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Time Cut is a sci-fi slasher horror film directed by Hannah MacPherson who also co-wrote the screenplay with Michael Kennedy. The Netflix film follows a high school senior student and amateur inventor who accidentally finds a time machine and travels back to the year 2003 when an unknown killer killed her sister in hopes of saving her. Time Cut stars Madison Bailey, Antonia Gentry, Michael Shanks, Griffin Gluck, Megan Best, Samuel Braun, Sydney Sabiston, Kataem O’Connor, and Rachael Crawford. So, if you loved the inventive element in the slasher horror genre and the compelling characters in Time Cut here are some similar movies you should check out next.

Totally Killer (Prime Video) Credit – Prime Video

Totally Killer is a slasher horror comedy film directed by Nahnatchka Khan from a screenplay co-written by David Matalon, Sasha Perl-Raver, and Jen D’Angelo.

Halloween is the time of year when horror appeals to all ages and backgrounds, but especially so for the young and young at heart. Luckily, there’s no shortage of family-friendly frights on streaming or network TV. If you’ve already grown tired of the familiar staples that include enduring favorites like Hocus Pocus, Halloweentown, Casper, Coraline, Don’t Look Under the Bed, Beetlejuice, and more, here’s the list for you.

This streaming guide is almost entirely dedicated to gateway horror titles released within the last decade, save for one deep-cut gem that’s finally found its way on streaming. Many of them are set on or around Halloween, ensuring proper spooky season viewing.

For those looking for brand new family frights to sink their fangs into this Halloween season, don’t miss these movies and shows.

A Babysitter’s Guide to Monster Hunting – Netflix

Set around Halloween, A Babysitter’s Guide to Monster Hunting...

The name on everybody’s lips at this week’s Emmys is FX’s “Shōgun.”

Emmy-nominated actor and producer Hiroyuki Sanada was looking forward to seeing his fellow cast members at Sunday’s show. “I haven’t seen them in maybe two years,” he told Variety. “I’m looking forward to a reunion.

Sanada, co-star Anna Sawai, and showrunners Rachel Kondo and Justin Marks were among the Emmy-nominated attendees at Gold House‘s inaugural One House Toast to the Emmys.

In partnership with Macro and Nissan, Gold House honored the 2024 multicultural nominees and achievements across filmmaking at the celebration on Thursday night at the Maybourne Hotel in Beverly Hills.

It was a diverse year for Emmy nominations with 30 people of color nominated across all acting categories. Lily Gladstone (“Under the Bridge”) and Kali Reis (“True Detective: Night Country”) became the first Indigenous women to be nominated for acting Emmys. FX...

We will update this article throughout the season, along with all our predictions, so make sure to keep checking IndieWire for the latest news from the 2024 Emmys race. The nomination round of voting takes place from June 13 to June 24, with the official Emmy nominations announced Wednesday, July 17. Afterwards, final voting commences on August 15 and ends the night of August 26. The 76th Annual Primetime Emmy Awards are set to take place on Sunday, September 15, and air live on ABC at 8:00 p.m. Et/ 5:00 p.m. Pt.

Click on for more of our previous thoughts on what to expect at the 76th Primetime Emmy Awards.

The State of the Race

Right off the back, it is newsworthy that Netflix has found its way back into the good graces of the Outstanding Television Movie category after spending a few years recalibrating in wake of the rule change that prevented feature-length TV episodes being eligible.

Sistaaaas! When Hocus Pocus 2 hit Disney+ in September 2022, its record-breaking viewership all but guaranteed a third entry in the family-friendly series. While it took nearly two decades for that sequel to be conjured up, those at Disney might want to get their brooms in line for Hocus Pocus 3 because the cast isn’t exactly getting younger – those are Bette Midler’s words, not mine!

Bette Midler – who plays eldest Sanderson sister Winifred – is urging the studio to take action on Hocus Pocus 3 due to age (Midler is 78). “I think if they’re gonna, they oughta, because time is not just marching, time is barrel-assing to the finish line. Get us while we’re still breathing, I mean, God!” As for if she knows anything about what a third Hocus Pocus could center on, Middler added, “I haven’t seen the script, but I’ve heard rumblings.”

Considering...

Bette Midler is asking Disney to put the pedal to the metal when it comes to “Hocus Pocus 3.” While a third movie in the beloved Halloween franchise was officially announced in June 2022, Midler said on the QVC+ talk show “Busy This Week” (via Entertainment Weekly) that she has yet to see a script. That’s only an issue for the actor since she’s not getting any younger, nor are her longtime co-stars Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimi.

“I haven’t seen the script, but I’ve heard rumblings,” Midler said about the third movie. “I think if they’re gonna, they oughta, because time is not just marching, time is barrel-assing to the finish line. Get us while we’re still breathing, I mean, God!”

Screenwriter Jen D’Angelo confirmed to Entertainment Weekly last year following the end of the WGA strike that “Hocus Pocus 3” was still in development.

Bette Midler is calling on Disney and urging them to get a script for Hocus Pocus 3.

The star of the Halloween film says she has not seen a script for the third installment, which has been in development following the success of the sequel last year on Disney+.

“I haven’t seen the script, but I’ve heard rumblings,” Midler said on the QVC+ talk show Busy This Week.

She continued, “I think if they’re gonna, they oughta because time is not just marching. Time is barrel-assing to the finish line. Get us while we’re still breathing, I mean, God!”

Hocus Pocus was first released in 1993 and directed by Kenny Ortega from a screenplay by Mick Garris and Neil Cuthbert and a story by David Kirschner and Garris. The film follows a trio of witches who are inadvertently resurrected by a teenage boy on Halloween night.

Related:...

The cult classic Hocus Pocus, starring Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Kathy Najimy as the Sanderson sisters from 1993, remains a timeless icon. Its success spawned a franchise, including a sequel novelization and a TV special.

Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Kathy Najimy in ‘Hocus Pocus 2’ | Walt Disney Studios

And almost three decades later, Hocus Pocus finally received a movie sequel, titled Hocus Pocus 2 in 2022. Now, it appears that Hocus Pocus 3 is also on the horizon. Fans are thrilled about the potential sequel but insist that the magic should only happen if certain conditions are met.

Hocus Pocus 3 is Happening!

One Sanderson sister recently sparked excitement with an update on Hocus Pocus 3. Though not many details are available right now, talks are underway for a third installment of this beloved Halloween cult classic.

Suggested“I also understand how much frickin money it made”:...

Bette Midler has revealed that talks have taken place regarding 'Hocus Pocus 3'.The 78-year-old star reprised her role as witch Winifred 'Winnie' Sanderson in the successful fantasy comedy sequel in 2022 and explained that gentle conversations have been held about a third flick.Bette told SiriusXM's 'The Jess Cagle Show': "Now, they're kind of talking about a third, very gingerly and very gently."They are. They're talking about a third. The second one was a huge success."Bette – who leads the cast alongside Sarah Jessica Parker and Kathy Najimy as the Sanderson sisters - says her alter ego is "probably the least like me of any character" that she has played during an acting career that has spanned more than half a century.The 'Stepford Wives' star said: "She is the closest thing I will ever get to Shakespeare. She's from the era, from the time of Shakespeare."She really does put it on,...

Jen D’Angelo could never have predicted the fortunate journey to the screen that would be traveled by her script for the Hulu road-trip film comedy “Quiz Lady,” which started out as a spec she wrote from an idea based on her real-life trivia-focused, “Jeopardy!”-obsessed brother. It stars Awkwafina and Sandra Oh as Anne and Jenny, respectively, polar opposite sisters who need to somehow work together to cover their mother’s gambling debts and rescue Anne’s pug Mr. Linguini who has been kidnapped by mobsters and held for ransom. “I have this idea, I want to write something that’s going to make me laugh and we’ll see if it gets made,” D’Angelo recalls. “I figured it probably never would. But my manager, Maggie Haskins at Artists First, read it and liked it and she was like. ‘Awkwafina is an Artists First client. Let’s send it to her.

IndieWire launched our “Pass the Remote” FYC TV screening series, produced in partnership with Disney, with a dynamic casting directors panel April 25, two Disney Storytellers panels April 29, and a panel about “Abbott Elementary” May 20.

Next up? A “Jim Henson Idea Man” panel on May 24 celebrating the documentary about the Muppets creator, which just premiered at the Cannes Film Festival. Like all events in the “Pass the Remote” screening series, it will take place at the Vidiots Foundation in Los Angeles’s Eagle Rock neighborhood.

Legendary director Ron Howard will be in attendance on the panel, as will composer David Fleming and editor Paul Crowder. Howard is a two-time Oscar winner. In recent vintage, he’s become a more prolific documentary director, with films such as “The Beatles: Eight Days a Week” (2016), “Pavarotti” (2019), “Rebuilding Paradise” (2020), and 2022’s profile of Jose Andres and the World Central Kitchen, “We Feed People.”

“Jim Henson...

One of the funniest and most imaginative sequences in the new Hulu comedy “Quiz Lady” involves drugs, dogs and… talking clouds?!

In the film, anxiety-riddled Anne (Awkwafina) and her sister Jenny (Sanda Oh) devise a scheme to pay off their mother’s gambling debts and rescue their dog, who has been held for ransom by debt collectors.

Jenny suggests Anne audition for “Can’t Stop the Quiz,” a trivia game show that Anne has watched religiously her entire life. But when they get to the auditions, Anne’s anxiety kicks into overdrive and she sweats uncontrollably. Jenny offers her a relaxant to power through the question round. As the drugs kick in, Anne is transported to a Teletubby-esque meadow as “Watermelon Sugar” by Harry Styles plays.

It then cuts to the real world, where viewers see Jenny horrified at what she’s done.

“Anne is such an anxious person,” writer...

On November 3, 2023, Hulu released “Quiz Lady” starring Awkwafina and Sandra Oh as sisters who band together to eliminate their mother’s gambling debts and raise money to pay the ransom for a kidnapped dog. In order to do so, Anne’s (Awkwafina) uncanny skills at gameshows must come into play. The ensemble cast includes Jason Schwartzman, Tony Hale, Will Ferrell and Holland Taylor.

Critics have had positive things to say about the comedy directed by Jessica Yu and written by Jen D’Angelo. It is certified fresh on Rotten Tomatoes with a score of 81%. The critics consensus reads, “‘Quiz Lady’s’ perfectly matched leads help Jessica Yu’s occasionally uneven comedy overcome its periodic wobbles and land on the right side of hilarious and heartfelt.” Read our full review round-up below.

See ‘Black Cake’ reviews: Mia Isaac is ‘incredible’ in Hulu’s ‘beautiful and gutting’ new mystery drama

Marya E. Gates of RogerEbert.

“Quiz Lady” scribe Jen D’Angelo said she was inspired by the game shows she watched growing up — particularly “Jeopardy!” and its charismatic host, the late Alex Trebek.

In the new comedy feature, Awkwafina plays Anne, a young woman obsessed with the long-running game show “Can’t Stop the Quiz.” She enlists the help of Jenny (Sandra Oh) — her estranged, wannabe actress sister — to help cover their mother’s gambling debts. When Anne’s beloved dog is kidnapped by debt collectors, they hatch a plan to have Anne get on “Can’t Stop the Quiz” and win the cash prize, if she can get over her social anxiety and adoration for host Terry McTeer (Will Ferrell).

TheWrap caught up with writer Jen D’Angelo before “Quiz Lady’s” Nov. 3 premiere on Hulu, where she shared her love of game shows and how Ferrell’s character was an homage to late “Jeopardy” host Alex Trebek,...

Quiz Lady is a comedy-drama film directed by Jessica Yu, from a screenplay by Jen D’Angelo. The Hulu original film revolves around Anne, a game show-obsessed woman, who has to come together with her chaotic and irresponsible sister Jenny to pay off her mother’s gambling debts. To get the money Anne will have to go on a cross-country journey with her sister to get to the game show and win it. Quiz Lady stars Awkwafina as Anne, Sandra Oh as Jenny, Will Ferrell as Terry McTeer, Holland Taylor as Francine, and Jason Schwartzman as Ron Heacock. So, if you loved the Hulu film here are some similar movies you could watch next.

Bad Words (Netflix & Rent on Prime Video) Credit – Focus Features

Synopsis: Jason Bateman (Identity Thief) makes his feature directorial debut with the subversive comedy Bad Words. Mr. Bateman stars as Guy Trilby, a 40-year-old who finds a...

So, how accurate are some of those old sayings? Well, in the case of “You can pick your friends, but you can’t pick your family”, well…yes, 100 percent. That’s especially true with siblings, going all the way back to Cain and Abel. Sure brothers battle, but is that ditto for sisters? This weekend’s new comedy uses that as its “springboard”. These two ladies couldn’t be more different or argumentative, Fortunately, they’re both hilarious, and their characters are played by two talented actresses. You see, the elder is a party gal while the other is saddled with the title Quiz Lady.

We first meet the aforementioned Qz as a timid eight-year-old indulging in her favorite weekday activity, watching the live TV show “Can’t Stop the Quiz” hosted by true hero Terry McTeer (Will Ferrell). And she pretty much aces all the questions despite her older...

A ho-hum road trip comedy pairs the actors as childlike sisters with only all-too-brief moments of hilarity on the way

It’s a grand Hollywood tradition for an established star to play against the ambition and drive that makes a career – to play a loser, a weirdo, a shut-in. Or, at the very least, a debased and dysfunctional version of themselves. The new Hulu comedy Quiz Lady stars the comedian Awkwafina – Aka the dramatic actor Nora Lum, who stole scenes in Crazy Rich Asians and won accolades for her work as a grieving granddaughter in The Farewell – in loser drag as Annie Yum, a slouchy thirtysomething recluse long obsessed with a daily televised quiz show. The film’s hook is her pairing with Sandra Oh, playing against type as Annie’s brash Peter Pan of an older sister, Jenny.

Good premise, bumpy ride. Quiz Lady, directed by Jessica Yu from a screenplay by Jen D’Angelo,...

Chances are, you know someone like “Quiz Lady” Anne Yum. As played by Awkwafina, this socially awkward young woman works a boring Cpa job by day, doing her best to blend in with the gray walls of her cubicle. But every evening at the same hour, Anne tunes in to her favorite game show and becomes a star — even if her flatulent old pug, Mr. Linguini, is the only witness — as she answers every question quickly and correctly.

The kind of comedy perfectly suited to the comfort of one’s own couch, Jessica Yu’s “Quiz Lady” is the story of how, with the help of her outrageously extroverted older sister, Jenny (Sandra Oh), Anne overcomes her anxiety and agrees to appear as a contestant on “Can’t Stop the Quiz.” So what if she trips up in front of idol/host Terry McTeer (Will Ferrell) when she finally reaches...

Writer Jen D’Angelo got her start working on episodes of shows Workaholics, Cougar Town, and Young Rock, and now she’s on a streak of successfully getting her feature scripts brought to the screen. She wrote the long-awaited sequel Hocus Pocus 2, the time travel slasher Totally Killer, and the newly released comedy Quiz Lady – and next on her to-do list is Hocus Pocus 3. D’Angelo has previously teased that the new sequel could bring Hannah Waddingham back as her Hocus Pocus 2 character The Witch Mother, and during an interview with Collider she also gave a hint as to what could bring the Sanderson Sisters back into action, seeking revenge against Salem.

D’Angelo said, “I have my theories about what we could see (in Hocus Pocus 3), and what things mean and where we could take these characters. It’s interesting to be like, ‘Now we have even...

Hello, and welcome to the Scene 2 Seen Podcast. I am Valerie Complex Associate editor and film writer at Deadline!

Now I’ve been off and on for a while, personal tragedies, the actors and writer strike, other work projects held me back for a bit, but I am back with a whole new lineup of guests. Today I am chatting with director Nahnatchka Khan about her latest horror slasher film Totally Killer. It debuted on Prime Video on October 6, and stars Kiernan Shipka, Olivia Holt, Julie Bowen and Randall Park.

Written by David Matalon, Sasha Perl-Raver and Jen D’Angelo, Totally Killer follows the shocking murder of three teens, as the infamous “Sweet Sixteen Killer“ returns on Halloween night to claim a fourth victim. Jamie (Shipka) ignores her overprotective mom’s (Bowen) warning and comes face to face with the masked maniac and while running for her life, accidentally time travels...

Hocus Pocus is not the kind of movie that needs particularly deep lore; nevertheless, the writer of the next sequel promises the backstory we didn’t know we wanted.

“Jen D’Angelo, the writer of Hocus Pocus 2… has now—now that the WGA writers strike is over—made it clear that the already-promised Hocus Pocus 3 is well on its way toward answering all these black flame candle-based burning questions, promising that its already announced sequel, while still in the story phase, is trucking along, and that “We’ve only scratched the surface of Hannah Waddingham’s mother witch.”

Read more at The A.V. Club

Leonardo DiCaprio is being heaped with praise for his role in Killers of the Flower Moon, reminding us that the actor is at his best when he’s playing a scumbag.

“Ernest is such a thoroughly unlikable and actively ugly person, yet DiCaprio still makes him...

Disney announced earlier this year that Hocus Pocus 3 is definitely happening, with Anne Fletcher (Hocus Pocus 2) returning to direct and Jen D’Angelo back to write the script.

But what’s the status on Hocus Pocus 3, now that we’re one year removed from the premiere of Hocus Pocus 2? D’Angelo provides a fresh update to Entertainment Weekly.

“We’re still in the story phase, we’re still working on it. We’ve been working on some ideas, and it’s been fun to dive back into that world and we have so many directions in which to go and so many new characters to explore,” D’Angelo tells the outlet. She continues, “We’ve only scratched the surface of Hannah Waddingham’s mother witch.”

Hannah Waddingham’s Mother Witch was introduced in a flashback sequence in Hocus Pocus 2, the witch who gifted the spell book to...

It took nearly three decades, but the highly anticipated "Hocus Pocus" sequel finally arrived last year, just in time for Halloween. But there's even more good news for longtime fans of the spooky franchise: a third movie is officially in the works at Disney. That's right, Walt Disney Pictures president Sean Bailey shared the announcement himself in a New York Times profile published on June 4.

The publication noted that "Hocus Pocus 3" is, indeed, happening, while Bailey discussed the 50-plus movies in development and production at the company - which include upcoming live-action versions of "Moana" and "Lilo and Stitch."

No other details about the third "Hocus Pocus" were revealed at the time, including whether or not all the Sanderson sisters - Winnie (Bette Midler), Mary (Kathy Najimy), and Sarah (Sarah Jessica Parker) - will return to reprise their roles. However, screenwriter Jen D'Angelo dropped some hints in an October interview with Entertainment Weekly,...

A third ‘Hocus Pocus’ film is still in the story development phase. Disney confirmed in June another installment in the witch series was in development and screenwriter Jen D’Angelo has now confirmed the plot is still being worked out, following the end of the WGA strike. She told Entertainment Weekly: “We’re still in the story phase, we’re still working on it. “We’ve been working on some ideas. It’s been fun to dive back into that world and we have so many directions in which to go and so many new characters to explore. “We’ve only scratched the surface of Hannah Waddingham’s Mother Witch.” Emmy-winning ‘Ted Lasso’ actress Hannah Waddingham made her ‘Hocus Pocus’ debut in the second installment, released in 2022 on Disney+, which saw her Mother Witch character gifting a spell book to the young Sanderson sisters. Hannah’s return in the third...

Hocus Pocus 3 is currently in development at Disney!

After a very successful second movie a year ago on Disney+, another film got the go-ahead this past summer.

Now that the writer’s strike is over, screenwriter Jen D’Angelo, who penned Hocus Pocus 2 and is working on the third, opened up about where they’re at in the development.

Find out what she revealed inside…

“We’re still in the story phase, we’re still working on it. We’ve been working on some ideas, and it’s been fun to dive back into that world and we have so many directions in which to go and so many new characters to explore,” she told EW.

Jen even teased that she’s interested in exploring more of one new character from the second movie in particular.

“We’ve only scratched the surface of Hannah Waddingham‘s mother witch,” she said,...

After nearly thirty years since the release of the original movie, the Sanderson sisters returned for Hocus Pocus 2. The long-belated sequel was a huge hit for Disney+, so the studio naturally got the ball rolling on Hocus Pocus 3. Jen D’Angelo is returning to pen the script for Hocus Pocus 3 and teased that we could see more of Hannah Waddingham, who played the Mother Witch who gifted the young Sanderson sisters with their spell book.

“We’re still in the story phase, we’re still working on it,” D’Angelo told Entertainment Weekly. “We’ve been working on some ideas, and it’s been fun to dive back into that world and we have so many directions in which to go and so many new characters to explore.” The writer added that she wants to expand on the character of the Mother Witch. “We’ve only scratched the surface...

Disney confirmed in June that a third “Hocus Pocus” movie was in development. Now, screenwriter Jen D’Angelo has confirmed to Entertainment Weekly that the next Sanderson sisters tale is still in the story development phase following the end of the WGA strike.

“We’re still in the story phase, we’re still working on it,” D’Angelo said. “We’ve been working on some ideas. It’s been fun to dive back into that world and we have so many directions in which to go and so many new characters to explore. We’ve only scratched the surface of Hannah Waddingham’s mother witch.”

“Ted Lasso” Emmy-winner Hannah Waddingham made her “Hocus Pocus” debut in the second installment, released in 2022 on Disney+. She played Mother Witch, a sinister woman who gifts the spell book to the young Sanderson sisters. While Waddingham’s return in “Hocus Pocus 3” is not officially set,...

Plot: A brilliant but tightly wound, gameshow-obsessed young woman, Anne, and her estranged, train-wreck of a sister Jenny, must work together to help cover their mother’s gambling debts. When Anne’s beloved dog is kidnapped, they set out on a wild, cross-country trek to get the cash the only way they know how: by turning Anne into a bona-fide gameshow champion.

Review: I love quiz shows. I also love movies and series about quiz shows. Whether it be Robert Redford’s acclaimed Quiz Show, the subplot in Magnolia, or the long-running SNL sketch spoofing Celebrity Jeopardy, something is fascinating about trivia challenges and the people who participate in them. The new Hulu original Quiz Lady takes that concept and adds elements of various comedies, including road trips, raunchy humor, family dysfunction, and more. The result is a far more nuanced film than the trailers present, but one that is absolutely focused on being funny.

Totally Killer is a comedy horror film directed by Nahnatchka Khan, from a screenplay by David Matalon, Sasha Perl-Raver, and Jen D’Angelo. The Prime Video film follows the story of Jamie, who goes back in time to 1987 in order to stop the killer who killed her mother’s friends on Halloween. Totally Killer stars Kiernan Shipka in the lead role with Julie Bowen and Olivia Holt in supporting roles. So, if you loved the Prime Video film here are some similar shows you could watch next.

Happy Death Day (Rent on Prime Video) Credit – Universal Pictures

Synopsis: Blumhouse produces an original and inventive rewinding thriller in Happy Death Day, in which a college student relives the day of her murder with both its unexceptional details and terrifying end until she discovers her killer’s identity.

Scream (Max & Prime Video Add-On) Credit – Dimension Films

Synopsis: Starring Neve Campbell, Courteney Cox, and Drew Barrymore,...

You know it’s October when more than fifteen horror movies release in a single week. In the wake of this past Tuesday’s seven new movies, ten more have been unleashed today alone.

Here’s all the new horror that released on October 6, 2023!

For daily reminders about new horror releases, be sure to follow @HorrorCalendar.

The franchise’s first movie in 20 years, The Exorcist: Believer is now playing in theaters nationwide, the first film in a planned trilogy of legacy sequels from Universal, Blumhouse, and Morgan Creek, and director David Gordon Green (Halloween).

Here’s the full plot synopsis for The Exorcist: Believer…

“Since the death of his pregnant wife in a Haitian earthquake 12 years ago, Victor Fielding has raised their daughter Angela (Lidya Jewett) on his own.

“But when Angela and her friend Katherine (Olivia Marcum) disappear in the woods, only to return three days later with no memory of what happened,...

Stars: Kiernan Shipka, Julie Bowen, Lochlyn Munro, Kelcey Mawema, Kimberly Huie, Olivia Holt, Charlie Gillespie, Troy Leigh-Anne Johnson | Written by David Matalon, Sasha Perl-Raver, Jen D’Angelo | Directed by Nahnatchka Khan

If you mixed Back to the Future and Halloween, or if The Final Girls had involved traveling in time instead of into a movie, the results might be something like Totally Killer. It’s a time traveling spoof of slasher movies from Blumhouse who already visited this territory with Happy Death Day and its sequel.

The fact it was from Blumhouse was just one of the reasons I debated watching Totally Killer. It was directed by Nahnatchka Khan who is best known for Always Be My Maybe and Young Rock and had no genre experience. Similarly, the three writers David Matalon, Sasha Perl-Raver (Let’s Get Married) and Jen D’Angelo were lacking in that regard as well. But since it...

(l-r) Kiernan Shipka as Jamie and Olivia Holt as young Pam, in Totally Killer. Courtesy of Amazon Prime Video

It’s the spooky season, and teen thriller Totally Killer looks to satisfy that itch for scares. But what appears to be a horror film spoof at first, suddenly morphs into a mash-up of Halloween and Back To The Future, when a sixteen-year-old girl goes back in time to the 1980s to solve a Halloween triple killing by the “Sweet Sixteen Killer.”

A Halloween – Back To The Future mash-up isn’t a bad idea but that idea gets bogged down in 1980s nostalgia that sucks the energy out of the horror scares, and even the humor, like a vampire. Do you long for the ’80s? Even if you don’t remember them? Well, someone wanted to revisit that era of big hair, big shoulders, garish fashions and John Hughes films, so we get Totally Killer.

The easiest way to describe Totally Killer is by listing all the other movies it calls to mind. Plot-wise, it’s a Back to the Future-style time travel adventure crossed with a Halloween-inspired slasher, all cast in a Scream-lite sense of self-awareness; tonally, its mashup of comedy and horror lands in the same general area as The Final Girls or the Happy Death Day movies.

If it its ingredients feel familiar, however, the script (by David Matalon, Sasha Perl-Raver and Jen D’Angelo) injects them with just enough heart and humor to keep them from feeling stale. Totally Killer may not be destined to become a classic in its own right. But the Amazon release is fun enough for a spooky season night in.

Its unwitting Marty McFly is Jamie (Kiernan Shipka), a stereotypically rebellious teenager whose stereotypically overprotective parents (Julie Bowen and Lochlyn Munro) have more reason than most to be paranoid: 35 years ago,...

Nahnatchka Khan’s Totally Killer is an entertaining riff on John Carpenter’s Halloween by way of Robert Zemeckis’s Back to the Future. It might not be quite as incisive a piece of genre dismemberment as Wes Craven’s Scream or Drew Goddard’s Cabin in the Woods, but it has a lot of fun poking at the tricks and tropes of slasher movies all the same.

Totally Killer begins in a small suburban town where a masked murderer known as The Sweet Sixteen Killer gruesomely slayed three teenage girls on Halloween night in 1987. Fast-forward to the present and the one that got away, Pam (Julie Bowen), still fears that one day the killer will return for her or, worse, for her 16-year-old daughter, Jamie (Kiernan Shipka). It turns out that Pam is paranoid but not paranoid enough, as the masked man reappears on Halloween night while Pam is...

The past few years have brought a handful of fantastic horror-comedies that have really hit home with fans. Films like Happy Death Day, Freaky and Tragedy Girls have delivered stories and characters that we connect with, along with the requisite blood and body count that we all crave. Fantastic Fest closed another wonderful year with a new comedy that is definitely going to be a crowd-pleaser. Totally Killer is a massively fun film that keeps you laughing until the end.

At first glance, the small town of Vernon seems like any small town. And it is, really. Except for that triple murder that took place in 1988, of course. Three teenage girls were viciously killed within days of one another, and the masked killer was never caught. But the town remembers. Every year there are people out trick or treating in the guise of the killer and there is even a...

Plot: In 1987, a slasher known as the Sweet Sixteen Killer claimed the lives of three 16-year-old girls. When the killer returns in modern day, a young woman figures out a way to travel back to ‘87… where she hopes to stop the killing before it ever began.

Review: Working with director Christopher Landon, Blumhouse Productions has brought us a few really fun slasher-with-a-twist horror comedies in recent years: the time loop slasher Happy Death Day (and its sequel) and the body swap slasher Freaky. Landon wasn’t involved with their new release Totally Killer, but the movie really feels like a companion piece to those Landon projects – and if you enjoyed Happy Death Day and Freaky, chances are that you’ll like Totally Killer as well.

The high concept gimmick in this one is time travel. The story begins on Halloween night 2023 in the small town of Vernon, which is still...

The time travel slasher comedy Totally Killer is scheduled to begin streaming on Amazon’s Prime Video on October 6th, but today, one week out from the release, the marketing department has unveiled a clip from the film that I would have deemed too much of a Spoiler to show off. But showing it off they are, so I have embedded it above. This scene shows the masked murderer know as the Sweet 16 Killer crossing paths with Liana Liberato from Scream VI, but if you don’t want to know how that encounter turns out, avert your eyes.

Nahnatchka Khan (Always Be My Maybe) directed Totally Killer from a screenplay by Hocus Pocus 2 writer Jen D’Angelo, based on an original script by David Matalon (The Clearing) and Sasha Perl-Raver (Let’s Get Merried). The story follows Jamie (Kiernan Shipka) whose mom, Pam, is terrorized by the resurgence of the Sweet Sixteen...

When the trailer for Totally Killer was released a few weeks ago, there was a bit of an uproar on social media claiming that the film was ripping off The Final Girls (review). While there are undoubtedly similarities between the two films, Nahnatchka Khan‘s horror comedy has far more in common with something like Christopher Landon’s Happy Death Day films (specifically Happy Death Day 2U) than that 2015 film, aiming for a more absurdist, comedy-forward take on the “time travel slasher” sub-genre that apparently exists now. It’s also an incredibly charming little film that wears its influences on its sleeves and has so much fun with them in the hopes that you will too.

Jamie (Kiernan Shipka) has a strained relationship with her overprotective mother Pam. You see, back in 1987 Pam’s three friends were brutally murdered by the “Sweet 16 Slasher” and Pam, who has lived a life of fear ever since,...

Halloween slasher-comedy Totally Killer is on the way from Blumhouse and Amazon Studios, promising an outrageously killer time. To prove it, Bloody Disgusting has been provided with an exclusive clip introducing retro mayhem over a waterbed and a special ticket giveaway to the slasher’s Beyond Fest screening taking place on October 4 at 7:30pm Pt at Aero Theatre.

Totally Killer hits Prime Video on October 6, 2023! The film is rated “R” for “Bloody violence, language, sexual material, and teen drug/alcohol use.”

The exclusive clip below gives a closer look at the masked killer in action as he stalks his prey.

As if that’s not enough, we have 25 tickets to giveaway to the special Beyond Fest screening on October 4, which will include a Q&a with director Nahnatchka Khan, moderated by Christopher Landon! To enter, fill out the form below. Winners will be selected October 3.

“Thirty-five years after the shocking murder of three teens,...

Enter the contest below (be sure to enter the following code when prompted: Totallynerdz) for the chance to win a pair of passes to attend an advance screening of Totally Killer on Wednesday, October 4, 2023 at 7:00pm at the Emagine Royal Oak!

Synopsis: Thirty-five years after the shocking murder of three teens, the infamous “Sweet Sixteen Killer” returns on Halloween night to claim a fourth victim. Seventeen-year-old Jamie (Kiernan Shipka) ignores her overprotective mom’s (Julie Bowen) warning and comes face-to-face with the masked maniac and, on the run for her life, accidentally time-travels to 1987, the year of the original killings. Forced to navigate the unfamiliar and outrageous culture of the 1980s, Jamie teams up with her teen mom (Olivia Holt) to take down the killer once and for all, before she’s stuck in the past forever.

About The Film Genre: Comedy, Horror Cast: Kiernan Shipka, Olivia Holt, Charlie Gillespie,...

Horror-slasher-comedy film ‘Totally Killer’ has just released its new poster, and its devilishly diabolical in the very same vein as ‘American Psycho’ mixed with ‘Texas Chainsaw Massacre’ and ‘Halloween’, though with more of a comedic twist, paying tribute to 1980’s slasher films.

The official synopsis of the film reads: “35 years after the shocking murder of three teens, the infamous ‘Sweet Sixteen Killer’ returns on Halloween night to claim a fourth victim. 17-year-old Jamie (Kiernan Shipka) ignores her overprotective mom’s (Julie Bowen) warning and comes face to face with the masked maniac and on the run for her life, accidentally time travels back to 1987, the year of the original killings.”

“Forced to navigate the unfamiliar and outrageous culture of the 1980s, Jamie teams up with her teen mom (Olivia Holt) to take down the killer once and for all before she’s stuck in the past forever”, it further mentions.

Kiernan Shipka bonds with her mom’s teenage self while trying to stop a masked murderer in the first full trailer for the forthcoming horror-comedy film Totally Killer.

Nahnatchka Khan’s feature hails from Amazon Studios and Blumhouse Television, and it hits Prime Video exclusively on Oct. 6. The movie centers on Jamie (Shipka), who goes out on Halloween night despite her protective mother’s (Julie Bowen) warnings and finds herself attacked by the infamous killer who murdered her mom’s friends years ago. Jamie then accidentally time-travels to the 1980s, to just before the original crimes took place, and has to prevent them from happening in order to return to present day.

The trailer features plenty of comedic moments, including Shipka’s lead character attempting to get to know the high school version of her mom, played by Olivia Holt. While learning about life in 2023, Holt asks, “Do the machines kill us all?...

Blumhouse and Prime Video are going back to the future this October when the studio releases Totally Killer, a comedic horror film starring Kiernan Shipka as a time-traveling final girl trying to save her friends from a slasher’s milestone massacre. Today’s Totally Killer trailer finds Shipka’s Jamie Hughes returning to 1987, hoping to stop the killer before he can claim more victims in the present day.

Here’s the official synopsis for Totally Killer:

Thirty-five years after the shocking murder of three teens, the infamous “Sweet Sixteen Killer “returns on Halloween night to claim a fourth victim. Seventeen-year-old Jamie (Kiernan Shipka) ignores her overprotective mom’s (Julie Bowen) warning and comes face-to-face with the masked maniac and, on the run for her life, accidentally time-travels to 1987, the year of the original killings. Forced to navigate the unfamiliar and outrageous culture of the 1980s, Jamie teams up with...

[Editor's Note: This article was written during the 2023 WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. Without the labor of the writers and actors currently on strike, the film being discussed here wouldn't exist.]

"Thirty-five years after the shocking murder of three teens, the infamous “Sweet Sixteen Killer“ returns on Halloween night to claim a fourth victim. Seventeen-year-old Jamie (Shipka) ignores her overprotective mom’s (Bowen) warning and comes face-to-face with the masked maniac and, on the run for her life, accidentally time-travels to 1987, the year of the original killings. Forced to navigate the unfamiliar and outrageous culture of the 1980s, Jamie teams up with her teen mom (Holt) to take down the killer once and for all, before she’s stuck in the past forever."

Directed by Nahnatchka Khan Screenplay by David Matalon & Sasha Perl-Raver and Jen D’Angelo Story by David Matalon & Sasha Perl-Raver Produced by Jason Blum, Adam Hendricks, p.g.a., Greg Gilreath, p.g.a. Starring Kiernan Shipka, Olivia Holt, Charlie Gillespie, Lochlyn Munro, Troy L. Johnson, Liana Liberato, Kelcey Mawema, Stephi Chin-Salvo, Anna Diaz, Ella Choi, Jeremy Monn-Djasgnar, Nathaniel Appiah...

Kiernan Shipka (Chilling Adventures of Sabrina) is zapped back to 1987 and the weird fashion choices that come with dipping your toes in the late ’80s in the trailer for Prime Video and Blumhouse’s Totally Killer. The slasher comedy’s trailer finds Shipka unable to get the cops to believe she’s having a Back to the Future experience and that there’s a killer on the loose about to increase his victim count.

Joining Kiernan Shipka in the R-rated comedy are Julie Bowen, Olivia Holt, Charlie Gillespie, Lochlyn Munro, Troy Leigh-Anne Johnson, and Liana Liberato. The cast also includes Kelcey Mawema, Stephi Chin-Salvo, Anna Diaz, Ella Choi, Jeremy Monn-Djasgnar, Nathaniel Appiah, Jonathan Potts, and Randall Park.

Nahnatchka Khan directs from a screenplay by David Matalon, Sasha Perl-Raver, and Jen D’Angelo. Jason Blum, Adam Hendricks, and Greg Gilreath served as producers.

Totally Killer premieres on Prime Video on October 6, 2023.

Poster...

It's tough to imagine a more challenging job these days than to come up with an original, high-concept movie involving time travel. For one thing, the industry is pretty much drowning in scripts relying on this tried-and-true gimmick, making it that much more difficult to separate oneself from the rest of the pack. For another, any project will be doomed from the start with comparisons to all-time classics like "Back to the Future," "Groundhog Day," and more. So what's a filmmaker to do? The trailer for the upcoming Prime Video and Blumhouse movie, "Totally Killer," suggests one possible approach: embrace the high expectations, fully lean into the self-aware humor, and go as far as the clever script and killer cast will take you.

In what can only be described as "Back to the Future" meets "The Final Girls" with a pinch of "Happy Death Day," the premise of "Totally Killer...

“Totally Killer” is the latest meta-slasher from the good folks at Blumhouse, who are also responsible for “Happy Death Day” and “Freaky”. And the trailer (which you can watch above) promises another knowing, blood-soaked romp, with a teenager (Kiernan Shipka) traveling back to 1987 to stop a sadistic killer from eventually murdering her mom. How’s that for a log line?

The trailer shows our young heroine (Shipka) traveling back in time via a magical photo booth (?) and then having to deal with not only the death of her mother’s young friends but also the knowledge that the killer survives and murders her mother in the present. Of course there are a bunch of jokes about what the future is like and how tubular the 1980s were, with a supporting cast that includes Julie Bowen, Olivia Holt (who faced a similar mystery in Freeform’s “Cruel Summer”), Lochlyn Munro and Randall Park.

Halloween slasher-comedy Totally Killer is on the way from Blumhouse and Amazon Studios, promising an outrageously killer time based on the new trailer that debuted today.

Totally Killer hits Prime Video on October 6, 2023! The film is rated “R” for “Bloody violence, language, sexual material, and teen drug/alcohol use.”

The brand new trailer below leans into the Back to the Future meets The Final Girls concept, fully embracing the comedy.

“Thirty-five years after the shocking murder of three teens, the infamous ‘Sweet Sixteen Killer’ returns on Halloween night to claim a fourth victim. Seventeen-year-old Jamie (Kiernan Shipka) ignores her overprotective mom’s (Julie Bowen) warning and comes face-to-face with the masked maniac and, on the run for her life, accidentally time travels back to 1987, the year of the original killings. Forced to navigate the unfamiliar and outrageous culture of the 1980s, Jamie teams up with her teen mom (Olivia Holt...

In the realm of road movies, family ties, and the complexities of sisterhood, the Hulu/20th Century Studio offers up Quiz Lady, a film that charts a familiar course. Directed by Jessica Yu and penned by Jen D’Angelo, the film boasts an ensemble cast led by the undeniable talent of Sandra Oh and Awkwafina, supported by the comedic prowess of Will Ferrell, Holland Taylor and Jason Schwartzman.

Young Anne loves Can’t Stop the Quiz game show and its host Terry McTeer (Ferrell). She enjoys watching it on evening television while her older sister slacks off on the phone all day, and her parents argue over her mother’s gambling addiction. In adulthood, Anne (Awkwafina) is still obsessed with quiz shows, works at a dull 9-to-5 and gets yelled at by her neighbor Francine (Taylor) on a daily basis. One day she finds her mother escaped from the senior living facility with her boyfriend Jeff.

Editor’s note: This review was originally published at the 2023 Toronto International Film Festival. Hulu releases the film on its streaming platform on Friday, November 3.

The 17-year gap between Awkwafina and Sandra Oh doesn’t do much to hinder their believability as siblings in the straight-down-the-middle comedy “Quiz Lady,” in part because that was never the point. The against-type casting wants to be appreciated for subverting the obvious placement, an inside joke opened to all viewers familiar with Oh’s résumé of chronic high achievers and Awkwafina’s affinity for slackers with an affinity for the chronic.

As screwup big sis and whirlwind of chaos Jenny, Oh rocks the big pants and language about “manifesting” borrowed from girls a little less than half her age, while Awkwafina has the wardrobe, daily routine, and life’s-been-lived defeatism of a “98-year-old spinster” as the junior yet far more mature Anne. They mix like Fireball and water,...