Joe Dante Latest Celebrity News & Gossip

Gremlins director Joe Dante has hit out at The Mandalorian for “shamelessly” copying Gizmo to create Baby Yoda.The filmmaker is set to return to the franchise as a consultant on forthcoming HBO Max series Gremlins: Secrets Of The Mogwai, and recently reflected on the characters’ legacy.“I think the longevity of [the films] is really key to this one character [Gizmo], who is essentially like a baby,” Dante told the San Francisco Chronicle.He went on to criticise the Star Wars spinoff series which introduced Baby Yoda, whose real name is Grogu and is often referred to as The Child.Dante added: “Which brings me, of course, to the subject of Baby Yoda, who is completely stolen and is just out-and-out copied. Shamelessly, I would think.”Disney+ and Lucasfilm have not responded to Dante’s comments.Baby Yoda was first introduced in the Disney+ series in 2019.

EXCLUSIVE: Iconic filmmakers Joe Dante and Roger Corman are teaming with Emmy-nominated veteran producer Brad Krevoy, CEO of MPCA, on Little Shop of Halloween Horrors, a reboot of Corman’s famed 1960 horror comedy, Little Shop of Horrors.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Australia-based indie sales firm Odin’s Eye Entertainment has picked up international rights to adult-skewing animation film “The Weird Kidz.” The film, which has a 1980s vibe and sense of humor, debuted last year in festivals and Odin’s Eye will be using Berlin’s European Film Market to launch an expanded version. A weekend camping trip becomes a disarming and unexpected rite of passage for three adventurous boys and one big brother looking to score with his girlfriend.

Looney Tunes is not leaving Max after all. The streamer released a list that included the classic cartoons leaving the platform in December.

J. Kim Murphy “This is the only person to run a studio who knows how to make a movie,” director Allan Arkush exclaimed, hailing his former boss Roger Corman in front of a sold-out crowd at the Aero Theater in Santa Monica Saturday evening.

The 2023 Beyond Fest lineup is set. America’s biggest genre-focused festival is returning this month with a 55-film slate that includes a Roger Corman career celebration, special screening of The Abyss with James Cameron, the world premiere of Legendary’s It’s a Wonderful Knife and much more.

Patrick Frater Asia Bureau Chief Abacus Media Rights has pre-sold the feature documentary “The Life and Deaths of Christopher Lee,” to Sky Arts, SBS Television Australia; to NonStop Entertainment for Scandinavia, Iceland and the Baltics and to Movistar for Spain. Lee is known as the Dracula character and for transitioning from 1960s Hammer horror films to a distinguished acting career that encompassed James Bond films, the “Star Wars” and “Lord of the Rings” franchises. Less well-known are his aristocratic Italian roots, a close family connection to James Bond novelist Ian Fleming, Lee’s wartime experiences in the British and Finnish military, post-war Nazi-hunting adventures and a side career as a heavy metal rock singer. As an actor, Lee achieved a Guinness world record for the highest number of screen appearances. Produced in association with the British Film Institute and Trigger Films by Canal Cat Films, “Life and Deaths” is an innovative documentary which uses fresh interviews, archive material and multiple forms of traditional and cutting-edge animation, including marionation, to bring one of the world’s leading actors back to life on screen.

The summer movie season wouldn’t be what it is today without Steven Spielberg‘s “Jaws,” which arguably created the blockbuster in Hollywood. The same can’t be said of the 1975 film’s three sequels, each one worst than the last; and the less said about “Jaws: The Revenge,” the better.

Gremlins” never get them wet, never feed them after midnight and never expose them to bright lights. Oh, and one more: if you want to watch the new animated prequel series, “Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai,” be sure to turn on Max (the newly branded HBO Max/Discovery+ streaming service) on May 23.

Max has set the premiere date for Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai, the animated prequel series to the iconic film franchise, for Tuesday, May 23. The date was revealed today during Warner Bros. Discovery’s unveiling of the Max streaming servie in Los Angeles. You can watch a teaser below.

In the theater, someone screams. The lights come up, and the crowd sees two paramedics race down the aisle.

Julia MacCary editor Nicolas Cage and Nicholas Hoult’s vampire horror-comedy “Renfield” will get its world premiere at the Overlook Film Festival on March 30. Hoult (“The Menu,” “About a Boy”) stars as Renfield, the tortured aide to Dracula, who is being played by Cage (“Face/Off,” “The Rock”). Chris McKay (“The Tomorrow War,” “The Lego Movie”) directed the film, and Ryan Ridley (“Rick and Morty,” “The Wastelander”) penned it. Additional cast members include Awkwafina, Shohreh Aghdashloo, Brandon Scott Jones and Ben Schwartz. Lee Cronin’s “Evil Dead Rise” will close out the festival on April 2. Lily Sullivan and Alyssa Sutherland star in the film about estranged sisters reuniting, only to have flesh-possessing demons force them into a battle to survive. Rob Tapert, Sam Raimi and Bruce Campell produced the film.

The Overlook Film Festival has unveiled the full lineup for its 2023 edition, taking place in New Orleans from March 30-April 2, naming the world premiering Universal horror-comedy Renfield as its opening night film, and Warner Bros’ Evil Dead Rise as its closer.

In today’s episode of The Discourse, host Mike DeAngelo goes back in time to explore all of the nooks and crannies of filmmaker Joe Dante’s film career with the director himself, who is currently out promoting his Scream Factory and Shout Factory TV takeover entitled, “Joe Dante’s Film Inferno.” Taking place on September 3 on Screamfactorytv.com at 3pm ET, during the takeover, Dante will introduce and guide you through seven underrated classic feature films from the Shout Factory/Scream Factory catalog, including films like Roger Corman’s “Attack of the Crab Monsters,” William Castle‘s “House on Haunted Hill,” and more.

Iconic genre filmmaker Joe Dante is currently promoting his Scream Factory and Shout Factory TV takeover entitled “Joe Dante’s Film Inferno.” Taking place on September 3 on Screamfactorytv.com at 3pm ET, during the “Inferno,” the legendary director of ’80s classics like “Gremlins,” “Explorers,” and many more, will introduce and guide you through seven underrated classic feature films from the Shout Factory/Scream Factory catalog, including films like Roger Corman’s “Attack of the Crab Monsters,” William Castle’s “House on Haunted Hill,” and more.

first announced in 2019, but after Joe Dante, director of “Gremlins” recently criticized “The Mandalorian” character of Grogu, “Baby Yoda,” for embodying a cheap imitation of Gizmo’s portrayal in the franchise, “Gremlins” reentered the conversation ahead of this week’s announcement. Along with Galligan, Dante returned back to “Gremlins” and served as a consultant on “Secrets of the Mogwai,” which was developed by Tze Chun, who is serving as the showrunner and executive producer as well.

This may come as a surprise to some people, but the pearly gates and well-kept lawns of ideal suburban America? Nothing is ever as pleasant as it seems. Truly a shocker, we know.

Is this town not big enough for the both of the cute babies in the pop culture universe? You might think we’re talking about Baby Yoda and Baby Groot, but no, the director of “Gremlins” now has beef with Lucasfilm’s “Star Wars” character Grogu, aka Baby Yoda, first introduced into the galaxy in “The Mandalorian” series.

Joe Dante is slamming Disney for what he sees as a case of plagiarism.

“I think the longevity of [the films] is really key to this one character [Gizmo], who is essentially like a baby,” director Joe Dante recently told the San Francisco Chronicle of the star of his classic Gremlins films. “Which brings me, of course, to the subject of Baby Yoda, who is completely stolen and is just out-and-out copied. Shamelessly, I would think.”

Zack Sharf A beef is brewing between Baby Yoda and the Gremlins. Filmmaker Joe Dante, who popularized the Gremlins with his 1984 horror-comedy and its 1990 sequel, recently told the San Francisco Chronicle (via IndieWire) that Baby Yoda is nothing but a shameless ripoff of the eponymous creatures, particularly the lead Gremlin named Gizmo.“I think the longevity of [the film] is really key to this one character (Gizmo), who is essentially like a baby,” Dante told the publication.

John Hopewell Chief International CorrespondentHBO Max’s animated prequel series “Gremlins: Spirit of the Mogwai,” which world premiered on June 16 at France’s Annecy Animation Festival, begins with a hint of “The Sound of Music.”A young Gizmo stands in his bucolic grassy homeland, hidden down a huge hole in snowbound high Himalayas, chanting from a circular stone dias, replete with mysterious engravings. As his fellow Mogwai chant back, positioned on grassy knolls around him, suddenly the hills are alive with the sound of Mogwai.Then a shadow falls out of the sky – a huge heinous eagle plummeting towards the Mogwai.

Elsa Keslassy International CorrespondentThe up-and-coming Canadian filmmaking trio behind the Sundance movies “Turbo Kid” and “Summer of 84,” are directing “We Are Zombies,” a comedy based on Jerry Frissen and Guy Davis’ cult comic book series “The Zombies That Ate the World.” Anouk Whissell, Yoann-Karl Whissell and François Simard started shooting the movie on March 29 across various locations around Montreal, Canada, with a young cast led by Alexander Nachi (“Clash”), Megan Peta Hill (“Riverdale”) and Derek Johns (“Moonfall”). Kinology, the Paris-based banner whose credits include Leos Carax’s film “Annette,” has secured international sales to the movie and will unveil a promo teaser at Cannes.

John Hopewell Chief International CorrespondentHBO Max’s “Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai” is set for a world premiere at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival on June 13. Produced by Amblin Television in association with Warner Bros. Animation, the highly awaited animated prequel series to the now classic film franchise will see its first episode bow at Annecy’s biggest auditorium, the lakeside Bonlieu’s Grande Salle. The world premiere will be attended by executive producers Tze Chun and Brendan Hay, along with Joe Dante, director of the “Gremlins” films and consulting producer for the series.

Cinematographer John Hora, who collaborated with director Joe Dante on films including The Howling, Gremlins, Explorers and Matinee, has died. He was 80.

Janet W. Lee Beyond Fest, the highest-attended genre film festival in the U.S., will open on Oct.

Patrick Hipes Executive Managing EditorBeyond Fest has set the slate for its 2020 edition that will run October 2-8, opening with a double bill of the world premiere of Jim Cummings’ The Wolf of Snow Hollow and Joe Dante’s 1989 pic The Burbs.

Gremlins animated series will feature a number of cameos from the original 1984 movie.Gremlins: Secrets of the Mogwai, which is due to arrive on HBO Max sometime next year, will focus on the early days of Gizmo, back when he was under the care of Sam Wing, aka Grandfather in the Joe Dante and Steven Spielberg film.In a new interview, the show’s executive producer, Tze Chun, has revealed that some of the original film’s stars will have cameos on the animated series.“There is definitely going to

TopFilmTip brings you the best films on TV for Saturday, 18 July.Some films may require a Sky subscription.Artificially intelligent military microchip-powered toys wreak miniature mayhem on small town for wayward boy and live-wire crush in Joe Dante’s  ITV1Orphaned delinquent finds fortitude, friendship and self worth whilst facing his society shunning self-discipline demons in  Film4Helium toking pilot mounts sleepy weasel in myopic radar reading, jet fuelled BBQ-ing and sexy pizza eating

One wonders what the original audiences thought, as they settled into their seats thirty years ago, of the out-of-nowhere opening to Joe Dante’s six-years-later sequel to his 1984 smash “Gremlins.” Because “Gremlins 2: The New Batch” does not open like a conventional summer sequel; it opens with Bugs Bunny and Daffy Duck, in a Warner Bros. logo animation that breaks out of the movie entirely for a brief bit of Merrie Melodies-inspired lunacy.