Schafer, in a 30-second video posted to the official Double Fine Twitter account, basically said Microsoft rolled up with “a bunch of money” and made the team an offer they couldn’t refuse. The video features all the slow-mo head movement and melodrama that would make any soap opera jealous.
As you may have heard from the @Xbox E3 briefing moments ago, Double Fine is joining Xbox Game Studios! How did this come about? let’s ask @timoflegend … pic.twitter.com/n6EACVo7OZ
The studio’s next game, Rad, a post-apocalyptic action game published by Bandai Namco, is set to release on August 20 for Nintendo Switch, PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One. Psychonauts 2–set to arrive sometime in 2020 for PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One–will mark the studio’s first game published under the Xbox Game Studios moniker.
Bad Robot Pictures and Abrams, which have produced television shows under the Warner Bros. TV label since 2006, were being courted by nearly every major player in the entertainment space over the last six months. Apple, Comcast, Netflix, Sony Entertainment and Amazon all reportedly held deals with Abrams, according to the Reporter. Aspects of the deal are still uncertain — including whether or not Abrams will be allowed to direct films for competitors, which was a clause in his previous deal. That’s why he could return…
Every week, streaming services like Amazon Video Prime, Hulu, and Shudder–which specializes in horror–release new content for its users to check out. But how do you keep track of what’s coming out every day? Luckily, GameSpot has you covered with a breakdown of this week’s releases.
Over on Amazon, the week kicks off on Monday with Season 8 of the long-running legal drama Suits. Aside from that, there is one original movie that day and three original series at the end of the week. It’s a very light week for new content on Amazon.
Hulu, on the other hand, has plenty of new TV shows and movies to stream this week. The highlight comes on Friday, when all of the new summer game shows land after they air on network TV. The one that looks like strangest/most watchable is Holey Moley. Hosted by Stephen Curry, the series is like mini-golf, if mini-golf landed in a pool of gamma waste, was bit by a radioactive spider, and was born on an alien planet. It’s extreme miniature golf on a ridiculous, over-the-top course. People will fall trying to putt a ball, and I will laugh.
If you hate laughing, and you’re more into being scared, then you’re probably subscribed to Shudder. There are a few fantastic releases this week, including the 2016 South Korean movie The Wailing. It’s centered around a small village where an infectious sickness breaks out, and it’s one of the country’s best horror films, which is saying a lot as Korean horror is pretty awesome as a whole. Additionally, there’s Shudder Guides coming out this week which is a five-part series featuring Shudder’s lead curator, Sam Zimmerman, discussing horror sub-genres.
Below, you’ll find all of this week’s releases from Amazon Prime Video, Hulu, and Shudder. Make sure to see what’s coming out to Netflix this week as well.
June 16
Hulu
The Riveras: Complete Season 3 (Telemundo)
The Good Shepherd (2006)
June 17
Amazon
Yardie (2018) – Amazon Original movie
Suits Season 8
Hulu
Das Boot: Complete Season 1 (Sonar)
Shudder
The Wailing (2016)
The Wild Boys (2017)
June 18
Hulu
Grand Hotel: Series Premiere (ABC)
Star vs. The Forces of Evil: Complete Season 4 (Disney XD)
closest picture yet of Bennu, the deep-space rock it’s been hovering around since the end of last year. The high-resolution image highlights the object’s very rocky surface and even showcases a very large boulder on its southern half.
OSIRIS-REx took this up-close picture on June 13th, right after the spacecraft inserted itself into orbit around Bennu for the second time. The vehicle first got into Bennu’s orbit on December 31st, 2018, flying about a mile away from the asteroid’s surface. From that path, OSIRIS-REx mapped Bennu’s surface in intricate detail, and also observed some interesting things from this vantage point, including rocks spewing from Bennu’s surface.
The upcoming 2020 follow-up to Ghostbusters will cap off some two decades of “true Ghostbusters sequel” talk. For years, original Ghostbusters co-star and co-writer Dan Aykroyd was quoted saying he was nearing production on Ghostbusters 3, an international take known as “Hellbent.” That would have taken the team into Scotland then back to a spirit-infested Manhattan (called “Manhellton” after a demonic takeover) with planned co-star Adam Baldwin in the villain role. “We kind of lost interest for a while there. After the second movie, it was successful, but everybody went on to new things,” Aykroyd told GameSpot during the lead-up to Ghostbusters Fan Fest in Los Angeles.
“We tried different stories. Nobody was happy with the story. I think Hellbent could have worked, but I had other collaborators there, and we were all a team. Harold [Ramis], Ivan [Reitman], myself, Bill [Murray]–no one found a story that we all liked,” lamented Aykroyd.
A well-received Ghostbusters video game came out in 2009 (and there’s an HD remaster due out soon). Aykroyd himself compares that to a third movie, although the script was internally written at developer Terminal Reality. All four stars–Aykroyd, Ernie Hudson, Bill Murray, and Harold Ramis–returned to their roles. A movie, however, wasn’t to be.
In 2016, Paul Feig directed a Ghostbusters reboot with Melissa McCarthy, Kristen Wiig, Kate McKinnon, and Leslie Jones starring. Aykroyd was one of the executive producers. “I really liked the ladies’ movie. I liked the idea, and I liked the movie, I just wish that I’d been watching the economics of it, as one of the sets of eyes that was producing it,” said Aykroyd.
With a production budget of $144 million, the box office draw was $229 million worldwide. Despite that, thanks to a gargantuan marketing budget, Sony didn’t turn a profit. “You trust the director, and he had his vision, so we let him do his vision, and just economically, it stopped us from doing another ladies’ movie. I would have loved that, and maybe we will someday,” said Aykroyd. “Those are master comediennes there, and really, I think this thing’s going to do really well in DVD and ancillary, and they’re going to make their money back someday.”
Before release (and after too), the cast members became targets of online harassment. At one point, Leslie Jones deleted her Twitter account to get away from the hate. Aykroyd didn’t take the vitriolic response lightly when asked about it. “Everybody that is in comedy, everybody that knows a good performance, and anybody who’s a fan of those four ladies, just loved the picture, because they really delivered. Anything less than that, is simply just straight up prejudice and bias that should not be tolerated in any way, in my view,” he said.
In spite of the 2016 box office, a 2020 film is a go. The still untitled sequel will again see Aykroyd in a producer role, with Ivan Reitman’s son, Jason Reitman, directing. “Jason came up with this idea, which is just so good, everybody got it right away and understood. It will connect, better than anything, to the first movie,” said Aykroyd. “That’s about all I can say about it, but the two movies will connect, in a way that hasn’t been done before.”
With Wizard World’s Ghostbusters Fan Fest recently held on Sony’s studio lot in LA and a 35th anniversary SteelBook 4K Blu-ray release including both original films out now, Ghostbusters fandom doesn’t show signs of slowing down. There’s reason to be excited. Co-star Sigourney Weaver confirmed to Parade she is set to return as Dana Barrett in the new film. She’ll be joined by Bill Murray, and at Fan Fest, Aykroyd and Ernie Hudson were also confirmed.
In between movie roles, Aykroyd makes appearances to promote his Crystal Head Vodka. It’s clear to him the passion is out there. “Out of 300 or 400 people, there will be 20 or 30 Ghostbusters,” said Aykroyd, speaking about cosplayers who show up to his events. “10% come with suits, and full packs… that they’ve built off the internet. They’ve turned the family wagon into the Ecto 1 and 2. It’s so fun to see. They’ve got their kids dressed up as them, and they’re passing it on to a third generation.”
With the two originals, 2016, and untitled 2020 Ghostbusters, this will be a generation lucky enough to have four Ghostbusters movies carrying them through childhood, and likely leading to additional generations hooked on trapping spirits.
I am now being subjected to headlines like “Elon Musk ‘deletes’ Twitter account after bizarre video game fan art scandal” because apparently journalists in the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand and Nineteen can’t wrap their brains around shitposting. If you can see Elon Musk’s Twitter account, he has not deleted it.
This is almost too stupid to explain, so I actually wasn’t going to bother. But Bloomberg decided to make a video out of it and Mashable’s headline confused at least one of my coworkers into asking me if it was true. (AP’s headline is slightly better: “Elon Musk Says He Is Deleting His Twitter Account.” It would be improved thus: “Elon Musk Tweets That He Deleted His Twitter Account.”)
If you’re up for something new to watch on Netflix, but don’t know what to stream because you have no clue what’s new, and Netflix’s “New Release” section is relatively awful, don’t worry, we have you covered. Let’s take a look at what’s coming to the streaming service this week.
This is a big week for releases, with the most of it all coming on Friday. As far as non-Netflix originals go, on Sunday, the 2015 film Cop Car hit Netflix. The Kevin Bacon movie follows a police officer who finds two teenagers who have stolen his car for a joy ride. Additionally, the 2018 movie Big Kill arrives on Tuesday. The western follows a group of people in a boom town, and the adventures they have. The film stars Young Guns alum Lou Diamond Phillips.
As far as originals go, there are a few you may want to check out, like Season 2 of the Dark. The series follows a family in Germany, and there’s a whole supernatural twist tied to the series. The new season arrives on June 21. And if you’re looking for a new stand-up special to watch, as Netflix has a million of them, check out Adam Devine’s “Best Time of Our Lives.” In the stand-up special, Devine discusses his Pitch Perfect audition and his awkward celebrity encounters.
This is a much better week for anime fans, specifically those who love Evangelion. On Friday, The End of Evangelion, EVANGELION: DEATH (TRUE)², and Neon Genesis Evangelion will all be released. To see what else is coming out this week, you’ll find everything coming to Netflix below and make sure to see what else is coming for the rest of June.
June 16
Cop Car
June 17
The Missing: Season 3 — NETFLIX ORIGINAL
June 18
Adam Devine: Best Time of Our Lives — NETFLIX ORIGINAL
