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Like Jaws to shark movies and The Exorcist to possession flicks, any dinosaur-related media will inevitably be compared to 1993’s Jurassic Park. While this makes a lot of sense, with Spielberg’s classic bringing the prehistoric beasts to life in new and exciting ways that previous filmmakers could only dream of (and that future filmmakers would struggle to recreate), it also means that some truly interesting dinosaur stories have been overshadowed by Jp‘s legacy.

In the past, I’ve recommended some fun dinosaur films that aren’t Jurassic Park, but today I’d like to discuss something a little less cinematic – Hallmark and Rtl’s forgotten miniseries adaptation of James Gurney’s Dinotopia. So if you’re in the mood to revisit a quintessentially 2000s yarn about shamanistic reptiles and the naive humans that live alongside them, read on to discover why I think this family-oriented production might also appeal to horror fans.

It’s always fun to discuss horror novels that Aren’T Stephen King. No knock on the monster from Maine, he’s the master of horror novels over the last, oh I don’t know, 50 years, for a reason but its nice to not have the show be solely dedicated to his adapted works. He says knowing that he makes the schedule and decides what books to cover. See you in May, Mr. King! Funnily enough, the man actually loved today’s subject to the degree that he called it one of 2006’s best horror novels, but more on that in a little bit. The Ruins (watch it Here) was one of those hot properties by an author whose previous work was an instant success with critics, fans, and studio executives that put it to celluloid. The book came out and just two years later we were given a movie...

While the Animorphs franchise may not be what it was in its late 1990s heyday, French director Thomas Cailley has your fix with his new thriller The Animal Kingdom. The Cannes premiere, which just racked up a whopping 12 César Awards nominations, imagines a world of mutations in human genetics that cause people to transform into hybrid creatures. Starring Romain Duris, Paul Kircher, and Adèle Exarchopoulos, Magnet Releasing will now debut the film in the U.S. starting at Rendez-Vous with French Cinema at the end of the month, followed by a March 15 theatrical and digital release. Ahead of the bow, they’ve released a new trailer.

Rory O’Connor said in his review, “In The Animal Kingdom, an Un Certain Regard-selected science-fiction romp from France, human-animal mutations are the new norm. Director Thomas Cailley begins things in media res with a familiar disaster-movie scene: François (Romain Duris) and Émile (Paul Kircher)––father and son,...

The Toronto International Film Festival will honor one of Canada’s own, Montreal native Shawn Levy, with the inaugural Norman Jewison Award, also named after another Canadian great filmmaker.

The Norman Jewison Career Achievement Award is presented by The Budman Family, and recognizes Canadians in the film industry who have made a global impact with their careers. The awards presentation will take place at the TIFF Tribute Awards gala fundraiser on Sunday, Sept. 10, at the Fairmont Royal York Hotel.

Levy originally set about pursuing a career in acting, attending Yale University. He turned to directing and received an Mfa from the USC School of Cinematic Arts in 1994. One of Levy’s first acting gigs was the low-budget horror 1987 movie, Zombie Nightmare, which got poked at on an episode of Comedy Central’s Mystery Science Theater 3000. He cut his teeth directing wise with teen dramas like Nickelodeon’s The Secret...

While we await for Hollywood to take on a big-budget reimagining of Animorphs, some international filmmakers are providing their own unique take on a kind of animal transformation. Ann Oren’s Piaffe, which premiered at last year’s Locarno International Film Festival, is a beguilingly peculiar, transfixing look at a woman who takes her job at getting in the mind of a horse a bit too seriously. Shot on 16mm, the film opens on August 25th at NYC’s Quad Cinema and on September 15th at LA’s Nuart Theatre. Ahead of a release, the first trailer and poster have arrived.

Here’s the synopsis: “Introverted and unqualified, Eva is unexpectedly tasked with foleying the sound for a commercial featuring a horse. As she slowly acclimates to the new job, her obsession with creating the perfect equine sounds grows into something more tangible. Eva harnesses this new physicality, becoming more confident and empowered,...

There's lots of great stuff hitting streaming this week, but the debut of the Netflix film "Seven Kings Must Die" and the return of HBO Max's fourth season of "Titans" are two guaranteed to deliver high-intensity action. Fans looking to pair brutal historical epics with their watch of "Seven Kings Must Die" need to look no further than Robert Egger's Shakespearean Viking epic "The Northman" on Prime Video or Neil Marshall's Romans-vs-Picts action-adventure film "The Centurion," available on more than half a dozen streaming services. For those looking for something less bloody and closer tied to "Titans," there's always the Superman origin story series "Smallville," streaming on Hulu, or if you want to get really vintage, there's the young adult shapeshifting series "Animorphs," streaming on Prime Video. There's no shortage of action and adventure available on streaming this week, so let's get to it. 

Seven Kings Must Die...

When the Animorphs graphic novels were first announced, no one could have predicted how well they’d turn out. Would they be new versions of the old stories? Would there be updated pop culture references? Could they live up to the legacy the long-running sci-fi kids book series has etched into stone since the 90’s?

It did all that and more. Faithful to the originals down to many scenes being 1:1 recreations, the first graphic novel, which adapted the original novel, went over immensely well with fans. At the time of its release, it was known that artist Chris Grine, adapting the books originally written by K.A. Applegate and Michael Grant, had been signed on to adapt the first three entries in the series.

Fans wondered, though: would we be seeing more?

Well the answer is yes! As confirmed today by Scholastic (after much teasing on Twitter by Grine...

Reading the first Animorphs graphic novel was a delightful shock. Not only had one of the greatest sci-fi novels for kids finally returned in a new form but it was also extremely faithful to the original book. Every scene was lifted from the novel and almost all of the dialogue was kept intact. A few small changes were made to remove dated pop culture references or to better fit the visual medium but overall it’s easily one of the closest adaptations of any piece of media out there.

So how is it done? Taking a whole novel and turning it into a graphic novel isn’t a smooth process, especially for a sci-fi series like Animorphs that features a ton of internal first-person narration.

Covering the adaptation of a whole book would need a book of its own to cover so instead artist Chris Grine gave us detailed insight...

Last year the Animorphs triumphantly returned in a new graphic novel series that pleased not only hardcore fans but kept extremely true to the original books, right down to using much of the same dialogue. This has brought new visual life to the well beloved franchise and hasn’t sanitized the sometimes-bleak series; it still contained all the hard choices, deep conflict, and snapping bones while morphing that made the series such a fan favorite to this very day.

Now Scholastic is gearing up for the release of the second Animorphs graphic novel (adapting The Vistor book) and we’ve got an exclusive first look at not only the cover but four interior pages as well! First up is the cover.

Right off the bat we’ve got the famous cat morph from the original novel’s cover adapted to the top banner of this graphic novel. Next up are...

There are few actors who have gotten to play two superheroes in their careers. Some notable ones include Chris Evans (Human Torch and Captain America) and Ben Affleck (Daredevil and Batman). Less popular (but maybe more interesting) is Shawn Ashmore who played the cold mutant, Iceman, and the fiery ex-member of The Seven, Lamplighter.

Related: 10 Great Actors Whose Talents Were Wasted In Bad Comic Book Movies

Shawn Ashmore got his start in the popular series, Animorphs, based on the science-fantasy book series where he played Jake Berenson, the leader of the Animorphs. His career led him to be in 5 of the 13 X-Men films as well as a slew of TV series, including season 2 of Amazon’s The Boys. Ashmore’s performance is both hot and cold leading him to successfully portray these two superhero opposites.

The Animorphs movie has lost the series’ original creators. Animorphs co-creator Michael Grant, who co-wrote the sci-fi novels with his wife Katherine Applegate (writing together under the name K.A. Applegate), revealed that they are parting ways with the upcoming film adaptation over creative differences. Animorphs co-creator Michael Grant shared that he and Applegate, who write together under the name K.A. Applegate, have […]

The post ‘Animorphs’ Creators Exit Movie Adaptation Over Creative Differences appeared first on /Film.

An entire generation of readers grew up tracking the war between the Yeerks and the Animorphs as part of K.A. Applegate’s Animorphs series of books, which ran from 1996 through 2001. (And, as a television series, from 1998 to 1999.) Now, a whole new generation of readers is about to become part of the conflict, as Scholastic’s Graphix imprint launches a new series of Animorphs graphic novels.

In Animorphs: The Invasion, debuting next month, cartoonist Chris Grine adapts the first novel in the series, introducing Jake, Rachel, Cassie et al. — not to mention Visser Three, the antagonist of proceedings — ...

An entire generation of readers grew up tracking the war between the Yeerks and the Animorphs as part of K.A. Applegate’s Animorphs series of books, which ran from 1996 through 2001. (And, as a television series, from 1998 to 1999.) Now, a whole new generation of readers is about to become part of the conflict, as Scholastic’s Graphix imprint launches a new series of Animorphs graphic novels.

In Animorphs: The Invasion, debuting next month, cartoonist Chris Grine adapts the first novel in the series, introducing Jake, Rachel, Cassie et al. — not to mention Visser Three, the antagonist of proceedings — ...

Now that we’re all suddenly down a major touchstone of Ya serialized literature—courtesy of the poor Twitter and/or life choices of Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling—it’s clearly time for that other mainstay of Scholastic Book Fairs in the mid-2000s to come into its own: K.A. Applegate’s Animorphs books. Hence news…...

Even though Goosebumps was the pinnacle of popular books for kids in the 1990s, the Animorphs series wasn’t too far behind. The sci-fi series from author K.A. Applegate focused on five teens and an alien who have the ability to transform into any animal they touch. Using their powers of transformation, they battle a secret […]

The post ‘Animorphs’ Transforming Into a Movie for All the ’90s Kids Out There appeared first on /Film.

The dream of seeing Animorphs reach its full potential in live-action is slowly becoming a reality. As announced in The Hollywood Reporter a live action Animorphs movie, based on the popular 90’s book series, is on the way from Scholastic and Picturestart. Animorphs had previously received the live action treatment in the ’90s on Nickelodeon but while there’s been rumblings of a movie for years this is the biggest push we’ve seen towards making it happen.

For those not in the know, the Animorphs books followed a group of human teens along with alien Ax defending Earth from an army of alien slugs attempting to take over the population. They were able to do this because they’d been gifted the power to morph, the ability to become any animal they touched. The books were extremely well regarded for their uncompromising depiction of war and the trauma it inflicted on the main characters.

Animorphs, the massively popular kids book series from the 1990s, is finally headed to the big screen.

Scholastic is partnering with Erik Feig and his Picturestart banner for the first feature film based on the sci-fi series by K.A. Applegate.

The main plot of Animorphs follows five teens — Jake, Marco, Cassie, Rachel, and Tobias — who have the ability to morph into any animal they touch. They use their powers to fight a secret alien invasion of Earth.

There are more than 35 million copies of the Animorphs books in print, with the original run occurring ...

Animorphs, the massively popular kids book series from the 1990s, is finally headed to the big screen.

Scholastic is partnering with Erik Feig and his Picturestart banner for the first feature film based on the sci-fi series by K.A. Applegate.

The main plot of Animorphs follows five teens — Jake, Marco, Cassie, Rachel, and Tobias — who have the ability to morph into any animal they touch. They use their powers to fight a secret alien invasion of Earth.

There are more than 35 million copies of the Animorphs books in print, with the original run occurring ...

Shamus Kelley Jan 15, 2020

The cult classic books from the 90’s are about to be updated into graphic novels and we've got exclusive details!

Animorphs holds a special place in the heart of many children who grew up in the '90s.The sci-fi war series centered on a group of teens fighting off an invasion of alien space slugs (who could take over your mind) by morphing into animals. The series was great fun but also didn’t shy away from the impact of war on all of the characters. Many of the books featured incredibly serious subject matter that left a huge mark on its still loyal group of fans and shaped the tastes of a generation of creators.

In October, a whole new generation will get to experience Animorphs for the first time. Scholastic Graphix is bringing Animorphs into the world of graphic novels with the help of Eisner Award-nominated cartoonist Chris Grine.

Neal Shusterman‘s film and TV credits may not be much to write home about – he’s credited with the story on 1994’s Double Dragon and wrote episodes of Animorphs and Goosebumps, among other things – but as an author, he’s a prolific writer who won the National Book Award in 2015 for his novel Challenger […]

The post ‘Challenger Deep’ Adaptation Coming to Disney+ From ‘Toy Story 4’ Co-Writer appeared first on /Film.

It’s a little Iceboy!

Shawn Ashmore, known for his role as Bobby Drake/Iceman in the X-Men film series, has welcomed a son, he announced Tuesday on Instagram.

The new addition rounds out the household of Ashmore, 37, and his wife Dana, 33, who are also “parents” to dogs — including one named Lucky.

“Couldn’t be more in love with my new baby boy and my incredible wife,” Ashmore captioned a photo of himself holding his son’s hand. Added Dana, “We did it guys!! So in love.”

Further details, including baby’s name and date of birth, were not immediately available.

Film adaptations of young adult book genres have become increasingly profitable over the years. From Harry Potter to the more recent Hunger Games franchise, the genre has proven time and time again to be a solid cash cow. Despite this, one iconic '90s book series has yet to make it to the silver screen . until now. According to The Tracking Board, Universal has plans to adapt the popular Scholastic Animorphs series, written by K.A. Applegate, into a movie. Animorphs chronicles the adventures of five teenagers caught in the war between two alien species: the Andalite and the Yeerks . parasitic, slug-like life forms who control humans by entering their ear canal. When they stumble upon the ship of a dying Andalite warrior, he grants them the ability to morph into any animal they come into contact with, and recruits them into the battle. While many recent young adult series ...

Universal Pictures and Silvertongue Films are reportedly planning a film adaptation of K. A. Applegate's young adult sci-fi book series "Animorphs" says The Tracking Board.

The property was popular in the late 1990s and told in first person with the six main characters taking turns narrating the books through their own perspectives, each also has the ability to transform into any animal they touch.

Deborah Forte will produce the film which will focus heavily on the sci-fi aspect of the books, and the project is reportedly still looking for a screenwriter. The project comes hot on the heels of Sony's upcoming film adaptation of R.L. Stan's popular "Goosebumps" film.

Anyone remember the show Animorphs from the 90s? I remember the cult of the Animorphs. I was never a fan of that. I would go to the store and pick up the latest Goosebumps book, and sort of throw shade to the series. The covers always looked ridiculous to me. To be fair, I.ve never read one so perhaps they aren.t as dumb as I imagined. I did watch the series on the regular either. I.ve got bits and pieces but still wasn.t impressed. Later down the road, Animorphs co-creator K.A. Applegate...

Shawn Ashmore's "The Following" character, Agent Mike Weston, has been sidelined for the last few episodes after a vicious beating at the hands of Joe Carroll's (James Purefoy) followers. On the Monday, April 8th episode, titled "The Curse," Weston returns and he's a little different than when fans last saw him. We're not just talking about the bruises.

"Mike comes back a changed man and I don't think he's outright out for revenge, but he's changed," Ashmore told The Huffington Post in a phone interview. "He's affected physically and emotionally by the beating and near-death experience from that interrogation at the hands of Roderick [Warren Kole] and the other followers. He comes back with a different approach when it comes to the followers. I don't think he's taking any chances and so when he's face-to-face with them, he definitely acts a little bit more impulsively and defends himself probably more...

Goosebumps was a phenomenon back in the day. When it came to reading in school in the pre-Harry Potter world, every other kid had a Goosebumps book in their hands. Well it appears as though there might be a little comeback for the brand, with a motion picture in the works. Carl Ellsworth, the screenwriter behind Red Eye, Disturbia and The Last House on the Left, has been hired to adapt the novels for a feature. It’ll be interesting to see if they adapt more than one book, or choose one of the more popular ones and just expand on it.

Are you excited by the prospect of Goosebumps hitting the big screen? I was always more of an Animorphs guy…

Source: Latino Review...

Screenwriter Carl Ellsworth has been hired by Paramount Pictures to rewrite C.O.D., an action-thriller that currently doesn't have a director attached to it. As reported by The Hollywood Reporter (because that's what they do, report on stuff), C.O.D. is about a NYC bike courier who has to deliver three live bombs or else another will go off and take out his family. Why can't terrorists just pay bike couriers like everyone else? I guess that's part of what makes them bad guys.

DreamWorks bought the C.O.D. script in March 2008. When Dw split from Paramount, one of the projects that Paramount got custody of was C.O.D. The original script was written by Lars Jacobson. Barry Josephson (Bones, Aliens in the Attic) and former movie executive assistant Neal Flaherty are producing.

Ellsworth got his screenwriting career off to a start with a produced episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. That was followed...

Carl Ellsworth has been brought on to rework the action-thriller screenplay "C.O.D." (Cash on Delivery) for Paramount Pictures.

DreamWorks pre-emptively picked up Lars Jacobson's original script in March 2008 for mid-six figures, and Paramount held onto it when DreamWorks moved out on its own.

The "C.O.D." story line follows a New York City bike messenger who is forced to deliver three bombs under threat of his family receiving one. He must avoid capture by not only the authorities but also by an entire nation looking to stop him.

Barry Josephson ("Enchanted") is producing through Josephson Entertainment along with Neal Flaherty ("The Hole") of Royal Prospect.

Ellsworth cut his genre teeth in TV on shows such as "Xena: Warrior Princess," "Animorphs" and "Buffy the Vampire Slayer." He went on to write or co-write the screenplays for the features "Red Eye," "Disturbia" and the revamped version of "The Last House on the Left,...