Feeling parched for some horror comedy? Well then, pull up a chair and get ready for all sorts of beverage-induced hilarity with Dread Central’s own Andrew Kasch’s short film Thirsty which we are proud to debut below as part of our Indie Horror Month celebration this March.

Based on the short story of the same name from cult horror author Joe Knetter, Thirsty stars Joe Lynch (director of Wrong Turn 2), Tiffany Shepis (The Violent KindThe Hills Have Eyes) along with including several voice cameos from various genre icons and filmmakers including eternal badass Sid Haig.

Also check out the teaser trailer for Kasch and John Skipp's new short film Stay at Home Dad, which will premiere at the World Horror Convention in Salt Lake City, Utah, March 29th-April 1st, along with Skipp’s Rose short, Fetching Danny!

So grab a slushy and settle in for the side-splitting romp that is Thirsty and make sure to head back here this Friday for the premiere of the zom-com short film Summer of the Zombies, right here on Dread Central!

We're not talking about the boppers that Cyrus once preached to in Central Park in The Warriors. We're talking another vampire flick. Can you dig it? Can you dig it? Caaannnn yoooouuuu diiiggg iiiittttt????

According to Variety, Alcon Entertainment is heading to high school, tapping Brian Dannelly to direct Suckers from Adrian Vina's script.

Alcon toppers Andrew Kosove and Broderick Johnson are producing. The story centers on a high schooler who tries to become popular when he moves to a new school by telling everyone he's a vampire. But he runs into trouble when he's accused of a murder.

Look for more on this one as it comes.

Okay, kids! Thus far we've gotten the trailer, and a one-sheet. How about dozens of stills from Tim Burton's take on the television classic Dark Shadows? Read on for the goodies.

The ensemble cast includes Johnny Depp, Michelle Pfeiffer, Helena Bonham Carter, Eva Green, Jackie Earle Haley, Jonny Lee Miller, Bella Heathcote, Chloe Moretz, Thomas McDonell, and newcomer Gulliver McGrath.

Look for Tim Burton's Dark Shadows in theatres on May 11, 2012.

Synopsis
In the year 1752 Joshua and Naomi Collins, with young son Barnabas, set sail from Liverpool, England, to start a new life in America. But even an ocean was not enough to escape the mysterious curse that has plagued their family. Two decades pass, and Barnabas (Johnny Depp) has the world at his feet — or at least the town of Collinsport, Maine. The master of Collinwood Manor, Barnabas is rich, powerful and an inveterate playboy…until he makes the grave mistake of breaking the heart of Angelique Brouchard (Eva Green). A witch, in every sense of the word, Angelique dooms him to a fate worse than death: turning him into a vampire and then burying him alive.

Two centuries later Barnabas is inadvertently freed from his tomb and emerges into the very changed world of 1972. He returns to Collinwood Manor to find that his once-grand estate has fallen into ruin. The dysfunctional remnants of the Collins family have fared little better, each harboring their own dark secrets. Matriarch Elizabeth Collins Stoddard (Michelle Pfeiffer) has called upon live-in psychiatrist, Dr. Julia Hoffman (Helena Bonham Carter), to help with her family troubles.

Also residing in the manor are Elizabeth's ne'er-do-well brother, Roger Collins (Jonny Lee Miller); her rebellious teenage daughter, Carolyn Stoddard (Chloe Moretz); and Roger's precocious 10-year-old son, David Collins (Gulliver McGrath). The mystery extends beyond the family to caretaker Willie Loomis, played by Jackie Earle Haley, and David's new nanny, Victoria Winters, played by Bella Heathcote.

For more info visit the official Dark Shadows website.

How far would you go to see the next great found footage movie? You may not have to go very far as there's one coming to take us with it on a thrilling journey to the Ends of the Earth.

Brian Kavanaugh-Jones' Automatik Entertainment has acquired worldwide rights to Ends of the Earth, a found footage action-thriller that will be co-directed by first-time feature helmers Derek Lee and Clif Prowse, reports Variety.

Plot details are being kept under wraps for now but the film will shoot all around Europe as it aims to blur the lines between documentary and narrative film.

Chris Ferguson and Zach Lipovsky are producing Ends of the Earth, which is backed by Telefilm Canada. Automatik swooped in to acquire the project after seeing a promo circulated by the filmmakers' reps at Verve, which will handle domestic sales with Automatik. Alliance Films will distribute the pic in the U.K., Canada and Spain, while Stuart Ford's IM Global will handle all other international territories.

More soon.

As promised yesterday, the trailer has arrived for Chernobyl Diaries, written by Oren Peli, Carey Van Dyke, and Shane Van Dyke and directed by Brad Parker. Along with it come the film's official poster and a more detailed synopsis.

Chernobyl Diaries, an original story by Paranormal Activity mastermind Peli, is set in the city of Prypiat, which once housed the workers of the Chernobyl nuclear reactor.

Production took place in September and October 2011 in Eastern Europe with Peli and Brian Witten (Dark City) producing. Alcon Entertainment's Andrew Kosove and Broderick Johnson are exec producers. It was financed and sold internationally by FilmNation Entertainment, and Warner Bros. will be releasing it later this year on Memorial Day weekend.

Synopsis:
Chernobyl Diaries follows a group of six young tourists who, looking to go off the beaten path, hire an "extreme tour" guide. Ignoring warnings, he takes them into the city of Pripyat, the former home to the workers of the Chernobyl nuclear reactor, but a deserted town since the disaster more than 25 years ago. After a brief exploration of the abandoned city, however, the group soon find themselves stranded, only to discover that they are not alone...

For more visit the official Chernobyl Diaries website.

There's some good news coming in today regarding NBC's little show that could, "Grimm". The network, which is in the process of announcing several pickups of existing series, has renewed it for another season.

As Deadline reports, "Grimm" has held its own in the Friday night ratings race, even growing when given a chance to run uninterrupted. That being said, it's being interrupted by reruns for the next two weeks and will return with original episodes on March 30th with "Island of Dreams", whose synopsis follows:

When the Wesen spice shop is robbed, Nick discovers that the criminals may have been after a rare and dangerous drug.

Inspired by Grimms' fairy tales, "Grimm" follows Portland homicide Detective Nick Burkhardt, played by David Giuntoli, as he battles supernatural forces. Bitsie Tulloch portrays his fiancée, Juliette Silverton, with Russell Hornsby as his partner, Hank Griffin, and Silas Weir Mitchell as his confidant, Monroe. Reggie Lee and Sasha Roiz co-star. It is produced by Universal Television with Hazy Mills Prods. and GK Prods. Sean Hayes, Todd Milliner, David Greenwalt, Jim Kouf, Naren Shankar, and Norberto Barba are executive producers.

For more be sure to "like" "Grimm" on Facebook, and follow "Grimm" on Twitter.

With zombies being everywhere this day, it's pretty hard to do something clever with the subgenre, especially in short films where budgets and time can be ambition's biggest enemies.

Apparently no one told filmmaking couple Ashleigh Nichols and Eddie Beasley that because the pair's latest short film - Summer of the Zombies - manages to deliver a charming and clever look at the zombie apocalypse through the eyes of a Vegetarian zombie named Summer, whose veggie-loving tendencies are so deep-rooted, they stick with the ghoul even as she wanders the streets as an aimless ghoul in search of food.

Dread Central recently caught up with Beasley and Nichols and heard more from the duo about their experiences making Summer of the Zombies and what's up next for the filmmaking couple. We also heard more from Nichols about her experiences producing the 2011 horror comedy The Last Lovecraft: The Relic of Cthulhu and the challenges of independent filmmaking.

After reading our interview with Nichols and Beasley, make sure to check out the official online debut of Summer of the Zombies below as well!

Dread Central: Tell us more about your career before Summer of the Zombies, and being a fan of The Last Lovecraft, I would love to hear more about your experiences working on it, Ashleigh.

Eddie Beasley: After moving to Los Angeles, I mainly kicked around different areas of production for a long time. I knew I wanted to make films, but I wasn’t really sure how to go about it yet. Ashleigh and I both worked our day jobs for a while and then decided it was time to make something that was ours.

Ashleigh Nichols: It was around 2005 when I started working as a set PA, and shortly after that I became an assistant to a fabulous producer named Anne Clements. From there, I worked really hard and PA’d both on set and in the office, tried my hand as a costume assistant and as an art assistant, too. Then I found that I was quickly moving up from PA to Assistant Coordinating to Production Coordinating and Production Managing.

It was at this point that my dear friend Henry Saine asked me to come on board as his producer for our film The Last Lovecraft: The Relic of Cthulhu. That movie was a lot of fun to work on, but it was also a lot of work at the same time. I think we all learned a lot about making movies and ourselves and just how much we could push through when we needed to. When you have a limited budget and a lot of locations, set dressing and creature effects, you learn how to get creative and get it done.

DC: What initially inspired you both to get into filmmaking? Have you both always loved genre films?

Eddie Beasley: I was inspired by the large number of movies I watched as a kid (especially horror movies). My dad and I watched all the horror movies we could find at the video store. He introduced me to filmmakers like John Carpenter and Wes Craven, and I’ve been hooked ever since.

Ashleigh Nichols: I didn’t think I ever would get into filmmaking. I was obsessed with acting in high school and was a theater major in college. I did a couple student films but then decided that it was not for me. So while I was trying to figure out my life, my then boyfriend, now husband, Eddie, got me some day-playing gigs at Nickelodeon.

I won’t lie- I hated the 12-plus hour days on my feet, but there was also something intriguing about everyone sucking it up to make television happen; I loved how there were so many people working to make something. But then I fell into indie films and knew that was where I wanted to be; I so badly wanted to be behind the camera on interesting films.

But I haven't always been into genre films so I give my husband credit for that because I grew up watching family films and chick flicks. Eddie started introducing me to the horror genre and proved to me that there are great scripts here, and to me that is the most important aspect: a great story.

DC: Ashleigh, how did your experience on The Last Lovecraft help prepare you to venture off into directing?

Ashleigh Nichols: Henry Saine was amazing to work with. Working with him gave me the opportunity to watch him work and I love how he dealt with the pressure. He's always so calm and makes incredibly smart choices so I hope that some of that rubbed off on me because the last thing a set needs is a crazy director. Things are going to go wrong on set…it is a given and I believe what matters most as a director is how you handle them.

I've also learned that there are people who believe in what I do, and that support really helped me get motivated to shoot this short film.

DC: So where did the idea for Summer of the Zombies come from?

Ashleigh Nichols: Eddie and I were having drinks at a friend's place and the idea was said as a part of a joke. We looked at each other and knew that when we got home that night we had to write the script and then shoot it as soon as we could get the funds together.

We also thought it would be a great story told from a zombie's perspective because in zombie movies, we never get the villain’s perspective. And even though Summer isn't really a classic 'villain', we leave that decision up to the viewer. By telling her story as a zombie, we thought that we would be able to almost make the music composition a character as well and we definitely feel as if we lucked out because our composer is genius and we love the work he (Brock Frye) did.

DC: Can you guys talk a bit about your experiences making the short (your effects budget had to be killer- so many zombies!).

Eddie Beasley: SOTZ was a lot of fun because I got work closely with Ashleigh and so many of our friends who generously gave their time and expertise. We called in a lot of favors to have people come in and play zombies and thankfully, our close friend and very talented makeup effects artist Valerie Pensky came on board with her team to sell the look of the zombies. We shot the bulk of our film at a former correctional facility outside of Los Angeles. I’m definitely glad most of our shooting was during the day because you definitely didn’t want to be there at night.

The casting process was a lot of fun because most of it consisted of having actors do their best 'zombie.' It was a very movement based-audition process and Casey (who plays Summer) came in and wowed us with her ability to find humor in the simplest of zombie movements; she took to it so naturally.

Ashleigh Nichols: I loved, loved, loved how we wrote the scene where the group of zombies see Summer and they turn and head away from her; I thought it was really good writing on our part. But while we were shooting it, dogs were barking, crews were building a set next to us and airplanes were flying overhead. I just was not happy with how this was turning out so we tried several different ways of shooting and slowed things down, sped things up- you name it. So finally Eddie was like 'we have enough!' and I had to go with his instinct. As it turns out, I really was not happy with it and during editing, I realized just how much I loved what we got; I was so surprised and that made me realize that as a team we CAN do this.

Also, my mom is in that scene and I love her so much for it.

DC: Where can genre fans see Summer of the Zombies on the big screen in the future? Any more festival plans after such a successful 2011 run?

Eddie Beasley: We’ve been lucky enough to be in a variety of festivals over the last year including LA Comedy Fest, Shriekfest Film Festival, LA Fringe Fest, Big Bear Horror-Fi Festival and now we’ve got Rincon in Puerto Rico coming up soon and POW Fest in Portland. We’ve been receiving invites to other festivals as well and those will be announced soon on our Facebook page.

DC: Can you tell us more about the upcoming horror comedy feature you want to make together next?

Ashleigh Nichols: Oh, I think I will let Eddie handle that one but what I can say we have several things up in the air right now, including a couple of horror comedy features and a web series as well.

Eddie Beasley: It’s in the early stages at the moment, but it’s set in the South and we would like to shoot it in Mississippi (that's where I’m from). But we are definitely now ready to move into feature territory with our style of filmmaking.

DC: What would you say are the biggest challenges and advantages to being an indie filmmaker have been so far?

Ashleigh Nichols: Money! I think that is every filmmaker's problem because unfortunately, it really does make the world- and the filmmaking world- go round. Without money, it's nearly impossible to even get locations, actors, equipment- you name it.

DC: It's pretty cool to see spouses working so well together; I'd love to hear more about how it feels to collaborate with your spouse and how that dynamic works too.

Ashleigh Nichols: I loved working with Eddie; he has my back and I have his. We are honest and up front with each other and I know he will tell me the truth and we balance each other out. Sure it can be hard but we make it work; we do not always agree but that is the case with any kind of 'co-workers.' You'll disagree with others no matter how close you are. Plus, it’s already a difficult thing- mixing business and creativity- but because I know I am allowed to have an opinion and say what I mean to him, I know that our product will be that much better for it. We are a confident and hardworking team.

Eddie Beasley: Working with Ashleigh has been the most rewarding part of this experience. I trust her more than anyone and that’s a comforting feeling in this industry. We can bounce ideas of each other really well (we’ve spent many road trips work-shopping films). I enjoy collaborating with her and I’m looking forward to our first feature together.

You may be tired of hearing about Lollipop Chainsaw or maybe you can't get enough. A new trailer has just been released showing the badass bosses of zombie rock that you will be headbanging in the game. One thing you can say about Juliet—this girl knows how to have a good time!

From the Press Release
The normal run-of-the-mill zombie may not give Lollipop Chainsaw’s Juliet Starling, San Romero’s heroic cheerleader, a hard time with her trusty chainsaw by her side, but the Bosses of Zombie Rock are a force to be reckoned with. In Lollipop Chainsaw, Juliet will face larger than life bosses such as: Zed, the punk-rockin’ misfit; Vikke, the king of Viking metal; Josey, the master of funk; Mariska, the queen of Psychedelia and many more.

Available June 12, Lollipop Chainsaw is the ‘un-deadly’ story of sweet and killer zombie-hunter Juliet Starling and her quest to uncover the root of a colossal zombie outbreak. With her wickedly awesome chainsaw in hand, Juliet slices, dices and splits her way through hordes of the undead, but soon realizes the horde is only the opening act to a festival of zombie rock lords determined to kill the chainsaw-wielding cheerleader. The game will be available on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.

For more information on the game, check out the official Lollipop Chainsaw website.

Blizzard's Diablo III has finally received a release date of May 15th! The Diablo series is one of the first MMOs that I ever played, and to say I am beyond excited for this release would be an understatement. Also, if you are a World of Warcraft player, then we have all the details on how you can get a FREE copy of Diablo III!

From the Press Release
Diablo® III, the next chapter in its critically acclaimed action role-playing game series, will be unleashed from the Burning Hells on May 15.

Starting that day, gamers with a thirst for fast-paced action and adventure will be able to purchase Diablo III at retailers throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, South Korea, Southeast Asia, Australia, New Zealand, and the regions of Taiwan, Hong Kong, and Macau. In addition, gamers in the regions above as well as in Mexico, Argentina, Chile, and Brazil will be able to buy Diablo III digitally via Blizzard’s Battle.net® website.

Players in the listed Latin American countries and in Russia will be able to purchase Diablo III at local retail locations starting June 7. Digital availability for the Russian version of the game will also begin June 7. In addition to the English version, Diablo III will be fully localised into Latin American Spanish, Brazilian Portuguese, French, German, European Spanish, Italian, Polish, Russian, Korean, and Traditional Chinese.

Blizzard also kicked off global digital presales for Diablo III today. Would-be wizards, witch doctors, demon hunters, barbarians, and monks throughout the world should head to the website now to reserve their digital copies.

“After many years of hard work by our development team and months of beta testing by hundreds of thousands of dedicated players around the world, we’re now in the homestretch,” said Mike Morhaime, CEO and cofounder of Blizzard Entertainment. “We look forward to putting the final polish on Diablo III over the next two months and delivering the ultimate action-RPG experience to gamers worldwide starting on May 15.”

Diablo III will be available for Windows® XP/Windows Vista®/Windows® 7 and Macintosh® at a suggested retail price of £44.99 for both the retail DVD-ROM version and the digital version sold directly from Blizzard. A special alabaster-white Collector’s Edition, sold exclusively in retail stores at a suggested retail price of £69.99, will include the full game on DVD-ROM, a behind-the-scenes Blu-ray/DVD two-disc set, the Diablo III soundtrack CD, a 208-page Art of Diablo III book, and a 4 GB USB soulstone (including full versions of Diablo II and Diablo II: Lord of Destruction®) and corresponding Diablo skull base, as well as exclusive in-game content for Diablo III, World of Warcraft®, and StarCraft®II: Wings of Liberty®. Diablo III has received a 15 rating from the BBFC.

World of Warcraft players interested in getting Diablo III free are encouraged to join the more than 1 million players who have already signed up for the World of Warcraft Annual Pass.* Through this promotion, with a 1-year commitment to World of Warcraft, players will receive a free digital copy of Diablo III - which they’ll be able to start playing immediately on May 15 - as well as an exclusive World of Warcraft in-game mount and access to the World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria™ beta test. This offer will no longer be available as of 09:01 a.m. CEST on May 1.

In Diablo III, players take on the role of one of five heroic characters - barbarian, witch doctor, wizard, monk, or demon hunter - and engage in pulse-pounding combat with endless legions of evil. As they undertake an epic quest to rid Sanctuary from the corrupting forces of the Burning Hells, players will explore diverse and perilous settings, grow in experience and ability, acquire artifacts of incredible power, and meet key characters who’ll join them in battle or aid them in other ways.

Diablo III was built from the ground up to leverage the full functionality of the Battle.net platform, which delivers powerful matchmaking and communication tools, allowing adventurers to seamlessly join forces for exciting cooperative play. Battle.net also provides a secure infrastructure for the Diablo III auction house, a feature-rich marketplace that Sanctuary’s heroes can use to trade their hard-earned treasures. Players will be able to buy and sell weapons, armor, and other valuable items in the auction house in exchange for in-game gold. Players will also have the option to receive real-world currency for auction house sales, which they can apply to their Battle.net Balance for the purchase of a variety of digital products through Battle.net, including Diablo III auction house items, or cash out through a third-party payment service such as PayPal™ in most regions. Further details related to the auction house will be announced in the coming weeks.

To learn more on how to get this great game then visit the official Diablo III website.

One little flick we've been talking about for a while now, the post-apocalyptic thriller The Collapsed, is getting set to hit home video, and we've got all the details for you sans protective clothing.

From the Press Release
Already generating buzz from screenings at the Fangoria Film Festival, the Fright Night Film Festival, Rue Morgue’s Festival of Fear, as well as winning awards at the 2011 Metropolitan Film Festival of New York and the Crypticon Film Festival, Anchor Bay Entertainment presents the U.S. DVD debut of the apocalyptic thriller The Collapsed on June 5th. A chilling glimpse into one family’s battle to stay alive while traversing a hellish landscape of barbarism and cannibalism, The Collapsed carries a gaunt SRP of $22.98.

“I'm very excited to have Anchor Bay as a distribution partner,” noted the film’s writer/director Justin McConnell. “It feels like the perfect home for The Collapsed. They're a company I've proudly collected titles from while growing up, and I'm proud to have a film on their roster."

In wake of an unknown event that has catapulted civilization into a fatal downward spiral, the Weaver family – father Scott (John Fantasia), young adult son Aaron (Steve Vieira), mother Emily (Lisa Moule) and teenage daughter Rebecca (Anna Ross) – desperately tries to survive.

Fleeing the city, their only hope of sanctuary is a rural hometown from their past, Dover’s Bend. With the constant threat of violent death forcing them to stay as far away from civilization as possible, they take to the forest. However, they soon discover that the danger posed by other survivors may be the least of their worries. Someone -- or something -- seems to have followed them into the wilderness...

Special Features

Trailers, photo gallery, original score jukebox & MP3 album download, original screenplay, easter eggs and more!

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Know what was missing from the second Riddick movie? Monsters, and no, those cat things don't count. Thankfully the third film is looking to rectify that problem, and to prove it, Vin Diesel just posted a rather beastly new image along with two others.

Chronicles of Riddick 2, or Dead Man Stalking as it is tentatively known, is currently shooting in Montreal, based on a script by David Twohy, who wrote both the first Chronicles of Riddick and Pitch Black, where he first created the character of Riddick.

Joining Diesel are a returning Karl Urban (Star Trek) as Vaako; Jordi Molla as Santana, the arrogant captain of the mercenary ship; Matt Nable (Killer Elite) as Boss Johns, a man looking for answers; Katee Sackhoff (TV's "Battlestar Galactica") as the Nordic mercenary Dahl; and Bokeem Woodbine (Total Recall) as bounty hunter Moss. Rounding out the cast are Dave Bautista (The Scorpion King 3: Battle for Redemption), Conrad Pla (Immortals), Raoul Trujillo (Apocalypto), Nolan Funk (Aliens in America), and two-time Grammy Award-nominated singer Keri Hilson.

Synopsis:
The latest chapter of the saga that began with 2000's hit sci-fi film Pitch Black and 2004's The Chronicles of Riddick reunites writer/director David Twohy and star Vin Diesel (the Fast and Furious franchise). Diesel reprises his role as the antihero Riddick, a dangerous, escaped convict wanted by every bounty hunter in the known galaxy.

The infamous Riddick has been left for dead on a sun-scorched planet that appears to be lifeless. Soon, however, he finds himself fighting for survival against alien predators more lethal than any human he's encountered. The only way off is for Riddick to activate an emergency beacon and alert mercenaries who rapidly descend to the planet in search of their bounty.

The first ship to arrive carries a new breed of merc, more lethal and violent, while the second is captained by a man whose pursuit of Riddick is more personal. With time running out and a storm on the horizon that no one could survive, his hunters won't leave the planet without Riddick's head as their trophy.

Looking for a quick and fun way to kick off your Friday? Then set your peepers right here for your first look at The Asylum's Abraham Lincoln vs. Zombies in action! Dig it!

The film stars Bill Oberst, Jr., as Honest Abe and comes to us from (where else?) The Asylum, who incidentally have become pretty adept at making cool looking zombies lately. Dig on the goods below, and look for more, we're sure, very soon!

Synopsis:
While the brutal Civil War rages on, Abraham Lincoln must undertake an even more daunting task: destroying the Confederate undead!

On March 30th the new film from Juan Carlos Fresnadillo, Intruders (review here), will be hitting theatres across the U.S., and we've nailed down five clips for you cats.

From visionary filmmaker Juan Carlos Fresnadillo (28 Weeks Later, the upcoming Highlander reboot), Intruders is the chilling story of two children living in different countries, each visited nightly by a faceless being who wants to take possession of them. Intruders stars Clive Owen (Children of Men), Carice Van Houten (Repo Men), Pilar López De Ayala (Juana la Loca), Daniel Brühl (Inglourious Basterds), Kerry Fox (Shallow Grave) and Héctor Alterio (Son of the Bride).

Synopsis
Though no one can see him, Hollow Face lurks in the corners, desperately desiring love but only knowing how to spread fear and hate. He creeps into the life of John Farrow (Clive Owen) after Farrow’s beloved 13-year-old daughter Mia (Ella Purnell) is assaulted in their home. The line between the real and the imaginary blurs as fissures start to open within the family unit. It seems that no security measure can keep Hollow Face out.

Not to be confused with "The Munsters" redux "Mockingbird Lane", what we have on tap here is some casting news for director Bryan Bertino's (The Strangers) new found footage flick for Universal.

Todd Stashwick, Audrey Marie Anderson, and Alexa Lydon are set to star in Mockingbird, a Blumhouse thriller.

The project falls under the micro-budget film label run by Jason Blum; the production banner has a first look deal with Universal. Blum is producing with Adrienne Biddle, Marc Platt, Adam Siegel and Bryan Bertino. Bertino is directing the movie, which will begin shooting April in Los Angeles.

The project, formerly known as Red Balloons, tells the story a couple who are given a camera and a set of instructions. They must carry out what's on the document or someone will die. Stashwick will play the husband, Anderson his wife. Lydon's part is unknown.

Synopsis
Found footage thriller centering on three cameras that are given to three separate households on the same night with instructions to keep filming if they want to live, but as the night wears on, the characters are pulled into a deadly confrontation with each other at the behest of their unseen tormentor.

More casting news coming in for Beautiful Creatures, as two more familiar faces from the small screen join the ever growing cast. Read on for the latest!

According to Variety, TV stars Margo Martindale ("Justified") and Zoey Deutch (pictured right; "Ringer") are in final negotiations to join the cast of Alcon Entertainment's Beautiful Creatures.

Richard LaGravenese is writing and directing the supernatural love story based on the first novel in Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl's popular series. Alcon has film rights to all three books, hoping Creatures will kick off a possible franchise at Warner Bros., which will distribute.

Newcomers Jack O'Connell and Alice Englert star as Ethan and Lena, teenage lovers who uncover dark secrets about their families, their history and their town. Martindale will play Lena's Aunt Del, who helps to protect her from the family's dark side. Deutch will play Emily Asher, Ethan's ex-girlfriend and the ringleader of the high school's popular clique that conspires against Lena. The film co-stars Jeremy Irons, Viola Davis, Emma Thompson, Emmy Rossum and "Project X" star Thomas Mann.

Erwin Stoff will produce along with Alcon co-toppers Andrew Kosove and Broderick Johnson. Richard LaGravenese is directing from his adaptation of the novel of the same name - the first of a series written by Kami Garcia and Margaret Stohl. Warner-based Alcon's acquired rights to the series.

Beautiful Creatures begins shooting next month in and around New Orleans.

More soon!

As you're no doubt well aware, this Sunday marks the Season Two finale of "The Walking Dead". During the episode's West Coast feed, writer/exec producer Glen Mazzara (@glenmazzara) will be tweeting live and providing commentary, including special behind-the-scenes tidbits.

And then on Monday, March 19th, Mazarra will also host a special Twitter Q&A to answer fans’ questions about "The Walking Dead". To participate, all you need to do is sign in to Twitter and then include "#walkingdeadchat" with your question. When asking a question, make sure to use this hashtag so Mazarra will be able to see it.

Mazarra will be answering questions for 30 minutes starting at 7:00 p.m. PT/10:00 p.m. ET. If your question does not get answered, don’t worry; he will be posting additional answers to fans’ most popular questions throughout the week. So make sure you are following @glenmazzara!

Episode 2.13 - "Beside the Dying Fire" (3/18/12 Air Date):
Rick and Carl return from the woods to find the farm in jeopardy. The group is split up in the ensuing chaos. With things looking grim, Rick’s leadership is questioned. Written by Robert Kirkman and Glen Mazzara; directed by Ernest Dickerson.

To stay up-to-the-minute on all things walker related, follow @WalkingDead_AMC on Twitter and visit "The Walking Dead" on Facebook. For more be sure to hit up the official "The Walking Dead" page on AMC.com.

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Just when you thought it was safe to celebrate St. Patrick's Day, Lionsgate is unleashing a trio of cult classics that'll have you thinking twice about stealing any mysterious pots of gold you may find.

This weekend the cult classics Leprechaun in the Hood, Leprechaun: Back 2 tha Hood and Leprechaun 3 are all debuting on VOD in HD for the first time ever, and to mark the occasion, Dread Central had the distinct privilege of chatting with the Leprechaun himself, iconic actor Warwick Davis.

Since getting his start in the industry as Wicket in George Lucas' Return of the Jedi in 1983, Davis has starred in countless classic films including Willow and the entire Harry Potter series as well; but for those of you who fancy horror over fantasy, then undoubtedly you know Davis best as the evil mythological character who has been terrorizing anyone looking to steal his gold since the first Leprechaun flick was released back in 1993.

During our interview with the actor, Davis reflected back on his experiences working on the entire Leprechaun series as well as being part of the Harry Potter films and even chatted a bit about what he'd like to see happen with the newly announced franchise reboot that Lionsgate and WWE unveiled their plans for just yesterday.

Read the highlights from our exclusive interview with Davis below, and make sure to check out the brand spanking new HD releases of Leprechaun in the Hood, Leprechaun: Back 2 tha Hood and Leprechaun 3 on VOD courtesy of Lionsgate.

Dread Central: Is it surreal to you at all that after almost 20 years, people are still enjoying and celebrating Leprechaun and its sequels as much as they do?

Warwick Davis: It's quite amazing, in fact. I love the Leprechaun movies and I love that people always ask me about them. We had no idea when we were making that first movie that there'd even be one sequel, let alone five, and even though we haven't made a Leprechaun film in almost ten years, people still love them and talk about them a lot. That's pretty incredible.

Making the sequels was always interesting for me. See, with the first one I just had a lot of fun playing this character because I never assumed it would go any further. Then when the sequels began to happen, and each time I got to step back into those shoes, I think it got a little easier. It was freeing in some ways because the Leprechaun already had a following for the sequels so it was like I got to have fun with the audience more so than the original film. That's a great freedom to have.

DC: The Leprechaun series has gone to some rather interesting places throughout these films- was that always surprising, or at least refreshing, that they didn't have you always doing the same thing over and over with your character?

Warwick Davis: Definitely. I don't think the sequels would have done so well with the fans had we just made five different versions of the original as sequels. And when you think about it, the Leprechaun HAS gone to some pretty extreme locations- they sent him to space and to the hood. How crazy is that? Although I personally think the Leprechaun is very well-suited to be in the hood; he's a dastardly little creature and that environment suits him.

But the great thing about this creature is that he is a mythological character so if he dies at the end of a movie, he can regenerate for another one. There are no real rules, no kind of throughline you have to follow. We never have to acknowledge any sort of continuity so that's why these movies are so great- there are so many fantastic worlds and possibilities you can explore with a character like this.

DC: Well, let's go back and talk a bit about the hood sequels--

Warwick Davis: Oh I really think those are some of the best ones we've done! (Laughs) Well, I really love all these movies, but those were so much fun because they had such a different feel and I think that's when the Leprechaun was really in 'his element.' I think the most terrifying thing I've ever had to do was to perform the Leprechaun rap; I had no idea what I was doing and I had to ask for help from some of my co-stars even. I just remember they handed me the lyrics and told me to just 'do my thing' and I just panicked. I think I pulled it off okay; fans still ask me to this day to perform the rap, but I honestly don't even remember the lyrics that well.

DC: Even though there have been six movies- is there a story line you would have loved to see happen for the Leprechaun? I'm sure that has to be on your mind now considering the reboot announced yesterday, too.

Warwick Davis: Well, when it comes to the remake or the reboot or whatever it may end up being, I pretty much only know as much as you or anyone else seems to know right now. I just know Lionsgate and WWE are making it, but from what I've heard, I do think it will end up being more of a reboot than a remake. But no one has called me about it yet so I'm not sure what is happening with it exactly. I do know that if they did call me, I'd love to do a seventh Leprechaun movie.

I think people tend to forget that the Leprechaun movies are actually pretty physical movies so I don't know if I can be doing these in 20 years; I'd like to do them sooner than later if I do get called to be this character again since it's definitely a physical role and I'm not getting any younger (laughs).

What I always would have loved to see happen in the Leprechaun world, though, is more leprechauns. There can't just be him out there so I always imagined that after he left the human world, he'd go back to his own leprechaun family, his leprechaun wife who is actually far more evil than he is. I think it would be funny to see this demented character being terrorized by his even more demented wife; and just imagine their kids!

DC: You've been involved with so many great franchises throughout your career, I'm sure it has to be amazing to look back on films like Willow or the Harry Potter series and see how impactful they are on fans.

Warwick Davis: It is pretty amazing to see what I've been able to accomplish in almost 30 years now. Willow was always one of my favorite movies to have done, and being a part of something as huge as Harry Potter is still something that I can hardly believe. And what's been so great about the movies that I've been lucky to be a part of - whether it's the Leprechaun movies, Willow, Jedi or Harry Potter - is that these movies still continue to resonate with fans after each passing year. I'm incredibly lucky to have had the career I've had so far, and I don't think anything could possibly top being a part of Harry Potter. Well, maybe Leprechaun 7 if I get to be a part of that (laughs).

Both "The Vampire Diaries" and "The Secret Circle" ended with pretty interesting twists this week, and in case you're curious how things are going to play out, here are previews of upcoming episodes "Break on Through" and "Curse", respectively.

"The Vampire Diaries" Episode 3.17 "Break on Through" (3/22/12 Air Date; 8:00-9:00 PM):
FAMILY HISTORIES — A century after their first encounter, Damon (Ian Somerhalder) and Sage (guest star Cassidy Freeman) meet again at the ceremony to kick off the restoration of Wickery Bridge. Damon is surprised to learn the reason Sage has returned and pleased when she devises an unusual method to help him figure out what Rebekah (guest star Claire Holt) is up to.

Abby (guest star Persia White) is having a hard time adjusting to her new reality, despite Bonnie (Kat Graham) and Caroline’s (Candice Accola) efforts to help.

When Damon informs Elena (Nina Dobrev) of Stefan’s (Paul Wesley) latest struggles, she reaches out to Stefan to help her save a friend in danger, in hopes that it will help bring Stefan even closer to his humanity.

Finally, when Damon discovers a new secret weapon, he lets Stefan in on the news.

Lance Anderson directed the episode written by Rebecca Sonnenshine.

"The Secret Circle" Episode 1.17 "Curse" (3/22/12 Air Date; 9:00-10:00 PM):
CASSIE VISITS HER GRANDMOTHER AND LEARNS SOME STARTLING NEWS, FAYE GETS A STALKER, AND CHARLES MAKES HIS MOVE — Blackwell (guest star Joe Lando) warns Cassie (Britt Robertson) and Adam (Thomas Dekker) that their love may be destiny, but it’s also a curse. He suggests they go visit her grandmother, Jane (guest star Ashley Crow), to find out if there is a spell to reverse it. Jane warns Cassie that someone in the Circle will die if the curse is awakened.

Meanwhile Eva (guest star Alexis Fast) starts stalking Faye (Phoebe Tonkin), and Charles (Gale Harold) makes his next move against Blackwell.

Natasha Henstridge, Shelley Hennig, Jessica Parker Kennedy, and Chris Zylka also star. John Fawcett directed the episode written by Don Whitehead and Holly Henderson.

One thing The CW does better than any network is cater to its fans, as evidenced by this latest "CW Connect" video of "Supernatural" star Jared Padalecki answering fan questions. We also have a quick peek at next week's Episode 7.17, "The Born-Again Identity".

"Supernatural" Episode 7.17 "The Born-Again Identity" (3/23/12 Air Date; 9:00-10:00 PM):
MISHA COLLINS RETURNS! — Lucifer (guest star Mark Pellegrino) drives Sam (Jared Padalecki) to the breaking point, and Sam ends up in a mental hospital.

Desperate to save his brother, Dean (Jensen Ackles) calls every hunter he knows for help. One of the hunters gives him the name of a healer who turns out to have a very familiar face (guest star Misha Collins).

Robert Singer directed the episode written by Sera Gamble.

Legendary author Anne Rice is the latest addition to the star-studded lineup of guests and talent at Chicago Comic & Entertainment Expo (C2E2). Rice will be appearing at C2E2 to discuss and sign copies of her new book, The Wolf Gift, on Sunday, April 15th.

A daring new departure, The Wolf Gift offers a whole new world – modern, sleek, high-tech – and, at its center, a story as old and compelling as history: the making of a werewolf, reimagined and reinvented as only Anne Rice could create.

Rice became an international phenomenon in 1976 with the publication of Interview with the Vampire, which has become one of the best-selling novels of all time. She has written 31 books, including The Vampire Chronicles, Lives of the Mayfair Witches, and The Songs of the Seraphim, among many others.

Providing literary distinction at an event replete with major guests and artists from every part of the pop culture universe, Rice joins previously announced best-selling author Charlaine Harris at C2E2. Other writers who will be greeting fans and signing books include Rachel Caine, Christina Henry, Mari Mancusi, Chloe Neill, and Veronica Wolff. Neal Adams, John Barrowman, Anthony Daniels, Chris Hardwick, and Joe Quesada are just a few of the other guests scheduled to appear.

“I am very pleased to be adding Anne Rice to our already rich list of literary participants at C2E2,” notes Lance Fensterman, Group Vice President for ReedPOP and Show Manager for C2E2. “She is a preeminent author who is in the very top ranks of her field.”

C2E2 will take place April 13th-15th, 2012, in the North Building at the McCormick Place Convention Center. For further information about C2E2 and for purchasing tickets please visit the C2E2 website.

In addition to her C2E2 appearance, on Saturday, April 14th, Anne will be attending the RT Booklovers Convention. Fans can catch her at two events at the Hyatt Regency O'Hare Hotel near Chicago. Click here for more info on that.