I walked into a theater that smelled faintly of popcorn and mildew and found a poster of Conan nailed over the exit. You feel that tug — the memory of a sword on your palm — and realize franchises never sleep. I want to tell you what’s changing and why it matters.
King Conan
A faded poster of Arnold Schwarzenegger still peeks out from the corner of my local comic shop; people still talk about that first roar. Arnold confirmed to The Arnold Fans (via The Hollywood Reporter) that King Conan will begin filming next year. He’s been nagging at the idea for a decade: a script that honors Robert E. Howard and the artwork of Frank Frazetta, with John Milius possibly producing.
Next year, we are going to do King Conan. So that is a reality now, and I am excited about it. For the last 10 years, I have been saying, ‘We should do King Conan, and we should get a great script written, get someone who really understands Robert E. Howard, that understands the artwork of Frank Frazetta and to continue on.’ I want to have John Milius, the director of Conan 1, to be maybe the producer. So it will be really fantastic.
I’m watching this through a historian’s lens. You should know: Arnold’s push for authenticity matters to collectors and studios alike. The choice of Milius as a producer signals an attempt to tether the sequel to the original’s DNA rather than strip it into a glossy reboot.
When will King Conan begin filming?
Schwarzenegger places production in the coming year, which puts preproduction and casting in motion now — names, locations, and department heads will follow fast if the studio keeps its calendar.
Bond 26
I noticed a thread on Screen Daily where Steven Knight explained his research rhythm; you can almost hear the boots. Knight says he’s met with “the SAS and even more secret outfits” while shaping Amazon’s next Bond script, treating Ian Fleming’s espionage pedigree as a research baseline.
[I’ve been meeting with] the SAS and even more secret outfits. I am talking to them about what they do every day. It’s all real. [Ian Fleming]… was living that life. In the war, he was doing those things. He knew people doing that stuff, going out there and killing people. Ian Fleming was such a great writer. To be a writer, you have got to know about people.
I read that and thought about fidelity versus reinvention. You want a Bond that feels lived in; Amazon wants a Bond that can be streamed and binged. Knight frames Bond as folklore — a character diamond that survives variations — which is a sales pitch wrapped in respect.
What research is Steven Knight doing for Bond 26?
Knight reports meeting with elite units and covert sources to ground Bond’s methods in current tradecraft, an approach that signals a grittier, intelligence-led tone rather than pure spectacle.
The MCU / Avengers: Secret Wars
At a press junket for Ladies First I watched Sacha Baron Cohen smirk into a camera and suggest doors are not closed. He hinted Mephisto could return to the MCU, saying he thinks Mephisto will precede another Borat.
The MCU’s gestures toward Mephisto feel like a thread pulled through a tapestry; the stakes now are multiversal and legal headaches. You should file the possibility away — Marvel Studios loves a comeback that shifts narrative gravity.
Birds of the Soul
I skimmed Deadline’s calendar and saw Constantin Popescu scheduling back-to-back shoots; that happens when a filmmaker wants momentum. Birds of the Soul is set in the Carpathians in 1917, where wartime paranoia collides with old myths and supernatural tremors — a fertile mix for a franchise if audiences bite.
I follow Romanian cinema closely; when a director plans two films at once, they’re banking on an audience that will keep returning.
The Summoning
A friend sent me a trailer at midnight; people share creepy clips like contraband. The trailer for The Summoning leans into Creepypasta horror, as a group of babysitters conjures the character Baby Blue. If you like online folklore translated to screen, this one is for you.
Master of the Universe
I spotted The Asylum’s logo and raised an eyebrow; their output is reliably shameless. They’ve released a trailer for Master of the Universe, their mockbuster riff on the classic brand, and it’s pure Asylum economy: familiar beats, fast turnaround, and immediate streaming placement.
Amityville Shark House
Someone in my timeline shared a poster with a shark and candles; social feeds eat that up. The trailer for Amityville Shark House promises a cult-worship angle — an owner discovers a shark-worshipping group using his living room for rituals — and that premise sells midnight viewers.
Rick and Morty: The Movie
I remember first seeing Rick and Morty on a late-night block and thinking the show belonged on a larger stage. Dan Harmon told CinemaBlend the movie is moving forward with Jacob Hair directing; Harmon described Hair’s arrival as adding a pillar to the project’s structure.
Jacob Hair is the director. I mean, we didn’t shop around. He is an absolute — to say rock star is honestly feels like trivializing it, because that implies some kind of flash in the pan, kind of exciting. Jacob has it, came onto our team. It was like adding a pillar to it.
Who is directing the Rick and Morty movie?
Jacob Hair is attached as director, with Dan Harmon and the series creators shepherding the tonal core for cinema while Netflix and theatrical partners negotiate distribution windows.
Hell Motel: Murder at Red Mountain
I passed a Shudder ad in my feed and remembered how effective slow-burn horror can be. Bloody-Disgusting reports Devon Sawa stars in season two of Shudder’s Hell Motel, directed by Adam MacDonald. The season is set at a mountain resort where inhibitions leak away and people vanish; the pitch promises psychological and physical peril.
The Boroughs
A new featurette dropped on Netflix and the comments lit up; people love character-driven trailers. The featurette for The Boroughs introduces residents whose small stakes feel like a pressure cooker for big reveals.
Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel, Star Wars, and Star Trek releases, what’s next for the DC Universe on film and TV, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who.
Conan stands as a bronze statue that still flexes, and Hollywood’s sequel machine is a clockwork heart, pumping franchises in rhythm; will you be watching every step or skipping ahead to the credits?