Movies
Willem Dafoe Plays a Police Chief (Again) in ‘Odd Thomas’
I fell in love with horror author Dean Kootz back in ’93 when my school principal called me to the office and told me the “subject matter was too adult for me.” Everyone was big on Stephen King, I was all Kootnz.
I was such a huge fan that one of the biggest disappointments in my life was the 1998 feature film Phantoms, which castrated one of the most chilling stories I read in my young life. After numerous Hollywood dumpers, Kootnz swore off feature film adaptations, at least until the past few years.
Gearing up for production in New Mexico later this spring and summer is Odd Thomas, a new Kootnz adaptation this time by Stephen Sommers. The only thing “Odd” is the directing choice, considering Sommers is responsible for debacles such as Van Helsing and G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra. Sure, I loved Deep Rising, but 12 years hasn’t given me much to look forward to…
Ranting aside, THR has some good news as they’re reporting Willem Dafoe (Antichrist) is in talks to join the cast of the supernatural thriller that centers on a short-order cook named Odd Thomas who can commune with the dead, a secret only his girlfriend (Addison Timlin) and the local police (Dafoe) chief know.
The young man can also spot malevolent forces called bodachs, who feed on pain and portent imminent death. When Odd sees them in spades surrounding a stranger, he finds himself in a race against time to avert a catastrophe.
The movie, with a budget in the $20 to $30 million range.
Willem Dafoe in an awesome scene from ‘Boondock Saints’
It’s now been five years since the release of sequel Happy Death Day 2U, Christopher Landon’s sequel to the Groundhog Day-style slasher movie from 2017. Both films star Jessica Rothe as final girl Tree Gelbman, and director Christopher Landon had been planning on bringing the character – and the actor – back for a third installment. So… where is it?!
We’ve been talking about a potential Happy Death Day 3 for several years now, with the ball in producer Jason Blum’s court. Happy Death Day 2U scared up $64 million at the worldwide box office, a far cry from the first film’s $125 million. But with a reported production budget of just $9 million, that first sequel was profitable for Blumhouse. So again… where is it?!
Chatting with Screen Geek this week while promoting her new action-thriller Boy Kills World, franchise star Jessica Rothe provided a hopeful update on Happy Death Day 3.
“Well, I can say Chris Landon has the whole thing figured out,” Rothe explains. “We just need to wait for Blumhouse and Universal to get their ducks in a row.
Rothe continues in her comments to Screen Geek, “But my fingers are so crossed. I think Tree [Gelbman] deserves her third and final chapter to bring that incredible character and franchise to a close or a new beginning.”
Back in 2020, Christopher Landon had revealed that the working title for the third installment was Happy Death Day to Us, said to be “different than the other two films.”
In the meantime, Christopher Landon is directing a mysterious thriller titled Drop for Blumhouse and Platinum Dunes, along with a werewolf movie titled Big Bad for Lionsgate.
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