News

Horror fans who are planning to drop by a Fan Expo-backed event from now until the end of 2028 are in for the greatest chill and thrill of their lives. Today, Fan Expo HQ announced a multi-year deal signed with the maestro of terror, John Carpenter, that will place the iconic genre filmmaker at a slew of the company’s events over the next few years. The partnership kicks off in just a few days at Fan Expo Philadelphia with more appearances set to be revealed in the upcoming weeks. From up-close-and-personal interactions with fans through signings and photo ops to one-of-a-kind Q&As at panels, Carpenter is slated to take part in every aspect that has made Fan Expo such an important part of the fandom experience.

It’s an incredibly exciting time for Carpenter who, after decades in the industry, finally received his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

Amazon is having a massive sale on over 150 horror movies from the Scream Factory catalog, with Blu-rays as low as $8.49 and 4K Ultra HDs starting at $15.91.

These prices are only available for limited time, so stock up now!

$8.49 Blu-rays:

Candyman

Dark Angel

Lifeforce

Ninja III: The Domination

Sleepaway Camp

$9.76 or less Blu-rays:

Kindred

Nosferatu the Vampyre

Psycho (1998)

Ravenous

The Babadook

The Doctor and the Devils

The Slumber Party Massacre

Zombie High

$9.99 Blu-rays:

Assault on Precinct 13

Body Bags

Cherry Falls

Day of the Dead

Dog Soldiers

Ginger Snaps

Lake Placid

Motel Hell

Night of the Comet

Night of the Demons

Psycho II

Psycho III

Pumpkinhead

The Crush

The Funhouse Massacre

The Howling

The People Under the Stairs

$11.49 Blu-rays:

Cat People (1982)

Class of 1984

Deadly Blessing

Death Becomes Her

Dreamscape

Final Exam

Firestarter

Metalstorm

RoboCop 2

RoboCop 3

Shocker

Slumber Party Massacre (2021)

The Boy Who Cried Werewolf

The Burning

Village of the Damned...

More than 30 years after embarking on his Hollywood stunt career, Chad Stahelski is praising the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences for finally recognizing the field.

Following AMPAS’ announcement Thursday that Achievement in Stunt Design will become a new category at the 100th Oscars, the John Wick director told Deadline how much he appreciates the Academy “for really putting in the time” with the decision of how best to honor the stunt community.

“None of us [in the industry] would be here if it wasn’t for the last 100 years of stunt people,” noted Stahelski over the phone while overseeing a color-correcting session on Ballerina, which he is producing. “We’ve come a long way because a lot of other people have sacrificed a lot. So, it’s pretty cool to be here and be at the apex of an entire century of performers and coordinators and action directors. And it’s...

Update: Boosting this article (first posted on March 21st) as a reminder that John Carpenter’s Hollywood Walk of Fame ceremony is happening today, April 3rd, and can be streamed live at WalkofFame.com!

The original article follows:

Back in June of last year, the Hollywood Chamber’s Board of Directors announced that more than thirty new stars are going to be added to the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2025 (and into 2026), with the latest batch of honorees including legendary filmmaker John Carpenter. Honorees have up to two years after they are chosen to set a date for their ceremonies – and now, it has been confirmed that Carpenter’s Hollywood Walk of Fame ceremony is scheduled for Thursday, April 3, 2025 at 11:30 Am Pt.

Carpenter’s will be the 2,806th star to be added to the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and the dedication will take place at 7000 Hollywood Boulevard, in front of the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel.

Name a more iconic duo than John Carpenter and Kurt Russell. Sure, they may not have collaborated on a film in decades, but back in the '80s, they were a lethal pairing, especially when it came to stylish genre films. In total, the pair made five movies together between 1979 and 1996. And today, we're going to rank them.

While Carpenter first gained fame as a horror auteur (the genre for which he's still best known today), he's directed all sorts of movies over the years, and his collaborations with Russell are great examples of that. Only one of the duo's films is a horror flick, while the others span the realms of biopic, science fiction, action-adventure, and comedy. It's an eclectic mix, to be sure, but also a solid one.

Of course, we're splitting hairs a bit on some of these (though we all know what the best one is...

Anyone who’s seen John Carpenter’s 1996 sequel “Escape From L.A.” knows that, in the past, the filmmaker’s feelings about the City of Angels have been mixed, to put it mildly. They’re epitomized by a scene in which Snake Plissken (Kurt Russell) is enjoying a brief moment of relative peace in the earthquake-ravaged ruins of the city, after almost having his body parted out by the Surgeon General of Beverly Hills (Bruce Campbell), when his running mate of the moment (Valeria Golino) looks at him and observes, “Once you figure out this place, it’s really not so bad.” She is immediately shot in the back..

While Carpenter has occasionally been metaphorically wounded by the slings, arrows and bullets of the city’s entertainment-industrial complex, he’s managed to survive. And in the lead-up to receiving his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on April 3, he’s...

John Carpenter, the filmmaker behind great horror works like Halloweenand The Thing, is set to be honored next month when he receives a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. The ceremony is set to take place on Thursday, April 3, with guests still to be announced. Carpenter's star will be the 2,806th installation on one of the most important sidewalks in the world, where Hollywood legends have been granted a place in history. The press release lists the exact address of his star as "7000 Hollywood Boulevard, in front of the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel."

Steve Nissen, President and CEO of the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, will lead the ceremony alongside the guest speakers. The event will be live-streamed on the organization's website at 11:30 Am Pt. Per the press release on the Walk of Fame website:

"Few filmmakers have had as galvanizing and enduring an impact on cinema as John Carpenter.

The Thing, Big Trouble in Little China, and Escape from New York. These are the holy trinity of John Carpenter/Kurt Russell collaborations and are generally seen as anything from best cult film of all time to the best horror movie of all time. The Thing would get a prequel movie but that was only after years of being unappreciated and it would take a re-evaluation for that movie to come to life. Big Trouble wouldn’t even get that as the IP would die at the box office and stay dead to the creators. While all 3 would share some form of a collection of video game tie-ins, comic books, toys, and board games, only Escape from New York would get the direct sequel treatment, and even that was 15 years later. While it is not usually held in the same regard as its oft-imitated predecessor, it’s slowly gaining traction...

March 17, 1951 was a great day in history, because that’s the day Kurt Vogel Russell entered the world. And while he would go on to become one of the biggest icons of the eighties and nineties, many folks don’t know that Russell started as a child star for The Walt Disney Company, even acting opposite his future life partner Goldie Hawn in The One and Only, Genuine, Original Family Band (1968) – although they wouldn’t get together until Russell ended up in another movie starring Goldie Hawn, Swing Shift (1984). From the sixties into the seventies, he starred in Disney flicks like The Computer Wore Tennis Shoes (1969), but as the studio’s movies started to flop and Russell got older, a change of pace was needed. Arguably, Russell’s career took off when he began working with director John Carpenter, with the first movie being 1979’s TV movie Elvis, but what...

The universe can be a pretty crummy place sometimes, so it's important to seek out every last nugget of joy or, absent something so extravagant, just a smile here and there to ward off total despair. You could argue that we don't even deserve the latter in extraordinarily crummy times such as these, and maybe this is true, but I like getting out of bed in the morning, so I'll afford myself the privilege of hope however it materializes. Did the Cleveland Cavaliers win last night? That's one foot on the floor. Did I text with some out-of-town friends I haven't personally seen in months or years? There's another. Did John Carpenter just win a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Los Angeles Film Critics Association? Oh baby, we're up and headed for that first cup.

The New Hollywood era produced more commercially successful and critically acclaimed filmmakers than the man who gave us "Halloween,...

Peter Jason, the prolific character actor best known for his work on Deadwood and his numerous John Carpenter collaborations, died at 80 on Thursday, February 20. Jason's career spanned decades and encompassed everything from Westerns to horror films and video games.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Peter Jason passed away in his West Hollywood home following a long battle with cancer. Jason was born on July 22, 1944, in Hollywood, CA, and began working on stage while he studied drama at Carnegie; his passion for theater continued throughout his life, with participation in over 150 plays. In the 1960s, he began making television appearances with roles in shows including The F.B.I., Cimarron Strip, and Here Come the Brides, with his film debut arriving in 1970, when he briefly appeared in Howard Hawks' western Rio Lobo as Lieutenant Forsythe.

Throughout his decades-long career, Jason amassed over 250 credits across film, television and video games. On screen, Jason often portrayed military and authority figures,...

Over the course of a career that stretched back to 1967, Peter Jason racked up more than 270 screen acting credits, turning in performances that inspired legendary filmmaker John Carpenter to name him “one of the great character actors in cinema” – and to cast him in seven different projects: Prince of Darkness, They Live, Body Bags, In the Mouth of Madness, Village of the Damned, Escape from L.A., and Ghosts of Mars. Sadly, Carpenter has now had to take to social media to break the news to his fans and followers that Jason has passed away at the age of 80. Carpenter wrote, “His first movie was Howard Hawks’ Rio Lobo. He was a dear friend and I’ll miss him terribly.“

It is true that the 1970 film Rio Lobo was Jason’s first theatrical feature, but he already had three years of TV acting to his name at that point, with credits...

Peter Jason, the extremely busy character actor who appeared in nine features for Walter Hill and seven for John Carpenter and portrayed the card dealer-turned-reverend Con Stapleton on HBO’s Deadwood, has died. He was 80.

Jason died Thursday in his West Hollywood home after a long battle with cancer, a family representative told The Hollywood Reporter.

Jason amassed more than 275 acting credits on IMDb alone during his seven-decade onscreen career that began in the mid-1960s with a comedy sketch on CBS’ The Red Skelton Show, and he made his big-screen debut in Howard Hawks’ final film, Rio Lobo (1970), where his character died in the arms of John Wayne.

The Hollywood native also was an actor and production associate for Orson Welles on The Other Side of the Wind, which came out in 2018 after 48 years in development.

After working for Hill in The Driver (1978) and The Long Riders (1980), the fun-loving...

Peter Jason, a prolific character best known for his role as Deadwood‘s dim-witted card dealer Con Stapleton and numerous performances in the films of John Carpenter and Walter Hill, died Thursday. He was 80.

A cause of death was not immediately available.

His death was announced Thursday evening by, among other colleagues, Halloween director Carpenter, who called him “one of the great character actors in cinema.” Wrote Carpenter on X, “He was a dear friend and I’ll miss him terribly.”

Other friends and colleagues also shared the news. Actor Billy Zane wrote on X, “My dear, dear friend, the brightest light, most generous soul and gregarious of men, the supremely talented and kind Peter Jason has left the set,” and Matthew Asner, son of the late actor Ed Asner, wrote on Facebook, “I am heartbroken. My dear friend and my father’s best friend, Peter Jason, passed away today.

Character actor and frequent John Carpenter collaborator Peter Jason has passed away at the age of 80.

He amassed over 250 acting credits over the span of his seven-decade career, including seven Carpenter films: Prince of Darkness, They Live, Body Bags, In the Mouth of Madness, Village of the Damned, Escape from L.A., and Ghosts of Mars.

“Peter Jason, one of the great character actors in cinema, has died,” Carpenter shared on X. “His first movie was Howard Hawks’ Rio Lobo. He was a dear friend and I’ll miss him terribly.”

Jason’s other genre credits include Arachnophobia, Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, Congo, Mortal Kombat, Dreamscape, Willow Creek, Dante’s Peak, Alien Nation, and Trick or Treats.

Outside of the genre, the prolific actor’s appeared in “Deadwood,” The Karate Kid, Hail Caesar!, Adaptation., Seabiscuit, and 48 Hrs., to name a few.

The post Peter Jason, Character Actor and John Carpenter Regular, Has...

(Courtesy photo)

Free TV Networks and legendary actress Pam Grier are teaming up on a new free, ad-supported streaming television (Fast) channel that offers around-the-clock independent Black cinema.

The channel, called Soul Flix, is “a celebration of our legacy,” Grier said in a statement on Tuesday after the channel landed on free streaming platforms Plex and The Roku Channel.

“I could not be more pleased with my Free TV Networks partnership — it builds upon my life’s work to support all independent women and fans of Black cinema,” Grier said. “These films don’t just entertain – they inspire, empower, and tell stories that need to be heard. As someone who’s lived through this journey and fought to bring strong characters to life, I’m thrilled to shine the spotlight on the brilliance and resilience of our community.”

“We are beyond thrilled to announce our collaboration with Pam Grier, a true icon,...

We’ve discussed John Carpenter on this channel as much or more than nearly any other director. Some of his movies, like The Thing, have gotten a different type of show appreciation via discussions on its behind the scenes in a Wtf, a comparison with its novella source material, and a look at what its legacy is in a Deconstructing video, amongst a few others. Looking at his catalogue, there is a wealth of stuff that is firmly in the horror realm from Christine to In the Mouth of Madness, Prince of Darkness to Halloween. While he has some movies that are outside that wheelhouse like the western homage Assault on Precinct 13 or Academy Award winning sci-fi drama Starman, Escape from New York is something special. In addition to being one of my favorite films of all time, full stop, it’s also sneaky in its ability to horrify. While...

Legendary horror director and composer John Carpenter has announced a concert residency in Los Angeles this Halloween, which marks his first live performances in seven years.

The four-night run takes place at the Belasco Theatre on October 24th, 25th, 31st, and November 31st. Carpenter will be joined on stage by his longtime musical collaborators Cody Carpenter and Daniel Davies, and each night promises a unique setlist of music pulling from his catalogue of over 20 film scores and four albums. Carpenter is best known for such iconic films as The Thing, The Fog, Christine, Assault on Precinct 13, Escape from New York, and Escape from L.A., and Big Trouble in Little China.

Fans can register for a ticket pre-sale ahead of a public on-sale slated for Friday, January 31st at 10:00 a.m. Pt via Ticketmaster. Carpenter has partnered with PLUS1 to provide $2 from each ticket to the Anti-Recidivism Coalition, which...

Legendary horror director and composer John Carpenter has announced a concert residency in Los Angeles this Halloween, which marks his first live performances in seven years.

The four-night run takes place at the Belasco Theatre on October 24th, 25th, 31st, and November 31st. Carpenter will be joined on stage by his longtime musical collaborators Cody Carpenter and Daniel Davies, and each night promises a unique setlist of music pulling from his catalogue of over 20 film scores and four albums. Carpenter is best known for such iconic films as The Thing, The Fog, Christine, Assault on Precinct 13, Escape from New York, and Escape from L.A., and Big Trouble in Little China.

Fans can register for a ticket pre-sale ahead of a public on-sale slated for Friday, January 31st at 10:00 a.m. Pt via Ticketmaster. Carpenter has partnered with PLUS1 to provide $2 from each ticket to the Anti-Recidivism Coalition, which...

Los Angeles has played a character in the Weeknd’s music for years, particularly on the ominous and commanding After Hours. The 2020 record — which featured the fan-favorite “Escape From LA” — marked the first in the album trilogy that was originally scheduled to conclude on Jan. 24 with Hurry Up Tomorrow before the singer delayed the release in acknowledgement of the wildfires that have ravaged L.A. this month. The Weeknd has since donated $1 million to relief funds in the city.

In partnership with World Food Program USA and The Weeknd’s Xo Humanitarian Fund,...

As sympathy pours in for the devastated families and businesses scattered around fire-ravaged Los Angeles, resentment is creeping toward the Hollywood Sign.

Tourists accidentally sparked controversy on social media last Tuesday when they asked about the iconic landmark amid record-breaking wildfires in LA. The hilltop monument wasn’t anywhere near the destructive blazes that night — the fires were too busy destroying residential communities then — but the thought pulled focus from real relief efforts.

Despite the insistence of several apocalyptic films (“Escape from LA” among them), the Hollywood Sign has never caught fire. It was erected from wood and sheet metal in 1923 to promote the “Hollywoodland” housing development and, in keeping with current events, fell into disrepair because of extreme winds. That lead to the 50-foot-tall letters’ restoration in 1978, an effort fortified in white steel and funded by several entertainment heavyweights including Alice Cooper and Warner Bros.

Out-of-towners had their concerns...

January 16th is the birthday of legendary filmmaker John Carpenter, who turns 77 this year – and to mark the occasion, Shout Factory / Scream Factory is having a sale of John Carpenter Blu-rays! While the company has to apologize to later-era Carpenter fans because their 4K releases of his films Ghosts of Mars and Vampires are not included in this sale, the Blu-rays of Assault on Precinct 13, Someone’s Watching Me, Elvis, Starman, Memoirs of an Invisible Man, and Body Bags are.

The Assault on Precinct 13 Blu-ray usually sells for $15.99. For this sale, the price has been dropped to $9.99. Written and directed by Carpenter, this film was originally released in 1976 and has the following synopsis: Isolated and cut off from the city inside a soon-to-be-closed L.A. police station, a group of police officers and convicts must join forces to defend themselves against the gang called Street Thunder, who have taken a...

Exclusive: Thunderbolts star Wyatt Russell is in talks we hear to join Steven Spielberg’s next event movie for Amblin and Universal. A deal for the actor is very close. The storyline is being kept under lock and key.

Russell joins a booming glitzy bench of thespians including Emily Blunt, Josh O’Connor, Colman Domingo, Colin Firth and Eve Hewson. Universal Pictures has set a wide theatrical release for May 15, 2026.

Based on a story by Spielberg, the screenplay is by David Koepp, whose previous work with Spielberg includes the screenplays for Jurassic Park, The Lost World: Jurassic Park, War of the Worlds and Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. Combined, those films earned more than $3 billion worldwide.

Five-time Oscar nominee Kristi Macosko Krieger is producing for the 3x Oscar winning Spielberg. The director’s last film, based on his life, The Fabelmans, was released by Universal in 2022 and received seven Academy Awards nominations,...

Amazon has launched its Cyber Monday sales, including plenty of horror and genre-adjacent 4K Ultra HDs, Blu-rays, DVDs, e-books, and toys.

These discounts aren’t guaranteed to last, so act fast!

Here are the horror highlights of Cyber Monday 2024 from Amazon…

4K Uhd Collections:

Heavy Metal / Heavy Metal 2000 [Steelbook] – $19.99 The Sandman: Season 1 – $19.99 Dune / Dune: Part Two – $29.99 The Dark Knight Trilogy – $29.99 Batman: 4-Film Collection – $39.99 Paramount Scares: Rosemary’s Baby / Pet Sematary / Crawl / Smile / Sweeney Todd – $39.99 Paramount Scares: Friday the 13th Part 2 / Breakdown / World War Z / Orphan: First Kill – $47.39 Jaws 2 / Jaws 3 / Jaws: The Revenge – $44.99 Jurassic World: 6-Movie Collection – $49.99 The Lord of the Rings: The Motion Picture Trilogy – $54.99 The Ring Collection – $59.29 Mad Max: 5-Film Collection – $69.99 Universal Classic Monsters: 8-Film Collection – $69.99 Hellraiser: Quartet of Torment – $76.45

4K Uhd Movies:

Escape From L.A. – $8.99 Brawl In Cell Block 99 – $9.96 The Expendables – $9.98 Talk To Me – $9.99 John Wick – $9.99 Ghost in the Shell (1995) – $10.49 Mortal Kombat (2021) – $10.89 King Kong (2005) – $10.98 Godzilla (2014) – $10.99 Kong: Skull Island...

Check out these special Amazon Cyber Monday deals. Now, these are good for this week only, so make sure to buy them as soon as you can! Remember, some of these deals may be ongoing while others are limited, so strike while the iron is hot!

One disclaimer: Deals as good as these can be fickle, so there’s no telling if and when a money-saving opportunity might end or if the price may change. So if you want something – snap that shit up quick! Don’t wait, only to have Festivus roll around and discover you’ve nothing to give or the price suddenly changed and you no longer have the bread. And remember that if you want to support JoBlo.com, please make all your purchases by initially clicking through our links, since that’s beneficial for us. So click away, buy what you like, and happy Holiday hunting!

Few action stars are as celebrated as the legendary Kurt Russell. One of Hollywood's finest, this actor has awed viewers for decades with his portrayals of some of cinema's greatest heroes. Whether he's scoring goals in Miracle or stopping bombs in Escape from L.A., he's someone you reach out to if you want to emphasize just how valiant your protagonist is — an image that Quentin Tarantino's Death Proof ruins perfectly.

No longer just a day, Black Friday sales now kick off the week before Thanksgiving.

In fact, Amazon has already launched sales on dozens of horror (and genre-adjacent) 4K Ultra HDs, Blu-rays, and DVD, compiled below.

These discounts aren’t guaranteed to last, so act fast!

4K Uhd Collections:

Dune / Dune: Part Two – $29.99 The Dark Knight Trilogy – $29.99 Rosemary’s Baby / Pet Sematary / Crawl / Smile / Sweeney Todd – $39.99 Friday the 13th Part 2 / Breakdown / World War Z / Orphan: First Kill – $47.39 Jurassic World: 6-Movie Collection – $49.99 The Lord of the Rings: The Motion Picture Trilogy – $54.99 The Ring Collection – $59.29 Mad Max: 5-Film Collection – $69.99 Hellraiser: Quartet of Torment – $80.00 Universal Classic Monsters: 8-Film Collection – $96.98

4K Uhd Movies:

Escape From L.A. – $8.99 Cloverfield – $8.99 Brawl In Cell Block 99 – $9.96 Talk To Me – $9.99 King Kong (2005) – $10.99 Godzilla (2014) – $10.99 Kong: Skull Island – $10.99 Godzilla: King of the Monsters – $10.99 Godzilla vs Kong – $10.99 The Thing – $10.99 Shaun of the Dead – $10.99 The Shining – $10.99 A Quiet Place – $10.99 M3GAN – $10.99 Nope – $10.99 Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse...

Prime Video’s November programming will dip its toe into Christmas and other holiday offerings such as The Holiday (2006) starring Jude Law, Kate Winslet, Cameron Diaz and Jack Black. The streamer will also add some films with sequels arriving in theaters this month, like Sonic the Hedgehog (2020) and Ridley Scott’s 1992 film Gladiator.

For the full list of Prime Video programming in November 2024, see below.

Related: New On Netflix For November 2024: Movies, TV Shows and More

Nov. 1

Movies:

12 Days of Christmas Eve (2004) 3 Ninjas Knuckle Up (1995) 50 To 1 (2014) A Knight’s Tale (2001) Absolute Deception (2013) Across The Universe (2007) Agent Cody Banks (2003) Agent Cody Banks 2: Destination London (2004) Airplane II: The Sequel (1982) Airplane! (1980) All Saints (2017) Almost Christmas (2016) Anacondas: The Hunt For The Blood Orchid (2004) Anger Management (2003) Apache (1954) Bad Company (2002) Battlefield Earth (2000) Battleship (2012) Big Night (1996) Blizzard (2003) Blown Away (1993) Bobby Jones: Stroke of Genius (2004) Boomerang (1992) Bucky Larson Born To Be A Star (2011) Carrie...

John Carpenter's 1981 dystopian sci-fi action movie Escape From New York is about to come home in a new Limited Edition 4K Steelbook. Starring Kurt Russell as the iconic anti-hero Snake Plissken, the cult classic has received the new 4K restoration by Studio Canal, and comes with a host of extras including multiple audio commentaries, Dolby Atmos sound and several featurettes, as well as a cool Steelbook with new design. This limited release will be available from November 5.

Escape from New York takes place in a dystopian future where Manhattan has been converted into a maximum-security prison. When Air Force One crashes into the chaotic and dangerous zone, Russells Plissken is given little choice but to save the president within 24 hours, otherwise an explosive device implanted in his neck will be detonated.

The movie came just a few years after John Carpenter cemented himself as a force to be reckoned...

Building on what is already the largest film-related collection in the world, comprised of more than 52 million items, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences revealed some of their most recent acquisitions today, including the Studio Ghibli animation collection, which contains more than 80 pieces of original art by Hayao Miyazaki and Noboru Yoshida, as well as the studio’s Japanese movie posters and animator’s desk. Another hot ticket item, presented at the Academy Museum Gala on October 19 in Los Angeles, is Quentin Tarantino’s personal, handwritten script for “Pulp Fiction,” which won the Best Original Screenplay Oscar and celebrated its 30th anniversary this year.

Filmmakers Curtis Hanson, Nicole Holofcener, Barbara Kopple, Oliver Stone, and Paul Verhoeven also donated their personal collections to the Academy, which features production records, photographs, scripts, and more from films such as “L.A. Confidential,” “Harlan County, U.S.A,” “Platoon,” “Showgirls,” and “Enough Said.

Back in 1981, director John Carpenter and actor Kurt Russell introduced the world to one of the coolest antiheroes in cinematic history, war hero turned criminal Snake Plissken, the lead character in the sci-fi action classic Escape from New York. Fifteen years later, Carpenter and Russell came back for the sequel Escape from L.A.… which isn’t nearly as popular as its predecessor, but is still a worthwhile movie because it gives a chance to spend more time with Snake. Author Andreas Johansson has given nearly equal time to Escape from New York and Escape from L.A. with his newly released books Escape Artists Vol. 1: Escape from New York Interviews and Escape Artists Vol. 2: Escape from L.A. Interviews, which have page counts of 406 and 403, respectively – and both books are now available for order through Amazon! You can get Escape Artists Vol. 1 at This Link and Escape Artists Vol.

From Harker Press, the publisher who brought you Taking Shape and The Soul of Wes Craven, comes the Escape Artists duology, a two-book collection that’s Now Available!

Join Escape from New York and Escape from L.A. historian Andreas Johansson for an unprecedented deep dive into the making of these two John Carpenter cult classics.

Exhaustively researched, these volumes contain over 120 interviews with cast and crew along with more than 130 rare photographs and illustrations, many never before seen.

In Escape Artists Vol. 1: Escape from New York Interviews, “Join production historian Andreas Johansson and over sixty cast and crew for a journey back to the most dangerous place on Earth where breaking out is impossible and breaking in is insane. Contained within this book are untold stories from the making of John Carpenter’s cult classic Escape From New York. Explore virtually every aspect of production through in-depth interviews and vintage articles.

Half a century into his directorial career, John Carpenter will be honored by the Los Angeles Film Critics Association.

The legendary horror director has been selected to receive Lafca’s Career Achievement Award during the organization’s 50th annual awards show this year, which will take place January 11, 2025 at the Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles.

“The LA Film Critics Association was one of the very first groups to present me an award, so I’m truly honored by this recognition,” said Carpenter in a statement. “For a horror guy like me, this really warms my heart, and it also shows just how important horror is as a genre, which the Los Angeles Film Critics Association has known for decades.”

Carpenter previously received the New Generation Award for his horror breakthrough Halloween (1978), starring Jamie Lee Curtis.

“John Carpenter is such an ideal choice not only for his ability to spin stylish,...

The Weeknd is putting on an incredible show!

The superstar debuted a never-before-seen production to over 70,000 fans during his sold-out one-night-only event on Saturday (September 7) at Estádio MorumBI in São Paulo, Brazil.

Special guest Playboi Carti came out to perform two songs, while Anitta surprised audiences by appearing on top of the ancient building on stage disguised as one of The Weeknd’s dancers.

The show included a fleet of 150 drones in the sky at the end of the performance, spelling out the name of his highly anticipated next album, Hurry Up Tomorrow, the conclusion of his trilogy of studio albums, following 2022′s Dawn FM and 2020′s After Hours.

Keep reading to find out more…

This album “represents the creative apex of the project, serving as the third and final chapter crafted with existential and self-referential themes as seen with the latest visionary teasers that have set fans ablaze with anticipation for this concluding installment,...

John Carpenter's "Escape from New York" gifted us with an unforgettable character referenced frequently in pop culture: Snake Plissken, brought to life by the brilliant Kurt Russell. Russell's cynical, no-nonsense approach to Plissken endures even after plans for a third "Escape" film fell through, and fans have been clamoring for the character's return, for good reason. A former U.S. Army Special Forces lieutenant who fought in World War III, Plissken was quick to turn to a life of crime after feeling betrayed and disillusioned by the country's federal government, firmly establishing him as an anti-hero figure of sorts. However, both in "Escape from New York" and "Escape from L.A.," Plissken is the one we unconditionally root for, as the rot of corruption that grips the dystopian future emerges as far more deep-rooted and disconcerting than the flaws of one man.

A canceled Plissken sequel did not mean a complete discontinuation of the franchise,...

The cast of the 1993 film Tombstone was crucial in bringing the iconic Western to life. Tombstone is based on the true story of Western lawmen and outlaws from the 1880s. The movie retells the historical gunfight at the O.K. Corral and the ensuing Earp Vendetta Ride, focusing on the infamous Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday. It was released during a Western movie boom, and although it only had a $25 million budget, Tombstone earned $73.2 million worldwide, making it a financial success.

Director George P. Cosmatos' Western has since become a classic and beloved film. The iconic quotes in Tombstone make it highly memorable. It is even considered to be one of the best films in the Western genre. This popularity is strengthened by the strong performances of many cast members tied to both the Western and action genres.

Related 10 Best Movies To Watch Like Tombstone

Tombstone is a great entry point to the Western genre.

Bruce Campbell has played supporting roles in so many films and TV shows, he once wrote a fictionalized autobiography -- "Make Love! The Bruce Campbell Way" -- about how his biggest possible break would be playing a sage-like doorman in a high-profile Hollywood drama starring Richard Gere and Renée Zellweger. In the fake Hollywood movie, Campbell would be the character to dole out advice to the lead characters and get their lives on track. It's telling that Campbell, even in a fictional version of Hollywood, didn't cast himself as the leading man.

Of course, Campbell has rarely been romantic about acting. He takes his craft seriously, but sees it more as a blue-collar profession than a heady art that requires years of study. Given that Campbell started his career getting splashed with fake blood in a series of zero-budget monster movies, this attitude is understandable. The ironic twist in "Make Love!

Believe it or not, not every actor dreams of the bright lights and movie cameras from the beginning. There are many different roads actors have taken to their eventual careers, like Sean Connery's time as a milkman, a military man, and nearly a Manchester United man before settling on the theater or working as a waiter with his father like Alfred Molina. Both fell in love with acting and that was that, but for ultimate cool guy Kurt Russell, acting was actually his fallback career.

Despite the fact that Russell was the son of actor Bing Russell and started out acting alongside big stars like Charles Bronson when he was still in grade school, he never actually planned on acting as a career. Instead he was focused on his first great love: baseball.

Unfortunately for Russell, he suffered a pretty painful (and slightly embarrassing!) injury that ended his baseball...

The term "iconic" is often loosely thrown around, but it does encapsulate Kurt Russell's Snake Plissken, who emerges as one of the coolest action heroes in film. Plissken came to life in John Carpenter's brilliant "Escape From New York," and Russell's sincere love for the character propelled its much-anticipated sequel, "Escape from L.A." Although both entries would become cult classics down the line, the critical and commercial failure of "Escape from L.A." at the time of its release failed to justify a third Plissken film, which was titled "Escape from Earth."

The disappointment surrounding the called-off "Escape" sequel is understandable: after all, who wouldn't want Russell's Plissken to return after brandishing the Sword of Damocles, which is the perfect lead-up to an unforgettable space adventure? However, for some reason, a rumor started bubbling about a 2001 Carpenter flick — "Ghosts of Mars" — which was believed to sport a plot repurposed from "Escape from Earth,...

The 1998 sci-fi war film "Soldier" might be the best film in Paul W.S. Anderson's career. A kind-of-spinoff to "Blade Runner" (both films were written by David Webb Peoples), "Soldier" begins in 1996, when the American government implements a new program to raise children, from birth, to engage in combat. Over the course of decades, their souls are meticulously erased and they become wholly devoted to military conquest. The soldiers barely speak and don't appear to possess empathy or compassion. If anyone falls behind or displays weakness, they are executed. 

One of the star soldiers of the program is Todd-3465 (Kurt Russell), who has been molded into a ruthless killing machine over the past 40 years. It is now 2036, and the Soldier program is under threat. It seems that a new breed of soldiers, genetically engineered ones, are stepping up to take Todd's place. The new soldiers are faster, stronger, can live much longer,...

The central joke of John Carpenter's 1986 martial arts comedy "Big Trouble in Little China" is that the himbo hero Jack Burton (Kurt Russell) thinks he's the main character of the story, when really he's the dorky, comedic sidekick to other people. One should acknowledge that Wang Chi (Dennis Dun) is the true hero of "Big Trouble," and it is ultimately his heroism that saves his fiancée Miao Yin (Suzee Pai) from the clutches of the evil warlock Lo Pan (James Hong). Wang Chi is the one with fighting skills, as well as the one with connections to other magic users. Jack Burton is a silly blowhard with the muscles to fight off bad guys and the know-how of a golden retriever.

Needless to say, "Little China" is quirky and charming. It remains the most whimsical of John Carpenter's output. Indeed, it may be the only comedy film Carpenter directed...

The Apple TV+ series "Monarch: Legacy of Monsters," like the film series that inspired it, skips around dramatically throughout history. Recall that "Kong: Skull Island," which came out after 2014's "Godzilla," was set mostly in 1973 after opening with a flashback to 1944. "Legacy of Monsters" likewise jumps back and forth a lot, exploring a present-day timeframe c. 2015 and a much earlier timeline set in the mid-1950s. To show the legacy of humans that work at Monarch -- the secret government agency assigned to oversee and wrangle kaiju -- both time frames feature the character Lee Shaw. In the 1950s, Shaw was one of the founding members of Monarch. In the '10s, he becomes re-immersed in Monarch after encountering the show's lead character, Cate (Anna Sawai).

In the 1950s, Shaw is played by Wyatt Russell, the star of "Overlord," "Everybody Wants Some!!," and "Night Swim." In the '10s segments,...

It’s the first day of Amazon’s annual Prime Day, with hundreds of products discounted — including prices slashed on horror movies!

We’ve rounded up some of the scariest deals for you…

4K Ultra HD Collections:

The Mummy Trilogy – $26.99 The Shining / 2001: A Space Odyssey / Full Metal Jacket – $29.99 Universal Classic Monsters: Icons of Horror Collection Vol. 1 – $32.99 Universal Classic Monsters: Icons of Horror Collection Vol. 2 – $34.99 The Alfred Hitchcock Classics Collection Vol. 1 – $33.99 The Alfred Hitchcock Classics Collection Vol. 2 – $34.99 Batman: 4-Film Collection (1989-1997) – $39.99 Resident Evil Collection – $56.49 The Toxic Avenger Collection – $72.50 Rosemary’s Baby / Pet Sematary / Crawl / Smile / Sweeney Todd – $74.49 Universal Classic Monsters: Limited Edition 8-Film Collection – $99.99

Steelbook 4K UHDs:

Insidious – $15.37 Last Action Hero – $17.55 Fright Night – $20.99 King Kong (1976) – $26.49 Friday the 13th: 8-Movie Collection – $29.99 Ghostbusters / Ghostbusters II – $33.99

Individual 4K UHDs:

Brawl In Cell Block 99 – $8.99 Get Out – $9.99 The Thing – $10.99 Escape from L.A. – $10.99 Cloverfield – $10.99 Pacific Rim – $10.99 Godzilla vs. Kong – $10.99 A Quiet Place...

Bring up the films of John Carpenter to any movie buff worth their weight in celluloid, and once they finish praying in the direction of Bowling Green, Kentucky, they'll start in on the essentials –- i.e. every movie in his oeuvre stretching from 1974's "Dark Star" to 1988's "They Live." From here, they'll single out 1994's "In the Mouth of Madness" as a return to peak form after the disappointing "Memoirs of an Invisible Man," and maybe share kind words about "Escape from L.A." "Vampires," "Ghosts of Mars," and, heck, even "The Ward." But that '74 -- '88 run is considered sacrosanct. You don't dispute this, and if you're fortunate enough to be a working filmmaker, you think long and hard about the wisdom of remaking one of these classics should a studio ever offer you the opportunity.

This is because Carpenter's aesthetic is inimitable. The widescreen compositions, the long takes,...

Kurt Russell's most memorable character from his long history on the big screen, which stretches all the way back to when Walt Disney was still alive, is probably Snake Plissken from John Carpenter's classic sci-fi action movie "Escape from New York". But in an alternate universe, it could have been Han Solo or Luke Skywalker. 

A few years before Snake Plissken came along, Russell was one of many actors who auditioned for the "Star Wars" roles that would eventually make Mark Hamill and Harrison Ford huge stars. However, George Lucas couldn't figure out which role he like Russell in better. With another job opportunity on the table to star in a Western TV series called "The Quest," Russell opted not to wait around for Lucas to make up his mind, withdrew from consideration, and the rest is history. But it would seem "Star Wars" still lingers in the back of Kurt Russell's mind.

The Hollywood Walk of Fame is set to welcome two legendary figures from the world of horror cinema in its Class of 2025. Robert Englund, famed for his portrayal of Freddy Krueger, and John Carpenter, the visionary director behind “Halloween,” have been selected to receive stars on the iconic boulevard.

The Walk of Fame Selection Panel of the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce announced their decision as part of a diverse group of honorees that includes acclaimed actors Jessica Chastain, Colin Farrell, and Jane Fonda, among others. Peter Roth, chairman of the committee, expressed enthusiasm about the upcoming additions, stating, “Each honoree truly embodies the essence of excellence in their respective fields.”

Woke up this morning (cue Sopranos theme) (just joking) to discover I’m in great company in the Hollywood Walk of Fame class of 2025. Just to hear my name mentioned alongside Jane Fonda and Prince makes my old heart go pit-a-pat!

More than thirty new stars are going to be added to the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2025 (and into 2026), with the new batch of honorees who will be receiving stars having been chosen by the Hollywood Chamber’s Board of Directors. Variety reports that that honorees include Jessica Chastain, Bill Duke, Emilio Estevez, Colin Farrell, Jane Fonda, Nia Long, Lisa Lu, Glynn Turman, Toni Vaz, Fran Drescher, Lauren Graham, Bill Nye, Molly Shannon, Sherri Shepherd, Courtney B. Vance, Chris Wallace, Trey Parker, Matt Stone, Misty Copeland, Alan Cumming, Adam Carolla, Fantasia, Depeche Mode, Los Bukis, The B-52s, Green Day, The Isley Brothers, Busta Rhymes, George Strait, Keith Urban, War, Prince, David Beckham, and Orel Hershiser… but the two honorees that stand out more than any others on this list for us here in the Arrow in the Head horror section of JoBlo are character actor Robert Englund and legendary filmmaker John Carpenter!

"Austin Powers" is arguably one of the most beloved comedy movie franchises in history. Beginning with "Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery" in 1997, Mike Myers helped craft a James Bond spoof that came at just the right time, with "GoldenEye" reviving 007 to kick off Pierce Brosnan's tenure with the character. For as much as the movie is remembered, it actually didn't top the box office when it opened -- the film lost out to an oft-forgotten Kurt Russell thriller.

Directed by Jonathan Mostow, "Breakdown" centers on a married couple Jeff (Kurt Russell) and Amy Taylor (Kathleen Quinlan) who run into some car trouble as they're driving across the country. A passing truck driver offers to help, and that's where things go wrong; Amy goes missing, leading Jeff on a chase to find her. In a 2021 interview with Forbes, Mostow recalled the film's opening weekend, as it was in a...

In Jonathan Mostow's 1997 thriller "Breakdown," Kurt Russell and Kathleen Quinlan play a happily married couple driving their high-tech SUV from Boston to San Diego. By accident, they almost run into a pickup truck on the remote highways of Arizona. When Russell later meets the driver of the pickup (M.C. Gainey) at a gas station, tensions are high. Later still, when Russell and Quinlan are back on the road, their car suddenly stops. Quinlan offers to hitchhike into town to get help, while Russell stays with the SUV. It will be quite a while before they see each other again. It seems that Quinlan has been kidnapped! Russell has to drive around Arizona's remote backroads looking for clues, and eventually, he faces off against the kidnappers. "Breakdown" also stars the immortal J.T. Walsh, and a punky Jack Noseworthy.

The film is Hitchcockian in its trimness, and Mostow wrings every bit...

John Carpenter's 1996 film "Escape from L.A." takes place in the far-flung future of 2013 after a massive Earthquake struck Los Angeles and turned the city into an island. A right-wing theocratic president has enacted many bleak, draconian "morality" laws about sex and violence, and anyone caught breaking the new laws is deported to L.A. Island to live in a lawless, unguarded realm ruled by gangsters. When the president's daughter runs away to L.A. to be with her criminal boyfriend, Cuervo Jones (Georges Corraface), the rogue gunslinger Snake Plissken (Kurt Russell) is extorted into going to L.A. to rescue her. Snake has no choice, as the government infected him with a virus that will kill him in 10 hours, and will only administer the antidote if he completes his mission. 

The premise and structure of "Escape from L.A." is identical to 1981's "Escape from New York," making the film...