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Matthew Lillard thought his career would take off after the success of 2002’s live-action Scooby-Doo, which made $275 million worldwide and launched a sequel. He signed on to play Shaggy again in 2004’s Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed, scoring his biggest payday yet and believing his career was only going up from there.

“I thought I’d be the top choice for the next 10 years,” Lillard recently revealed. “But the opposite happened.”

When Scooby-Doo 2 flopped and didn’t reach the $200 million the original earned, Lillard’s career stalled, forcing him to rethink his goals. He admitted he’d been too focused on chasing fame and getting big roles.

At one point, he considered doing Dancing With the Stars but realized it might shift him further from his goal of becoming a respected actor. “I told my agent, ‘I just want to act. I want to be in movies. I need to reset my expectations.

Matthew Lillard has one big reason why he turned down an opportunity to compete on Dancing With the Stars.

The actor recently opened up to Business Insider about his early career struggles, specifically after 2004’s Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed bombed at the box office, much to his surprise.

“I thought I’d be No. 1 on the call sheet for the next 10 years of movies,” Lillard said about the Scooby-Doo sequel, which saw him play Shaggy. “And the reality was, the exact opposite happened.”

As a result, Lillard was forced to reevaluate his career, and that’s when his team at the time pitched him on joining ABC’s dancing competition series. However, the actor wasn’t jumping at the idea.

“I was going to do Dancing with the Stars. And I was like, if I do Dancing with the Stars, I’ll never win an Academy Award,” Lillard said. “If...

After 20 years, Matthew Lillard has come back from the critical and box office fizzle of Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed.

The actor recently recalled the fallout from reprising his role as Shaggy Rogers in the 2004 live-action sequel as he opened up about the ups and downs in his acting career and how he’s found “power outside of just being an actor” over the years.

“I’ve gone through good patches and bad patches,” Lillard told Business Insider. “I’ve been irrelevant and thought I was never going to work again. I’ve been at all aspects of the career, and I love where I’m at right this second.”

Lillard first appeared as Shaggy in the 2002 live-action adaptation of the 1969 cartoon, alongside Sarah Michelle Gellar as Daphne Blake, Freddie Prinze Jr. as Fred Jones and Linda Cardellini as Velma Dinkley. The movie topped the box office when it premiered, grossing $275.7 million worldwide.

Matthew Lillard had much, much higher expectations for the infamous 2004 box-office bomb “Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed.”

At the time, Lillard had secured the biggest salary of his career to reprise the role of Shaggy for the sequel film. The original live-action/CGI feature “Scooby-Doo” was a massive success in 2002, and the James Gunn-penned film franchise poised Lillard to become an A-list star…or so he thought.

“I thought I’d be No. 1 on the call sheet for the next 10 years of movies,” Lillard told Business Insider. “And the reality was the exact opposite happened.”

Instead, “Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed” forced Lillard to reexamine his career. After appearing in Wes Craven’s “Scream” prior to “Scooby,” Lillard had to decide whether he wanted to be famous or a “great actor,” in a binary sense.

“I was caught up in the success of what I was doing, I was caught up...

Matthew Lillard thought his career would explode when the success of 2002’s live-action “Scooby-Doo” (the film earned $275 million worldwide) launched a franchise. The actor signed up to reprise the role of Shaggy in 2004’s “Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed” and earned the biggest payday of his career. The only way forward for his career was up. Or so he thought.

“I thought I’d be No. 1 on the call sheet for the next 10 years of movies,” Lillard recently admitted to Business Insider. “And the reality was the exact opposite happened.”

“Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed” was a critical dud and flopped at the box office, failing to cross the $200 million mark worldwide that the original easily cleared. The failure of the “Scooby-Doo” sequel resulted in Lillard’s career coming to a screeching halt and forced him to reprioritize his goals as an actor.

“I was caught up in the success of what I was doing,...

Prime Video’s October programming holds plenty of spooky, scary and surprising movies and TV shows in store ahead of Halloween like the Haunted House movies, Monster House (2006), Goosebumps (2015) and more. House of Spoils (2024) is an original that will be sure to frighten.

For the full list of Prime Video programming in October 2024, see below.

Oct. 1

Movies:

1984 (1985) 12 Angry Men (1957) 13 Going on 30 (2004) A Bridge Too Far (1977) A Haunted House (2013) – Avail on Freevee w/ Ads A Haunted House 2 (2014) – Avail on Freevee w/ Ads A Million Ways to Die in the West (2014) A Monster Calls (2017) A View to a Kill (1985) The Adventures of Shark Boy and Lava Girl (2005) All Dogs Go To Heaven (1989) All The King’s Men (2006) Animal Kingdom (2010) Aquaman (2018) Arrival (2016) – Avail on Freevee w/ Ads Be Cool (2005) Before Midnight (2013) Behind Enemy Lines (2001) Body of Evidence (1993) Bruce Almighty (2003) Celeste and Jesse Forever (2012) Chappie (2015) Charlotte’s Web (2006) – Avail on Freevee w/ Ads Clueless (1995) Coach Carter...

In the wake of two seasons and a just-released Halloween special, it appears that Max’s adult animated Scooby-Doo series “Velma” has been cancelled by the Warner Bros. streamer.

Background artist Davey Cummings shares on Instagram this week, “There will not be a Season 3, but I hope I get to work with these amazing talented people again one day.”

Max has yet to release an official statement. Stay tuned for more.

“Velma” is an adult animated comedy series telling the origin story of Velma Dinkley, the unsung and underappreciated brains of the Scooby-Doo Mystery Inc. gang.

In this year’s second season of the Max animated series: “When an even spookier mystery grips Crystal Cove, Velma (Mindy Kaling) must find a way to balance her detective work with the demands of her newfound popularity before it’s too late. Meanwhile, her faithful friends Daphne (Constance Wu), Norville (Sam Richardson), and...

Tubi, Fox’s free streaming service, has announced its list of August titles. The Tubi August 2024 slate features new Tubi Originals and numerous action, art house, Black cinema, comedy, documentary, drama, horror, kids and family, romance, sci-fi and fantasy, thriller, and Western titles.

As a leading ad-supported video-on-demand service, the company engages diverse audiences through a personalized experience and the world’s largest content library: over 200,000 movies and TV episodes, a growing collection of Tubi Originals, and nearly 250 Fast channels.

You can watch the Tubi August 2024 lineup for free on Android and iOS mobile devices, Amazon Echo Show, Google Nest Hub Max, Comcast Xfinity X1, and Cox Contour.

You can also watch the service on connected television devices such as Amazon Fire TV, Vizio TVs, Sony TVs, Samsung TVs, Roku, Apple TV, Chromecast, Android TV, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and on the Tubi site.

Tubi Originals

Documentary

Defying Death:...

Seems like the question “Scooby-Doo, where are you?” soon will become very unnecessary — we know that it’ll be on Netflix.

The recent news concerning the fan-favorite cartoon franchise has just made it officially clear that Netflix is planning a big live-action reboot for Scooby-Doo’s story. The previous attempt to revive the story of detective teenagers with a troublemaking dog was made by HBO back in 2023 and eventually turned out to be a flop.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, for Scooby-Doo's new installment Netflix is teaming up with its frequent writer and producer Greg Berlanti famous for his work on the streaming’s hits like Riverdale, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina and You.

No significant details about the upcoming remake have been revealed yet, but the show is described as “live-action update of the classic cartoon” thus making it unclear whether it will have connections with other live-action installments of Hanna-Barbera’s beloved story.

Scooby Doo and the Mystery Inc gang are heading back to the small screen in a live action series for Netflix, here are the details.

Jinkies: Netflix has ordered a live action Scooby Doo television series. No casting details have been confirmed, but we do know (thanks to a Deadline report) that it will be written by Josh Appelbaum and Scott Rosenberg – the same Scott Rosenberg who penned Con Air, one of the greatest action films of the 1990s.

This isn’t, of course, the first time Hanna Barbera’s cartoon has been reworked in live-action. Long before James Gunn took creative control of the DC Extended Universe, he was a prolific screenwriter, and arguably his most successful films, at the box office at least, were 2002’s Scooby Doo and 2004’s Scooby Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed.

The films brought the classic cartoon to life with a pitch perfect cast – Matthew Lillard...

Fire up the mystery van because Netflix is about to close a deal for a live-action TV series based on the Hanna-Barbera animated series Scooby-Doo.

Sources say that the live-action Scooby-Doo project has a script-to-series commitment, which, assuming the script hits the right buttons, would mean it would receive a straight-to-series order. Josh Appelbaum & Scott Rosenberg (Cowboy Bebop) are set to write the series, as well as produce alongside André Nemec and Jeff Pinkner through their Midnight Radio banner. Greg Berlanti, Sarah Schechter, and Leigh London Redman will executive produce the project via their Berlanti Productions banner.

Related Scooby-Doo

Created by Joe Ruby and Ken Spears, Scooby-Doo, Where Are You! debuted in 1960 and revolved around Fred Jones, Daphne Blake, Velma Dinkley, Shaggy Rogers, and Scooby-Doo as they solved mysteries involving supposedly supernatural creatures. Over the decades, the franchise has spawned numerous spin-offs, TV specials, direct-to-video animated movies, comics, video games,...

The second season of animated spinoff “Velma” is now streaming on Max, and it sounds like Velma and the “Scooby-Doo” gang may also be headed back into the world of live action.

Variety reports this afternoon that Netflix is planning a live action “Scooby-Doo” television series, with the streamer actively “nearing a deal” with Warner Bros. Television.

The series is being described in Variety’s report as a “one-hour drama project,” with Josh Appelbaum and Scott Rosenberg attached to write and executive produce.

Executive producers on the upcoming “Scooby-Doo” Netflix series also include André Nemec and Jeff Pinkner for Midnight Radio, with Greg Berlanti, Sarah Schechter, and Leigh London Redman executive producing through Berlanti Productions. Varierty’s report continues, “Jonathan Gabay of Berlanti Productions and Adrienne Erickson will co-executive produce.”

“Scooby-Doo” has mostly been an animated series over the years, but there were two live action movies in 2002 and 2004:...

After concluding March with Raja Gosnell’s Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed (listen) and James Whale’s The Invisible Man (listen), we kicked off April with a discussion of Anthony Minghella’s The Talented Mr. Ripley (listen). Now we’re checking off another classic with John Landis‘ 1981 werewolf film, An American Werewolf in London. In the film, American best friends David (David Naughton) and Jack (Griffin Dunne) are horrifically attacked while backpacking through the UK Moors. Jack is killed and David spends a month recuperating in the hospital, where he befriends attractive nurse Alex (Jenny Agutter) and kindly Dr. Hirsch (John Woodvine). On the cusp of his release, the mangled corpse of Jack visits David, warning that on the full moon he will become a lycanthrope unless he kills himself. But David is unable to accept his fate and a series of terrible murders follow. As the bodies (and the comedy) pile up,...

Scooby-Doo character Velma Dinkley got her own “adult animated series” over on Max last year, and we’ve learned today that “Velma” Season 2 will premiere on April 25, 2024.

“Velma” is an adult animated comedy series telling the origin story of Velma Dinkley, the unsung and underappreciated brains of the Scooby-Doo Mystery Inc. gang.

Here’s the official synopsis for “Velma” Season 2: “When an even spookier mystery grips Crystal Cove, Velma (Mindy Kaling) must find a way to balance her detective work with the demands of her newfound popularity before it’s too late. Meanwhile, her faithful friends Daphne (Constance Wu), Norville (Sam Richardson), and Fred (Glenn Howerton) are powerless to help thanks to their own personal battles and worse… Detention.”

Season 2 will feature Ten brand new episodes.

Russell Peters, Melissa Fumero, Sarayu Blue, Jane Lynch, Wanda Sykes, Cherry Jones, Frank Welker, Nicole Byer, Gary Cole, Andia Winslow, and Sara Ramirez also star.

Boring!

After concluding March with a discussion of Velma’s queer erasure in Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed (listen) and a revisit to the world of James Whale in The Invisible Man (listen), we’re heading to the ’50s to analyze Anthony Minghella‘s 1999 adaptation of Patricia Highsmith‘s novel The Talented Mr. Ripley.

The 1950s-set film sees Tom Ripley (Matt Damon), a con artist who is sent from New York City to Italy to convince Dickie Greenleaf (Jude Law), a rich and spoiled playboy who is vacationing with his girlfriend Marge (Gwyneth Paltrow), to return home. Tom becomes infatuated with Dickie after getting a taste of his extravagant lifestyle, leading to a sinister turn of events.

Be sure to subscribe to the podcast to get a new episode every Wednesday. You can subscribe on iTunes/Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Spotify, iHeartRadio, SoundCloud, TuneIn, Amazon Music, Google Podcasts, and RSS.

Episode 276:...

Gay Flowers.

March featured a variety of conversations, including the Kristen Stewart vehicle Personal Shopper (listen), Alfred Hitchcock’s Strangers on a Train (listen), and Raja Gosnell‘s live-action cartoon sequel Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed (listen here).

After previously covering The Old Dark House and Bride of Frankenstein, we wrapped the month up with another James Whale classic, The Invisible Man (1933).

In the film, Jack Griffin (Claude Rains) is an egomaniac with plans to sell his invisibility formula for a fortune, but first he has to “find a way back” from invisibility with the help of scientist/love interest, Dr. Kemp (William Harrigan). Alas, Griffin’s serum has also turned him insane and murderous, and he embarks on a killing spree that will claim the highest body count of any Universal Monster title.

Be sure to subscribe to the podcast to get a new episode every Wednesday. You can subscribe on iTunes/Apple Podcasts,...

Mystery Mistress.

After kicking off March with discussions of the Kristen Stewart vehicle Personal Shopper (listen) and Alfred Hitchcock’s Strangers on a Train (listen), we’re getting a little silly with a deep dive into Raja Gosnell‘s live-action cartoon sequel Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed (2004) for its 20th anniversary!

In the film, canine sleuth Scooby-Doo (Neil Fanning) once again joins his pals Shaggy (Matthew Lillard), Velma (Linda Cardellini), Fred (Freddie Prinze Jr.) and Daphne (Sarah Michelle Gellar) when the Evil Masked Figure breaks into the Coolsonian Criminology Museum and steals a bunch of costumes that belonged to Mystery Inc.’s previously unmasked foes! What’s worse? E.M.F. is using them to create real monsters! It’s up to the gang to stop the monsters’ attack on Coolsville, while dodging the libelous attacks of television journalist Heather Jasper-Howe (Alicia Silverstone), who is out to discredit their investigations.

Be...

The slasher mash-up Freddy vs. Jason just celebrated its 20th anniversary six months ago, and now we have some very sad news to share about one of its cast members: Chris Gauthier, who played the Jason victim Shack in the film, has passed away at the age of 48. Variety reports that Gauthier passed away suddenly and unexpectedly from “an unspecified short illness”.

In addition to Freddy vs. Jason, where his character was felled by a flaming machete thrown by Jason during the cornfield rave sequence, Gauthier’s acting credits included 40 Days and 40 Nights, Insomnia, Agent Cody Banks, Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed, Dead Like Me, Riding the Bullet, Stargate: Atlantis, Masters of Horror (where he had a role in John Carpenter’s Cigarette Burns), The Butterfly Effect 2, Stargate: The Ark of Truth, Supernatural, Space Buddies, Watchmen, Harper’s Island, Sanctuary, Beyond the Black Rainbow, Iron Golem, Smallville, Continuum, Eureka, R.L. Stine’s The Haunting Hour,...

Best known to horror fans for playing the memorable character “Shack” in 2003’s horror movie mashup Freddy vs. Jason, actor Chris Gauthier has passed away at the age of 48.

The actor died on February 23 from an “unspecified short illness,” Variety reports.

Chris Gauthier has over 100 film and television acting credits on his resume dating back to 2000, with his film work also including 40 Days and 40 Nights, Insomnia, Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed, Riding the Bullet, The Butterfly Effect 2, The Sandlot: Heading Home, Watchmen, Beyond the Black Rainbow, Monster Trucks, and The Christmas House.

On the small screen, Gauthier appeared in countless television shows including “Dead Like Me,” “Bionic Woman,” “Supernatural,” “Harper’s Island,” “Sanctuary,” “Smallville,” “Eureka,” “R.L. Stine’s The Haunting Hour,” “Psych,” “iZombie,” and “Once Upon a Time.”

Chris Gauthier also appeared on Showtime’s horror anthology series “Masters of Horror,” notably playing a character in John Carpenter’s Season 1 episode,...

As I get older, I find it harder and harder to find horror movies from the 80s and even 90s to qualify for a recommendation towards a best horror movie you never saw. First is the influx of all these great companies like Vinegar Syndrome, Arrow, and Severin Films, not to mention Kino and Scream Factory, who pull out all the stops finding the most hidden of hidden gems to clean up and release. Second, we have a ludicrous amount of streaming services, and the free ones typically can find these smaller movies that cost way less to license a streamable version. Between my generation recommending everything under the sun to their coworkers, friends, and family as well as newer generations being willing to stream something if its easy to find, the 80s is well represented, for better and for worse. The 2000s are Chock Full of movies that came...

Matthew Lillard has signed With Verve for representation.

Lillard can currently be seen in the Universal/Blumhouse box office and streaming hit, Five Nights At Freddys’, which opened to an astounding $80 million at the domestic box office in its opening weekend — even with a day-and-date release on Peacock.

His breakthrough came in Wes Craven’s horror classic, Scream along with memorable turns in Hacker’s, She’s All That and Summer Catch. In 2002 he portrayed Shaggy Rogers in the live-action adaptation of Scooby -Doo and reprised the role in the 2004 sequel, Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed. Other notable feature credits include Alexander Payne’s The Descendants opposite George Clooney, Trouble With The Curve with Clint Eastwood and Amy Adams and Stephen Belber’s Match opposite Carla Gugino.

In 2012, he directed his first feature film, Fat Kid Rules The World, a coming-of-age drama that received critical acclaim for its authentic portrayal of adolescence...

With the actor’s strike finally over, Matthew Lillard can finally talk about the plum role he has in Five Nights at Freddy’s. In a recent THR interview, Lillard mentioned being thrilled about how fans have reacted to the film, noting:

“Being 53 years old — and being around the block a couple times — I have a much deeper sense of appreciation in this moment than I probably have ever had because I didn’t expect it. I realize that these opportunities don’t come around that often. It’s been a really rich, joyful moment because I can sort of sit back and appreciate it on a deeper level.”

Lillard’s character, who has a rich mythology in the game, could well wind-up being a recurring presence in the Five Nights at Freddy’s world, especially with the film such a huge hit in theaters and on Peacock. But, it turns...

There’s a lot to watch on Prime Video in October and, as you may have guessed, there’s spooky stuff galore in amongst Prime’s usual rotation of extensive library content.

In the movie Totally Killer, Chilling Adventures of Sabrina star Kiernan Shipka travels back in time to the 1980s to stop a serial killer. Then there’s Make Me Scream, a Halloween special that challenges celebrities to “a gruesome game of terror.” Renfield will also be streaming on the service for anyone who’s been dying (muahahaha!) to catch the Nic Cage Dracula film.

Outside of Prime Video’s more creepy fare, Shazam! Fury Of The Gods will debut, Upload will be back for a third season, and new film Awareness should scratch your sci-fi itch. Meanwhile, for Frasier heads – those who consider themselves utterly Frasier-pilled – all eleven seasons of the Cheers spinoff show will be streaming at the touch of a button.

If you’re looking for a complete list of every new movie and TV show coming to Amazon Prime Video in October, you’ve come to the right place. This month kicks off with a slew of great library additions, from James Bond films to relatively new releases (“Shazam! Fury of the Gods” and the Nicolas Cage Dracula movie “Renfield”) and beyond.

There are also some high-profile originals landing in October. The third season of the sci-fi comedy series “Upload” arrives on Oct. 20, while Oct. 6 marks the release of the Prime Video original film “Totally Killer,” a fun slasher set in the 1980s that stars Kiernan Shipka.

Check out the full list of what’s new on Amazon Prime Video in October 2023 below, followed by a complete list of new arrivals for Freevee in October as well.

Arriving October 1

Frasier, Seasons 1-11 (1994)

Hit, Season 3 (2020)

A Fish Called Wanda (1988)

A Guy Thing...

Max users now have a new way to find their favorite Halloween-themed titles, from hardcore horror to holiday-themed baking shows.

Halloween is officially more than a month away, but to its most devoted followers the holiday doesn’t have a season. For these people, Halloween is not just a holiday, it’s a state of mind. Max has a brand new content hub for Halloween lovers to devour, and more casual observers of the holiday will love it every bit as much.

Max is calling its new hub the “House of Halloween.” It’s one of the featured, rotating content tiles in the carousel at the top of the Max homepage, and it offers specially curated collections of shows and movies from the Warner Bros. Discovery vault that subscribers can start streaming immediately.

7-Day Free Trial $9.99+ / month Max via amazon.com

Get 20% Off Your Next Year of Max When Pre-Paid Annually...

Max embraces the Halloween season in a massive way by putting horror for all ages front and center with a “House of Halloween” interactive spotlight page, and it’s now live. It’s a choose your own adventure, Halloween style this spooky season.

The streaming platform aims to be the premier destination for Halloween. The “House of Halloween” spotlight page separates content into various scare levels, featuring categories such as Sweet Treat, which highlights titles like Coraline, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, and “Halloween Cookie Challenge,” Scary, But Not Scary-Scary, which includes HBO’s “The Last of Us,” “True Blood,” and “Lovecraft Country,” and Haunt Your Dreams, showcasing some of Max’s most chilling content, with a lineup of horror films including Annabelle, It, Evil Dead Rise, The Nun, and The Exorcist, which turns 50 this year.

Look for the second season of the HBO Original horror series “30 Coins...

Spooky season is upon us and Max is getting in on the action.

New to the streamer in September are “Annabelle” (2014), “Annabelle: Creation” (2017) and “Annabelle Comes Home” (2019), as well as “The Curse of La Llorona” (2019) — all spin-offs from “The Conjuring” universe.

Other horror entries include “It” (2017), “It: Chapter Two” (2019), eight “Friday the 13th” films (from the 1980 cult classic to 1989’s “Jason Takes Manhattan”) and six “Children of the Corn” sequels.

As previously reported, over 200 episodes of AMC Networks’ television series are coming to Max in September at no additional cost to subscribers, spreading their availability beyond AMC+. Shows that are part of the partnership include “Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire” Season 1; ”Dark Winds” Season 1; “Gangs of London” Seasons 1 and 2; “Fear the Walking Dead” Seasons 1-7; “Killing Eve” Seasons 1-4; “A Discovery of Witches” Seasons 1-3; and “Ride with Norman Reedus” Seasons 1-5.

If fright flicks aren’t your thing,...

There’s an interesting experiment going on over at Max in September, as from the first of the month you’ll be able to find seven AMC+ series streaming for 60 days on the service. If you’ve been dying to check out some of their best shows but just haven’t had access to them, now’s your chance! Max will be streaming Fear the Walking Dead seasons 1-7, Anne Rice’s Interview with the Vampire season one, Dark Winds season one, Gangs of London seasons 1-2, Ride with Norman Reedus seasons 1-5, A Discovery of Witches seasons 1-3, and Killing Eve seasons 1-4.

Also on Max this September is the original animated series Young Love, a Matthew A. Cherry project which seeks to expand on the critically acclaimed short film, Hair Love. Sam Jay has a new stand-up special on HBO, too. Sam Jay: Salute or Shoot Me will...

The Slither episode of Wtf Happened to This Horror Movie? was Written and Edited by Ric Solomon, Narrated by Travis Hopson, Produced by Lance Vlcek and John Fallon, and Executive Produced by Berge Garabedian.

James Gunn has become a huge household name in the superhero world. From 2010’s critically panned, cult favorite film, Super, to making the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s best trilogy in Guardians of the Galaxy, to now becoming co-ceo of DC Studios and even has a Superman project up his sleeve.

I bet you’re wondering where James honed his craft to become the director he is today. Well, his tenure with Troma Films is well documented but it really all started with his directorial debut, Slither (watch it Here). It’s a film that pays homage to The Blob and feels like a mix of Dawn of the Dead as well as Ridley Scott’s 1979 Sci-Fi epic,...

Scooby-Doo character Velma Dinkley got her own “adult animated series” over on Max earlier this year, and Max has confirmed this week that “Velma” Season 2 is on the way.

Deadline reports, “Suzanna Makkos, EVP, Original Comedy and Adult Animation, Max and Adult Swim, revealed the renewal during Annecy International Animated Film Festival.”

“Velma” is an adult animated comedy series telling the origin story of Velma Dinkley, the unsung and underappreciated brains of the Scooby-Doo Mystery Inc. gang.

An original and humorous spin that unmasks the complex and colorful past of one of America’s most beloved mystery solvers, executive producer Mindy Kaling voices the titular character.

The voice cast also includes Sam Richardson (Werewolves Within).

Charlie Grandy, Howard Klein and Sam Register also serve as executive producers, with Grandy serving as showrunner. “Velma” is produced by Warner Bros. Animation.

The character of Velma Dinkley has previously been voiced by Nicole Jaffe,...

Hard as it is to believe, there have been 37 direct-to-video "Scooby-Doo" animated movies. This, of course, is not counting the live-action adaptations and several television specials and premieres. That's a lot of everyone's favorite scrappy, investigative dog. "Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!" premiered in 1969, when writers Joe Ruby and Ken Spears developed the series for Hanna-Barbera Productions, the studio behind hits such as "The Flintstones," "The Jetsons," and "Josey and the Pussycats" (a personal favorite). The original series aired for two seasons, though the franchise has a storied history, spanning 14 different iterations, including the recent "Velma" for HBO.

"Scooby-Doo" has been an astronomical success — a mainstay of animated pop culture aficionados and casual fans alike. With so much material, it can be hard for newer fans to acclimate themselves to the long-running property. Which series should someone start with? Are the live-action adaptations any good? We'll be taking a look at...

Freddie Prinze Jr. is opening up about difficult Hollywood experiences.

This week, on his “That Was Pretty Scary” horror podcast, the actor opened up about starring in the 1997 film “I Know What You Did Last Summer.”

Read More: Freddie Prinze Jr. Reacts To ‘I Know What You Did Last Summer’ Sequel Rumours: ‘I Have Been Offered Nothing’

Prinze Jr starred in the film, one of his first, alongside Sarah Michelle Gellar, Ryan Phillippe and Jennifer Love Hewitt, but the experience almost made him quit the industry.

Referring to “weird” and “bad things” from the set, the 47-year-old recalled that it was mostly the feeling that the director, Jim Gillespie, didn’t want him in the film.

“It’s not that we weren’t on the same page, I knew what the correct choices were for the Ray character. He wanted a different actor, a really good actor named Jeremy Sisto,...

When news broke last month that Freddie Prinze Jr. was to potentially reprise his role as Ray Bronson in the “I Know What You Did Last Summer” franchise, it was the actor’s first time finding out about the so-called project.

In February, reports began circulating that a sequel to the 1997 and 1998 horror flicks was in the works with Prinze Jr. and co-star Jennifer Love Hewitt “in talks” to reprise their roles as Bronson and Julie James, respectively.

However, while the 47-year-old actor was recently promoting his new horror movie podcast “That Was Pretty Scary”, he revealed he had no clue about the project until his name began to appear in headlines.

He thinks the announcement was “leaked” by the production company in efforts to “get people hyped about their movie.”

Read More: Freddie Prinze Jr. Reveals What Led To His Frustration When Asked To Take A Pay Cut For...

When Zack Snyder's "Dawn of the Dead" dropped in 2004, it earned scrutiny and praise alike. As a loose re-imagining of George A. Romero's 1978 zombie classic, it was evaluated against the original "Dawn of the Dead." Fans noticed the difference immediately; whereas the Godfather of Horror set his apocalypse survivors in a mall as a commentary on consumerism, Snyder's mall was one great, glossy epicenter for action sequences. Proponents of Snyder's movie, like /Film's Joshua Meyer, hailed said sequences like its famous cold open as the best possible use of Snyder's music video experience, whereas Romero would tell Simon Pegg in 2005 (re: Snyder's remake), "The first 15, 20 minutes were terrific, but it sort of lost its reason for being. It was more of a video game."

For screenwriter and now-DC Studios co-head James Gunn, it's true that social commentary on consumerism wasn't at the forefront of his mind during the writing process.

Oliver Wood, whose work as a cinematographer included such big-budget action films as The Bourne Identity and two of its sequels, along with studio comedies like Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby, has died. He was 80.

Wood died Monday, Feb. 13, surrounded by loved ones at his Hollywood home following a battle with cancer, his agent Ann Murtha told The Hollywood Reporter.

He is known for working with a long list of prominent directors, including John Woo on Face/Off (1997); Adam McKay on Talladega Nights (2006), Step Brothers (2008), The Other Guys (2010) and Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues (2013); Edward Zwick on Jack Reacher: Never Go Back (2016); Antoine Fuqua on The Equalizer 2 (2018); and Daniel Espinosa on Safe House (2012), Child 44 (2015) and Morbius (2022). His work on Paul Greengrass’ The Bourne Ultimatum (2007) earned Wood a BAFTA Award nomination for best cinematography.

Born on Feb. 21, 1942, in London, Wood moved to New York City at age 19 and...

Long before she was Buffy, Sarah Michelle Gellar was a child star, landing commercial gigs. The star has had many prominent roles since then, so it’s unlikely most think of her for her Burger King ad. But it certainly made an impact on the actor. Gellar recounts how she was sued by a competitor at just 5 years old.

McDonald’s sued 5-year-old Sarah Michelle Gellar for her Burger King commercial

One of the first campaign ads Gellar did was for Burger King back in 1981. The commercial caused the 5-year-old to get into some legal trouble.

“I was the first person to say another competitor’s name in a job,” the star told Buzzfeed. “[They] turned around and sued the advertising agency, Burger King, and me at five!”

In the ad, the young Gellar is seen sitting on a bench outside a Burger King restaurant, where she tells the audience that...

Before James Gunn was the co-Head of DC Studios, he investigated bizarre happenings alongside Mystery Incorporated for 2004’s Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed. The family-friendly adventure found Scooby and the gang saving Coolsville from an army of monsters they’ve defeated in the past. While the film’s final cut is safe for kiddies, Sarah Michelle Gellar, who plays Dahpne in the movie, says Gunn’s original script was racier, and the cast was down to make it happen.

Speaking with “Watch What Happens Live,” Gellar says Gunn shot an intimate kiss between her character and Linda Cardellini’s Velma. “There was a steamy kiss. It got cut. There was an actual kiss between Daphne and Velma that got cut,” Gellar said. “I feel like the world wants to see it. I don’t know where it is.” Additionally, Gellar says an insult Daphne made to Fred (Freddie Prinze Jr.) about...

Sarah Michelle Gellar confirmed during a recent visit on “Watch What Happens Live” that 2002’s live-action “Scooby Doo” movie shot and cut a “steamy” gay kiss between her character, Daphne, and Linda Cardellini’s Velma. The film also starred Matthew Lillard as Shaggy and Freddie Prinze Jr. as Fred. Gellar said all four actors signed onto the James Gunn-scripted film because it was “less family-friendly,” only for the theatrical release to remove a lot of the risqué moments.

“There was a steamy kiss. It got cut. There was an actual kiss between Daphne and Velma that got cut,” Gellar said. “I feel like the world wants to see it. I don’t know where it is.”

Gellar also revealed that an insult Daphne made to Fred about Fred being gay was also cut from the “Scooby-Doo” theatrical release.

“There was a great line too that I’ll never forget,...

Scooby-Doo character Velma Dinkley gets her very own “adult animated series” over at HBO Max, with the series premiering on January 12, 2023. Check out the official trailer below!

“Velma” is an adult animated comedy series telling the origin story of Velma Dinkley, the unsung and underappreciated brains of the Scooby-Doo Mystery Inc. gang.

An original and humorous spin that unmasks the complex and colorful past of one of America’s most beloved mystery solvers, executive producer Mindy Kaling will voice the titular character.

The voice cast also includes Sam Richardson (Werewolves Within).

Charlie Grandy, Howard Klein and Sam Register also serve as executive producers, the press release sent out today notes. “Velma” is produced by Warner Bros. Animation.

The character of Velma Dinkley has previously been voiced by Nicole Jaffe, Pat Stevens, Marla Frumkin, Christina Lange, B.J. Ward, Mindy Cohn, Stephanie D’Abruzzo, Kate Micucci, Trisha Gum, Ariana Greenblatt, and Gina Rodriguez.

Iconic character Velma Dinkley is getting her own “adult animated series” over at HBO Max, with the series premiering on January 12, 2023. Check out the new official poster below.

“Velma” is an adult animated comedy series telling the origin story of Velma Dinkley, the unsung and underappreciated brains of the Scooby-Doo Mystery Inc. gang.

An original and humorous spin that unmasks the complex and colorful past of one of America’s most beloved mystery solvers, executive producer Mindy Kaling will voice the titular character.

The voice cast also includes Sam Richardson (Werewolves Within).

Charlie Grandy, Howard Klein and Sam Register also serve as executive producers, the press release sent out today notes. “Velma” is produced by Warner Bros. Animation.

The character of Velma Dinkley has previously been voiced by Nicole Jaffe, Pat Stevens, Marla Frumkin, Christina Lange, B.J. Ward, Mindy Cohn, Stephanie D’Abruzzo, Kate Micucci, Trisha Gum, Ariana Greenblatt, and Gina Rodriguez.

Iconic character Velma Dinkley is getting her own “adult animated series” over at HBO Max, and today we’ve learned that the series will premiere on January 12, 2023.

Watch the teaser trailer below, which pays homage to Wes Craven’s Scream!

“Velma” is an adult animated comedy series telling the origin story of Velma Dinkley, the unsung and underappreciated brains of the Scooby-Doo Mystery Inc. gang.

An original and humorous spin that unmasks the complex and colorful past of one of America’s most beloved mystery solvers, executive producer Mindy Kaling will voice the titular character.

The voice cast also includes Sam Richardson (Werewolves Within).

Charlie Grandy, Howard Klein and Sam Register also serve as executive producers, the press release sent out today notes. “Velma” is produced by Warner Bros. Animation.

The character of Velma Dinkley has previously been voiced by Nicole Jaffe, Pat Stevens, Marla Frumkin, Christina Lange, B.J. Ward,...

Freddie Prinze Jr. is recalling a frustrating time in his acting career while he was signing up to star in the Scooby-Doo sequel. The actor revealed that the studio asked him to take a pay cut after his costars asked for a raise.

“I remember thinking, ‘Hold up, who’s giving them the raise? Me or y’all?’ Like we made you guys three-quarters of a billion dollars, you can’t afford to pay them what I’m making on this? Screw that,” he told Esquire.

The Scooby-Doo movie released in 2002 was written by James Gunn and directed by Raja Gosnell. According to data from IMDb Pro, the movie had a budget of 84 million and went on to gross 275 million worldwide.

Prinze played the role of Fred and his costars included Sarah Michelle Gellar as Daphne, Matthew Lillard as Shaggy and Linda Cardellini as Velma. The actor said that the...

Freddie Prinze Jr. is calling out the “Scooby-Doo” production almost two decades later.

The star of Warner Bros.’ 2004 “Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed” revealed that the studio asked him to take a pay cut so that his co-stars could receive raises.

“I remember thinking, ‘Hold up, who’s giving them the raise? Me or y’all?'” Prinze Jr. told Esquire. “Like we made you guys three-quarters of a billion dollars, you can’t afford to pay them what I’m making on this? Screw that.”

The “I Know What You Did Last Summer” alum alleged that the studio also disclosed his salary to the press in an effort to get him to agree. “My ego was so angry,” he said.

The 2002 original film “Scooby-Doo” grossed 275 million. Its sequel, “Monsters Unleashed,” landed 181 million at the box office.

Looking back, Prinze Jr. admitted that the “Scooby-Doo” films have their own lasting legacy with fans.

Zoinks! Freddie Prinze Jr., who played Fred in the Scooby-Doo movies, has come out with a mystery greater than any the gang has solved before. Why was he paid less than his co-stars for the sequel, Scooby-Doo: Monsters Unleashed?

In a recent profile by Esquire, Freddie Prinze Jr. reflected on some of his bigger movies, revealing that despite the major success of 2002’s Scooby-Doo, the actor had to take a salary cut for the 2004 sequel, Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed, while his co-stars–Matthew Lillard (Shaggy), Linda Cardellini (Velma) and wife Sarah Michelle Gellar (Daphne) appeared to get a bump in their checks. Boy, that last one must have made for awkward dinner conversation.

“I remember thinking, ‘Hold up, who’s giving them the raise? Me or y’all?’” he said. “Like we made you guys three-quarters of a billion dollars, you can’t afford to pay them what I’m making on this?...

Back when Freddie Prinze Jr. starred in the “Scooby-Doo” films, there was a period of time when the beloved franchise left the actor feeling “so angry.”

In a recent interview with Esquire, Prinze Jr.- who starred as the Mystery Inc. gang member Fred Jones in the 2002 Warner Bros. film “Scooby-Doo” and 2004’s “Scooby Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed”- revealed he was asked to take a pay cut despite the cast wanting a raise for the sequel, which included his wife, Sarah Michelle Gellar, who starred as Daphne.

Read More: Freddie Prinze Jr. Recalls Falling In Love With Sarah Michelle Gellar After 3 Years Of Friendship (Exclusive)

“I remember thinking, ‘Hold up, who’s giving them the raise? Me or y’all?’ Like we made you guys three-quarters of a billion dollars, you can’t afford to pay them what I’m making on this? Screw that,” the actor told the magazine.

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When looking back on his career, Freddie Prinze Jr. explained why starring in the Scooby-Doo films resulted in some frustrations.

In the 2002 Warner Bros. film, Scooby-Doo, based off the famed animated series, Prinze Jr. starred as the Mystery Inc. gang member Fred Jones alongside Sarah Michelle Gellar, Matthew Lillard and Linda Cardellini.

Though the cast reprised their roles for the 2004 sequel, Scooby Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed, in an interview with Esquire, Prinze Jr. said he was asked to take a pay cut when the cast wanted a raise for the second film.

“I remember thinking, ‘Hold up, who’s giving them the raise? Me or y’all?’ Like we made you guys three-quarters of a billion dollars, you can’t afford to pay them what I’m making on this? Screw that,” he said.

The actor also addressed the studio allegedly publicizing his...

James Gunn is one of the most wonderfully zany filmmakers currently working. He has written, directed, and produced movies across multiple genres, but his signature irreverent — and often twisted — sense of humor is always on display in everything he's worked on. Gunn first cut his teeth as a filmmaker working for the low-budget film studio Troma where he wrote "Tromeo and Juliet," a delightfully trashy version of the beloved Shakespeare play. He began making a name for himself in Hollywood with the scripts for "Scooby-Doo," "Dawn of the Dead," and "Scooby-Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed." His dark comedic sensibilities really shone through with his directorial efforts, including the horror comedy "Slither" and the superhero sendup "Super." However, it was with his popular "Guardians of the Galaxy" films that Gunn truly established himself as a cinematic force to be reckoned with.

Gunn's been able to achieve cult status alongside mainstream success, capable...

From the low-budget gross-outs of Troma films to head of DC movies at Warner Bros. is a journey maybe only James Gunn could have made. Heavily versed in all the classics — Marvel, DC, and Shakespeare — the writer/director's sensibility have always jelled with fans of his generation and beyond. In his younger years, he made cult films that college kids delighted in. As he grew in stature, his pop culture sensibilities became mainstream. Frequently working with other people's properties, he very much made them his own, to the point that his takes often eclipse the originals. Yondu, Peacemaker, Polka-Dot Man, Mantis, Drax ... chances are when you picture all of these characters, you're thinking of interpretations specifically created by Gunn.

Gunn made his name as a distinctive screenwriter before directing his own words, so in ranking his films we're including features written by him and directed by others. We're not including shorts or segments,...

Early spooky season began in September, but for those late to the party by starting their celebrations in October, Netflix has a great slate of scary and festive films and TV shows on tap. “Scooby Doo” and “Scooby Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed” will be readily available the first day of the month. Friday, October 7 is a big day for releases, as it will welcome the third season of “Derry Girls,” “Luckies Girl Alive” adapted from Jessica Knolle’s best-selling novel and a new YA spin on ghost stories, “The Midnight Club.”

More book adaptations to keep your eye on for October’s Netflix arrivals include “The School for Good and Evil,” out Oct. 19 and based on the best-selling series by Soman Chainani. A heartrending and heartwarming dose of real life as well as true love can be found in the “From Scratch” series, based on the memoir of the same name by Tembi Locke,...

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The upcoming film Trick or Treat Scooby-Doo! appears to confirm fan speculation about Velma Dinkley’s interest in women.

HBO Max’s new movie was made available for purchase via digital platforms Tuesday, and footage from it has circulated widely on social media. A number of viral posts focus on fans’ elated responses to scenes showing the bespectacled sleuth, as voiced in the new movie by Kate Micucci, expressing interest in female character Coco Diablo, voiced by Myrna Velasco.

After Velma seems smitten upon meeting Coco, a fashion designer with a criminal past, Velma’s longtime friend and fellow detective Daphne (Grey Griffin) quips, “I didn’t know convicted felons were your type.”

This leads a flustered Velma to reply, “What? Type — me? Please. Who has time for a type? We have our work cut out for us, and I am focused like a laser on … Ok,...