Before zombies shuffled through malls or stumbled across TV screens, they meant something else entirely. Not monsters. Victims.

Maya Annik Bedward’s BLACK ZOMBIE digs into the buried history of the undead, tracing the figure back to colonial Haiti, where it was born as a living symbol of slavery and stolen will. The documentary, which premiered at SXSW, unpacks how Hollywood took a metaphor rooted in Black spiritual tradition and transformed it into one of the most profitable horror tropes of all time.

Bedward revisits iconic films like WHITE ZOMBIE, NIGHT OF THE LIVING DEAD, and THE SERPENT AND THE RAINBOW, weaving in archival footage and interviews with cultural historians, artists, and genre legends including Slash, Tom Savini, and Mambo Labelle Déesse. The result is part cultural reckoning, part horror remix.

The film opens September 11 in New York and Los Angeles via Kino Lorber, with a national rollout to follow. It’s a rare documentary that works as both film criticism and an act of reclamation, offering horror fans a deeper understanding of where the zombie really came from, and what it used to mean.

What happens when humanity goes extinct and the robots are finally free to live their lives in peace? One android Abraham Lincoln decides that’s not enough.

Image Comics is collecting the first four issues of *If Destruction Be Our Lot* into a trade paperback this fall. The sci-fi series comes from co-writers Mark Elijah Rosenberg (*Approaching the Unknown*) and Matthew Rosenberg (*We’re Taking Everyone Down With Us*), with art by Andy MacDonald (*Doctor Strange*), colors by Francesco Segala, and letters by Hassan Otsmane-Elhaou.

The story follows Abe, a robotic replica of Lincoln who refuses to accept the mundane existence of a post-human world. While other robots happily do their jobs without interference, Abe believes there’s something more beyond the city limits. So he sets out to find it, even if it means getting recycled in the process.

Think *The Murderbot Diaries* meets *Fallout*, with the meditative quality of *A Psalm for the Wild-Built*. Patton Oswalt calls it “a bleak, hilarious look at artificial intelligence, real history, and the messed up borderland in between.”

The trade hits comic shops October 7 and bookstores November 3. It’s a weird, witty take on what makes us human, told through the eyes of machines who outlived us.

A real Alabama haunted attraction is getting turned into a horror film, and it looks seriously twisted.

“Hellbilly Hollow” was shot entirely on location at the actual Hellbilly Hollow haunt in Vincent, Alabama. Director Kevin Wayne (The Magnificent Seven, Outer Banks) came up with the idea while filming a commercial at the attraction, imagining a killer stalking victims through the eerie backwoods setting. That vision became this film.

Wayne directs and stars as Tickles, a disfigured, childlike clown. His co-star is rocker Kurt Deimer (Halloween, Scared to Death), who plays Bull, Tickles’ manipulative caretaker brother. The story follows paranormal YouTubers who visit the haunted attraction the night before Halloween, only to encounter something far deadlier than staged scares.

The production went all out with practical carnival-style kill sequences, including Wack-a-Troll, High Striker, Acid Darts, and a Car Dunk. The film features eight original songs performed by Deimer, plus a score by Roy Mayorga of Ministry. Sound design comes from Tom Boykin, who worked on John Wick: Chapter 4 and The Last of Us.

Atlas Distribution Company will release “Hellbilly Hollow” in select U.S. theaters on September 25. Wayne and Deimer are already positioning this as the start of a franchise built around the location and its two deranged killers.

For indie horror filmmakers working with limited budgets, shooting at an existing attraction with built-in atmosphere is a smart move.

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 documentary about one of SNL’s most divisive characters just landed on Peacock.

“We Are Pat” digs into Julia Sweeney’s ’90s SNL creation, a character that became a cultural phenomenon before facing serious backlash. As conversations around trans and non-binary identity evolved, “Pat” went from beloved to problematic. Now, a new film asks: can the joke be rewritten?

Director Rowan Haber assembled trans and gender non-conforming comics to take on that challenge. The documentary features Sweeney herself, plus Kevin Nealon, Molly Kearney, Abby McEnany, Murray Hill, and a roster of cultural commentators tasked with reimagining “Pat” through a modern lens.

The film already had a strong theatrical run, including an Academy Award-qualifying stint at DCTV in New York and a sold-out LA premiere at Vidiots. It hit digital platforms during Pride and arrived on Peacock August 20th.

Behind the camera: Emmy winner Caryn Capotosto produced alongside Haber, with executive producers including Alan Cumming, Lilly Wachowski, and Tony-winning producer Adrian Salpeter.

It’s a timely conversation about comedy’s shelf life, who gets to tell certain stories, and whether a joke from another era can evolve. For creators navigating shifting cultural landscapes, “We Are Pat” offers a blueprint for reckoning with the past.

By Armando

A sold-out Broadway comedy is getting a second life on the big screen. “Fallen Angels,” the Noël Coward classic starring Rose Byrne and Kelli O’Hara, hits theaters nationwide beginning October 22.

The live capture of the Roundabout Theater production comes nearly a century after Coward’s comedy shocked audiences at its 1925 premiere. Two upper-class wives, their husbands away for the day, toast their pre-marital flings only to discover they shared the same lover, who may be headed their way from France. Old rivalries resurface fast.

Byrne, an Academy Award nominee and Golden Globe winner, stars opposite Tony winner O’Hara in the Scott Ellis-directed production. The cast also includes Tracee Chimo, Mark Consuelos, Christopher Fitzgerald, and Aasif Mandvi.

The Broadway run earned five Tony nominations and took home the award for Best Costume Design of a Play. Ellis, who serves as Interim Artistic Director of the Roundabout Theatre, helmed the production.

For theater fans who missed the Broadway run or audiences in markets without access to live performances, this cinematic release offers a rare chance to catch a major production. It’s also a reminder that filmed theater can extend the reach of shows that would otherwise disappear after their curtain calls.

A sister will do anything to protect her sibling, even if it means keeping a devastating secret.

“What Tomorrow Brings” follows Clara as she struggles to shield her younger sister Ruby from a truth that could destroy them both. The indie thriller arrives on TVOD and AVOD September 4 via Buffalo 8.

What makes this film special is the family behind it. Writer-director-producer Matthew Engelbert turned the production into a true family collaboration. His daughters Joely and Phoebe Engelbert play the sisters and contributed to the script. Eli Engelbert produced and handled sound and the soundtrack. Ariel and Zoey Engelbert acted and worked behind the camera, with Zoey also managing hair and makeup. Caroline Engelbert voiced an off-screen role while covering catering and wardrobe.

The production took an ultra-indie approach, shooting entirely on an iPhone 15 Pro Max using full-scene takes without cuts. Zoey Engelbert wrote an original song for the film.

The risk paid off. Joely Engelbert won Best Actress at the Santa Fe Film Festival world premiere, and the film took Best Feature at the Saints and Sinners Film Festival.

For indie filmmakers proving you can make emotionally resonant cinema with minimal gear and maximum heart, this one’s worth watching.

A Welsh short film is making its play for Academy Awards consideration.

Something Pointless begins its Oscar-qualifying run at San Francisco’s Roxie Theater August 28 through September 3. The screening positions the film for Best Live Action Short consideration at the 99th Academy Awards.

The film follows a lonely, bullied boy who forms an unlikely bond with an elderly man. Their connection centers on a quiet daily ritual that becomes an unexpected act of defiance.

Director Asa Bailey (Silo, 100 Years of Solitude) leads a cast including BAFTA winner Owen Teale (Game of Thrones), Olivier Award winner Sophie Thompson (Gosford Park), and SAG nominee Sule Rimi (The Day of the Jackal).

The festival circuit has been kind. Something Pointless has screened at 68 festivals worldwide, racking up 25 wins and 49 nominations. Recent honors include Best Short Film at Baarìa Film Festival in Sicily, Best International Short Film at the Zepstone Film Awards, and Best Actor for Teale at Beyond Hollywood International Film Festival.

The screenplay, written by Neil Graham and David Cormican, won first place in the 2010 Canadian Short Screenplay Competition. Sixteen years later, it’s finally getting its moment.

For indie filmmakers grinding through the festival circuit, Something Pointless is a reminder that patience sometimes pays off.

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 prank gone wrong turns into a night of carnage in Penny Lane is Dead, an Australian horror film landing on Shudder August 28th.

Director Mia-kate Russell sets her debut feature on a sweltering 1986 night, where Penny Lane is celebrating college acceptance with her girlfriends Toni and Amy. When Penny’s jealous cousin Kat decides to spike some cupcakes as a joke, the party devolves into bloodshed. The film doubles as a sapphic love story wrapped in brutal Ozploitation throwback style.

Russell isn’t new to genre work. Her shorts have racked up over 30 awards and screened at SITGES and Screamfest, with Liz Drives and Maggie May each pulling over 100,000 views on ALTER. Critics are already calling Penny Lane is Dead “darkly funny” and “cathartic” (Dread Central), with Bloody Disgusting praising its “modern sapphic lens.”

The film stars Bailey Spalding, Sophia Wright-Mendelsohn, Tahlee Fereday, and Alexandra Jensen. Russell, who made the jump from makeup artist to director, shot the 88-minute feature in Australia with DP Liam Gilmour.

For indie horror fans tired of the same old scares, this one’s bringing the ’80s energy with a fresh perspective.