October 17, 2025 • 63 mins
In this week’s group chat, Jason and Rosie dive into the world of classic horror films, focusing on the legacy of Universal Monsters and the failed attempts to create a modern Dark Universe. Then they explore the lessons we can learn from the box office trends in 2025, and wrap up by sharing their favorite Halloween treats.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:15):
Hello.
Speaker 2 (00:16):
My name is Jason Septian.
Speaker 3 (00:18):
He on Mersey Night, and welcome to Group Chat, our
weekly roundtable with our producers and special guests, talking about
all the things we're excited about, and we're here doing
it for you today Monster Style.
Speaker 1 (00:30):
It's Halloween. Woo Kisses is here.
Speaker 4 (00:37):
So we are going to be talking about many cool things.
We're going to bring in Carmen Lauren, one of the
Scream Queens, to talk about the classic universal movie monsters
and their upcoming modern reinterpretations, as well as some of
the drama along the way.
Speaker 1 (00:54):
We are also going to.
Speaker 4 (00:55):
Be bringing in a Boo the Spice Master is back
to talk about the major lesson that we have learned
from the twenty twenty five box office so far. It's
been an interesting year, guys. And then for thank Galactus,
it's Friday, Trickle Tree. We're gonna be ranking our top
three Halloween candies and you know me, I will be
ranking the British candies and explaining them to you, of course.
Speaker 5 (01:18):
But first let's talk about those monsters.
Speaker 1 (01:23):
Hell.
Speaker 3 (01:23):
First of all, i'd like to let's bring a Karmen.
I like to apologize because I am I am in
the throes of the convention cold I picked up in
It's It's It's horrible, but we're delighted to welcome the
screen Queen car and to talk about the classic movie
(01:44):
monsters of yesteryear and today with the upcoming release of
Giermo del Toro's.
Speaker 5 (01:51):
Frankenstein, had not been more higher in the offing. And
to discuss the Remember the Dark Universe whatever happened in
Dark Units.
Speaker 3 (02:02):
Remember remember when Universal back at the tail end of
the of the crest of the MC wave endgame days,
when Universe was like, we need one of ours, we
need something like that.
Speaker 5 (02:18):
Why don't we do the Dark.
Speaker 3 (02:20):
Universe, all our classic monster characters all together in the
same universe.
Speaker 5 (02:26):
Whatever happened to that, I've happened to that.
Speaker 1 (02:27):
Well, guess well, we're gonna talk about it. Common.
Speaker 4 (02:30):
How do you feel about the Universal Classic Monsters. I'm
assuming you're a fan, oh.
Speaker 6 (02:35):
A huge fan of especially because not a lot of
people know this, but one of the things that got
me into this kind of industry of movies in pop
culture is I wanted to be a theatrical special effects
makeup artist, and so I was looking at those Universal
Monsters from like the costume makeup perspective. I'm really excited
(02:58):
about that. But never why into podcast producing instead?
Speaker 1 (03:01):
And here I am, Hey, guess what, never too late.
Speaker 4 (03:04):
I'm gonna when you come to Universal, we'll go to
the Monster movie makeup show and you could.
Speaker 7 (03:09):
I love dream.
Speaker 4 (03:11):
I love the original Universal Monsters. You know, these I
think are so formative for so many of us as kids.
It's what they show you in film school. They show
you Frankenstein, you know. But these movies have been around
as well for like over one hundred years. The first
movie is nineteen thirteen.
Speaker 1 (03:27):
You know.
Speaker 4 (03:27):
That's where you get your big boom Lawn Cheney, Doctor
Jekyl and mister Hyde. Iconic movie, and from there you're famous.
This is really where we establish the literary monsters as
their own cannon. We have Handsom of the Opera obviously,
Bella Lagosi, Dracula, the Frankenstein with Boris Karloff so famous,
the Mummy, the Invisible Man, the Wolfman, Creature from the
(03:50):
Black Lagoon, both original characters. In a way, Ah man,
I've been waiting to say this for so long. I've
written about it, but like, look, guys, in a way,
the Universal Monsters were the first original shared Universe.
Speaker 1 (04:05):
Shocking to tell you, but it's true.
Speaker 4 (04:07):
I have the fantastic Fast Channel which you can access
for free on your Roku or Chuby or Pluto, which
is the Universal Monster's Channel. I've actually learned so much
from watching a lot of the other movies I hadn't seen,
like The Invisible Woman. It's it's hilariously like an outrageous
class comedy that's kind of a screwball comedy about her
(04:29):
trying to unionize women who work in a sewing factory.
Speaker 1 (04:34):
And that's then later on I realized.
Speaker 4 (04:36):
With like Son of Dracula, they start crossing them over.
They have multiple characters. So it is really an interesting
historical kind of look back at these beautiful black and
white movies that became icons for Universal, you know, but
that definitely over the years have have lost some some
of their shine or recognition or almost like became two face,
(05:00):
so they lost the fact that they were just the
universal thing. Frankenstein, Bride Creature, they just feel like the versions. Jason,
what was the first memory that you have of watching
one of these movies?
Speaker 3 (05:13):
It's going to be the original Frankenstein. I watched it
as a child, as I watched most of these, that
and the original Dracula. Yeah, But honestly, my favorite of these,
and it doesn't get mentioned as one of the classic
(05:33):
universal monsters is Hunchback of.
Speaker 1 (05:36):
Notre Dame Great pol Yeah, which is a.
Speaker 3 (05:40):
Silent film starring Lan Cheney, but Lan Cheney at his
like most like dynamic on screen, like.
Speaker 5 (05:50):
A true action star.
Speaker 3 (05:53):
And let me just say, if you've never seen the
original Hunchback of Notre Dame from nineteen twenty three, it
is a silent film.
Speaker 5 (06:00):
Watching the action, the stunts.
Speaker 3 (06:03):
The makeup are incredible, the makeup is incredible, and the
last third of the film, when like the residents of
Paris are like trying to break into Notre Dame to
kill Quasamoto and save Esmerelda, is like so insane, It's
(06:23):
so good watch it. Yes, but I watched these as
a kid, as I think a lot of us did.
They had There was a there was like two channels
in New York, Channel five and Channel nine that would
do kung fu and monster movies on the weekends.
Speaker 5 (06:43):
And I would just watch monster movies.
Speaker 3 (06:46):
Like also, and it's particularly spooky season all October. It
would just every weekend would just be like you know,
Creature with a black lagron, Invisible Man, The Fly, And
I just fell in love with these movies from there
and Hammer Hammer Ones.
Speaker 1 (07:00):
I love a Hammer horror, No, but I like, I
do think that Hammer.
Speaker 4 (07:05):
Is the spiritual successor to it. And you get these
really interesting ideas of like what the twenties and thirties
were like in America compared to what then, like, you know,
the forties, fifties and sixties were like transitioning into British
cinema in about the different ways they stole Great Christopher.
Speaker 5 (07:24):
So much break christ was so scary.
Speaker 4 (07:26):
Yeah, And I think that's the thing that's really great
about these movies is these are essentially gateway horror movies
that you can watch as a kid, that are not
too terrifying but still have the heart and the kind
of heart break, especially with things like Frankenstein or The
Bride of Frankenstein, which is actually such an unusual film.
Speaker 1 (07:45):
And yeah, so I just think these are such.
Speaker 4 (07:47):
A brilliant basis for so much of what we love
about horror and about storytelling and about the idea of
the monster as the protagonist that all really comes from,
you know, this version as well as of course like
the originals by Mary Shelley and Bram Stoker, but these
were where we really set up that scale of like, okay, well,
(08:08):
the creature is the icon, the bride is the icon.
Like nobody cares about Dr Frankenstein. We care about Boris
Karloff in that makeup. So it is understandable. I think
that in you know, twenty fifteen, twenty sixteen, they said, hey,
let's bring these back, baby, we have got ip and yes,
very famous photo shoot which Aaron has and and Ian
(08:34):
have have loved to point out. Ian calls this one
out every time the photo shoot is CG like they
they photo shop them together.
Speaker 1 (08:42):
But the lineup was.
Speaker 5 (08:44):
In fact Raze Russell Crowe.
Speaker 3 (08:46):
Russell Crowe is very clearly like whenever whatever original photo
he was posted, he was like pasted in from He
appears to be like holding like the back of a
chaut or something like still and now his hand is
just like kind of hovering, like in mid air, like
holding nothing.
Speaker 5 (09:04):
Yes, but this photo shoot is now it's like this weird.
Speaker 4 (09:09):
Artific, funny effect of that era where everyone thought they
could make everything a universe post MCS.
Speaker 3 (09:16):
This is one of the great failures and in fact,
like I think a failure to launch.
Speaker 5 (09:21):
Because while there was some press.
Speaker 3 (09:24):
Including this now infamous photograph of Russell Crowe, Harvey Arbard,
m Tom Cruise, Johnny DApp, Jonathan Jonathan Depp, the the
kind of like marketing launch, like say what you will
about the MCU.
Speaker 5 (09:42):
One thing that they did really well was signaling, oh after.
Speaker 3 (09:46):
Right after the success of Iron Man Boom, both through
the movies and through marketing campaigns, we are doing all
your favorite Avengers characters, and then we're gonna bring this
together in a shared univer Like we're doing that. While
like there are tons of stories in like the Hollywood
press and variety, et cetera.
Speaker 5 (10:08):
I don't know that they ever really hard launched the
Dark Universal Terrible Mummy, I would agree.
Speaker 4 (10:15):
I would also say something I think was that was
confusing for them at this point was from you know,
the official end of the original Universal Monsters era is
nineteen fifty six with the Creature Walks and among Us
by John Sherwood. It's like the last official one nineteen
seventy nine. We get the movie that we know that
me and Jason do love The Dracula with Franklangella very fun,
(10:37):
crazy movie.
Speaker 1 (10:38):
Then don't forget this guys.
Speaker 4 (10:40):
Nineteen ninety nine the Mummy, bisexual legend Stephen you know
Stephen Summer's iconic bisexual Awakening movie. Then we had Mummy Return,
Scorpion King Van Helsing remember that Mummy, Tomb of the
Dragon Emperor, and the twenty ten Joe Johnston of Iron
Man Fame Wolfman movie. And then there is nothing until
(11:03):
of Captain America, Fame of Captain America fame, thank you.
And the reason I thought of iron Man is because
of the Rocketeer, you know, Joe Johnson, a legend, legendary
director of OAI iron yess also of the delight og
iron Man and also just delightful Captain America author. But
then in twenty fourteen they made Dracula I'm Told, which
I do love.
Speaker 1 (11:24):
It's really, really corny.
Speaker 4 (11:26):
It is a movie about the or the sad origin Dracula.
This was Michael de Luca, who, by the way, is
now in charge of film at Warner Brothers. He produced
this director by Gary Show. It was essentially an iron
Man inspired kind of like what did what made Dracula?
Speaker 1 (11:42):
Dracula? Very corny, very fun.
Speaker 4 (11:44):
But the point is I think they didn't even feel
like they had to relaunch it because they had never
stopped making these kind of like not necessarily very popular
trying to be spin offs the Dracula and Told Counts
as the first.
Speaker 1 (11:57):
Like modern era.
Speaker 4 (11:59):
Then you launch in to that Alex Kirtman Tom Cruise
The Mummy movie, which, guys, if you haven't seen it,
you gotta go and watch this movie, because.
Speaker 7 (12:06):
One I still haven't seen it.
Speaker 4 (12:08):
They bought the screenwriters in and they spent money on them.
Christopher McCrory, David Cooke, the Legend Jurassic Park.
Speaker 3 (12:16):
David, It's it's Christopher McCory.
Speaker 1 (12:21):
They could have saved it, Dylan Chriusman.
Speaker 4 (12:23):
When you watch the movie, guys, it's gonna blow your
mind because esthetically and visually they just wanted to make
Iron Man, so they set it in a desert type
setting of Egypt. Obviously makes sense because of the Mummy,
but they are like military people who like relocate treasure,
essentially thieves. And then his best friend in the military
(12:48):
is uh Is Nick from New Girl Jake Johnston.
Speaker 1 (12:54):
You know, yes, we love to see that from the way,
but who else did you see on the way back
from New York come con.
Speaker 5 (13:02):
Oh the legend John carp Oh, my god, we love
him so much. And uh and uh Dana and Dan
Dee's mouchin Oh we love also.
Speaker 4 (13:12):
Uh just got to say, guys, why didn't you bring
John Carpet now, like he's still alive?
Speaker 1 (13:16):
You could have given him one We've almost talked.
Speaker 7 (13:19):
Truly, I came very close.
Speaker 4 (13:21):
Because do you want to talk to him? He's so cool,
but you want to respect him.
Speaker 3 (13:26):
He and he you know, he's he looks like he
doesn't want to talk to anybody. But he seemed very polite.
He's very polite to the airline staff. That's always good
working near him as he was deplaning. But uh, but
I did yet.
Speaker 4 (13:39):
Well he's a big basketball fan, so our dream is
one day he can come on and just talk basketball
and video games. But yeah, like basically I think the
Mummy Jason, you tap onto something really real. They didn't
really do a big push, and they didn't really try
and relaunch it because I think they felt like, well,
we've been just kind of making these mid tier kind
of vaguely successful, and this has tom cruise and its action.
(14:02):
But if you remember another incredible moment you can still
watch this on YouTube. They also failed to launch when
they released a trailer that for some reason, only had
ambient sound in one of the action sequences. So everyone's
getting sucked out the plane and.
Speaker 3 (14:19):
It's like, it's just like and.
Speaker 1 (14:26):
It looks bad. It sounds bad.
Speaker 4 (14:28):
And in the movie, the Jake Johnson character, who is
also like a military black Rock esque.
Speaker 8 (14:34):
Like, come, I don't really understand he dies, guys spoiler alert,
And then he is haunting Tom Cruise the whole time
as a ghost best friend, and Tom Cruise has to
hunt down the Mummy, but there is also an implication
at the end.
Speaker 4 (14:49):
That he is he has to become the Mummy, so
he was going He's going to take on the mantle
of the Mummy. I'm saying, I watched it in a
dollar in Palm Spring's perfect place to watch it.
Speaker 1 (15:03):
That flops three years later, what happens is the Crazy Thing.
Speaker 5 (15:06):
Well, let's also add that.
Speaker 3 (15:10):
Co starring in this film Crazy as kind of the
connective tissue to the rest of the universal stuff is
Doctor Jekyl, doctor Henry Jekyl played by Russell Crowe, who
I think they were.
Speaker 5 (15:30):
Clearly positioning as like the next here of the Universe, and.
Speaker 3 (15:37):
It's crazy that you can you can legitimately talk about
this train wreck of a movie that had.
Speaker 5 (15:44):
Really good people and also talented act and talent, very
talented actor.
Speaker 3 (15:51):
Everybody in this is a talent, and you can completely
forget the absolutely bananas detail that Russell Crowe is playing
a modern day Jekyl who is the nix Furia.
Speaker 4 (16:03):
And has, by the way, like the last twenty five
minutes of the movie is like him, like in his Layer,
with all the magical creatures and the books and the
easter eggs.
Speaker 1 (16:13):
Yeah, and again, guys, I gotta tell you this.
Speaker 4 (16:15):
I tracked me and Carmen talked about this when we
were talking about Megan recently.
Speaker 1 (16:19):
I gotta tell you, guys, you can't do that in
the first movie. Everyone knows this. Like Mega two, it
was not far and long enough to make her a superhero.
Speaker 4 (16:26):
The Mummy needed to have a slight teaser like the
end of Iron Man.
Speaker 1 (16:30):
That is how you establish it if you're gonna copy.
Speaker 7 (16:32):
It, maybe a post credit scene.
Speaker 1 (16:34):
Post credit scene exactly. But the interesting thing is from
The Mummy that flops.
Speaker 4 (16:39):
Within three years, they've decided that they're gonna be able
to release a different kind of movie, and they go
for the complete opposite end of the spectrum, which is
how low can we make this budget? So, alongside Jason
Blam and the Blumhouse of it All, who they have
a deal with, they basically say, hey, what can you
(16:59):
do for five million dollars and they say, we'll give
it to Lee one l. Lee one Ll takes it
to Australia. I was lucky enough to actually visit the
set for that movie. It was incredible, built a whole movie,
and I learned something quite interesting on that set, which
was Lee Wannell told us, Hey, if you make a
movie for five million dollars in Australia, you're working with
(17:19):
the DP of Lord of the Rings, You're working with
Peter Jackson's cinematographer, you are working with incredible people who've
worked on Ossie B movies their entire life. Like, the
amount of quality that you are getting on a set
like that is very high for the cost. The movie
opens February twenty eighth, twenty twenty, and you may forget this,
(17:40):
but that five million dollar movie open to one hundred
million dollars on opening weekend domestically. It had the Juice
to launch a new franchise, and we were supposed to
get many exciting new franchises from that. The one I'm
most upset that never happened the Karen Casama Western drag
that was one hundred percent up my alley, and instead
(18:04):
COVID happened. Three years later we get Renfield, Me and
Jason interviewed Lovely Ben Schwartz Valle the movie.
Speaker 1 (18:11):
We thought it prefers, but it did not hit. It
was a Chrismack movie.
Speaker 4 (18:15):
Robert Kirkman came up with a story of that movie,
lots of people involved, but.
Speaker 1 (18:18):
It didn't hit.
Speaker 4 (18:19):
And then the newest, most recent Wolfman movie also not
a big hit. They went back to Lee Yanol, but
we understand the production was tough. It was a movie
that did not hit in the same way. And now
we're in a space where our next biggest classic monster movie, Frankenstein,
is actually not coming from Universal at all and is
(18:40):
instead coming from Netflix. Because these movies, these stories are
out of a license. They do not have to pay
to make Frankenstein. They don't have to pay anyone. So
now we're in a space where these movies are actually
going to be reclaimed by different storytellers.
Speaker 5 (18:54):
Let's let me.
Speaker 3 (18:55):
I'd love to get everybody's hypothesis on one where wrong,
and I'm gonna start with mine. I don't think it's possible,
or I think it's I should say, I think it's very,
very difficult to make a big budget, triple a.
Speaker 5 (19:16):
Hollywood tentpole horror movie.
Speaker 3 (19:19):
I actually I actually struggle to think of one that
worked and was in any way scary. Like all of
the best horror movies are like mid budget at best
or indie type movies that come in from outside the system.
(19:40):
The second you try to four quadrant the fucking dark Universe,
it's just not no no.
Speaker 4 (19:45):
I think, I think, Jason, you're completely on it. I
think that it is a mixture of the assumption of
what people want and not really understanding it. You can't
four quadrant a movie like the Lee Wannel Invisible Man
is an R rated movie. It's really scary, and that
(20:05):
still made one hundred million dollars. You know, you can
make a movie that is scary, but it's five million dollars.
Speaker 1 (20:11):
You know.
Speaker 4 (20:11):
These movies also were made in a completely just different system.
The original movies were made under the studio contract system,
so it's a completely different situation where they're making these
movies really really quickly, really.
Speaker 5 (20:22):
Far and by the and those were.
Speaker 1 (20:26):
Of their time.
Speaker 5 (20:27):
They were not they.
Speaker 3 (20:28):
Were not They were genre movies of the Toapalpi movies.
Speaker 4 (20:32):
They were not necessarily meant to be the biggest smash hits,
you know. And I think as well, the reason that
the Dark Universe specifically didn't work is just it didn't
understand what people like about it, which is they like
the monsters. They don't want to see a human who's
slowly turning into a monster. They want to see the monster.
They want to see a new take on the monster.
And I think that Gama del Toro understands the nature
(20:56):
of Frankenstein, the nature of emotions. I think it's going
to be really popular. Think it's going to hit. I'm
glad they're putting it in theaters. We haven't seen it yet.
And I think that the right way to approach this is,
like Maggie Jillenhole's The Bride, do something weird, something out
there that is a new take on these characters, because
that is what the original versions did and that's why
(21:17):
people like them.
Speaker 1 (21:18):
Calmon, what do you think?
Speaker 6 (21:19):
Yeah, I think we need it. We definitely need a
new take on the characters. If anything, I think back
to like when have we had a shared universe before?
And I think back to It's a horrible movie, but
as a kid, I loved it. I think back to
the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, and we know.
Speaker 1 (21:34):
That allow more.
Speaker 4 (21:36):
You know, that is basically what they were trying to
do with Dark Universe Ironic and it works.
Speaker 6 (21:41):
We know that that works together. And I remember as
a kid like I remember wanting like, oh, yes, I
want to see the follow up of all of these
characters together. I just think that they probably spent too
much money on the cast, Like I don't think you
necessarily well, I will say one thing for me is
like I was in a big Tom Hayting Tom Cruise
hating phase of my life when that That Mummy came out.
(22:04):
Now I will go see a Tom Cruise movie, But
at that time, I was like, do I really want
to sit through a Tom Cruise movie? So I would
love for them to bring us some undiscovered actors, some
new people that we can like creature work.
Speaker 1 (22:17):
Where's he bring him in? We know he can well.
Doug Jones, speaking.
Speaker 3 (22:21):
Of Bill let's let's I've pulled up the top performing
horror movies of all time, and I wonder if we
can glean any kind of information about what you know, like,
is it possible to launch a shared monster movie universe
from these? Okay, so number one is it? Twenty seventeen's in?
(22:42):
Number two is conjuring Last Rights?
Speaker 5 (22:44):
Wow? How crazy conjuring.
Speaker 4 (22:48):
We're about to jump into the lessons we lined the
books up as one of them is we're still popping
guys and conjuring last rites.
Speaker 5 (22:55):
It's gotta be.
Speaker 3 (22:56):
I don't know the budget, but I'm gonna guess like
forty million dollar movies probably.
Speaker 4 (23:00):
I would say, but at this point you're probably looking
at one hundred, but it's probably still making a lot,
Like this is the fourth Conjuring movie, so still making
a lot more than it costs.
Speaker 3 (23:10):
Twenty nineteen, number three, Chapter Chapter two, number four, and
this was the you know, the King of the Hill
for thirty plus years is nineteen seventy three is the Exorcist?
Just to show you, like how hard it actually.
Speaker 4 (23:26):
Jason right, Conjuring Last Rights fifty five million dollars, So
you were not far off. It's absolutely still a low
budget situation. Also, again, guess where the conjuring comes from, guys,
from a unique original director who creates an idea that
is relatively mid budget that then goes on to become
a billion dollar franchise. You have to invest in original ideas,
(23:50):
even if you are adapting something that is classical like
a haunted house.
Speaker 3 (23:54):
Yes, number five Sinners, which one of the surprise is
of recent cinema years, right, yeah, and not a pure
and this is what we're not here for, right, what
is an original take on a horror genre?
Speaker 9 (24:08):
Right?
Speaker 3 (24:08):
Cinners is absolutely that number six. I was a little
bit shocked. Twenty eighteen's the nun now, I'm telling you.
Speaker 4 (24:16):
That conjuring unibus, guys. I guess that's what we're learning
is you can launch a new horror universe, but it
has to follow on from like an organic success.
Speaker 7 (24:28):
That's the contract.
Speaker 3 (24:29):
So that's the point. Yes, that's the point. The conjuring
is actually on the top twenty of this list several times,
so I don't know that it's I just think it
would be really difficult coming from Hey, let's make a
hit exactly and spend two hundred three hundred million dollars
on production to make a hit. I think it'd be
(24:50):
really hard from that, with that kind of philosophy to
make a one hit monster movie, to say nothing of
like four or or five.
Speaker 5 (25:00):
That are interconnected.
Speaker 1 (25:01):
Correct.
Speaker 4 (25:04):
Well, that's a perfect time to take an ad break
and go to our box office lessons of twenty twenty five.
Speaker 3 (25:11):
Thank you, Comma, Let's do it, Thank you Carmen, and
we're back twenty twenty five. It's been a very interesting
(25:34):
year thus far. It's only our Calober, of course, very
interesting year in cinema at the movies, it feels like
there's something of a movie resurgence, people enjoying going back
to the movies the big screen. But it's we're clearly
in a transition period from something. And with that, we'd
like to welcome super producer the Lord of the Spice.
Speaker 1 (25:56):
He's back.
Speaker 5 (25:58):
Oh oh wow, I got it at Lord.
Speaker 1 (26:05):
Yeah yes, aboo.
Speaker 4 (26:08):
Tell us what are some of the craziest box office
trends this year that we have noticed?
Speaker 10 (26:15):
Well, I actually I want to throw I have four
of them written down here, and I want to throw
them at the two of you and get your thoughts
on them, because you know, I'm no savant. I can't
look into my crystal ball and tell you exactly what
is working or not working at the movies. But here's
where my gut instincts are going. And I'm curious what
you think looking at the lists of box office successes
(26:39):
for twenty twenty five. But then also like ten years ago,
twenty fifteen, twenty years ago, two thousand and five, here's
sort of the like sad realization that I had. I
wonder if you too agree. If you want to crack
the top ten movies of the year in the box
at the box office, you've got to lean established ip
or movie that that's like almost the only way to
(27:02):
do it. And sadly, like, at least in the last
twenty years, that seems to have only been been the
only surefire way to do it. And you know, maybe
Bob Biker's onto something with the with the push toward
more remakes and less originals.
Speaker 4 (27:18):
I do think that absolutely for me, one of my
big takeaways this year was kids movies, kids movies, kids movies,
because one again, Jason often a lower budget, right, especially
in the animated space, something like last year's The Bad Guy,
I mean, The Bad Guys was such a huge hit
when it came out a couple of years ago. Bad
Guys Too didn't deliver the same massive success, but it
(27:38):
had the long legs. I think, if I'm not mistaken,
one of the biggest movies this year, if not the
biggest movie this year domestically at least, is gonna be
Lilo and Stitch remake.
Speaker 1 (27:49):
So I do think.
Speaker 4 (27:50):
That those kids movies are always kind of a safe
ish bet. Even if we look back a couple of
years to Elemental, which was an original our IP, it
seemed like it flopped at the beginning lowest opening open
to around twenty three million, but the legs that it
had got it to breaking even and becoming a profit.
I think that something I've seen change and shift as
(28:13):
both somebody who does this as my job and somebody
who has loads of kids in my life.
Speaker 1 (28:18):
Now parents will wait.
Speaker 4 (28:20):
They want to hear what other parents think, they want
to hear what podcasts think. They want to hear what
their friends' kids think, so they a kid's movie can
continue to make money a lot longer than I think
are the ip even though in the past, you know,
we had the long legs on superhero films. The big
drop offs this year have proven that that is not
(28:41):
the case anymore. They are not up there in my
kind of vision of what protected Hollywood for sure, IP
is right now, and I think the big thing for me,
which we have been talking about on this podcast for
a long time, I would love to see comic book
and superhero movies attempt more mid budgets, attempt more different
takee attempt more unique ways to tell a story that
(29:04):
could lead to them becoming financially solvent and not having
spent three hundred and fifty million dollars every time they
make a movie.
Speaker 5 (29:12):
Yeah, that's absolutely right.
Speaker 3 (29:14):
My other takeaway looking at this, well, first, here's here's
the glow of ox Office twenty twenty five.
Speaker 5 (29:19):
First of all, NESA two is.
Speaker 3 (29:21):
The second highest grossing movie of all time. Most of that,
the vast majority of that in just China. Number two
is Leelo and Stitch. Number three, the Minecraft movie, YEP, four, Draffic,
Jurassic World Rebirth, five, Demon Slayer, Woh, How to Train
(29:42):
Your Dragon f one, And then here's our first comic
book movie, Superman Mission Impossible, the Final Reckoning, and then
bringing up the tail end of the top ten, the
Fantastic Four. What do we think of these numbers. What
are these numbers tell us? Besides obviously IP and kids.
(30:03):
I agree with you, I are ruling the rooster.
Speaker 4 (30:06):
I think that something that this showcase is is global
box office is becoming a more interesting and different space
than what we are seeing in domestic.
Speaker 1 (30:22):
I think that's really interesting.
Speaker 4 (30:24):
I also think that it's showing us a huge move
towards global cinema.
Speaker 1 (30:29):
I mean the Demon Slayer movie.
Speaker 4 (30:31):
This is one of my themes I've been thinking about
this year is that I feel like the box office
predictors that we have now are not necessarily in tune
with audiences in the same way they always have been
Demon Slayer. They had no idea it was going to
open to seventy million dollars. Nobody saw that coming. It
was not expected. I would also put minecraft movie into
(30:55):
that one hundred and fifty million dollar budget. It has
already made almost a billion dollars, and it's opening weekend
was one hundred and sixty two million dollars plus you know,
seven hundred and fifty three thousand dollars change. And I
remember going to see that movie with a kid, and
they told me this movie is going to make a
(31:16):
billion dollars, and the box office predictors had it opening
around forty to sixty million.
Speaker 1 (31:21):
I think there is something that.
Speaker 4 (31:24):
The box office predictors cannot quite grasp anymore. And I
think it's to do with the fact that, say, Jurassic
World Rebirth, a movie that was, you know, at best,
kind of a three out of five movie and was
generally not particularly beloved. But guess what outside of America
that movie did crazy, crazy numbers.
Speaker 3 (31:44):
If you want to be to a boost point, if
you want to be a top five, top ten grossing
movie of the year, you have to have international appeal.
In Sinners, which was a massive, massive hit here and
a surprise hit is like fourteenth, fifteenth on the list,
like did not really do huge numbers internationally. It's gotta
(32:07):
be one of these kind of escapism universal type message kids.
Speaker 10 (32:13):
Movie mission impossible.
Speaker 5 (32:15):
I think the top ten mission impossible. The message is really.
Speaker 4 (32:19):
Escaping escapism istory call Jason also as well. Like you said,
I do think this remakes and IP is still gonna
be a big story, but I think it has to
be done in it has to be specific to what
the audience wants. I could have told you that Leelo
and Stitch movie was gonna make a ton of money,
(32:39):
not because I have any feelings about it either way.
It was quite a controversial movie. But we know Aaron
loved it, not that that makes.
Speaker 1 (32:46):
It less controversial. He went in the chat and said,
great movie.
Speaker 4 (32:50):
So you know, but I could have told you that
for one reason, I in my little comic shop that
I run on the weekends, I have a VHS player
and a TV and ninety percent of ORC to come
in and pick a movie, pick Lilo and Stitch that
had become for them, the movie they saw on Disney Channel,
the movie that was easy to access. And of course
south in southern California, there's also a lot of Hawaiian
(33:13):
people here and a lot of people of different ethnicities
who found that movie to be incredibly important and radical
in some ways. So I think that also it's about understanding.
For example, I would not have known that How to
Train Your Dragon was going.
Speaker 1 (33:29):
To be a huge hit. It helped.
Speaker 4 (33:31):
I loved the movie, again controversial take me and Aaron
were not agreeing there. I thought it was so great,
But that was a movie where if you knew your
animated audiences, if you knew what kids are into you
would have known that that movie was gonna make tons
of money. So I think it's about now they can't
rely on Oh people know this for example, snow White,
(33:52):
Massive flop, Megan two, massive flop, smashing Machine.
Speaker 1 (33:55):
I don't know if I think this is an interesting.
Speaker 3 (33:58):
That's not it. That's not a box office play, that's
a that's an award.
Speaker 4 (34:02):
This, I will say, I think is an interesting conversation
again about how people report on box office because I
saw so many different places, say lowest opening in Duayne
the Rock Johnson's career. Yeah, babe, it's a sports movie
from a twenty four. That's not necessarily how.
Speaker 1 (34:19):
You look at its success.
Speaker 4 (34:21):
And also, if we look he has not been that
much of a box office draw as people assume anyway,
if you actually look at his numbers.
Speaker 1 (34:28):
So again, I think it's gonna.
Speaker 7 (34:29):
Be about shut.
Speaker 1 (34:33):
Guys. I interviewed The Rock.
Speaker 4 (34:34):
I went to see Skyscraper and Rampage the same weekend
they opened, because I thought that was such a fun
double bill of old school action. But he hasn't necessarily
brought those Fast and the Furious numbers the way that
he has in other franchises.
Speaker 5 (34:52):
Let's talk about what this means for.
Speaker 3 (34:57):
The former box office heavy wait for seemingly a decade
and a half, the Superhero movie that is now pully
in respectable numbers, Superman on a budget of two twenty
five made six hundred and fifteen million, almost six hundred
and sixteen million. The Fantastic Four doubled its money essentially,
(35:21):
although when you put marketing put marketing into the budget,
it's probably didn't do that well. Still, you know, these
are respectable finishes, but it's not like.
Speaker 4 (35:32):
One point eight you know, BILLI Yeah, they used when
when Jurassic World came out after I think it was
probably Infinity War, they literally did like a handover, like
you've taken over the one point two billion box Like
they would be putting ads in trades about how much
money these movies were making and how gracefully they were
(35:54):
kind of saying, hey, now another thing we own or
another thing you own is one point two billion those days?
Speaker 1 (36:00):
Is that kind of done? Post covid as for what
we've seen?
Speaker 3 (36:03):
So what does this mean in terms of the audience.
We talked about the structural problems at you know, Marvel
kind of running out of runway after a number of
years the fact that the original cast just you can't
run them out there.
Speaker 9 (36:17):
You can't.
Speaker 5 (36:18):
They are bringing.
Speaker 3 (36:19):
Robert back, but you can't have Robert down. So what
do we think this means for audiences? What are audiences
craving right now? Because it's clearly not superheroes in the
way that it was Aboo.
Speaker 4 (36:35):
What did you learn from kind of reading and looking
through that history, and also as someone who loves all
kinds of storytelling, what do you feel like superheroes are
looking like on the horizon?
Speaker 10 (36:46):
Well, I've actually been thinking about this a lot. I
personally am going to theaters less and less unless I
feel like it is an experience beyond just watching the film.
I think Sinner an Imax for example, what was I mean?
Centers itself the film itself very much a reason to
go to the theaters, but in particular here in New York,
(37:09):
I spent like weeks trying to find an Imax ticket
and ultimately had to give up because they were just
all sold out weeks and weeks and weeks in advance.
But it felt like a movie you had to go
experience in the best way possible, not something that I
could just watch on my fifty inch TV at home.
I think F one, you know, the number one's the
number seven slot on the top ten. That movie also
(37:31):
felt like something like, oh, I keep hearing people like
via word of mouth or through review saying like, this
is a movie you want to like, hear and feel
in a theater. It's not necessarily one you want to
just watch at home on your couch. And I feel
like that's not the sales pitch I'm getting from superhero
films anymore. I'm not getting the like, come to the
(37:54):
theater and be a part of the experience, whether it's
a part of the superhero culture and the movement, or
the culmination of ten years of superhero storytelling and the Avengers,
or like this film was meant to be watched on
the big screen. A lot of it is just like
very cgi heavy third act, Like yeah, I mean, I
(38:14):
guess I'll just like put that on at home and
watch it when it's on Disney Plus in forty five
or ninety days, and like, I can wait for this one.
Speaker 1 (38:22):
It didn't.
Speaker 10 (38:22):
I don't feel that urgency with a lot of superhero
movies that this was made for a theater experience, And
I do wonder if that is a sales pitch that
might help films in the future.
Speaker 4 (38:34):
I think you've actually touched on something really deep there
that speaks to a lot of the issues that maybe
we didn't even realize that Disney plusification of it all
would impact. But that knowledge that, yeah, this is gonna
be on Disney Plus, and also, more importantly, is it
gonna look any different than what you can access on
Disney Plus on your TV?
Speaker 1 (38:55):
Because I think that that commitment to.
Speaker 4 (38:57):
Volume and yeah, obviously we want great quality TV. First
season of The Mandalorian incredible lots of volume use. But
then you get to ant man in the Watch Quantumania
and Man in the Worst Quantumania, and you end up
in a situation where whether you see it on the
big screen you see on TV, it looks very CGI heavy,
it looks muddy.
Speaker 1 (39:16):
They're not necessarily you know.
Speaker 4 (39:18):
I think there was an assumption with the MCU and
DC movies for a long time they're gonna get the
big format screens that you're gonna go see them in IMAX,
you're gonna pay the extra money, and they're gonna get
that kind of boost from that. But I think you
speak to something very real, which is Sinners obviously did
not translate in the same way for everyone, but one
(39:38):
battle after another for certain people, they had to see
it in the vista vision. And also as well, I
think like going back to horror, something like Final Destination Bloodlines, right,
that almost replaced that communal viewing that an old MCU
movie had had, Like people watching Final Destination in the
cinema screaming class when they see the lugs coming Aryl
(40:02):
going oh my god. So you know, I think that
communal viewing is part of what is driving people back
to the fit as you this year. But in that mindset,
are they still are SUPERA movies still playing into that audience,
is still giving them a reason to go? I think
is a very good point a boom.
Speaker 3 (40:20):
What do we see as looking at this data, looking
at the movies that are coming out? Do we see
any trends that we can predict for twenty twenty six?
One thing I want to note is that we are
in a transition period. And you know, the turnaround from
production to box office for a film is like three
(40:41):
years yea east, and so we're watching the tail end
of movies that were planned for a different year. So
what do we see in twenty twenty six. As we
start to see companies like retarget and restrategize, what trends
do we see emerging?
Speaker 4 (40:58):
ROSI would I think that we're gonna continue to see
I think, for example, The Odyssey, the Christophanola movie. I
think it's gonna do crazy numbers. I think people are
gonna want to see it at the cinema. I think
we're gonna continue that. I think that Superhero wise, I
think spider Man brand new day, we know the it destined.
(41:18):
Daniel kran is like an incredible director and has been
doing some really interesting stuff. I think that could bring
us back to the superhero movie peak. But I hope
that that doesn't mean that Marvel don't learn any lessons
from why the other movies weren't performing. But I think
that one has a chance to break it. I also
think it could be interesting Mortal Kombat too. They have
(41:42):
Obviously I'm biased, we know I love those movies. But
I do think that the fact that Warner Brothers has
moved it to May, which is your big blockbuster opening weekend,
it's under two hours. I think we could see that
do crazy numbers, maybe bring back more video game movies
post Minecraft, and I'll be interested to see what the
Maggie Llen Hall Bride movie looks like.
Speaker 1 (42:01):
It's gonna be a musical, It's.
Speaker 4 (42:03):
Gonna be a weird nineteen thirties set Chicago film.
Speaker 1 (42:09):
Also can the Bone Temple near Dacosta's follow up?
Speaker 4 (42:13):
Will that continue that big resurgence back in cinematic horror?
Speaker 1 (42:17):
I hope, so are the movies. I'm excited for Masters
of the Universe. It's probably gonna flop. It's got Jared Letowen.
Speaker 4 (42:23):
He's not a good look for them, but it does
look exciting and fun. We also have Supergirl. Is that
gonna be able to continue the James Gunnification. But the
biggest one that I'm interested to see is the gen
Z's most hated, most hate anticipated movie of the year,
which is gonna be Wuthering Heights, and it's made by
(42:46):
the same director and writer, Emerald Fennel of Saltburn.
Speaker 1 (42:50):
The discourse around this one is absolutely crazy.
Speaker 4 (42:52):
But if it does like one hundred mil opening weekend,
which I think it has the potential to do on
Valentine's Day, I worked at a theater when they released
Fifty Shades of Gray on Valentine's Day and we were
the only non sold out theater and we made so
much money because we had so many seats.
Speaker 1 (43:08):
And I think it would be interesting to me to see.
Speaker 4 (43:11):
If we get a period piece renaissance or a modern
Retelling's renaissance post that being a hit, even if it's
a hate watch hit. Jason Way, you most excited about
in twenty twenty six.
Speaker 3 (43:23):
I'm I don't know about excited, but I but I
think that we're going to see I think that the
success at Five Nights at Frady Oh, It's just like
Under is under talked about, like this super weird Nietsch
spooky Kid video game that with you know, multiple episodes
out on for PC or whatever platform you're playing on,
(43:46):
that becoming a movie that was a huge hit on
a tiny budget.
Speaker 5 (43:50):
I think we're gonna see more.
Speaker 4 (43:51):
So Yeah, and we have Five Nights at Freddy's two
coming out this month, which I think you're right is
going to open to crazy numbers.
Speaker 3 (43:57):
So I think we're going to start to see more
weird YouTube like weird video game.
Speaker 1 (44:06):
Kid skipp any toilet It's coming, guys.
Speaker 3 (44:09):
You know, like, uh, will there be at some point
a Rollblos movie almost like.
Speaker 5 (44:15):
Somebody right now.
Speaker 3 (44:16):
Yeah, almost certainly somebody right now. There's a bunch of
producers in a room trying to figure that, and.
Speaker 4 (44:21):
It's probably gonna be a ten year old who writes it,
just like a ten year old writes all the games
on them.
Speaker 5 (44:26):
Iby, what about you?
Speaker 10 (44:27):
I think it's a big sci fi fan. I'm excited
for twenty twenty six. I mean, Dune Part three is
kind of goes without saying for me personally, but I'm
very very excited for Project Hail Mary. That adaptation looks spectacular.
How well it'll do, I don't know. I mean, box
office wise, I'm not so sure that it's going to
(44:48):
do gangbusters, but as a sci fi fan, I'm very
much looking forward to it. I agree with with a
lot of what Rosie said. I think Odyssey is gonna,
you know, blow the box office out of the water.
I do think Mando and Grogu and Doomsday are gonna
like do fine. You know, I think much much like
this year, they're gonna do like fine and maybe crack
(45:08):
the top ten like Fantastic Foward did this year, but
kind of in a way where it still feels like
not a huge success in some weird way just because
expectations will be like you know, through the roof. I
do think this year horror was sort of a standout
genre at the box office, And Mike Feeling says that'll
(45:31):
actually continue next year because twenty eight years later, ye
at a scream, I mean Scream seven.
Speaker 4 (45:37):
I'm not so sure, but like, yes, it's very where
we're in a contract place of Stream seven. That could
actually break a trend of Scream always out performing itself.
Speaker 1 (45:47):
That could be the one. But I think I think horror.
Speaker 4 (45:48):
Is a I think it'll continue bet and has is
going to continue. Also, guys, just before we leave, great
question that Aaron popped in? Do do we think that,
oh the e popped in?
Speaker 1 (46:00):
Actually?
Speaker 4 (46:01):
Do we think Wicked for Good or Avatar fire Nation
or whatever it's called. Do we think that is gonna
either of those are going to crack the top ten?
Speaker 5 (46:11):
Avatar Absolutely, it.
Speaker 3 (46:13):
Could be the number one Avatar one number one.
Speaker 4 (46:16):
Know if I fully agree that, because I do think
part of the reason't it made so much money last
time is because there was a tenure gap. I want
to see if people's excitement is out there for Avatar
Fire and ash, but I think both of them will crack.
Speaker 1 (46:28):
I think Avatar will be near the top. I think
Wicked will be near the middle.
Speaker 5 (46:32):
I think the world loves Avatar, and.
Speaker 4 (46:37):
Do love Avatar. International moms, they gotta watch that movie.
Speaker 3 (46:41):
I simply don't see listen to. The music is a
huge part of it, and the music is in English,
and that's just gonna be a barrier internationally, I think. Yeah,
so I don't see Wicked. I see Wicked putting up numbers,
but not like Avatar numbers.
Speaker 10 (46:57):
Yeah. Yeah, Plus they're gonna do the hair sex thing
with the whale or something in the new one.
Speaker 1 (47:01):
So exactly. Thank you for joining us.
Speaker 2 (47:06):
Thank you.
Speaker 3 (47:07):
Let's take a quick break and we'll be right back
to talk candy top.
Speaker 2 (47:25):
And we're back.
Speaker 3 (47:27):
Let's bring in the full compliment, the superproducers to discuss,
you know, really, what it's all about.
Speaker 5 (47:36):
Spooky season.
Speaker 1 (47:37):
That's all we care about.
Speaker 5 (47:38):
It's about the candy.
Speaker 1 (47:39):
Come on, guys, it's about the candies, the delicious caddies.
Speaker 3 (47:42):
Time now to discuss our top three, our winners, our
metal podium of Halloween candies. Let's start with Doctor French himself.
He's been tasting the greatest, and now he has come
(48:04):
here to us about about what what real taste is
like a boo Your top three Halloween candies.
Speaker 10 (48:15):
I think as far as what I would want. First
of all, I want full sized candy bars. I'm not
trying to do any of those many nonsense.
Speaker 3 (48:22):
Bougie good luck, good luck looking neighborhood.
Speaker 10 (48:30):
Look, we're a household that gives a full sized candy.
The rest of the neighborhood's got to keep up with us.
Speaker 9 (48:37):
Look, uh, I'm really basic.
Speaker 10 (48:41):
I'm so sorry. Like, give me a three Musketeers, give
me it, Give me a Hershey bar with audience like
I will be so happy with just the.
Speaker 5 (48:48):
Most basic candy in the world. I'm sorry.
Speaker 3 (48:52):
Chocolate, I'm here in chocolate. You're a chocolate that's all.
Speaker 1 (48:56):
Io. Are you eating? Are you eating a candy one? No?
Speaker 5 (49:00):
Absolutely not? No?
Speaker 10 (49:02):
Okay, good candy corn disgusting?
Speaker 5 (49:05):
Okay, Carmen, your top three Halloween candies?
Speaker 6 (49:10):
Okay, Well, the house that has sour Pouch Kids is
the best house on the got a good start there
after sour Pouch Kids, I would have to say Twizzlers,
not any old Twizzlers.
Speaker 5 (49:24):
I need the ones the pull apart the pull apart.
Speaker 9 (49:27):
I need pull up. Yes, the pull apart ones there, cherry,
those are the best.
Speaker 6 (49:32):
Yes, don't give me those strawberry flavored ships that don't
pull apart.
Speaker 4 (49:37):
Wow, I'm gonna tak you English strawberry laces. It's like
the best version. Okay, I'm excited.
Speaker 6 (49:44):
And then the last thing, this is what actually as
a kid, I remember turning me onto dark chocolate. I
loved when I would get this in my my bag.
The what was it milky way midnight?
Speaker 7 (49:55):
They had like a milky way like midnight.
Speaker 9 (49:59):
Yeah, that's a good that's a good call.
Speaker 2 (50:02):
Is that just started?
Speaker 5 (50:05):
It's a dark yeah, but I remember.
Speaker 1 (50:09):
It's really good if you don't find.
Speaker 3 (50:13):
Yeah, all right, Uh my top three Halloween candies. I
like a texture. I like a crunch. I want I
want interesting textures. This is why I've never been like
a red Vines, Twizzlers, gummy bears, you know, like that
type of guy.
Speaker 5 (50:31):
Excuse me, uh not gummy bears. What's the other one?
Candy corner?
Speaker 3 (50:37):
I've never been like that kind of like hard, weird,
like jelly candy. Okay, so here it is Eminem's peanut
and or regular like a little bag of Eminem's. It's
it's perfect. You're not gonna get all chocolated, that's true.
You know, like you could pour it directly in your mouth.
It's like a perfect product and a perfec. The packaging
(51:01):
experience for Halloween. You can eat some of it and
then fold it up and then drop it back to
your back.
Speaker 5 (51:07):
Number two. It's kind of an M and M knockoff.
I don't give a shit the Reese's Pieces pieces.
Speaker 3 (51:15):
I love peanut butter and chocolate. I love those two
things together. It comes in and basically like a like
a knockoff Eminem kind of styling, and so like I'm
a fan of that, I'm gonna go with the knockoff
Eminem type of styling. I thought about a kit Cat
bar to go full chocolate. I always love to see
a kit Cat. But you know what, I'm gonna go
(51:37):
with gummy bears because in my mind, I would be like,
they're vitamins. It's like I'm taking my vitamins. But they're
delicious and they're cute.
Speaker 5 (51:50):
You know, you can squeeze them.
Speaker 1 (51:51):
They're like eat little head, you know when I was
a kid.
Speaker 2 (51:54):
Yeah, they don't off the heads.
Speaker 5 (51:56):
And write the head off. It's not like a candy
corn where you're like after three or four of them.
It feels like, you know, like.
Speaker 3 (52:03):
Vitamins do it, yeah, doings on this sphace.
Speaker 1 (52:09):
Jack cannot extra vision, so.
Speaker 5 (52:20):
That after dark, I think of a weak jaw. I
don't jaw.
Speaker 3 (52:28):
Yeah, And so that's so those are my I like
these little bike size things where I can moderate how.
Speaker 1 (52:34):
Much I put it in, ease back into a package.
Speaker 3 (52:37):
Yeah. Next up, Joel, top three Halloween candies.
Speaker 11 (52:42):
If we're in a regular ass neighborhood, I want my
favorite candy all time. I love peanut eminems and I'll
take a Snickers either that bitch in the freezer it's.
Speaker 5 (52:57):
Uh and then uh. I know I said regularly, but you.
Speaker 11 (53:01):
Know a Japanese kit cat will do it for me
every time.
Speaker 5 (53:03):
I don't they taste like chalk sticks.
Speaker 11 (53:05):
But if you can get a Japanese kit cat, wow, superior.
If we're in a wealthy ass neighborhood, Champagne gummy bears,
I'll take a I like that. And then there's this
German candy that I don't know what it is. It's
like chocolate with hazel nut and it's in a giant stare.
Speaker 7 (53:26):
I know exactly. It's you need a rider bar.
Speaker 5 (53:32):
You can have anything, like what can I do for you?
Speaker 11 (53:34):
Like, I'm gonna.
Speaker 1 (53:38):
Like whatever.
Speaker 11 (53:43):
Those are my top three, depending on neighborhood.
Speaker 2 (53:47):
Come on, top three Halloween candies. I mean I would
love to go trigger treating in the neighborhood giving.
Speaker 12 (53:51):
Out ritter sports Japanese that growing up look so my
top three Japanese kit cats really quickly so you Potato
Macha's success.
Speaker 2 (54:04):
My top three Halloween candy though they all have to
be small. I want mini size. I want to be
able to eat a bunch of them. I want to
go back and forth. Yeah, fun size. First up, I
want Reese's pumpkins or mini pumpkins. Really any any novelty
shapes about the shape shapes? Yes, the Easter eggs are
good to any shape of Reese's.
Speaker 5 (54:25):
That's not normal.
Speaker 2 (54:25):
It just feels like a treat. Twigs like I would
rather have rather have a Snickers eleven months out of
the year than a TwixT. But give me a little
mini twigs and like the month of silver. And lastly,
mister Good or crackle like the.
Speaker 1 (54:44):
Mister mister Good.
Speaker 2 (54:46):
Mister Good is like.
Speaker 7 (54:48):
A peanut candy.
Speaker 1 (54:53):
Oh, I love it.
Speaker 4 (54:54):
I had one hundred grand for the first time when
I went to the Croft at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery.
Speaker 2 (54:59):
And delicious, very good.
Speaker 5 (55:03):
Okay, Rosie, actually.
Speaker 8 (55:06):
Say, let's go to.
Speaker 9 (55:11):
All of mine have all of might have been said already,
But sour Patch Sour Patch Kids is number one. Okay,
watch just the ultimate candy taste different. Yeah, yeah, they're
all different flavors. This might be controversial, but I think, yeah,
I think it's either lime or orange.
Speaker 2 (55:34):
One of those is not a color from one of them.
Speaker 1 (55:35):
Is a flavor.
Speaker 7 (55:37):
I'm about the red and blue.
Speaker 9 (55:40):
So Sour Patch Kids. It's like my go to movie snack.
I get them every time I go to the movies.
Love it at Halloween TwixT bar it is a classic.
I just love that cookie crunch in the middle of
the candy bar. And then one hundred grand. I feel
like you only really see those at Halloween, just like
the crispies with the caramel, like they're so good. Yeah,
(56:01):
like I really don't see them other times of the year.
And then some honorable mentions like a bunch of crunch.
I think at this point you can only get movies
now too, but.
Speaker 5 (56:10):
Bunch of crunch is so good.
Speaker 9 (56:12):
Oh wait, Okaya, A bunch of crunch is elite.
Speaker 11 (56:14):
That best only movie theater candy, A bunch of crunches
up there, that's a great selection.
Speaker 5 (56:20):
I will go cookie.
Speaker 9 (56:21):
I think it's a bunch of crunch are good too,
but I think I think it for me, it's a
bunch of crunch. And then I'll just throw in my
favorite Japanese kiket flavors too. So so I just came
back that Macha has to be up there, peach.
Speaker 1 (56:35):
And then I just was delicious can compound.
Speaker 9 (56:41):
Very good.
Speaker 3 (56:42):
And finally, Rosie, all right, Rosie, bring us top three
Halloween candies. And I can't wait to learn about the
the candies of your neighbors.
Speaker 1 (56:52):
I'm gonna festival, guys. I gotta tell you.
Speaker 4 (56:54):
There is some really hilarious threads on the internet about
like English people and like it's not called candy, guys. Firstly,
it's called sweets and chocolate. That's at the top of
like every single list.
Speaker 1 (57:07):
Anyone is more.
Speaker 2 (57:08):
I like that though. I like that because if I
want candy, if I ask for candy, I mean chocolate
I don't want.
Speaker 4 (57:13):
Don't give me if I'm gonna ask chocolate controversial, so
I'm gonna go for some of the most classic ones
I remember as a kid. So basically, also, guys gotta
know when you go to England, you go trick or treating,
they're gonna make you do the treat like they're gonna
make you do something.
Speaker 1 (57:29):
They're gonna be like, they're gonna be like you.
Speaker 3 (57:33):
That's that's that's real upstairs down seriously, like.
Speaker 4 (57:39):
They'll be having you out there like you better have
something because also there's not a lot. Yeah, trick or
treating not that popular in the UK, so they're gonna
make you work for it, and then you're gonna go
for we would call it a sweet, you know, sweets
like a gummy or a candy, some of the ones
that they're bringing out and you guys are gonna love this.
What do you know about the tutti fruity?
Speaker 5 (58:03):
Break it down for me.
Speaker 4 (58:04):
Tooty fruities are basically like what would you have if
they what would you get in a kind of like
a gummy that was not made in America. It's got
a little bit more of a kind of like a
(58:24):
gummy with a little maybe a hard.
Speaker 1 (58:27):
Kind of sugar on the outside. Very interesting.
Speaker 4 (58:32):
Not the American style tooty fruits, which are sugar. I
would say, like a kind of hard sugar that's very popular.
We also have that in fruit pastels world most World
War two.
Speaker 1 (58:45):
No, jelly tots is like a little thing. We got
jelly tots for babies. We got two effruies. How about
this fruit pasta.
Speaker 7 (58:52):
They got baby candy.
Speaker 1 (58:53):
They got candies for babies. Definitely jelly you're giving.
Speaker 13 (58:58):
Because you're never, never, Jason, because when I was, jelly
tots are like a it's we would used to call
them jelly babies, and they're like a gummy with powdered
sugar on the outside.
Speaker 4 (59:13):
I hate them, not for me. They kind of got
that candy corn bonda.
Speaker 1 (59:17):
But I will say, yeah, it's kind of like that,
I will. I will also.
Speaker 7 (59:22):
Say that I'm a sucker for dots though.
Speaker 4 (59:24):
This is the peak kind of like English gonna be
in a bag, like prepackaged kind of little bags you
can give out. Another big popular thing there. It's called
a drumstick. It's just a square kind of taffyish lollipop.
Those are pretty good, I would say for if I'm giving,
like actual ones. I would want to get lion Bark
(59:45):
basically English rand curly whirly jelly. It's like almost a
foot long caramel covered in chocolate in like a weird
curly whirly.
Speaker 1 (59:58):
Pat and English caramel delicious.
Speaker 4 (01:00:01):
I would also say a double Decker, which is like
Uga covered in chocolate on top of crispy chewy rice.
So like one hundred grand with like uga. But yes,
very good and they all have hilarious English names, so
enjoy guys, good luck, trick or treating no matter what.
No Cadbury cal Cabrey Egg curly Whurlely is made by Cabrey,
(01:00:21):
so it has the best chocolate. Also, I double decker
also I believe has Cabrey chocolate. I would also say yes,
love a Cabrey's cream egg, though now they are predominantly
made in America sadly because because Cabriy got bought. And yes,
but you can't get them during Halloween either, though sometimes
they do make a weird Halloween one with green inside,
which is kind of gross but fun.
Speaker 1 (01:00:43):
Is milk in the UK.
Speaker 2 (01:00:46):
Milk It is very popular in the UK.
Speaker 4 (01:00:49):
European chocolate, very high quality. You can always buy it
in the airport. It's started to make its way into
British supermarkets alongside your rittter sports. We are blessed with
many incredible europe In gummies and candies as well as
let me do.
Speaker 3 (01:01:03):
A quick quick pull of the of the group while
we have everybody in the County chat group, were any
of y'all in your childhoods? Were any of your all
family is concerned about the needles in chocolate bar.
Speaker 9 (01:01:24):
We hear about it, we hear about.
Speaker 5 (01:01:28):
It, but I never knew anybody that.
Speaker 7 (01:01:30):
It happened to something today.
Speaker 5 (01:01:32):
Even at the.
Speaker 3 (01:01:33):
Time, it seemed to me like this is who the
is doing this? But parents and parents in Undy Road
were very concerned about it.
Speaker 2 (01:01:40):
It was something in Joel's neighborhoods since they were given
out Japanese.
Speaker 11 (01:01:44):
Chick Can I just say also like we had to
drive three neighborhoods over Aaron want candy bars like a
Boo wanted.
Speaker 1 (01:01:52):
Okay, I think that thing in England.
Speaker 4 (01:01:54):
Those were not really the rumors, but that did always
feel to me when I started to learn about it.
Also in movies that always felt like, you know, a
chain letter for adults like when we were kids, it
was you would have send this chain laugh, and adults
were like, maybe someone's putting like a raizor blade. You
know nowadays they say, oh, watch out, somebody might be
giving your kid edibles.
Speaker 1 (01:02:15):
I don't have edible money to give to children like.
Speaker 9 (01:02:19):
Expensive.
Speaker 5 (01:02:22):
Okay.
Speaker 6 (01:02:24):
I was raised by a police officer, so he was
paranoid about everything.
Speaker 5 (01:02:28):
A cabin Did you ever get did you did he
buy evidence?
Speaker 1 (01:02:34):
Common that being a real thing? No? Never, never.
Speaker 3 (01:02:43):
Well, it's been wonderful to have you all here to talk.
Yes tomorrow folks for news. That's it for this episode
will be back tomorrow with the biggest news of the week.
X ray Vision is hosted by Jason steps Young and
Rosie Knight and is a production of iHeart Podcasts.
Speaker 4 (01:03:03):
Our executive producers are Joel Monique and Aaron Kaufman.
Speaker 5 (01:03:07):
Our supervising producer is Abu Zafar.
Speaker 4 (01:03:09):
Our producers are Common Laurent Dean Jonathan and Bay Wag.
Speaker 3 (01:03:13):
Our theme song is by Brian Vasquez, with alternate theme
songs by Aaron Kaufman.
Speaker 4 (01:03:18):
Special thanks to Soul Rubin, Chris Lord, Kenny Goodman and
Heidi Our discord moderator
Hello.
Speaker 2 (00:16):
My name is Jason Septian.
Speaker 3 (00:18):
He on Mersey Night, and welcome to Group Chat, our
weekly roundtable with our producers and special guests, talking about
all the things we're excited about, and we're here doing
it for you today Monster Style.
Speaker 1 (00:30):
It's Halloween. Woo Kisses is here.
Speaker 4 (00:37):
So we are going to be talking about many cool things.
We're going to bring in Carmen Lauren, one of the
Scream Queens, to talk about the classic universal movie monsters
and their upcoming modern reinterpretations, as well as some of
the drama along the way.
Speaker 1 (00:54):
We are also going to.
Speaker 4 (00:55):
Be bringing in a Boo the Spice Master is back
to talk about the major lesson that we have learned
from the twenty twenty five box office so far. It's
been an interesting year, guys. And then for thank Galactus,
it's Friday, Trickle Tree. We're gonna be ranking our top
three Halloween candies and you know me, I will be
ranking the British candies and explaining them to you, of course.
Speaker 5 (01:18):
But first let's talk about those monsters.
Speaker 1 (01:23):
Hell.
Speaker 3 (01:23):
First of all, i'd like to let's bring a Karmen.
I like to apologize because I am I am in
the throes of the convention cold I picked up in
It's It's It's horrible, but we're delighted to welcome the
screen Queen car and to talk about the classic movie
(01:44):
monsters of yesteryear and today with the upcoming release of
Giermo del Toro's.
Speaker 5 (01:51):
Frankenstein, had not been more higher in the offing. And
to discuss the Remember the Dark Universe whatever happened in
Dark Units.
Speaker 3 (02:02):
Remember remember when Universal back at the tail end of
the of the crest of the MC wave endgame days,
when Universe was like, we need one of ours, we
need something like that.
Speaker 5 (02:18):
Why don't we do the Dark.
Speaker 3 (02:20):
Universe, all our classic monster characters all together in the
same universe.
Speaker 5 (02:26):
Whatever happened to that, I've happened to that.
Speaker 1 (02:27):
Well, guess well, we're gonna talk about it. Common.
Speaker 4 (02:30):
How do you feel about the Universal Classic Monsters. I'm
assuming you're a fan, oh.
Speaker 6 (02:35):
A huge fan of especially because not a lot of
people know this, but one of the things that got
me into this kind of industry of movies in pop
culture is I wanted to be a theatrical special effects
makeup artist, and so I was looking at those Universal
Monsters from like the costume makeup perspective. I'm really excited
(02:58):
about that. But never why into podcast producing instead?
Speaker 1 (03:01):
And here I am, Hey, guess what, never too late.
Speaker 4 (03:04):
I'm gonna when you come to Universal, we'll go to
the Monster movie makeup show and you could.
Speaker 7 (03:09):
I love dream.
Speaker 4 (03:11):
I love the original Universal Monsters. You know, these I
think are so formative for so many of us as kids.
It's what they show you in film school. They show
you Frankenstein, you know. But these movies have been around
as well for like over one hundred years. The first
movie is nineteen thirteen.
Speaker 1 (03:27):
You know.
Speaker 4 (03:27):
That's where you get your big boom Lawn Cheney, Doctor
Jekyl and mister Hyde. Iconic movie, and from there you're famous.
This is really where we establish the literary monsters as
their own cannon. We have Handsom of the Opera obviously,
Bella Lagosi, Dracula, the Frankenstein with Boris Karloff so famous,
the Mummy, the Invisible Man, the Wolfman, Creature from the
(03:50):
Black Lagoon, both original characters. In a way, Ah man,
I've been waiting to say this for so long. I've
written about it, but like, look, guys, in a way,
the Universal Monsters were the first original shared Universe.
Speaker 1 (04:05):
Shocking to tell you, but it's true.
Speaker 4 (04:07):
I have the fantastic Fast Channel which you can access
for free on your Roku or Chuby or Pluto, which
is the Universal Monster's Channel. I've actually learned so much
from watching a lot of the other movies I hadn't seen,
like The Invisible Woman. It's it's hilariously like an outrageous
class comedy that's kind of a screwball comedy about her
(04:29):
trying to unionize women who work in a sewing factory.
Speaker 1 (04:34):
And that's then later on I realized.
Speaker 4 (04:36):
With like Son of Dracula, they start crossing them over.
They have multiple characters. So it is really an interesting
historical kind of look back at these beautiful black and
white movies that became icons for Universal, you know, but
that definitely over the years have have lost some some
of their shine or recognition or almost like became two face,
(05:00):
so they lost the fact that they were just the
universal thing. Frankenstein, Bride Creature, they just feel like the versions. Jason,
what was the first memory that you have of watching
one of these movies?
Speaker 3 (05:13):
It's going to be the original Frankenstein. I watched it
as a child, as I watched most of these, that
and the original Dracula. Yeah, But honestly, my favorite of these,
and it doesn't get mentioned as one of the classic
(05:33):
universal monsters is Hunchback of.
Speaker 1 (05:36):
Notre Dame Great pol Yeah, which is a.
Speaker 3 (05:40):
Silent film starring Lan Cheney, but Lan Cheney at his
like most like dynamic on screen, like.
Speaker 5 (05:50):
A true action star.
Speaker 3 (05:53):
And let me just say, if you've never seen the
original Hunchback of Notre Dame from nineteen twenty three, it
is a silent film.
Speaker 5 (06:00):
Watching the action, the stunts.
Speaker 3 (06:03):
The makeup are incredible, the makeup is incredible, and the
last third of the film, when like the residents of
Paris are like trying to break into Notre Dame to
kill Quasamoto and save Esmerelda, is like so insane, It's
(06:23):
so good watch it. Yes, but I watched these as
a kid, as I think a lot of us did.
They had There was a there was like two channels
in New York, Channel five and Channel nine that would
do kung fu and monster movies on the weekends.
Speaker 5 (06:43):
And I would just watch monster movies.
Speaker 3 (06:46):
Like also, and it's particularly spooky season all October. It
would just every weekend would just be like you know,
Creature with a black lagron, Invisible Man, The Fly, And
I just fell in love with these movies from there
and Hammer Hammer Ones.
Speaker 1 (07:00):
I love a Hammer horror, No, but I like, I
do think that Hammer.
Speaker 4 (07:05):
Is the spiritual successor to it. And you get these
really interesting ideas of like what the twenties and thirties
were like in America compared to what then, like, you know,
the forties, fifties and sixties were like transitioning into British
cinema in about the different ways they stole Great Christopher.
Speaker 5 (07:24):
So much break christ was so scary.
Speaker 4 (07:26):
Yeah, And I think that's the thing that's really great
about these movies is these are essentially gateway horror movies
that you can watch as a kid, that are not
too terrifying but still have the heart and the kind
of heart break, especially with things like Frankenstein or The
Bride of Frankenstein, which is actually such an unusual film.
Speaker 1 (07:45):
And yeah, so I just think these are such.
Speaker 4 (07:47):
A brilliant basis for so much of what we love
about horror and about storytelling and about the idea of
the monster as the protagonist that all really comes from,
you know, this version as well as of course like
the originals by Mary Shelley and Bram Stoker, but these
were where we really set up that scale of like, okay, well,
(08:08):
the creature is the icon, the bride is the icon.
Like nobody cares about Dr Frankenstein. We care about Boris
Karloff in that makeup. So it is understandable. I think
that in you know, twenty fifteen, twenty sixteen, they said, hey,
let's bring these back, baby, we have got ip and yes,
very famous photo shoot which Aaron has and and Ian
(08:34):
have have loved to point out. Ian calls this one
out every time the photo shoot is CG like they
they photo shop them together.
Speaker 1 (08:42):
But the lineup was.
Speaker 5 (08:44):
In fact Raze Russell Crowe.
Speaker 3 (08:46):
Russell Crowe is very clearly like whenever whatever original photo
he was posted, he was like pasted in from He
appears to be like holding like the back of a
chaut or something like still and now his hand is
just like kind of hovering, like in mid air, like
holding nothing.
Speaker 5 (09:04):
Yes, but this photo shoot is now it's like this weird.
Speaker 4 (09:09):
Artific, funny effect of that era where everyone thought they
could make everything a universe post MCS.
Speaker 3 (09:16):
This is one of the great failures and in fact,
like I think a failure to launch.
Speaker 5 (09:21):
Because while there was some press.
Speaker 3 (09:24):
Including this now infamous photograph of Russell Crowe, Harvey Arbard,
m Tom Cruise, Johnny DApp, Jonathan Jonathan Depp, the the
kind of like marketing launch, like say what you will
about the MCU.
Speaker 5 (09:42):
One thing that they did really well was signaling, oh after.
Speaker 3 (09:46):
Right after the success of Iron Man Boom, both through
the movies and through marketing campaigns, we are doing all
your favorite Avengers characters, and then we're gonna bring this
together in a shared univer Like we're doing that. While
like there are tons of stories in like the Hollywood
press and variety, et cetera.
Speaker 5 (10:08):
I don't know that they ever really hard launched the
Dark Universal Terrible Mummy, I would agree.
Speaker 4 (10:15):
I would also say something I think was that was
confusing for them at this point was from you know,
the official end of the original Universal Monsters era is
nineteen fifty six with the Creature Walks and among Us
by John Sherwood. It's like the last official one nineteen
seventy nine. We get the movie that we know that
me and Jason do love The Dracula with Franklangella very fun,
(10:37):
crazy movie.
Speaker 1 (10:38):
Then don't forget this guys.
Speaker 4 (10:40):
Nineteen ninety nine the Mummy, bisexual legend Stephen you know
Stephen Summer's iconic bisexual Awakening movie. Then we had Mummy Return,
Scorpion King Van Helsing remember that Mummy, Tomb of the
Dragon Emperor, and the twenty ten Joe Johnston of Iron
Man Fame Wolfman movie. And then there is nothing until
(11:03):
of Captain America, Fame of Captain America fame, thank you.
And the reason I thought of iron Man is because
of the Rocketeer, you know, Joe Johnson, a legend, legendary
director of OAI iron yess also of the delight og
iron Man and also just delightful Captain America author. But
then in twenty fourteen they made Dracula I'm Told, which
I do love.
Speaker 1 (11:24):
It's really, really corny.
Speaker 4 (11:26):
It is a movie about the or the sad origin Dracula.
This was Michael de Luca, who, by the way, is
now in charge of film at Warner Brothers. He produced
this director by Gary Show. It was essentially an iron
Man inspired kind of like what did what made Dracula?
Speaker 1 (11:42):
Dracula? Very corny, very fun.
Speaker 4 (11:44):
But the point is I think they didn't even feel
like they had to relaunch it because they had never
stopped making these kind of like not necessarily very popular
trying to be spin offs the Dracula and Told Counts
as the first.
Speaker 1 (11:57):
Like modern era.
Speaker 4 (11:59):
Then you launch in to that Alex Kirtman Tom Cruise
The Mummy movie, which, guys, if you haven't seen it,
you gotta go and watch this movie, because.
Speaker 7 (12:06):
One I still haven't seen it.
Speaker 4 (12:08):
They bought the screenwriters in and they spent money on them.
Christopher McCrory, David Cooke, the Legend Jurassic Park.
Speaker 3 (12:16):
David, It's it's Christopher McCory.
Speaker 1 (12:21):
They could have saved it, Dylan Chriusman.
Speaker 4 (12:23):
When you watch the movie, guys, it's gonna blow your
mind because esthetically and visually they just wanted to make
Iron Man, so they set it in a desert type
setting of Egypt. Obviously makes sense because of the Mummy,
but they are like military people who like relocate treasure,
essentially thieves. And then his best friend in the military
(12:48):
is uh Is Nick from New Girl Jake Johnston.
Speaker 1 (12:54):
You know, yes, we love to see that from the way,
but who else did you see on the way back
from New York come con.
Speaker 5 (13:02):
Oh the legend John carp Oh, my god, we love
him so much. And uh and uh Dana and Dan
Dee's mouchin Oh we love also.
Speaker 4 (13:12):
Uh just got to say, guys, why didn't you bring
John Carpet now, like he's still alive?
Speaker 1 (13:16):
You could have given him one We've almost talked.
Speaker 7 (13:19):
Truly, I came very close.
Speaker 4 (13:21):
Because do you want to talk to him? He's so cool,
but you want to respect him.
Speaker 3 (13:26):
He and he you know, he's he looks like he
doesn't want to talk to anybody. But he seemed very polite.
He's very polite to the airline staff. That's always good
working near him as he was deplaning. But uh, but
I did yet.
Speaker 4 (13:39):
Well he's a big basketball fan, so our dream is
one day he can come on and just talk basketball
and video games. But yeah, like basically I think the
Mummy Jason, you tap onto something really real. They didn't
really do a big push, and they didn't really try
and relaunch it because I think they felt like, well,
we've been just kind of making these mid tier kind
of vaguely successful, and this has tom cruise and its action.
(14:02):
But if you remember another incredible moment you can still
watch this on YouTube. They also failed to launch when
they released a trailer that for some reason, only had
ambient sound in one of the action sequences. So everyone's
getting sucked out the plane and.
Speaker 3 (14:19):
It's like, it's just like and.
Speaker 1 (14:26):
It looks bad. It sounds bad.
Speaker 4 (14:28):
And in the movie, the Jake Johnson character, who is
also like a military black Rock esque.
Speaker 8 (14:34):
Like, come, I don't really understand he dies, guys spoiler alert,
And then he is haunting Tom Cruise the whole time
as a ghost best friend, and Tom Cruise has to
hunt down the Mummy, but there is also an implication
at the end.
Speaker 4 (14:49):
That he is he has to become the Mummy, so
he was going He's going to take on the mantle
of the Mummy. I'm saying, I watched it in a
dollar in Palm Spring's perfect place to watch it.
Speaker 1 (15:03):
That flops three years later, what happens is the Crazy Thing.
Speaker 5 (15:06):
Well, let's also add that.
Speaker 3 (15:10):
Co starring in this film Crazy as kind of the
connective tissue to the rest of the universal stuff is
Doctor Jekyl, doctor Henry Jekyl played by Russell Crowe, who
I think they were.
Speaker 5 (15:30):
Clearly positioning as like the next here of the Universe, and.
Speaker 3 (15:37):
It's crazy that you can you can legitimately talk about
this train wreck of a movie that had.
Speaker 5 (15:44):
Really good people and also talented act and talent, very
talented actor.
Speaker 3 (15:51):
Everybody in this is a talent, and you can completely
forget the absolutely bananas detail that Russell Crowe is playing
a modern day Jekyl who is the nix Furia.
Speaker 4 (16:03):
And has, by the way, like the last twenty five
minutes of the movie is like him, like in his Layer,
with all the magical creatures and the books and the
easter eggs.
Speaker 1 (16:13):
Yeah, and again, guys, I gotta tell you this.
Speaker 4 (16:15):
I tracked me and Carmen talked about this when we
were talking about Megan recently.
Speaker 1 (16:19):
I gotta tell you, guys, you can't do that in
the first movie. Everyone knows this. Like Mega two, it
was not far and long enough to make her a superhero.
Speaker 4 (16:26):
The Mummy needed to have a slight teaser like the
end of Iron Man.
Speaker 1 (16:30):
That is how you establish it if you're gonna copy.
Speaker 7 (16:32):
It, maybe a post credit scene.
Speaker 1 (16:34):
Post credit scene exactly. But the interesting thing is from
The Mummy that flops.
Speaker 4 (16:39):
Within three years, they've decided that they're gonna be able
to release a different kind of movie, and they go
for the complete opposite end of the spectrum, which is
how low can we make this budget? So, alongside Jason
Blam and the Blumhouse of it All, who they have
a deal with, they basically say, hey, what can you
(16:59):
do for five million dollars and they say, we'll give
it to Lee one l. Lee one Ll takes it
to Australia. I was lucky enough to actually visit the
set for that movie. It was incredible, built a whole movie,
and I learned something quite interesting on that set, which
was Lee Wannell told us, Hey, if you make a
movie for five million dollars in Australia, you're working with
(17:19):
the DP of Lord of the Rings, You're working with
Peter Jackson's cinematographer, you are working with incredible people who've
worked on Ossie B movies their entire life. Like, the
amount of quality that you are getting on a set
like that is very high for the cost. The movie
opens February twenty eighth, twenty twenty, and you may forget this,
(17:40):
but that five million dollar movie open to one hundred
million dollars on opening weekend domestically. It had the Juice
to launch a new franchise, and we were supposed to
get many exciting new franchises from that. The one I'm
most upset that never happened the Karen Casama Western drag
that was one hundred percent up my alley, and instead
(18:04):
COVID happened. Three years later we get Renfield, Me and
Jason interviewed Lovely Ben Schwartz Valle the movie.
Speaker 1 (18:11):
We thought it prefers, but it did not hit. It
was a Chrismack movie.
Speaker 4 (18:15):
Robert Kirkman came up with a story of that movie,
lots of people involved, but.
Speaker 1 (18:18):
It didn't hit.
Speaker 4 (18:19):
And then the newest, most recent Wolfman movie also not
a big hit. They went back to Lee Yanol, but
we understand the production was tough. It was a movie
that did not hit in the same way. And now
we're in a space where our next biggest classic monster movie, Frankenstein,
is actually not coming from Universal at all and is
(18:40):
instead coming from Netflix. Because these movies, these stories are
out of a license. They do not have to pay
to make Frankenstein. They don't have to pay anyone. So
now we're in a space where these movies are actually
going to be reclaimed by different storytellers.
Speaker 5 (18:54):
Let's let me.
Speaker 3 (18:55):
I'd love to get everybody's hypothesis on one where wrong,
and I'm gonna start with mine. I don't think it's possible,
or I think it's I should say, I think it's very,
very difficult to make a big budget, triple a.
Speaker 5 (19:16):
Hollywood tentpole horror movie.
Speaker 3 (19:19):
I actually I actually struggle to think of one that
worked and was in any way scary. Like all of
the best horror movies are like mid budget at best
or indie type movies that come in from outside the system.
(19:40):
The second you try to four quadrant the fucking dark Universe,
it's just not no no.
Speaker 4 (19:45):
I think, I think, Jason, you're completely on it. I
think that it is a mixture of the assumption of
what people want and not really understanding it. You can't
four quadrant a movie like the Lee Wannel Invisible Man
is an R rated movie. It's really scary, and that
(20:05):
still made one hundred million dollars. You know, you can
make a movie that is scary, but it's five million dollars.
Speaker 1 (20:11):
You know.
Speaker 4 (20:11):
These movies also were made in a completely just different system.
The original movies were made under the studio contract system,
so it's a completely different situation where they're making these
movies really really quickly, really.
Speaker 5 (20:22):
Far and by the and those were.
Speaker 1 (20:26):
Of their time.
Speaker 5 (20:27):
They were not they.
Speaker 3 (20:28):
Were not They were genre movies of the Toapalpi movies.
Speaker 4 (20:32):
They were not necessarily meant to be the biggest smash hits,
you know. And I think as well, the reason that
the Dark Universe specifically didn't work is just it didn't
understand what people like about it, which is they like
the monsters. They don't want to see a human who's
slowly turning into a monster. They want to see the monster.
They want to see a new take on the monster.
And I think that Gama del Toro understands the nature
(20:56):
of Frankenstein, the nature of emotions. I think it's going
to be really popular. Think it's going to hit. I'm
glad they're putting it in theaters. We haven't seen it yet.
And I think that the right way to approach this is,
like Maggie Jillenhole's The Bride, do something weird, something out
there that is a new take on these characters, because
that is what the original versions did and that's why
(21:17):
people like them.
Speaker 1 (21:18):
Calmon, what do you think?
Speaker 6 (21:19):
Yeah, I think we need it. We definitely need a
new take on the characters. If anything, I think back
to like when have we had a shared universe before?
And I think back to It's a horrible movie, but
as a kid, I loved it. I think back to
the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, and we know.
Speaker 1 (21:34):
That allow more.
Speaker 4 (21:36):
You know, that is basically what they were trying to
do with Dark Universe Ironic and it works.
Speaker 6 (21:41):
We know that that works together. And I remember as
a kid like I remember wanting like, oh, yes, I
want to see the follow up of all of these
characters together. I just think that they probably spent too
much money on the cast, Like I don't think you
necessarily well, I will say one thing for me is
like I was in a big Tom Hayting Tom Cruise
hating phase of my life when that That Mummy came out.
(22:04):
Now I will go see a Tom Cruise movie, But
at that time, I was like, do I really want
to sit through a Tom Cruise movie? So I would
love for them to bring us some undiscovered actors, some
new people that we can like creature work.
Speaker 1 (22:17):
Where's he bring him in? We know he can well.
Doug Jones, speaking.
Speaker 3 (22:21):
Of Bill let's let's I've pulled up the top performing
horror movies of all time, and I wonder if we
can glean any kind of information about what you know, like,
is it possible to launch a shared monster movie universe
from these? Okay, so number one is it? Twenty seventeen's in?
(22:42):
Number two is conjuring Last Rights?
Speaker 5 (22:44):
Wow? How crazy conjuring.
Speaker 4 (22:48):
We're about to jump into the lessons we lined the
books up as one of them is we're still popping
guys and conjuring last rites.
Speaker 5 (22:55):
It's gotta be.
Speaker 3 (22:56):
I don't know the budget, but I'm gonna guess like
forty million dollar movies probably.
Speaker 4 (23:00):
I would say, but at this point you're probably looking
at one hundred, but it's probably still making a lot,
Like this is the fourth Conjuring movie, so still making
a lot more than it costs.
Speaker 3 (23:10):
Twenty nineteen, number three, Chapter Chapter two, number four, and
this was the you know, the King of the Hill
for thirty plus years is nineteen seventy three is the Exorcist?
Just to show you, like how hard it actually.
Speaker 4 (23:26):
Jason right, Conjuring Last Rights fifty five million dollars, So
you were not far off. It's absolutely still a low
budget situation. Also, again, guess where the conjuring comes from, guys,
from a unique original director who creates an idea that
is relatively mid budget that then goes on to become
a billion dollar franchise. You have to invest in original ideas,
(23:50):
even if you are adapting something that is classical like
a haunted house.
Speaker 3 (23:54):
Yes, number five Sinners, which one of the surprise is
of recent cinema years, right, yeah, and not a pure
and this is what we're not here for, right, what
is an original take on a horror genre?
Speaker 9 (24:08):
Right?
Speaker 3 (24:08):
Cinners is absolutely that number six. I was a little
bit shocked. Twenty eighteen's the nun now, I'm telling you.
Speaker 4 (24:16):
That conjuring unibus, guys. I guess that's what we're learning
is you can launch a new horror universe, but it
has to follow on from like an organic success.
Speaker 7 (24:28):
That's the contract.
Speaker 3 (24:29):
So that's the point. Yes, that's the point. The conjuring
is actually on the top twenty of this list several times,
so I don't know that it's I just think it
would be really difficult coming from Hey, let's make a
hit exactly and spend two hundred three hundred million dollars
on production to make a hit. I think it'd be
(24:50):
really hard from that, with that kind of philosophy to
make a one hit monster movie, to say nothing of
like four or or five.
Speaker 5 (25:00):
That are interconnected.
Speaker 1 (25:01):
Correct.
Speaker 4 (25:04):
Well, that's a perfect time to take an ad break
and go to our box office lessons of twenty twenty five.
Speaker 3 (25:11):
Thank you, Comma, Let's do it, Thank you Carmen, and
we're back twenty twenty five. It's been a very interesting
(25:34):
year thus far. It's only our Calober, of course, very
interesting year in cinema at the movies, it feels like
there's something of a movie resurgence, people enjoying going back
to the movies the big screen. But it's we're clearly
in a transition period from something. And with that, we'd
like to welcome super producer the Lord of the Spice.
Speaker 1 (25:56):
He's back.
Speaker 5 (25:58):
Oh oh wow, I got it at Lord.
Speaker 1 (26:05):
Yeah yes, aboo.
Speaker 4 (26:08):
Tell us what are some of the craziest box office
trends this year that we have noticed?
Speaker 10 (26:15):
Well, I actually I want to throw I have four
of them written down here, and I want to throw
them at the two of you and get your thoughts
on them, because you know, I'm no savant. I can't
look into my crystal ball and tell you exactly what
is working or not working at the movies. But here's
where my gut instincts are going. And I'm curious what
you think looking at the lists of box office successes
(26:39):
for twenty twenty five. But then also like ten years ago,
twenty fifteen, twenty years ago, two thousand and five, here's
sort of the like sad realization that I had. I
wonder if you too agree. If you want to crack
the top ten movies of the year in the box
at the box office, you've got to lean established ip
or movie that that's like almost the only way to
(27:02):
do it. And sadly, like, at least in the last
twenty years, that seems to have only been been the
only surefire way to do it. And you know, maybe
Bob Biker's onto something with the with the push toward
more remakes and less originals.
Speaker 4 (27:18):
I do think that absolutely for me, one of my
big takeaways this year was kids movies, kids movies, kids movies,
because one again, Jason often a lower budget, right, especially
in the animated space, something like last year's The Bad Guy,
I mean, The Bad Guys was such a huge hit
when it came out a couple of years ago. Bad
Guys Too didn't deliver the same massive success, but it
(27:38):
had the long legs. I think, if I'm not mistaken,
one of the biggest movies this year, if not the
biggest movie this year domestically at least, is gonna be
Lilo and Stitch remake.
Speaker 1 (27:49):
So I do think.
Speaker 4 (27:50):
That those kids movies are always kind of a safe
ish bet. Even if we look back a couple of
years to Elemental, which was an original our IP, it
seemed like it flopped at the beginning lowest opening open
to around twenty three million, but the legs that it
had got it to breaking even and becoming a profit.
I think that something I've seen change and shift as
(28:13):
both somebody who does this as my job and somebody
who has loads of kids in my life.
Speaker 1 (28:18):
Now parents will wait.
Speaker 4 (28:20):
They want to hear what other parents think, they want
to hear what podcasts think. They want to hear what
their friends' kids think, so they a kid's movie can
continue to make money a lot longer than I think
are the ip even though in the past, you know,
we had the long legs on superhero films. The big
drop offs this year have proven that that is not
(28:41):
the case anymore. They are not up there in my
kind of vision of what protected Hollywood for sure, IP
is right now, and I think the big thing for me,
which we have been talking about on this podcast for
a long time, I would love to see comic book
and superhero movies attempt more mid budgets, attempt more different
takee attempt more unique ways to tell a story that
(29:04):
could lead to them becoming financially solvent and not having
spent three hundred and fifty million dollars every time they
make a movie.
Speaker 5 (29:12):
Yeah, that's absolutely right.
Speaker 3 (29:14):
My other takeaway looking at this, well, first, here's here's
the glow of ox Office twenty twenty five.
Speaker 5 (29:19):
First of all, NESA two is.
Speaker 3 (29:21):
The second highest grossing movie of all time. Most of that,
the vast majority of that in just China. Number two
is Leelo and Stitch. Number three, the Minecraft movie, YEP, four, Draffic,
Jurassic World Rebirth, five, Demon Slayer, Woh, How to Train
(29:42):
Your Dragon f one, And then here's our first comic
book movie, Superman Mission Impossible, the Final Reckoning, and then
bringing up the tail end of the top ten, the
Fantastic Four. What do we think of these numbers. What
are these numbers tell us? Besides obviously IP and kids.
(30:03):
I agree with you, I are ruling the rooster.
Speaker 4 (30:06):
I think that something that this showcase is is global
box office is becoming a more interesting and different space
than what we are seeing in domestic.
Speaker 1 (30:22):
I think that's really interesting.
Speaker 4 (30:24):
I also think that it's showing us a huge move
towards global cinema.
Speaker 1 (30:29):
I mean the Demon Slayer movie.
Speaker 4 (30:31):
This is one of my themes I've been thinking about
this year is that I feel like the box office
predictors that we have now are not necessarily in tune
with audiences in the same way they always have been
Demon Slayer. They had no idea it was going to
open to seventy million dollars. Nobody saw that coming. It
was not expected. I would also put minecraft movie into
(30:55):
that one hundred and fifty million dollar budget. It has
already made almost a billion dollars, and it's opening weekend
was one hundred and sixty two million dollars plus you know,
seven hundred and fifty three thousand dollars change. And I
remember going to see that movie with a kid, and
they told me this movie is going to make a
(31:16):
billion dollars, and the box office predictors had it opening
around forty to sixty million.
Speaker 1 (31:21):
I think there is something that.
Speaker 4 (31:24):
The box office predictors cannot quite grasp anymore. And I
think it's to do with the fact that, say, Jurassic
World Rebirth, a movie that was, you know, at best,
kind of a three out of five movie and was
generally not particularly beloved. But guess what outside of America
that movie did crazy, crazy numbers.
Speaker 3 (31:44):
If you want to be to a boost point, if
you want to be a top five, top ten grossing
movie of the year, you have to have international appeal.
In Sinners, which was a massive, massive hit here and
a surprise hit is like fourteenth, fifteenth on the list,
like did not really do huge numbers internationally. It's gotta
(32:07):
be one of these kind of escapism universal type message kids.
Speaker 10 (32:13):
Movie mission impossible.
Speaker 5 (32:15):
I think the top ten mission impossible. The message is really.
Speaker 4 (32:19):
Escaping escapism istory call Jason also as well. Like you said,
I do think this remakes and IP is still gonna
be a big story, but I think it has to
be done in it has to be specific to what
the audience wants. I could have told you that Leelo
and Stitch movie was gonna make a ton of money,
(32:39):
not because I have any feelings about it either way.
It was quite a controversial movie. But we know Aaron
loved it, not that that makes.
Speaker 1 (32:46):
It less controversial. He went in the chat and said,
great movie.
Speaker 4 (32:50):
So you know, but I could have told you that
for one reason, I in my little comic shop that
I run on the weekends, I have a VHS player
and a TV and ninety percent of ORC to come
in and pick a movie, pick Lilo and Stitch that
had become for them, the movie they saw on Disney Channel,
the movie that was easy to access. And of course
south in southern California, there's also a lot of Hawaiian
(33:13):
people here and a lot of people of different ethnicities
who found that movie to be incredibly important and radical
in some ways. So I think that also it's about understanding.
For example, I would not have known that How to
Train Your Dragon was going.
Speaker 1 (33:29):
To be a huge hit. It helped.
Speaker 4 (33:31):
I loved the movie, again controversial take me and Aaron
were not agreeing there. I thought it was so great,
But that was a movie where if you knew your
animated audiences, if you knew what kids are into you
would have known that that movie was gonna make tons
of money. So I think it's about now they can't
rely on Oh people know this for example, snow White,
(33:52):
Massive flop, Megan two, massive flop, smashing Machine.
Speaker 1 (33:55):
I don't know if I think this is an interesting.
Speaker 3 (33:58):
That's not it. That's not a box office play, that's
a that's an award.
Speaker 4 (34:02):
This, I will say, I think is an interesting conversation
again about how people report on box office because I
saw so many different places, say lowest opening in Duayne
the Rock Johnson's career. Yeah, babe, it's a sports movie
from a twenty four. That's not necessarily how.
Speaker 1 (34:19):
You look at its success.
Speaker 4 (34:21):
And also, if we look he has not been that
much of a box office draw as people assume anyway,
if you actually look at his numbers.
Speaker 1 (34:28):
So again, I think it's gonna.
Speaker 7 (34:29):
Be about shut.
Speaker 1 (34:33):
Guys. I interviewed The Rock.
Speaker 4 (34:34):
I went to see Skyscraper and Rampage the same weekend
they opened, because I thought that was such a fun
double bill of old school action. But he hasn't necessarily
brought those Fast and the Furious numbers the way that
he has in other franchises.
Speaker 5 (34:52):
Let's talk about what this means for.
Speaker 3 (34:57):
The former box office heavy wait for seemingly a decade
and a half, the Superhero movie that is now pully
in respectable numbers, Superman on a budget of two twenty
five made six hundred and fifteen million, almost six hundred
and sixteen million. The Fantastic Four doubled its money essentially,
(35:21):
although when you put marketing put marketing into the budget,
it's probably didn't do that well. Still, you know, these
are respectable finishes, but it's not like.
Speaker 4 (35:32):
One point eight you know, BILLI Yeah, they used when
when Jurassic World came out after I think it was
probably Infinity War, they literally did like a handover, like
you've taken over the one point two billion box Like
they would be putting ads in trades about how much
money these movies were making and how gracefully they were
(35:54):
kind of saying, hey, now another thing we own or
another thing you own is one point two billion those days?
Speaker 1 (36:00):
Is that kind of done? Post covid as for what
we've seen?
Speaker 3 (36:03):
So what does this mean in terms of the audience.
We talked about the structural problems at you know, Marvel
kind of running out of runway after a number of
years the fact that the original cast just you can't
run them out there.
Speaker 9 (36:17):
You can't.
Speaker 5 (36:18):
They are bringing.
Speaker 3 (36:19):
Robert back, but you can't have Robert down. So what
do we think this means for audiences? What are audiences
craving right now? Because it's clearly not superheroes in the
way that it was Aboo.
Speaker 4 (36:35):
What did you learn from kind of reading and looking
through that history, and also as someone who loves all
kinds of storytelling, what do you feel like superheroes are
looking like on the horizon?
Speaker 10 (36:46):
Well, I've actually been thinking about this a lot. I
personally am going to theaters less and less unless I
feel like it is an experience beyond just watching the film.
I think Sinner an Imax for example, what was I mean?
Centers itself the film itself very much a reason to
go to the theaters, but in particular here in New York,
(37:09):
I spent like weeks trying to find an Imax ticket
and ultimately had to give up because they were just
all sold out weeks and weeks and weeks in advance.
But it felt like a movie you had to go
experience in the best way possible, not something that I
could just watch on my fifty inch TV at home.
I think F one, you know, the number one's the
number seven slot on the top ten. That movie also
(37:31):
felt like something like, oh, I keep hearing people like
via word of mouth or through review saying like, this
is a movie you want to like, hear and feel
in a theater. It's not necessarily one you want to
just watch at home on your couch. And I feel
like that's not the sales pitch I'm getting from superhero
films anymore. I'm not getting the like, come to the
(37:54):
theater and be a part of the experience, whether it's
a part of the superhero culture and the movement, or
the culmination of ten years of superhero storytelling and the Avengers,
or like this film was meant to be watched on
the big screen. A lot of it is just like
very cgi heavy third act, Like yeah, I mean, I
(38:14):
guess I'll just like put that on at home and
watch it when it's on Disney Plus in forty five
or ninety days, and like, I can wait for this one.
Speaker 1 (38:22):
It didn't.
Speaker 10 (38:22):
I don't feel that urgency with a lot of superhero
movies that this was made for a theater experience, And
I do wonder if that is a sales pitch that
might help films in the future.
Speaker 4 (38:34):
I think you've actually touched on something really deep there
that speaks to a lot of the issues that maybe
we didn't even realize that Disney plusification of it all
would impact. But that knowledge that, yeah, this is gonna
be on Disney Plus, and also, more importantly, is it
gonna look any different than what you can access on
Disney Plus on your TV?
Speaker 1 (38:55):
Because I think that that commitment to.
Speaker 4 (38:57):
Volume and yeah, obviously we want great quality TV. First
season of The Mandalorian incredible lots of volume use. But
then you get to ant man in the Watch Quantumania
and Man in the Worst Quantumania, and you end up
in a situation where whether you see it on the
big screen you see on TV, it looks very CGI heavy,
it looks muddy.
Speaker 1 (39:16):
They're not necessarily you know.
Speaker 4 (39:18):
I think there was an assumption with the MCU and
DC movies for a long time they're gonna get the
big format screens that you're gonna go see them in IMAX,
you're gonna pay the extra money, and they're gonna get
that kind of boost from that. But I think you
speak to something very real, which is Sinners obviously did
not translate in the same way for everyone, but one
(39:38):
battle after another for certain people, they had to see
it in the vista vision. And also as well, I
think like going back to horror, something like Final Destination Bloodlines, right,
that almost replaced that communal viewing that an old MCU
movie had had, Like people watching Final Destination in the
cinema screaming class when they see the lugs coming Aryl
(40:02):
going oh my god. So you know, I think that
communal viewing is part of what is driving people back
to the fit as you this year. But in that mindset,
are they still are SUPERA movies still playing into that audience,
is still giving them a reason to go? I think
is a very good point a boom.
Speaker 3 (40:20):
What do we see as looking at this data, looking
at the movies that are coming out? Do we see
any trends that we can predict for twenty twenty six?
One thing I want to note is that we are
in a transition period. And you know, the turnaround from
production to box office for a film is like three
(40:41):
years yea east, and so we're watching the tail end
of movies that were planned for a different year. So
what do we see in twenty twenty six. As we
start to see companies like retarget and restrategize, what trends
do we see emerging?
Speaker 4 (40:58):
ROSI would I think that we're gonna continue to see
I think, for example, The Odyssey, the Christophanola movie. I
think it's gonna do crazy numbers. I think people are
gonna want to see it at the cinema. I think
we're gonna continue that. I think that Superhero wise, I
think spider Man brand new day, we know the it destined.
(41:18):
Daniel kran is like an incredible director and has been
doing some really interesting stuff. I think that could bring
us back to the superhero movie peak. But I hope
that that doesn't mean that Marvel don't learn any lessons
from why the other movies weren't performing. But I think
that one has a chance to break it. I also
think it could be interesting Mortal Kombat too. They have
(41:42):
Obviously I'm biased, we know I love those movies. But
I do think that the fact that Warner Brothers has
moved it to May, which is your big blockbuster opening weekend,
it's under two hours. I think we could see that
do crazy numbers, maybe bring back more video game movies
post Minecraft, and I'll be interested to see what the
Maggie Llen Hall Bride movie looks like.
Speaker 1 (42:01):
It's gonna be a musical, It's.
Speaker 4 (42:03):
Gonna be a weird nineteen thirties set Chicago film.
Speaker 1 (42:09):
Also can the Bone Temple near Dacosta's follow up?
Speaker 4 (42:13):
Will that continue that big resurgence back in cinematic horror?
Speaker 1 (42:17):
I hope, so are the movies. I'm excited for Masters
of the Universe. It's probably gonna flop. It's got Jared Letowen.
Speaker 4 (42:23):
He's not a good look for them, but it does
look exciting and fun. We also have Supergirl. Is that
gonna be able to continue the James Gunnification. But the
biggest one that I'm interested to see is the gen
Z's most hated, most hate anticipated movie of the year,
which is gonna be Wuthering Heights, and it's made by
(42:46):
the same director and writer, Emerald Fennel of Saltburn.
Speaker 1 (42:50):
The discourse around this one is absolutely crazy.
Speaker 4 (42:52):
But if it does like one hundred mil opening weekend,
which I think it has the potential to do on
Valentine's Day, I worked at a theater when they released
Fifty Shades of Gray on Valentine's Day and we were
the only non sold out theater and we made so
much money because we had so many seats.
Speaker 1 (43:08):
And I think it would be interesting to me to see.
Speaker 4 (43:11):
If we get a period piece renaissance or a modern
Retelling's renaissance post that being a hit, even if it's
a hate watch hit. Jason Way, you most excited about
in twenty twenty six.
Speaker 3 (43:23):
I'm I don't know about excited, but I but I
think that we're going to see I think that the
success at Five Nights at Frady Oh, It's just like
Under is under talked about, like this super weird Nietsch
spooky Kid video game that with you know, multiple episodes
out on for PC or whatever platform you're playing on,
(43:46):
that becoming a movie that was a huge hit on
a tiny budget.
Speaker 5 (43:50):
I think we're gonna see more.
Speaker 4 (43:51):
So Yeah, and we have Five Nights at Freddy's two
coming out this month, which I think you're right is
going to open to crazy numbers.
Speaker 3 (43:57):
So I think we're going to start to see more
weird YouTube like weird video game.
Speaker 1 (44:06):
Kid skipp any toilet It's coming, guys.
Speaker 3 (44:09):
You know, like, uh, will there be at some point
a Rollblos movie almost like.
Speaker 5 (44:15):
Somebody right now.
Speaker 3 (44:16):
Yeah, almost certainly somebody right now. There's a bunch of
producers in a room trying to figure that, and.
Speaker 4 (44:21):
It's probably gonna be a ten year old who writes it,
just like a ten year old writes all the games
on them.
Speaker 5 (44:26):
Iby, what about you?
Speaker 10 (44:27):
I think it's a big sci fi fan. I'm excited
for twenty twenty six. I mean, Dune Part three is
kind of goes without saying for me personally, but I'm
very very excited for Project Hail Mary. That adaptation looks spectacular.
How well it'll do, I don't know. I mean, box
office wise, I'm not so sure that it's going to
(44:48):
do gangbusters, but as a sci fi fan, I'm very
much looking forward to it. I agree with with a
lot of what Rosie said. I think Odyssey is gonna,
you know, blow the box office out of the water.
I do think Mando and Grogu and Doomsday are gonna
like do fine. You know, I think much much like
this year, they're gonna do like fine and maybe crack
(45:08):
the top ten like Fantastic Foward did this year, but
kind of in a way where it still feels like
not a huge success in some weird way just because
expectations will be like you know, through the roof. I
do think this year horror was sort of a standout
genre at the box office, And Mike Feeling says that'll
(45:31):
actually continue next year because twenty eight years later, ye
at a scream, I mean Scream seven.
Speaker 4 (45:37):
I'm not so sure, but like, yes, it's very where
we're in a contract place of Stream seven. That could
actually break a trend of Scream always out performing itself.
Speaker 1 (45:47):
That could be the one. But I think I think horror.
Speaker 4 (45:48):
Is a I think it'll continue bet and has is
going to continue. Also, guys, just before we leave, great
question that Aaron popped in? Do do we think that,
oh the e popped in?
Speaker 1 (46:00):
Actually?
Speaker 4 (46:01):
Do we think Wicked for Good or Avatar fire Nation
or whatever it's called. Do we think that is gonna
either of those are going to crack the top ten?
Speaker 5 (46:11):
Avatar Absolutely, it.
Speaker 3 (46:13):
Could be the number one Avatar one number one.
Speaker 4 (46:16):
Know if I fully agree that, because I do think
part of the reason't it made so much money last
time is because there was a tenure gap. I want
to see if people's excitement is out there for Avatar
Fire and ash, but I think both of them will crack.
Speaker 1 (46:28):
I think Avatar will be near the top. I think
Wicked will be near the middle.
Speaker 5 (46:32):
I think the world loves Avatar, and.
Speaker 4 (46:37):
Do love Avatar. International moms, they gotta watch that movie.
Speaker 3 (46:41):
I simply don't see listen to. The music is a
huge part of it, and the music is in English,
and that's just gonna be a barrier internationally, I think. Yeah,
so I don't see Wicked. I see Wicked putting up numbers,
but not like Avatar numbers.
Speaker 10 (46:57):
Yeah. Yeah, Plus they're gonna do the hair sex thing
with the whale or something in the new one.
Speaker 1 (47:01):
So exactly. Thank you for joining us.
Speaker 2 (47:06):
Thank you.
Speaker 3 (47:07):
Let's take a quick break and we'll be right back
to talk candy top.
Speaker 2 (47:25):
And we're back.
Speaker 3 (47:27):
Let's bring in the full compliment, the superproducers to discuss,
you know, really, what it's all about.
Speaker 5 (47:36):
Spooky season.
Speaker 1 (47:37):
That's all we care about.
Speaker 5 (47:38):
It's about the candy.
Speaker 1 (47:39):
Come on, guys, it's about the candies, the delicious caddies.
Speaker 3 (47:42):
Time now to discuss our top three, our winners, our
metal podium of Halloween candies. Let's start with Doctor French himself.
He's been tasting the greatest, and now he has come
(48:04):
here to us about about what what real taste is
like a boo Your top three Halloween candies.
Speaker 10 (48:15):
I think as far as what I would want. First
of all, I want full sized candy bars. I'm not
trying to do any of those many nonsense.
Speaker 3 (48:22):
Bougie good luck, good luck looking neighborhood.
Speaker 10 (48:30):
Look, we're a household that gives a full sized candy.
The rest of the neighborhood's got to keep up with us.
Speaker 9 (48:37):
Look, uh, I'm really basic.
Speaker 10 (48:41):
I'm so sorry. Like, give me a three Musketeers, give
me it, Give me a Hershey bar with audience like
I will be so happy with just the.
Speaker 5 (48:48):
Most basic candy in the world. I'm sorry.
Speaker 3 (48:52):
Chocolate, I'm here in chocolate. You're a chocolate that's all.
Speaker 1 (48:56):
Io. Are you eating? Are you eating a candy one? No?
Speaker 5 (49:00):
Absolutely not? No?
Speaker 10 (49:02):
Okay, good candy corn disgusting?
Speaker 5 (49:05):
Okay, Carmen, your top three Halloween candies?
Speaker 6 (49:10):
Okay, Well, the house that has sour Pouch Kids is
the best house on the got a good start there
after sour Pouch Kids, I would have to say Twizzlers,
not any old Twizzlers.
Speaker 5 (49:24):
I need the ones the pull apart the pull apart.
Speaker 9 (49:27):
I need pull up. Yes, the pull apart ones there, cherry,
those are the best.
Speaker 6 (49:32):
Yes, don't give me those strawberry flavored ships that don't
pull apart.
Speaker 4 (49:37):
Wow, I'm gonna tak you English strawberry laces. It's like
the best version. Okay, I'm excited.
Speaker 6 (49:44):
And then the last thing, this is what actually as
a kid, I remember turning me onto dark chocolate. I
loved when I would get this in my my bag.
The what was it milky way midnight?
Speaker 7 (49:55):
They had like a milky way like midnight.
Speaker 9 (49:59):
Yeah, that's a good that's a good call.
Speaker 2 (50:02):
Is that just started?
Speaker 5 (50:05):
It's a dark yeah, but I remember.
Speaker 1 (50:09):
It's really good if you don't find.
Speaker 3 (50:13):
Yeah, all right, Uh my top three Halloween candies. I
like a texture. I like a crunch. I want I
want interesting textures. This is why I've never been like
a red Vines, Twizzlers, gummy bears, you know, like that
type of guy.
Speaker 5 (50:31):
Excuse me, uh not gummy bears. What's the other one?
Candy corner?
Speaker 3 (50:37):
I've never been like that kind of like hard, weird,
like jelly candy. Okay, so here it is Eminem's peanut
and or regular like a little bag of Eminem's. It's
it's perfect. You're not gonna get all chocolated, that's true.
You know, like you could pour it directly in your mouth.
It's like a perfect product and a perfec. The packaging
(51:01):
experience for Halloween. You can eat some of it and
then fold it up and then drop it back to
your back.
Speaker 5 (51:07):
Number two. It's kind of an M and M knockoff.
I don't give a shit the Reese's Pieces pieces.
Speaker 3 (51:15):
I love peanut butter and chocolate. I love those two
things together. It comes in and basically like a like
a knockoff Eminem kind of styling, and so like I'm
a fan of that, I'm gonna go with the knockoff
Eminem type of styling. I thought about a kit Cat
bar to go full chocolate. I always love to see
a kit Cat. But you know what, I'm gonna go
(51:37):
with gummy bears because in my mind, I would be like,
they're vitamins. It's like I'm taking my vitamins. But they're
delicious and they're cute.
Speaker 5 (51:50):
You know, you can squeeze them.
Speaker 1 (51:51):
They're like eat little head, you know when I was
a kid.
Speaker 2 (51:54):
Yeah, they don't off the heads.
Speaker 5 (51:56):
And write the head off. It's not like a candy
corn where you're like after three or four of them.
It feels like, you know, like.
Speaker 3 (52:03):
Vitamins do it, yeah, doings on this sphace.
Speaker 1 (52:09):
Jack cannot extra vision, so.
Speaker 5 (52:20):
That after dark, I think of a weak jaw. I
don't jaw.
Speaker 3 (52:28):
Yeah, And so that's so those are my I like
these little bike size things where I can moderate how.
Speaker 1 (52:34):
Much I put it in, ease back into a package.
Speaker 3 (52:37):
Yeah. Next up, Joel, top three Halloween candies.
Speaker 11 (52:42):
If we're in a regular ass neighborhood, I want my
favorite candy all time. I love peanut eminems and I'll
take a Snickers either that bitch in the freezer it's.
Speaker 5 (52:57):
Uh and then uh. I know I said regularly, but you.
Speaker 11 (53:01):
Know a Japanese kit cat will do it for me
every time.
Speaker 5 (53:03):
I don't they taste like chalk sticks.
Speaker 11 (53:05):
But if you can get a Japanese kit cat, wow, superior.
If we're in a wealthy ass neighborhood, Champagne gummy bears,
I'll take a I like that. And then there's this
German candy that I don't know what it is. It's
like chocolate with hazel nut and it's in a giant stare.
Speaker 7 (53:26):
I know exactly. It's you need a rider bar.
Speaker 5 (53:32):
You can have anything, like what can I do for you?
Speaker 11 (53:34):
Like, I'm gonna.
Speaker 1 (53:38):
Like whatever.
Speaker 11 (53:43):
Those are my top three, depending on neighborhood.
Speaker 2 (53:47):
Come on, top three Halloween candies. I mean I would
love to go trigger treating in the neighborhood giving.
Speaker 12 (53:51):
Out ritter sports Japanese that growing up look so my
top three Japanese kit cats really quickly so you Potato
Macha's success.
Speaker 2 (54:04):
My top three Halloween candy though they all have to
be small. I want mini size. I want to be
able to eat a bunch of them. I want to
go back and forth. Yeah, fun size. First up, I
want Reese's pumpkins or mini pumpkins. Really any any novelty
shapes about the shape shapes? Yes, the Easter eggs are
good to any shape of Reese's.
Speaker 5 (54:25):
That's not normal.
Speaker 2 (54:25):
It just feels like a treat. Twigs like I would
rather have rather have a Snickers eleven months out of
the year than a TwixT. But give me a little
mini twigs and like the month of silver. And lastly,
mister Good or crackle like the.
Speaker 1 (54:44):
Mister mister Good.
Speaker 2 (54:46):
Mister Good is like.
Speaker 7 (54:48):
A peanut candy.
Speaker 1 (54:53):
Oh, I love it.
Speaker 4 (54:54):
I had one hundred grand for the first time when
I went to the Croft at the Hollywood Forever Cemetery.
Speaker 2 (54:59):
And delicious, very good.
Speaker 5 (55:03):
Okay, Rosie, actually.
Speaker 8 (55:06):
Say, let's go to.
Speaker 9 (55:11):
All of mine have all of might have been said already,
But sour Patch Sour Patch Kids is number one. Okay,
watch just the ultimate candy taste different. Yeah, yeah, they're
all different flavors. This might be controversial, but I think, yeah,
I think it's either lime or orange.
Speaker 2 (55:34):
One of those is not a color from one of them.
Speaker 1 (55:35):
Is a flavor.
Speaker 7 (55:37):
I'm about the red and blue.
Speaker 9 (55:40):
So Sour Patch Kids. It's like my go to movie snack.
I get them every time I go to the movies.
Love it at Halloween TwixT bar it is a classic.
I just love that cookie crunch in the middle of
the candy bar. And then one hundred grand. I feel
like you only really see those at Halloween, just like
the crispies with the caramel, like they're so good. Yeah,
(56:01):
like I really don't see them other times of the year.
And then some honorable mentions like a bunch of crunch.
I think at this point you can only get movies
now too, but.
Speaker 5 (56:10):
Bunch of crunch is so good.
Speaker 9 (56:12):
Oh wait, Okaya, A bunch of crunch is elite.
Speaker 11 (56:14):
That best only movie theater candy, A bunch of crunches
up there, that's a great selection.
Speaker 5 (56:20):
I will go cookie.
Speaker 9 (56:21):
I think it's a bunch of crunch are good too,
but I think I think it for me, it's a
bunch of crunch. And then I'll just throw in my
favorite Japanese kiket flavors too. So so I just came
back that Macha has to be up there, peach.
Speaker 1 (56:35):
And then I just was delicious can compound.
Speaker 9 (56:41):
Very good.
Speaker 3 (56:42):
And finally, Rosie, all right, Rosie, bring us top three
Halloween candies. And I can't wait to learn about the
the candies of your neighbors.
Speaker 1 (56:52):
I'm gonna festival, guys. I gotta tell you.
Speaker 4 (56:54):
There is some really hilarious threads on the internet about
like English people and like it's not called candy, guys. Firstly,
it's called sweets and chocolate. That's at the top of
like every single list.
Speaker 1 (57:07):
Anyone is more.
Speaker 2 (57:08):
I like that though. I like that because if I
want candy, if I ask for candy, I mean chocolate
I don't want.
Speaker 4 (57:13):
Don't give me if I'm gonna ask chocolate controversial, so
I'm gonna go for some of the most classic ones
I remember as a kid. So basically, also, guys gotta
know when you go to England, you go trick or treating,
they're gonna make you do the treat like they're gonna
make you do something.
Speaker 1 (57:29):
They're gonna be like, they're gonna be like you.
Speaker 3 (57:33):
That's that's that's real upstairs down seriously, like.
Speaker 4 (57:39):
They'll be having you out there like you better have
something because also there's not a lot. Yeah, trick or
treating not that popular in the UK, so they're gonna
make you work for it, and then you're gonna go
for we would call it a sweet, you know, sweets
like a gummy or a candy, some of the ones
that they're bringing out and you guys are gonna love this.
What do you know about the tutti fruity?
Speaker 5 (58:03):
Break it down for me.
Speaker 4 (58:04):
Tooty fruities are basically like what would you have if
they what would you get in a kind of like
a gummy that was not made in America. It's got
a little bit more of a kind of like a
(58:24):
gummy with a little maybe a hard.
Speaker 1 (58:27):
Kind of sugar on the outside. Very interesting.
Speaker 4 (58:32):
Not the American style tooty fruits, which are sugar. I
would say, like a kind of hard sugar that's very popular.
We also have that in fruit pastels world most World
War two.
Speaker 1 (58:45):
No, jelly tots is like a little thing. We got
jelly tots for babies. We got two effruies. How about
this fruit pasta.
Speaker 7 (58:52):
They got baby candy.
Speaker 1 (58:53):
They got candies for babies. Definitely jelly you're giving.
Speaker 13 (58:58):
Because you're never, never, Jason, because when I was, jelly
tots are like a it's we would used to call
them jelly babies, and they're like a gummy with powdered
sugar on the outside.
Speaker 4 (59:13):
I hate them, not for me. They kind of got
that candy corn bonda.
Speaker 1 (59:17):
But I will say, yeah, it's kind of like that,
I will. I will also.
Speaker 7 (59:22):
Say that I'm a sucker for dots though.
Speaker 4 (59:24):
This is the peak kind of like English gonna be
in a bag, like prepackaged kind of little bags you
can give out. Another big popular thing there. It's called
a drumstick. It's just a square kind of taffyish lollipop.
Those are pretty good, I would say for if I'm giving,
like actual ones. I would want to get lion Bark
(59:45):
basically English rand curly whirly jelly. It's like almost a
foot long caramel covered in chocolate in like a weird
curly whirly.
Speaker 1 (59:58):
Pat and English caramel delicious.
Speaker 4 (01:00:01):
I would also say a double Decker, which is like
Uga covered in chocolate on top of crispy chewy rice.
So like one hundred grand with like uga. But yes,
very good and they all have hilarious English names, so
enjoy guys, good luck, trick or treating no matter what.
No Cadbury cal Cabrey Egg curly Whurlely is made by Cabrey,
(01:00:21):
so it has the best chocolate. Also, I double decker
also I believe has Cabrey chocolate. I would also say yes,
love a Cabrey's cream egg, though now they are predominantly
made in America sadly because because Cabriy got bought. And yes,
but you can't get them during Halloween either, though sometimes
they do make a weird Halloween one with green inside,
which is kind of gross but fun.
Speaker 1 (01:00:43):
Is milk in the UK.
Speaker 2 (01:00:46):
Milk It is very popular in the UK.
Speaker 4 (01:00:49):
European chocolate, very high quality. You can always buy it
in the airport. It's started to make its way into
British supermarkets alongside your rittter sports. We are blessed with
many incredible europe In gummies and candies as well as
let me do.
Speaker 3 (01:01:03):
A quick quick pull of the of the group while
we have everybody in the County chat group, were any
of y'all in your childhoods? Were any of your all
family is concerned about the needles in chocolate bar.
Speaker 9 (01:01:24):
We hear about it, we hear about.
Speaker 5 (01:01:28):
It, but I never knew anybody that.
Speaker 7 (01:01:30):
It happened to something today.
Speaker 5 (01:01:32):
Even at the.
Speaker 3 (01:01:33):
Time, it seemed to me like this is who the
is doing this? But parents and parents in Undy Road
were very concerned about it.
Speaker 2 (01:01:40):
It was something in Joel's neighborhoods since they were given
out Japanese.
Speaker 11 (01:01:44):
Chick Can I just say also like we had to
drive three neighborhoods over Aaron want candy bars like a
Boo wanted.
Speaker 1 (01:01:52):
Okay, I think that thing in England.
Speaker 4 (01:01:54):
Those were not really the rumors, but that did always
feel to me when I started to learn about it.
Also in movies that always felt like, you know, a
chain letter for adults like when we were kids, it
was you would have send this chain laugh, and adults
were like, maybe someone's putting like a raizor blade. You
know nowadays they say, oh, watch out, somebody might be
giving your kid edibles.
Speaker 1 (01:02:15):
I don't have edible money to give to children like.
Speaker 9 (01:02:19):
Expensive.
Speaker 5 (01:02:22):
Okay.
Speaker 6 (01:02:24):
I was raised by a police officer, so he was
paranoid about everything.
Speaker 5 (01:02:28):
A cabin Did you ever get did you did he
buy evidence?
Speaker 1 (01:02:34):
Common that being a real thing? No? Never, never.
Speaker 3 (01:02:43):
Well, it's been wonderful to have you all here to talk.
Yes tomorrow folks for news. That's it for this episode
will be back tomorrow with the biggest news of the week.
X ray Vision is hosted by Jason steps Young and
Rosie Knight and is a production of iHeart Podcasts.
Speaker 4 (01:03:03):
Our executive producers are Joel Monique and Aaron Kaufman.
Speaker 5 (01:03:07):
Our supervising producer is Abu Zafar.
Speaker 4 (01:03:09):
Our producers are Common Laurent Dean Jonathan and Bay Wag.
Speaker 3 (01:03:13):
Our theme song is by Brian Vasquez, with alternate theme
songs by Aaron Kaufman.
Speaker 4 (01:03:18):
Special thanks to Soul Rubin, Chris Lord, Kenny Goodman and
Heidi Our discord moderator
Hosts And Creators
Jason Concepcion
Rosie Knight
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