imbue their work with fears unique to women. This past year alone, both Jennifer Kent’s “The Nightingale” and Sophia Takal’s “Black Christmas” used rape-revenge tropes as plot points, though to vastly different degrees of success.

In her stylish if not entirely bone-chilling new movie “The Turning,” director Floria Sigismondi shrewdly updates Henry James’ “The Turn of the Screw” to haunt her young protagonist with unwanted male attention and obsession. Updating the story that inspired Jack Clayton’s 1961 classic “The Innocents,” which followed the text more closely,

The film’s opening hews closely enough to the original novella, as the fresh-faced Kate (Mackenzie Davis) accepts an unusual position as governess for absurdly wealthy orphan Flora (Brooklynn Prince), who lives in an extravagant manor home.

Director Floria Sigismondi’s “The Turning” is like the alt-rock cousin of author Henry James’ novella “The Turn of the Screw.” From its grunge-infused soundtrack and period setting to its fiery feminist overtones, this is an ambitious contemporary take on the iconic, claustrophobic thriller. Concerning two young orphans who psychologically torment their caretaker in a spooky, sprawling mansion, it comes across as a fuzzy, frayed adaptation courtesy of a gimmicky, ambiguous climax that undermines the journey. Lacking spine-tingling dread, taut tension, and the deservingly provocative ending needed to make its modern sentiments land, this re-imagining is less than a classic.

Bubbly teacher Kate (Mackenzie Davis) has taken a position at Bly Manor as governess for 7-year-old Flora (Brooklynn Prince), who’s suffering from trauma associated with the death of her parents outside the gates of the palatial estate. The family’s former live-in nanny, Miss Jessel (Denna Thomsen), abruptly left...

Henry James’s novella “The Turn of the Screw” has inspired many screen adaptations, most notably Jack Clayton’s “The Innocents,” which starred Deborah Kerr, and a live TV version with Ingrid Bergman that was directed by John Frankenheimer. In the early ’70s, Marlon Brando headlined a memorably nasty prequel called “The Nightcomers,” and movies from this story have been made all over the world. You have to go out of your way to screw up this material.

“The Turning” is an adaptation of “The Turn of the Screw” that takes place in 1994; we hear over the radio that Kurt Cobain has just committed suicide as we meet our heroine Kate (Mackenzie Davis), a cheerful, slightly nerdy woman who has just received a job as a nanny to an orphaned young girl and boy. In most versions of this story, the governess goes to meet the uncle of these orphans,...

If you read my piece on The Innocents from last October, then you know that I’m a pretty big fan of both Henry James’ The Turn of the Screw as well as Jack Clayton’s timeless 1961 adaptation, which means that I am the prime audience for Floria Sigismondi’s new take on this classic tale, The Turning. And for the most part, I really enjoyed what Sigismondi as well as screenwriters Carey and Chad Hayes were able to bring to the table here, with Floria’s visual flair adding a lot to the material, and a trio of strong performances from the film’s lead actors: Mackenzie Davis, Brooklynn Prince, and Finn Wolfhard.

Where The Turning ended up falling a bit short for me was in its finale, where the pieces of the narrative’s puzzle don’t quite all lock together in the film’s final moments. But overall,...

Upcoming horror movie The Turning may take place in the Nineties, but you’re not going to hear “Smells Like Teen Spirit” on the soundtrack.

Instead, director Floria Sigismondi teamed up with producer-musicians Lawrence Rothman and Yves Rothman to create a whole new aural environment for the movie, which is a retelling of Henry James’ 1898 novella The Turn of the Screw. They enlisted a cadre of musicians — from Courtney Love to Soccer Mommy — to write their own versions of Nineties music.

“First of all, I wanted to get rid of technology,...

Executive produced by Steven Spielberg, take a look at "The Turning" supernatural horror feature directed by Floria Sigismondi, adapting author Henry James' 1898 novella "The Turn Of The Screw", starring Mackenzie Davis, Finn Wolfhard, Brooklynn Prince and Joely Richardson, opening January 24, 2020:

"...for more than 100 years, a deeply haunting tale has been passed down to terrify audiences. 'The Turning' takes us to a mysterious estate in the Maine countryside, where newly appointed nanny 'Kate' (Mackenzie Davis) is charged with the care of orphans 'Flora' (Brooklynn Prince) and 'Miles' (Finn Wolfhard). 

"Kate soon discovers that both the children and the house are harboring dark secrets..."

Cast also includes Joely Richardson, Mark Huberman, Niall Greig Fulton, Barbara Marten, Denna Thomsen and Karen Egan.

Click the images to enlarge and Sneak Peek "The Turning"...

"Bad dreams?" Entertainment One UK has debuted another new official 60-second trailer for the upcoming horror film The Turning, opening in one month at the end of January. This creepy new the-kids-are-not-alright thriller is a modern take on Henry James' novella "The Turn of the Screw". A young governess, Kate, is hired by a man who has just become responsible for his young nephew and niece after the deaths of their parents. But not everything is as it seems. Starring Mackenzie Davis, with Finn Wolfhard, Brooklynn Prince, Mark Huberman, Barbara Marten, Niall Greig Fulton, Kim Adis, Denna Thomsen, and Karen Egan. The first trailer was seriously scary and unsettling as hell, this one is chilling but not as scary. Here's the second short trailer (+ UK poster) for Floria Sigismondi's The Turning, from eOne's YouTube: You can still catch the first full-length trailer for Sigismondi's The Turning here to see even more footage.

The Turning Trailer Floria Sigismondi‘s The Turning (2020) movie trailer has been released by Universal Pictures and stars Mackenzie Davis, Finn Wolfhard, Brooklynn Prince, Barbara Marten, and Joely Richardson. Plot Synopsis The Turning‘s plot synopsis: based on the novel by Henry James, “For more than 100 years, a deeply haunting tale has been passed down [...]

Continue reading: The Turning (2020) Movie Trailer: Mackenzie Davis & Finn Wolfhard star in a Psychological Supernatural Thriller...

Tagline: "Watch the Children with Care." The Turning is the latest film to find its inspiration from the novella The Turn of the Screw. This film fan has still not read this classic, despite its influences. Now, this latest interpretation will focus on a mysterious estate, in a Maine countryside. Here, a nanny is put in charge of two very special orphans. As well, Italian director Floria Sigismondi (The Runaways) has helmed this feature, with Carey and Chad Hayes adapting the screenplay. The film itself stars: Mackenzie Davis ("Black Mirror"), Finn Wolfhard, Brooklynn Prince, Mark Huberman, Barbara Marten and Niall Greig Fulton. Now, a trailer and poster are available for this supernatural infused feature. The Turning has been rated PG-13. Though difficult to create challenging horror with a PG-13 rating, The Turning relies on strange imagery to bring the scares. The PG-13 rating is for: terror, violence, disturbing images and suggestive content.

"I don't go in that part of the house..." Universal has debuted an official trailer for a horror movie titled The Turning, the latest from Italian director Floria Sigismondi (The Runaways). This creepy new the-kids-are-not-alright thriller is a modern take on Henry James' novella "The Turn of the Screw". A young governess, Kate, is hired by a man who has become responsible for his young nephew and niece after the deaths of their parents. But not everything is as it seems. Starring Mackenzie Davis, with Finn Wolfhard, Brooklynn Prince, Mark Huberman, Barbara Marten, Niall Greig Fulton, Kim Adis, Denna Thomsen, and Karen Egan. This is a seriously unsettling trailer, with some wickedly disturbing shots - mainly involving spiders. Which freaks me the hell out - and makes this a very scary trailer to watch at night. Tread carefully. Here's the first official trailer for Floria Sigismondi's The Turning, direct from...

Winners of the 63rd annual Drama Desk Awards were revealed on June 3 during a ceremony at the Town Hall in midtown Manhattan that was hosted once again by Michael Urie. As with the Outer Critics Circle Awards, these kudos also consider both Broadway and off-Broadway fare. To that end, the Broadway production of “The Band’s Visit” was ineligible, save for its sound design which was deemed to be new and won with these voters.

See 2018 Tony Awards nominations push Broadway to best season ever for attendance and grosses

Plays

Best Play

X – Admissions, by Joshua Harmon

Mary Jane, by Amy Herzog

Miles for Mary, by The Mad Ones

People, Places & Things, by Duncan Macmillan

School Girls; Or, The African Mean Girls Play, by Jocelyn Bioh

Best Revival of a Play

X – Angels in America

Hindle Wakes

In the Blood

Three Tall Women

Travesties

Best Director of a Play

Marianne Elliott,...

The Broadway revival of “Carousel” and the new musical “SpongeBob SquarePants” led the list of nominations for the 2018 Drama Desk Awards, with “Carousel” snagging a dozen nods (including outstanding musical revival) and “SpongeBob” landing 11 (among them outstanding musical).

“Mean Girls” — the only other Broadway show competing with “SpongeBob” for new musical in this year’s Drama Desks — scored ten nods total. Among plays, “Harry Potter and the Cursed Child,” already an awards-favorite in London, took eight, while the high-profile revival of “Angels in America,” starring Andrew Garfield and Nathan Lane, walked away with seven.

The Drama Desks are one of a number of theater awards that cluster around the Broadway-centric Tony Awards in the late spring. The Drama Desks, however, serve as an imperfect indicator of Tony love, since the they consider Off Broadway shows eligible to compete against Broadway productions. This year, too, one of the Broadway’s season’s biggest contenders,...

Joseph Baxter Oct 9, 2019

The Turning, a movie update of Henry James’s Turn of the Screw, stars Mackenzie Davis as the governess of two possessed children.

The Turning represents an entertainment industry Renaissance of sorts for the 1898 Henry James-penned gothic ghost story novella, Turn of the Screw, since it’s one of at least two major productions in the pipeline to adapt the classic, genre-defining story. The other offering will manifest as the upcoming second season iteration of Netflix’s horror anthology series, The Haunting of Bly Manor.

Interestingly, this particular Turn of the Screw adaptation, a film from director Floria Sigismondi, will brandish the surging star power of Mackenzie Davis, star of Terminator: Dark Fate, and Finn Wolfhard, one of the primary stars of Netflix’s smash hit series, Stranger Things, and the It films, which released its conclusion, It: Chapter Two, this past September.

The Turning Trailer

Check out the appropriately-creepy,...

Exclusive: Open Palm Films launches with Dromgoole-directed drama ‘Making Noise Quietly’; first-look image.

Dominic Dromgoole, former artistic director of London’s Globe theatre, has launched film production company Open Palm Films.

The indie outfit has recently wrapped its first production Making Noise Quietly (for which Screen can reveal the first image), a drama which is directed by Dromgoole and is adapted from Robert Holman’s well-received stage play of the same name.

The triptych of war-related stories follows a conscientious objector and a roaming artist during the Second World War; a bereaved mother struggling with the loss of her son who died in the Falklands; and an ageing holocaust survivor who seeks to bring peace to a disturbed young boy in Germany.

The film stars Deborah Findlay (The Lady In The Van), Barbara Marten (Oranges and Sunshine), Trystan Gravelle (National Treasure), Geoffrey Streafeild (Rush), Luke Thompson (Dunkirk) and Matthew Tennyson who reprises his role from the stage...

The New York-based distribution outfit plans to release the film theatrically in Q1, 2016.

Abramorama has picked up Us distrbution rights to the newly-filmed stage version version of Shakespeare’s Hamlet, starring Maxine Peake (The Theory of Everything) and directed by Margaret Williams.

Abramorama acquired from The Little Film Company, who picked up worldwide sales rights out of this year’s Cannes Marche.

The production was filmed at the Royal Exchange Theatre in Manchester and also stars John Shrapnel, Barbara Marten, Gillian Bevan, Katie West and Thomas Arnold. Sarah Frankcom, artistic director of the Royal Exchange Theatre, directed the stage play.

Picturehouse Entertainment opened Hamlet in the UK in March on more than 300 screens.

The film is executive produced for Genesius Pictures by Julian Gleek, Quidem Productions by Ralph Bernard and Simon Cooper, Royal Exchange Theatre by Fiona Gasper, and produced by Anne Beresford and Debbie Gray.

Richard Abramowitz, president of Abramorama, negotiated the deal...

Newly filmed version of the stage production stars Maxine Peake as Shakespeare’s Dane.

Ahead of next week’s Cannes Marche, The Little Film Company has acquired worldwide sales the newly filmed version of Shakespeare’s Hamlet, starring Maxine Peake (The Theory of Everything), directed by Margaret Williams. Sarah Frankcom, artistic director of the Royal Exchange Theatre, directed the stage production.

The stage production, filmed using eight cameras, will screen in the Marché on May 18.

Following a successful run at Manchester’s Royal Exchange Theatre, Picturehouse Entertainment opened Hamlet across the UK on March 23 in more than 300 cinemas.

The production also stars John Shrapnel as Claudius/Ghost, Barbara Marten as Gertrude, Gillian Bevan as Polonia, Katie West as Ophelia and Thomas Arnold as Horatio.

The film is executive produced for Genesius Pictures by Julian Gleek, Quidem Productions by Ralph Bernard and Simon Cooper, Royal Exchange Theatre by Fiona Gasper, and produced by Anne Beresford and Debbie Gray ([link...

Vera Season 2. Co. ITV

N Campion

Click here to friend Best British TV on Facebook or here to follow us on Twitter

Brenda Blethyn OBE is set to return to ITV in four all new episodes of last year’s break out hit crime drama Vera. The new season is produced by Elaine Collins and the stories are based on novels by Ann Cleeves.

Julie Graham, John McArdle and Barbara Marten are among the guest stars while season one regulars David Leon, Paul Ritter and Wunmi Mosaku will be returning.

In episode one Vera investigates the fire-bombing of her former sergeant’s home. The attack leaves his daughter in intensive care and Vera is shocked to find that her former co-worker is a shell of the man she once knew. The episode is titled The Ghost Position and it will air on ITV on 22 April at 8 p.m.

Recent Articles:...