It’s Sunday, which means it’s time for the horror haul, our weekly round-up and one-stop-shop for all things horror. This week in horror, brings first look footage and images for the new Stephen King series Mr. Mercedes, a new featurette for the other new Stephen King series The Mist, and some excellent new casting additions for Michael Dougherty's Godzilla: King of the Monsters.

Elsewhere, Shudder is making the big move into original programming with Rodney Ascher's Primal Screen, a Ted Bundy-inspired scripted project, an apocalyptic L.A. drama with Sam Sheridan and Patty Jenkins, and more. Plus, a new trailer round-up.

For all the horror news we’ve already covered on the site this week, you can click through the links below. Then, check out other genre highlights from the week and finish it all up with a rundown of the week in horror movie trailers. For more, be sure to hit up Collider Nightmares or our round-up of the best horror movies on Netflix. Thanks for tuning in, and sound off in the comments with your thoughts, questions, and other horror musings.

News

The Best Horror Movies of 2017 So Far

‘Seven Sisters’ Trailer Shows off Noomi Rapace’s Strong ‘Orphan Black’ Vibes

M. Night Shyamalan’s ‘Tales from the Crypt’ Reboot Dead at TNT

‘Preacher’ Trailer Suggests the AMC Series Might Actually Start Adapting the Comics

Exclusive ‘Alien: Covenant’ Concept Art Reveals Ridley Scott’s Second Stab at the Xenomorph

Adam Wingard Tapped to Direct ‘Godzilla vs Kong’

Rumor: Dwayne Johnson Eyed for Wolfman in Universal’s Dark Universe

‘Annihilation’ Author Says Alex Garland’s Film Is “Extremely Horrific” and “Mind-Blowing”

Interviews

‘American Gods': Neil Gaiman on Changes from the Book & the Status of His Sequel

‘The Originals’: Daniel Gillies on Directing His Co-Stars & Michael Narducci’s Departure

‘Get Out': Allison Williams and Daniel Kaluuya on That Alternate Ending

'The Mist' Teaser Introduces Eve Copeland

Stephen King is having a hell of a year, but then again when isn't he? King is one of the most heavily adapted authors of all time, and this year is breaking out some big guns with the highly-anticipated adaptations of IT and The Dark Tower, as well as the TV adaptations of Mr. Mercedes and The Mist.

The Mist is the first on the docket, and a head of the June 22 premiere, Spike has debuted a new featurette introducing one of our heroes, Alyssa Sutherland's Eve Copeland; a tough-willed mother and teacher with a reputation as the town's former wild child.

From series creator Christian Torpe (Rita), The Mist also stars Morgan Spector, Gus Birney, Danica Curcic, Okezie Morro, Luke Cosgrove, Darren Pettie, Russell Posner, Dan Butler, Isiah Whitlock Jr., and Frances Conroy.

Here's the full series synopsis:

Based on a story by Stephen King, Spike’s The Mist centers around a small town family that is torn apart by a brutal crime. As they deal with the fallout an eerie mist rolls in, suddenly cutting them off from the rest of the world and, in some cases, each other. Family, friends and adversaries become strange bedfellows, battling the mysterious mist and its threats, fighting to maintain morality and sanity as the rules of society break down.

'Mr. Mercedes' Teaser Reveals New Stephen King Series

Next up on the Stephen King train is a much more recent addition to his literary catalogue, AT&T Audience Network's adaptation of his 2014 novel Mr. Mercedes. Described by King as his first hardboiled detective story, the adaptation comes from David E. Kelley and stars Harry Treadaway (Penny Dreadful) as Brady Hartsfield, a psychopathic killer who reemerges from a high-profile cold case to to torment Brendan Gleeson's Bill Hodges, a retired detective who's off his game, but still bothered by the one cold case he never solved. What follows is a cat-and-mouse between the two men as Hodges makes it his mission to track down the creepy killer no matter the cost.

USA Today has debuted the first look footage for the new series, which also stars Kelly Lynch, Holland TaylorMary Louise-ParkerJharrel Jerome, Scott Lawrence, Robert Stanton, Breeda Wool, Justine Lupe and Ann Cusack.

Watch the video above and check out two new images below.

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Bradley Whitford and Thomas Middleditch Join 'Godzilla 2'

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Image via Universal

Krampus writer-director Michael Dougherty is gearing up for his Godzilla sequel Godzilla: King of the Monsters, and he's rapidly putting together one delightful cast. The film is set to star Kyle Chandler, Vera Farmiga, and Millie Bobby Brown as the most instantly, infinitely likable family unit of all time, and this week Dougherty has recruited Bradley Whitford and Silicon Valley's Thomas Middleditch to join them. Deadline broke the news on Whitford, while Variety reported Middleditch, however neither outlet had any details on who the actor's would be playing as plot details are still being kept tightly under wraps. The script comes from Dougherty and Krampus co-writer Zach Shields.

Godzilla: King of the Monsters hits theaters on March 22, 2019, with the beastie battle royal Godzilla vs. Kong (which recruited The Guest director Adam Wingard earlier this week) is scheduled to land in theaters the following year on May 22, 2020.

The Crooked Man Could Be the Next 'Conjuring' Spinoff

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Image via Warner Bros.

Warner Bros. and New Line are all in on their growing The Conjuring universe. James Wan's breakout horror hit first spawned the possessed doll spinoff Anabelle, which receives a sequel later this year, before conjuring up Colin Hardy's The Nun, inspired by the ghoulish figure seen in Wan's sequel The Conjuring 2. Now it seems another of Wan's freaky character creations from the sequel is in contention to get his own film, the divisive Crooked Man, who was fantastically creepy but felt a bit out of place in the world of The Conjuring.

Speaking with JoBlo on the set of Annabelle: Creation, producer Peter Safran had a whole lot to say about the possible spinoff, and the split fan response to the character.

Its an excellent question, because obviously the Crooked Man was one of the ones were contemplating spinning off and when we tested the movie it was the most polarizing character. It had the most people who loved it and the most people who hated it, but it really was - people loved it.

 

The people who loved it wrote, “That’s awesome!” A lot of the people who didn’t like it, their criticism was, “That’s all CG! That’s all CG.” None of it was CG. It was 100% practical. That actor just looks like that, we created an amazing wardrobe for him. Skin tight latex-basically suit. And he walks - I’m sure you’ve all youtubed his test for Mama, crawling around before they decided to go CG.

 

So I think there’s something fascinating in the Crooked Man. Maybe tonally he’s not as grounded as the Conjuring itself is and maybe that’s why some people felt it wasn’t what they were looking for in the Conjuring but I suspect a movie with him would be really really cool.I love the character, just things like the transformation from the dog into the Crooked Man and the way he walked. It’s one of those characters when I see his fingers coming out when Ed Warren has kind of blinded by the steam and is coming into the living room where the TV is, there’s a thing where his fingers come around a door and every time I see that I just love what that character can be.

 

And we have some interesting ideas for him. So we’ll see.

Shudder Moves into Original Content with Patty Jenkins and Rodney Ascher

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Shudder has been killing it lately in the exclusive premiere game, and now the horror streaming service is moving to original content with a packed slate of new programs. Shudder is developing six new titles, and the original programming slate will launch on Thursday, June 8 with Rodney Ascher's (Room 237, The Nightmare) new documentary Primal Screen, which "explores how individuals are simultaneously attracted to and repelled by what scares them most."

Check out a breakdown of the rest of the new projects below:

  • Deadwax – A short form series about the hunt for a mysterious record that drives its owners mad... and kills anyone who dares to play it.  From Graham Reznick, co-writer of Until Dawn and director of I Can See You.
  • Ripore – In the heart of gangland Los Angeles, a gruesome discovery sparks a frenetic Homicide Investigation; but underneath the surface lurks a darkness that leads to the end of days. From by Sam Sheridan (former MMA fighter and Author of A Fighter's Heart and The Disaster Diaries) and with Patty Jenkins attached.
  • The Blondes – A woman treks to find the father of her unborn child, while navigating a world where blonde haired women could turn into rabid monsters at any moment. Based on the novel by Emily Schultz and executive produced by J. Todd Harris, Marc Marcum, and Branded Entertainment.
  • Untitled Arkasha Stevenson Project – A serial killer series loosely based on Ted Bundy and his relationship with his long-time girlfriend, written and directed by Arkasha Stevenson (Pineapple).

Trailer Trash: Gray Matter, Kudzu Zombies

Gray Matter https://www.youtube.com/embed/2HDF9K84XSM

Since the 1940’s alien beings known as “GRAYS” have been sighted around the globe with the thought that they visit our planet to study our species and civilization before they eventually invade…but what if we’re wrong? What if they are only here to protect us? After a meteorite crashes to earth awakening the extraterrestrial creature within, a young woman is abducted by an alien “GRAY” to aide in hunting down and destroying the creature before it can reach a second meteorite that fell to earth decades earlier unleashing its deadly infestation of earth.

What the Waters Left Behind https://www.youtube.com/embed/6eZplowXaE4

Epecuén was one of the most important touristic villages of Argentina. Thousands of people concurred, attracted by the healing properties of its thermal waters. On November 10th 1985, a huge volume of water broke the protecting embankment and the village was submerged under ten meters of salt water. Epecuén disappeared. Thirty years later, the waters receded and the ruins of Epecuén emerged exposing a bleak and deserted landscape. The residents never returned. The plot revolves around a group of young people that take a trip to the ruins in order to film a documentary about Epecuén. Ignoring the warnings, and after a brief tour, they get stranded in the abandoned village. Contrary to what they thought, they begin to realize that they are really not alone…

Kudzu Zombies https://www.youtube.com/embed/3ys7xu1867o

Kudzu was originally brought to the U.S. as an ornamental plant in the 19th century, but was used planted heavily by southern states for erosion control and as a cheap feed for livestock. The vine turned out to be a real survivor type and began to dominate the American South, choking off the native species of plants and making it tough to farm the land. Enter GloboBioTech, a large agrochemical corporation that has chosen Charleston to test its new herbicide, Quadoxin, that’s been designed to kill the foreign and invasive Kudzu vine (and nothing else) once and for all. Only this year Quadoxin unwittingly enters the human food chain. Creighton’s goats have been feeding on the kudzu and the herbicide metabolizes in their bodies. Once humans consume the goat meat it turns them into zombies — “Kudzu Zombies.” While “healthy eaters” like vegans, vegetarians, and those who didn’t eat the meat pies are untouched by the chemical change, they are now forced to defend themselves against their friends and fellow town citizens who are turning into zombies left and right, eventually becoming a large horde of killer Kudzu Zombies. Will the survivors find a way to safety and be able to alert others to the horror of Kudzu Zombies?

Awaken the Shadowman https://www.youtube.com/embed/h8rhsooyoDw

After the mysterious disappearance of their mother, an estranged family reunites and discovers an unknown supernatural force.