Remember Kevin Pickford from “Dazed and Confused”? Shawn Andrews is back on screen in a major way.

The actor joins “The Walking Dead: Dead City” season 3, episode 5 as Reverend Anthony, part of a new group called the ‘Dead Squad.’ It’s his biggest mainstream role since the 1993 cult classic that launched careers for Matthew McConaughey, Ben Affleck, and Parker Posey.

Andrews has stayed busy in indie films like “Big Heart City” opposite Oscar nominee Seymour Cassel (which earned him festival best actor awards) and “Fix” with Olivia Wilde. But his “Dazed” character still pulls serious numbers online, with over 800 million TikTok searches for Kevin Pickford and 90 million for Andrews himself.

Beyond acting, Andrews is releasing music. His debut single “Ride Like Thunder” was mastered by legendary engineer Howie Weinberg (20 Grammy wins, 200+ Gold and Platinum albums) and has racked up nearly 250,000 Spotify streams. It’s a retro rock throwback produced by Mathew Rucker.

For an actor who built his career on character driven indie work, landing a role in AMC’s zombie universe feels like the right full circle moment. Andrews proves you can disappear into smaller films for decades and still find your way back when the right project comes calling.

Two survivors thought they escaped the horror. The golden mask has other plans.

Pornsak Pichetshote and Alberto Ponticelli are teaming up for *Exquisite Corpses: Lone Gunman”, a five-issue miniseries launching this November from Image Comics and Tiny Onion Studios.

The book picks up two years after the events of *Exquisite Corpses* season one. Laura and fellow survivors Xavi and Jason tried to disappear with her winnings, far from the twisted 13 Families who orchestrated their nightmare. But the past won’t stay buried. The legacy of the golden mask is coming for them again.

Pichetshote, who wrote *The Good Asian* and *Absolute Green Arrow*, is calling this “Season 1.5.” It bridges the gap between seasons while digging into the Lone Gunman’s backstory and the history of the 13 Families. New readers can jump in without reading the main series.

“What happens after you survive the twelve deadliest slashers of all time?” Pichetshote said. “It’s the ultimate Final Girl story.”

Ponticelli, known for his work on *Unknown Soldier*, said Lone Gunman is his favorite character in the series. He’s bringing a rough, textured visual style to match the story’s edge.

Jordie Bellaire is on colors, Becca Carey on letters. The first issue drops November 4 with covers by Ponticelli and Bellaire, plus variants from Rafael Albuquerque, Leandro Fernandez, and others. One variant comes polybagged with a trading card from the recently funded *Exquisite Corpses* board game.

*Exquisite Corpses* moved over 700,000 issues in 2025, making it the year’s biggest original IP launch.

A disastrous first date is about to become the least of their problems.

“The Lonely Crowd,” a new romantic crime thriller from first-time feature director David St. Clair, follows Peter and Ashley as their awkward dating app meetup spirals into something far more dangerous.

After a tense evening fueled by assumptions and frustration, Ashley storms out. But when Peter finds her being harassed outside and steps in to help, he’s suddenly pulled into a world of corrupt cops, kidnapping, and stolen cash.

The film stars Adam Wesley and Taylor Anne Danehower, with supporting turns from Giancarlo Carmona, Jon Oshei, Haley Spencer, Blair Chambers, and Andrew Mena. St. Clair, who also wrote the script, built the story around modern dating fatigue and the tension between men and women struggling to connect.

“Beneath the suspense lies a story about what happens when people see each other as stereotypes rather than individuals,” St. Clair said.

“The Lonely Crowd” premiered exclusively on Amazon in May 2026 and is now streaming on YouTube, Tubi, and Fawesome, with more platforms coming soon. The film is produced by Jim St. Clair and David St. Clair under their banner Desario Productions.

A hand-animated version of The Texas Chain Saw Massacre is coming in 2027, and Dark Sky Films just dropped the first official still.

The project uses rotoscoping, artists tracing the 1974 original frame by frame, entirely by hand. No AI. The goal is to preserve Tobe Hooper’s performances and intensity while creating something visually new.

Leading the animation is Paul Beck, a Richard Linklater regular who worked on Waking Life, A Scanner Darkly, and Apollo 10½. He’s joined by animators Max Peake, Nate Bayless, and background artist Jeremy Martinez.

Fans get an early peek during Texas Chain Saw Day on August 18, when the original film returns to theaters nationwide in 4K. Attendees will see exclusive behind-the-scenes footage showing the rotoscoping process and early clips from the new version. Only in theaters.

There’s also a four-minute audio prologue created by Dread Central and the horror podcast Creepy, narrated by Jon Grilz. It recreates the August 18, 1974 murders before the chainsaw ever starts. Also theater-only.

Special Q&As are happening in LA with original cinematographer Daniel Pearl, and in Austin with cast members Teri McMinn and Allen Danziger.

Texas Chain Saw Day is now officially recognized as a holiday by the National Day Archives. Tickets are available through Fathom Entertainment.

Before Saturday Night Live, before SCTV, there was a scrappy Toronto production of Godspell that somehow assembled comedy’s future royalty in one place.

Martin Short, Eugene Levy, Andrea Martin, Gilda Radner, Dave Thomas, Victor Garber as a hippie Jesus, and Paul Shaffer as musical director. The 1972 show was supposed to run a few weeks. It went for over a year and a half.

While the show was still running, Martin and Levy joined the original Second City Television cast. Garber left to star in the Godspell movie. A few years later, Lorne Michaels was building SNL and cast the first person he remembered from that Toronto production, Radner. The rest is history.

Nick Davis’ documentary You Had to Be There captures the whole unlikely story through interviews with the surviving cast, plus Stephen Schwartz, Dan Aykroyd, Mike Myers, and Lin-Manuel Miranda. Executive produced by Judd Apatow, the film makes the case that this one musical was the petri dish for the comedy revolution that followed.

The doc opens September 18 at Film Forum in New York. For indie filmmakers, it’s a reminder that lightning-in-a-bottle moments happen when the right people collide at the right time.

Image Comics had a strong showing at last night’s Will Eisner Comic Industry Awards in San Diego, taking home wins across multiple categories.

Deniz Camp and Eric Zawadzki’s Assorted Crisis Events won Best New Series, continuing the breakout hit’s momentum. Martin Simmonds picked up Best Painter/Multimedia Artist for his work on The Department of Truth.

Jordie Bellaire won Best Coloring for her work across multiple Image titles, including Assorted Crisis Events, The Department of Truth, Exquisite Corpses, W0RLDTR33, and G.I. Joe. Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou took home Best Lettering for the Author Immortal series and other projects.

The awards are voted on by comics industry members and presented annually at San Diego Comic-Con. For creators working in indie comics, the Eisners remain one of the most respected honors in the medium.

Copies of the winning titles are available at Image’s SDCC booth #1915 for fans attending the convention.

The wins underscore Image’s continued influence as a major publisher of creator-owned work, where artists and writers maintain ownership of their properties, a model that’s become increasingly important to independent creators looking for alternatives to work-for-hire arrangements.

Francesco Cavalieri is swapping power metal for neon-soaked synthwave tonight in San Diego.

The WIND ROSE frontman’s new project V.B.O. will DJ the Transformers: The Movie 40th Anniversary Concert at House of Blues. He’s spinning 80s classics mixed with tracks from Vice Business Only, the debut album dropping tomorrow on Reigning Phoenix Music.

Cavalieri founded V.B.O. in 2023 with electronic producer Simone Giusti. The project ditches fantasy metal for retro-futuristic vibes inspired by Depeche Mode, Daft Punk, and Justice. Think analog synths, driving rhythms, and the neon-drenched excess of Miami nightlife.

The full band includes Claudio Falconcini on guitar, Federico Meranda on keys, and Angelo Carmignani on drums. They made their live debut in January at 70000 Tons of Metal.

Tonight Cavalieri performs from 6pm for VIP ticket holders and curates playlists between sets throughout the evening. General admission doors open at 7pm, show starts at 8pm. Tickets run $50 for GA, $100 for VIP packages.

For metal musicians looking to break out of genre boxes, this is what reinvention looks like.

A grandson chasing money finds something else entirely in “Dear You,” the Chinese drama that’s crossing the Pacific for a September 4 theatrical release.

Well Go USA Entertainment is bringing director Lan Hongchun’s breakout film to US and Canadian theaters after it scored big with critics and audiences back home. The story follows a debt-ridden grandson who tracks down his grandfather in Thailand, hoping the old man can bail him out. What he discovers instead is a lifetime of sacrifice hidden behind years of letters and money sent home.

The film taps into qiaopi, the traditional practice of overseas Chinese sending remittances to family, and spins it into something deeply personal. It’s the kind of quiet family drama that sneaks up on you.

Stars Li Sitong, Wang Yantong, Wu Shaoqing, Zheng Runqi, and Wang Xiaohui are all early in their careers, giving the film fresh energy. After its North American premiere at the New York Asian Film Festival, it’s getting a proper theatrical run through Well Go USA, a distributor known for bringing international films to North America.

For indie filmmakers, this is how crossover happens. A strong story, cultural authenticity, and a distributor willing to take a chance on something outside the usual blockbuster churn.

Mark Pellington is bringing back a piece of MTV history that hasn’t been seen in over three decades. The filmmaker behind The Mothman Prophecies and iconic music videos for Pearl Jam and Nine Inch Nails has turned BUZZ, his groundbreaking 1990 MTV current affairs show, into a documentary called This Is Buzz.

The film gets a special preview Saturday at Beyond the Streets Gallery in Los Angeles, presented as “Analog + Ecstasy,” a multi-screen immersive experience featuring lost episodes of the original series. IndieWire called it “one of the best documentaries of the year.”

BUZZ featured interviews with William S. Burroughs, Malcolm McLaren, Dennis Hopper, The Edge, Timothy Leary, William Gibson, and RuPaul. The show helped define MTV’s visual aesthetic in the early ’90s before disappearing from the airwaves.

The free event runs from noon to 10 p.m. and includes screenings of two original BUZZ episodes, a conversation between Pellington and Oscar-nominated editor Hank Corwin, and the multi-screen documentary premiere with Q&A.

Indie distributor Antenna Releasing will launch a nationwide roadshow this September, with Pellington appearing for Q&As at select cities. Digital release follows in the fall.

For filmmakers who grew up on MTV’s experimental era, this is a rare chance to see what shaped that generation’s visual language.